The Journey to Northumberland and the Rise of the Undertoads

by Kenneth Mullinix

  ~Chapter 7~

  Noctuid the Black Witch

  For the better part of an hour Louis, faltered and bumbled down the earthen road as far away from the evil Spadefoot as he could get, until his narrow legs could carry him frontward no more. He suddenly stopped in his tracts, looked to the rear once again, then crumbled down upon the ground; down-trodden, he was adrift, and full of shame. Burning tears poured down his face as he began to sob uncontrollably.

  His head lowered.

  His shoulders folded down inwards upon his thin chest.

  His heart was throbbing in his ears.

  A cold sweat covered his boyish body.

  Stumbling off of the road and landing under a large twisted and gnarled tree Louis crawled up into a ball and covered his face with his dirty robe, he sheltered his eyes from the blue moon's light. Louis fell into a confused daydream once again. Hallucinations of his mother with her loving touch upon his face, of smelling her perfume and remembering the softness of her long, lovely hair. Remembrances of his father kissing him goodnight on the cheek and pulling the soft cotton comforter over his chest as he lay down to sleep in his bedroom, on a lone night so long ago. Dreaming of Molly with her broad smile, pearly white teeth and bright red lips brought a smile on Louis's face. She can wear all the lipstick she wants, thought Louis. I don't mind. Mom, dad where are you, how could you leave me alone? How come nobody is trying to find me or help me? Louis balled out again inside of his aloneness.

  He was abandoned.

  He was frightened.

  He was cold.

  He was all alone.

  As his mind played tricks on him, the recent adventures inside of this odd blue world collapsed down upon little Louis, he slowly fell into a bottomless dozy slumber. His pulse rate lower, his breath became shallow and his emotions finally quelled. Tears dried as he unknowingly crawled further up inside of the tree roots that now completely surrounded him. He pulled a few handfuls of dried leaves and mosses over his body, which gave him warmth and comfort.

  In his mind's-eye he was back home again, warm and safe in his bed smelling Hattie May's baking cookies wafting up into his bedroom. Muncy was snoring and tightly snuggled up next to him. The universe was in perfect order once again; no harm would come to him on this day. If it were all only true?

  Being buried in leaves and out of sight, he was safe for the time being. Louis had traveled very deep into the bedeviled forest, where the last odds and ends of any good man could be found, he was in an uncharted area of the wild untamed forest. This area of the woodland and the road that he traveled on now was very ancient, and had been unused since the high-ancient times.

  The forest was thicker, darker and harder to traverse through now. The road below his feet was less groomed and became more limited. The large canopy of trees above blotted out most of the, out of the ordinary unnatural light of the blue moon. Some expected normal light could now be found amongst and intertwined inside of a few watery bogs and swamps that now started to blotch the forest.

  It was a perverted union.

  Dim small flickering flames of burning commonplace methane gases dotted the small swamps and bogs that lined the interior of the forest. The smells of burning sulfur and rotten eggs assaulted any living things senses.

  Strange forest sounds could now be heard about and above where Louis traversed. There were animals...and beast...traveling in the sunshade of branches high up in the trees, out of sight. Beneath the groundcover small rodents could be heard scurrying to and fro. A muffled fight here, a few screams of pain there, the last few gasps of air being taken out of one's lungs over in another area.

  The sounds of the forest now were foreboding and dangerous; the pained and awful sounds awoke Louis from his un-restful sleep. After wiping dried tears and mud off of his face with his dirty hands Louis stirred the dried mosses and leaves off of his robe. Uncovering his head and peaking out into the darkness he surveyed the nighttime about him. Nightfall had come calling once again in this godforsaken place.

  After narrowing his eyesight and his concentration he spotted a bright flame burning off in the distance swamp, on the right side of the road about a hundred yards away. The flaming bogs and swamps were dangerous to venture into and to leave the safety of the solid road even worse, Louis knew this but he needed to find warmth and the security that a large burning flame might have. He would move cautiously forward being careful where he stepped.

  Hopping slowly from exposed rock to exposed rock, from fallen tree to fallen tree Louis made deliberate and measured progress deep into the watery bog. Craning his head while standing on a large log, a clearer view of the dancing flame came into view. Louis could see a rickety old wooden house insecurely perched on four wooden stilts high above the water-filled swamp, and by looking into one lone large window at the front porch, a simmering fireplace with a large black-iron cauldron of bubbling water could now clearly be seen.

  Wanting more than anything to be safe and dry this night Louis headed directly for the house as quickly as he could move across the unstable ground. Maybe a hot bath was in his future sooner than he thought, and what if...who ever lived there...might have a hot meal for him. Moreover hunger and thirst overrode his common sense.

  He was without a doubt not thinking clearly.

  Why would a home be so far out in the middle of a swamp, he thought as he approached the house? With all the animals in this part of the forest, or all the trees that had been fallen along the road a way back this house maybe, it belongs to a fur-trapper...or it's an old lumberjack's house...yeah it's one of those it had to be it, nothing more.

  Approaching the underside of the raised home Louis looked upwards to about six feet. Upon his arrival he could tell it was a much smaller home than he had first thought. Actually it did not look like a real home at all; it looked more like a medium-sized raised hut with a span of about twenty feet wide by twenty feet across. The four stilts that the hut was mysteriously balanced upon looked more like bony chicken legs than wooden posts. There were what appeared to be knotted knees right in the middle, with three-toed-claws at the bottom of each of the four corners of the legs. Thinking this mostly to be out of the ordinary Louis stopped to think a minute, his mind drew a blank at the strange sight.

  Abnormal smells of a cooking fire with a meaty pot of stew cooking above it floated in and out of Louis's nose. The smells were strong, spicy and overpowering all at the same time which only pleased his intense interest that much more.

  Calling out forcefully a few salutations and greetings got Louis nowhere. Looking about he noticed that there was a small wooden box with a drop-down lid tightly wrapped around one of the chicken legs farthest from where Louis was standing. Now thinking that the little box tied up must be some type of doorbell, Louis moved a few steps sideways closer to it, and as he did this the house began to move towards him. Jumping backwards away from the home Louis accidentally planted his rear-end into a large mud hole.

  "Hungry, thirsty, tired, cold, and now I'm as wet as a fish in water" said Louis in disgust.

  Looking upwards again the hut continued to rotate in a counter-clock wise motion towards Louis.

  "Look everything in this world moves opposite to the natural motion of the way things should be, positive is negative, negative is positive."

  As the hut stopped rotating Louis was upon his feet, now with a little wetter and muddier bottom, he reached for the lid of the small box. As he touched the handle it quickly opened for him, looking inside Louis saw a large mouth with a thick, dark, black tongue licking back and forth inside.

  "What a foul looking, repugnant, offensive smelling..."

  Now noticing a few letters on the side of the box, Louis read aloud "Pull the doorbell". Reaching into the drool-filled mouth, Louis flinched and cringed as he fought to grab the slippery, ever-shifty tongue as it licked at his hand. Finally getting a hold it Lou
is pulled as hard as he could, after releasing his grip Louis heard a soul-shaking rooster crow coming from the rooftop of the hut.

  As the front door opened, the little mud-spattered wizard mustered a smile the best he could for whom ever answered his calling this evening. A child of about twelve years old leaned over the top rail at the porch, her hair covered her face as she looked downwards, "May I help you traveler? You look lost and tired, would you like to come in for a hot meal and bath?"

  "You darn well know I would...!" screamed out the excited little boy.

  A rope ladder was lowered to the ground. Louis sprang onto the ladder and out of harm's way, upwards he climbed into the warmth of the dry abode. Upon entering Louis could not fathom who he encounter.

  "Molly it's you! It's really you!" screamed out Louis at the top of his two quacking lungs.

  "Louis...my Louis!" yelled back Molly as she in turn about fell to the floor in excitement.

  Giving Molly the hug of her life, Louis quickly kissed her on the lips without even realizing it. Frantic hugs here and there, joyous shout-outs, more hugs. It was pure pandemonium with a little chaos mixed in.

  Standing back to gaze upon his beautiful Molly, Louis could barely trust his eyes, or his good fortune.

  "My god Molly, I have been traveling all over the place looking for you and Tessie, Short Stack and Chug. What are the odds of me finding you here of all places? I was so worried about all of you, and especially you Molly. How did you get here?"

  "Louis, it is so great to know you are safe and alive. I have been so worried about you as well. You see when we all fell out of the fairy circle down in, through that wormhole, I guess I blacked out. When I awoke, I was here in this black, horrid forest covered in mud, wet and cold. I saw a fire-light and a home, all I could think of was safety and shelter, so I ran as fast as I could to get here. There were these awful animals sounds in the forest, I think there were jumping rats, and I know how much you hate jumping rats, oh Louis I was so afraid..."

  Molly gave Louis another long heartfelt hug when she began to notice just how cold and dirty he really was.

  "You're all wet you must be so cold and hungry. Let's get you out of these clothes and get you into a hot, soothing bath then you can tell me all about where you have been, how you found me, and most important of all, have you seen or heard anything about our other missing friends.

  Stepping backwards away from Molly, Louis looked about the room with a questioning eye. A small kitchen filled with pots and pans was un-neatly perched in one corner. A small pot of stew was cooking over an open fire. Many pans and pots dangled from the ceiling above.

  Scanning about in another direction, Louis spotted an old wooden roll-top desktop filled with strange looking liquid filled bottles, flasks, flagons, jugs and bud vases. Some were boiling under a controlled flame much like a high school science experiment might look.

  There was a splattering of dingy looking furniture strewn about haphazardly; a small dirty couch and a few well-worn chairs over there, a coffee-table with a broken leg, cracked mirrors on the walls and floor, and a broken wall-clock. Not quite a very comfortable looking home thought Louis. One area of the small hut was divided by a cloth divider hanging down off of the ceiling, down to the floor.

  "How about that bath Louie?" asked Molly as Louis began to walk towards the cloth barrier.

  "Molly what's behind there?"

  "Nothing Louis, now get out of your wet clothes and let's get you cleaned up?" asked Molly as she hurriedly redirected Louis back towards the center of the hut. As Louis began to change direction he suddenly felt a little more tired and cold. He slowly began to undress.

  "After a long peaceful bath, I can get you a bowl of that hot, delicious rabbit stew, it is right over there. I've been cooking it for over five days now."

  Thinking that a peculiar thing to say, Louis did not yet understand the mistaken words Molly just spoke. He was so very tired, and chilly. Throwing off his dirty wizard robe and wizard hat, mud-covered shoes, undershirt and trousers, the tired little boy stood in front of Molly in his underwear, showing his lean chest and weary body. As his robe hit the floor the adder stone rolled out of one pocket, coming to a stop by the cracked mirror lying against a back wall.

  Now standing over the pot of rabbit stew while she stirred it Louis thought that Molly appeared to look older than she really was. She showed more sloped shoulders, and had an unsteady way of walking. Louis believed his eyes were playing a trick on him for a moment; he was after all so very tired and cold. Molly stirred the fire under the rabbit stew with a renewed interest as she turned to face Louis. She rubbed her hands together in a strange excited fashion.

  "Now climb in the cooking pot...er...ah...my fault...a slip of the tongue...I mean...the bath Louis and be careful not to spill hot water on the floor it irritates the foundation legs."

  "Molly I am on edge enough as it is, and there you go making jokes again, a cooking pot that is not funny, and you are telling me the house...the foundation...what..." said a not very pleased Louis.

  The water to Louis was found to be not too hot yet, and a very comfortable temperature. Molly took a large ladle and began to sift through the warming water. The larger pieces of mud and other fragments of sticks, leaves and wild grass that were attached to Louis's skin began to melt away.

  Working methodically and with good organization Molly went about scrubbing Louis down and preparing him to her liking. You have such nice skin Louis, soft and delicious looking...ops there I go again with the jokes..." said the entranced Molly as more and more of Louis skin became exposed.

  "Molly that is two dumb, and not so funny jokes at my expense, this is really no time to be joking around. We are in a lot of trouble here. How are we going to get out of this mess, and where are Tessie, Chug and Short Stack? I am so unbelievably lucky to have stumbled upon you here in the horrible place, and what do you mean you have been here for five days cooking rabbit stew?

  "Just relax Louis you are always worrying, all the time. Why is it always me? Why is it always me? That's all you ever think about, and of course yourself. You take this hot bath, get a bite to eat and we can catch up on everything in a bit, and about me being here five days, I just meant it felt like I have been here for five days. I lost count as you could surely have yourself."

  The water began to warm as Molly stoked the fire underneath the little wizard, placing a few more logs of wood underneath the cooking pot. As the water warmed Louis became more relaxed but was still confused, something just did not feel right to him, he could not place his finger on it but his mind was still wrapped in confusion about so much.

  As Louis closed one eye, Molly grabbed a few handfuls of spices and herbs; she carefully began to throw them into the simmering water surrounding Louis.

  "Boy that rabbit stew sure smells great Molly, those herbs and spices smell like they are all around me, it's really right under my nose...yeah...my...nose...ah..." said Louis as he just about became overwhelmed by the cursed sweet smells.

  Falling into a semi-dream-state, the tired little boys life-light was just about to expire and be lost forever, and Molly knew this. Molly began to dance about the witches hut with free and unfettered jubilation. She tossed a few more handfuls of spices into the cooking pot full of Louis stew, as she began to incite the final death spell.

  "Noctuid, Noctuid she dances tonight

  all good children should run from sight

  Spices, and herbs add to the delight

  we eat no rabbit stew tonight

  Slowly poached boiled, or stewed

  little children are on the menu soon

  because this is a cauldron of witches brew

  One child poached and two more to stew

  Noctuid, Noctuid dance in delight

  thy belly will be full by the dawn's new light

  Cracking one sleepy, spellbound eye, Louis caugh
t sight of the adder stone as it now glowed blue in front of the cracked mirror leaning against the nearby wall. Seeing though the center of the stone as it reflected in the mirror, horror and disgust overtook his cluttered and confused mind.

  Molly was not Molly at all!

  Louis had been betrayed and tricked!

  "It's a witches mask" said the slow stirring Louis "Broomstick was correct an adder stone can reveal a witch in disguise."

  The face now revealed in the mirror was that of a tumbledown, extremely old lady covered with warts and growths on her craggily face, the hair was grayed and tangled hanging slipshod and disorganized about the shoulders, the nose was long and twisted to one side, and her teeth were cracked and as broken as her mind.

  "Molly let me get you some more herbs for the rabbit stew" said Louis as he tried to right himself inside of the cooking pot.

  "No Louis stay put, the water is almost to a boil now. The smells of the herbs in the water will sooth your mind and body" stated Noctuid the Black Witch as she began to flail her arms about inside the beginnings of another fanatical witch-dance. More rapt, polluted, dark and evil words flowed over her lips, aimed squarely at Louis in a last chance effort to keep him numb and deadened.

  Louis staggered to his feet inside of the simmering cauldron...then without ceremony...he accidentally belly-flopped towards the center of the room. Landing on the hardwood floor he let out a loud gasp of pain. Kicking backwards as he exited the water the large pot tumbled over spilling the entire Louis stew on the floor around him. Louis rolled over the cloth divider ripping it from the ceiling, thus exposing what lay behind it.

  As the hot water began to quickly seep through the large cracks in the wooden floor and towards the chicken leg stilts at the corners of

  the hut, the place began to shake and shimmy back and forth like a jellyfish assaulted by a jackhammer. Looking straightaway ahead Louis found what he truly had been looking for all along. Molly Jenkins and Tessie Whitman had been gagged, hogtied and were cloth bound inside of a small wooden cage. The look on their eyes said it all. Regaining his nimble mind, quick footing, and determination, solutions entered his ever-clearing mind.

  Quickly grabbing the adder stone nearby Louis spun about once artfully dodging the now fully exposed, wrinkled and outstretched hands of the evil black witch.

  "Molly, Tessie lay flat!" screamed out Louis as he once again ducked under the reaching fingers of the vile creature.

  The now flying adder stone smashed the wooden cage to pieces, sending shards of sharp wood into the nearby walls and floor. A large piece of wayward wood slammed into Noctuid's chest, knocking the wind out of her, thus ending the evil spells she tried to spew forth. She was thrown backwards towards the far side of the hut into the kitchen. She came to rest next to the pot of rabbit stew. This fully loosened the horrid grip she had on all three of the young children's minds.

  Promptly grabbing a large kitchen knife off of the kitchen countertop Louis frantically cut Molly and Tessie free. As the rickety old hut still shook about from side to side, Louis headed directly towards the pot of rabbit stew and the faltering witch. He slammed his foot into the side of the pot; it crashed into the wall nearby sending boiling hot water cascading over Noctuid and her witch mask. The pain was overwhelming. She cried out in anguish and torment. She ripped at the witch mask pulling it off her face. The entire horror of her appearance now became visible to all three of the children. Molly began to cry as Tessie screamed out in horror.

  "Run towards the door, and get down that robe ladder!" bellowed out Louis as he grabbed his clothes off of the couch.

  "Behind you Louis, watch out!" screamed out Molly as she and Tessie crawled towards their freedom.

  "She's after you again" called out Tessie.

  Large watery boils and red welts began to rise off of the witches face, arms and hands where the boiling water had splashed upon her only moments before. The black pupils in her eyes dilated as the searing pain shot into her mind. Her true age could now be seen since the witches mask and spells on the children had been removed. She was hunchbacked, frail and raggedy-looking. Her fingernails were long and curled up in circles at the tips of her fingers.

  She lunged for Louis once again as the whole hut shook forcefully once more, but this time even more fiercely than before. This knocked both Louis and Noctuid off their feet.

  Molly and Tessie had finally made it to safety down the rope-ladder and out into the fire-bogs again. Looking toward the back towards the raised hut both shuddered at the thought of Louis fighting the witch inside all alone.

  "We have to go back in and help him Molly..." cried out Tessie.

  "No we both know Louis. He can take care of himself...this is our Louis after all..."

  "I know that is what worries me Tessie" said a worried Molly as she wrapped her arms around the concerned Tessie.

  Louis was first up and back on his feet, not knowing why, Louis snatched the witches mask, then he headed for the adder stone, securing both back into his wizard robe he scrambled towards the open front door. Flying down the exit, his shoes found salvation back on the soggy ground below the front porch and in front of the doorbell once again.

  Being full of revenge and anger Louis slammed his fist down the throat of the doorbell. The black tongue recoiled in pain, the mouth tried to close around Louis's wrist. Upon smashing the adder stone...now held in his other hand...down upon the wooden box, it shattered into a thousand pieces. The black rooster on the rooftop took off in flight, squawking loudly.

  Noctuid was now leaning over the upper handrails of the porch, soon to try to make her way down the rope-ladder. Another forceful kick by Louis sealed his fate for good from the deathly grip and spellbound words of Noctuid the Black Witch. A well placed kick upon the knee of one of the chicken legs at the corner of the hut sent the whole shaky hut on the run away as fast as it could go, deeper into the godforsaken swampland, and as far away from Louis the Wizard as possible.

  As fast as Louis could go he followed Molly and Tessie's footsteps out of the swamp and as far away from the Black Witch as he could get, knowing all the while that a pot of Louis stew was almost served to the evil witch of Bramble Forest in the heart of Northumberland.