Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal Author Quest Read Free Page B

honored, Falavam.” She bowed in return but remained silent.
    At that moment, a parade of Podling servers waddled in from the kitchen. Some carried red or blue pots on their heads; others were hidden behind tall stacks of dishes. One strong Podling held an enormous jar of wine in each hand. The tabletop, which had been bare except for a few cups, was suddenly transformed into a feast fit for the Castle of the Crystal. Dishes and bowls, chalices and cups, knives and spoons, were all placed before the four diners of the mizzenmens. One by one, the jolly servers lifted the lids of the pots and steam flooded out. Kairn had never tried Podling food before, but from a mix of curiosity and good breeding, he accepted everything. Soon his bowls were filled with shimmering soups, his chalice with wine, his plates with turblaroots and vegetables, and his cups with ale and a pale milk.
    Orritch struggled to eat as slowly as he could. It wasn’t natural for him, but he wanted to appear dignified before his distinguished Gelfling guest. “Kairn, tell me about your journey. Where have you been? Where are you going?”
    Kairn straightened in his chair and assumed his soldierly bearing. “I have been on a trine’s journey, traveling all of Thra.”
    Parra almost dropped his soup, which he had been guzzling directly from the bowl. “All of Thra! Where have you been?”
    â€œI visited most of the Gelfling clans. It was the last step in my education as a warrior. I had to learn all of Thra, so I could protect Her. I have slept in the wilderness, spent nights in the desert, and tamed a wild Landstrider.” Kairn paused to enjoy their amazement. “Would you like to hear the story of this scar?” He rolled up his sleeve and pointed to a long scar up his arm. Parra, who had hardly ever left Greggan, was struck dumb and nodded at the visitor. “I was sailing with a band of Sifa Gelfling on the Silver Sea. They were fishermen, but that day, we were out to catch some Thrakars.”
    â€œThrakars? The sea monsters? Those are real?” Parra asked.
    â€œThey’re real, and they’re ferocious!” Kairn answered. Parra shuddered. “They have long, narrow mouths with hidden teeth that don’t appear until their jaws decide to snap. They have hard scales, harder than a boulder in the Valley of Stones, and their whole body is a cold purple. They dwell deep at the bottom of the sea, but when they’re hungry, they come straight to the surface. Through the water, you can see just their angry, yellow eyes coming closer, and closer, and closer, faster, and faster, and faster.”
    Kairn could tell that Parra’s family loved the thrill of vicarious terror. He paused before resuming his story: “A storm came, one of those sudden, terrible storms you’d only find on the Silver Sea. I had climbed to the top of the ship’s mast to free a rope that had been caught, but on my way down, two Thrakars banged hard against the ship, and I flew off the mast. I nearly fell overboard, but I grabbed on to a fishing spear that was hanging over the edge of the ship. I climbed back into the ship and the tip of the spear sliced into my arm on my way up. I spilled a lot of blood in the sea that day, but the Thrakars paid for each drop dearly. It’s okay, Parra, you can touch the scar.”
    Orritch left the table to find the other Podling leaders, pulling them by their arms away from their wives and their tankards of ale. They were all reluctant to sit still during such a great banquet, but Orritch pledged on his ancestors’ souls that they would want to hear what Kairn had to say. The table soon became crowded with the tiny Podling noblemen, joyful and gray.
    â€œTell us another tale from your travels, Kairn,” Orritch pleaded. “Brother Podlings, Kairn just told us about hunting Thrakars with Sifa Gelfling on the Silver Sea.”
    â€œWho are Sifa Gelfling?” one