Lost Souls
Welcome to another adventure from the Thousand Acre Woods deep within Trollheim of the NJ Pine Belt! Tales Chronicled by Jonathan Hulton... That's me! Today's tale, we go looking for Karl who got lost after a debauched night.
There once was a loud earthquake within the Thousand Acre Woods. Many thought that the Drummer was angry. That is what the Nattrolls and Swedes in the Pines call Thor the thunderer. I went to Trollheim to ask what happened, and I had seen Gramps with cotton all over his face.
"Did you hear that loud boom today?" I asked. "What was it?"
"I dropped my coat down the Forked River Mountains."
"How could it make such a noise shaking the earth?"
"I was in it—Helgi put so much cotton on my cheek to stop the bleeding that Angrboda asked if I was going to grow barley on the other side."
"Ouch; where are you off to know?"
"I'm off to look for Karl; he got lost last night leaving Cedar Bridge Tavern—he tied one on last night."
"I'll help," I offered; "where should we start?"
"We can pick up the Tuckerton Stage Road at the bottom of Halfmoon Hill—did I ever tell you how it got its name?" He didn't even wait for me to tell him he has a million times already. "See, I got drunk one night with Karl and while coming home I saw Fossegrim strutting about—well, I went to moon that braggart; what would you know I was so drunk that I fell forward in half with my ahrse hanging out right before sunrise. It froze with my head in a crater caused from the fall—it took me two days to dig my way from under all the sand that built over me during the Great Sandstorm of 1696."
I zoned out and watched a bluebird fly by.
"Boy, are you listening!" Gramps roared.
"Yes, Sandstorm…"
"Karl laughed for half a day, rolling in front of me. He created the headlands for the Danvenport Branch after his elbow dug so deep to hit the spring there. You believe he just left me…"
"So, should we cut the corner on Jones Road and stop for some water at the old general's house at the end of Dover Road?"
"Sure, you can get some water; I'm bringing some of Bjorn's mead—hair of the dog and all…"
So we travelled on past Twenty One Lakes. The Great Horned Serpent raised his head, but dove quickly.
He might like to play tricks on Bjorn, but the first time he tried it with Gramps, Gramps just tied his neck into a knot. The second time, before he could escape, Gramps wore him as a next tie for a full moon. We continued on straight on the stage road when we got to that crossroads.
There we picked up Sammy Buck. He was traveling to the bridge next to the old General Howe's house to have Fossegrim tune his violin. He had three pigs from around the woods of the Forked River Mountains and some mutton to pay for his Thursday lesson. I got off Gramps' shoulder and rode with Sammy.
"Did you see Karl after you were playing at the tavern last night?" asked Gramps.
"I think he left with a nixie he met on the bridge outside of the tavern," answered Sammy, rubbing his chin. "I think he drank the place dry again…" Trolls can drink up a lake depending on how large they grow before they pass out, or how high the roof is…
When we got to the bridge just after Dover Road, me and Sammy got down. Fossegrim took one look at Gramps and started laughing. Some jokes never get too old—even after two hundred years.
Gramps muttered under his breath as he lifted me onto his shoulder as we heard Sammy begin In the Hall of the Mountain King drifting into the distance.
We just made it to the bottom of the Forked River Mountains, near the boulder the Jotunn Olaf threw, trying to hit the church bells in Whiting. He threw it too high to get over the hills and it fell short on the Stage Road. There we bumped into Mrs. Clevenger coming back from selling the tavern some witch bottles. "Where are you off to, you two?"
"Gramps lost Karl at the tavern last night."
Then Gramps started laughing out of joy.
"Why are you so happy?" she asked. "I thought he was your good friend. Why did you leave him?"
"I'm happy because if I stayed with him, I would have been lost too, and it is hard enough to find him on his own. Imagine if we had to find me too."
If you like this tale, hit the share button below or just even tell your friend the old fashion way, with your mouth. Come back next week for our next tale.
We just released our first collection of Trollheim stories in print. It is available on this website at www.salemhousepress.com and Barnes & Noble. Pick up your copy today, pretty please with sugar on top...
Fiction/ Illustrated Fantasy/ Mythology / Scandinavian Myth/ Norse Sagas / Scandinavian Folk Lore / Coffee Table Book
Paperback: $45 | Hardcover: $65 | PDF eBook $5
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Following the Harry N. Abrams, Inc. tradition of the series that created Brian Froud's and Alan Lee's Faeries and Gnomes by Wil Huygen and Rien Poortvliet, we present you with what would have been the next book in the series: Trolls: A Compendium. Trolls—do you think you know what they are? Could you be wrong?
Trolls within Scandinavian lore, myth, saga, fantasy, and folktales are actually anything magical within our northern neighbor's culture. Richly illustrated in this volume are the tales of faeries, dwarves, nissen, huldras, gods, Jotuns, draugar, ghosts, and more. Also, this book introduces our readers to the world of Trollheim, populated by Nattrolls that escaped the 17th-century Swedish colony within the New Jersey Pine Barrens. Narrated by Christopher Jonathan Hulton, who lives in the Thousand Acre Woods just after the Civil War, their tales are filled with Native American lore and tales of their neighbor, the Jersey Devil.
Preview: Google Books
Hardcover: $65.00
PDF (non-flowable, best on tablet, desktop, or laptop) eBook: Download a copy onto your device today! Only $5.00
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