My father, Gambollark, was a real nature lover. I never knew exactly where he came from, and I don't know where he is now. I wonder if he is still alive?

A night like tonight reminds me of the times Gambollark would take me camping in the woods and fields outside of town. When I was a youngster, he would visit my mother and I from time to time, usually when the moon was full. He would stay for a night or two, and then ask if I wanted to go looking for berries or mushrooms or something (which was a polite excuse to leave for a while and go wandering in the wilderness). I think my mother understood that he needed to wander, and that his perception of time was not exactly the same as a human, so she didn't get upset if we left for berries and didn't return for several days. She only got really mad the first time, since she had gone to the guard and expressed her worry that her child and ``husband were missing. I heard that the guards were laughing and shaking their heads when they found out that her ``husband was an elf of sorts.

Gambollark taught me how to do many things outside, like how to find food and and water, a good place to camp, start a fire with no flint and steel, climb trees and rocks, swim, ride horses, and shoot a bow. He taught me about orcs, how they hate elves and wish that elves and all of their children were dead. I learned elvish games like ``sniff-out-the-orc, ``orc hunt, ``orc archery target, ``orc feather-duster and ``orc-kabob. He also tried to teach me ways to hide from animals and humans, how to avoid hunter's nooses, orc pits, and other hazards to creatures and men, and other strange things that I am only now beginning to understand. Like me, Gambollark seemed very close to the animals; a bear or wolverine would often wander into our campsite at dusk and fall asleep next to him (I certainly understand that one now). Sometimes he even seemed like an animal to me. He told me to always watch them, study their ways, and learn to be like them so that I could live outdoors like they do. Once or twice, when I was asleep by the campfire, I had a strange dream that Gambollark turned into a bear or a wolf and wandered away from the campsite. The strange thing was that I would wake up, and he would be gone. I always thought that he meant to teach me to find my way home by myself, and the funny thing was that I always did, and never got hurt. A couple of times each year, we met a group of elves that were a lot like my father. It was always when we went for an evening walk, just after dusk, when the stars start to come out. I felt strange because Gambollark always knew they were coming and would make me stay back aways down the trail or hide in the grass or behind a tree while he walked up and talked to them. Then he would signal to me to come out and speak with them. I don't know if he was ashamed of me, or afraid for me, or just being polite in an elvish sort of way. Gambollark and the other elves seemed unusually serious, almost frowning (if that is possible) when they were talking. When I was allowed to approach, they seemed the happiest people I have ever met. They talked to me in elvish and told me elvish words and names for things that I didn't know, and a few tricks that my father probably didn't care for like ``hair-flambe, ``smoking-boots, and ``worm-bag.

One time, when I had just turned eleven years old and was about to enter the Darby Middle Academy, we were going to meet some of these elves in a small copse near the river about 10 miles from Darby. The usual serious discussion began, with me waiting a hundred yards or so away. I saw one of the other elves give something to Gambollark, like a small bone or ivory tube. He opened it, and took out a piece of paper. I don't know what was written on that paper, but it caused him to stiffen and become very upset. His skin almost looked like tree bark and his eyes the knots on an ancient Oak. Something was terribly wrong, though to this day I don't know what it is. He walked back and told me that he had to go away with the other elders, that he was going to try to fix something bad that was happening, and that I should be brave, go home, and take care of my mother. He took off a necklace and put it around my neck - mithril with a pendant shaped like a magpie and inlaid with ivory and jet to mimick the magpie's color. He told me it was part of the symbol of a fading family, that it would help me do the things he was teaching me to do, and that I should always wear it. The others brought a strange-looking horse, and Gambollark rode away with them. I never saw him again.

As we now know, or rather discovered several years after the telling of this tale, the forest elf Lord Gambollark is known to the elvish people as Fabranine. Grondle, Nish, and the rest of the merry band of friends from Darby met Fabranine and the forest elves on their quest for ancient advanced ranger spells found in a frozen cave in the frozen glade of Illinar (Spelling here). Illinar is a magical ice that seems capable of existing independent of the surrounding air temperature; to touch it is to suffer incredible pain and severe damage of the flesh due to frost bite. The advanced ranger spells were somehow engraved or magically written in a cave made of Illinar. Learning the lists of spells required that Grondle and Nish touch the magical frozen writing. Nish was able to touch twice and Grondle was able to touch three times before each suffered such incredible wounds that they were thrown into deep unconsciousness.

Most of Fabranine and Grondle's people have been devastated by attacks from orcs and increased evil creatures in the great forests. It was a great disappointment to Grondle that so few remained. He plans to return to the deep forest realm of his half family again when time and duty to Darby and the Fish Friars is finally finished.