Tex stood beside a fern on the edge of the clearing. Rising above the trees on the opposite side, the mountain stood black against the evening sky.

  There must have been 50 savages crowding around the bonfire, gesticulating, grunting, and arguing. A mood of expectation, even festivity, hung in the air.

  But the jostling and grunting suddenly died away, and the crowd parted to make way for two figures. Tex recognized them as the two that had carved up Ajay.

  He got a good look at them as they walked into the light of the bonfire. The soothsayer was a figure of authority. He stood taller than all the others, and he carried a staff that was topped with a strange black stone, which seemed to darken the surrounding air.

  Holding up this staff, he shouted at the crowd, and they rushed back, tripping over themselves to make way.

  A witch doctor, Tex thought. The shorter, younger one who accompanied him must have been his apprentice.

  Stabbing the butt-end of his staff into the dirt, he dragged a circle into the ground — about six feet in diameter. Then he reached into a pouch that was girdled to his waist, grabbed a handful of something — perhaps ashes or sand — and sprinkled it inside the circle.

  After covering the entire area of the circle, he walked around it, tapping his staff on the ground and droning a litany. The savages watched with a solemn air, speaking in hushed voices.

  He’s preparing for something… Maybe they’re gonna barbecue Ajay and eat him. I wonder if they’ll get high from all the meth in his blood.

  After several minutes of the ceremony, the witch doctor raised his staff towards the dark sky and walked away from the bonfire.

  The murmur of the crowd grew louder. The witch doctor marched into the forest, followed by his apprentice.

  The men immediately started shouting and jostling with apparent expectation. They whooped, shoved each other, jumped up and down, and smashed their clubs into the dirt.

  Then, a muffled noise came from the forest.

  It was a woman’s cry.

  Chapter four

  THE GIRL’S CRY sent the men into a frenzy. They thrust their clubs into the air, yelling and screaming.

  The witch doctor and his apprentice emerged from the trees, dragging two female captives by the arms. A broad-shouldered savage stepped forward, raised his club, and bellowed, “Kdar Tol!”

  In response, all the savages thrust their weapons into the air and thundered as one: “KDAR TOL!”

  One of the women fainted in terror, but the witch doctor caught her and kept dragging her along. The savages crowded around and broke into a chant.

  “KDAR TOL! KDAR TOL! KDAR TOL!”

  But the witch doctor brandished his staff and screamed at them. They flinched like beaten dogs and rapidly backed away, opening up a large space between themselves and the bonfire.

  Getting a better look at the women, Tex saw they were extremely beautiful — but they had one very strange feature. Their ears came to a long point at the top, in a way that was decidedly uncharacteristic of humans.

  “Elves,” Tex whispered. “That’s why they’re so goddamn beautiful.”

  His opinion of the place suddenly changed.

  This world can’t be all that bad if it produces creatures like these.

  One of the pair was a petite platinum blonde with a young face and delicate features. Her eyes were wide with horror, and her chest heaved rapidly, almost to the point of hyperventilation. It was she who had fainted.

  Her face was sweet and innocent.

  “She’s a fucking angel,” Tex muttered, gritting his teeth with rage.

  The other was also exquisitely beautiful, with equally fine features, but she seemed a little more robust. She was taller and had the body of an Olympic pole vaulter, with blondish-red hair tumbling over her statuesque shoulders.

  Her skimpy clothing was made from what looked like leopard hide.

  Triangle patches of this hide sort of covered her bountiful breasts, which spilled out on the bottoms and the sides. A leather band ran around her waist, and a rectangle strip of leopard hide hung over the space between her naked hips.

  The petite one wore the same outfit, but it did a better job of covering her small, perky breasts.

  The elves were forced to stand inside the circle. The taller one protectively threw her arms around her petite friend.

  The witch doctor smiled vindictively and raised his staff towards them, waving it back and forth. A shadowy substance seeped out of the glassy stone, curling in the air like a black fog.

  The elves shuddered, and the petite one fainted again in her friend’s arms. But the magic staff also worked on the pole vaulter. Her knees buckled. She let out a whimper, and the little elf slipped out of her arms and slumped onto the ground.

  The witch doctor put his hand on the taller elf’s shoulder and shoved her to the ground. The crowd grunted and jeered impatiently.

  Then he turned to the crowd and looked around importantly for a few moments. Finally, he raised his staff and nodded.

  A tall savage with an abnormally large forehead stepped forward. Perhaps he was a leader.

  He’d twisted his animal skin to the side so that his cock was sticking out. He jerked himself off and leered at the helpless women.

  Tex noticed many other savages also had their dicks out and were similarly stroking themselves.

  By now, he was boiling with anger.

  He was going to intervene, of course. There was no question about that. But it wasn’t clear how one man was going to seize two girls from the clutches of 50 bloodthirsty troglodytes.

  As far as he could tell, shock and awe would be the best bet. It was highly doubtful these trogs had ever seen a gun. Tex needed to take full advantage of this.

  Wiping sweat from his forehead, he stepped towards the clearing, his heart pounding. But just as he was about to stride out of the shadows, he heard the tread of feet through the bushes.

  Turning, he almost collided with a savage.

  The brute grunted in surprise. He looked at Tex with a gaping mouth and a deeply furrowed brow. Tex could almost see his brain working laboriously.

  Why did he hesitate?

  There was no equivocation on Tex’s part. He instantly bludgeoned the savage in the face with the butt of his rifle, destroying his nose and killing him on the spot.

  Tex strode into the clearing just as the savage with the oversized forehead lunged to his knees and grabbed the petite elf by her ankles. He dragged her limp body towards himself as the men erupted with jeering and shouting.

  Aiming through his scope, Tex targeted the witch doctor, who was starkly silhouetted against the red flames.

  Two shots split the air and resounded through the forest. Birds scattered from the trees and flapped away in a frenzy. The witch doctor dropped to his knees with two holes in his chest.

  He crashed onto the ground.

  The apprentice snatched the staff and frantically pried it from the witch doctor’s dead hand, apparently horrified that it had been profaned by the dirt.

  Meanwhile, the savages scrambled back from the witch doctor’s corpse. Many of them anxiously gazed at the sky as if they thought the medicine man had been struck by lightning. The enormous forehead angrily stood up and looked around the clearing.

  Before he had time to spot the strange figure standing on the edge of the clearing, his brain exploded from the back of his head.

  As the shot echoed in the distance, the savages hooted and screamed, scrambling away from the fire.

  Their leader staggered backwards and tumbled into the flames, sending up crackling sparks and black smoke.

  Immediately after pulling the trigger, Tex aimed at the apprentice, who stood rooted to the ground, immersed in reciting some incantation.

  Two more shots cracked across the clearing. Red mist exploded from the apprentice as his body convulsed. The staff fell onto the dirt again.

  The stronger elf threw herself over her little friend, who was awake and trembling. A storm of frenzy broke out among the savages. Their eyes stared unblinkingly. They screamed and hooted, chimp-like, jumping around and brandishing clubs or daggers carved from bone.

  A few of them crept up to the witch doctor’s staff and gazed at it in distress. One stooped to pick it up, but rapidly withdrew. As intolerable as it was to see the sacred staff profaned by the dirt, it was apparently equally unthinkable to besmirch it with their fingers.

  Tex thrust his rifle into the air and attempted a Mel Gibson impression, screaming like a madman as he strode into the clearing.

  Some savages scrambled out of his way. Others raised their spears and clubs, grunting their harsh tones. But they backed off as Tex walked closer, aiming this way and that with his rifle.

  They looked at the unusual object with intense curiosity. Whenever Tex pointed at one of them, a look of dread passed over the savage’s face, as if he understood that the finger of death was pointing at him.

  They clearly had no notion of how it worked, though.

  Almost to a man, they reacted by covering their heads and stooping their shoulders, glancing at the sky as if they expected the strike to come from above.

  But the most remarkable thing about their behavior was that they looked at him as if they’d been expecting him. Their eyes seemed to say, “So, this is him!”

  Some of them immediately adopted an air of resignation, but many others seemed skeptical. They sneered at Tex and bristled with outrage at the killing of their holy man. These ones formed a wall in front of the elves.

  “Get outta the way!” Tex roared.

  A few stirred, but most of the faces in the crowd showed a grim, fanatical resolve. One stout fellow stepped forward, matted gray hair swaying on either side of his scarred face.

  He shook his spear. “Lam-gagh, lam-gagh,” he shouted, evidently addressing his fellow savages. “Slemgagh. KDAR TOL!”

  It wasn’t hard to figure out that this was a battle cry.

  Another gunshot split the air, and the brute’s brains splattered out the back of his head, making a mess of the guys standing behind him.

  Two more gunshots rang out in quick succession, and another enormous brute fell to the ground as blood-splattered faces watched in amazement.

  Tex did another Mel Gibson, thrusting his rifle above his head and screaming violently. The savages parted, some more reluctantly than others, and Tex could see the elf girls huddled together on the ground.

  Two ferocious savages stood over them, glaring at Tex.

  He strode towards the bonfire. The sickly sweet smell of burning flesh was almost overwhelming. Keeping his rifle at the ready, he glanced at all the ugly faces. Each step he took towards the bonfire agitated them further.

  He noticed their eyes darting down to the ground where the staff lay, its black stone glinting in the dust.

  “Oh, that’s what you’re worried about, is it?”

  He nudged the staff with his shoe.

  Some savages groaned and pulled their hair, backing away. Others gritted their teeth and seemed on the verge of attacking.

  A few bold-looking ones inched closer, twitching with anticipation and eyeing the staff. They wanted someone to take it up and wield its power, but none dared to touch it.

  Was there actually some kind of enchantment in it? Did magic exist in this world? Maybe. Just about anything seemed possible at this point.

  The oily barbecue smell of the leader’s roasting corpse filled Tex’s nostrils, making his head spin. It was becoming intolerable.

  With a growl, Tex impulsively stooped and snatched the staff in his left hand, holding it above his head.

  “Is this what you want?”

  The savages gaped at him as if he was holding a live grenade. A great commotion ran through the crowd. Some of them jeered at Tex, their eyes glinting vindictively. Surely this impudent wizard had overstepped too many boundaries; now the consequences would rain down on him from the skies.

  Tex could see that was what they were thinking.

  He casually tossed the staff into the fire and turned his rifle’s setting to “auto,” just in case he needed to spray and pray.

  But the savages mostly only stood frozen in horror. Some stared at the fire, their mouths agape. A few ran to the trees as if to take cover.

  Tex stepped towards the elves, who were huddled together in the ceremonial circle. All the savages had backed well away now.

  The petite elf, sitting on the ground beside her friend, wept in despair, never daring to raise her head. But the pole vaulter returned Tex’s gaze.

  He was worried she’d be terrified of him, but her eyes glimmered with hope.

  Tex motioned with his head.

  “Come on.”

  The elf’s eyes widened. She pressed her palms on the ground as if to get up, but hesitated. She gave Tex a questioning look.

  “Yeah,” he said, trying to sound friendly, but his voice grated after all the screaming. “Come with me. I’m gonna get you out of here.”

  The red-headed elf touched her friend’s shoulders and whispered in her ear. The little elf nodded and looked up at Tex. Her eyes were heart-meltingly trustful and sweet.

  It’ll all be worth it, Tex thought. If I can save her… and make her smile again, it’ll all be worth it.

  Pole vaulter elf helped her friend up while Tex kept his rifle trained on the savages. Each one flinched when Tex looked at him. Some bowed their heads, others threw their weapons onto the ground.

  Shock and awe. I guess it worked, Tex thought, relieved that he didn’t need to use any more bullets.

  He was going to need them.

  Chapter five

  THE TROGS WATCHED fearfully as Tex strode across the clearing towards the dark mountain, the elf girls following him like lost puppies.

  Stopping beside a torch, he yanked it out of the dirt and handed it to the redhead.

  “Here. Carry this.”

  She readily took it, eager to help. Raising his rifle, he headed towards the night-darkened trail, but stopped to take one last look at the savages. Some had gathered around the fire, apparently trying to salvage the staff. Others watched him flinchingly.

  Their surrender was abject. It had gone far better than he’d hoped.

  The redhead batted her eyes at him and flicked her hair like a ring girl looking at a fighter who just made a spectacular knock-out.

  Tex’s mind soared as they walked into the dark forest. His head buzzed with the thrill of his spectacular victory, not to mention the two sexy young elves who followed him submissively, apparently willing to go wherever he led them.

  It was intoxicating.

  But something unsettling occurred to him. Just like with the savages, the elves did not seem entirely surprised by his arrival. It was almost as if they’d been expecting him.

  But this was just a passing misgiving. His head was swimming too much to think anything through properly. Besides, he suddenly noticed how exhausted and sore he was. It was impossible to take a full breath without receiving a stabbing pain in his ribs.

  He scrutinized the trail and the surrounding trees as far as the flickering torchlight allowed. The way to the cave was not obvious, even though he got glimpses of the mountain looming beyond the trees. Everything looked different in the dark, and it was hard to be sure if he was on the same trail as before.

  The redhead walked just behind him, carrying the torch. To Tex’s surprise, she and her friend both seemed more at ease in the forest, and it wasn’t just because they’d left their captors behind. They seemed at home there, treading as gracefully and silently as deer.

  Speaking of which, their shoes look like deerskin leather.

  They did remind him of some nimble and dainty forest animal. Their big eyes looked around with keen alertness, despite the darkness.

  I guess it makes sense. Elves are supposed to have superior senses to humans.

  According to earth lore, at least. Tex wondered if it applied to this world.

  Suddenly, they came upon a small clearing.

  “I think this is it!” Tex said.

  He led the elves across the mossy ground, and the torchlight revealed the entrance to the cave.

  “We’ll stay there for the night,” he said, pointing.

  He remembered the reason he’d planned on returning to the cave: to investigate the hole he’d fallen through. But he didn’t care so much about that with the two elf beauties beside him.

  Come to think of it, maybe he didn’t even want to go back.

  Suppose it had happened differently. Instead of accidentally falling through the portal, a god or demon appeared in his bedroom and offered him the choice of visiting another world populated by hot elves and fantastic beasts.

  He was certain he would have taken it.

  I would have brought a lot more ammo, though, he thought wryly.

  They walked over to the watery rocks that led up to the cave mouth. The redhead raised the torch and gazed up at the cave, her friend standing at her arm.

  Tex was again awestruck by her beauty. High cheekbones, large blue eyes, soft milky cheeks, and full red lips that curled up slightly in the corners. The light-red fringe of her hair was forever falling in her face so that she often tossed her head to fling it aside.

  This mannerism, combined with her ethereal beauty, gave her a haughty air. With her pole vaulter’s body on display under the skimpy animal skin clothes, she’d easily make Earthmen suffer just by walking down a street.

  And yet, when she returned Tex’s gaze, her expression softened and her eyelids fluttered with shyness. Then she spoke in a lilting tongue.

  The language flowed elegantly and charmingly, like water trickling in a brook. Her voice was sweet and smooth.

  As she spoke, the petite elf stood beside her attentively, gazing up at Tex with her big green eyes. She was just as beautiful, but even paler and finer, with snow-white skin and preternaturally soft blonde hair that tumbled over her bare shoulders and back.

  Her skin looked unbelievably soft — as if it had forever been protected from sun and air by heavy robes, and only now the robes had been stripped away.