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Many days had passed since Patz was rescued and the unlikely union was formed.

The further from home the boys ventured, the gladder Patz felt about the company of his fellow Flizers, even if one of them was Klatz. Other than throwing each other suspicious looks, worst of which Klatz reserved for Patz, the boys were too preoccupied with watching their every step to be arguing. Mostly, they left the bickering for the time before and after sleep.

Klatz made no secret about in how much of a low esteem he held Patz. And Patz could not blame him then deep down he knew that Klatz was right. His father appeared more tired and weak than usual and Patz choose not to see it. The seeds of guild had been planted firmly and were growing stronger with every passing day. Patz regretted not having followed Zatz's advice and disclosing his feeling for the girl sooner. At least he would have known now for certain how Ziya felt about him and it would have made the guilty feeling slightly more bearable.

The opportunities were wasted and for all Patz knew he could be on a pointless journey risking his life and that of his true and good-hearted friend Zatz. Zatz, who loved their Flizer forest and their quiet lives there more than anything and who had little interest for the strange and mysterious lands beyond the Flizer borders. Who could blame him? Nothing good ever came for Flizers from the outside. Zatz humoured his friend whenever Patz phantasized about heroic adventures and glory. But going on an actual adventure one day? Zatz could think of a thousand better things to do. Yet here he was. And he was doing it all for Patz, his best friend. Patz could not think of anyone else he would have preferred to go with on this quest, yet he worried about the dangers that awated them and fearfully pictured the many ways that Zatz could get hurt. And there were times Patz wished he had chosen differently. Yet, the choice had been made and there was no way back.

Patz wished they could walk faster as every day that they slowly crept through the swamp, meant that Ziya spend another day in the clutches of the evil Aleutans. Yet, the swamp grew more and more traitorous, making it impossible for the gallant saviour to move faster. Every step had to be carefully placed, groping for solid footing in the muddy ground.

Only now and then, when they stopped to rest, Patz allowed himself to look up at the point in the sky where behind the clouds the hot sun hid. The heavy, ghostly clouds promised rainfall any day now. But there was no end to the Swamp of Zurak. Their meager supplies had run out days ago and they had to rely on swamp tulips for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The tulips tasted awfully. Not at all to a Flizer's liking. At first, Zatz refused to get anywhere near them, but after spending half a day walking on an empty stomach, a change of heart came about him.

"Not bad. Not bad at all. Almost like an onion," Patz heard his friend mumble.

Patz knew that the taste was far from the deliciousness of an onion, but seeing his friend chewing on a tulip which much enthusiasm, he only shook his head. After a while though, Zatz seemed to be the only one who was not tired of the swamp tulips.

The monotony of the food and their surroundings, weighed heavily on the mood of the travellers. There seemed to be no end to the muddy ground and its traps. Everywhere they looked and as far as their eyes could see, it stretched out in all directions. And now the prospect of heavy rains became an additional worry for them.

They were exhausted, yet they knew that now was not the time to rest. Not even to complain, if they wanted to get out of the swumps before the water levels rose and they are no longer able to recognize small patches of safe ground to step on. And so meekly they picked up the pace and pushed ahead.

When the day began winding down and clouds above turned darker and darker, there was still no end to the swamp. Any hope they had to get out before rainfall abandoned them for good. For the first time there was no bickering heard while they readied themselves for the night. Patz felt like he had only closed his eyes to plunge into a dreamless sleep, before the rain began pouring down on their small group with little mercy.

"We will be warmer if we hug each other," mumbled Patz.

Neither Zatz nor Klatz liked the idea. However, a strong gasp of wind was enough for their hesitation to fade and for the three of them to move hastily together. Soon their cloths were completely drenched and they clung to each other shivering like little beards on a branch.

If they thought it was hard for them to walk earlier, now it was almost impossible. They wobbled from one foot to another, pulling themselves out of muddy clutches. Every time Zatz's front leg sunk deeper in the mud than the step before, he imagined that he was trapped and was about to be swallowed.

"Help! Help!" he would then cry.

After a while, Klatz chose to ignore him and leave it up to Patz to fuss over his friend. They were all tired, cold and hungry. The heavy rain from last night was replaced by a light drizzle. The wind rifled through their wet clothes, making them shiver and feel hopelessly miserable. They had to make more and more frequent stops, although neither really felt more rested after. Then taking a break meant sitting half submerged in mud and listening to the growling of own stomachs. Patz wanted to cry and he was pretty sure that his companions were close to the same.

And just as the sky began to darken again and the boys' frowns deepened at the prospect of sleeping in the rain and mud again, the ground began to harden. The boys proceeded with caution for a long while still, until they finally allowed themselves to hope that they might have left the swamps behind. Patches of green mixed with blue grass began appearing here and there.

Then they knew it for certain - they had left the swamp behind!

Their relief was so great that not even tiredness could stop Zatz from making a flip in the air. And then there was no limit to their happiness when they spotted wild onions springing about them. And how sweet the onion tasted! The best they have ever tried. They were merry and giggly that night. And little it bothered them that it was still drizzling. They cuddled happily together and fell asleep with first happy thoughts on their mind since their journey began.

The next morning they woke up to find light blue clouds over their heads. The rain had stopped completely. This brightened the boys moods even further. It was as if the wish to leave the swamps as far behind as possible, gave them new strength to move ahead. Finally they could walk faster and appreciate their surroundings instead of watching their every step. Morning dew covered the ground and the boys noticed with awe the difference between the grass around them and the grass in the Flizer valley they have known all their life. It was mostly blue and much taller, easily reaching up to their knees.

They spent several more days crossing the lowland. Soon the grass around them reached up to the level of their shoulders. Sometimes Patz thought of it like a cage. Surrounding them. Pressing on them. Growing taller and taller. The grass edges were razor-sharp, often cutting deep into the skin if the boys weren't careful.

Zatz's feet got often entangled as they plowed through it and tripped him. Many a time Patz had to come to his rescue, while Klatz stomped off ahead. Although it was initially agreed that Klatz would only go with them as far as the end of swamps, no one chose to comment that the condition of their agreement had been fulfilled.

Klatz was as grumpy as ever and still gave Patz and Zatz shivers, but at the same time they felt safer around him. The two friends never said it out loud, but there was a silent understanding that they needed Klatz more than he needed them. Perhaps Klatz thought that he had some use for the two boys also after all, then he continued guiding them and they settled into a routine - bickering for breakfast, bickering for lunch and bickering for dinner. And a careful avoidance of mentioning anything about splitting up and going separate ways.

Soon the grass rose higher than their heads and they could no longer see where they were headed. Patz kept looking at the map and felt more and more lost. He shoved it back into his bundle with a sigh. They would need to find the way on their own.

"Maybe if you raised me up on your shoulders I could see what is in front of us?" suggested Zatz, who was the smallest of them all. After a brief hesitation, Patz went on his knees and Zatz climbed on his shoulders. Wobbling, Patz made feeble attempts to rise up from his knees and stand. His knees kept folding under the weight.

"Patz, what's taking you so long?" asked Zatz clasping Patz by the ears. Klatz stood with his arms folded over his chest and watched them with doubt.

"I'm t-t-trying," responded Patz. The effort reddened his face. He was puffing and breathing heavily. Slowly he began rising at last.

Then whoops!

His legs gave in and he stumbled backwards. One step, another. His knees folded and he landed on his behind, dropping Zatz in the process.

"AAAAhhhh," cried out Zatz and disappeared in the grass.

"Ha-ha-ha-ha! Ahahaha hahah" Klatz leaned back and let out a booming laugh.

Patz and Zatz, both still rubbing their bruises and licking their cuts, looked up in disbelief. They had never seen Klatz laugh, not even smile. They both secretly suspected that he was one of those curious cases that never learnt how to do it. But here he was, doubled with laughter. Patz and Zatz began to smile timidly, then wider and then at last added their own ringing laughter to the chorus. It was the first time on their journey that something funny happened to them. They laughed so hard, that tears run down their cheeks and after a while Patz had to hold his belly for fear it would bust.

"One would think you lost some weight. Hahahah! Eating all those tulips! hahaha" Patz panted through joyful tears as he watched Zatz rolling on the ground seized with laughter.

"Come on, Zatz. We still got to find out what is in front of us," said Klatz smiling, when they finally gained back their composure. Patz helped Zatz climb on Klatz's shoulders and he rose up on his feet with little effort.

"I see trees," came Zatz's immediate shout from the top. His right arm went up to show in which direction he had seen them.

"Do you see anything else?" shouted Klatz back. For a few moments Zatz didn't respond. His head was moving in different directions trying to spot anything of interest.

"No!" he concluded at last and Klatz brought him down. "I think I saw trees..."

"You think you saw trees?" immediately interrupted Klatz and his eyebrows shot up.

"I saw trees," quickly added Zatz under Klatz's still suspicious look. "If we hurry, we could reach them before the sun sets." At that, Klatz turned around and stomped ahead in the direction of the trees, shaking his head.

"I really saw trees!" called Zatz after him.

"I believe you," responded Patz patting him on the shoulder. They picked up their bundles and hurried after Klatz.

Darkness had settled when Patz and his companions finally walked out of the grass that had surrounded them for days. It was such a relief to finally escape it.

A tall wall of trees rose in front of them. In the dusk they could only distinguish their crooked shapes. The boys decided to stay clear of the forest for the night. They retreated back into the grass and fell into a worrisome sleep.

When Patz awoke on the next morning, he found Zatz cuddled next to him. But Klatz was nowhere to be seen. Patz's first thought was that he must have finally moved on alone and left them behind. Patz worried more about it than he cared to admit.

He gave Zatz a small push.

"Mother! It's still too early," complained Zatz in return. Patz gave him another push, this time slightly stronger. Finally Zatz opened one eye. Then as if realizing that the surrounding could not be far remote from the familiar look of his room, he suddenly sat up and began rubbing his eyes.

"Come on! Let's keep moving!" said Patz. Together they walked out of the grass a second time and stopped in awe as they faced the forest. The trees looked like nothing they have ever seen. Their mighty trunks rose high above their heads, disappearing in a green dense canopy.

Zatz swallowed hard giving Patz a fearful glance. If they though the Swamp of Zurak and the high grass was bad, the dangers that awaited them in the forest might be worse than everything they have seen so far.

Suddenly Klatz's absence began weighting even more.

"B-breakfast f-first?" asked Zatz hopefully. Patz nodded. Just when the boys sat down and opened their bundles, Klatz came stumbling out of the forest. Both boys had to hide their relief.

"Heard the word breakfast and decided to join?" Zatz inquired with sarcasm. Klatz didn't give him even a glance. Instead he let himself sink on the ground and began chewing on an onion he pulled out of his bag. Patz noticed the concerned look he was wearing and the stare he was giving the line of trees.

"What have you found out?" asked Patz.

For some time Klatz sat in silence, chewing thoughtfully. Just when Patz thought that he would never hear an answer, Klatz spoke, "It is dark there and I did not find anything eatable. We will need to fill our bags with as much food as we can carry."

Wind blew high over their heads, making the trees rustle like living things. Zatz's ears immediately sunk down like two withered flowers. Patz swallowed hard.

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