Heirs of Vanity- The Complete First Trilogy Box Set

by R J Hanson

  “You are a popular man,” Eldryn said. “Yoren?”

  “Probably,” Roland said. “Maybe that trouble in Dalloth.”

  “What are you two talking about?” Claire demanded.

  “We had a run in with this Black Fly group in Dalloth,” Roland said. “The inquisitor there told us they tend to hold a grudge. We also angered a fat deviant by the name of Yoren in Lavon. He was bidding on Marnie against Eldryn. He had less pure reasons for hoping to purchase her. The Marshal of Lavon said he had bragged of having friends with the Black Fly and that we should be wary.”

  “Why am I just hearing of this now?”

  “I didn’t think it was important,” Roland said.

  “You didn’t think it was important that some bunch of assassins value your head at two hundred and fifty gold coins?!” Claire said, her anger clearly returning.

  “I’m going to check on that healer,” Eldryn said as he exited the room quickly.

  “I didn’t want you to worry,” Roland said.

  “Do you think I’m stupid?” Claire demanded as much as asked. “Am I some empty-headed dress fit for nothing but to adorn your arm?”

  “No, of course not,” Roland said defensively. “I love your strength. I love your independence. I love your intelligence, for it is the only hope our children will have of having any wits at all. I respect you and I love everything about you. I don’t want to marry a woman that walks behind me, I want to marry a woman that rides beside me.”

  “Then don’t keep secrets from me,” Claire said, a bit softer for the mention of children had softened her. “Don’t disrespect me by keeping something from me because you think I am too weak to handle it.”

  “I didn’t think…” Roland began but was cut short.

  “No,” Claire said as she kissed him. “You did not.”

  The four friends sat over a breakfast table enjoying their morning meal. The innkeeper insisted that Roland pay for the damage done to the room during the attack by the bandits in the night. Roland was barely able to keep Claire from doing gods only knew what to the poor man. Roland paid for the meals, the rooms, and the damage and he took Claire out of the inn as fast as possible.

  The group spent several hours browsing the huge marketplace in Modins. Clairenese purchased several items including furniture, tapestries, rugs, and other things she would need for her new house, wherever that might be. She also bought several things for the wedding. Roland bought five goats, and several chickens. Tindrakin bought himself another fine broadsword, and a few field supplies. Eldryn attempted to buy three bolts of rich silk without anyone noticing. He failed.

  “You’re not going to take up wearing dresses, are you?” Roland asked.

  Eldryn’s face flushed with anger and embarrassment.

  “They are not for me,” Eldryn said.

  “Then who are they for?” Tindrakin asked innocently.

  “That is none of your affair, apprentice,” Eldryn replied sharply.

  “Perhaps a lady?” Clairenese asked.

  “Perhaps it is my business,” Eldryn said as he bundled the silk into a large pack.

  “You’re not wooing Marnie, are you?” Tin asked with an expression of confusion on his face. She was a pretty girl, and smart, but was still a child.

  “No!” Eldryn said. “If you all must know, they are for Lady Angelese.”

  “Oh, her,” Claire said with a note of disapproval.

  “Oh,” Tin said as the confusion melted from his face.

  The group traveled to the docks and made arrangements for the items to be shipped to Vanthor and held there in storage under Roland and Eldryn’s names. Then they headed for the building Roland had purchased.

  They found Tyll and Facl hard at work cleaning the inside of the large stone building. Another very stoutly built man with blonde hair and ice blue eyes worked with them.

  “Sir Roland,” Tyll called as he noticed the group standing in the door. “This is Bjor. He is our new blacksmith.”

  The smith stopped his work and approached Roland.

  “I am Bjor,” the Slandik said. “I understand you need a blacksmith. I am here for the job.”

  “I trust Tyll and Facl in their judgment,” Roland said. “You will receive fair pay and steady work. I will need you as much for repair and crafting as I will to advise these two as to the quality of weapons. They will need a good judge of iron and steel.”

  “I am your man, then.”

  Marnie walked in from a small office in the back of the building with a note-board in one hand and quill in the other.

  “I will have no man, nor woman, working for me that would cheat a fighting man,” Roland said to the four. “I want each man that comes here to sell a weapon or to buy one to get fair treatment. You must turn some profit in order to keep yourselves paid and to keep the shop open, however, my main concern is that we provide the fighting men and women of these lands with the tools they need. Is that clear?”

  “Yes, sire,” came from all except Marnie who offered only a nod.

  “Very well,” Roland said. He reached into his pouch and took out another eleven gold coins. “Three for each of you to cover your pay until the shop begins to make its profits. Facl, I want you to keep the other two coins to pay your bookkeeper.”

  “As you say, sire.”

  “I’m not his bookkeeper,” Marnie said suspicious of the possible demotion.

  “No, dear, you are not,” Roland said. “We may have many ventures in the offing and I need someone who can keep track of them all. Someone that I trust and someone that can handle themselves. I need you for that. As you said, I need a Manager of Affairs.”

  Marnie began another beaming smile but hid it quickly.

  “Of course,” she said.

  “Good,” Roland said. “I must be going now. I don’t know when I will be back and I therefore leave the care of this shop in your hands. If a young man should come to you by the name of Peterion treat him as you would me. He is to have anything he needs or wishes from this shop. He will own it should anything happen to me. He is our son,” Roland said taking Claire into his arms.

  “You can take these to get started with,” Eldryn said.

  Eldryn took the bundle of weapons he had collected from the assassins and placed them on a stone counter near the door.

  “You may want to be selective about who you show the black short sword to,” Eldryn said. “I think it is an enchanted weapon designed for the slaying of men.”

  “Yes, sire.”

  “You men take care, and good luck to you,” Roland said. “If all goes well you will be receiving a shipment of weapons before too long.”

  Roland turned and headed for the door.

  “Oh, one more thing,” Roland said as he turned around. He took the Shrou Demon’s sword from where it had ridden in his weapon belt since that battle. Roland pulled the mighty weapon from the scabbard and hoisted it high above his head holding it in both of his hands. Roland stabbed the blade with all of his strength toward the stone above the doorway. The weapon was buried sixteen inches into the stone hissing with an arcane magic as it sheered through.

  “Who knows,” Roland said as he started for the door again. “It may attract some business.”

  Bjor, Facl, and Tyll just stood and stared at the weapon, which was now a permanent part of the building’s outer wall.

  Sir Roland, Clairenese, Sir Eldryn, Tindrakin, five goats, and several chickens arrived at the meeting place to find Pala and Kodii there waiting for them. Pala apparently had collected all of the items Roland had requested including the wagon and mule team.

  “So, what now?” Eldryn asked.

  “Now we ride for the caverns of the Stonebeard Clan,” Roland said. “Unless of course you can snap your fingers and put us there, Claire.”

  “I have never been to the caves of the Stonebeards,” Clairenese stated simply.

  “Very well, then,” Roland said. “Shall we get started? It should take
us about three months to reach them.”

  “I said I couldn’t take us to the Stonebeard Clan,” Clairenese said. “I can, however, move us up to one hundred leagues at a time in that direction.”

  “I think your soon to be bride is more useful on a long ride than you are,” Eldryn said to Roland.

  Roland smiled.

  “That sounds good to me, darling,” Roland said. “One hundred leagues at a time then. We’ll jump like that once a day so as not to tax you too much. We can ride the rest of the time. It will cut several weeks off of the journey.

  Four uneventful days later Sir Eldryn trotted Lance Chaser back into the camp where Sir Roland, Clairenese, Kodii, Tindrakin, and Pala were finishing their lunch.

  “Have any luck?” Roland asked.

  “Yes,” Eldryn said. “The path leading up is about two hours from here. From there I estimate it to be another two to three hours to the entrance.”

  “Good,” Roland said. “We’ll move our camp to the foot of the path and then you and I will head up the mountain from there. Claire, can you, Kodii, Pala and Tin hold the camp there until we return?”

  “Of course,” Clairenese said. “I’m not exactly defenseless you know.”

  Roland smiled.

  “I am well aware of that, my dear. Well aware.”

  Roland and Eldryn started west along the side of the mountain with Clairenese riding in the wagon with Tin and Pala while Kodii jogged in the woods off to the side. The group proceeded on for over two hours until they reached the foot of the path leading up the mountainside. Roland and Eldryn helped Tin, Claire, and Pala set up another campsite and secure the livestock they had brought with them. A short time later, Kodii entered the camp with a fresh kill. They would be dining on venison this evening.

  Roland and Eldryn began up the mountain path on horseback with two goats, three chickens, and fifty pounds of grain in tow. They traveled for nearly three hours until they reached the end of the path. It took them almost another full hour before they were able to make contact with the dwarves on watch.

  “What do stilts want here?” A sturdy dwarf asked from a crevasse in the rock face.

  Roland removed his gauntlet and displayed the ring he wore that had been a gift to him from King Vigorr.

  “I am the Tall Walker,” Roland said. “We come with gifts for the king of these mountains and his people.”

  “Wait where you stand,” the dwarf said.

  Several minutes passed before a sheer face of the mountain began to slide open. Ungar stepped from the concealed tunnel beyond and greeted both with a large grin.

  “It has been some months,” Ungar said, noting the sigils they wore on their cloaks. “I see that you have fared well. Knights of Lawrec now, eh?”

  “Indeed,” Roland said. “We come now with a few gifts, and hopes of making a bargain with your king.”

  “Well, come in,” Ungar said. “We must drink to this.”

  Roland and Eldryn bent down and followed Ungar into the tunnel. Four dwarves seemed to materialize from the stone around them. They took charge of the livestock, and two war-horses. The group traveled into the tunnels for several minutes, Roland and Eldryn again becoming lost in the twists and turns. Finally, they reached the great hall where they found King Vigorr at his table with a small number of dwarven warriors.

  “Come friends,” King Vigorr bellowed. “Sit and eat. Join our counsel.”

  Sir Roland and Sir Eldryn walked to the table and took the seats the King indicated.

  “We come with gifts for you and your clan,” Roland said. “The food and livestock your guards have now are our gifts to you. At the foot of the mountain there is an encampment. There I hold a few things that I would like to trade to you.”

  “Dwarves do not barter with the outsiders, with stilts,” one of the King’s generals said in a gruff tone.

  Roland made a point of looking at the ring on his hand and then back toward the general.

  “Who is it that calls a wearer of the dwarven sign of friendship a stilt?” Roland asked.

  Roland wasn’t offended by the term ‘stilt,’ however, he did know that it was one of the worst things a dwarf could think of to call a man. It was next to coward on their scale of insults.

  “I, General Tech, will not be talked to at our table of counsel with disrespect!”

  “Then you will not be talked to at all,” Roland said.

  Roland turned in his seat until General Tech was out of his view and he faced King Vigorr squarely.

  “What is it that you propose?” The King asked.

  “The chickens I brought make a fine meal,” Roland said. “However, the eggs they lay are also quite good. Goats, such as the ones I brought, are good for meat, however, these are also good for milking. I know from my friend Ungar that your clan has trouble obtaining stores such as eggs, milk, and grain. I also know that you have an abundance of weapons in your stores. Finely crafted dwarven blades at that. I own a weapon shop in Modins. What I propose is that we trade your weapons for food stores. If you provide a list of the items you want then I will see that my men bring them to the foot of the path every third moon. They will exchange those stores for whatever quantity of weapons you deem fair. This arrangement will not only provide your clan with the food stores you need, it will provide the fighting men of these lands with some of the best weapons crafted since the art of smithing was taught to the first dwarves by Roarke himself. It will give your eager smiths something to do.”

  King Vigorr sat back in his chair and looked around the table at his generals and advisors. General Tech was the first to speak.

  “Dwarven weapons being sold at a shop in Modins! I would be dead first!”

  “That I can see to,” Roland said, standing.

  “Quiet,” King Vigorr barked. “Tech, you are a fine general, but the next time you speak out of turn I will break your fingers myself! Sir Roland, be seated. You have no enemies here.”

  “Yes, your majesty,” Roland replied.

  Roland sat down and General Tech slowly pulled his arms from the tabletop, curling his fingers in. He had seen the King make good on that sort of threat before. King Vigorr looked into Roland’s clear blue eyes.

  “You are young,” King Vigorr said. “You are, however, an honorable man and have been taught well. You understand the ways of our clan and are the retriever of King Vech’s mighty weapon. I remember the tales my grandfather told of the days when my great grandfather, King Vech, traveled with Lord Ivant. I am reminded of a time when the Great Men were not outsiders and they were friends to the dwarves. I accept your proposal. The clan of the Stonebeards will sell their wares to our friend and ally, Sir Roland, the Tall Walker, son of Lord Velryk. Ungar will be the dwarf that will receive the stores and provide the weapons and armor.”

  “Very well, my lord,” Roland said. “My man, Pala, will be the deliverer of the stores, and the collector of the dwarven crafts.”

  “Good,” King Vigorr said.

  “I have a small supply at the foot of the path,” Roland said. “I would like to trade that livestock and stores now, and take a load of weapons back with me to Modins to get my shop an initial inventory.”

  “Very well,” King Vigorr said. “Ungar will lead you out. He will bring the supplies back and he will return after that with your weapons and armor in trade.”

  “I thank you,” Roland said. “I did not bring much in stores with me. However, this should even our trade.”

  Roland took three Roarke’s Ore coins and a valuable gem he found in Lord Mandergane’s pouch from his own purse and handed them to King Vigorr.

  “This will indeed even our trade,” King Vigorr said. “I will see that the weapons and armor are enough to honor your gifts, and your trade.”

  “There is one other thing,” Roland said. “I am to marry a little more than a year from now, in the spring. The wedding will be at our home, near the town of Skult. I extend an invitation to you and all dwarves now. I would b
e honored by your presence, or that of any of your kin.”

  “You will be living in Skult, then?” King Vigorr asked.

  “That I will,” Roland replied. “The Prince has promised me a small holding just outside of Skult. Large enough for a home, garden, and a few crops.”

  “We would be glad to attend,” Vigorr said. “I assume that there will be ale and spirits.”

  “What sort of dwarf friend would I be to invite the likes of the Stonebeards to a dry wedding?” Roland asked with a smile.

  “It is truly a friend to the dwarves that you have been,” King Vigorr stated.

  “I hate to leave such fine company and so quickly,” Roland said. “However, we must get back. I thank you again.”

  Ungar led Sir Roland and Sir Eldryn out of the dwarven stronghold and to the mountain path. During their ride Eldryn told Ungar of the adventures they’d had and the sights they had seen. Ungar was amused at the telling of the tale. He found the story interesting, but the telling of it even more so. It had been very exciting for the two young Great Men and that was clear. Ungar was reminded of a young dwarf and the excitement he felt when he killed his first ogre, and when he saw his first undead monster.

  With a wagon burdened with dwarven weapons, and skillfully rendered armors, Sir Roland, Clairenese, Sir Eldryn, Kodii, Tindrakin and Pala started their ride away from the base of the mountain. Tin and Pala had expected Roland’s deal to succeed but had never imagined they would be guarding a wagon full of such fine weapons and armor. Any single piece in the whole load was better than any they had owned prior to meeting Roland and Eldryn.