“What happened to her? If I’m not mistaken, I met her once.”
Coruff nods, her eyes scanning my face. “She was returning home by ship from the island of Zagra. She was set upon by mercenaries, and slain without mercy in the street. Snagaras’s orders, I am sure.”
I shake my head. “I will help if I can, Coruff.”
She reaches out and pats my arm. “Thank you, Daria. As my people like to say… a true friend steps up when the crowd is thinning.”
Coruff falls silent, and I look around the room. I see a couple of kobolds perched on sacks. As I look on, two newcomers enter. The first is a dwarven warrior wearing chainmail and a shiny iron breastplate. He sits down away to my left. Just behind him is a cloaked figure, smoke rising from his pipe. And when he turns his head a fraction, I immediately recognize the orcish face and lank red hair.
“Lugg!” I call out, hurrying forward, and he turns.
He grins widely. “There you are, Miss.”
“I am so glad to see you!” I say, stopping beside my old friend, and taking his free hand.
“Miss Daria,” he says, his grin fading. “Looking for you has kept Lugg pretty busy. Looked for you near the safehouse and down here at the dock. Many days, Lugg searched. Wondered if perhaps you had gone back to Zagra.”
“No. I just – lost my way for a little bit,” I reply.
He nods, not pressing me on this thin explanation. “Would have traveled back there to ask around for you, but there has been much to do here.”
“For the coven? I heard they are all leaving.”
“That’s the plan, Miss. But the witches and all, they didn’t want to go together on one ship – too risky, so they say – and most of the local captains they don’t trust. All very dangerous times here now. That there dwarf is one of the mercenaries that have been in charge, you see.”
Lugg moves over, and together we sit down on a crate near the dwarven warrior.
I frown. “You’re not working as a mercenary too, are you Lugg?”
He shakes his head. “No, no. Lugg has mostly been working at the docks, taking things onto the ships. But keeping in with Miss Maleki, too.”
“Listening out for threats?”
Lugg nods. “Yes. Not safe at all, Miss. There is a big reward for magic users – twenty gold for information, more for catching one, dead or alive.”
“That’s awful.” I glance at the hooded figure of Coruff in the corner, and then back at Lugg.
“So I’ve been asking around,” he continues, “finding crews and vessels with cabins. Lugg worked here before, so now I’m a-getting some coin as a dock hand.”
“Good work, Lugg,” I say, “especially as it helps with finding safe ships for our friends.”
“Garner will be happy to see you too, Miss Daria.”
I sit up, looking directly at him once more. “Garner’s here?”
“He and Miss Maleki are due to board a ship today. They could be leaving right now.”
“Oh! Then can I speak to him before he goes?”
Lugg taps at the shoulder of the nearby dwarf with the shiny chest plate, and the warrior turns. “What is it?” he says gruffly.
Again, I am struck by how rude many people are to Lugg – he doesn’t deserve it!
“An archer and ranger by the name of Garner – do you know him?” I say.
“Of course. Garner’s on my squadron,” he says. “A good reliable man, and honest. What’s the problem?”
“No problem,” I say hurriedly. “It’s just…do you know if he is still here now, or is it possible that his ship has left already?”
He narrows his eyes. “That I can’t tell you. Operational secrecy.”
“I know him, too,” says another merc, stepping closer. She is a female dwarf with a downy face and large and watery green eyes. “We are a close-knit group that work under van Turk, and the boss trusts young Garner, I reckon. He’s a good soul, and a fine and valiant comrade. What’s got you asking questions about him, huh?” She is looking at me closely, but in contrast to her armored companion, her approach seems more curious than hostile.
“He’s a close friend of mine, I promise,” I say to her. “Lugg and I only mean him well. We traveled together recently, and I just want to renew our acquaintance, and speak to him again if possible.”
“Hmm.” The chestplated dwarf grunts and turns his back to us.
The other shrugs noncommittally, but I guess she was convinced by my explanation thanks to the skill boost I receive:
Increase in skill level: Charm level 14 (Spirit +2)
“Well, then, that makes sense,” she says.
“All right,” I say, smiling. “Then by any chance do you know where he is now? As I told you, he’s a friend, and as we are shipping out for the mainland, I want to be on the same vessel as him.”
“As to where he is right now, I’m not certain,” she says. “Sorry. Perhaps he’ll show up soon.”
I nod my thanks.
Lugg frowns. “Sorry, Miss. They are all being very careful about security. Nobody knows all the comings and goings exactly. Shall we go look for him?”
I pause.
On the one hand, I’m desperate to find Garner. I’ve been waiting for weeks to see my Shadow Kingdoms companions again. Now it seems that one of my closest friends in the game, is very close. And if I stay here, he could leave the islands without me.
On the other, I don’t want to put anyone at risk. Not Garner, and not the coven. Clearly there are security procedures being followed, and the place could be crawling with Kapa-Vane mercs at any moment.
Plus, I did promise Josa that I would wait here.
Reluctantly, I put a hand on Lugg’s arm and tell him to sit down. I am feeling hot, and I take a slurp from the warm water in my waterskin, and settle down on the crate. “Let’s just wait and see what Josa has to tell us.”
Surely half an hour can’t make much difference.
Chapter 8: The Gangplank
It’s not half an hour, however, but more like two hours later when Josa finally reappears. She spots us where we are sitting in the corner, and hurries over.
“How are things?” I ask.
“Well, I just dodged another Kapa-Vane attack,” she says. “Between that and the attack at the safehouse this morning, I’d say things are going well, don’t you think?”
“Sorry – I know it’s difficult.”
But she then leans closer to me. “I’ve been speaking to one of our contacts here,” she says softly. “Everything is ready. Berths have been arranged on a ship with a trusted crew led by Captain Valor, a half-elf who knows van Turk of old. We leave this afternoon, on the same ship as Maleki.”
“I thought it wasn’t safe to travel together.”
She inclines her head slightly. “But it’s also not safe to stick around with the Kapa-Vanes coming for us. They are closing in now, it is clear, and we must get out of the city before nightfall.”
She looks me in the eye. “So are you coming? If you can pay your own fare, we’d be happy to take you along, and there is enough space, I have checked.”
I nod. “Agreed. I have coin, and as I told you, I am keen to make my way to the mainland. I hope Lugg here can join us? He’s loyal and brave.”
“Very well, then.” Again, Josa does not give a lot away, and I find her clipped approach a little annoying. Perhaps I am still sore about the way she and van Turk tied me up back at the coven. I suppose I’ll get over it.
Soon we are ready to make our move.
Lugg departs by the front entrance to spy on the people nearby the ship – masquerading as a dock worker who is readying supplies.
Josa then leads Coruff and me out of a door at the back of a room that leads into another corridor, this one dank, cold, and stone-lined. There are a pair of further doors in the walls on either side, and a slightly larger doorway with a sturdy external door at the end of the corridor. In front of it stands a guard – another merc, I presume.
At a word from Josa, the guard opens the door, and together we step out into a lane at the back of the buildings. I look both ways – there is nobody else around.
“The Hummingbird Inn has become something of a second base for us,” says Josa as she leads us off to the right. “The little goblin who runs the taproom is no supporter of… what’s been going on.”
“Goblin?” I say, but she doesn’t reply, instead stopping at the next door and pulling out a key. She unlocks and opens the rear door of the next building – I assume that it must lead into the inn somehow – and I move to step inside when she puts a hand on my shoulder; from behind, Coruff steps past me and then turns.
“I have to go and pay for our rooms,” says Coruff, pausing in the doorway, “as we are planning to leave town. We owe the inn owners more than coin, in truth. Don’t delay – I’ll see you on board.”
With that, Josa lets the door close, and signals me to return the way we came. I turn, facing the other way down the back lane.
“Is it a problem that so many of us will be boarding today?” I ask as we start to walk back.
“It’s great news – no risk at all,” she says sarcastically, with a slight eye roll. Then she frowns. “We have been trying to be cautious, Daria, but things are getting stretched. It appears that no further ships are due here for some days to come. If we don’t get out today, then I fear that capture will become inevitable.”
“I see.”
There is a movement out of the corner of my eye just then, and my fist clenches around the hilt of my morning star, but straight away I see that it is just the same back door of the house that we came from ourselves. It opens, and three mercs emerge, including the two dwarves to whom I spoke earlier, plus a pallid male human with a short sword in his hand. He is trying and failing to conceal the weapon in the folds of his cloak.
Josa nods at the trio and then waves us on. I walk directly beside her as she hurries off down the lane towards the shore, and the three mercs follow just a pace or two behind.
“You’ve met Garner, right?” says Josa, somehow anticipating a question that I was about to pose.
“Yes, that’s right,” I say, recalling that I had mentioned him to her back at the main coven safehouse. “I was hoping we might travel together.”
She nods slightly, her eyes focused intently on the end of the lane ahead of us. “I was going to say – it won’t be much longer before you see your friend. He’s already onboard.”
“Great.”
“Right,” she adds. “And as we are all going to Kamarok province in the western part of the Empire, we’ll be at sea for the best part of two days. You’ll have plenty of time to catch up.”
I feel surprised to see Josa showing some consideration of my friendships; she might come across as rather cold, but perhaps there is a bit more to her.
We pause at the front before rounding the last building and Josa consults with the dwarf with the shiny breastplate. “That’s a pair of Kapa-Vanes there,” he says to her, pointing at two figures in grey cloaks who are standing around fifty yards beyond the vessel. “Crossbowmen – they patrol up and down the front. And the scum also have a pair of guards by each warehouse. Sometimes larger groups come around this way too, but they are irregular.”
“I bet half the workers are in their pay, as well,” Josa muses, and then looks around at me. “Ready?” Her eyes are wide and her hand is gripping her sword hilt, but she appears more excited than scared by any threats that might lie ahead. This is a woman who thrives on action.
As for me, I’m feeling a little sick. The prospect of another attack is the last thing I want. I can handle myself in a fight after a fashion, but mainly I just want to be safely aboard the ship.
The pair of cloaked enemies are now fairly close to us, but as I watch on they turn, having reached the extent of their patrol route, and begin to make their way back. As they do so, Josa leads the way forward once again, and soon we have reached the main area of the docks.
The vessel is not far ahead. It looks rather like a viking longship; it’s sleek, has a protruding prow that could be used as a ram, and the only cabin is low on the ship, nestled in a central area, and there are holes for oars as well as a single main mast. I wonder how many cabins there are – if any. I guess we’ll just have to manage.
We stop by a pile of crates, not far from the gangplank, ready to make our move. Peeking over the top of them, I see Lugg approaching. I think he’s trying to be subtle by holding an obviously empty box high in front of his chest. I smile despite the tension I am feeling. Soon he joins us, and hunkers down behind the crates as well, grinning at me.
I see Josa looking towards the inn; Coruff still hasn’t reappeared, and she frowns slightly. “I thought van Turk would be outside, keeping watch,” she says quietly. “I just hope he’s inside and ready to make a move.” She looks around at us all. “We will board in three groups – we two first” – she indicates the human merc and herself – “then our two dwarven friends, and after that it’s Daria and Lugg. And if any of the pairs see those guards start coming back this way, you will have to stop and wait for them to walk their route again, before moving out.”
“I understand,” I say.
She raises one eyebrow. “You’d better.”
The pair of Kapa-Vane guards are far towards the north side of the dock, now, still walking away from us. Josa and the pallid mercenary hurry off towards the ship, and after holding back for a minute or so, the dwarves follow. I look at the pair of guards again – they must be close to the other end of their route, and I’m feeling a little worried that we might have to wait here until they walk their entire circuit once more before we can join the others on the ship.
Just then Lugg grabs at my shoulder, pointing. “Look, Miss,” he says.
I look. To our left, over where the highway meets the docks, there is a column of heavily armored men approaching, all of them wearing helmets and carrying shields. There’s no doubt at all – they are more Kapa-Vane mercs, perhaps one of the larger patrols that I just heard about.
“Keep low,” I whisper urgently, and he crouches, huddling in the shadow behind the pile of boxes. I move carefully around towards the other side, hoping to get a better view of the arriving mercs and some idea of where they are heading. There are twelve in all, and they are marching straight towards the ship. If they block the gangplank, we could be in trouble.
I pull my dagger out, looking around to speak to Lugg, only to realize that my friend has circled around the crates in the other direction, and begun to walk away towards the ship’s gangplank – still holding the empty box, but huddled over this time. And now the mercenaries are moving straight towards him.
I see one of them point, and with a shout from their leader, they all pull their swords.
“Lugg – run!” I shout.
My friend turns, looking at me agape for a second, and then sprints towards the gangplank. There he swiftly catches up with Josa and the three mercenaries. Josa is on the ship, and all three of her mercenaries are below on the gangplank itself. They turn as Lugg runs after them. At first I think they are going to hurry on board, but instead they move down and position themselves on the foot of the gangplank, drawing weapons. Josa steps down behind them, readying her sword.
I curse the fact that I no longer have a bow – my arrows are useless. I clutch my dagger tightly and move further around the stack of boxes and crates, trying to get behind where the group of enemy mercenaries now stand. They outnumber my allies by three to one, and if nothing else, I must try to distract them.
In moments, as I look on, steel is clashing upon steel as our people engage the larger group of mercs.
I hear someone from over towards the shore call out, “Pull away – cast off!” But before I can look over in that direction, I spot a figure running from the direction of the city – it is van Turk himself, a ferocious look upon his blue horned face. I guess he was watching proceedings after all.
He charges at the enemy alone, and at first I think he is going to leap into battle wielding his sword two-handed, but instead he skids to a halt twenty yards from the gangplank, readies his longbow, sets, and lets an arrow fly. At this range, there was almost no missing for the experienced warrior, and the missile takes one of the enemy mercs in the small of the back. The man falls, stunned. He rolls, and his limp body drops into the harbor.
By the time the remaining enemy troops can react to this new attack from behind them, van Turk has downed a further one.
The dwarven warrior takes out a third with her axe. Josa parries a blow and then lunges with her sword, wounding another in the arm. But she and her mercs are being pushed back; they start to retreat up the gangplank.
Just then another arrow hits a Kapa-Vane mercenary – but this one came from the ship. I look up and see a familiar face positioned a few yards from the stern of the long, sleek vessel – Garner. My friend is a brilliant archer, and between him and van Turk, I start to think to myself that our departure could soon be back on course. If only Coruff makes it out of the inn soon… I look in that direction, but there is still no sign of her.
More shots fly out, but this time the enemy attackers manage to protect themselves with their shields. Facing threats on both sides and now reduced to eight men, they disengage from the mercs on the gangplank and pull away from the ship, regrouping on the shore, shields held high to defend against the archers. I see that the two grey-cloaked mercenaries are now sprinting towards the scene, too.
I look back at the gangplank. And that is when I realize that the ship is already moving away from the dock. With the fighting right in front of me, I hadn’t been paying much attention to what was happening on board. The three allied mercenaries only barely make it up the gangplank and scramble onto the ship before the wooden bridge falls from its position and drops into the harbour below.
I look for Lugg, and see that he is now fleeing away from the dock, pursued by the two cloaked Kapa-Vanes. I hear van Turk curse and then sprint after him.
The Call of the Coven: A LitRPG novel (Shadow Kingdoms Book 2) Page 5
