by Pdmac
“Let’s get a fire going anyway,” Karl replied. “I don’t want to take any chances.” Seeing there were no maps, no potions, and no trinkets, he wasn’t sure whether he was disappointed or relieved.
By the time the two teams returned, evening draped the forest and the once roaring fire had settled into smoldering coals. No spiders had bolted out the chimney and the reports from the teams said that all was quiet, nothing out of the ordinary.
“Let’s get some sleep,” Karl said. “Dieter, your team has first watch then Sakura and we’ll take last watch. Double up the watch per usual.”
Chapter 9
Karl jolted awake when he felt the firm grip on arm and looked up to see Sakura grimly staring at him.
“Brad’s gone,” she said. “So are Bruno and Sharyn.”
Pushing himself to standing, he stepped over sleeping bodies towards the front door, which was unbolted and slightly ajar.
“That son-of-a-bitch,” he growled. “He put us all in danger.” Opening the door to peer outside, he knew the mist lay heavily upon the forest yet wanted to see for himself. “Don’t know how far they’ll get. Can’t see squat out there.” Still, he noticed that there was just the slightest touch of dawn’s light giving a hint of brightness to the mist.
Securing the door, he turned to see Raquel sitting up.
“What’s going on?” she asked with a yawn.
“Brad’s gone, along with Bruno and Sharyn,” Sakura answered.
“When?” Her lips tightened in disgust.
“Don’t know,” Sakura replied. “I only found out when I woke up and realized I had slept pretty well and suddenly realized that I had overslept and no one was on watch.” She glanced over to where Tina snuggled against Wendell, an arm resting on his chest, both soundly asleep.
“Let ‘em sleep,” Karl said. “I’m awake.”
“Me too,” Raquel said, standing and stretching.
“Yeah, well, me too.” Sakura walked over to the door, checking the bolt. “I notice they decided to leave Carole here.” She gazed down at the elf snuggled in a bedroll, lying on her side, head resting on her arm.
“Probably thought she would slow them down,” Raquel said.
“Wonder what time they left?” Karl said. “The way I figure it, Dieter had the first watch and then your team picked it up at midnight. I figure it’s probably around 0600 right now, which means no one was on watch for at least six hours.”
Their answer was provided an hour later when Conrad stirred and saw the three of them in quiet yet concerned conversation.
“What’s going on?”
“Did you and Kendra pull watch last night?” Karl asked.
“Of course,” he answered, irritated that it was even in doubt.
Sakura folded her arms and frowned at him. “Why didn’t you wake me up?”
“Bruno and Sharyn were supposed to,” he answered.
“Bruno and Sharyn aren’t here,” Karl intoned.
“Huh? Where are they?”
“Gone.”
Conrad’s eyes widened. “Gone? As in no longer here?”
“That’s correct.”
Conrad blinked for only a moment before realizing what happened. “Not long after Kendra and I took watch, Bruno and Sharyn came over and said they weren’t sleepy and said they would take the rest of our watch for us. Not one to turn down an opportunity to get some extra sleep, we said ‘sure’ and left them to it. I saw Brad come up a bit later. You can ask him.”
“Brad’s gone too,” Raquel stated.
Conrad’s mouth slacked open then just as quickly closed. “Why does that not surprise me? I didn’t think they would take off,” he apologized.
“Of course you didn’t” Karl soothed. “No one could have suspected they’d jeopardize the group.”
By now, the rest of the team members began stirring and soon discovered Brad and the others’ duplicity. Karl noticed that when Carole was informed of their departure, she seemed both disappointed and hurt. He also noted the muted discussions among the dwarves.
“Since we’re all awake,” Karl said, “and know that three of our team have decided to venture out on their own, understand that under no circumstances will they be allowed back into this group.”
“So they left,” Conrad sourly stated. “I say good riddance.”
“Suppose they went looking for something,” Carole asked, hope in her voice.
“Like what?” Conrad answered, cocking an eyebrow in doubt. “And even if they did, they should of told someone.”
“So if they came back,” Carole stubbornly continued, “they wouldn’t be allowed back into the team?”
Karl leveled his gaze at her. “Remember your spider bite? That happened with the door locked. When they left, they left the front door unlocked, which meant anyone or anything could have attacked us while we were sleeping. They put us all in danger. We were lucky this time. We can’t count on that the next time.”
Deflated, Carole moped a bit as she gathered up her things.
“I’m surprised none of us heard them leave,” Raquel observed.
“We were all tired,” Karl said. “Besides, we trusted them.” Crossing over to the front door, he pulled it open. “Mist will be gone soon. Get ready to move out.”
As the day progressed and they encountered more folks on the road, Karl noticed a subdued restraint in the people, as though they were waiting for something unexpected to happen and unsure whether it was for the better. A few gave the strangers a wary eye, but most were friendly enough to give a nod. When Karl asked a merchant how far it was to Tal Olca, the man simply pointed down the road and said, “You’ll see it soon enough.”
The man was right, for as they crested a rise in the road, they saw the city in the near distance. It reminded Karl of Westhaven for a similar castle crowned the hill in the center of the city, which was surrounded by tall walls. However, unlike Westhaven, part of Tal Olca was built against the cliffs leading down to the sea, the wall spilling over the edges, making an assault from the sea an impossibility.
The main gate was open wide with four guards checking everyone who entered. When Karl and company approached, they were halted by a gruff guard with a scar on his cheek. Giving them a surly stare, he folded his arms and stood in front of them.
“Alright then,” he said with an arrogant sneer. “Who might you be?”
“We’re travelers just passing through,” Karl answered.
“Travelers from where?”
“We’ve just come from Westhaven.”
“Westhaven?” the guard suspiciously replied.
Hearing the town name the other guards waved through the merchants and other visitors, yet bent an ear to the conversation.
“How’d you make it through Cyril’s army?” the guard demanded, looking up at Dieter.
“Cyril is dead,” Karl said. “His head is stuck on a pike outside the walls of Westhaven. Lady Gwen is now Queen.”
The guard’s surly demeanor vanished.
“Dead? How?”
“We,” Karl motioned to the rest of his team, “helped defeat him. I am Karl the Viking.”
The guard’s eyes widened. “Karl the Viking? My Lord, I apologize.” He bowed with a low grovel, the other guards following suit. “I did not know it was you.”
Frowning, Karl wondered how it was that the man knew who he was, yet didn’t know that Cyril was dead.
“We need a good place for lodging. I’d appreciate your recommendation.”
“M’Lord,” the guard said with a hint of nervousness. “I believe she is expecting you in the castle.”
“She?”
“Lady Mavie, m’Lord.”
“She knows we’re here?”
The guard shrugged. “She’s a sorceress.” He leaned closer, looked quickly around and lowered his voice. “A word, m’Lord?”
“Yes?” Karl bent his head to listen.
“The Lady will not be so willing to yield her place onc
e Gwen arrives to make her claim. There’s sure to be a battle. My humble suggestion is that if you don’t want to be caught up in the battle between two sisters, you should make haste to depart as soon as you can, though it may be too late once Mavie sees you.”
“Then maybe we should simply pass on through.”
The guard was about to agree when four more guards, led by a haughty, severely thin sergeant, arrived at the gate. Seeing them, he again shrugged.
“Too late.”
“You are Karl the Viking?” the sergeant demanded.
“Who’s asking?” Karl retorted, irritated that this bean pole failed to recognize his importance.
Ignoring Karl’s response, the sergeant said, “Lady Mavie awaits. You will follow me.”
“Perhaps later,” Karl said. “Right now we need to find a lodging house.”
“You have lodging at the castle,” the sergeant not so politely replied.
“Not tonight,” Karl replied and motioned for the rest of the group to follow him.
The sergeant stepped in front of him, the four guards fanning out behind him. “You don’t seem to understand,” he threatened. “You will come with me, now.”
Karl sized him up and laughed. “You? You think you and your puny team are going to stop us? We defeated Cyril and his army and you think you are going to stop us?”
The man stiffened and his haughty manner evaporated. “Cyril… is dead?”
“His head suck on a pole on the wall outside Westhaven,” Karl said. “A pretty gruesome sight if you ask me. I imagine Gwen is marching on Tal Olca this very moment.”
“But… but, what about the orcs and trolls,” the sergeant whined.
“Let’s just say that neither orcs nor trolls do well in sunlight,” Karl snickered.
The sergeant whirled around and pointed to a young guard. “Quick. Tell Lady Mavie the news.”
“She probably already knows,” the guard at the gate offered.
The sergeant’s nervousness increased. “You’re right. Why didn’t she tell us?” He then looked at Karl with pleading eyes. “My Lord. It would be in the best interest of all concerned if you would allow us to escort you to the castle. If she finds out that we neglected our duties, it would be bad for us and everyone else.”
“Fine,” Karl nodded. “Lead the way.”
They were halfway to the castle when Karl remembered something the gate guard had said. Turning to the sergeant, he asked, “The guard said that Mavie is Gwen’s sister. I thought she only had two sisters.”
“Lady Mavie is a half-sister,” the sergeant answered. “The ladies share the same mother.”
“And a succubus,” Annabeth mumbled in complaint, loud enough for the sergeant to hear.
“Yes,” the sergeant said as though the answer was intuitively obvious, “a very powerful one.”
“Just damn,” Annabeth groaned.
“As powerful as Kamdyn?” Raquel asked.
The sergeant shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s not something I have any experience with.”
As they entered the castle grounds, Karl felt as though he had been there before then realized the design and layout were the same as Gwen’s castle in Westhaven.
“Who is the City Administrator?” Karl asked.
“Lord Merstyn was before Cyril came here. Merstyn’s dead and so no one holds that responsibility. Lady Mavie has been ruling the domain and the city.”
They were led along the hallways and Karl heard others commenting on the similarity even to the point of the guards outside the suite where Mavie resided.
The door guard knocked on the door and opened it, announcing, “My Lady, Karl the Viking and his team.”
Karl led the way in and startled when the Lady, standing by the window, turned to face him, for Lady Mavie looked far too much like Gwen. He felt his passion stir when she smiled at him and effortlessly glided over to stand in front of him.
Annabeth saw the captured look in his eyes. “Damn it all, not again.”
Before Mavie had a chance to open her mouth to speak, Annabeth cast an Implant Idea spell; Karl doesn’t interest you.
Mavie frowned only a moment before turning to Annabeth and smiling. “Don’t worry, Little One, I’m not Gwen and I have no designs on your Viking. That was a good try though and I’m impressed you were able to work that on Gwen.” She turned to Raquel. “For now, the Viking stays here. The rest of you are free to go.”
“Why?” Raquel demanded.
“Because it is what I wish,” she coldly replied then softened. “Our new queen has need of him.”
“How do you know that?” Annabeth asked, irritated and curious at the same time.
“She told me.”
“The birds Ross saw,” Raquel blurted.
“Very good,” Mavie nodded, impressed. “Putting those Ranger skills to use, I see. I’m surprised you haven’t used the birds to scout ahead for you.”
“I… I tend to forget I can,” Raquel stammered.
“You’re a Ranger, albeit a level 1 skills Ranger. Surely you’ve experimented with your divination skill of talking to animals.”
“I… just a bit,” she replied, feeling unmasked.
Mavie looked at the group. “So intent on getting to the bridge, you all have neglected developing your own skills. What’s so important about crossing a bridge that causes you to disregard your own development? You for instance,” she narrowed her gaze at Conrad. “You’re a Rogue. Did you use your skills to detect magic or any spells when you entered here?”
“Uh…” he awkwardly answered.
“There is one though,” she chuckled, “who had been working on her skills.” She turned around and pointed to the couch. “Isn’t that true, Assassin Sakura.”
Sakura materialized from next to the couch and sauntered over to stand with the others.
“I ask again,” Mavie said, turning back to the group. “What’s so important about a bridge?”
“That’s what I’ve always said,” Wendell interjected. “It’s like we’re in a rush.”
“When did you ever say that?” Annabeth countered.
“Uh… all the time,” he lamely answered.
“That’s funny. I’ve never heard you say a word,” Raquel riposted.
Wendell reddened, struggling for something clever to say when Conrad spoke up.
“He does have a point though. We really haven’t had a chance to work on our skills.”
“And where would you work on yours?” Raquel said through tight lips. “Remember what happened in Marbeck? You were lucky when you two only had to spend the one night in jail.”
“Yeah, well, we never got the chance in Abeloft,” he complained.
“And how would that work?” she asked, knowing the answer. “You two, along with the rest of us, were treated like celebrities. Everyone knew who you were. Just how did you expect to work on your skills?”
“You’re being too short-sighted,” Mavie intervened with a maternal smile at Raquel. “This handsome Rogue here could have, and should have been working on skills that didn’t require him getting into trouble yet would still be useful in the future, like disguises or acrobatics or even escape artist while working in darkness.”
“See?” Conrad triumphantly announced.
“Don’t you all get it?” Annabeth objected with a loud exclamation. “She’s sowing discord among us, getting us to doubt each other.”
“On the contrary,” Mavie replied, giving Annabeth a wink. “I’m merely pointing out that you all should take time somewhere and hone your skills, long before you cross the bridge.”
“She’s doing it again,” Annabeth huffed.
“But she’s right,” Wendell said. “We didn’t have a chance when we were in Westhaven because of the war. But there’s no war now, so why not just park ourselves here and practice our skills?”
Raquel twitched her head to look at Karl who hadn’t moved since they entered the room, but simply stared with moon eyes
at Mavie. “How about releasing him from whatever spell you have on him?” she crossly demanded.
“Alright,” Mavie smirked.
Karl inhaled a deep breath then gazed around the room as though seeing it for the first time before turning to take in his team, immediately noting something was amiss. “What’s going on?”
“Wendell wants to stay here,” Raquel answered.
Karl stiffened to full height, giving Wendell a stern stare. “This team isn’t a democracy. When you signed on, you agreed to follow orders.”
“I know, I know,” he awkwardly replied. “It’s just that… I’m really not sure I’m ready to cross yet. We’ve been on the go ever since you arrived in Marbeck and I just want to stay put for a bit. It’s not that you aren’t a great leader,” he added. “It’s just that I… we can’t keep up with you. Why not just stay here for a while to rest and recover. Like you, or someone else said, it’s not like we have to cross over right now.”
“A wise choice,” Mavie nodded.
“She keeps doing it,” Annabeth growled. “She’s creating discord on purpose.”
“Y’know,” Karl snarled. “As far as I’m concerned, those who want to stay are more than welcome to stay. As for those who want to move on, we’re leaving.”
“No,” Mavie said, flipping her hand and immobilizing Karl once again. “You’re staying, though you,” she peered intently at Annabeth, “I suggest you go. She’s going to be very cross with you, and anyone else who helped him escape.”
“How about we just take him with us right now,” Raquel threatened.
Instead of anger, Mavie replied with a haughty laugh. “You forget your place and who I am. I’m a succubus. Remember? If I wanted, I could have you all rolling on the floor here in one huge orgy, elves with dwarves, and serving girls with clerics.” She stared pointedly at Dieter then relaxed with a chuckle. “Though, in truth, elves and dwarves coupling just doesn’t do it for me.”
“Why are you doing this,” Annabeth demanded, her frustration mounting.
“Because it is in my best interests,” Mavie replied with a shrug. “Now if I were you, I’d be making plans to move along. I figure if she’s already on the move, she’ll be here very soon.”
