Stonecutter's Shadow: A young mage's fight through a fantasy kingdom full of treachery

by James Haddock

  I smiled, hoping to put her at ease. “You're half right, I'm from another kingdom, but I don't represent or work for them. I have trust issues when it comes to kings.”

  “You followed Lermont here, didn't you?”

  I nodded, “he had my family killed, I followed him her to repay a blood debt.”

  “And did you kill him?”

  “Nope, I just gave him the opportunity, and let his greed kill him.” That was close enough to the truth. Someone knocked on the door, Rayne turned to look at the door and I stepped into Shadow.

  Her maid stuck her head in, “finished with the tea service, M'lady?”

  Rayne looked back at where I had been sitting, seeing me gone she smiled, “yes, you may take it, Bee.” I watched as the maid took the service, noting that if she thought two place settings for the princess strange, she never let on.

  I decided to remain mysterious and left over the balcony, then Shadow flowed down to the ground and off the palace grounds.

  * * *

  I waited three days before I went back to check on the spymaster, imprisoned in Shadow. He was walking around in the dark babbling to himself. I lit a candle-sized flame so he could see it, and he came running.

  “Who do you serve?” I asked. He jumped at the sound of my voice, and huddled closer to the light. I made the flame smaller.

  “No, no, no! I'm the king’s spymaster!” he shouted.

  “That's your job, but who do you really serve?” He said nothing. I made the flame smaller; he began to whimper but said nothing. I put the flame out and he started crying.

  “The thieves’ guild.” I lit a tiny flame.

  “No, you pay them for information, they work for you. Mr. O had no kind words about you.”

  “The Crimson Isles,” he finally admitted. I tossed a waterbag on the floor beside him. Seeing it, he attacked it, almost choking on the water. Once he had emptied the waterbag, I stuck him with a sleeping dart. He was out in a matter of seconds. I levitated him, took him down to the dungeon and left him there.

  I went up to Rayne's room, and finding she was not there, I left her a note:

  Rayne, your treacherous spymaster is in the palace dungeon. He killed the previous spymaster so he could take his place. He was working for Lermont, his captain and the Crimson Isles Bankers to overthrow your Kingdom.

  I signed it M.

  “That should stir things up a bit,” I thought.

  * * *

  I decided I had done all I could for the Kingdom of Rockspire and against the blood bankers. I didn’t know what I would do next but needed a break from the city. I bought a map to see what was around Rockspire. I knew the rapids were downriver and according to the map they were about 20 miles away. The mountains started narrowing at that point, and the pass at its narrowest point was not much wider than the river and a wagon path.

  I bought supplies and a horse. I didn't know how long I'd be gone, or if I'd even come back, for that matter. Once I was ready, I headed south following the river. I was in no hurry to get anywhere so I just meandered along.

  I thought Falcon would enjoy the outing as well, so I called him forth. He took fight, ate, and rode the wind currents as we moved farther south.

  Once away from the city the country turned into farmland and pastures for livestock. It was peaceful and I was enjoying not having someone trying to kill me. Falcon returned to me late afternoon.

  I still camped in Shadow since I wasn't that trusting while traveling alone. There wasn't a lot of traffic on the road… only a few wagons and some hikers. There was no river traffic this far south. I had heard that caravans came this way but not often. For a king's trade road, it wasn't very well maintained.

  I started seeing large rocks in the river by midafternoon of the second day, which made the river much noisier. By the third day the river was full of the large boulders and the river itself had narrowed, making the current much faster, and louder. There was just enough room for the wagon path in some places.

  In one of the wider places there was a camp, where a man sat by his fire. When he saw me, he stood. “Good afternoon,” I called out.

  “Good afternoon,” he replied.

  “May I join you at your fire?”

  “You may but I have no tea to offer you.”

  “I have coffee that I'd be willing to share.”

  “Yes, please join me.”

  I stepped down from my horse, got my coffee out, and came to the fire. “My name is Hanson,” he said.

  “Rider,” I replied, shaking his hand. We started the coffee and sat down. “A bit noisy this close to the rapids.”

  He nodded, “it is, but I needed to study them for my project.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yes. I have an idea to clear or circumnavigate the rapids so barges can use this part of the river.”

  I looked at them, “well you've got your work cut out for you.”

  He laughed, “to say the least! If I can come up with a plan, I'm going to try to get the king to finance it, or maybe the merchant’s guild. Someone even suggested the Blood Bankers, but I don't think I want to go there.”

  “Good luck getting any money from any of them. And borrowing from the blood bankers is like borrowing from the thieves’ guild.”

  “True, but they could recoup their investment by charging a toll to bypass the rapids.”

  “I hate to rain on your parade, but the king would do that anyway.” He nodded but said nothing. “How far do the rapids go before the river smooths back out?” I asked.

  “A little over five miles, but this stretch here is the worst,” he answered, pulling out a hand-drawn map showing the river with the rapids marked.

  I looked at it, “Is that a lake?”

  “Yes, just past the rapids there is a large lake. The river gets wider, and shallower.”

  I frowned, “too shallow for barges?”

  “The larger ones, yes. But the smaller ones could go on another ten miles, where the rapids begin again.”

  I thought a minute, “so you plan will only add 10 miles to the distance a barge could travel by river?”

  “Yes, but from there wagons could take cargo in multiple directions. If someone built warehouses on the lake, barges could load and unload there, increasing trade up and down the river.”

  “Whose kingdom does the lake belong to?” I asked.

  “No one’s really, Rockspire's border ends where the rapids begin. That area is on the other side of the mountains and isn't claimed by anyone because there is nothing there.”

  I didn't want to say it, but I saw a lot of problems with his plan, which I doubted anyone would finance. “And how do you make money on this deal?”

  “I get paid to supervise construction, then a percentage of the toll,” he said, pouring our coffee.

  “Well, I'll say this for you, you don't think small. How long do you think it will take you to complete the project?”

  “At least ten years unless I can find a Stone Mage. If I could find one of those, which could be expensive, the project would take considerably less time.”

  “How do you plan on enforcing the collection of the toll and the security of the goods in the warehouse?”

  He frowned, “I hadn't really thought about that.”

  “Well, you can be assured the thieves’ guild and the merchant’s guild will think about it. One group won't want to pay the toll, and the other will want to collect extra, and/ or take your part.”

  He shook his head smiling, “well, you just full of good news, aren't you?”

  I chuckled, “I do what I can.”

  Coffee finished, I said, “well, there's still plenty of daylight so I'm going to move further on. Good luck with your project,”

  He nodded, “Thanks, and safe travels.”

  I mounted my horse, waved farewell to him, and continued my way south. I found that not only were there rapids in the river, but there were also numerous small waterfalls. In addition, the path the
river had cut left cliff walls that were basically straight up for almost 100 feet in some places. Hanson had a bigger job on his hands than he let on.

  Oh well, I thought, not my problem.

  Chapter 25

  I reached the lake at midmorning the following day and found it was a lovely sight. I just sat on my horse for a while, enjoying the view. Half the lake sat against the cliffs of the mountains and the rest was forest. There was a small waterfall coming out of the cliff face falling into the lake, and small beach was on the far shore. The wagon path followed the shoreline for a time, then turned into the forest.

  The Shadows told me there was no one else around, but there were plenty of animals. That wasn't surprising, with this much fresh water and forest. I made my camp at the beach — a mixture of sand and tiny pebbles.

  The water was completely clear, and you could see the bottom of the lake alone the shore. There were plenty of fish for the taking, so I decided to have some for lunch. I took care of my horse then hobbled him in the tall grass. I caught my lunch and cooked it over a campfire, enjoying the clean open air.

  I let my mind wonder, enjoying the freedom and the sunshine. After I finished eating, I lay back and took a nap. I had rabbit for supper, as game was plentiful here. After supper I sat enjoying my coffee while I thought of what I would do next.

  I was now 19, or 20… I couldn't really remember which, and for all intents and purposes I was a rich man. I had set aside my quest for vengeance, feeling it was a waste of time. My life, to this point, had been consumed with doing things for others, or because of others.

  Maybe it was time to start living my life for me.

  Over the next week I carefully considered my options. I was a stone cutter and felt the need to build something, to make something physical, and at the same time make something of my life. Meeting Hanson had started me thinking, and now that I'd seen this lake, I had more ideas.

  I let my imagination run loose, to see the possibilities the place offered. In my mind's eye I could see warehouses, shops, farms, homes, a dry dock, wharfs, even a castle if I wanted. I could see caravans coming and going.

  I’d need a fort for security, and to house the military, I told myself, and would have to organize a city watch.

  I stopped myself: “OK, hold on, first things first. How about a warehouse for supplies, and a place to live while we build, and after that we'd see,” I thought to myself.

  Actually, the first thing I need to do was to find Hanson and talk to him again.

  Making the river navigable was his idea, and I didn't want to steal his dream.

  * * *

  I found him just past the rapids heading for Rockspire. “We meet again,” I said, joining him as he drove his wagon along.

  “I'm heading to the city to resupply. You tired of the rough life already?” he asked, smiling.

  “Actually, I was looking for you. I've been camping on the lake, and it is a beautiful place.”

  “I know, right?” He said, his eyes growing.

  “I have a proposition that I'd like to discuss with you.”

  “Oh?”

  “Well, after hearing your plan, and seeing the rapids, the waterfalls, and the lake for myself I think your plan is doable. But it would take a lot of work.” We reined up and I stepped down from my horse.

  I picked up a rock, concentrated on it and formed it into a square.

  He sat staring at the now square stone. “You're a stone mage?”

  I nodded, “I didn't say anything before because I wanted to see if I could do the things you needed done. If I couldn't, I didn't want to get your hopes up unnecessarily.”

  He nodded, “OK, I can see that. So, you think you can do the job?”

  I nodded, “I'm pretty sure WE can, but we need to talk about how we are going to do it.

  “I have some stipulations, but I came to you before I started. This was your idea, and I didn't want to steal it from you.”

  “What stipulations?” He asked.

  “Let's set up camp, and we'll talk about them.”

  He nodded, “about a half mile farther on is a wide place where we can set up.”

  I nodded, “Let's get this show on the road then,” I said, remounting. As we rode toward the camp site, I went over the story I was going to tell Hanson, thinking I was going to stretch the truth somewhat... OK, I was going to flat out lie.

  None of it should hurt anyone though, and it would make things easier for me.

  * * *

  “So,” he said after I had spun my tale. “They killed your father, the king, your mother the queen, and your brothers. You alone survived of your royal house … the Stonemeld House you said?” I nodded. “And that makes you King Rider Stonemeld?”

  “Technically I'm a prince, but I'm a prince without a kingdom. So, until I retake my kingdom, which seems unlikely, or until I build one, I'm just Rider the stone mage.”

  “And your kingdom was to the east, beyond the great mountains?”

  I nodded, “way beyond. I've been traveling for many months. And I have decided to build my new realm on Flat Lake, which I may rename Lake Stonemeld.”

  “You know that when you claim the lands, mountains and river from where Rockspire's border ends, there's going to be trouble. King Joseph will send his army to see you off.”

  “You let me worry about that, you just concentrate on building the, uh, what did you call it?”

  “Canal and lock system,” he answered. “And you can build and finance this?

  I nodded, “yes, and I'll pay you for your work, as well as a percentage of the tolls paid for using the canal and locks.

  He looked into the fire, thinking, “Well, I was trying to get the crown to finance this, and I guess it really doesn't matter whose crown it is. When do we start, Prince Rider?”

  “It’s just Rider for now,” I said, tossing him a small purse of gold. He weighed it in his hand, nodding. “I'm not ready for the world to know what I'm doing. You now work for me and the Kingdom of Stonemeld.”

  “Long live the king!” he said, raising his coffee cup. I smiled raising my cup. “So, what do we do first?”

  “We continue on to Rockspire and buy supplies, and equipment. I'm going to hire some people, then we'll go back to Lake Stonemeld and get started.”

  “Can we hire a cook?” he asked, smiling.

  “Oh, we are definitely hiring a cook,” I said laughing. We sat around the campfire until late, making a list of needed supplies, equipment, and manpower. We decided to start small and add men as needed. When we finally went to our sleeping mats, I slept out of Shadow. My time with the mercenaries scouting had trained me to sleep lightly, as well as listen to the Shadows.

  When we arrived at Rockspire, I gave Hanson more money for the supplies and equipment we needed. I went to find a cook to hire. Remembering Cookie, first place I went was the Mercenary's Guild.

  I found their office with no trouble and went inside. There was a clerk at a desk, “Good morning sir, how may we help you?”

  “Good morning, I'm looking to hire a cook for a logging camp. I thought you might have one used to living rough and cooking outdoors.”

  He thought a moment, “we don't have a cook, but I know of a cook who recently retired and has opened an eatery. I don't think the business is doing well, and he's not happy dealing with civilian customers. You might talk to him … Sergeant Rhodes is his name.”

  I nodded, “might be worth a try.” He gave me directions to the eatery and wished me luck. The place turned out to be a small shack close to the market. Behind it was a mess wagon, with a few people working around it. I bought a meat pie, sat down to eat, and found it was one of the best I had ever tasted.

  I stepped around to the back of the wagon, “Sergeant Rhodes?”

  A big man stepped around the end of the wagon and looked at me, “I'm retired.”

  I nodded, “So I was told. I don't need a mercenary cook; I need a logging camp cook.”

&nb
sp; A young woman came to stand beside him.

  “I said I'm retired!”

  She elbowed him, “Where's this camp located, and what's the pay?” Sergeant Rhodes looked down on her with an annoyed face.

  “Must be his daughter,” I thought. “The camp will be on Flat Lake and I’ll pay what a merc company would pay.”

  She looked up at him as he considered the offer. He finally shrugged.

  “Right,” she said. “How many men will we be feeding?”

  “Less than ten to start, but we'll be adding to the crew later.”

  “You pay us merc’s pay plus ten percent. You hire our mess wagon and our three-man mess crew. We get a one-month signing bonus in advance.”

  I nodded, “done, can you be ready to leave in three days?”

  “We can,” Rhodes answered.

  I counted out the signing bonus to him, “I'm meet you on the south road at mid-morning three days from now.” I handed him a purse of gold. “Buy rations to feed ten for six weeks.

  He took the purse nodding, we'll be there, Master …?”

  “Rider,” I said shaking his hand.

  My next stop was the Mage Guild’s house. I went in and was again met by a clerk.

  “May I help you?” He asked, in a somewhat nasally voice that made me smile.

  “Yes, I'm looking for some Stone Mages, Stonecutters to be precise.”

  “I know of two, brothers actually. Both are currently working pick-up jobs around the city. They check in every afternoon if you'd like to post a job.”

  “Yes, I'd like to hire them for tomorrow, I'll be here at eight o'clock.” He nodded making a note. I paid the job posting fee and left.

  I met Hanson at the south caravan lot later in the afternoon to compare notes. “Did you get everything?” I asked.

  “About half, I'll get the rest tomorrow. How did you fare?”

  “I hired a merc mess crew, including their mess wagon, and I'm to meet two stonecutters in the morning.”

  “That's great, we're off to a good start.”