by Noah Layton
‘I hope that ain’t the truth,’ I replied. ‘Or I’ve got a really rocky road ahead of me in life.’
‘I could have told you that the moment we met. So what would cause you to come and grace my hallowed place of work once more? Another gang member?’
‘Not exactly. How would you feel about something inside the city this time?’
‘Inside the city?’ Veronica said. ‘You just told me that we couldn’t set off explosions inside of the city.’
‘Listen to this other fair maiden of yours, Drake,’ Grimdrom grunted. ‘Doing that will get us all killed.’
‘This is different,’ I said. ‘It’s not going to be a large explosion, so to speak. Just enough to get the job done. It’s complicated, and it’s going to require some engineering, some luck, and a whole lot of planning. But there’s a chance to take down a real villain.’
‘Who might that be?’
‘My old boss.’
‘Oh really?’ Grimdrom pondered for a moment. ‘You know, Drake, every time we meet I end up coming close to death. The first time you threaten to have my head cut off. The second you make me set off an explosion strong enough to bring half a house down…’
‘I’m sorry, make you?’ I laughed. ‘I didn’t make you do anything. You were excited at the thought of-’
‘Still a favour, Drake. Still a favour. And now you show up with some even crazier plan to set off an explosion inside the city?’
‘Well, it wouldn’t be one explosion, it’d be a series of small explosions, and-’
‘A series?!’ Grimdrom yelled gruffly. ‘More than one?! Are you crazy?’
All three of us went quiet. Grimdrom and I stared each other down, while Veronica looked back and forth between us with feverish anticipation. She was waiting to see which of us would respond first, and I didn’t blame her.
‘Maybe,’ I breathed, ‘But when it’s your life’s purpose, being crazy is a small price to pay to achieve it. Oftentimes it’s the only way to achieve it. So, are you in, or are you out?’
The dwarf wrapped his fist around his goggles tightly, clenching the rubber and squirming his face beneath his beard and bushy eyebrows.
‘Setting off multiple explosions, testing out my quantities, taking down the guy responsible for a lot of misery in this city,’ He repeated. ‘… I’m in.’
After explaining my plan to Grimdrom – and receiving a lot more protests about how insane it was - Veronica and I headed to the Tiger’s Brewery office and checked the shipping information for the next day. It didn’t take long for us to figure out when the next shipment of ale would be moving to Killian’s tavern.
Midday sharp, tomorrow.
Twenty minutes later, Cassandra, Veronica and I were crowded around the map of the surrounding districts, detailing every road and route that snaked and intersected its way through the city.
‘This is their path,’ I said, detailing it with a pencil. ‘Merchants usually travel along well-known routes but it’s much faster if they cut through an alleyway at some point, and this is theirs. Veronica and I saw them moving through it earlier. This is the part where their defences are down. This is the part where we move in. Once that part is over, assuming everyone plays their part, everything will go fine.’
‘Our most dangerous mission yet,’ Cassandra said, studying the map and trailing the pencil line before tapping her finger on the tiny square that represented the tavern. ‘Are you sure we can do this?’
‘As sure as I can be, but like you said, this is dangerous. Anything can happen, so before we initiate our plan, let me make one thing clear; if either of you want to back out now and walk away, you can. I wouldn’t blame you. This is my fight, and if I have to do it on my own, then I’m more than happy to risk my life to achieve it.’
Cassandra and Veronica smiled and shared a look.
‘That’s the very attitude that makes me want to join you,’ Cassandra said.
‘Me too, Drake,’ Veronica smiled, her cat-ears twitching. ‘And I want to help.’
‘I know,’ I smiled. ‘God, what would I do without you two?’
‘Get crushed by a 400 pound man?’ Cassandra answered.
‘It was rhetorical question, but you’re probably right.’
***
In the glaring midday sun, a lone driver manned the front seat of the carriage transporting the liquor from the Tiger’s Brewery through the streets of the Pale District. He took his route as normal, eventually turning left into the alleyway that he took every day.
But this time the way was blocked.
‘What is this…?’
A lone woman crouched in the street, weeping. Her clothes were messy and her hair dishevelled as the merchant approached.
‘I require passage,’ the merchant called out. ‘Move along.’
The woman turned and looked over her shoulder as the horses approached. A few yards away they drew to a stop.
‘Oh, sir!’ She called out. ‘Please help! I have been robbed, and the thieves left me with nothing!’
The merchant stepped down from the seat of the wagon and approached her.
‘Oh, my dear. I had no idea. Do you live nearby?’
‘No,’ she whimpered. ‘I have no idea where I even am.’
‘You’re in the Pale District. I’ve got a delivery that I need to make, but if you want to travel with me I can take you back to your home.’
‘That would be wonderful,’ she smiled over her shoulder. ‘You seem like a very nice man. While you are here, could you do one other thing for me?’
‘Of course, my dear, of course.’
‘Please don’t struggle.’
‘… Please don’t what?’
‘She said don’t struggle,’ I repeated, emerging from the shadows of a doorway and pressing the barrel of my rifle to the side his head.
The driver froze up and raised his hands. Veronica stood up from her crouched position and wiped the tears from her eyes before rearranging her hair.
‘That was impressive, was it not?’ She said smugly. ‘I should be an actor.’
‘Shit…’ The driver said, his fingers already shaking as the fear sank in. ‘My boss is going to kill me.’
‘No, he isn’t,’ I said. ‘In fact, nobody’s going to kill you. Nobody’s going to get hurt here. We just need your wagon.’
‘If you’re here to rob my wagon then I’m sorry to tell you, but there are much more valuable shipments that you could have jumped. This is nothing but liquor.’
‘We know. Like I said, it’s your wagon we’re after.’
A moment later another cart appeared at the end of the alleyway, with two drivers sat in the front seat.
‘How are we doing, Drake?’ Grimdrom called up to me.
‘Still alive,’ I called back. ‘How’s our product?’
‘Just fine. Let’s get it moved.’
They stopped the cart just behind the wagon, and Grimdrom and Cassandra dropped down. Cassandra drew her new rifle and pointed it at the head of the driver.
‘How are you?’ She asked him politely.
‘Aside from the fact that I’m being robbed? I’m okay.’
‘You’re not being robbed.’
‘What?’
‘We’re not thieves. We’re paying customers.’
While Cassandra looked after the driver and Veronica kept an eye out for any company from either of the alley, Grimdrom and I ripped open the curtains on the back of the wagon and climbed inside.
One by one we lifted the barrels of ale out and dumped them on the ground, then we rushed to the back of Grimdrom’s cart and pushed his new set of barrels inside.
‘What is this?’ The merchant asked, his hands still raised as Grimdrom and I climbed out of the back of the wagon. ‘What’s with the barrels?’
‘You’re not getting paid to ask questions,’ I said, fishing out a pouch from my pocket and standing before him. ‘There’s 100 gold pieces in this pouch. It’s for you, as payment fo
r your trouble. I’m going to put it in your pocket, tie up your wrists, and then hopefully we’ll never see each other ever again. Hell, you can come back here with some of the guys you work with and take your liquor away with you.’
‘… Okay…’ The merchant said in confusion, looking between Cassandra and I. ‘I still don’t understand.’
‘Don’t worry about it.’ I took out some rope and bound the merchant’s wrists, tight enough that he wouldn’t get out on his own. ‘When your colleagues arrive and ask you what happened, you tell them some crazies did this to you and paid you. That’s all.’
I finished tying his ankles and wrists, then Grimdrom and I carried him over to the cart and sat him back down in the seat.
‘I hope you’ll be buying me a new cart after this,’ my dwarf companion said to me.
‘I’ll buy you two if we live through the day.’
‘That doesn’t fill me with confidence, Drake.’
Cassandra, Veronica, Grimdrom and I rounded to the back of the wagon and looked at the barrels within before glancing between each other.
‘Okay,’ I nodded. ‘Let’s do this.’
17 – Killian
The guards standing outside the front door of The Rude Goblin were expecting a shipment precisely at midday.
So when the wagon arrived ten minutes late with a driver they had never seen before, it made sense that they would be on high alert.
‘Halt!’ One of the guards called out. ‘Who goes there?’
‘Calm yourselves, gentlemen,’ Grimdrom called out from the driver’s seat. ‘Just bringing you your delivery from the Tiger Brewery.’
‘Where’s the usual man who delivers?’
‘He was unavailable, so I’ve been assigned to the job today. I hope that’s not a problem.’
‘Not a problem, but you’re late. The boss doesn’t like that.’
‘I do apologise, sir.’
‘Open up the back of the wagon and let me check.’
‘Of course.’
Grimdrom moved down from the driver’s seat and escorted the guard to the back of the wagon.
I held my breath in anticipation, because I wasn’t situated up on the building across the street with Veronica.
She was hiding beyond the wall of the yard.
I, on the other hand, was squashed inside one of the barrels, and so was Cassandra. All I could do was go off what I could hear.
All the more dangerous was that I had no gun with me – my sword just about managed to fit, but there was no way that my rifle could compact inside here.
The curtains swept open, and a little light slipped in through a tiny airhole in the top of my barrel.
‘A lot more barrels than usual,’ the guard said. ‘I assume you have another delivery after this one.’
‘No, actually. My manager knew that I would be late because of the usual man’s absence. He appreciates you as customers, and to show his gratitude he offers a few extra barrels of his new liquor to you.’
‘New liquor, eh? It any good, or am I going to go blind drinking it?’
‘No blindness,’ Grimdrom laughed confidently.
‘Well, thank you for that. Let’s both have a drink to toast such a grand gift. You don’t mind drinking on the job do you?’
‘I’m afraid that is where the catch is. This batch isn’t quite ready yet. My boss said it still needs a day to ferment in the yard with the lids removed. He would like you and your men to give it a try when you have the time.’
Silence. I could tell that the guard was staring Grimdrom down.
I just hoped that my explosive-mongering dwarf companion could hold his nerve.
The seconds dragged as I silently prayed to nobody in particular. Then…
‘Very well, dwarf. Miron! Talo! Get yourselves over here and unload this.’
‘The first four barrels are the experimental batch. The last three is your liquor. Two barrels of mead and one liquor, yes?’
‘That’s correct, dwarf. Come with me and we’ll get your payment.’
The pair of footsteps tapered off from the wagon, and a new set appeared.
I heard the first barrel being dragged from the back of the wagon by the two guards and rolled across the yard, after which they returned for the second.
A barrel of any liquid weighed at least several hundred pounds, and Cassandra and I’s place inside the barrels could easily be passed off as the same weight.
We would just need to ensure that we could be thrown around without taking any injuries.
The second barrel was soon dragged out, then the third and the fourth.
Finally it was our turn.
My own was moved first as I was dragged roughly along the back of the wagon, my respective barrel placed down on its side.
‘This one’s heavy,’ one of the guard’s grunted.
‘You really complaining about that?’ The other said. ‘More weight means more booze. Let’s get it inside.’
I was safely hidden, but it was a damn good thing I didn’t eat breakfast.
I pressed myself up against the walls of the barrel, suspending myself firmly in place with my arms and legs just as the barrel began to roll towards the front door of the tavern. I had to hold myself steady as the barrel moved through its repetitive rolling cycle.
The barrel hit the ramp moving into the tavern, and a moment later amid the grunts of effort from the guards, the light spilling through the airhole became dimmer.
I was inside the shuttered private tavern.
I suspended myself in place, praying that they would move me into an upright position. Thankfully they did, and I quelled my breath as I let my body relax a little.
Voices murmured somewhere nearby as I waited. A few minutes later the next barrel rolled in that Cassandra was hidden inside of, and then the third and final one – the one with the actual alcohol in it.
It was all part of the plan.
Things just had to actually go to plan.
A long stretch of silence followed, interspersed with more murmuring. I could tell there were more guards inside, I just couldn’t tell how many.
The door to the tavern closed. Then, somebody descended the stairs that led into the upper reaches of the tavern.
The footsteps were slow, confident, and they were joined by a whistling that I hadn’t heard for days – not since the day that I had almost been killed.
It was Killian.
Murmuring followed. I was too far out of earshot.
And then the voice spoke:
‘I know you’re in there, Drake. Come out quietly and with your hands in the air, and I promise my guards won’t take your head off. Not for a few minutes, anyway.’
I clenched my eyes shut and opened them again. There was little difference between the two, cramped up in this barrel, save for that single stream of light glinting through the hole in the top.
I jammed my fist against the top of the barrel and the lid came loose. It toppled to the ground, and a blinding light hit me.
The first thing that Killian and his guards saw were my empty hands rising through the air. Awkwardly, I stood within the barrel and emerged.
My eyes adjusted quickly to the light, and I took in exactly what I was dealing with.
Killian stood at the other end of the tavern’s bar floor. Three guards stood either side of him.
That was on top of the six still outside.
Every single one of them was armed with a sword, drawn and at the ready. The only one without was Killian himself, his own comfortably sheathed as he stood at the back, defended by his men.
‘Nice to see you again, Drake,’ he smiled slowly.
‘You too, Killian.’
‘I’ll bet,’ he laughed. ‘I suppose I don’t have to ask your other friends to show themselves, too.’
I looked over at the barrel to my right.
‘Cassandra,’ I said with a defeated tone, ‘you can come out.’
She pulled the same routine t
hat I had, shoving the lid free before emerging with her hands raised in the air.
‘Honestly, Drake, I knew you were one for stupid plans, but dragging somebody else into one? How will she ever forgive you? Oh, wait, there won’t be any need in a few minutes, because both of you will be long gone.’
I briefly glanced over at Cassandra. Our faces were both blank.
‘Not to mention your other friend…’
Footsteps approached from the back room to my left. From the shadows, Grimdrom emerged with his hands held high, escorted by another guard.
‘Put him over there with the others,’ Killian commanded. The guard shoved Grimdrom over to my side. ‘Looks like it’s almost a complete set, apart from that last barrel. Are you going to call your other companion out or not?’
‘There isn’t anybody in that barrel,’ I said, a tone of shame twanging in my voice.
‘You sure about that?’ Killian said, taking a few slow, arrogant steps forward. ‘Well, if that’s the case, I suppose you wouldn’t mind my men slicing a few blades through the wood. You know, just for fun.’
I stayed quiet, locking eyes with the man at the centre of the whole plot to have me killed.
‘Nothing?’ He said, frowning at me. ‘Okay, looks like you don’t care about whatever’s inside there. Boys?’
Two of the guards crossed to the barrel and faced it from opposite sides. I watched intently as they drew their swords back.
‘Wait!’ I yelled, just as they drew them back for a jab.
The guards looked to me sharply, then to Killian for guidance. He raised a hand to tell them to wait.
‘So now you want to talk? Who’s your third friend?’
‘I don’t have one,’ I replied. ‘But I wouldn’t want you to poke a hole in a fresh barrel of liquor and have it spill all over your tavern floor.’
Killian surveyed my face for a moment, then slowly nodded.
‘Bring it over here to me.’
The guards turned the barrel on its side, rolled it across the ground to the spot right in front of Killian, and stood it upright once again.
Killian pulled out his knife from the back of his belt and jammed it into the gap between the lid and the barrel. His guards stood at the ready with their swords raised, pointing their blades towards the contents of the barrel.
