Journey Across Jord

by Allan Joyal

  I was beginning to slide back down when hands grabbed both of my shoulders. They wrapped around my clothing and pulled me from the hole, lifting me to my feet.

  "How do we pull Henck out?" I asked as I gazed at the hole.

  The others said nothing, but arrayed themselves near the hole. Natalie and Heather were kneeling just to the left and right of the hole as we waited for Henck. His head showed up a moment later. He was face down and dragging himself forward by clawing at the snow and dragging himself forward.

  Heather and Natalie grabbed under his armpits and pulled him upward as Steve squatted down to grab his arms. My friend lifted Hencktor from the hole and set him on his feet.

  We all stood above the hole, gasping for breath. I looked around and could see the impressions of our footprints in the snow. "I don't know about you," I said to the others. "But I'm for a warm fire and a bowl of Kariy's stew. Shall we grab our new toys and head home?"

  Chapter 9: Meetings and Messages

  The return trip from our expedition to the shed was conducted in silence. We quickly divided up the responsibility for the two sleds and then worked to get them home. None of us had been keeping track of time while we searched the shed, and the lengthening shadows and dropping temperatures indicated it was now late afternoon. The increasing cold added urgency to our trek back to the lodge.

  The sky was almost dark by the time we could see the gate to the lodge in front of us. Kariy was standing at the gate with a worried expression on her face as I stumbled up on chilled legs.

  "We were wondering what was taking so long?" she said as she ran down to help Steve and me move the first sled.

  "It wasn't far, but it was cold, and the snow is hard to move through. Ron, we need to think about snowshoes before we decide to leave here," Steve said.

  I just nodded as we dragged the sled up to the door. Al met us there and looked at our prizes. He compared them to the door and then smiled. "We can put them inside in one of the bedrooms we don't use," he suggested. "That way we can see how much they will hold and work on packing them before we leave."

  Steve and I both groaned, but reached down to pick up the sled. The sled was heavy to our cold arms, but we were able to follow Al into the lodge.

  Inside, the warm air came as a shock to bodies that had spent several hours out in the cold. Steve groaned audibly as we struggled to carry the sled past the fire. The others in the room scrambled out of the way.

  "What did you find?" Victoria asked.

  "Two sleds," I replied. "And a few rather battered farm tools."

  We reached the room Al suggested. Steve and I walked all the way in and then rotated the sled. We set it down and then had to move to the back wall as Hencktor led Jennifer and Esme in with the second sled. They also rotated the sled, setting it next to the first before rushing out of the room.

  "Warmth first, then food," Steve said as he moved past me, heading to the main room.

  I followed, shedding my shirt, vest, and jacket as I moved near the fire. Heather was wrapping a fur around her body and held open one corner. I sank to the ground next to her and she draped the fur over both of us.

  "I guess you expect to be served," Lydia shouted from the kitchen corner.

  "Not if you cooked it," Steve called back. "It's probably poisonous."

  "Kariy cooked it," Aine said with a giggle. "I never imagined someone could cook something so tasty over an open fire like that."

  "I look forward to it," Heather said. She was writhing next to me. The next thing I noticed her right hand appeared from under the fur. She was holding the blouse and skirt she had been wearing.

  "Heather?" I hissed quietly.

  "The skirt is wet and cold. I'm better off without it, as you would be without your pants," she whispered.

  Lydia chose that moment to hold out a pair of bread rolls to us. They had the centers hollowed out and held a still-steaming stew. I reached out and accepted both, holding them until Heather reached out to take one. Once I had a hand free, Lydia slapped two spoons into my hand.

  Heather quickly claimed one, and we proceeded to eat. At first I tried to make sure the fur stayed closed, but I glanced up to see that Esme and Natalie were also naked. No one in the group seemed to think it significant, so I concentrated on warming my body with the warm stew.

  "Relway will come by tomorrow with two farmers," I said absently, "and Lisa found a bard who will accept her."

  "A hunky elf," Jennifer said with a giggle.

  Lydia sighed. "It might have been nice to meet him." She sounded a bit down and I looked at her.

  "Problem?" I asked.

  "Sharice ran off," Aine said. "She said she couldn't trust anyone, grabbed all of the stuff we brought and left."

  "We should try to find her," I said. I started to rise to my feet as Al shook his head.

  "I followed her," Al said tonelessly. "She's dead. I guess she couldn't handle everything that had happened. She clawed her way through the snow all the way to the wall. There she dropped the pack she was carrying before she found a way into one of the towers. By the time I realized what she was doing, she was standing on top of the wall."

  "But everything is soft snow," Natalie said with a gasp.

  "She aimed for some kind of stone construction. It wasn't a long fall, but she landed on her head," Al said. "A guard was there right after she hit and quickly declared her dead. I retrieved the pack and then snuck away before he saw me."

  "God," Steve said. "We should have left more people here to watch."

  I just sat there for a moment, and then I looked at Aine. "What about you?" I asked her.

  She shrugged. "I feel safe here. It's not a perfect situation, but I'm alive, and I have some hope. Yes, I was raped, but there is no permanent harm."

  "It shouldn't have happened," Al growled. "What those men did was wrong. We should have stood together and protected each other."

  "You do," Aine said. "I saw that last night and all day today. But I can also see you are all tired. It was a long day. Perhaps we should all sleep and talk more in the morning."

  I looked down and realized that I had finished eating the stew. I broke off a chuck of the bread roll and took a bite. The bread had absorbed some of the stew, so it was quite tasty. Lydia noticed and came over to reclaim the spoon.

  Heather handed over hers as well. She had finished off the bread roll and snuggled into my side as I devoured the last bites. As I licked off my fingers, she pulled me down to lie next to her. "Tomorrow we talk more," she said.

  I agreed with her idea. Wrapping my arms around her, I closed my eyes and slept.

  Hours later, Heather woke me up as she eased out of my arms. The fire had gone down a bit, but was still burning brightly, keeping the lodge warm. I sat up and Heather crept over to the toilet room.

  Heather's action reminded me that I was feeling quite thirsty. I stood up and moved to the kitchen area, looking for a full canteen. I found one and took several long gulps. The liquid was an extremely weak ale, but it quenched my thirst. I resealed the canteen and walked back over to the bedroll. Around me, I could hear the others starting to stir.

  Esme was the next one to sit up. She rubbed sleep from her eyes and looked around. "Who kept the fire going?" she asked.

  "I don't know," I said. "I'm just glad they did. We needed the warmth."

  "We should look into preparing some food," Esme said. "But I haven't been working at it."

  "You were concentrating on medicine," I said.

  Two arms snaked around me from behind. I started, but then could feel two breasts pressed into my back. "Heather, you might want to dress," I said.

  Heather giggled. "You didn't even notice that Esme was naked. I'm not worried about anyone here."

  I glanced over at Esme, who giggled and pushed her chest forward. Her breasts stood up proudly over a taut stomach. She was completely unashamed of her nakedness.

  "Heather, why don't you warm up breakfast then," I suggested. "And
you will need to get dressed. Remember we have visitors coming."

  "Fine," Heather said. "I'll hide my body from others. I just hope my clothes are dry."

  "They are," Natalie said from the floor. "Victoria arranged them by the fire. Just check over by the wash basin."

  Heather headed over there and started sorting through the outfits there. She found a blouse and skirt and pulled both on immediately, tucking the blouse into the skirt before tightening the drawstring of the skirt.

  "No panties?" Steve asked.

  I glanced over. He was lying under a bedroll, but had rolled onto his stomach and was gazing at the fire.

  "I don't think Jord has elastic," Heather said.

  Steve being awake seemed to be a signal to the rest of the group to start waking up. Heather finished dressing and then brought skirts and blouses over to Natalie. Esme dressed quickly, but then demanded to look at Natalie's leg before she allowed her love to dress.

  Natalie admitted that the knee ached a bit more than normal, but Esme said she saw no swelling. Natalie was obviously cheered by the news and gave Esme a passionate kiss before dressing.

  "How long do we have until Relway arrives?" Lydia asked.

  I shrugged. "He said he'd bring two farmers with him. I expect the farmers will be meeting Relway first and then coming here. I don't expect them too early, but we have no way to tell time here."

  Al walked over to the main door of the lodge. He opened the door and looked out. "It's just starting to get light," he said. "I don't know many farmers, but I remember the jokes told about them when I was growing up about them being up before dawn. Still pretty cold though, so we might have a little time."

  Victoria giggled. "We don't keep him for his brain," she said.

  Everyone laughed at that. I watched Al for a moment, but when he turned around after closing the door I could see the smile on his face. He glanced over at Victoria and shook his head. "And I suppose it wasn't you begging for me to lick your pussy harder yesterday."

  Victoria blushed. I spun around looking for Aine. She was standing near Kariy in the kitchen corner. The young woman had her head down. Worriedly I started to walk toward her. Her head came up as she heard my footsteps, and I halted in relief when I saw that she was smirking.

  Aine looked up at me and shook her head. "Oh, I'm not getting upset over that," she said. "It happened after Al returned. He was pretty broken up about Sharice killing herself. Victoria just used a unique way to cheer him up."

  "It's my job to worry about everyone," I said.

  Heather turned from the kitchen fire and walked over to slap me on the face lightly. The touch was rather tender, and she followed it up by pulling me in for a loving kiss.

  "Your job is to lead us to a safe new home. Yes, we'll have to build it ourselves, but we'll have one. Now breakfast will be ready in a moment. After that, take Steve and Henck and figure out how we can pull the sleds. It was no fun trying to drag them through the snow," she told me.

  Heather turned back to the fire. She and Kariy started picking up loaves of bread that had been cooking on the stones by the fire. They hollowed out the middles and handed the prepared bowls to Aine, who filled them with the heated stew.

  Aine had a huge smile on her face as she handed a full bread bowl to me. I looked around for a spoon. Heather pointed toward the other hearth. "Lydia just washed them. They should be drying by the other fire."

  The rest of the group was lining up to receive a bowl so I carefully stepped over the scattered bedrolls and made my way closer to the other fire. I was almost there when I felt some cloth drop onto my right shoulder.

  "Your shirt and vest," Victoria said. "Hencktor showed us how to wash them last night. You should dress before Relway arrives."

  I nodded. Carefully, I picked up the outfit and set it down on the bedroll I had slept in. Then I picked up a spoon and turned around to sit with my back to the stones that ringed the fire pit. The stones spread the warmth of the fire evenly across my back as I started to eat.

  The stew was a bit thick. I looked around for a canteen and then shouted toward the rest of the group. "Can someone bring some of the weak ale or wine we've been drinking?"

  Kariy sighed. "We need to ask for more today if we see a wizard. I'll give a canteen to Steve."

  A moment later I could see Steve approaching the fire pit. He had a bowl in one hand and a canteen dangling from the other. I stabbed my spoon into the stew and reached behind me to pick up another. Steve smiled as I held the spoon out, quickly trading the canteen for the spoon.

  Steve sat down near me, leaving space between us. I glanced at the space and then at him. "Heather's on her way," he said.

  I looked up to see Heather walking our way. She noticed my gaze and immediately put more sway into each step. Steve laughed as the young blond woman walked up and held a hand out to me. "My scepter, minion," she said coldly.

  Heather burst into giggles as I stared at the hand. I shook my head, reached over my shoulder to pick up a spoon and hand it to her. She claimed the spoon and spun around to sit next to me. Her left leg crossed over my right, and she leaned on my shoulder.

  I shifted slightly so I could look around her and see Steve. "Why me?" I asked.

  Heather giggled again and kissed me on the cheek. "Because you protect us, think about us, and love me. Even if you refused me last night."

  I shook my head as Steve laughed louder. He noticed my action and stopped. ‘Oh, I don't know why you are complaining," he said. "Everyone knew what she wanted."

  "Not in front of everyone," I said firmly. "I'm not interested in performing for an audience."

  "Ron," Heather said, "you do realize that we will most likely be sharing a room or a campsite throughout the journey, and that we'll probably end up in one big room at first once we find a home? I'm not going to wait years for some regular loving from my husband."

  "We don't want to have a pregnant woman on the journey," I muttered. "We might be traveling for months."

  Heather shook her head. "Remember that we did have our purses with us. It turns out that Lydia, Victoria, Natalie, and I, have our pills with us. Natalie gave hers to Jennifer once she and Esme declared their love."

  "How many months of supply is that?" I asked.

  "One," Heather admitted. ‘But I'm protected until my next period, which isn't for another four days."

  I glanced at Victoria, who was walking back with her own food. "What are we doing about …" I started.

  Victoria leaned over me to claim one of the spoons. She then claimed a seat to my left. "Don't worry," she said. "We have a solution for that. Kariy and Jennifer already had their visits for the month."

  Steve sighed. "I don't want to know," he muttered.

  Al came over and sat down after claiming a spoon. "I'm going to miss Lisa," he said. "She liked to sing in the mornings."

  "I miss coffee," Lydia muttered. "How can these people live without caffeine?"

  I sighed. "How about we plan for the day? Henck, can you and Steve rig something for the sleds? I'm thinking some kind of harness that one or two people can pull, but which is easy to drop. I expect we won't get any livestock while we are in town."

  Hencktor nodded. "I have the rivets thanks to your purchase yesterday, and we have plenty of leather. I wish we had a second hammer to help press the rivets, but I can use an axe blade as an anvil for now."

  Steve smacked a hand against his face. "Shit! We will need an anvil and some tools for smithing if we are going to be days away from anyone else. There are some repairs we'll have to learn how to do."

  I looked at Hencktor. "I don't supposed you know how to smith things?"

  "No," he admitted. "We never had the metal to spare in the village. If something broke, we would wait for a wandering smith or merchant."

  Lydia sat down next to Hencktor and put an arm around him. "He fixes broken contract administrators though," she said with a giggle.

  There was another round of laughter
and then everyone concentrated on eating. I finished off my bowl and set the used spoon aside on the hearth. Heather and Kariy added their own spoons. I was surprised to see Kariy finish so quickly. "You finished …" I began.

  "I filled my bowl first," Kariy said firmly. "I would sneak bites while serving everyone else."

  I was about to nod in response when there was a knocking at the door. I grabbed the shirt Victoria had returned to me and threw it on. The lacing in the front was loose, but the person at the door knocked again, so I stepped over Esme and made my way to the door.

  Al had not latched the door properly, so it was swinging open as I arrived. I grabbed it to pull it fully open and looked out. Relway was standing directly in front of the door. I could see additional people behind him.

  "Come in," I said quickly. "We have a fire going."

  Relway came in, offering a bow to everyone and then moving close to the fire. I could see five more people following him. Two were adult men. They had the healthy glow of men who spent long hours at physical labor. The other figures were two boys in their late teens, and a pre-teen girl. The younger people wore full packs and were carrying several items in their arms. They moved near the woodpile and sat down on the floor.

  Jennifer ran off into the room where we had left the sleds. She reappeared a moment later with the two camp chairs we had purchased the day before. She offered them to the two older gentlemen, who gladly accepted them before sitting down.

  I nodded to the men and sat down on the floor across from them. I took a long look at the two men. One was stocky and heavyset. He had been wearing a straw hat to cover his thinning brown hair. The hat was now on the floor at his feet. His face was weathered to a deep brown. The clothing he wore was leather that had obvious thin spots at the shoulders and knees. The second man looked like he could play linebacker. He was a tall man with powerful muscles. His shoulder length hair was thick and black. Like the other farmer, his leather garments were thinning in the shoulders and knees. He looked around the room and then turned to Relway.

  "Introductions might be best," he said.