by Sam Ferguson
“And?” Seidrif pressed.
Brent nodded. “The squares and the triangles represent what I believe to be the correct locations of more ruins. Triangles are for Punjak forts, and squares for Kossin. These three here, I have already found.” Brent pointed to three separate places that each had a small dot placed on the left side. Two of them were squares, and the third was a triangle. “You can see the closest one is only a day away to the north. I found a portal in there, and the crystals were still glowing. I then found the second Kossin fort here.” Brent pointed to the other square. “This one also had a functioning chamber, or at least I think it functions. I couldn’t make it work. There is a spell in the back of this book that is supposed to be what the Kossin used to navigate the portals, but I don’t have any magical abilities. I couldn’t make it work.”
Seidrif nodded and reached up to stroke his beard. “Who else knows about this?”
Brent shrugged. “Nobody. I’m the only one here who knows about it. I suppose anyone who studied the history of magic back at Rumtyn College would know, but none of them showed any interest in searching for the ruins when I was there.”
“I’m taking this,” Seidrif said as he pulled the book back into his hands and looked down at the map.
“I don’t know if any of the others work, but you can see by the squares I marked out that there are several Kossin forts along the way to Geberron Pass.”
Seidrif nodded. “Thanks for this,” he said. He then raised his hand.
“No wait, I told you all I know, don’t kill me, please!”
Seidrif frowned. “I’m not going to kill you, but I can’t have you talking to anyone else either.” He quickly weaved his fingers in the air and a blue flash of light sparked in the air in front of Brent. The man’s hands went up to his mouth and he moved his jaw as if trying to speak. “This will silence you, permanently. Should I need to return for more answers, I can lift the curse, but otherwise you are now going to live as a mute. Oh, and don’t think about writing either.” Seidrif weaved his fingers again and another blue spark appeared, this one coursing down to Brent’s hands. “Can’t have you telling anyone where we went or what you found.”
Tears filled Brent’s eyes and he fell to his knees. A soft whimper emitted from his throat and he bent his head down to the floor.
“Chin up, lad, there are worse things in life.” Seidrif bent down and patted Brent on the shoulder. The wizard then left the building and closed the door behind him. He placed an invisible ward upon the whole house, ensuring that Brent would not be able to exit the house until the following day. Seidrif went back to the tavern and entered to find the crowd now sitting all together near the fireplace. Jinny, the barmaid, was also seated among the others. Her husband was still suspended in the air near the bar.
Bolgrif looked to Seidrif and offered a nod. Seidrif returned the gesture and then waved his hand, letting Jinny’s husband down softly.
“He should be fine by tomorrow,” Seidrif told Jinny. “Now that we have what we need, we’ll be off. However, I will caution all of you not to follow us.” Seidrif pointed to the two corpses in the building. “If you cross us, you will meet the same fate.” His words were met with stony silence and timid stares. He then gestured for his brothers to follow him. “Let’s go.”
The three of them exited the tavern quickly and then Seidrif placed a ward on the tavern similar to the one he had placed on Brent’s house. As they mounted their horses, Seidrif turned to Bolgrif. “We should make contact with Zek. It turns out that we may be able to use the teleport chambers he had told us to look for after all.”
*****
“Richard help me shift these items around on the sled so we can both ride the horse,” William said.
Richard nodded and glanced back at the new horse and sighed. It was nothing like the two they had brought from Richwater. In fact, Richard doubted whether it could carry both of them.
William was still grumbling about the unlikely story of the sorceress in the cave, but even Richard noticed William’s wide eyes when Garrin had shown them the crystal. It had to be magic, didn’t it? Why would the trapper lie about that?
Soon they were traveling again. Richard sat behind William, bobbing along as the horse picked its path over the snow. Garrin led the way with his sled, but it was painfully obvious to Richard that they were going much slower now. The trapper had to halt his sled every now and again to allow the horse time to catch up with them.
Richard was only all too thankful when they stopped for lunch.
“No fire,” Garrin said. “Let’s eat some of the dried fruits and meat we have and then be off again.”
“Sounds good,” William said as he slid off the horse and then reached up to help Richard down.
Richard watched the two split-tails leap away from the sled once Garrin loosed them. The two animals tumbled over each other and then darted off into the forest. Richard wished he could go with them. Anything to get away from William for a minute or two.
The youth’s eyes lit up when Garrin set the canister with Kaspar in it down upon the ground and opened the lid. He heard the trapper tell the animal to get out and stretch its legs. The cute little nose poked up, whiskers twitching as it sniffed the air. Its round, furry ears shifted on its head and then it tipped the canister over and shuffled itself out, scurrying behind a nearby rock and taking care of some business it had obviously been holding for a while. When Kaspar finished, he kicked a bit of snow back over the waste and then came bouncing back around the rock.
Instead of returning to its canister, the little animal came up to Richard and brushed against the youth’s leg.
“Taken a real shining to you, I see,” Garrin commented as he pulled out some dried meat. “You can go for a small walk if you like.”
“Do you think that’s safe?” William called out.
Richard sighed. Safety was all that man cared about now. Running and fighting was all they had done for days. It was beginning to wear on Richard.
“It’s fine,” Garrin replied. The trapper pointed out to the trees where the split-tails had gone. “Don’t go out of earshot, but you can go that way for a bit. It’s good to stretch your legs. Besides, Kaspar will go with you, and if there is anything he can’t handle, then Rux and Kiska will be close by.”
Richard didn’t wait for another word. The youth was jogging away into the trees, calling out for Kaspar.
The Dryfoot mink chattered happily and bounded on after Richard, easily keeping pace and staying at Richard’s side. The two only went about thirty yards away from Garrin and William, but to Richard it felt incredibly freeing.
Richard peeked around a tree at Garrin, and then slid down the trunk to sit at the bottom.
Kaspar leapt up from the ground, ran up Richard’s shoulder, and then brushed across the youth’s freckled cheek. Richard laughed and took Kaspar in hand, petting the creature softly.
“So tell me, Kaspar,” Richard said. “You can sense my magic?”
The animal wiggled its nose and pawed softly at Richard’s chest. Its black eyes gleamed in the sunlight, beaming up at Richard’s green eyes and holding the youth’s gaze for a moment.
“Can you ferret out all of my secrets then?” Richard asked.
Kaspar chattered quickly and nodded once.
“You understand me?” Richard asked.
The Dryfoot mink spun around in Richard’s arms and burrowed into the crook of Richard’s elbow.
“Too bad you can’t teach me how to use my magic,” Richard said. “At least then I could have helped my father. I’m not as small as my uncle would have you believe, you know. I can take care of myself.” Richard looked around the trees and sighed as the smile faded into a slight frown. “Though, I haven’t really been in the forest before.” Kaspar squirmed around, apparently trying to snuggle in closer.
“Actually, now that I think about it, I haven’t really done any of these things before,” Richard said. “We had servants wh
o helped us. They got my meals, washed my clothes, and all sorts of things.” Richard’s eyes teared up then and the youth had to sniff back a sob.
Kaspar came out from Richard’s elbow and stretched up Richard’s chest, gently placing one little paw on Richard’s chin and reaching up with its face until the two touched noses. Its curious, black eyes looked into Richards and the youth smiled softly.
“You’re a good friend, Kaspar,” Richard said. “You know, I won’t see my other friends anymore. My best friend was Mikal. He was one of the servants’ sons. We used to play hide and seek in my home. I guess now you are the only friend I have.”
Kaspar squeaked and chattered quietly, still looking into Richard’s eyes. Then, the Dryfoot mink switched its tail back and forth and leapt off from Richard’s chest and into the snow. It chattered quickly, bouncing from side to side.
“What are you on about?” Richard asked.
Kaspar buried his face in the snow, held very still for two seconds, and then popped its head up from the snow and pointed its whole body at Richard. It clicked its tongue and emphasized its whole-body-point by sticking out its foot at Richard.
“You aren’t trying to play hide and seek are you?” Richard asked skeptically.
Kaspar bounced around in a circle happily, chattering on and on.
“My uncle wouldn’t like it if I went too far away, so we’ll stay close, okay?”
Kaspar nodded and twitched his nose.
“Alright, you count, and I’ll hide.”
Kaspar slammed his face into the snow again and started to make periodic squeaks that almost sounded like counting out loud.
Richard scrambled up from the tree and ran a short ways away, jumping over a fallen log and then running around a large pine tree.
Kaspar let out ten more squeaks and then squealed with one long, shrill note. Richard peeked around the tree and watched as the Dryfoot mink pulled its head from the snow and looked around. The furry ears twitched and swung around as the white head swiveled in each direction. Richard took in a breath and held it, not wanting to make any noise.
Kaspar stood on his hind legs and sniffed the air, then he spun and ran straight in the direction Richard had run. The youth pulled back around the tree and held still, but it was no use. The animal was there in seconds, bounding around the tree and chattering triumphantly with its tail erect in the air as it pranced in front of Richard, then spun and pointed directly at the youth.
“You can smell my magic, can’t you?” Richard asked.
Kaspar climbed up Richard’s clothes, all the way up to the teenager’s neck, and then used his furry head to push Richard’s head toward the tree.
“All right, all right, I get it. My turn to count,” Richard said. With eyes shut and face buried into the cold bark of the tree, Richard began to count. “One…two…three…four…”
Richard felt the animal jump away, but never heard the snow crunch as he expected. In fact, there was no sound at all. The animal vanished like a ghost. Richard peeked out from the tree, still counting, hoping to get a hint as to where the animal ran to.
“Ten,” Richard said finally. “Here I come.” Richard turned and looked around, but saw nothing. Richard peeked around the tree. Nothing. The youth went to the fallen log, but again found nothing. An idea came into the teenager’s mind. Garrin would use tracks.
Richard bent low to the ground, but found only the tracks leading to the tree from where Kaspar had started. There was no second set. Richard searched everywhere, crisscrossing over the entire area several times.
“Looking for something?” Garrin called out as the trapper approached. “Trying to track an animal?”
Richard looked up and nodded. “I was playing hide and seek with Kaspar, but I can’t seem to find him.
Garrin snorted and seemed to suck in his lower lip.
“What?” Richard asked. “I already checked the trees above, and there are no other tracks on the ground here. It’s like he vanished.”
The trapper started to turn a bit pink in the face and he put a hand up over his mouth. “Sure you searched everywhere?” he asked through his thick mitten.
What kind of question was that? Richard huffed and turned around, frustration building within as each passing second seemed to mock the youth.
“You could help, if you are so great at tracking,” Richard put in. “That is your profession, is it not?”
Garrin laughed out loud. “I already found him.”
“WHAT?!” Richard shouted. “He’s with you? Open that canister!”
Garrin pointed back to where the canister was lying on the ground. “He isn’t with me.”
“Well he certainly isn’t with me either!” Richard said, flustered.
Garrin smiled and offered a nod to Richard.
“What?” Richard asked.
The trapper pointed at Richard. “Maybe try a check over your shoulder.”
Richard’s brow drew into a frustrated knot, but the youth did what Garrin suggested. Richard’s hand brushed something soft and furry that was clinging to the back of his outercoat, and barely noticeable at all.
“You slimy little cheat!” Richard exclaimed.
Kaspar climbed up and over Richard’s shoulder, tail high in the air and nose even higher as it let out a series of triumphant clicks and squeaks.
“He’s a crafty one,” Garrin noted. “Come on, we need to be moving again. It’s going to snow soon and we need to make some good progress before the weather bogs us down.”
Chapter 9
The late morning sun peeked over the snow-capped, ruined tower before Seidrif. The bearded wizard halted the group and inspected it from afar, glancing back down to the book in his hands and finally nodding.
“This should be it,” Seidrif said. “Let’s get inside and take a look around.”
“What about the horses?” Bolgrif asked.
Seidrif shook his head. “Won’t know for sure until we see the ruins on the inside. Zek was under the impression that the Kossins built the teleport chambers large enough for horses too, but he has never seen one in person.”
Hagrif dropped off the side of his horse and waved his hand. A burst of wind wiped the snow from the face of the tower, uncovering a stone door at the base.
“Thanks for that, Hagrif,” Seidrif said as he led the trio to the tower. The door was square, maybe six feet wide by six feet tall. The hinges on the door squeaked in protest as Seidrif pulled on the large iron ring and opened the doorway.
The bearded wizard expected dust, or perhaps spider webs in the doorway to blow out with the sudden opening of the door, but nothing happened. They walked into the first chamber and found a most peculiar set of stone furniture there.
“Who would sit upon stone benches and eat at a stone table?” Bolgrif asked as they walked around what appeared to be a large dining chamber on the first floor of the tower.
“The Kossin,” Seidrif responded. “They never used wood for building.”
“Why not?” Hagrif asked.
“The Kossin have an affinity with the trees of the forest. Their magic connects them with the pines.”
“Is that what their war with the Punjak was about then?” Hagrif asked and brushed a hand over the smooth table top.
Seidrif shook his head. “I would wager that the feud between the Punjak and the Kossin ran deeper than that, though I don’t imagine it helped much that the Punjak had no aversion to cutting down trees.”
“Hang on, Seidrif,” Hagrif called out.
The other two wizards stopped and turned around.
“If they never used wood, then how did they make tools? And what about scepters and such?”
Seidrif responded, “They could use fallen limbs for tools if needed. For the scepters, I understand that they had to ask a tree’s permission. Then, once a tree offered a living limb, it bound that tree to that particular Kossin wizard. The wizard would become a guardian of the trees in that area as payment for the bough.”
“Sounds like hogwash to me,” Bolgrif put in. “Look at us, we don’t need to ask the trees for permission.”
Seidrif nodded. “I’m only saying what Zek explained to me.”
“You’re close to Zek, aren’t you?” Hagrif asked as they crossed the room and opened a door leading into a hallway descending down into the mountain.
Seidrif shrugged. “Zek has been good to us. He pays us fairly and values our work. But if you were to ask who I am closest to, that answer should already be obvious.”
Hagrif stopped and scratched his head. “Who?”
Bolgrif huffed and backhanded Hagrif in the chest. “It’s us you dolt!”
“Oh!” Hagrif replied with a big, toothy grin. “Right then.”
The three wizards made their descent and turned left once they reached the bottom of the platform. Seidrif kept his nose in the book in his hands, while Bolgrif focused on the floating orb of light he conjured for them. Aside from the occasional rat, nothing stirred within the ruins.
Rooms lined the hallway, most of them small dining or bed chambers. Hagrif stopped them when they passed by a library where the door had fallen from its hinges and lay cracked upon the floor.
“If the Kossin didn’t use wood, then how did they make paper for books?” Hagrif asked.
Seidrif turned around impatiently. “It’s a mix of hemp waste and reed fiber, now can we please move on to the teleportation chamber? You know the king is not a patient fellow. Though Zek may like us, the king is not about to forgive us if we let the traitor slip through our hands.”
Hagrif’s expression turned to stone and he nodded once, slamming a fist into his other palm.
