“That doesn’t make any sense. Who would place a spell like that on a medallion?” Adam asked.
“It makes sense. Kalaldi said the wizard’s guild was experimenting with the powers of life, death and the undead. He thought that perhaps the medallion was being sent to be destroyed when the caravan tumbled over the edge of the mountain. I’ve found one of their experiments and by touching it, I’ve become cursed with it.”
Kyle stood up and went to the window, looking out at the people below. “Now what am I supposed to do?”
There was a long silence before Adam spoke. “Is that all Kalaldi was going to do? Decode the runes imprinted on the medallion?”
“No, he was also going to try to find a way to cure the curse. Now that he’s dead…It’s hopeless.” Kyle sighed, sitting on the edge of his bed, his head cradled in his hands.
“Well, maybe we missed something.” Adam flipped through the pages, scanning them.
“I think…” Kyle said.
“Maybe there was something else in the workshop you missed? What if we headed back there and managed to sneak back in? We could have another look around?”
“Adam, you know that wouldn’t work. By now everyone in Whiteforge would be looking for me, and by extension, you. Second, the tower was built like a fortress. There’s no way we’re going to sneak back in there, unless we can fly. Third, and most importantly, we would have no idea what to even look for. You see the trouble we had just trying to understand the information we have in front of us. The information we would be looking for could be anywhere in that place...if it even existed. Maybe I missed something on his workbench, maybe it was stolen by Kalaldi’s killer or maybe Kalaldi just didn’t find anything.”
“Except for this ‘Kurilan’.”
Kyle’s heart was heavy with the unknown for the future. He pushed those thoughts aside and gave in to a bit of his friend’s optimism.
“Since it looks like we’re going to be on the road for a while, let’s get out of here and see what this town has to offer in the way of weapon-smiths. I have what I understand to be a fine short sword, but sadly it lacks an equally fine scabbard. While we’re out, we can also get some additional provisions, a traveling pack for you and maybe the weapon-smith can find a sword for you as well,” Kyle said, keeping his voice light and filled with as much mirth as he could muster for his friend.
“A sword? For me?”
“Yes, for you. It won’t be as fine as mine, you understand, but something that is sharp enough for you to defend yourself, but not so much that you’ll cut yourself with it.” Kyle laughed.
The two stepped out of the front door of the inn and found Mrs. Conners on the porch, rocking in a chair, snapping string beans in the large bowl on her lap. Pulling the smoking pipe from between her lips, she smiled, her face crinkling into a million lines as the smoke swirled around it.
“Where are you two off to?” she asked casually.
“Just to have a look around. Stretch our legs before dinner tonight.” Kyle said, shifting the pack on his back.
“Well, don’t be late. Making my famous stew with plenty of biscuits to sop up what accidentally spills. And what spills not so accidentally,” she said, laughing.
She put the tip of the pipe into her mouth and took a half draw. As if an idea suddenly struck her, she called out, “Mr. Hawthorne. Gods bless me, I plain forgot. Penny stopped by earlier and left you something.”
She rooted in one pocket of her apron and then giving up, began rooting in the other. Finally she smiled and pulled a small piece of folded yellow parchment free. She handed it to Kyle and then waved goodbye to them.
Kyle opened the folded note and read it. Smiling, he handed it to Adam.
‘Paul, this is Penny, I hope you remember me, from the laundry. Isn’t Mrs. Conners’ inn a nice place to stay? I should be done working late in the afternoon if you and Brian would like some company for dinner. Stew Night, isn’t it? You know where to find me. P.’
Adam punched Kyle lightly on the shoulder, and offered the note back to him. “Sounds like Penny is sweet on you.”
“Sweet on me or not, I’ve got a girlfriend. Now, let’s get going. It’ll be nice to have a little bit of pleasant conversation over dinner instead of just watching you chew with your mouth open, wouldn’t it?” Kyle said and then he returned the favor and punched his friend back.
* * * *
With Kyle leading the way, they walked up the main road looking for a weapon-smith. Passing through the crowds, they saw groups of women buying all manner of produce and meats from vendors operating out of the backs of their wagons as well as through the open front windows of the shops. The air was filled with the smell of various cooked foods…grilled meat mixed with the drifting smell of fresh baked breads and desserts. Adam stopped to admire a dozen pies cooling off on a small shelf outside the bakery. He had to step back as two older women pushed past him to look them over and call into the store for assistance. Kyle pulled on Adam’s sleeve to get him moving again in the direction of the rhythmic sound of hammering metal.
The huge man standing in front of the hearth held the iron hammer like a toy in his over-sized hands. His muscles flexed as he brought it down crashing into the red hot metal causing it to flatten and emit a shower of glowing sparks. He worked the metal over and over again, into the shape he wanted and finally dipped it into a large cut off cask filled with blackened water. He pulled it free, looked it over and with a satisfied grunt tossed it into a pile of similarly shaped metal objects. Only when he was reaching for another metal blank did he notice the two young men standing a few scant feet from him.
“Yeah, what do you want?” he asked, obviously bothered at being disturbed. He dropped the metal blank back into the pile and hung his tongs on a nail pounded into the support beam. He dropped his hammer with a clatter onto the still warm anvil and said, “I haven’t got all day, lad.” He pulled the cloth tied around his head, dipped it into a bowl of clean water on a nearby shelf and wiped his shaven head with it.
Kyle dropped his pack against the corner post and pulled the short sword from inside. “I’m looking to purchase a scabbard for this. Nothing fancy, just something functional.” He handed the sword to the smith. He held it and turned it over in his hands.
“Nice blade. One second.” He disappeared through an open doorway for a minute and then reappeared carrying the scabbard in his meaty fist with the sword already in place. “How does that look?” he asked.
“Kyle. Your pack.” Adam called out from across the smith’s work area, where he was admiring some of his metalwork. He was pointing at a dark figure cutting through the crowd and heading toward the grassy field and woods on the river bank side of the main road. No sooner had he alerted his friend, then Adam was off in the direction of the thief.
Kyle yanked the sword smoothly from the scabbard and headed off in the direction of his friend’s pursuit.
The thief seemed to have the advantage of knowing the local terrain, taking corners along the alleys behind the dwindling cottages and then ducking down in the high grass of the uncut fields of wild grasses. Unfortunately, where the thief had some advantage, Adam made up for that shortcoming with pure speed and a reckless level of pursuit.
Kyle tried to keep up, his sword raised over his head and his legs pumping as quickly as possible. He was able to track the hunter and his prey by the flattened grasses and finally by the sound of struggle coming from a small meadow near the riverbank.
Breaking through the last of the high grass, he saw Adam rolling along the muddy earth with a figure dressed in dark clothes clutching a dagger in an outstretched hand. Adam was holding onto a bare wrist, keeping the dagger at bay for the moment. Kyle quickly crossed the field to the two wrestling figures and stuck his sword into the face of the masked thief on the ground.
The struggle stopped and the dagger fell to the ground. Adam rolled free, picked up the weapon, and pointed it at the thief.
“Stand up,” Kyle said.
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The thief stood and casually brushed the loose grass and dirt from a grass-stained cloak.
“Care to remove the mask, I’d like to see who I may decide to kill for stealing from me,” Kyle said, trying to sound tough, holding the blade as steady as his nerves would allow.
Reaching up, the thief pulled the cloth away. Short red hair spilled out and the high cheekbones, slender nose and thin rosy lips revealed a striking woman. She reached toward her head and shook her hair out from its confinement of the cloth restraint.
“Just slow down there. Don’t try anything, or I’ll use this.” Kyle said firmly.
“I don’t think you’ve ever used that thing before. You’re too cute to be a killer with a sword. You might break a heart or two, but that would be about all. My name is Amber,” she said, holding out her hand. When it wasn’t immediately taken, she turned to Adam and offered it again.
“Are you always so easy going with someone who even if they couldn’t run you through, could easily turn you in to the local sheriff?” Adam asked.
With the mention of the sheriff, Amber’s demeanor became much more serious. “Look, we don’t have to bring the sheriff into this. No one was harmed and you got your pack back safe and sound.” She gestured at the fallen pack and its spilled contents lying in the short grass.
Adam put the weapon he was holding into his belt and went to the fallen pack. He picked up each of the pieces, wiped any mud off of them and dropped them back into the bag. He lifted the bag, and a small, folded piece of parchment remained on the ground. Adam picked it up, unfolded it and looked at it.
“Kyle, you might want to look at this.” He stepped over next to Kyle and held up the paper where Kyle could see and still keep an eye on their beautiful prisoner.
“What is it?”
“I don’t know. We didn’t see this when we first looked through what you took. It looks like a portion of a map. Some markings, those look like mountains obviously, but is that a river?”
“What is that little mark in the corner? It could be anything really...maybe a town?” Kyle said. “When we get back to the room, we can take a closer look at it.”
“What about her?” Adam asked, nodding in Amber’s direction.
“Let her go I guess. We got our stuff back, nothing damaged and she may have given us a possible clue we missed.”
Kyle lowered his sword slowly and everyone including Amber breathed a little easier. She took a few steps toward Adam and before he could react, she snatched the slip of paper from his hand and took a long look at it before he yanked it away from her again.
“That’s none of your business.” Adam said sharply, folded the map and stuffed it into his pocket.
“If that’s where you plan on going, you’ll never find it. Everything on that map is unmarked and it’s sparse enough that it could point to anywhere. Now, that symbol in the corner that did look a bit familiar to me though. Maybe with a longer look, I could get you there. For a fee, of course.”
Adam laughed. “You’re a thief and most likely a liar as well. I don’t think we need your help. We’ll figure out if that piece means anything to us.”
Kyle took the pack from Adam’s hand and slung it on his shoulder. He started walking back, leaving the two squared off at one another.
“Can I at least have my knife back?” Amber asked, her palm out.
“Sure,” Adam answered her and pulled the dagger from his belt. He grabbed the tip of the blade between his finger tips and threw the knife end over end into the nearby river, where it sunk with a satisfying splash. “Sorry, I don’t trust thieves.”
Amber’s left hand came up from behind her back in a flash, and suddenly Adam found a dagger, this one thinner and smaller than the one he had tossed away, pointed at his throat.
“The feeling is mutual, I don’t trust them either,” Amber said, holding the knife there for several seconds and then lowered it. She put the blade away and started walking back through the high grass toward the main road, leaving Adam standing on the shoreline swallowing hard.
Kyle was admiring the look of his sword housed in its plain scabbard when he noticed Adam emerge from the grass. He watched Adam dust himself off and cross the road toward him.
“Nice to see you made it back. Your new friend was a little fighter wasn’t she? Just about bested you, it looked like.” Kyle poked his friend several times in the stomach.
“I wasn’t really expecting to catch up to her, let alone fight her,” Adam said.
Kyle threw his arm over his friend’s shoulder.
“Come on, let’s head back.”
The Blacksmith handed Adam a sword in a scabbard which he took and pulled the blade free. It felt good in his hand and he commented to the weapon-smith about the quality. The smith thanked him and Kyle dropped two gold coins and several silver pieces into his open hand.
Securing the belts around their waists, the short swords in their scabbards hung freely and they both had to fight the urge to pull their swords and test how skilled they could become with their new weapons. They walked along and found a general store that contained several packs with numerous pockets and spare securing straps as well as the provisions they desired.
After purchasing everything, Kyle and Adam stepped out onto the main road and began walking toward the side street in the direction of their inn.
“Paul. Brian.” A loud call broke the din of those talking around them. Penny ran in their direction. She was coming from the general direction of the inn and was carrying the coats they’d left in their room.
“I’m so glad I found you before you went back to your room,” Penny said, between breaths.
* * * *
Taking the coats and handing Adam his, he said, “Penny? Is everything all right?”
“I finished my work early and went to the inn. Mrs. Connors said you were out and I went out looking for you. When I couldn’t find you, I went back to the inn to leave you a message and there were several men from Whiteforge speaking to Mrs. Connors. I didn’t get their names, but they were asking everyone at the inn about you and their descriptions of you two are perfect.”
Kyle looked at Adam for a moment and then turned back to Penny.
“They said your names were Kyle and Adam and that they were looking for you for murder. After you saved Robert’s life, I figure I owe you. I pulled Kelly aside, told her to get the effects from your room and meet me behind the inn. She gathered up everything, packed some supplies and brought me everything that was in your room.”
Penny turned around and faced Kyle, looking into his eyes. “I want to believe you’re not guilty of what those men are saying, but I just don’t know. Listen, once they expand their search they’ll eventually discover you. You’ve got to leave Allenon. Go through the southern gate. It’s unguarded this late in the afternoon. I’ve hidden your possessions outside the wall, near the gates. Follow the Barrow Road.”
Concern was written across Penny’s face. She turned and looked in the direction of the side road and the inn. “Please, you’ve got to hurry.”
Kyle pulled five silver pieces from his pocket and handed them to Penny.
“Give these to Mrs. Connors for the room and her troubles.”
Penny took the coins and held Kyle’s hand in hers. There weren’t any tears in her blue eyes. Her face was set.
“Take care of yourself. Take care of one another. Now go.”
Adam grabbed Kyle’s sleeve and gave it a firm tug. The two started walking toward the Southern gate quickly, but tried not to call attention to themselves. Even with the hurried pace, they still blended in with the late afternoon crowds.
They passed the last of the merchant shops and the gate was within sight. Occasionally, one of them would turn and take a look behind them and see if they could notice anyone following them or taking an interest, but so far it looked like they would slip through the gate unnoticed.
They crossed the threshold of the gate and Adam split off to one
side. He reappeared moments later, wearing a pack on his back and carrying another. Kyle took his pack and slipped it over his shoulder.
They could see the crushed gravel of the Barrow Road and the vast fields of green beyond the stone walls of the city, when a voice caused them to turn back toward the town.
“Guys.”
Amber ran into a spot between the two, separating them and throwing her arms around their shoulders. She pulled them forward through the open gates.
Adam sighed. “What do you want now?”
“Want? Why I don’t want anything. Quite the contrary. I wanted to extend my offer once again to be a guide to find whatever it is you’re looking for on that little scrap of a map you own.”
“Uh huh. Why would you want to do that, again?” Kyle asked.
“Well, I…”
“Where is she?” The cry came from several men crashing out of a general store. They looked up one end of the street and then the other. Their gaze settled on Amber and by extension, Kyle and Adam.
“Stop. Thief.” They called out to Amber, but instead of stopping, she pulled her arms free and started to run. She looked behind her once and motioned for Kyle and Adam to follow her before turning around and picking up speed.
“They must be working with her. Get them too.” one of the men called out, and the group suddenly broke from their position in front of the store and ran toward the boys.
“Kyle, I think…”
“Yeah, let’s go.” The two boys took off, running after the rapidly shrinking figure of Amber until the cries of their pursuers faded from their ears.
They lost sight of the town of Allenon when the Barrow Road took a sharp downward turn. Not long after that, they found Amber leaning against the rotted stump of a pine tree, her arms crossed.
“What took you two so long?” she asked, a wide grin on her face.
“Very funny,” Adam said, taking a spot opposite Amber on a large stone by the side of the road.
“Funny? I was just greeting some old friends after doing a bit of window shopping,” Amber said.
Adam closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
Medallion of the Undead Page 7
