An Alex Hawk Time Travel Adventure (Book 2): Lost In Kragdon-Ah

by Inmon, Shawn

  As they drew closer to the community, Alex noted that the large building looked almost like the barns of his childhood. Maybe two stories tall, with a pitched roof on top, not particularly wide, but long.

  When they got closer, Alex noticed another anomaly—there was no guard house set out from the town to warn of approaching danger from man or beast. Instead, they were able to ride right into the middle of the small collection of buildings. Alex had decided they would just pass right through, when a man’s voice rang out from one of the smaller buildings.

  “Gunta!” the man said in a hail-fellow-well-met sort of way.

  Alex peered at him and saw that he was speaking from behind an open window in the building, with strong bars for protection. There were shutters on either side of the opening that could have been shut against bad weather or invaders.

  “Gunta,” Alex returned.

  “You are our first visitors of the season. Do you come from Matori-ah?”

  “We do. We wintered with the monks there.”

  Alex noted that this had an impact on the man. He disappeared for a moment. Then, Alex heard a heavy bolt slide across the interior of the door. A moment later, the door swung open and the man stepped outside.

  Like everyone he met in Kragdon-ah, he was immensely tall. Unlike most, though, he didn’t seem to be in perfect physical condition. His shoulders were rounded, his arms beefy but not muscled and his belly hung over his pants.

  “If you are good enough to winter with the brothers, you have no interest in killing and robbing a simple trader like myself.”

  Alex looked around. Aside from the few buildings, Alex saw nothing but desolation and no one but the man. “Trader? What do you trade?”

  “Whatever I have to trade. Animals, mostly.”

  Alex looked at him quizzically. For one thing, he hadn’t seen a lot of entrepreneurs in Kragdon-ah. Most people were more concerned with staying alive than they were creating a business. For another, this geographic area looked completely barren. It didn’t appear to be a high-traffic area.

  The man smiled and said, “I know what you are thinking. ‘Trade with who?’ right? This trail is the only way over the mountains for many day’s ride in either direction. And the fact that we are far away from everyone helps us. Most travelers don’t have the patience to ride a sturdy horse like you are riding because, although they are made for going up and down the mountains, on level ground they are slow. So, impatient people ride fast horses that are ideal on level ground, only to get here and realize that their fine horses will never make it over the mountains, or will risk serious injury in doing so.”

  Alex looked at the huge building to his right. “So, is that where you keep the animals for trade?”

  “Indeed. Are you interested in a trade?”

  “I don’t think so.” Alex patted the neck of his horse. “These have gotten us this far. I think they will get us to where we are going.”

  The man approached Alex’s horse and pulled back its lip to examine its teeth. “No doubt they will. They are good animals, and I am a fair judge of horses. They will get you there, but the going will be slow.” He raised his voice and shouted, “Versa-eh!” over his shoulder. A scant moment later, as though she had been hiding behind a door, a lithe young woman appeared. “Versa-eh, go and get Menta-ak and bring him out.”

  The girl didn’t speak but ran to the big building like she had wings on her feet.

  “See how fast she obeyed me? She is on her best behavior because I have arranged a marriage for her and she does not want it. She hopes that if she is useful here, I will change my mind.”

  “Will you?” Alex asked.

  “No.”

  A moment later, the girl burst through the barn door riding what looked like a massive thoroughbred stallion. It had a shining black coat, long, flowing mane, and a white star on its forehead. She rode straight toward them, stopping in a cloud of dust right in front of Alex.

  Alex looked from that magnificent animal to the horse he had been riding since Tonton-ah. It was like comparing a Ferrari to a mud fence. He suddenly felt a little defensive about his own stocky, slightly stunted horse.

  The girl jumped easily down and handed the bridle to her father, tossed her hair, then went inside.

  “That is truly a magnificent animal,” Alex agreed. “But I do not think I have anything to trade for it.”

  “You have your horses. I have more beautiful horses just like Menta-ak in the barn. Enough for each of you.”

  “And you want to trade three horses that look like this for our horses?”

  An injured look crossed the man’s face. He looked closely at Alex as if he might be stupid. Then, he looked from Menta-ak to Alex’s horse and back. It was obvious there was no comparison.

  “No, I could not make a trade like that, but it is possible you could perform a service for me in addition to your horses.”

  I knew it. What incredibly dangerous feat of derring-do does he want me to do?

  “What would that be?” Alex had a hard time taking his eyes off Menta-ak, but he managed to do so to meet the man’s eye. The man noticed how Alex looked at the horse, and smiled to himself. He believed he had a fish on the line.

  He cast an eye toward the sun, which had settled behind the mountain range long since. “It is getting dark. Why don’t you stay with us tonight? I don’t have room in the house—it is filled with the spawn of my loins—but my stable is mostly empty this time of year. You are welcome to bed down there, and we can care for your animals. We have a stew bubbling over the fire and a fresh loaf of bread cooling. You can eat with us, and we can discuss a possible trade.”

  Alex weighed the decision. He had intended to push on into the dark. But another possibly sleepless night in the open was not appealing.

  “Thank you for your hospitality. We will gladly bed down in your stable, though I can’t make any promises on a trade.”

  “Understood, and good enough!” Over his shoulder he shouted “Lokin-ak! Dasta-ak!” Immediately, two young boys appeared. To Alex’s eye they appeared to be perhaps half as old as Werda-ak, and likely twins. “Boys, show them where they can stable their horses.” He turned back to Alex. “As soon as you are ready, come to the house.”

  The two young boys led them to the stable, which struck Alex as being exceptionally strong and well-built. Inside, they showed them a series of vacant stalls with clean hay. The boys fell into conversation with Werda-ak, asking him how he had come to be on such a fine adventure.

  Monda-ak sniffed his way around the interior while being wise enough to avoid the back hooves of the animals he did not know.

  Alex and Senta-eh took their saddlebags and blankets off their mounts and stretched them out in empty stalls. There was no heat in the stables, but the weather on the plain was mellow, and the horses and a few milk beasts inside kept the temperature warm.

  They walked back to the house, and Alex was surprised by how warm and cozy it was inside. There were touches here and there that showed that, at least once upon a time, a wife had lived here, though there was no sign of her now.

  The seven of them scrunched into a table made for four, but the food was hot and good. They had no more than dipped their bread into the stew when the trader launched into his spiel.

  “I have arranged a very profitable marriage for Versa-eh, but it is with a great man far from here.”

  Alex glanced at Versa-eh to see how she responded, but she just stared into her bowl.

  “She thinks she wants to marry a young boy with nothing from the village half a day’s ride from here, but she is too young to know what she wants. She can marry him and not know where her next meal will come from for the rest of her life, or she can marry the man I have chosen for her and be secure. It is an easy choice, so I have made it for her.”

  Alex elected to remain silent on the wisdom of those words.

  “But, now that spring has arrived, more and more travelers will want to go over the mounta
ins. I will have more and more trades to make. I cannot afford to leave here and travel all the way to Grinta-ah to deliver her, and he will not make the journey here. So, I need to find a way to transport her safely there.”

  “How far is Grinta-ah?”

  The man smiled at Alex as though he hadn’t counted on him being so shrewd. “You are a smart man, making sure you understand the terms of an offer. That makes me more confident that you intend to fulfill those terms. Grinta-ah is many days ride away. It is the largest community I have ever seen. It is built right next to the big water.”

  Alex saw where this story was going and felt a sense of relief. Compared to killing dragon-like creatures or engaging in hand-to-hand combat with a giant, being a transportation service for a young girl seemed easy. Not to mention that they didn’t even have to go out of their way to deliver her, since they were heading to the big water anyway. He waited for the man to make the offer, though.

  The man stepped forward and said, “This is what I will do. I will give you three fine horses in exchange for your lesser horses if you deliver Versa-eh safely to her new husband.”

  “Has she ever met this new husband?”

  The trader looked surprised that Alex asked. “No. Why should she? I have met him. I approve.”

  Alex had long-since learned to keep his ideas about Kragdon-ah customs to himself, especially as they varied so much from village to village.

  “Are the horses you want to give us healthy?”

  The man was a natural salesman and went in for the kill. “If we agree we have a deal, you can inspect them right now.”

  Alex realized that was a mistake, as he did not really know what to look for aside from a horse that limped or had visible sores.

  Alex considered. “Let us finish dinner, then I will talk with my companions and we will give you an answer.”

  The trader was not happy to see Alex slip off the hook, but he covered that with a smile. “Of course, of course. Take your time. You will never find a better offer than this.”

  They finished their stew and bread, then Alex, Senta-eh, and Werda-ak went for a walk around the man’s holdings.

  “What am I missing here? He wants to trade us three beautiful horses like the one we saw in exchange for our horses and us taking his daughter with us to the big water.”

  Senta-eh said, “Either is fine with me. One horse is much the same as the other.”

  Werda-ak looked incredulous at her and said, “I only have one question. Why aren’t we already riding one of those horses instead of ours? We will be able to make so much better time.”

  Alex said, “Okay. You go and bed down. I’ll talk to him.”

  Alex knocked on the door, not sure if that was a tradition in this area or not, but not wanting to barge in.

  “Enter!” The man yelled. When Alex walked in, the man was sitting in a comfortable chair beside a stone fireplace. He had what looked very much like a long, thin cigarette between his fingers. Smoke curled up from the tip. Alex had never seen anyone smoke in Kragdon-ah.

  The farther I get away from Winten-ah, the more different things are.

  “Before we agree,” Alex said, “is there anything else we need to know?”

  The man seemed at war with himself, conflicted between not wanting to lie to a direct question and not wanting to kill the deal.

  Finally, he said, “You look like you have traveled a great distance. You know the dangers of travel. I am trusting you to keep my daughter safe. The woman you travel with looks like a capable warrior.”

  “She is more than capable.”

  “And you and the boy?”

  “We are still alive.”

  “It is possible that when you go through the village ahead, that they will want to stop you and take my daughter. You will have to persuade them not to do that. Feel free to use whatever methods you deem necessary.”

  “Why will they do that?”

  “Because the boy she wants to marry is the son of the chief.” Before Alex could point out that the trader had said the boy was a good-for-nothing not long ago, and not the son of a chief, the man continued on, “But it is a tiny, dusty village. In the end, she will be happier in Grinta-ah.”

  Alex rolled all this information around in his brain. So there would be some slight danger after all, but he had faced worse. And the idea of having these horses to ride was worth that small risk.

  Alex said, “We have a deal.”

  The man smiled and said, “I knew you were an intelligent man when you first rode up.” He stood and shouted, “Lokin-ak! Dasta-ak!”

  The boys appeared quickly from around the corner, awaiting orders. “They will be taking the horses in the morning. Go and groom them and bring them here. Make sure they are ready to ride.” Once again, he loudly called, “Versa-eh!”

  She reappeared instantly.

  “Pack now. This man—”

  He looked meaningfully at Alex, who said, “Manta-ak,” then smiled inwardly. He realized that this man was willing to entrust his daughter to a man whose name he did not even know. Apparently, wintering with the monks carried a lot of weight, or the man just didn’t care.

  “This man, Manta-ak, is going to take you to Grinta-ah. Go pack. Our agreement is that if you hold him up at any point, or slow him down, he can abandon you.” The trader turned his head and Alex swore that he winked at him, as if to acknowledge that they both knew this was not true.

  A fiery anger flared in her eyes. Alex thought he might be about to get a preview of what awaited him on this next leg of his journey. She didn’t say anything, though, and just turned around and ran toward the back of the house.

  “This is better for her. Since her mother died, there haven’t been any other women for her to be around. It will do her good to be around your warrior woman.”

  Alex felt uncomfortable being so intimately involved in this man’s family life, so he said, “We will get an early start in the morning.”

  “Of course, the boys will have the horses ready. Versa-eh will be packed and waiting before first light.”

  Alex walked back to the barn, his head spinning, not knowing if he had just made the deal of his lifetime, or if he had bought a bridge that does not exist.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Ambush

  Alex realized immediately that riding these fine thoroughbreds was going to be an entirely different experience. The muscles of Menta-ak bunched and released with every step. Even at a casual pace, it felt like riding on the hood of a muscle car. He had become used to the sedate pace of the horses they had been riding. Having abandoned them, he felt bad that they had never bothered to even give them a name.

  If it was a small transition for Alex, it was more than that for Senta-eh. She had made her peace with riding the overgrown Shetlands, but straddling her new horse put her original fear back into her. Every time her horse moved at anything other than a walk, she gripped its bridle with a fierce determination and bounced uncomfortably on its back.

  Werda-ak was in heaven, of course. Alex wondered at first if he might flirt with Versa-eh, but he seemed to be too interested in riding his new steed to pay her any attention. Or, perhaps Frina-eh had truly captured his heart. In any case, he seemed to enjoy racing ahead of Alex, his seat smooth and comfortable, then slowing to a walk, falling to the back, then doing it again.

  Alex watched Versa-eh out of the corner of his eye, trying to get a feel for the new addition to the party. She was going to be with them for a long time, and he was hoping that perhaps she would just sulk in silence at being banished to Grinta-ah.

  If she was unhappy about it, she didn’t show it. She started out riding beside Alex, but soon slid back so she was keeping pace with Senta-eh who bounced painfully alongside her.

  She watched Senta-eh for a mile or two, then casually reached over and touched her hands, which were white-knuckled and intertwined with her horse’s mane. “These horses are very bright. They sense when you’re afraid. They’re
also unpleasant. Your fear will make them bounce you more.”

  “Then I am going to have a very sore tailbone by the time we stop tonight.”

  “Here. Watch me,” Versa-eh said, letting go of her bridle and swaying slightly from side to side. “See? I’m not holding on tightly at all, but I’m not close to falling. I can tell by the way you walk that you have a good sense of balance, you just need to learn to trust it.”

  Senta-eh stared at her through narrowed eyelids, trying to decide if she was truly being helpful, or if she was perhaps trying to get her killed. Versa-eh’s guileless eyes convinced her of her intentions, and she relaxed a little, rolling her shoulders, taking long breaths, and loosening her death-grip on the bridle and mane.

  She looked surprised when the jarring bouncing stopped and she settled more nicely onto the horse.

  Versa-eh did not comment, but simply looked ahead. After another half-mile, she said, “Tell me about where you are from.”

  “I come from a beautiful land far from here,” Senta-eh started. The two women fell deep into a conversation and Alex did his best not to listen.

  Werda-ak, meanwhile, continued sprinting ahead then falling behind, which irritated Alex for no reason in particular. He felt it was comparable to a child in the back seat kicking your seat and asking if you were there yet.

  Finally, when Werda-ak passed him for the fifteenth time, Alex barked, “Enough!”

  He had intended to sound firm, but had lost his temper and instead ended up being unnecessarily harsh. He opened his mouth to try and apologize, but he saw Werda-ak’s face—hot, red, and embarrassed at being chastised in front of Versa-eh.

  The boy whirled his horse around and kicked his heels into its side. It responded by moving from a gallop to a full run. If Alex hadn’t been embarrassed at overreacting, he would have appreciated the beauty of horse and rider sprinting smoothly away. They were a beautiful combination, moving as one.