by T. Norman
Rysh grabbed a sword and held it in his hand, examining it. “Exquisite work, Mic.”
“Did you make all those?” Julia was impressed with Mic’s skill and craftsmanship.
Mic nodded confirmation to Julia.
“This should get us enough.” Alric pushed the conversation forward; it would be best if they kept moving.
“Mic, we’ll camp out here for a while so you can go into town and sell some weapons. We’ll go to the inn at dusk. Apo’k, can you come in once it’s dark?” By spacing out their arrivals, Rysh hoped to avoid any suspicion or unwanted attention.
Both Mic and Apo’k agreed willingly to their plan.
They found a small clearing in the woods where they decided to make camp. Mic rode off immediately, heading southeast to circle back around.
Once they were settled in the camp, Julia sat next to Gant as he worked on starting a small fire to make some coffee. She watched him as he concentrated on the task at hand, noticing every muscle flex and noting how he scrunched his mouth when he focused, astonished at the young man he was becoming.
After he started the fire, Gant sat back and noticed Julia staring at him. “Is everything all right?”
She caught herself staring at his emerald green eyes, not for the first time. She smiled timidly. “Yeah, I’m just thinking.”
Gant shrugged. He sat back and watched the water boil. Julia leaned over and rested her head on his shoulder, letting out a sigh at only being able to simply watch the boy she was in love with.
21
Rysh rode down the dirt road next to Julia as the sun set on the horizon. There was heavy traffic on the small road, making the inn a popular location for travelers. As they arrived at Arbor Inn, Alric and Gant took the horses and Ros to the stable while Rysh and Julia went inside.
As Rysh opened the door, smoke billowed out from a variety of sources. It took a second for his eyes to adjust, and when they did, Rysh noticed the tavern was filled to the brim with patrons. Rysh and Julia made their way up to the bar.
"Do you have any open rooms?" Rysh asked the old man behind the counter.
He squinted at Rysh, sizing him up. "How many in your party?" He looked at Julia, a suspicious look on his face.
"Four of us." Rysh didn't want to stay in the main room long, aware of a number of lingering stares.
"That'll be four silvers. If you want a meal, it's another two." Rysh cringed, knowing he was being cheated.
He thought of the small amount of money Mic had given him after selling his weapons. Seven silvers and five bronzes, not enough to last us. "I will give you four silver for the room and meals."
"Are you trying to rob me?" The man raised his voice, gaining some attention from others sitting nearby.
"I think you're the one trying to rob me. I've never been to an inn that charged that much."
The man scrunched his nose. "If you don't like it, then you can find another inn." He turned to walk away.
Rysh clenched his fist in frustration, knowing there was nothing he could do. "Fine, six silvers." He emptied the coins out of his pocket and placed them in front of the barkeep. The man ducked under the counter and pulled out a bronze key, giving it to Rysh.
"Third floor, last room down the hall." He walked away smiling at the money in hand.
Rysh and Julia turned to see Gant and Alric walking through the door. Rysh nodded toward them to follow him, leading the way up the steps to the third floor of the inn.
Rysh drew his sword as he opened the door to their room, deciding to play it safe. The room was completely empty, with a lone bed, desk, chair, and a window in the back. It was going to be a tight squeeze for four of them.
"I'm going to go get our dinners and bring them up here. Stay here." Rysh would have rather waited to eat until the main room had emptied, but knew it might take a while so he surrendered to bringing the food to their room instead.
"I'll come with. You can use someone watching your back." Gant grabbed his cloak and threw it over his shoulders.
Rysh knew there was no use arguing with his son. He opened the door and led the way down the steps back to the main room.
As he walked into the room he noticed Mic sitting at a table by the window, eating a bowl of soup. Rysh could see his eyes constantly scanning the room and its patrons.
Rysh and Gant worked their way through the crowd to the barkeep. "Could we get our four meals? We’re going to have them in our room." Rysh tried to speak as quietly as possible, but with such a large and noisy crowd he had to raise his voice more than he wanted.
"Aye, it will take a bit. Have a seat and enjoy a drink. We have some first class mead." The man seemed to be in a better mood now that he knew they were paying customers.
Rysh and Gant took a seat at a small table on the edge of the room. With their backs to the wall, they had a good view of everyone in the room. Rysh took stock of all the individuals, making note of those who raised his suspicion. Three men sat by the fireplace, knives in hand, huddled over a table whispering to each other. They wore boiled leather and had cuts and bruises around their neck and arms. Rysh looked at Gant and nodded in their direction.
Gant looked over at the three men. "I'll keep an eye on them." Gant turned in his seat, lifting his cowl over his head to hide his eyes.
Rysh continued to scan the room. To his surprise he saw a young boy, by his guess younger than Gant, sitting at a table by himself. He was wrapped in rags, clinging to a cup of water like his life depended on it. Rysh couldn't help but feel sorry for the young boy.
Rysh was pulled out of his trance as their food was brought to the table. Rysh and Gant grabbed the plates and moved to head upstairs to their room. As they reached the steps, Rysh felt a tug on his arm. He turned to see the young boy looking up at him. He was even smaller than Rysh had thought.
“Excuse me, sir.” The boy’s voice was faint and hard to hear over the noise of the other patrons. “Would you have some food to spare?” He looked longingly at the four plates of food in their hands.
Gant nudged his father as the boy awaited a response, “Look at him, Dad, he needs food more than I do. He can have some of mine.” Rysh admired his son’s selflessness.
“All right, come on up with us.” Rysh motioned for the boy to follow. They walked in silence up to the third floor. Rysh knocked on the door using a prearranged rhythm for Alric to let them in.
“I see you brought a friend,” Alric said suspiciously.
“This is,” Gant paused, realizing he didn’t know the boy’s name. “What’s your name?”
The boy shifted his gaze around the room. Noticing Julia, he quickly shot his eyes down to the wrappings around his feet. “They call me Pod.”
“Nice to meet you, Pod.” Alric reached out his hand in greeting toward the small boy. He took his hand and gave it a soft shake. “Come in, have a seat.”
Rysh sat on the floor next to the door while Gant sat next to Julia on the edge of the bed. Pod sat in the chair in the corner of the room, while Alric sat on the windowsill. They all took a portion of their food and scraped it onto one of the serving plates, giving it to Pod to eat.
The room was silent as they enjoyed their hot meals. As they finished, Rysh took off his sword and belt, letting it lay next to the table. He let his eyes relax as he slowly drifted off to sleep.
Rysh awoke to the sound of laughter, opening his eyes quickly to the strange sound. A candle lit the room, and he saw darkness outside.
“Good morning, Dad,” Gant said in jest. “You were starting to snore, quite loudly.” Julia and Alric laughed with Gant.
“Good to know.” Rysh stood and stretched. “How long was I asleep?”
Alric shrugged. “Only a few hours. It sounds like most everyone downstairs have left.” Alric shifted his eyes at Pod.
“I think I’m going to go down and bathe at the shower out back. You might as well get some rest.” He saw Julia and Gant both yawning from their spots on the edge of the bed. �
��Pod, you’re welcome to stay here for the night if you would like.”
The boy nodded graciously. “Thank you, sir.” He averted his gaze from Rysh’s.
“I’ll keep watch. The rest of you get some sleep,” Alric volunteered. Rysh opened the door and made his way downstairs. He heard the door latch behind him as Alric turned the lock.
Downstairs, Rysh noticed only a few individuals still sitting in the inn. Mic remained at his table in the corner, occasionally sipping from a glass of dark liquid. In the opposite corner, a man and woman sat closely, their arms entangled with each other. Rysh noticed that the three men from earlier were gone, a good sign in his mind.
Mic gave him a nod as Rysh walked out the door toward the shower house.
Outside, the air was warm and the sky was lit up with a full moon. Rysh took a deep breath in, letting out a sigh. For the first time in weeks, he felt that he could relax. He walked behind the building, stopping at the stables to check on their horses. He was greeted by neighs from their horses. He walked into the stalls to greet them, brushing their necks and checking their saddles. They had left the horses saddled in case they needed to make a quick getaway.
“Ros?” Rysh called out for the dog. He waited a few moments, and when he didn’t see the dog, Rysh shrugged and left the building, continuing to make his way to the shower house.
Rysh paused as he saw three shadows moving around the back of the building. He snuck out of the stables and peeked around the corner of the building to see the three strangers from the inn, with weapons in their hands, sneaking up on the shower house. Rysh heard water running from the shower and knew what these men were about to do.
Rysh reached down to his belt, realizing he had only his dagger on him. Drawing his weapon, he knew he needed to act quickly. Sliding around the corner, he moved as fast and as silently as he could as the three men opened the door to the shower and lunged in, swords drawn. Giving up his silence, Rysh sprinted toward the men, taking the last man by surprise and driving his knife straight into the man’s chest.
As the stranger fell, he let out a cry of pain. Rysh looked up to see a body lying in the shower, soaked in blood, with the other two men standing over him.
Before he could react they turned on him, realizing their friend had been wounded. “It’s him!” called out the taller man. They both lunged forward, swords first, leaving no room for error. Rysh dove to the side, feeling a sharp pain run through his leg. He leapt to his feet, dagger in hand.
The men regrouped and began to circle Rysh, trying to overtake him from both sides. Rysh leapt forward, trying to get inside the reach of their swords. He used his left hand to grab one man’s arm as he swung a downward blow, driving his dagger forward from his right. His attack missed his target as the man twisted out of the way.
Before Rysh could pull his arm back, the man trapped his wrist between his arm and his body. Rysh felt a snap as the man twisted his body violently, forcing the dagger out of his hand.
Panicked, Rysh threw his head forward, smashing it into the face of his assailant. The man dropped to the ground with a broken and bloody face. Turning around, he saw the second man delivering a deadly downward blow. Rysh felt a sudden pain in his head as everything went dark.
22
Gant woke suddenly. He didn’t sit up or open his eyes, but simply laid there breathing normally. He knew something was wrong. Opening one eye, he saw the moon shining brightly through the window, illuminating their room. He laid still for a few moments waiting for any sign of what woke him. Then he heard it, a faint creak of a floorboard.
Gant’s heart started to beat faster, but he focused on keeping his breathing even. He kept listening and knew someone was at the foot of the bed, where Julia was sleeping. Gant’s bow was leaning next to the window within reach, but he knew he couldn’t get to it before the stranger reacted.
Slowly moving his hand under his pillow, he felt the hilt of his dagger. His dad had taught him to always be prepared for the worst, and he made a habit of sleeping with a weapon on hand.
Taking slow and even breaths, Gant played out in his mind what was about to happen. He knew he had one chance to stop the unknown individual.
Gant hesitated as he realized it could be his father returning from his shower. He knew that was wrong, as the door was locked and they had agreed on a patterned knock to enter. Knowing what needed to be done, Gant flexed his leg and arm muscles, pumping the blood and getting ready for his sudden movement.
Gant tightened his grip on his dagger and made his move. Jumping to his feet, he threw the dagger toward the end of the bed where the stranger stood. In the same movement he turned and grabbed his bow, drawing an arrow and pointing it at the individual silhouetted by the moon.
Alric, awoken by the commotion, sat up and quickly drew his sword while Julia awoke with a scream at seeing someone standing at the end of her bed. The shadow stood completely still with a sword in hand.
“Drop the sword or I put an arrow through your eye,” Gant threatened the shadow. The sword fell to the ground with a clash. The body went limp and followed in a similar fashion.
Alric stood and lit a lamp in the corner of the room.
Gant walked over to the body to see his dagger protruding out of Pod’s stomach. The boy’s face was ghostly white, his hands clasped around the hilt of the dagger.
“What happened?” Julia’s voice quivered.
Alric knelt down and removed the dagger from the boy, wiping it off and handing it back to Gant. “Good throw.”
“I’m not sure what happened. I woke up and just knew something was wrong. I heard footsteps and figured someone had snuck into the room, so I did what I had to do.” Gant felt a pit in his stomach. “I . . . I killed him.” Gant couldn’t hold back the tears. Pod was the first person he had ever killed, and he hated the feeling it brought.
“Gant, you saved my life.” Julia rose from her bed and embraced her friend, consoling him. “Please don’t be upset, if you wouldn’t have done it he would have killed me.”
“Julia is right. You saved her life and maybe both of ours. I doubt he would have stopped once he killed Julia.”
Panic lit up Gant’s eyes. “Where’s my dad?” Alric’s face went white as he realized Rysh was missing. Without hesitating Gant grabbed his quiver, threw it on his back, and ran out the door.
The main room in the tavern was completely empty, leaving nothing to stop Gant from rushing out the door toward the shower house. He came around the back of the building to eerily peaceful yet bloody scene. Three bodies laid on the ground, all covered in blood. Fear took over as he rushed toward the lifeless forms.
As he moved closer to the first body, he felt relief as he recognized one of the knife fighters from the inn earlier that evening. Next to the open door of the shower he found another knife fighter with blood running from his chest. Inside the shower he saw a bloody mess. His heart sank in fear.
“No!” Gant cried out. He fell to his knees, letting his tears flow. Anger burned inside him. He heard a moan from behind him. Gant rose to his feet and turned to see that the first assailant was alive.
Gant drew his knife and rushed over to the man. He knelt down, putting his knife against his throat. “You killed my father!” he yelled. He raised the knife, preparing to kill the man.
“Gant, no!” Julia rushed toward him, waving her hands. “This isn’t the way!” Alric chased quickly behind her.
“He murdered my dad in cold blood! He needs to pay for this.” Gant couldn’t contain the anger inside of him.
“No . . .” They looked down at the bloody face as the man tried to speak. “Not him.”
Gant ran to the body lying in the shower. He turned it over to see a face he didn’t recognize. He felt a sudden weight fall off of his shoulders.
“What happened? Where is our man?” Alric shook the man violently.
The man laughed as blood stained the ground from his broken nose and cut lip. “He killed our friend and
then did this to me. But he’s dead by now. The last thing I saw was a sword falling toward him.” He laughed again, a deep and hollow laugh.
“His body isn’t here, but there’s a lot of blood.” Julia pointed at the ground, the obvious scene of a fight.
Gant’s thoughts were in a mad rush, trying to figure out what had happened to Rysh. “Check the stables.” He waved Alric toward the building adjacent to the tavern. Alric rushed off without hesitation.
Julia knelt down to try and stop the man’s bleeding. Gant kept an arrow nocked and ready in case the man tried anything.
“In here, come quick!” Alric called toward Gant and Julia.
Gant grabbed the man by his shoulders and lifted him to his feet. “Get walking.” He shoved the man forward, not waiting for defiance. As they approached the stables, Gant urged the man faster, not able to hide how tense he was.
Alric ushered them toward an empty stall. Gant stepped around the corner to see Rysh lying bloody and bruised on the floor.
“Dad,” Gant cried out with relief as he dropped to the floor next to his father. “What happened to him?” he asked Alric.
Alric scratched his chin. “It looks like he was knocked unconscious. I don’t know how he got in here, though.” Alric moved toward another stall nearby. “We’re missing two horses, as well, and Ros is gone.”
Gant’s hair stood on end. There was something amiss and he needed to figure it out. “Any signs of Apo’k or Mic?”
Alric shook his head. “No, but Apo’k was planning on camping outside the city to keep watch.” They were interrupted by the sound of hoofbeats. Alric drew his sword and moved to the door of the stables. Gant stayed in the stall with his dad and Julia, drawing his bow and training an arrow at the open door.
As a large figure walked through the door, Alric quickly moved forward, pinning the man against the wall and simultaneously disarming him.
“Alric, no,” Gant called as he saw Ros walk through the door after the figure. “It’s Mic.” He lowered his bow and moved to greet his friend.
