Picayune

by John DeJordy

  The stable hand was on a small ladder near Dauntless’ rear. With a brush in both hands, he was smoothing out the small imperfections in the majestic animal's fur while the stallion happily munched on a feedbag of oats. The boy looked up with a startled look. “You need your horse already, sir?”

  The knight folded his arms over his chest. “Go ahead and finish.”

  The boy nodded and continued brushing, combing the tail and hindquarters. Moving to the front of the horse, he removed the empty feedbag. Taking the reins, he brought the animal for inspection.

  The knight removed his gauntlet and ran his hand over the back of his steed. “Fine work.” Pulling a gold piece from his belt, he handed it to the boy.

  The boy's eyes went wide. He looked at the gold in the palms of his hands as if it was the greatest thing he had even seen. “T-T-Thank you!”

  Picayune replaced his glove and mounted his horse, turning the animal to the exit. He looked over his shoulder to the boy. “A job well done deserves extra merit.” With a gentle urging from his owner's legs, the stallion bolted through the gates.

  They moved north over the hills and plains for the remainder of the day. As far as the eye could see, the land was perfectly cared for, as if some magical quality kept is so. The sky started to turn shades of purple as the sun gradually descended. Right before the sun was about to disappear into the horizon, the knight saw the outline of the trees that formed the Nartiv Woods.

  With practiced maneuvers, he lit a campfire and fed his horse a mixture of oats and a special blend of herbs that would satisfy the heartiest animal. He sat in the twilight of a moonless, clear night. Dauntless’ ears fluttered. The mighty stallion stomped his hoof in the direction of the approaching noise.

  Drawing his sword, the knight rose and moved away from the source of light, leading his horse into the darkness of a depression in the land. He knelt down, one hand on his sword, the other on the slightly damp, cold ground.

  The noise grew louder. The knight easily picked out seven distinct sounds. He held his breath as a pungent odor reached his nose first. He waited for the group to crash past his fire before silently rushing them.

  He overcame a fat orc, who had stopped on the border of the campfire's light to catch his breath. Picayune sliced him through the throat to silence any attempt at a warning. He moved around the perimeter of light and dispatched another, before the remaining five saw what he had done.

  The largest of the orcs—the only one wearing heavy furs—snorted and pointed. “Kill human.”

  Picayune surged at the charging creatures and caught the closest one off-guard with his speed. The knight grabbed the orc’s arm on the backswing. He heard the sounds of a crossbow being clumsily drawn. With a twist of the creature’s wrist, the knight spun his foe at the sound, impaling the orc with the bolts fired by its compatriot. Drawing a dagger from his belt, he flung the blade into the skull of the orc with the crossbow.

  The leader commanded Picayune, “Stop!” Turning to his two comrades, he pointed at them. His voice stopped them before they entered hand-to-hand combat. “You two stop!” Returning his gaze to Picayune, he pointed at the knight. “I will fight you in honor combat.”

  Taking a moment to pull air into his starved lungs, the knight stopped. He only took a moment to recover and nodded as he queried, “The terms?”

  The orc grunted and loomed over the tired knight. “Fight until one submits or cannot continue. You win, you get whatever you want from us. I win, you give me everything you own.”

  Picayune squared off against his foe. The orc’s pig-like face was smeared with war paint. With the dim light of the campfire behind him, Picayune could make out only some of the cuts and scars on the green tinted skin of his seasoned opponent. He stood still and kept watch on the other two orcs. “I can agree to those terms. Name?”

  The orc snorted, wrinkling his nose at the human. He raised an eyebrow and cautiously extended his hand. “Victor.”

  “Victor?”

  “What's wrong? You not like Victor?”

  “No, no. I didn't expect you to have a name like that. I am called Picayune.” Picayune walked over to Victor and extended his arm, clasping the orc’s wrist with all his strength. “To the terms then!”

  Victor removed the massive bearskin he had been using as a cloak and withdrew a giant, spiked, two-handed mace. He swung the weapon over his head and down. The knight jumped back out of range of the mace. The orc looked blissful as his weapon impacted the ground, sending out a rippling shock wave that knocked Picayune off his feet.

  Without delay, Victor lifted his weapon and tried to crush the exposed legs of his enemy, but the knight rolled out of the way.

  Picayune leapt to his feet and swung at the hands holding the mace. He misjudged the movement, and only hit the wooden shaft. His blade slid down the weapon, twisting the knight and exposing his back for an instant.

  The orc dropped his weapon and kicked the human with all his might, but the force was too great. The knight rolled into a flip and landed on his feet. Victor followed his kick and grabbed his enemy from behind in a bear hug. He squeezed the man with such force that the armor started to buckle and warp.

  The knight fought for breath. His eyes started to roll back and his head flopped back. Grabbing the back of his adversary's neck, he kicked back with all his might, smashing the orc between the legs, and then pulled.

  Victor grunted and sailed over the knight onto his back while the knight fell to one knee.

  Before his adversary could react, the knight put his blade to the stunned orc's neck. “Yield!”

  Without warning, the knight felt a sharp dagger in his side, thrown by one of the minions who had watched the fight. Picayune almost fell on his face, clutching the crimson wound.

  Wobbling and holding his back, Victor pushed on his knees with his hands and straightened. He grabbed his mace and raised it over his head while the other orcs looked on with evil glee. With all of his force, the leader of the orcs smashed the weapon into the head of the knight’s attacker, killing him instantly. Without hesitation, he swung the weapon around and crushed the chest of the other, sending him into the air, disappearing into the darkness.

  “What?” was all that the knight managed to say after he coughed up blood. He held his side again and fell to the ground, unconscious.

  Chapter 11

  Picayune yelped when he felt a sharp pain in his side from the clawed foot of a badger standing over him.

  The badger leered down at the dormouse. “Get up, you scallywag!”

  He held his side, suppressed the urge to cry, and blinked his eyes. “What?”

  Stonehead, the dirt-covered badger, was about to kick Picayune again when he was pulled away from behind. One of the badgers from the cooking cart stared his associate in the eyes. “What are you doing? This is the special one. The one our queen didn't want harmed.”

  While puffing his chest out, Stonehead took a step forward until he was almost nose-to-nose with Decoct the cook and mocked him. “What makes him special? And how dare you stop my punishment!”

  Decoct pushed Stonehead hard enough to force him back a few steps. “He is not to be harmed!”

  With a scared look on his face, Picayune backpedaled until he drove himself into the wall. “I'm up, now. I'm sorry if I slept too late.”

  Stonehead's eyes narrowed and a low, guttural sound escaped his muzzle. The grinding of his teeth added to his growl and the badger shook with rage. He stared at the dormouse and extended his claws. A small whimper escaped Picayune's lips. He avoided the badger and closed his eyes. His body trembled. Stonehead snarled and swung, hitting Decoct across the bridge of his nose. “No one does that to me in front of the prisoners!”

  Decoct grabbed his nose and howled in pain. A moment later, he extended his claws and jumped on Stonehead, desperately trying to land a blow. The two crashed to the ground, rolling in a death grip. Neither one gained any advantage until their scuffle tipped over t
he stew cart and spilled the soup all over them and the ground. The commotion caused alarms to sound and half a dozen armed badgers flooded the sleeping quarters.

  The chief enforcer, Stickler, walked over to the two and yanked them apart. “You’d better explain yourselves.”

  Holding his nose with one hand in an attempt to stop the bleeding and pointing to Stonehead with the other, Decoct yelped, “He was abusing the dormouse.”

  Stickler squared off with Stonehead. His snarl exposed long yellow teeth. “Is that true?”

  Stonehead jeered. “I didn't abuse him, I just kicked him. Had I wanted to abuse him, he wouldn't be standing now.”

  Stickler removed his hold from Stonehead’s scruff and wrapped his fingers around the guard's neck. He only applied a little pressure, but it was enough to remove badger’s scowl.

  “You there!” Stickler shouted. His spittle almost reached Picayune. “Did he harm you?”

  Picayune's body shook violently as he looked at the bulging eyes of Stonehead. “No, Sir. He just startled me.”

  Stickler looked Stonehead in the eyes again. “He isn't to be touched. You understand that? He isn't to be breathed upon without permission.”

  Stonehead nodded as much as he could, while still choking and coughing.

  Stickler tossed them both to the ground in opposite directions. “Decoct, clean up this mess.” He looked at Picayune one last time, snorted, then left with his entourage.

  Trailblazer arrived, passing the exiting guards. “Time to get to work!” He approached Picayune. “You four, come with me.”

  Alacrity, Lacer, Phineas, and Picayune looked at one another before forming a single, straight line facing Trailblazer. He led them into their usual digging chamber, then off along a tunnel Picayune had not seen anyone use. They walked down the dark, twisting labyrinth of paths. The ceiling crumbled, raining dirt on their heads and causing them to weave around to prevent getting hit on the head. The passage emerged into an empty, creepy chamber that disappeared into darkness. A dozen haphazard baskets had been dumped in the center of the room.

  Trailblazer walked to the center of the room. “This is where you will dig, but be cautious. We lost a score of workers last month in here when the roof collapsed.” After issuing his orders, he began to walk out, but stopped and held Picayune's arm. He whispered, “Someone is always watching.” He released the dormouse's arm and ran out.

  Phineas spit on the ground. “So, who wants to get out of here?”

  Alacrity looked left and right and his entire body shook. “I don't want to be Nom-Nom food.”

  Phineas placed his paws on Alacrity's shoulders. “If we aren't here, we can't be anybody's food.”

  Lacer took a few steps, approaching Phineas with a questioning look on his face as he looked past the squirrel. He pulled on his shoulder and looked at the dormouse. “Picayune, what are you doing?”

  All three gawked as they saw Picayune bury his arms almost to his shoulders in a patch of earth in the far corner of the room. He pulled back a few times, but something kept him in place. After trying unsuccessfully to dislodge himself, he yelped, “Help!”

  Lacer and Alacrity ran to assist him, but Phineas leapt across the room, clearing the distance in one jump. He wrapped his arms around the dormouse's waist and pulled back. He felt Picayune move a little, but the mysterious force pulled the dormouse even farther into the dirt. Picayune had to turn his face because his entire body was being sucked into the dirt.

  Lacer hugged Phineas from behind and Alacrity did the same behind Lacer. Phineas yelled out so all could hear. “On the count of three, everyone pull: one, two, THREE!”

  Everyone pulled hard, dislodging Picayune from the wall. Phineas held Picayune so that the dormouse would land on his chest. A strong light illuminated the room. Lacer and Alacrity got up and helped Picayune to stand. His arms were completely covered in smaller versions of the one massive rock in his paws. That stone was larger than Picayune.

  Alacrity wiggled his tail and nose at the same time, taking a whiff of air in bewilderment. “I have never seen one so big.”

  Lacer placed his clawed hand on the rock and growled in an almost purr-like fashion. “It feels nice and warm.”

  Phineas got to his feet and helped load the rock into one of the baskets. The sheer size of the object warped the basket to match its shape. “My auntie often said, ‘the bigger the stone, the more power it possesses.’” He ran his paws over the surface. “What do you mean, ‘it is warm’?”

  Lacer’s tongue slithered in and out of his mouth as he placed his muzzle on the surface. “It feels so warm and inviting.”

  Phineas shrugged. “Perhaps they have different powers based on who touches them?”

  Picayune went to the next empty basket and shook off his arms. Most of the stones fell, but a few were stubborn. “Could one of you help, please?”

  Alacrity came over, picked off the stones, and placed them in the basket. “Why do they stick to you like this?”

  Picayune shook his head. “I have no idea!”

  Phineas put his hand on Picayune's shoulder. “How did you know where it was?”

  “I heard it. It sounds louder, now.”

  Phineas, Alacrity, and Lacer moved closer to the rock. Each put a hand to his ear to listen, but they heard nothing.

  “What is it saying?” Alacrity asked.

  Picayune watched, but kept his distance. “It sounds like a soothing melody, like when the wind blows through the trees and you can hear Nature’s soft song.”

  Alacrity pouted and put his hand on the rock. “Wish I could hear it.”

  Lacer huffed and went to the nearest wall. “We should get to work.”

  Phineas sighed, but also walked to the wall. “I suppose you are right.”

  Picayune joined his comrades, easily retrieving spirit rocks each time he plunged his arms into the dirt.

  Alacrity finally left the stone and found an empty spot. He shoved his hands in and pulled out two stones on the first try. “I’ve already got two,” he stated with a hint of pride in his voice. He bounced over to the baskets and his eyes opened wide when he saw each one of them with multiple blue gems.

  Lacer whispered, “What is going on?”

  Without response, they continued to work and filled all twenty baskets before any of them even felt the results of their labor.

  Picayune looked around with another armful of the spirit rocks. “Where should we put them now?”

  Phineas walked to the entrance of the tunnel. “Trailblazer, we need more baskets.”

  Picayune felt the ground rumble and he saw dirt falling from the ceiling. Trailblazer emerged from the tunnel, sneezing from the dust. “How could you need more?” He appeared mesmerized by the blue glow.

  Picayune noticed the captivated badger. “Amazing, no?”

  Trailblazer grabbed Phineas by the shoulders in panic. “We have to hide it.” He looked down the corridor to see if anyone was coming.

  A sweet, feminine voice spoke from the shadows on the far side of the room. “Is there a problem, Trail?” From the darkness, a large, fat badger waddled into view. Her fur was midnight black.

  Trailblazer fell to one knee and crossed his right arm over his chest. “No, my queen.”

  “Silly boy, stand up. We have reason to celebrate. This young one did what no one else has done in years. Go get the stone for me.” She moved over to Picayune. “Dear young one, please follow me.” The queen badger didn't wait for a response. She moved through the passage, barely able to fit, and disappeared into the darkness.

  Chapter 12

  Choking on the falling dirt, Picayune ran after the queen. When he emerged from the passage, he noticed that all the other workers stopped what they were doing and stared at them. He rubbed his hands together and his whiskers twitched. He stood still, his eyes darting back and forth. When he realized the queen had continued her progress, he urged his frozen feet forward.

  As he ran alongside the
waddling queen, he called out to her in a timid voice. “Ma'am?” After waiting for a response that didn't come, he touched her side and repeated himself.

  The few guards in the room rushed Picayune, their claws extended. Phineas, who had just emerged from the hole and saw the reaction of the queen’s guards, jumped to his friend's defense.

  The queen had jumped at being touched, and started to swat at what she seemed to believe was annoying insect until she realized it was the dormouse. She wrinkled her nose at Picayune and held up a paw to her minions without looking at them. The rushing guards halted and Phineas landed in front of Picayune. She cackled and looked at the dormouse. “Yes?”

  A wave of nervousness washed over Picayune. He looked down at his feet. “Do you think everyone here could get a tad more food to eat so they can work better? Maybe I can give them my portion?”

  A look of surprise replaced her happiness, but only Phineas noticed it. Waving one of the guards forward, the queen let a wide smile creep across her face, exposing her dangerously sharp, pearly white teeth.

  A rather portly badger scrambled over, fell to one knee, and looked at her clawed feet. “Yes, my queen?” he wheezed.

  The queen sneered just a little at the out of breath guard. “Tell Decoct to put more vegetables in the soup and make sure everyone gets a hunk of bread.”

  When the guard heard her reaction, he held his breath. “Yes, my queen.” Not waiting for anything else, he scuttled down the corridor leading to the cookery.

  Hand in hand, Alacrity and Lancer crept up behind Picayune and Phineas. When they got within a tail's length of the pair, they released their grip and stood in silence.

  The fur down the queen’s back stood on end as she dug her nails into the solid ground over and over. She flicked her teeth a few times with her tongue before shaking her bulky form. As her fur settled down, she licked her left paw and smoothed the fur on the side where Picayune had touched her. “Come,” she ordered in a forceful enough voice that even Phineas flinched.