by Tom Liberman
Shalalee woke up slightly before dawn and rolled over immediately to the pain in her legs and neck, “ohh,” she groaned in the pre-morning light. The sky was already brighter and the stars dimmed as she looked up and saw that the clouds from the night before were gone. A slight nickering sound to her right caused her to turn her head suddenly and she shouted out in pain as a nerve in her neck protested the movement after a long night on the hard ground. There before her was the most magnificent horse she had ever seen. Compared to the donkeys that pulled the wagon or even the horses she saw at various races held throughout Doria to celebrate market day it seemed impossible that it was even of the same species. The creature’s color was the lightest shade of brown and its forelimbs were smooth and strong ending in a powerful chest. The creature reached down with a nose, bumped against her, and she laughed out loud. The girl sat up with another groan and patted the beautiful animal on the head and spoke, “You’re so beautiful.” Her hand then reached out onto the grass next to her and found nothing. She jerked her head to the left and then the right, “It’s gone!” she exclaimed and jumped to her feet and ignored the dull pain that ran up and down her legs. She looked first to the left and then to the right and spotted the strange tracks in the dewy grass. She looked at the footprints closely and shook her head, “I don’t know what sort of creature made these,” she said and went over to the horse and patted its flank. The great steed stood tall above her and although the stirrup at its side was doubled with one cinched high and the other very low. It took her a moment to figure out the nature of the contraption but she slipped her foot into the lower of the two and tried to throw her leg up and around the horse as she had seen so many other do with apparent ease. Her left leg rose up and clipped the horse in the rump, her other foot slid out of the stirrup, and she tumbled to the ground in a heap. “Oh,” she said on her back and lay there for a long moment while the horse cropped a mouthful of the wet grass.
Shalalee struggled back to her feet once again the dull aches in her leg once again made themselves known. She put her foot in the lower of the two stirrups again, jumped as she swung her leg, managed to clear the back of the horse by the merest fraction and she suddenly found herself astride the magnificent beast. She looked around for a moment having lost her bearings as she mounted and then spotted the wet tracks that led into the gathering morning. The gangly girl sat atop the horse for a moment and then patted its flank, which had no apparent effect. “Go,” she said loudly and the horse stood silently, flicked its tail, and evinced no other sign of movement. “Please go!” she said a little more loudly and leaned forward every so slight in the saddle. This subtle shift of position seemed to convey meaning to the horse as it began to walk forward but immediately circled back and away from the direction of the tracks. “No!” cried Shalalee, “Stop,” but again the horse paid her no attention and began to walk more quickly in the wrong direction.
“Go that way,” said the girl in the saddle and pointed behind her and at that moment Dovestar broke into a light trot sent her flying through the air and she landed with a loud thump on the grass. “Ooof,” she said the air knocked out of her body and she lay on the ground for long moments until the wet nose of the horse brought her back to the present. As it nuzzled her she felt the leather strap of its reigns brush against her face and she opened her eyes and said, “Oh.” With that she struggled once again to her feet and this time took the reins in her hand and led the horse after the wet footprints. “We don’t have much time,” she said. “The sun will come up soon and the dew will be gone. If Shamki was here he could track them,” with that pronouncement her eyes widened and her jaw dropped open as she scanned the horizon for any sign of her parents and the others. “If they find out I lost it,” she said in a little sob, “they won’t understand why I took it in the first place.”
The wagon and its occupants moved at first light as well with Shamki once again in the lead, the others walked along in small groups, and Almara in the driver’s seat of the wagon. Humbort and Hazlebub ambled along behind of the wagon and did not say much to one another while Tanner and Lousa flanked Shamki and scanned the horizon for any sign of the girl. The three remaining children, Tylan, Unerus, and Ariana walked at the side of the wagon and only the girl showed any emotions as her jaws were clamped shut and her eyes blazed. The two boys walked next to each other and cast occasional glances at the young girl but kept their conversation low.
“Why is she so mad,” asked Tylan to the smaller boy.
Unerus shrugged his shoulders and looked towards Lousa and Tanner up ahead, “I think she’s still mad at your sister mostly,” he finally whispered quietly.
“She only did it because she thought it was best,” said Tylan, “otherwise she wouldn’t have done it.”
“I know that,” said the boy his brown hair a tangled mess and his road clothes ripped and torn in a number of spots. “She doesn’t know it.”
“Well, she should,” said Tylan.
“She’s my sister,” said Unerus, “and once she gets something in her head then it doesn’t go away.”
“That’s stupid,” said Tylan who looked out of the corner of his eye at the girl as she stalked along not more than ten feet from them. “Do you think Shalalee is going to be all right?”
“Nothing bad will happen,” said Unerus but in his own mind he remembered many of the children he grew up with in Iv’s Folly at the orphanage and then after. Sometimes nice things didn’t happen to kids and his reassurance to Tylan rang hollow in his own mind.
“There,” rang out Tanner’s voice suddenly and the man pointed to a small hill perhaps half a mile up a head. There was a large horse led by a small figure.
“No,” said Lousa as Tylan and Unerus ran up to join them followed by Hazlebub and Humbort. “Where would she find a horse?”
“That’s her, that’s her!” shouted Humbort whose eyes were exceptionally sharp perhaps in compensation for the dullness of his wit.
Tanner squinted towards the figure, as did Lousa and Shamki. “You can see that far?” asked the merchant with a look back at him through narrowed eyes and his head turned slightly to the side.
“Humbort says is, is,” said Shamki and suddenly broke into a loping run that took him quickly beyond the others. Unerus started out after Shamki his little legs took two or three steps for each the half-orc but even then quickly started to fall behind. Tanner and Lousa joined in the chase and could only manage to match the speed of the young boy and only Humbort, his strange gangly gait on long legs was able to keep up with Shamki. Within a couple of minutes Tanner moved between a trot and a walk his face red and his breath in great gasps. Lousa was in a similar condition her heavy bosom heaving up and down as she tried to catch her breath, “I need to get in shape,” she managed to gasp as she watched Shamki and Humbort close in on the girl and the horse while Unerus and Tylan trailed behind. Far back Hazlebub and Ariana stayed with the wagon as it slowly trundled towards the girl on the hill.
“Shalalee!” shouted Tanner loudly and the stillness of the morning gave his voice range. The girl looked up and stopped for a moment, looked this way and that as if unable to decide on a course of action and then, shoulders slumped, she began to lead the horse towards them.
Humbort arrived first and rushed over to give the girl a hug but the giant horse suddenly lashed forward with a sharp hoof and the man dove to the ground to avoid a braining by only a few inches.
“Bad horse!” shouted Shalalee and ran over to Humbort who trembled on the ground and looked up at the massive horse.
Shamki pulled up himself barely out of breath and took a step back and away from the horse and the girl. He studied the great steed for a few moments as Shalalee tried to comfort Humbort and the horse seemed to glare back at him steam coming from its nostrils on the clear, cool morning.
“Seymour said if I took it and brought it to him he would destroy it but I got tired and then fell asleep and someone came and stole it and I’m fo
llowing the tracks back to them,” said the girl in one breathless sentence and pointed to the quickly fading marks in the dew.
“Good horse,” said Shamki. “Skeletons,” he continued as he bent down to the ground and examined the strange marks. He looked in the direction they went and spotted a large grey stone just beyond a small rise. “Graves,” he concluded and turned towards the others just in time to step out of the way as Unerus rushed forward and launched himself at the girl giving her a hug. She was a good head taller than he was and they made an odd looking pair for a moment. After a few long moments he let her go and they stood looking at each other with goofy expressions on their face. That was about the time that Tanner came up with Lousa right behind.
“I’m sorry daddy,” said Shalalee and looked away from Unerus as the tears started to pour down her face.
Tanner covered the last few yards in a sudden burst of speed and picked the girl up in his arms twirling once all the way around before he pulled her in with a great bear hug. “Shalalee, you had us so worried.”
“I’m sorry,” said the girl barely able to breath thanks to the tightness of the hug. “I … thought … they took it … I … wanted to help.”
“It’s okay sweetie,” said Tanner and hugged the girl once again but Lousa actually listened to what she said and a quick scan showed that the Staff of Naught was not anywhere to be found.
“Who took it?” she said and moved up and put her hand on the girl’s shoulder. “When did they take it?”
“Last night, while I was sleeping,” sobbed the girl and pointed to the ground but the dew was gone and the tracks with them as well.
“Skeletons,” said Shamki with a short jerk of his head to the little hilly outcropping and the single gray stone visible above the rise.
“That means she has it,” said Lousa her shoulders slumped.
“Ohhh,” came the voice of Ariana her eyes wide as she looked at Dovestar. “He’s beautiful,” she stared at the great beast her eyes wide and round.
“Seymour sent him to me,” said Shalalee and disentangled herself from her father for a moment. I was going to ride him back and give him the staff but it got stolen.”
“Shalalee,” shouted Almara as she clambered down from the wagon too quickly, fell, landed awkwardly on one ankle, and collapsed to the ground with a cry of pain.
The girl ran over to her mother, “Mom!”
“You had us very worried young lady,” said the round woman as she accepted the neck wringing embrace from her daughter.
“Horses,” said Shamki suddenly as he looked in the opposite direction.
“There,” said Humbort pointing. “They come fast!”
The half-orc drew his sword and Unerus pulled out his own little blade but before they could organize themselves into a defensive position the riders ringed them. Oliver actually leapt from the saddle of his horse and onto the back of Dovestar in a single motion. The horse reared high its legs kicking and then it came down with a thump.
“Where is the staff!” demanded Seymour his own horse blowing hard although his strange words were in a language unknown to those gathered around him.
Everyone stared at him with open mouths except Shamki who slowly circled to the side of Oliver keeping his eyes riveted on the paladin.
“Who are you?” asked Tanner and moved over to be in front of his wife and daughter while Lousa gathered up Ariana and Unerus and pushed them behind her with a quick shove.
The High Priest of Ras sat up high in his saddle and looked down at the merchant with a sneer on his face and his horse turned in a tight circle. “Oliver, kill them one at time until they tell you where the staff is.”
“Wait,” said Lousa. “Hazlebub, you speak their language, what are they saying?”
The witch poked her head out from the wagon and looked at her. “I understand some of it,” said the woman slowly. “I can’t speak it. That one, the Priest of Ras, he wants the staff and he told the orc there something about killing but I’m not sure exactly.”
“He’s Seymour the Bright,” said Lousa as a look of comprehension came across her face as she took in the Tarltonite robes and the great sun burst on his sleeve. “We’re on the same side in this. We want to find the staff and destroy it as well.”
“That’s Seymour?” said Shalalee with a puzzled expression on her face as she turned to look at Sutekha who looked back at her with a smile on his face.
The wizard waved his hands in a slow circle and muttered a few words and suddenly his words started to make sense. “I gather you thought I was Seymour,” he said to Shalalee. “I’m sorry to have misled you young lady,” said the Golden Worm Wizard. “I didn’t think you would listen to me so I took the liberty of suggesting I was the High Priest.”
“Oh,” said Shalalee.
“Seymour the Bright,” said Humbort and took a few steps backwards.
Tanner looked up at the powerful figure his lips pursed and scratched his head, “How are you here?”
“I repeat, where is the staff,” said Seymour. “If you are not forthcoming then I’ll have Oliver slay the children until one of you decides to answer my question.”
“There is no need for threats,” said Lousa standing up straight and moved her arms in a rhythmic pattern.
Sutekha pulled aside his robe and found a small jar in a pocket without even looking while Seymour fingered the chain around his neck.
“Staff, get away,” said Shamki and pointed towards the cemetery he knew rested just beyond the rise.
“What?” said Seymour.
“Shamki’s right,” said Tanner. “I don’t know what you did to my daughter to make her steal the staff and I’ll want an explanation about that you can bet. But, some skeletons stole it from her and they took it that way!” he said and once again pointed to the hills.
“Oliver,” said Seymour with a glance of his head and the massive orc warrior spun the horse and was galloping in that direction a moment later. The High Priest of Ras spurred his horse and it cantered immediately after.
“I am Sutekha,” said the wizard of the golden worm with a slight bow and looked keenly at Lousa who still breathed heavily from her recent exertions. “And you are?”
“I don’t think now is the time to discuss that,” said the beautiful woman her eyes glinted an emerald green although she smiled back at the strange pale skinned man readily enough. “I think we should follow your friends …” and noticed that Shamki and Humbort already headed up towards the hillock, “and my friends.”
“After you,” said Sutekha with a little bow and then dismounted from his horse to move along at her side.
Ariana was already ahead of them hot on the heels of Shamki and Humbort while the two Tarltonites sped ahead and left everyone else far behind. As they approached the graveyard a blinding flash of light burst suddenly just over the hillside and by the time they arrived they found Seymour and Oliver dismounted while the remains of a dozen smoldering skeletons lay all around the graveyard. Shamki leaned back against one of the larger headstones his eyes closed, shook his head, and held his sword out in front of him. Ariana knelt on the ground her hands across her eyes and made strange little squeak sounds while Humbort lay on his back with his hands over his eyes.
“What did you do?” shouted Lousa and ran over to Shamki who waved his sword at her causing her to stop abruptly.
Sutekha shook his head, “They are not accustomed to the power of the Icon of Ras,” he said going over to the little girl as he pulled out a pouch of water. “Here wash out your eyes; it should go away after a bit.” He then turned to Oliver and shook his head at the great orc warrior, “You should have warned them what was coming, we are on the same side in all of this.”
Oliver let go of his reins and looked at the pale wizard for a moment before he nodded his head.
“Where is it!” shrieked Seymour dismounted next to his horse with reins in his hand but his eyes looked about the clearing for any sign of the staff.
“Someone must have been waiting for them,” said Tanner as he approached.
“Track them,” said Seymour to Oliver but the big orc shook his head.
“My skills in tracking over this terrain are limited. If we were but in The Sands they would not so easily get away.”
“Shamki can track them,” said Ariana as she blinked her eyes rapidly. “Shamki, where are you?”
“He’s blinded like you,” said Lousa going back over to the half-orc. “It’s me, Lousa. Let me put water in your eyes. Sutekha says that will help.” With that she moved closer to the half-orc who lowered his sword and allowed her to put her hands to his eyes and dribble water from a skin into them.
“We must rely on these heathens,” said Seymour in a low voice to Oliver as he sidled over to be next to the big orc paladin.
Oliver looked at the strange group of people they were now associated with, the green haired girl who Sutekha seemed to have taken a liking towards, the children, including the gangly girl who was manipulated into stealing the staff in the first place, a strange boy who had a look of guile about him, the younger girl with half her teeth who watched him closely, the witchy woman, the simpleton, the middle aged woman who crested the hill driving the wagon, the man who was clearly her husband, and especially the half-orc who blinked the blindness out of his eyes. He hadn’t shouted out a warning wanting to see how this potential foe might react to blindness. He had watched closely when the half-orc quickly backed against the large headstone showing a good awareness of the field of battle even after having only glanced at it for the briefest of moments. After that the warrior kept his sword up and used his ears to good effect although when he waved his sword at his ally that showed that his hearing was not particularly attuned to the sounds of battle without vision. Oliver spent many months training blindfolded as a child under his master and knew that darkness would give him advantage over the half-orc if it came to that. The warrior appeared to be skilled but Oliver felt confident in his chances should it come to blows.
