"But we have to convince the king that breaking that stone open is a bad idea," Pat countered.
Ruth held up her hand. "I can stay," she offered.
"Nobody's staying, and certainly not alone," Percy refused.
Canto stepped up beside Ruth. "Ah'll stay with her," he volunteered.
"And I'll stay, too," Pat replied, but Canto shook his head.
"Ya won't be useful in here, not with yer sympathies to the Helpers and without yer sword, to boot," he told her. "Best let ya out to find Ned and the boy, and see what that fool castor advises we do. If things get tough for us than Ah have my strength and she her claws."
Pat hesitated, but noises outside their cell told her to decide. The sound of the bars hitting the floor hadn't gone unnoticed, just slow to respond. Percy grabbed her arm and shoved her against the rope. "Climb!" he ordered.
Pat pursed her lips, and glanced at Ruth and Canto. Ruth smiled at her, and Canto nodded. "I expect to see you both later," Pat ordered them. She turned to Canto. "Especially you. You promised to train me."
"Aye, and a dwarf always keeps his word," Canto promised.
Pat smiled and jumped up the rope with Percy close beneath her. They pulled themselves up the dangling rope and Sins lifted them out through the hole. Pat turned and cast one last glance at their two friends in the hole. Ruth smiled and waved, but Canto looked over his shoulder at the door. The noises grew louder, and he whipped his head upward. "Hurry!" he hissed.
Their three friends disappeared beyond the edge of the rim. Ruth looked to Canto as the noises behind them arrived at the door. "Do you think they'll be safe?" she asked him.
Canto raised an eyebrow and turned his head to her. His weathered face showed an expression of awe. "Yer a mighty fine girl to be worrying about them and not yerself."
"I'm sure we'll be fine. They think we have information that might help them break the stone," Ruth reminded him. She rubbed her necklace and hid her gargoyle form.
The door behind them burst open and half a dozen guards swarmed into the cell with Danto in the lead. They grabbed the pair while Danto glanced up at the top and scowled. He stepped up to the remaining captives and glanced between them. "How did they escape and where did they go?"
Canto smirked and shrugged. "Ah don't know. Why don't ya take yer men and look for 'em?" he advised.
Danto growled and swiped his hand across Canto's face. Canto's head jerked to one side and the old wound was reopened. He turned back to Danto with a sick smile on his face. "That's two times you've hit me, and twice Ah haven't repaid ya. Another time and ya might want to be watching yerself," he warned him.
"Not while yer in my hold," Danto countered. He looked to his guards and jerked his head to the door. "Get 'em out of here and give 'em a cell without a view."
The guards pushed them out the door and down the hall a few yards to one of the side doors. It was opened and they were shoved into a small, square room. Ruth hit the back wall hard and Canto beside her. The only source of light was the square hole in the upper half of the door, and when the entrance was shut behind them that light was blocked by the sneering face of one of their guards. "Let's see ya get out of this," he growled.
"Give us some more time and we'll steal the place blind," Canto shot back. The dwarf guard glared at the insolent captive, but walked away. Canto heard a soft whimper and turned to find Ruth cradling her nose in her hand. Blood poured out and dripped onto her pale fingers. His face softened and he tore his cloak to give her a handkerchief, which she gladly accepted. "Don't go giving 'em the pleasure of seeing ya cry. Those types feed off of it," he told her. Ruth sniffled and wiped the tears from her eyes. Canto smiled and gave a nod. "That's the way, now let me look at it." A quick perusal told him it wasn't broken. "Just a bit of a knock. It'll be fine by morning even if ya don't turn to stone to heal yerself." He turned to their surroundings and pursed his lips together. "But Ah don't know how we're going to manage this new cell. Not much of a chance to escape."
"No, but we should stay and convince the king that he's wrong to want to break the stone," she reminded him.
Canto sighed and shook his head. "Yer a good girl, Ruth, but ya don't know much about idiot kings. They aren't swayed by fancy talk and common sense."
A small smile slid onto her lips. "My race was forced into exile for fifty years because of a mad king, but I don't hold any ill will toward this one. He is blinded by his greed, but I'm sure he cares for his people."
Canto wanted to scoff, but Ruth spoke with such conviction that he hoped she was right. He stepped up to the door and ran his hand along the thick wood. "What Ah wouldn't give for me ax back," he grumbled.
Ruth smiled and patted his shoulder. "I'm sure we'll be fine," she reassured him, and herself.
"Ah know, but it'd make me feel better to bash some of their thick skulls with me ax handle," he told her.
"Maybe we won't have to. The others are free and I'm sure Ned will think of something," Ruth reminded him.
Canto raised an eyebrow and looked her over. "Ya got that much faith in 'em?"
"Don't you?" she countered.
He shrugged. "Ah don't know, but Ah'll take some of yer faith and hope for the best." He stood on his tiptoes and looked through the opening in the door. "But if we don't hear from 'em soon then we're on our own."
Above their heads their three companions stood at the edge of the thick walls of the cell tower. The sheer wall of the tower and the wide moat lay below them. Sins pulled the rope from the cell and tossed it over the side to a small rock ledge against the wall and above the moat. The three slid down and landed side-by-side with a half foot between them and a nasty swim. Pat gasped and put her hand over her nose. The water bubbling five yards below them stank of rotten eggs and diapers. The moat was too wide to jump, and they would be captured if they made the crossing at the drawbridge.
"What now?" Pat nasally asked them. "Do we go for a swim?"
Sins' reply was to pull a square net made of thick rope from beneath his cloak. The bundle was so large Pat wondered if his cloak was the same as Fred and Ned's. Sins tossed two corners across the moat, and they caught on a few pointed rocks that surrounded the moat water. Then he stretched the net and tied the two corners in his hand to two rocks directly in front of them. By climbing across the net they now had safe, and clean, passage over the moat.
Shouts from the direction of the drawbridge told them they needed to hurry, and the three of them scuttled across. They made it to shore, and Sins grabbed the net and cracked it like a whip. All four corners were loosed from their rocky holds and he proceeded to stuff the net back into his cloak. "Wait," Pat spoke up. "Leave that here. We still need to save Ruth and Canto," she reminded them.
Sins looked to Percy, who nodded. "Just in case we need a less conspicuous entrance," Percy agreed. Sins strode over to a nearby bush and stuffed the net inside. No one would know it was there unless they looked for it.
The noises from the drawbridge came closer, so the three companions hurried into the maze of houses. The clanking of armor followed close behind, but they outmaneuvered their pursuers by hiding in a dark alley behind some crates. A half a dozen guards clattered by and the noise of their armor sank into the distance. The group left their hiding spot and looked around. Except for the occasional drunken shout, the city was dark and quiet.
Pat looked down one street and then another. "Even if Ned and Fred are in the city, I don't know how we're to find them," she spoke up. She noticed Sins raise his head and his narrow eyes looked at something in the sky. Percy and she followed his gaze and noticed a flock of dark birds in the distance. They were crows, and they were making a fuss about something.
"Sounds like trouble," Percy mused.
"Then that's where they are," Pat replied. "Let's go."
CHAPTER 17
A third of their group imprisoned, and another third on the run. That was the friendly environment Ned and Fred stepped into with their Star treasure an
d Star friend when they came upon the city just before nightfall. The guards were just closing the gate, but their coming made the dwarves pause. They glared at Hywel, and cast suspicious glances at the humans. The lead guard stepped forward and tightened his belt over his ample stomach. "What's wanted?" he gruffly asked them.
"We would like to enter the city," Ned told him.
"What fer?" the guard questioned.
"We're sightseers and are on a tour of the cities," he replied.
"Go on yer way to the next one. This one's closed," the guard refused.
Ned dramatically sighed and turned his horse. "Very well, though I was very much hoping to try the famous blood pudding. I'll have to settle for the pudding they serve at Kite. I've heard it's much better, anyway."
"Wait a minute!" The guard hurried out to them and grabbed the bit on Ned's horse. He shot a glare between the two travelers. "Nobody's blood pudding is better than ours."
"I'm afraid I can't take your word for it. Not without sampling some of the pudding from the pubs," Ned argued.
The dwarf growled and pushed away the bit. "All right, ya can come in, but don't be saying that Kite's blood pudding is better than ours until ya taste it."
Ned smiled and bowed his head. "I swear it."
The guard glanced at Hywel. "And ya better put yer Helper there in a cage. We've been having trouble with ours and don't allow them to wander after night anymore."
"As you wish." Ned held open his cloak and whistled at Hywel. Fred noticed the Star stiffened, but after a moment's hesitation flew inside Ned's cloak. Ned closed the cloak, gave one last bow to the guard, and they pushed on through.
The moment they were out of sight of the gate, Ned stopped and opened his cloak. Hywel flew out and zipped around them while his words flew as fast as his wings. "Treating me like some sort of mad dog! I can't say I blame the Stars for this treatment!" His body color ranged from red to orange and back again.
"That's enough, old friend," Ned calmed him. "We're not here to fan the flames of war. We're here to save both races."
"And a fine race the dwarves are!" Hywel growled.
"Haven't you been here before?" Fred asked the Star.
"Never, and I hope not to return after we've shown Cadwaladr the error of his ways," Hywel replied.
"Let's get on now. We need to find our friends and the stone," Ned reminded them.
"How are we going to do that?" Fred wondered. He looked around at the twisting, turning, diagonal, and crooked streets around them.
"I have no idea," Ned admitted. He hurried his horse forward, and Fred, Fluffy, and Hywel followed.
The lively stalls in the market were closing for the day and the drinking in the streets was replaced with drinking in the pubs as they opened for business to clientele eager to drown their sorrows and their heads in huge mugs of alcohol. Fred glanced down an alley and noticed a cat seated on a crate. He stopped Fluffy and looked at the unblinking cat. Fluffy growled at the animal, but the cat just twitched its tail. Ned reined in his horse and glanced over his shoulder. "We really don't have time to sightsee, my boy."
"Coming," Fred called back. He reluctantly turned away and followed Ned.
At the market Ned hopped down off his horse and Fred followed his example. The young man looked around in curiosity mingled with an urge to run straight back into the swamps. Some parts of the city smelled worse than those gaseous cesspools. A pair of dwarven drinking buddies passed them, and he clapped his hand over his mouth to stifle the smell from the green cloud that lingered behind the pair.
Ned smiled and pulled the young man's hand down. "Since Canto isn't here to instill his wisdom to you, I'll have to ask you not to insult them by holding, plugging, clogging, stuffing, or cutting off your nose. They're fond of their unique odor and think it rude if you aren't as partial to it."
"What makes them smell so bad?" Fred asked him.
"It's the food they eat that's grown from water supplied by the marshes. It gives their food and their bodies that fine scent," Ned told him.
"And that wonderful personality," Hywel quipped.
Ned smiled and nodded. "Yes, but you might want to keep your comments to a minimum in the city. Your presence is already attracting unwanted attention." The few dwarves left in the market watched with suspicious glances the two strangers and their hovering Helper.
"That shouldn't be a bother for long. We just need to find that stone and ring that treasure close to it, right?" Hywel asked him.
"That may be easier said than done. For one, we have no idea where in the city the stone resides," the old castor pointed out.
"Not a problem." Hywel flew up high over the housetops and zipped out over the city.
"Is it safe to let him go like that?" Fred wondered.
"I don't believe he gave us a chance to argue," Ned replied. "Besides, Hywel is a very experienced flier and there's very little that can take down a fast Star."
"What about a flock of crows?" Fred suggested.
Ned frowned and rubbed his chin. "Yes, that might work, if the crows are messengers trained for speed." He paused and looked to Fred. "Why do you ask?"
Fred's attention was on the sky, and he pointed at a spot over the houses. "Because there's a bunch of crows over there." Ned quickly followed Fred's gaze and glimpsed the murder of crows on a murderous collision course for their glowing friend.
Hywel heard the flutter of the dozen wings behind him, and turned in time to avoid the first dive-bombing crow. He wasn't so lucky with the second wave of attack as he was double-teamed by a pair. The tips of their wings knocked into his sensitive ones, and he tumbled out of the air and fell between the houses. Ned and Fred watched his fall from afar, and both jumped on their steeds and raced to the crash site.
They weaved between the erratically placed buildings and were aided in their hunt by the very beasts that fell their friend. The crows dove after their prey and cawed in triumph. The pair broke onto the street and saw the crows flocking around a glim glow on the mucky ground. Ned kicked his horse and the steed barreled down on the murderous crowd. They scattered into the air and flung insults at the interloper.
Fred and Fluffy hurried up as Ned dismounted and knelt down beside their fallen friend. Hywel's light was weak and there were indentations indicating peck marks all over his body. Ned reached into his cloak and pulled out a vial of brownish water. He popped off the cork and tipped the mouth over the Star. A small drop slipped out of the opening and onto Hywel's round body. Rather than slide off, the water was absorbed into the indentations and his light regained some of its strength. The wings shuddered as Hywel awoke and tried to move.
Ned gently put his hand on Hywel's body and pinned him to the ground. "Easy there, old friend. Hold still for a moment longer until your body fully absorbs the marsh water."
"Marsh water?" Fred repeated.
Ned nodded and slipped the vial back into his cloak. "It heals the Stars. That's one of the reasons they live there."
Hywel's voice was weak and hoarse. "Where did the crows go?" he asked Ned.
Ned looked up at the murder that flew in circles above them. "Still around. Someone must have set them on you to fell you from the skies." Ned glanced back at his friend and shook his head. "It seems it wasn't a good idea to bring you along."
Hywel let out a coughing laugh. "Too late for regrets. I'm up to my wings in this trouble and I'm not going to let a bunch of idiot birds get the best of a Star captain."
Ned pursed his lips together and scouted the area. Fred, too, looked around, and his eyes picked up on footsteps hurrying their way. "Those birds may be idiots, but the trainer behind them might be more intelligent. We can't stay here any longer. Can you fly?"
Hywel fluttered his wings and lifted off the ground a few inches. "Argh!" His cry of pain was followed by his descent back to earth.
"It seems not," Ned mused. He caught up his friend and stuffed him into his cloak. "Have Fluffy follow my lead," he instructed Fred.
"All right," replied the young man.
The pair mounted and turned in the opposite direction of the footsteps. They sprinted away just as a group of dwarves in armor rounded a nearby corner. "Stop!" yelled the lead dwarf.
Stop meant go, and the pair went. They raced through the winding, narrow streets, but their trail was followed. The lead dwarf blew a whistle, and the crows swooped down and followed the companions. The prey and the predators dodged and ducked houses, shop signs, and dwarves. Ned looked to Fred. "Split up!" he yelled.
Fred pulled Fluffy down a side street and the murder followed him. He looked over his shoulder and saw the crows closing in on him. Fred whipped his head forward and was just in time to read the sign before he ate it. It read Shilo's Shop of Murder. The sign nearly fulfilled its promise when his face smashed into it and he was thrown from Fluffy. His head made the acquaintance of the shop's doorstep and he blacked out.
CHAPTER 18
Fred didn't remember much after that. Just far off voices and blurry faces. There was also this annoying cawing sound. He was awoken from his stupor by a sharp pain in his temple, and his eyes fluttered open. A small, dark shadow with beady yellow eyes stood over him. He yelped and sat up, and the creature fluttered off. It was a crow. Fred whipped his head around and saw he was in a small, mud-baked house with a friendly, crackling fire in a hearth nearby. He lay on a bed of straw and blankets, and when he moved a sharp pain swept over his head. He reached up and found a cloth wrapped tightly around his forehead.
"Ya hit yerself pretty well," a voice spoke up. He snapped his head to the side and noticed a woman dwarf who stood close by the bed with that crow on her shoulder. The snap sent another shot of pain through his brain, and he winced and clutched at the bandage. The woman dwarf strode over to him and grabbed his chin between her small but powerful fingers. She looked him over and released him. "It's a nice crack, and yer lucky I got those crows off ya before they pecked yer eyes out. Now ya need to stop moving so much or you'll make yerself sick," she advised him.
The Unwilling Ambassador (Book 3) Page 11
