Unsuspecting Mage

by Brian S. Pratt

  “Part of the job,” Perrilin says. “Now, I’ve got just a couple of questions.”

  “Yeah?” asks James.

  “Just what are buffalo and antelope anyway?” he asks.

  Smiling, James begins to explain what they are and also clarifies the other different words in the song that are unfamiliar to him. All the while their discussion is going on, Miko lays down near the fire and drifts off to sleep. They continue well into the night and he tries not to let on to Perrilin that he comes from a different world, just from a far away land.

  When Perrilin is finally satisfied that he understands the song, including all the words and phrases, he puts his instrument away and says, “I think it’s time for me to call it a night. Thank you for the song, maybe I’ll use it from time to time.” He lies down near the fire and soon the soft sounds of contented snoring reaches James just before he, too nods off to sleep.

  Chapter Ten

  _______________________

  The sun rising over the horizon awakens James to another beautiful, summer day. The spot where Perrilin slept stood empty, apparently the bard had already awoke and went on his way. Waking Miko, they begin to get their things packed and ready for travel.

  Miko takes out an apple and eats it while he’s getting ready. “He sure left early this morning,” he says, referring to Perrilin. His words are barely understood through the oversized chunk of apple wedged in his mouth.

  “I guess he was in a hurry to make Cardri this evening,” responds James. “And don’t talk with your mouth full, I can hardly understand you.”

  “Sorry,” Miko says as he swallows the last of the now much reduced piece of apple. “Hope we can make it there tonight too,” he wishes.

  “Well, from what he told us,” explains James, “I don’t think we’ll make it before tomorrow at the earliest. Maybe if we had another horse we might, but not by foot.”

  It doesn’t take them very long before they are ready to continue on to Cardri. Taking the reins of the horse, James exits the copse of trees with Miko right behind and they make their way back onto the road, heading south.

  Miko isn’t very happy at the prospect of walking for another two days, but is resigned to it as he has little choice. The day is nice, at least the weather has been cooperating, and their spirits are high since it seems pursuit is not forthcoming. It would seem that Miko had been correct about their pursuers’ unwillingness to stray too far from Bearn.

  As the morning progresses, the sun steadily climbs higher into the sky and the temperature begins to rise, forecasting the approach of a very hot summer day. Much to James’ delight, a breeze manifests out of the southwest and allays the worst of the summer heat.

  Throughout the morning they make good time, pressing onward with only one short rest break. The road is rather deserted and the only other souls they encounter are one lone traveler driving a wagon drawn by a pair of mules passes by on his way north and a couple fast riders that overtook them on their way south.

  A little after noon the skyline of another fair size town on the opposite side of the river begins to appear up ahead on the horizon. As they draw nearer, they come to an aged bridge spanning the river allowing traffic to cross to the town. Asking a traveler that had just crossed over the bridge, they discover the name of the city is Collington. Not having any money left after buying the boat back in Bearn, they continue past and Collington soon disappears behind them.

  Evening finds them still on the road with no inn in sight, nor are there even a few trees growing closely together to give their camp some shelter. So with the waning of the sun, they find a spot near the river and make camp. While Miko gets the fire ready, James searches for a stick he can use for fishing. Finally tearing off a long branch from a tree, he sharpens one end before wading into the river. Twice he enters the river and twice he emerges with a fair sized fish wriggling impaled upon the end of the stick.

  James and Miko eat one fish entirely while saving most of the second for a meal in the morning. Wrapping the left over fish in some leaves, James puts it into his backpack for safe keeping. They munch on a few apples as well, making sure to leave a couple for the next day. Hopefully they will make it to Cardri before nightfall and will be able to stay at an inn.

  As day gives way to night, another campfire springs to life some two hundred feet further north on their side of the river. A short time later, another one appears across the water, fifty feet or so to the south.

  “Must be common to make camp along the river,” states James. Straining to see who the ones on their side of the river might be, he peers through the deepening dusk but can’t quite make them out. He can tell there are more than one, perhaps six in all.

  Miko nods. “Even near Bearn,” he replies. “Some would rather avoid paying for inns.”

  “Not me,” James says, turning back to his young companion. “I would have to be pretty desperate, or short on coins, to give up the comfort of a bed.”

  Laughing, Miko gives him a grin. “I wouldn’t trade a bed for the ground if given the choice either.”

  James chuckles and returns to the fire where he and Miko spend time relaxing and getting to know one another better. “What was it like growing up on the streets?” he asks the boy.

  Miko’s face loses much of its joviality as painful memories surface. “It wasn’t easy,” he replies. “Always being hungry, the older boys would take what you have and leave you with nothing. After a while you know who your friends are, who you can count on to watch your back.” Growing quiet, he stares into the fire for several seconds then says, “You also know who to avoid.”

  “Like those boys who chased us into the sewer?” prompts James.

  Miko nods. “Yeah. You get on the bad side of the wrong people, and you’re dead.” Grabbing an end of a small stick sticking out from the base of their fire, he begins poking at the coals. “What about you?” he asks. “What’s it like where you come from?”

  “Like here for the most part,” he replies. What can I tell him that he would believe? “People are people no matter where you go.”

  “I suppose so,” Miko said.

  Another hour is spent on trading tales of their past and James discovers that he is growing to like this lad from the streets of Bearn. As he takes turn relating tidbits of his past, James speaks of his grandparents, parents, Haveston, and school. Talking of home doesn’t elicit feelings of homesickness as it had before. Rather, they comfort and bring him peace. When the fire burns itself down to coals, they ready themselves for sleep.

  The night passes uneventfully and both wake in the morning a little stiff from sleeping on the ground but all in all well rested. James gets up and walks around, trying to work the kinks out of his back and fervently hopes that come this evening he may be in a bed at an inn. Sleeping on the ground is starting to get a little old. Every time during the night when he thought he found a comfortable position, a new rock would make itself known, forcing him to change position yet again.

  As they prepare to travel, a long caravan trundles into view on its way north from Cardri. James counts fifteen wagons passing by in the early morning light with a dozen mounted guards accompanying it.

  Miko gets the horse ready while he goes to the river to refill the water bottle. He puts the bottle in the water and while he waits for the bottle to fill he glances upriver. Not far from where he squats filling his water bottle, several people stand in the water, by the looks of it doing their morning business. A feeling of revulsion overcomes him as he looks at the river flowing past those people, toward him and into his water bottle. With visions of dysentery running through his mind, he stands up completely disgusted and pours out the water.

  Looking down and across the river, he finds another group of travelers filling several earthen jugs with the river’s water, water that could very well be carrying bacteria and waste products from the people and animals further up the river. He comes to the realization that any and all water, or for that matter
all things drinkable, could originate in just the same unsanitary and possibly parasitic infested place.

  Remembering a special he saw on the Discovery Channel about parasites and how they get into your system and take up housekeeping, he decides he has do something about this.

  Miko walks over to where he stands in the water and asks “Are you ready?”

  Looking at him in disgust, James replies, “Ready for what? Diarrhea?”

  “Diarrhea? What are you talking about?” asks a confused Miko. “No, are you ready to get going?”

  “I’m not going anywhere until I can figure out how to get some clean water,” James responds.

  Looking at the river, Miko says “The river is clean. Look, you can see all the way to the rocks on the bottom.” In truth, the water was flowing smoothly and the riverbed was clearly visible beneath.

  James points upstream, Miko looks in the direction he indicates and sees the people getting out of the water. “They just fouled it, and look,” he says pointing at the people filling water bottles and jugs downstream, “those people down there are unaware of the contamination that may be making its way into their drinking water.”

  “Contamination?” asks Miko. “What do you mean?” He looks at James and his expression shows that he doesn’t understand what James is trying to say.

  “It’s hard to explain,” James says. “Let’s just say that contamination is something that can make you sick.”

  “If you say so,” Miko says uncertainly.

  James once again fills the bottle with water from the river, then finds a spot several feet away from the water’s edge and sits down, resting the water bottle on the ground before him. Miko sits opposite him and waits quietly to see what he’s up to.

  A minute or so goes by then James begins casting a spell, all the while concentrating on the purity of the water and for the impurities within the water to collect on the sand beside the bottle. Miko watches and is astonished when a wet spot forms on the ground next to the bottle. An almost miniscule lump of brownish goop forms on the wet spot, giving off an unpleasant odor. When James finishes the spell, he brings the bottle up to his nose and sniffs. Seeming to be satisfied he takes a sip and a smile crosses his face. He hands the bottle to Miko who hesitantly brings it to his mouth and takes a small drink. Eyes widening, he says “Never tasted water like that before.” Taking another drink he exclaims, “Best water I ever had!”

  “I doubt if anyone around here has had water like this,” remarks James. “That’s the way water where I come from tastes, most of the time anyway.”

  James takes a small stick and pokes the brown goop. “This is what was in the water, the stuff that makes you sick,” he explains to Miko. “There are several ways to do this without magic but we don’t have the time or facilities to do it properly.” Taking the bottle from Miko he takes a long drink, emptying it.

  James returns to the river and fills the bottle once more, then sits back down and purifies it with his spell. Miko watches in wonder as the brown goop forms once more on the ground.

  When he’s finished, he packs the water bottle away and they return to the road, heading south once more.

  As the day progresses there are more and more people on the road traveling in both directions. Many are simple farmers going about their daily routines, hardly noticing those around them.

  Hours later, Miko suddenly asks, “What’s that smell?” He looks sidelong at James.

  “It’s not me you smell,” James informs him, “that’s the sea.” The salty smell of the sea had been growing steadily stronger over the last hour but now is quite noticeable though they still are unable to see it. The terrain has become slightly hilly and for the last several miles James has been expecting to see the sea whenever they crest a hill.

  Close to midday they top a rise and there laid out before them, is Cardri. Beyond the city stretched a great expanse of ocean extending to the horizon. Cardri is by far the largest city that James has seen since coming to this world. It must stretch a mile or two on both sides of the river.

  On a hill a little inland from the harbor, but still within the city proper, rises a great castle. Shining white in the morning sun, it is an imposing sight, several towers and a great keep surrounded by a high formidable wall. Atop the highest spire of the tallest tower a flag bearing the crest of the Cardri line flutters in the breeze coming off the sea.

  James looks to Miko and chuckles. Miko is standing there with his mouth hanging open, in obvious awe of the place. He reaches over and closes Miko’s mouth which snaps him out of it. He looks over at James and smiles, a little embarrassed.

  “Pretty impressive, eh?” James asks him as they head down the hill toward the town.

  “I’ll say,” Miko responds, “I always heard it was big, but I had no idea. I always thought of Bearn as a big city, but this makes Bearn look like a farming village.”

  “It’s the capital,” explains James, “and I’m sure it’s also a major center of trade for the entire region. It would have to be big.” Moored at the docks of the harbor were dozens of ships of varying sizes, many with a buzz of activity surrounding them as sailors and porters load and unload their cargo.

  They reach the outlying buildings a good two hundred yards before they even get to the outer wall that surrounds the city. Cardri has three defensive walls dividing up sections of the city. One encircles the castle proper and several large buildings which comprise the Castle Area. The second encompasses a much larger area and protects the homes and businesses of many merchants and wealthy individuals. The third is the outer wall and the primary defense for the city. Almost two miles in circumference, it boasts many towers spaced at regular intervals. Half seem to have some sort of siege equipment such as catapults sitting atop them for defense.

  Though despite the awe inspiring length of the outer wall, it still isn’t large enough to encompass Cardri in its entirety. Originally it may have, but over the years, buildings have sprung up along the outside. Primarily comprised of poorer dwellings by the looks of them, many are obviously taverns and inns catering to those in need of accommodations, but the poor and slovenly appearance of most of them would keep James away unless he was very desperate.

  The gate through which the road passes holds two portals, one larger than the other to accommodate wagons and merchants, the smaller being for people on foot or horse. James and Miko move to the line at the gate for people and are soon approaching the entrance.

  Lining the road are many poor beggars who plead with all to give, most having lost limbs, eyes, or bore some other deformity. James is saddened by them and feels bad that he has to reject their pleadings for help.

  As the line continues drawing closer to the gate, James notices that unlike Bearn, the guards here are not asking questions of travelers before they pass through. This allowed the line of people waiting to get in to advance quickly. They took notice of everyone however, but beyond that scrutiny allowed all to enter unchallenged. The wall itself is about fifteen feet thick and as he passes through, discovers murder holes in the ceiling where defenders would be able to drop rocks or oil on anyone unfortunate enough to be caught inside.

  Once through the walls into the city proper, the state of the buildings improves somewhat over those outside, though they are still on the poorer side in James’ opinion. That made sense actually since the closer to the castle usually meant a higher social standing.

  Miko noticeably becomes more relaxed in these surroundings. As a city boy, he had been out of his element on the road. But now that he is once more within a city, feels at home. Walking down the street it seems almost as if he can feel the heartbeat of the city, the ebb and flow of its life.

  As they make their way through the crowded and noisy streets, James observes that the majority of the buildings in the outer ring are businesses with attached living areas. Inns and taverns are most apparent closer to the gate although some were still scattered about here and there as they moved deeper int
o Cardri.

  They continue following the main street until James finds what he’s looking for, a two story building with a sign hanging beside the door depicting three stacks of coins sitting on a table. He recognizes the symbol as being the same as the one that hung outside Alexander’s shop in Trendle.

  He goes up to the building and secures the horse to the post and then turns to Miko. “I’ve got some business inside,” he tells him, “you better stay here and keep an eye on our stuff till I’m done.”

  “Sure thing,” he says, taking a seat on the steps.

  James goes up to the door and enters. A bell attached to the door announces his arrival as the door opens. The interior of the shop is remarkably similar to that of Alexander’s in Trendle. There are several guards in the room and they turn their attention to him when he enters. Not seeing James as a threat, they go back to being disinterested, though they remain aware of his actions.

  A man pokes his head out of the window in the far wall and smiles when he sees James entering his establishment. James is startled for the man is the spitting image of Alexander.

  “Good afternoon my good sir,” greets the man. “My name is Thelonius and how may I help you today?”

  Coming to the window, James takes out his letter of account from Alexander and hands it to Thelonius. At the same time he asks, “Are you the brother of Alexander who lives a ways north in Trendle?”

  His face brightening, Thelonius replies, “Why, yes I am. Do you know him?”

  “I did have the pleasure of meeting him on two occasions,” he answers. “When he gave me that letter he asked me to tell you that ‘all is well here’.”

  “Ah, that is kind of you to deliver his message,” Thelonius says as he briefly scans the letter from his brother. “I am assuming that you wish to open an account here?”