by P. G. Thomas
Eric and Logan walked up beside Steve, but before either could say anything, the growl in his voice strongly suggested that they might be playing with fire.
Even though they visited the three companies, the helpful clerks advised that they were no longer booking passages to Oceans End, as the ships were too inconsistent. Also, they informed them that to the best of their knowledge nobody had tried to book any trips there in the last three months.
“So, Riptide,” Steve began, “if I wasn’t an honest man and wanted to sail to Ocean’s End, are there any sailing ships that would take me there.”
The thief lampooned his surprise, “Dishonest sailors, there is no such thing. Why would there be? It would not be because of the expensive docking fees, high taxes on exports, even higher taxes on imports. Why, if there were dishonest sailors, they might even try to bring in prohibited goods, sneaking their cargo by the tax stations.” He shook his head in contempt, “How desperate were these men you’re looking for?”
Eric smiled, “I like this guy.”
Slowly turning, Steve’s gaze expressed his frustration, “Shut up.”
Riptide laced his fingers together, cracked his knuckles, “The feeling has finally come back to them. Look, the more information you give me, the faster I can help reunite you with your lost friends. As other thieves are already watching me, can we find a way to arrive at a happy ending?”
Steve knew the pickpocket was right, “Can I trust you?”
“I am a thief, everybody trusts me. Little children adore me, and girls throw flowers at my feet. Of course, you can depend on me.” Then he turned to Eric, “Does he have a head injury?”
“Not that I know of?”
“Well, you are big enough. Why not give him a hard smack, knocking whatever fell out, back into its place.”
“Pull out that knife that’s in the small of your back,” Steve said, “Then cut me off a lock of your hair, NOW!”
Riptide did as asked, handing the lock of hair to Steve, and then replacing his knife, “Something to remember our time together?”
“Exactly, I have friends that can use this to find you.”
“No, you do not. Heard it before.”
Back in the GCPD, Steve could play his snitches. He knew the ones he could make sing, or the ones that would talk, passing along what they said they would not, and the ones he just had to look at, making them wet themselves. Even though he was in his element, there was a different team at bat. While he wanted to say that, he was looking for ten Darkpaye assassins that sailed from the Bright Coast, that kind of information would be worth selling. It would get him results, just not the ones he was looking for, and he had already asked too many questions. When you ask as many as he had, others would come back, asking different ones. At a dead end, Steve decided to talk to Gayne to see if the thief guild could help them. He looked at Riptide, “I’ll need to check back with my people, seeing what they have to say. Thank you, for your help. We’ll walk back up to where we can get a carriage, and as we do, pick my pockets, so if anybody asks, you can just tell them you were playing us.”
“Even though there may not be any honor among thieves, I appreciate what you are doing for me. Did you have an amount in mind?”
“No, take what you can, but if I feel your hand, I’ll grab it just to make it real.”
“I appreciate the genuine concern for my reputation.”
It was a long walk to where the carriages and drivers waited, and Steve thought that maybe he had scared off the thief, but when he reached into his pocket, all of the gold was gone. “Sons of a bitch,” he turned to Eric and Logan, “He took it all.” They were doing their best not to laugh, as the look on his face was one of amazement and anger. “One of you will have to pay for the coach back. Damn, he was good.”
Logan, biting down on his lip to hold in the laughter, was also wiping away the forming tears, and then he realized his pockets were also empty and went quiet.
After Eric had checked his pockets, he held out his empty hands.
*******
Walking down the street, the smiling thief felt the three fistfuls of gold in his pocket. While Jedimac had assigned him to watch the legends, he had never expected it to be this profitable.
*******
John was outside of Gayne’s office on his knees, laughing so hard that Steve inside could hear him. Ryan was sitting in a chair, doubled over as he tried to hold in his hilarity. Sam and Hope were unable to understand what had happened, but watching Eric and Logan trying to hide their embarrassment by covering their faces also made them laugh.
“Yes, you warned me. Now can I please borrow some gold to pay the carriage driver?”
Sitting too far back, they were unable to hear Gayne.
“Your exact words were pickpockets were notorious at the docks.”
Raising his head, Eric looked over at John and Ryan, “It’s not that funny!”
“Yes, it is,” replied Ryan, wiping away his tears of laughter.
They heard Steve inside, “Yes, I do remember them. Can I go?”
“He’s had a rough day so grow up,” advised Logan.
“Do you want us to lift his spirits?” asked John. “Or should we hire a pickpocket to do that?”
Ryan burst out in laughter.
“I don’t understand,” replied Logan.
Steve, hearing the laughing outside, lost his patience. “Gayne, give me the gold! I’ll find a way to pay you back.” After the door had opened, he stormed out of the office.
Mirtza came walking down the hall, carrying several large bags filled with an assortment of dwarf clothing, as Gayne walked out of his office. He looked to him, “Can you escort these six to—somewhere else? Jedimac is coming over, and I will never be able to explain this.”
Mirtza was unable to make any sense of the conflicting images. While Logan and Eric looked like they had lost a fight, Ryan and John looked like small invisible pigs were licking them into a hysterical fit. Ushering them all down the hall, Sam and Hope followed.
Ten minutes later, when there was a knock at the door, one of the guild enforcers opened it for Jedimac. “Is there something wrong? You look upset?”
Gayne shook his head, “We had an incident here at the school, but it was nothing.”
“We have been unable to discover any more information on the crime here. As for the list, we found four of the individuals, all healthy, but two of the names we are unable to locate. When we checked where they should live, they had vacated their residences without notice. Checking discretely with their families, they advised of receiving messages saying they were taking jobs in Darkpaye, but we are still trying to track down those leads.”
“Thank you, I thought you would have sent somebody over with the update.”
“There was some other business I had to attend to in this area. Did you enjoy your trip?”
Gayne nodded, “It was educational.”
“When I have any other information, I will let you know.”
“Thank you, again, and yes, I will send over this month’s payment tomorrow.”
“I knew you would. You are a good and loyal customer.”
*******
Lauren was on the floor laughing. “Just one more time. It’ll be the last, I promise.”
Eric and Logan stood, heading for the stairs.
When nobody offered to tell the story, Ryan repeated it.
Steve scanned the room, understanding their reactions, as the same thing would happen when a cop lost their gun or badge, and the other officers would continue with the jokes until the whole force knew about it. Then he remembered hearing his gun clattering down the steps at the university, realizing if he returned that it would start all over. However, when he saw a smile on one of the Granite Guardians, it was the last straw. Figuring that they would be laughing long into the night, he knew that John wouldn’t need his bed for a while, so he followed Eric and Logan up the stairs.
*******
&nb
sp; Steve, being uncertain of what to expect, walked down the stairs the next morning, but the sight of John sleeping on the couch made him smile.
Lauren set down her mug of hot bean juice, “I would like to apologize for everybody last night since we may have gone too far. If that’s the only mistake you make, you’re doing better than I did the last time we were here.”
Still unsure if it was a diversion, he accepted the apology. “So what’re we doing today? Before you ask, no, I have no interest in going down to the docks.” When she failed to make a comment, he almost felt safe.
“Gayne has advised where Mother’s closest forest is, but it’s a good twelve hours away, well, by carriage. We’ll use a portal to travel back so that we won’t be gone for two days. Mirtza and Ryan were going to take Sam and Hope for a ride through the city, seeing if they can pick up the scent.” Her voice went quiet, “Even though they followed the trail from the machine to a doorway, there has been so much rain that they lost the scent outside.” She let out a weak smile. “So we know somebody carried them out.” Shaking off the image of her daughters in a stranger’s arm, she perked back up, “The rest of us are going to the forest, so you’re welcome to go with either group.”
Figuring it would be quieter with Ryan, knowing he would focus on the missing triplets, Steve offered to go with him. After the meal, Mirtza headed out to the stable to create the necessary transportation. Ryan, Sam, Hope, and Steve joined him, and they headed towards the school. Gayne entered the stables, doing the same, materializing a large enclosed carriage that would seat ten, having a team of six horses. He let Eric and Logan sit on the front bench, exposed to the elements, directing them from inside the dry carriage. Then Lauren and John joined him in the back, and four Granite Guardians, who refused to wear the new clothing also climbed inside, but before the door closed, four wolves also jumped in. The two remaining Granite Guardians climbed onto the back bumper, but Lauren insisted the remaining wolves stay in the stable. As Gayne rode inside, which was thick with the distinctive odor of wet canine, he looked enviously towards Eric and Logan, who were both dripping wet.
*******
Traveling the streets that paralleled the various routes to the school for three hours, Mirtza heard Sam suddenly call out for him to stop.
Ryan looked over to him, “What is it?”
“It is faint,” replied Sam, turning to his sister, “Do you smell it?”
“Just barely, but it might be easier to track as wolves.”
Ryan scanned both the street and the large empty lot they were beside, and not seeing anybody close by, he agreed. Shimmering, when they went out of focus, the images of two large wolves materialized, but before opening the door, he warned them, “Don’t you two run off.”
As Steve walked to the other side, the first large wolf jumped out of the carriage, pursued quickly by the second. Ryan and Steve followed, observing the surrounding areas to make sure nobody saw the two large carnivores. Sam and Hope had only traveled about a hundred feet into the lot when both sat down at the same spot. Racing over, Ryan spotted a pink disposable diaper, which was obviously not from Calicon. The wolves ran back to the carriage, and by the time Steve and Ryan arrived, they had both changed and dressed. With the school to the south, Ryan directed Mirtza to continue travelling north, but the further they traveled, the more the population increased.
Moving through a congested area, Hope asked Mirtza to stop, calling to her brother. Sliding across the seat, he stuck his head outside, “It is real faint, but it is too crowded. We need to get closer.”
Escorted by Steve and Ryan, the two, in human form, continued to test the air, walking along the busy street, and Mirtza, driving the carriage, shadowed them. Steve noticed that too many in the crowd were staring at them, and Ryan, feeling the same, told the two to go back to the carriage, but then he saw a tiny, pink, knitted baby’s bonnet on a small child’s crude doll. Once inside the carriage, advising them of his observation, he reluctantly asked Mirtza to continue the travels north.
Mirtza could see the conflict in Ryan’s eyes, sensing that he wanted the item to take home to Lauren. Jumping off of the carriage, he found the parents of the child, offered them a few coins, and returned with it. Ryan, expressing his gratitude in tears, held the small wool hat over his heart.
Arriving at the main street beside the Key River, there was a bridge across from them. As Mirtza parked the wagon, the four stepped out into the rain, and Sam pointed to the other side of the street. Ryan, checking to make sure it was safe for them, held their hands as they crossed the street. On the other side, in a pile of windblown garbage, pushed against a bridge abutment, they found a plastic soother.
Hope pointed across the river, “Who lives over there?”
Neither Ryan nor Steve could answer the question.
“Why?” asked Ryan.
“Where the trail started back at the school, there were other scents mixed in with the babies. They weren’t midlander or like you, Uncle Ryan, different, but we have never smelled them before, but the scents coming from the other side of the river are the same.”
The four headed back to the carriage, posing the question to Mirtza.
“Darkpaye immigrants,” was his simple reply.
*******
Eric and Logan steered the large carriage through the town as directed by Gayne. From inside, Lauren and John watched for hours as the destitute rolled by. No matter which side of the carriage they looked out, they saw suffering. Families huddled in alleys, broken people sitting in the rain begging for coins, some even digging through garbage hoping to find what would pass for a meal. After several hours, Lauren could no longer endure the sights, but when she closed her eyes, the images of Sam, Hope, and Brooke formed in her mind, so after a while, she just stared at the carriage floor. To make matters worse, Logan called out to John the small groups of motionless youths sitting in the pouring rain, so overtaken by the ingested stimulants that they were unaware of their surroundings. With the rain and overcast skies, it took fourteen hours before they arrived at the large forest, and even in the fading light, they could see that it was dead. Retrieving the shovels from the top of the carriage, Eric handed them out. John then instructed them to start digging, checking to see if they could find any signs of the mysterious root, warning them not to touch it. As they did, the mounted Granite Guardians established a perimeter to protect against any threats.
Just as John was about to announce that he found one, Eric called out. Then Logan, Lauren, and Gayne did the same. He walked around to examine the other holes, and in each one, he saw different diameters of the yellow roots. While some were an inch thick, in the hole that Gayne had dug, the root measured almost a foot wide. Following instructions from John to move to a different part of the forest, they quickly unearthed more specimens. He wiped the rain out of his eyes, “I have no idea what it is. Let me collect some samples before we leave.” Pulling out a cloth bag from his pocket, with the Leatherman tool, he started to snip off leaves, twigs, bush sprouts, and other assorted plant matter. When he had enough, he turned to the cold, wet group, “I think we passed an eatery of some kind a short distance back. Why don’t we go get a hot drink before heading home?”
Eric pointed overhead to the lightning dancing in the angry sky, “Can I? Nobody’s around?”
Lauren nodded, “Might as well.”
Rolling his shoulder, Eric felt the heavy weight fall into his hands, and with his long reach, extracted the mortal sword from the proud scabbard. Raising it overhead, everybody moved back, “I only wish Steve was here to see this.” Then he looked up at the dark clouds, “Father’s Rage, my old friend Fury granted his permission. To you I call, so once again, let the rage and sword be reunited.” Everybody continued to move back with the storm intensifying above Eric. The first bolt of lightning hurled down from the heavens, finding the sword, causing it to glow when the raw electrical energy entered its new home. Bolt after bolt hammered into the sword, like on
the mountain top so long ago, but this time, the mountain did not crack since Mount Eric held it high. After the last had found its new home, he lowered the sword, watching the electricity dance across the deeply carved runes, and then slid the semi-mortal sword into the scabbard worthy of such greatness.
Returning to the carriage, they went in search of hot liquids to warm their cold bodies. Pulling up in front of the quaint little inn, Logan ran to the door and banged on it. The elf innkeeper walked over, opened the door, and he began to advise that they were about to close down for the night.
Lauren walked up behind him, “Are they still open?”
The elf opened the door so that Lauren could enter, and the others quickly followed as did the six Granite Guardians, which caused the elf to raise an eyebrow. The blood wolves, staying outside, circling the carriage to ensure no horse thieves would practice their guild-sanctioned craft.
The innkeeper was extremely attentive, bringing them large mugs of hot bean juice and tea, including towels so they could dry themselves off. Without asking, he also brought over platters of food for them. The hot liquids quickly warmed their bodies, and as they ate, they questioned John about the forest and root, but he explained that it was too early to hypothesize a theory. When done, they headed to the door as Gayne went to pay their debt, but the innkeeper refused his gold, which he thought unusual. Once outside, he turned the carriage into a gold amulet, retrieved it, and opened a portal back to the house
Several minutes later, an angry elf Earth Guard walked into the inn, which only served those who acknowledged Mother. Pulling off a wet cloak, the captain threw it against the wall where it caught an open hook, and then he headed to the bar. The Earth Guards that followed, dripping wet, frustrated with another failed day, and sat down at their regular table.
The bartender pushed the mugs forward, “Did you see her?”
The wet captain scanned the room, “Who?”
“Earth Mother, she just left in a large carriage.”
Running out the door into the raining night, the street was absent of any carriages. Upon returning, his once dry clothes were dripping rainwater on the floor, and he walked over to the bartender, “It is not my day. Are you sure it was an Earth Mother?”
