by Bill Mays
Just as the procession approached a small patch of trees and brush lining the road, the plants sprang open. A large animal leapt to the path before them. It was a strange and rare creature known as an eabes. Larger than a grizzly bear, it had the body and forepaws of that animal, but its head and hind legs were that of a giant eagle. Malark’s mare was the nearest to the monster’s landing point. The eabes reared up on its hind legs threateningly. The horse cried out in fear and reared up herself dumping the priest and the box-prison to the ground in a heap, along with the saddle and saddlebags. Malark was already shouting to his men to deal with the strange creature as he struggled to regain his footing. He narrowly avoided being trampled by his own frightened mount. If the priest were more familiar with such a creature, he would know that they lived exclusively in heavily forested areas not on the open plains. Malark and his followers had never seen an eabes so everyone scrambled to deal with the wild beast. Unfortunately for Ado, the gremlin had been seated on the prison box and was now being crushed beneath the robed man’s body. Luckily, he held his focus and let his hand search the folds of the white cloth for the all-important key. His arm slipped inside the hidden pouch, but just as he wrapped his fingers around the cool metal treasure, up he went. Ado dangled from the man’s robes by his arm. He knew he was one dead tremlin for sure. He closed his eyes tightly as he tumbled free of the tangling folds of white cloth. He landed hard on the ground, still gripping the key tightly. He ignored the rough fall and maintained his focus. The tremlin had to be careful not to break his concentration for too long, or his distraction would be lost. As it was, the illusionary eabes was standing in the road dumbly. A quick glance around showed that no one noticed the now visible gremlin. All of the commotion kept the fanatics occupied. Not even Malark had spotted him. Ado focused on a routine set of directions for his illusionary beast. He did not have the luxury of watching the scene and making the creature react accordingly. These people would soon realize the monster was nothing more than a trick. Ado scrambled to the prison-box and slipped the key into the lock. The lid popped open and inside laid a very weak fairy.
“Mr. Ado?” She gasped happily.
“Shhh! No time to talk,” Ado whispered. “We are grabbing Tark and Herrin and getting out of here. Turn into a bird or something so they won’t recognize you. I need you to help me guide the others. They’ve been drugged.”
Nivit concentrated hard, but she was too weak from days without nourishment to shape shift. The tiny girl was barely able to stand. There came shouts of confusion from the fanatics. No doubt, they were beginning to question the authenticity of the conjured eabes.
“Why am I plagued by incompetent companions? It figures, I have to do this alone! What more did I expect from a fairy? I should have skipped this part of the plan,” Ado sighed. He peeked over his shoulder and saw the gathering men looking his way. “We’re all going to die!” He hissed.
He did not know what to do now. The fairy was a major hindrance. He could not manage his spell casting and carry the girl. Leaving her behind seemed the easiest solution, but he knew he would never hear the end of it from Tark and Herrin if he did. A sudden thought came to his mind. He grabbed the fairy and, against her protests, shoved her head first inside the magical pouch on his back. He then mumbled another invisibility spell while flapping as fast as he could towards his friends on the cart. The gladiator and the sage were struggling to move very groggily. The commotion helped rouse them. Luckily, the plow horses were holding their ground.
“Get up! Get up, Tark! Start moving you big oaf!” Ado squeaked loudly as he arrived at the cart.
The big man and the old woman were beginning to comply when something terrible happened. Malark noticed the open box. His prized offering had escaped.
“It’s a trick!” The priest shouted to his men. The robed man mumbled a spell and the eagle-bear vanished. “There is an enemy of the order here, a traitorous mage. Secure the prisoners at once!”
The two men closest to the cart began to run for the freed captives, but a flash of multicolored lights sent them both reeling. It also made a mumbling Ado appear with a weak but grinning fairy sprouting from his back.
“I did it!” She cheered. “Mr. Ado, I used the spell you taught me and it worked! Did you see that, they just …”
Ado shook his hips violently and the girl tumbled back inside the pack with a squeal. The tremlin completed his spell and a large shimmering circle appeared hovering in the air to the rear of the cart.
“Get in quickly!” Ado squeaked hysterically at his human companions. “They’re coming!”
The rest of the procession of believers rushed the cart. Their crazed glare spoke volumes. These men and women would do whatever the priest asked of them without question. Tark and Herrin moved so slowly. Neither had a clear sense of what was happening. The gremlin could also hear the distinct chant of spell casting nearing. That is when he realized that the priest, Malark, was no priest at all, but a mage instead. He recognized the incantation and he knew he was in big trouble. Why were Tark and Herrin moving so slowly? Ado hurled himself into Herrin’s back with as much force as he could muster. The woman fell forward off the cart. Her bulk took down the stumbling gladiator and they both toppled into the magical portal disappearing instantly. Ado was lying on a bag of flour when the first of the worshippers, a rough looking woman, reached the cart. It was the place he landed after bouncing off of the sage’s back. The crazed woman dove for him, but he rolled out of the way quickly. Suddenly, there were hands reaching for him everywhere. He sprang into the air, moving for the portal screeching loudly the entire way. Before he made it, Malark completed his spell. Three golden colored arrows of magical energy streaked for him. One of the men chasing him jumped in the way, absorbing the first bolt. It struck the man in the back and he fell to the ground with shouts of pain. The next two bolts struck the fleeing gremlin once in the wing and once in the leg. Ado felt the sizzling burn of the magical assault and then he was spinning and turning through a tunnel of light. The force of the spell knocked him into the portal. The portal was set to close after the tremlin entered so that no one could follow. After a dizzying spin, Ado was dumped to the ground a short distance away behind the ridge he selected as their final destination. His head reeled from the jaunt, but he could still feel the searing pain in his left wing and leg.
“Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! That really hurt!” He squeaked. His wing and leg quickly grew numb and became useless.
They arrived not too far from the sight of their escape. The portal had its limits. Tark and Herrin were barely moving. The disorienting travel was added to their already drugged state. Both humans were vomiting and coughing violently. Nivit crawled from the pouch on Ado’s back weakly to fall to the ground and pass out. Ado hoped the ridge was enough cover and that the fanatics were far enough away not to hear them retching. The gremlin was doing his best to keep both Tark and Herrin seated and quiet until the fanatical caravan moved on. There came several long moments of ranting and raving from the false priest, Malark, but eventually he and his flock took up their journey once again having no solid lead on where the captives had gone. Ado nearly fainted with relief. His plan worked for the most part. They were free, at least, if not in the best of conditions. Fatigue claimed the gremlin. This was the most physically, mentally, and emotionally taxing episode in the tiny man’s life. Despite the pain, nausea, and fear, Ado was happy to be alive. He was so exhausted that he did not even care where he slept. He fell to rest beside the slumped fairy.
* * * * * * * * * *
“Wake up … Wake up, Mr. Ado. Can you hear me?” A tiny voice shouted.
Ado opened his eyes to see Nivit’s face inches from his own. Her big blue-green eyes were filled with trepidation and then joy as he awoke. Her chestnut ponytail bounced about her shoulders, as did her happily bobbing head. A huge smile spread across her heart-shaped face.
“You’re alive!” She cheered. “Look! He’s alive everybody!”
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“Welcome back, little one!” Tark greeted cheerily.
The gladiator and the sage sat nearby. The old woman was busy mixing something that would help clear their systems of whatever Malark had used to drug them. The gremlin could smell it from where he lay and it stank terribly. Tark was content watching the clouds float by forming into many different shapes while he hummed what sounded like a child’s tune. Ado tried to stand, but his leg was still a little sore and refused to support him.
“Ouch!” He squeaked and then fell back to a sitting position.
“Are you going to be alright?” Herrin asked over her shoulder. “Give me a moment and I’ll see if there’s anything I can do about those burns. From what Nivit tells me, you are to be thanked for our rescue. I‘m afraid my memory is a bit hazy.”
“Hurray for our little hero!” Tark cheered loudly. He then put both hands to his head. The yelling only increased his headache.
“I see he’s still an idiot,” Ado grumbled. “How long does that stupid bubble last anyway?”
“It’s different with each person, but not more than a week or so,” Nivit grinned.
“I thought you were on the verge of starvation?” The gremlin looked to the girl curiously. She was as annoyingly full of energy as ever.
“Well, I was, but when you shoved me inside your pack I found the most delicious apple inside. That really hit the spot. Oh, by the way, I ate the apple in your pack.” Nivit grinned at the mage innocently.
“You little thief,” Ado mumbled angrily. “I was saving that! I knew I should have left you in the box.”
It was late in the day and the weary group had been near comatose for hours. No one felt much like moving. Eventually, they began gathering their belongings and preparing to hike through the rolling hills once again.
“Looks like we wander some more,” Herrin sighed.
“Why don’t we catch back up to that caravan?” Tark suggested innocently. “I bet they would let us ride with them. They were nice people.”
“We are not joining them because they wanted to turn you into a sacrifice to their reiver gods you idiot!” Ado squeaked angrily. He did not know how much longer he could stand the big oaf in this state. Even paranoid Tark was better than this.
“Oh yeah,” Tark sighed. “I forgot about that.”
“Wait, that might not be such a bad idea,” Herrin offered.
“What? Have you lost your mind, too?” Ado gasped. “Is that fairy sucking more brains out?” He shot Nivit an angry glare.
“No, Mr. Ado. I told you I can only do that once in a great while. Herrin, I don’t think I want to meet those reivers, though, even if that priest said they would really like to meet me. They scare me, and their worshippers aren’t very nice either. They kept me locked in a dark box.” The tiny girl stared at the old woman sincerely.
“I don’t mean to let them know, but maybe we should follow at a distance. They might just lead us to some sort of settlement.”
“That is way too risky! Have you forgotten about Keilly? Any settlement they find, they’ll probably destroy. I say we head the opposite direction and pretend we never met them.” The gremlin was as serious as she had ever seen him.
“That sounds like fun. I like to pretend!” Nivit cheered.
“Me too,” Tark seconded that notion with a big dumb grin.
“Very well,” Herrin smiled, “I guess I’m out voted. Lead on, Mr. Ado.”
The group did what they could to tend to their lingering injuries and illnesses before moving out. After a quick and light meal, they resumed their march across the seemingly endless rolling plains away from the Order of Four.
* * * * * * * * * *
Tark happened upon a major trail and decided it was their best prospect at finding a settlement. The well-traveled path was also a lot easier to maneuver along, Herrin pointed out. The old woman was not enjoying the trek across the wild terrain. By day they walked, sticking to a steady course. By night, Ado and Herrin studied their respective tomes, while Tark and Nivit taught each other various songs and dances. On the third day out, there came a sudden and surprising turn of events. The gladiator stumbled to the side uncontrollably, shaking his head from side to side. The gladiator nearly fell to the ground. Tark turned to look at the gremlin riding on his shoulder.
“What are you doing here? Why aren’t you flying around and helping the fairy scout? Do you want to wander the countryside forever? Try pulling your own weight for once!” Ado stared at the big man in shock. “Haven’t you found something useful in that spell book you stole yet? You’ve been studying it for days. Don’t tell me, you haven’t actually read through an entire spell,” Tark griped sarcastically.
The tiny mage leapt into the air with a cheer. “He’s back! The loud-mouthed, annoying ogre is back!”
Ado flew high as he mumbled and went invisible. This time he was more than happy to do a little scouting. As ornery and unpredictable as the gladiator was, the gremlin missed him. The sage was nice, but he enjoyed his sarcastic banter with the big man. The verbal battles kept his wits sharp. Also, the presence of two carefree and happy-go-lucky party members was just too much to deal with. One was sickening enough. It was like they had two fairies with them.
As chance would have it, on his first scouting attempt in over a week, Ado spotted the telltale signs of civilization. There were smoke and bright lights on the horizon. He darted back to land on the gladiator’s shoulder with his good news.
The gremlin cracked his knuckles and began to speak with an air of superiority. “You can all thank me later. I have just located our salvation,” he smirked. The gremlin was quite full of himself at the moment.
The gladiator spoke up before Ado could share his findings. “There is a settlement on the horizon, due east, probably a few hours or so from here,” Tark smiled back at him. The big man took a small amount of pleasure in deflating the tremlin’s ego.
Herrin was excited. “Isn’t that wonderful news, Ado?”
Ado’s face went into shock. “How?” He mumbled.
“You can thank Nivit for spotting it,” Tark chuckled. “Fairies really do make great scouts.”
The tiny girl was sitting on the big man’s other shoulder, a grin spread across her cherubic face. “Thank you, Mr. Tark.”
“You’re very welcome, Nivit.” Tark poured it on thick for Ado’s benefit.
“Stupid fairy. Always trying to steal my thunder. I risked my life flying around for nothing …,” the tremlin muttered under his breath.
As they neared the settlement, it became more and more obvious that it was a city of some size. At first Tark was afraid it was another Keilly from all the smoke he could see rising in the distance. The bright lights were strange, too. That fear was quickly dispelled. The closer they got the more clear it became that they had found the city of magic, Talwen.
* * * * * * * * * *
It was a sight unlike anything Tark had ever seen. He was no stranger to the workings of magic, quite the contrary. The gladiator served the house of the Dark Lord Meiron, one of, if not the most powerful of wizards on Pangias. He battled many foes in the arena, human and otherwise, that had magical powers at their disposal. He had been traveling with a tremlin mage for months now. His exposure to the arcane was far beyond most of the normal populace. All of this made him a rather well versed man on the workings of the mystically inclined, but Talwen was beyond anything he could have ever imagined. The entire settlement was covered in a transparent dome of magical force. It was nearly invisible save for the slight shimmer of the sun’s fading rays as they passed through it. Various creatures flew above the delicate wall surrounding the domed city. Winged horses and snakes, flying carpets, and flying people darted about routinely. Colorful flashes of light lit the walls in the form of huge, ten-foot tall torches that burned in shifting colors and sizes. They were the ever-changing fires of Talwen. There was no gate to the intricately decorated twenty-foot wall of the city. That wall was made of a
thin pearl-like substance with so many runes etched into its surface that it looked to be more a design than actual writing. The huge gap where a gate would have gone was framed by two twelve-foot tall statues of men with four arms and three eyes each. The opening left a clear view into the bustling streets of the city. All manner of people from all parts of Pangias and farther milled about the many vendors and shops. There were a fair number of other creatures not human as well, gnomes and elves mostly. Here and there, the big man noticed other humanoids such as goblins, orcs and things he did not even know how to identify. It was strange to see members of naturally hostile races mixing so freely. Instead of the usual goats, chickens or cattle one might see at a market, there were exotic animals like leopards, peacocks, zebras and more things he could not identify. The gladiator stood gazing upon the colorful magic city with his mouth agape. The sights were too diverse to process.
“Impressive, isn’t it?” Herrin chuckled.
“Amazing!” Ado gasped.
“It’s beautiful!” Nivit giggled with glee.
“It’s intimidating if you ask me,” Tark groaned.
“That’s the way I felt my first visit, too,” the old woman smiled and rubbed the big man’s arm comfortingly. “Just don’t let them know it’s your first time here and things will be fine. They love to tease the newcomers.”
