The Shrine of Avooblis

by Charles Streams

Grizzard lay down as Dugan and Dagdron exited the alley. The Valoringtons were passing by at the same time.

  “Dagdron!” Earl said excitedly. He approached, desperate to get away from his parents. “We were just heading to the tavern for lunch. You and your dad have to join us.”

  “Wendahl wants us to see his show,” Dagdron said.

  “Please.” Earl dropped his voice to a whisper before his parents got too close. “My mom won’t stop talking about the trial. She’s blaming you for being a bad influence on me.”

  “So you want her to be around me more?”

  “Yes, at least that way she won’t talk about it.”

  Dagdron had to chuckle. Taking that as acceptance, Earl pulled Dagdron’s hood from his head just as his parents reached them.

  “This is Dagdron’s dad, Dugan,” Earl said, beaming.

  Count Valorington’s mouth dropped open and he grabbed Dugan’s hand with both of his, shaking it forcefully. Dugan then shook Earl’s mom’s hand politely, as she gave a disapproving look at the cloaks the father and son wore.

  Dagdron wasn’t sure how Earl and Count Valorington convinced the countess to eat in the tavern like they had the previous year, but the group of five entered the rowdy establishment. All the tables and barstools were taken but, when the bartender saw them, he jumped over the counter and strode to the corner table. He forced the people to stand up and take their unfinished meal with them before signaling to the Valorgintons and Obors to take a seat.

  “I told you,” Earl said. “I know he’s been smiling at us. This is our table.”

  Dagdron was completely shocked. The bartender remained by the table until they were all comfortably seated. In spite of what Earl said, Dagdron didn’t see a smile on his face, but he did speak.

  “Sorry about the wait,” the bartender said. “What will you have?”

  The men asked for the meat pies the tavern was famous for during the Winter Carnival and Countess Valorington ordered a stuffed game hen.

  “Your food will be right over,” the bartender said before loping back to the bar.

  Earl was beaming from across the table as Dagdron tried to figure out what was going on. Countess Valorington was sitting rigidly with her hands in her lap, trying not to touch anything as she watched a raucous group of men surrounding one of their friends who had just swigged down a mug of Goblin’s Bile. Smoke was shooting out his ears as he spun in a circle.

  Count Valorington launched into a friendly conversation with Dugan, asking him all sorts of questions and telling him stories from his life. As they sat there, Dagdron felt a hand rustle his cloak. He pressed the point of his dagger into his dad’s hand, knowing his father was trying to steal the day’s stolen coins to pay for the meal.

  The bartender was back in a jiffy, carefully serving the plates like a real waiter. When Count Valorington offered him a stack of coins, the bartender put his hand up.

  “On the house,” he said, his square face maintaining its usual scowl. “Heroes’ families eat for free during the Winter Carnival.” He pointed aggressively with his thumbs to Earl and Dagdron. “You should be very proud of your sons. I pride myself and my establishment on serving all who arrive here, but sometimes there are certain diners who I can’t even put up with. These boys heroically rid my tavern of that longwinded drunk who was disturbing all the other guests, talking about his false quests. I was considering closing this place down, but thanks to them, the Bodaburg Tavern is thriving more than ever.”

  The bartender strode roughly back to the bar, bumping into chairs, tables, and customers alike. Earl’s face lit up even more and he gave Dagdron a couple of thumbs up from across the table.

  “Hear that, Dugan,” Count Valorington said. “Our sons are heroes!” He plunged his fork into his meat pie and ate heartily.

  Dugan smiled and gave Dagdron a light pat on the shoulder.

  Countess Valorington didn’t comment, but she sat up even straighter to show her noble pride for the rest of the meal.

  As soon as they were finished eating, Earl rushed everyone out of the tavern, anxious himself to see Wendahl’s performance. As they walked, he moved to Dagdron’s side.

  “Do you think we can add that to the quest tree?” Earl asked. “I was thinking about it, and you can fulfill a quest even if someone doesn’t officially give it to you, right? As long as you complete it honorably.”

  “I’m adding it,” Dagdron said.

  “Yes!” Earl said. “My second quest fulfilled.”

  “I still have one more than you.”

  “It’s not a competition,” Earl said. “Keeping track can be motivational, but knowing we made the Bodaburg Tavern a better place is the real reward.”

  Finding Wendahl’s performance station was easy. The largest crowd of the carnival had encircled him, blocking the flow of traffic. Dagdron, unable to see, climbed the post of the nearby bakery, sitting on the roof. His father followed him. Earl and the Valoringtons stayed down below, stretching their necks to see.

  Wendahl was standing in the middle of the circle of people, his magenta robe blowing gently in the breeze. The objects he had acquired from the alleyway were placed around him on the ground. There was a chipped mug, a slimy plate, a rusty spoon, a soiled washcloth, and other items that had obviously been thrown out from the tavern. Dagdron wondered what Wendahl had planned with all the junk.

  The tall enchanter waited until the crowd became restless, letting the tension mount. Then, placing both hands on his hoe, he lifted it horizontally in the air and a blast of magenta light shot skyward. As all eyes looked to the heavens, Wendahl pointed his hoe at the ground. Beams of magenta split from the hoe, shooting to make contact with each of the objects. The enchanter lifted his hoe vertically and then spun it, laying the hoe out flatter with each rotation. As he did so, the magenta beams swirled the items around the circle, scrambling them and making them appear as if they were going to fly at the onlookers. Wendahl smiled as surprised gasps filled the crowd, and the front line of people pushed backward.

  The audience applauded and whooped as Wendahl cartwheeled his hoe in his hands, sending the objects up and down and around.

  Dagdron heard his dad chuckling and looked at his face. He had a few memories of his dad smiling, but most of those were long ago when they would play together in the cave at Cliffmount. As his adolescent years had come, Dagdron rarely remembered his dad having shown any type of emotion. This was the first time in a long time that his father appeared to be enjoying entertainment.

  As Dagdron turned back to the show, a blue blast-bolt spell burst from among the crowd on the right side, aimed directly at him. He succeeded in ducking, but then a fetch spell zoomed toward him from the left side. Dagdron felt the ring of light clutch onto his shoulder and pull him off the edge of the roof.

  Dugan grabbed him just in time, preventing him from being fetched, but more blast-bolts zoomed their way. The crowd, assuming the spells were part of the show, gasped louder, turning in all directions to catch sight of the surprise magic. Wendahl, noticing Dagdron and Dugan, pointed his hoe at the young rogue. This fetch spell hit Dagdron in the chest. Dugan, realizing the spell was Wendahl’s this time, pushed Dagdron off the roof. Dagdron was fetched into the circle, his hood being whipped off his head as Dugan pulled his dagger, jumped off the bakery, and pushed through the crowd in the direction the first fetch spell had come.

  Earl had been enthralled by Wendahl’s magical performance but grasped that Dagdron was in trouble. He drew his sword as he watched Dagdron zoom into the circle and forced his way into the crowd, his parents gasping as they saw him go. He located the purple robed figure, trying to hide amongst the people, but Kas’s eyes met his, and the enchanter shoved in the opposite direction.

  “Adventurer coming through!” Earl yelled, jostling his way after Kas.

  In the meantime, Dagdron, his dagger in hand, was still in the circle dodging the items that were swirling around him. Kas burst into the open area, foll
owed shortly after by Earl. Wendahl, still intent on keeping his performance going, tossed his hoe to his left hand, swinging the tool over his head. With his right hand, he cast blast-bolt spells at Kas. The blue bolts hit the enchanter, changing his course, but Kas remained on his feet and drove back into the crowd with his shoulder. Earl, now in a position to protect his friend, stopped in the circle where the broken mug hit the side of his head. He swooned, trying to stay on his feet, but tripped over his boots and fell to the ground.

  Wendahl, seeing that Earl’s eyes were still open, took time for his grand finale. He tossed his hoe in the air so it flipped end over end, launching magenta sparks all around. The junk was hurled upward as well and, when each object crashed on the ground, Wendahl, both hands on the hoe, lifted it in the air, shooting one last bolt of magenta light into the sky. As the crowd burst with applause, Wendahl quickly pointed to his two surprise assistants, not wanting the spectators to know the routine hadn’t gone exactly as planned.

  Dagdron put his hood back on and scowled at Wendahl, who now had both arms lifted triumphantly as he took in the applause of the crowd. Earl, sitting up dizzily, grinned broadly as he saw the cheering spectators encircling him.

  Chapter 17: Trial of Nobility

  Dagdron and Earl, for the most part, spent the rest of the Winter Carnival with only the excitement of eating, watching performances, and enjoying the other festive activities. Dugan had chased after Rance, but he had escaped. And Kas must have slipped out of the city as well. Headmaster Gwauldron set up a barricade around the city again and placed sentries at the gate to assure they couldn’t get back inside easily.

  This left Earl’s anticipation of the trial with King Loftloomburg as the only detriment to the fun of the carnival. Earl managed to remain calm while talking with Dugan as they walked the streets or focusing his efforts on preventing Dagdron from stealing and pickpocketing. Count and Countess Valorington gave Earl his space, only meeting him for dinner. Lita joined them a couple of days as well. For dinner each night they ate at the tavern. Dagdron thought the bartender might get over his gratefulness but, each time they entered, he cleared out the corner table for them.

  Earl declared the Winter Carnival a rousing success. He was much happier that the snow hadn’t brought an early end this year. Dagdron had enjoyed himself as well, gathering quite a few coins, but he was still disappointed that he hadn’t been able to pickpocket King Loftloomburg this year. Each time they had passed Elloriana and her parents, they were surrounded by too many guards for even Dagdon to sneak past.

  The day after the carnival, Dagdron and Earl went to the Glorious Quest Inn in Bodaburg where Count and Countess Valorington were waiting for them. Earl’s mom gave a disapproving glare to Dagdron, but Earl quickly told her not to rehash the discussion they had had all week about Dagdron’s presence at the trial. Earl insisted on Dagdron coming in case he needed a witness or support in thinking of a way around whatever points were brought against them.

  Mayor Rigo’s house was a luxurious building near the tavern. Dagdron noticed his dad, Wendahl, and Grizzard watching from the alleyway across the street. His father gave a slight nod of his head, but Wendahl gave an obvious gesture with his hoe. Grizzard grinned toothlessly, but then pulled his dagger and jabbed it toward Wendahl.

  The mayor, dressed as usual in his finely tailored clothing, answered the door and let the Valoringtons and Dagdron in. He was surprised to see the rogue, but didn’t comment. Dagdron and Earl had been in the nicely decorated home once before. They had broken in with hopes of discovering what Byron had been meeting about with the mayor and other wealthy inhabitants of Bodaburg. Their search hadn’t uncovered anything.

  King and Queen Loftloomburg and Elloriana were seated on one side of the table, while Byron and King and Queen Fortigroff were on the other. The adults were looking at each other coldly, but Elloriana and Byron were smiling at one another. Earl’s parents sat down, but he and Dagdron remained standing.

  Shortly after, the three Solloughbys came in with Mercer. They didn’t look happy as they took a seat. Mercer glared daggers at Earl and Dagdron. Although Dagdron had seen the signs from his father and Wendahl, Earl nudged him in the side, both knowing the reason Mercer and the Solloughbys were so angry.

  Mayor Rigo was about to start the informal hearing when another knock on the door gave him a questioning expression. He left the room, returning with Headmaster Gwauldron.

  “I thought I would attend,” the headmaster said. “Seeing as this involved the two most important families in the land.”

  Kings Loftloomburg and Fortigroff scoffed, each not considering the other as important.

  “So that we all understand clearly why we have gathered,” Mayor Rigo began, “the actions of Earl Valorington, a warrior student at the Adventurers’ Academy, are being brought into question. He is accused of forging a letter from Byron Fortigroff, in an effort to collect a fifty-thousand gold coin reward being offered during the previous year by Gwydion Gwauldron. If I am not mistaken, the letter was delivered to Mercer the merchant, a resident of Bodaburg. He was led to make business decisions based upon this letter, which turned out to be false. In an effort to rectify the Fortigroff name, Mercer contacted the Solloughbys in Lordavia, explaining the situation to them. Is that correct?”

  Mercer nodded his head.

  “My duty and honor obligated me to bring it before King Loftloomburg,” Earl Solloughby said.

  “Let’s have this letter straightaway. I demand to see it,” King Loftloomburg said, pounding a fist on the table.

  King Fortigroff and Mayor Rigo gave mild protests but all eyes fell on the Solloughbys and Mercer.

  “We do not have it,” Earl Solloughby said.

  As outbursts rang around the table, Mercer raised his voice louder than the rest.

  “We had it!” he yelled. “The letter was stolen from my house last night. By them!” He pointed at Dagdron and Earl, which set off a gasp from Earl’s mom and an angry cry from his father.

  Headmaster Gwauldron, who had been observing quietly, cleared his throat loudly. When the arguing continued, he clapped his hands as he cast a spell, creating a thunderclap around the room, startling everyone into silence.

  “If I may,” Headmaster Gwauldron said. “Mercer, my understanding is that your house is cloaked by magic. Would you mind explaining how a warrior and rogue could have entered your house?”

  “You know very well that I have no way of explaining it,” Mercer said. “All I know is that a lamp and vase were broken in my house and a very valuable pouch disappeared.”

  Earl stiffened at the mention of the broken items. He had been the one who had cracked them the year before, and he and Elloriana had put them back together the best they could. What he hadn’t known, was about the pouch disappearing, so he dared a glance at Dagdron. The rogue made no response.

  “Or are you seeking revenge since these two young adventurers exposed your fraudulent activities with Kemp Balin?” Headmaster Gwauldron shared a concise explanation about how Earl and Dagdron had discovered Kemp and Mercer’s deceitful quest dealings. “Without proof, it may appear you are falsely accusing them.”

  “I must intervene,” Earl Solloughby said, adjusting the tiny glasses on his nose. “As soon as we arrived in Bodaburg, I demanded that Mercer show me the letter. Unfortunately, I saw it with my own eyes. The letter had the Fortigroff seal on it.”

  Before Headmaster Gwauldron or Mercer could add anything, King Fortigroff pounded the table this time.

  “Gwydion, while I respect the points you have made, as Mayor Rigo stated, this is an informal court. We are not here to lay out all evidence before deciding guilt. I highly doubt Mercer would have invented such a story just to attract attention from the highest powers in the land. Perhaps we should ask the boy if he wrote the note or not.”

  Headmaster Gwauldron, a slight annoyance crossing his face, nodded, and everyone in the room turned their eyes toward Earl.

 
“Did you write a letter claiming to be Byron?” Mayor Rigo asked.

  “It was—” Dagdron started, but Earl quickly put his hand over the rogue’s mouth.

  “Yes, I did,” Earl said, his face going pale as his parents were struck with shock. He was about to explain further, when Elloriana pushed back her chair and jumped to her feet.

  “Stop, Earl!” she exclaimed, attracting all eyes to her. “Earl did forge a letter, but he only did so because I commanded him to.”

  “What?” King Loftloomburg exclaimed as Queen Loftloomburg gasped in horror, placing both hands over her chest.

  King Fortigroff’s face narrowed with anger, as his wife’s eyes opened widely. Bryon, who had been smirking at Earl the entire time, was suddenly pale in the face.

  “I’m sorry,” Elloriana said. “I know it was thoughtless of me, but with all the excitement of the arch crystal and reward that was posted during the Winter Carnival last year, I let myself get carried away. I wanted to know what it felt like to be an adventurer, and I had suspicions that Mercer might have been involved in the theft of the arch, so I sent him the note.”

  “Surely she’s lying,” Mercer said. “She doesn’t even know what the note said. It claimed that Byron was the one who had stolen the arch. She wasn’t suspicious of me.”

  “I’m sorry, Byron,” Elloriana said. “I knew you would never do such a thing, but I believed if the letter was worded that way, Mercer would have to respond to you. Since Earl is from Lordavia, I knew he would feel obligated to obey my orders, and I needed a boy to write so the handwriting would be convincing.”

  The room fell silent and all eyes remained fixed on Elloriana.

  “I’ve heard enough,” King Fortigroff said. “I demand reparation to the Fortigroff name.”

  King Loftloomburg stared at his daughter a few moments longer before turning, staunch faced, to address his fellow king. “You will be repaid full fold. We will fill the winter storehouse in Broodavia with fruits, vegetables, and other provisions free of charge.”