Brothers Haymaker (Haymaker Adventures Book 2)

by Sam Ferguson

  “We could also take a look at Larkyn’s home,” Bull put in. “Moose can get in and out without raising any eyebrows.”

  Friil looked to the large man and shook his head. “I am afraid Larkyn’s home may be more challenging than the council chambers. Whatever you decide to do, please be careful. Elven law will not look upon you with any degree of mercy if you are found trespassing.”

  “Why help us?” Ziegler asked. “There has to be more to this than just some missing elves in order for you to risk exposing yourself like this.”

  Friil exhaled sadly and folded his slender arms across his chest. “My niece, Bedora, was the most recent elf to turn up missing after a short venture into Tanglewood. I have exhausted all honorable resources at my disposal to find her, but to no avail. I ask only this, if you discover Larkyn is involved, treat him with the same respect you would a den of trolls hiding in the Murkle Quags.”

  Ziegler smiled and put his hand out once more. “By my head, I swear if Larkyn is responsible for the disappearances, my blade will judge him.”

  Friil smiled and shook Ziegler’s hand. “Then, there is no time to lose. I will repay you for your room, but you will not be sleeping here tonight. I have a small ship waiting for you in the bay. My men will transport you directly to Telward.”

  “Is there nothing else you can tell us about my father?” Miranda asked as she stepped forward.

  Friil shook his head. “Your father was very determined to uncover the mystery behind the amulet. He said he was close, but he didn’t remain here for very long. We spoke for a few minutes, and then he left. I offered to send him to Telward with one of my ships, as I have offered to you, but he refused. He said he wanted to remain unnoticed.” Friil’s frown deepened and he sighed. “I fear he failed to remain undetected, for that is the last I heard of him.”

  “Thank you,” Ziegler offered.

  “An escort will be waiting outside your door to take you to the ship. Farewell, and may Icadion watch over your travels.” Friil bowed graciously and then exited the room, leaving the door open behind himself.

  “Pack up,” Ziegler instructed as he turned back to his bed. “Looks like we’ll be resting our legs for a bit.”

  *****

  Jonathan sat upon a crate filled with oysters, staring out across the breaking ridges of the blue and white waves coming at the small ship as it rose upward, then lurched down to crash into the water. A happy smile was firmly planted across his face as he wiped the ocean spray from his brow. The crew was busy running to and fro on the deck, working the sails and securing various crates or barrels that came loose in the choppy waters.

  Jason was down below deck with the others. Ruben was across from Jonathan on the starboard side, heaving and retching with nearly every bump the ship made. Jonathan ignored the guilt creeping into the back of his mind whenever he glanced over at Ruben to take the slightest bit of pleasure from the man’s misery. For all Jonathan cared, it served Ruben right for stealing Miranda.

  A sudden ripple in the water nearby pulled Jonathan’s attention back to the water. A strange glimmer of blue and green broke the surface and then disappeared again.

  Jonathan stood from the crate and strained his eyes against the swells to get a better look. A few yards out beyond where the first ripple had appeared there was a sudden flurry of white, followed by blue and green again.

  The boy wondered if it was some sort of shark perhaps, hunting fish in the rough seas.

  He leaned over the rail and looked down. Something flashed beneath the ship. He turned to see if anyone else had noticed it, but a stern drow pulled him back from the rail and pulled him down to the deck.

  “What are you doing?” Jonathan asked.

  “Stay down, lad, there is danger near.”

  “Sharks?” Jonathan asked.

  The drow scoffed and shook his head of red hair. His green eyes flitted out toward the rail and he said, “No, merfolk.”

  A bell rang out clear and frantic over the ship. Jonathan looked up and saw Ruben similarly pulled from the side of the ship by another crew member. Ruben tried to protest, but the drow shoved a bucket under his pale face and pushed him down to the deck.

  “Stations!” the ship’s captain called out as he stepped out from behind the wheel on the upper deck.

  The ship’s captain was a shorter drow with stern, icy blue eyes that seemed to burn like a cold fire against his deep, dark sin. His long silvery hair was held in a neat braid behind his head, and he wore a leather jerkin over a twilled cotton shirt. “Quickly now!”

  The drow holding Jonathan pressed him down again for emphasis. “Stay down,” he said.

  The drow jumped up and ran along the deck. He took a short recurve bow made of steel and then turned to the port side. He fired three arrows as quick as lightning. Jonathan then saw an arrow fly up and strike the drow in the right shoulder.

  The drow grunted and fell backward, dropping his bow.

  Jonathan scurried toward the drow and reached out to grab the arrow, but the drow swatted his hand away.

  “Poison, you fool!” the drow shouted. “Get below deck!”

  Jonathan studied the arrow and only then did he notice that there were sharp barbs and ridges along the entire shaft. The arrow was also void of any fletching, leaving Jonathan to surmise that the bows used by the merfolk must be exceedingly strong to make the missile fly straight without the aid of fletching. As he looked closer still, he noticed that the arrow appeared to have a thin, yet distinct, layer of green slime along the shaft. Surely that was the poison the drow spoke of.

  “I’ll be fine,” the drow said. “Elves are renowned for their constitution.”

  Another arrow sailed by overhead and dug deeply into the wooden rail near the stairs leading up to the captain. Jonathan looked up to see several drow firing into the waters.

  He didn’t wait any longer. He ripped the steel bow from the fallen drow and took the quiver as well.

  “What do you think you are doing?”

  Jonathan wasn’t listening. He turned and leapt onto the oyster crate.

  A flash of white rose up three yards to the right, just a foot away from the ship’s hull.

  Jonathan fired two arrows.

  The water turned red and a merman’s head snapped backward. The now lifeless body floated up and Jonathan saw that from the waist up, the merman was much like a human, with skin and large muscles resembling any man he had seen before. From the waist down, the merman had a thick tail like that of a blue fish, with scaled as large as small eggs. A strange weapon floated away from the dead merman. It was not a bow, as Jonathan had thought, but some sort of sling used to launch small javelins. It looked as though it were made of bone, and it had a groove that perfectly fit the strange “arrows” Jonathan had already seen fired at the ship.

  Another ripple appeared several feet away and Jonathan caught a glimpse of the weapon in action.

  A mermaid broke through the surface, a pair of large shells covering her breasts and right arm holding a weapon identical to the merman’s. She pulled her arm back and then launched forward. The missile flew out from the strange sling and sailed directly for Jonathan.

  The young man leapt out to the side and fired back with an arrow of his own.

  The mermaid’s attack missed by inches, but Jonathan’s arrow struck the mermaid in the chest as she began to descend into the water. She let out a terrible screech that sounded like metal raking across glass and then she violently swam below the surface.

  “Get below, boy!” the captain shouted. “If one of those so much as grazes your arm, the poison will kill you!”

  Jonathan wasn’t listening. He was good with a bow, and he was already set on helping defend the ship.

  He continued to scan the waters and fire at merfolk warriors. He killed four more before the attacks ceased. By that time Ziegler and Bull had tried to come to the deck, but the drow captain convince them to stay down below. Even Ziegler called for Jonathan t
o come to safety, but he saw no reason to do that. He continued to scan the waters long after the last attack, bow in hand and several arrows itching to be loosed from the quiver.

  Only when the other drow put away their bows did Jonathan begin to calm down.

  He turned and smiled to the drow captain, but the elf only arched a brow and shook his head. “By Oda’s bones it is a wonder humans live as long as they do,” he said as he approached Jonathan. “One would think that a life span of less than a century would be enough to scare even the largest human into a peaceful life, but then here you are, barely able to put hair on your chin and ready to die by a merman’s poison arrow.”

  “I never was good at letting others fight battles for me,” Jonathan said as he offered the bow back.

  The captain shook his head. “Keep it. It is yours now.”

  Jonathan smiled wide and looked at the bow. He hadn’t noticed the design of ivy etched into the sides of the limbs before, nor had he seen the runes on the inside. “What do these mean?” Jonathan asked.

  “They are charms, believed to bring luck to the archer who uses the bow,” the captain said. “The top one means ‘swift,’ the middle one means ‘accurate,’ and the bottom rune means ‘luck.’ They are not enchanted bows, but we have a tradition whereby each bow at sea must have three symbols. It is something like naming a sword or other weapon. Take care of it, and it will take care of you.”

  Jonathan bowed his head in thanks.

  Just then, the ship was jarred to the side, lifted from the water and creaking in protest against something striking the bottom of the hull. The captain was the only person able to remain on his feet, and even then it was only because he reached out to catch himself on the mast while the others tumbled across the deck.

  “What in Khullan’s unholy name was that?” Bull snorted.

  Another impact rocked the ship, this time pitching it to portside. An unfortunate drow crewman tumbled over the rail and was caught by a gaping maw filled with a mess of sharp, triangular teeth. The jaws snapped closed, swallowing the drow whole.

  Jonathan’s eyes shot wide and a great dorsal fin as large as the main sail of the ship rose out of the water. Soon afterward a massive tail appeared, swishing right and left as the gargantuan shark swam away.

  “We can’t take another hit like that!” one of the crewmen shouted.

  “Bellis!” the captain shouted. “Bellis we need you now!”

  The doors to the sleeping cabins were thrown open and a tall, slender drow came out with a fierce look in his red eyes and fire in his palm. The flames swirled about in a ball, not burning the mage, but obviously ready to consume any target the mage wished to destroy. His gray robes flared out behind him as he walked to the side of the ship and threw his arms up into the air. The fireball grew as it rose above him and he called out over the waters in his language.

  The massive shark turned in the waters and redirected itself toward the ship.

  Bellis shouted louder and looked as though he was preparing to send the fireball at the shark.

  A ripple appeared next to the ship and up jumped a large mermaid. She lunged out with a great, barbed spear and caught Bellis in the chest. The drow coughed and choked, then he was pulled overboard and into the water.

  Two elves rushed to the side and slew the mermaid with their bows, but the damage was done.

  The ship’s mage was now descending the dark, cold depths of the cold sea below.

  The shark was coming in, lowering in the water just slightly.

  “Icadion be merciful,” the ship’s captain said.

  “Arrows!” another drow shouted.

  Everyone with a bow, including Jonathan, ran to the side of the ship and fired at the beast. The arrows stuck in its skin, but none of them pierced deep enough to draw so much as a drop of blood.

  Jonathan tried to aim for the shark’s eyes, but the great fish dropped just enough below the surface to make its eyes unreachable. Jonathan’s arrows shot into the water, but not with nearly enough force to reach the shark’s eyes.

  “Move!” someone shouted in an authoritative voice.

  Jonathan turned to see Ruben. The seasickness was now gone from his face, replaced by a determination and ferocity Jonathan had not before thought the wizard capable of. Ruben pushed back his sleeves and stepped up onto the oyster crate Jonathan had been using before.

  The man’s hands weaved curious, glowing designs in the air before his face as he chanted a strange phrase over and over.

  “Guard him!” the captain shouted. All of the drow archers peered into the water, ready to strike down any merman who dared attack Ruben.

  Jonathan glanced back to the massive shark. What could little Ruben do that would stop such a monster?

  Ruben then clapped his hands together and shouted, “Lisei, lend to me your light and rescue us from our plight!”

  The glowing symbols in front of Ruben soared high into the sky and turned black amidst the roll of thunder and a great wind from the south. A cloud as black as night formed out of the symbol and then bright silver spots appeared on the cloud’s belly. A strange odor filled the air and Jonathan felt the hairs on his arms and neck rise to stand on end.

  A flash of lightning struck down from the cloud and pummeled the monster. The first bolt was instantly followed by seven more that slammed down, drilling the massive shark in the head and spine. The dull, gray skin on the beast turned red and then charred black under the brutal force of the lightning. A terrible thunder rolled out over the sea, nearly deafening the entire crew as everyone but Ruben clapped their hands to their ears.

  The shark tried to turn away and dive down, but the lightning was relentless.

  Bolt after bolt of the sizzling energy blasted into the shark’s skin. As the great fish dove down, the lightning bored through the water and continued to strike the beast. Then, the shark groaned and turned its belly to the sky, rising to float upon the surface of the water. Three more bursts of lightning zapped into the shark’s underbelly, and then the cloud disappeared.

  The captain let out a cheer as did the rest of the crew.

  “Huzzah for Ruben! Huzzah for Ruben Faelwyn!”

  Even Jonathan had to admit that the feat was impressive. He looked out at the vanquished shark. Watching it bob it the waves he could easily see that one or two more strike from the gargantuan thing would have destroyed the ship. They all would have been eaten after that, assuming none of them were caught by the merfolk Jonathan was sure were waiting in the depths below.

  “What you did was pretty good too,” Jason said as he came up to Jonathan. “You were brave to take the bow and help the others.”

  Jonathan smiled. “It isn’t the same,” he said. “Ruben summoned lightning.”

  Jason nodded. “Yeah, he was better, that’s for sure. I just wasn’t going to rub it in.” Jason tousled Jonathan’s hair a bit and then walked over to congratulate Ruben.

  Ruben was standing in the middle of the group, face reddening with each passing second.

  “I don’t normally respect followers of the demi-gods, but I think I shall make an exception in this case,” the ship’s captain told Ruben. “I am grateful to have a follower of Lisei on this ship. You can return anytime.”

  Ruben shook his head and wrapped his arm around Miranda’s waist. Jonathan’s smile faded then and he sighed. Had he not looked away, he would have seen an exhausted Ruben leaning on Miranda for support, instead of what he thought was an affectionate embrace. Ruben was taken down below deck, and then Jonathan watched from his oyster crate as the seas calmed and the elves stopped the ship in order to administer a farewell of sorts for Bellis and the other drow crew member who had perished in the battle. That night there was a celebration when it was announced that the drow struck by a merman’s arrow would pull through and live, despite the poison.

  From that point on, it was smooth sailing to Telward.

  CHAPTER 7

  Several days later, Jonathan and the
others were saying farewell to the crew and stepping onto the wooden docks at Telward. As Jonathan had expected from his reading of the travel guide, there were several warehouses and open walled markets just off the pier and lining the gently sloping hill that led up to the walled city.

  Elven merchants moved goods back and forth, some loading their ships and others unloading. Jonathan had to keep alert, for the elves carrying the crates and bags of goods cared little if they knocked into someone, as Jason learned the hard way when a pair of longshoremen nearly pushed him into the water as they carried a hefty crate between the two of them. Had it not been for Moose’s long arm, Jason would very likely have taken a salty bath.

  The longshoremen continued on to a nearby ship, not even bothering to look back at Jason.

  Going through the market wasn’t much better either.

  The pleasant aromas of spices and herbs filled the air, but Jonathan’s joy in the sensation was overshadowed by the thick crowds pushing and squeezing their way around the market.

  Jonathan followed Ziegler, with most of the others filing into a line of sorts behind him as they snaked through the pressing throng. Moose, however, moved from stall to stall, purchasing some fruits and other supplies for the group. Jonathan smiled as he heard a couple of elves complain loudly about a large man blowing smoke at them.

  Moose never was patient when the mood to smoke struck him.

  Jonathan was sure the effects of all those cigars were bound to catch up with the man someday. He had seen a few men die from the habit back in Holstead, and if that hadn’t been enough to dissuade him from ever trying it, the idea of his Memaw catching him certainly did. Forget about trolls, elf warriors, or even the giant shark, Jonathan’s Memaw would become the most ferocious creature upon all of Terramyr if she ever caught him doing something so foolish.