Soron looked down at the plate, a large portion of ham and eggs, along with fresh fruit, toast and sausages was certainly not on the normal menu. Soron appreciated Howard’s way of saying thank you.
After eating the large breakfast, Soron headed down towards the docks. He was curious to meet the thieves. He had little experience with such things and wondered what they would look like.
When he arrived at the docks, Soron had no idea what to do, he had no clue what the thieves looked like or when they were supposed to be there. He took up a seat on the side of one of the wharfs and gazed out on the vast expansion of water. The ocean waters were calm, the water like glass. The ships in port sat as if frozen in time.
Soron was interrupted from his gazing when two small hands tugged on his tunic. Soron turned and looked into the eyes of a child. The young boy smiled brightly at Soron, the boys clothes were thrashed and torn, barely better than rags. His skin was dirty but his eyes were big and bright.
“Come on big man, we go now,” said the boy as he pulled on Soron’s tunic.
Soron smiled, and shook his head. “Sorry little one, I am meeting someone and have to stay here.”
“Yes, yes. You are to meet me and my brother. Now let’s go find my brother, he is already watching the bad man,” replied the small child.
Soron looked carefully at the child; surely this was not one of the thieves that Ramon wanted him to meet? But Ramon had said to ignore their appearance, Soron was doubtful but followed anyways. As they walked away from the docks the boy quickly looked around to make sure no ears were in hearing range. “Declan is having breakfast with his father, but my brother heard him mention that he was meeting up with his friends later today. The father seemed not to care, but said don’t get caught. I think the bad man is up to something,” said the boy.
Soron was surprised, the young boy was indeed the thief he was sent to meet. When he thought about it more, it started to make sense. Orphans often became thieves or beggars in cities; a young boy like the one leading him up the street now could go anywhere and follow anyone without being noticed. The poor boys of the street were so common no one would expect it.
The boy stopped at the end of the street, “Wait here I will go find out what is happening.”
Soron watched as the boy disappeared around the corner. Soron leaned against the corner of the building, trying not to look like a man waiting for a thief.
A few minutes passed before the boy returned. “We are in luck boss. The father is gone and one of Declan’s cronies just returned to tell him that the girl is going for a ride outside of the city. Declan told him to gather the men and head out, he would catch them shortly. My brother is following the crony and we will follow Declan. Just stay a ways back and follow me.”
Soron did not know who the girl in question was, but he was already worried for her safety. He looked at the young boy and said “Lead the way.”
The boy made his way through the city, following Declan. Soron made his way through the city following the boy. When they got to the edge of the city Soron could see Declan walking at a fast pace, he was headed north towards the nearby forest. As they followed, a boy dropped out of a nearby tree and joined them.
“Yikes, you are a big one,” said the second boy as he took an appraising look at Soron. “Do you want us to follow them into the forest?”
Soron shook his head. In the forest he would have no problems tracking the men without being seen. “No, you have done your jobs well. Wait here, if the men return, keep an eye on them. Find me at the Dew Drop Inn later if I am not still following them later.” Soron took a couple gold coins out and handed them over to the youths.
The second boy bit the coin, appraising it to make sure it was real. Satisfied that the coin was indeed gold the boy smiled, “you know we already been paid for this job.”
Soron smiled, “that is okay, I am rewarding you for a job well done. Stay here and keep an eye out. I have more coins.”
The first boy shook his head. “No more coins, we know why we are following these jackasses. Mariah is a sweet lady, I would have done the job for free… not that gold doesn’t add a certain value to doing a good dead.” The boy winked and made his coin disappear. Both boys scattered off, leaving Soron to his task.
9
Velaina
VELAINA WAS WALKING her horse through the forest when she came upon a small meadow filled with wild flowers. She stopped, dismounted and was gathering flowers when a small group of men entered the meadow.
Velaina greeted the men with confidence, a smart woman she noted the high quality clothing of the men, and way they were following a deer path through the forest. Nobles out on a hunt she quickly surmised. The men, after seeing her, were probably being courteous. It was a short lived hope. While the men were dressed like nobles Velaina had warning signs going off in her head. She wanted to step back and create some distance herself and the approaching men but could not see a way of doing so without appearing rude. So far the men were acting nice and were friendly as they talked to her about the forest and any signs of deer she may have noticed. One of them, a shifty eyed scarecrow looking fellow, smiled and commented about the fine form of her horse. His eyes however were not fixed on the horse. She grew nervous. When he asked where her companions were, she recognized danger and her fear showed in her eyes. She had read his emotions changing and they were ugly.
While she spoke, one of the men came to look at her horse. Suddenly the man was right beside her with his hands firmly around her horse’s reins. The shifty eyed man who had smiled while talking to her was now smirking. A rather sinister tone to his voice had Velaina preparing to jerk away and flee. ”Relax princess, you are not going anywhere.”
Velaina was getting ready to make a run into the forest when a voice responded from behind her “Why would she be going anywhere? It is a beautiful day and there still many flowers to be picked.”
Velaina had never seen four faces turn so white and fearful so fast before; the man behind her terrified these men. They began backing away, the one who had been holding on to the reins hastily let go to rejoin his companions as they continued to back away from her.
The sinister sounding one now took a contrite and fearful tone as he mumbled, “You’re absolutely right. But picking flowers won’t catch us that deer, so we will be leaving now.” The men almost tripped over each other as they turned and ran off into the forest.
Velaina watched with amazement as the men ran off, finally she turned to see who had inspired such fear. Velaina was looking at an incredibly tall and strong looking stranger with long dark hair and a clean-shaven face.
Besides his great size, Velaina could only wonder what terrified the men so much, the big man did not appear to have a weapon on him. “They sure ran off fast, you must be one dangerous man to scare them so.”
The giant man smiled, “Maybe to scoundrels like them, a lady such as yourself has nothing to fear from me. Those spineless little cretins are sons of noblemen who flaunt the law as if they are above it. There used to be ten of them in their little group of rapist bastards."
Velaina was shocked to hear that she had so narrowly avoided a dreadful outcome, but she kept her calm. This tall dark stranger made her feel safe. She smiled “used to be ten?” she replied.
The big man shrugged his shoulders “things happen.”
She could imagine what things he had done but it explained the fear the men had shown at his arrival. She suspected his arrival was no more a coincidence than the deer hunter accidently finding her in the meadow. This big man had been stalking her stalkers. Before she could even thank him, he gave her a brief farewell telling her she would have no more problems on her journey today and disappeared back into the forest. She regretted that he had not given her his name. He was foreign. He was intriguing. And she suspected he was the sort she had been warned to stay away from.
…
Soron was torn. He had planned to stand back and watch the me
n, then attack while they assaulted the woman. But one look at her and the idea of any of the disgusting pigs laying a finger on her made him cringe. So he had stepped out into the meadow and interrupted them. From the way the men scattered he knew that they had been told about him, that he was the one who had killed their friends. Now the men would be looking for him. Not that it mattered; the young thieves were still at the edge of the city waiting. It would take longer to catch the men again but at least the girl was safe.
The girl…she was like nothing Soron had ever seen before. She had blonde hair, sparkling blue eyes that had an intelligent look. The young woman had poise and spoke well. During the brief moments they had spoken, Soron had fallen hard.
But Declan and his friends had targeted the girl; she was likely still in some danger from the group of slimy young lords. Soron would make sure that the men would never get another chance to be alone with the lovely girl.
Soron headed back to the city, he would meet up with the young thieves, and then he would figure out a new plan to deal with Declan and his friends.
…
When Soron returned to the edge of the city, both boys were gone. This did not concern Soron, he had expected the boys to be following Declan and his cronies. So Soron had some time to kill, he went looking for Ramon. Ramon had a small office in the city where he organized his trade business, the man was hardly ever at the office, but it was the quickest way to get a hold of the man.
As Soron suspected, Ramon was not in the trading company’s office when Soron got there. Soron left a not for Ramon to drop by the Dew Drop Inn when he could, then he headed back to the inn. He would wait for the young thieves to bring him news of the men.
At the Dew Drop Inn Soron was surprised to see Mariah was working again. She had some colored marks on her face where she had been beaten but otherwise looked good.
When he walked through the door Mariah stopped what she was doing and rushed over and gave him a big hug. “Thank you,” she said.
Soron hugged her back, he didn’t think he needed thanking for what he had done, but he was happy to see her again. “I’m just glad you are out and about, your father is a terrible server. Always getting my order wrong and forgetting my drinks, I will be glad to have a proper server again,”
Mariah slapped his arm, “I am sure that he was terrible.” She gave a small fake laugh. It was obvious she still not herself, but she was up and walking around so that was a great sign.
Soron sat in corner, wanting to be away from the rest of the inn’s crowd while he waited for Ramon or the young thieves. He needed to come up with a new plan regarding Declan and his men, but wasn’t sure how to start. And every time he tried to concentrate his mind would wander back to the meadow and the blonde girl. He wondered what her name was, was she from Venecia or some distant land? Blonde hair and blue eyes was rare in Solotine so the odds were good she came from somewhere else, but Soron did not know enough about other lands to have any real idea where.
Ramon entered the inn without Soron even noticing, he was staring off into the distance thinking of the girl in the meadow when Ramon sat down across from him. “I got your note, did you meet my friends?”
Soron looked at Ramon then quickly looked around; no one was within hearing range. “Yes I did, I was rather surprised when I did.”
Ramon laughed, “Both of them look like they are about nine years old, but true is they are only a few years younger than you. Poor nutrition kept them small, careful grooming and some magical influence make them look even younger. Those two are very skilled actors, and excellent spies, are they out watching your friends now.”
“Yes,” said Soron. He then filled Ramon in on the morning’s adventure, from meeting the young thieves to following the men into the woods and then the meeting with the beautiful girl in the meadow.”
Ramon shook his head, “It sounds like you had a good opportunity if you had waited a little longer, oh well. It was good you saved the girl from them, you can figure out how to deal with the men later. Blonde hair, blue eyes, and from the way you blush when you talk about her I am going to go out on a limb and say she is exceptionally pretty as well. Shouldn’t be too hard for me to track down, that is, if you would like me to?”
Soron tried not to jump when Ramon suggested he could find out who the girl was. “Well, you know it might not hurt to find out who she is, just in case Declan tries again.”
Ramon laughed; it was obvious that Soron’s interest in the girl had nothing to do with Declan and revenge. Ramon was glad, Soron deserved someone special. He would do what he could to find out about the mysterious woman for his northern friend.
Mariah came over to the table, “Supper is just about ready. Ramon are you going to stay here and eat? Father cooked a roast tonight, it smells delicious.”
Ramon gave the girl a big smile, “How can I turn down an offer like that?”
Then men had just about finished eating their meals when one of the brothers arrived and sat at the table with them. The boy promptly started scavenging food off of both of the men’s plates. In between bites the boy spoke. “You are in luck big man, Declan and his friends scurried out of the woods like a pack of hyenas and headed to the first pub they found. They are now drunk and mouthing off about your killing their friends, calling it murder.” The youth gobbled up another chunk of beef before continuing, “If you were to head down to the pub right now you would likely hear them saying all sorts of nasty things about you.”
Soron looked over at Ramon, who nodded in agreement with the young thief’s assessment of the situation. Perhaps it was time to go out for a drink. Soron went to finish his meal but found his plate empty.
The boy looked at Soron, “What?”
As Soron and Ramon rose to leave Soron threw a gold coin on the table. “Stay eat a meal on me, be friendly with Mariah, and don’t leave the inn for at least an hour,” said Soron.
The boy nodded, he had been seen with Soron and would not want to be anywhere near them for the next little while, just in case something unexpected happened. He smiled and called for Mariah “Another plate of food and a glass of ale please.” The boy would happily waste an hour eating and drinking.
As they walked Ramon discussed what would likely happen, “If you do call one of them a liar, it is likely they will not respond well, duels start for much less. Do you want to go back to the inn first, get one of your weapons before we enter?”
Soron thought about it, “No it is better if I go in empty handed.”
The pub was loud and busy. As they entered, Ramon nudged Soron. “By the bar, the one in the red shirt is Declan.”
Soron recognized the group from their earlier encounter. The men were talking loudly amongst themselves and the patrons around them. None of them noticed Soron and Ramon and they walked through the crowd up to the bar only a few feet from where they stood.
Declan was speaking as they arrived at the bar. “Yep, poor Cale and Owen and the rest never had a chance, murdered trying to defend that girl. I tell you something needs to be done.”
“That is a lie.” Soron’s voice boomed out in the crowded bar.
The crowd quieted down. Calling a noble a liar was serious business.
Declan furious at the outright accusation turned and yelled, “Who said that?”
Soron stepped away from the bar, “I did. Your friends were caught assaulting a woman, they then attacked me. Multiple witnesses saw the whole thing. Anyone who says otherwise is a liar.”
Declan looked at Soron, he was intimidated by the northerners size, but now that he had a few drinks in him he was less scared. He looked the northerner over, seeing no weapons. He decided it would be a good time to punish the giant stranger for attacking his friends.
Declan snarled, “That’s twice now you have called me a liar. I will not have it.” As Declan spoke his friends began to circle Soron. When Declan gave the signal, all four men pulled out daggers and attacked Soron.
Soron, sober a
nd ready, reacted quickly. When they attacked he turned his body, reaching out and grabbing one of the men. He yanked hard on the man, pulling him in close. As the rest of the men lunged to stab Soron, two of them ended up stabbing their friend instead. Soron pried the dagger out of the mortally wounded man’s hand and shoved the injured man into Declan and the man beside him. The other man was taking a second stab at Soron, this attempt Soron brushed aside with his free hand, knocking the incoming arm to the side while stepping in and driving his dagger into the man’s rib cage. Soron turned to see Declan and his remain accomplice stepping over their dying friend to attack once more, this time the men attacked in unison, slashing and hacking at Soron while moving in closer. Soron parried the blows while moving away. The young nobles had obviously worked together before, but were still poorly trained compared to most of the men Soron had faced over the years. Soron flipped the dagger in his hand and grabbed it by the tip. He threw the weapon into the chest of Declan’s last accomplice, dropping the man. Declan seeing Soron once again unarmed lunged forward. Soron sidestepped the dagger and grabbed Declan by the neck. He slammed the man’s head into the solid wood bar. A sickening snap could be heard as his neck broke.
Soron stood still, waiting to see if anyone else planned on joining the fight. The crowd looked around restlessly, unsure what they thought of the situation. The bartender, while polishing a glass, spoke out. “Four on one, almost a fair fight.”
With that the crowd began to move and talk again. Fight were common, although no one could remember one quiet like the one they had just witnessed. No one felt that Soron was to blame. The men had tried to tarnish his reputation then attacked him. Soron had delivered justice without becoming an outcast in Venecia.
…
The next day Ramon came to see Soron at the inn, he grinned as he delivered the news, “the council met today, your actions were discussed. Declan’s father tried to make a stink, but as the details came out it became impossible for him to defend his son’s actions. You are in no danger from the city guards or from the constables. I would keep out of trouble for a while, just to be safe.”
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