Ott's father snorted, "Stubborn? He could teach a mule lessons."
"Daaad! Please do not talk around me like I am not here; it's annoying." I grumped. My head hurt. "Well mister McCray, do you have anything for a tender but stubborn head?"
"Stain, please. I am no mister, although I am on occasion someone's master. I would suggest willow bark and rest. Hmm. Is not your middle name Willow? Ironic is it not young sir? That you'll be making yourself better in many ways?" Stain rambled while sorting through the contents of his waist pack. "Ah!" He exclaimed, "Just the thing. I made this just three days ago. I was anticipating the bottom of a beer and thought I would need this at that point." He pulled a vial made from a bone from his pack.
He pulled the stopper out and handed it to me, "Just drink the whole thing, it's pure willow extract. It's got a kick."
I swallowed the entire contents of the small vial. "Aack! Ugh! That was nasty!" I attempted to clear my mouth. The taste stayed on my tongue.
"Oh, sorry about that. I normally add honey before someone takes it, it taste better that way. But, I've run out of honey and your father's is outside among the discarded items."
My head started to clear. "Father, what happened and who was that man?" Thinking of the club wielder made me realize that he and his club were no longer in the doorway. "Where did he go?" I started to panic, what if he came back.
My father grabbed me as I jumped off my cot again. "Ott, it's ok. He's dead. Lightning struck right behind him and blew him into the cabin. He hit the wall and broke his neck."
I remembered the flash right before the club flew across the room.
"He is dead? Truly? Where did the lightning come from?" Something else suddenly occurred to me, "Dad, where's Pat? Is he ok? Did that man hurt him?" I struggled to go check. My lifelong friend might be hurt and I had lain in bed.
"About time he thinks of me, going in the cabin without looking around. I told him that men had been here, but no. He just runs into the situation without considering what might be going on." Pat grumbled from the ceiling. He was perched on a beam that bore many scratches of talons. He jumped to the table and sat down. "Next time look around before just running in Ott. You could have been killed."
"It is alright now. Ott is fine, if a little shaken. I think he's only going to have some bruises and headaches. In a few days he'll be back to normal." Stain predicted.
The silence grew as no one knew what to say.
Question's nagged at me, "Dad, what happened before I came home. Why was that man here? What did he want? Stain, no offense meant, but where did you come from and why are you here?" The questions seemed to flow out of me like water.
"Rest Ott and I'll do the best to answer your questions. Sleep son. That's the real cure for what's wrong with you." Lightfoot softly said. He pushed me down on the cot and covered me with a blanket. The two men walked out of the cabin.
I looked at Pat. "You ok Pat?"
The dragonet sighed, "I am fine Ott. No one saw me. So no one hurt me. They only hurt the two of you. Trust Stain, he's a good herbman. Go to sleep, I'm not going to go anywhere." Pat closed his eyes and laid his head on his claws. He almost looked like a statue placed in the center of the table. "Close your eyes Ott. That's the way sleep works." A smirk crossed the toothed mouth of my friend.
And I slept.
***
The sun was just setting when I woke up. I looked around and realized that no one else was in the cabin. I could hear voices outside, but there was no one in view. I sat up slowly, hoping that my head did not hurt. A slight dizziness seemed to be the only problem. The medicine Stain had given me seemed to have worked extremely well. Time to find out how well.
The room spun slightly as I stood up. I grabbed the table to keep my balance. The voices outside seemed to get softer. The voices must have woken me up. Might as well find out what they were yakking about. Plus something was cooking and my stomach was letting me know it was past time to give it something.
It took me a couple of minutes to navigate to the door, but at least I had the frame to lean against. An interesting site drew my attention. My father and Stain sitting beside a fire talking while Pat played with the flames. He kept making flame animals and making them dance. A group of flame-geese flew in circles while the men talked. I smiled, Pat only made fire animals when he was upset. He claimed it soothed him. I think it showed how twitchy he was. I could tell Pat was not really paying attention to the flame-animals. Some geese were starting to make a V and trying to migrate. The fire-animal's movements made the light around the group flicker and dance.
I started towards the group. Hearing their voices but not being able to understand the words was getting annoying. My legs shook under me but they kept working. I finally was close enough to make out words.
"Lightfoot, I will consider it. I will let you know my decision when we have reached our destination. I cannot promise more than that my friend. It could be that it would not work. I must make some evaluations before making a decision. Now, since it seems as if young Ott has risen, shall we eat?" Stain looked at me with a smirk on his face. The flame animals all disappeared with flashes and smoke. An obvious sign that Pat had gotten distracted enough to forget being watchful. Whatever they had been discussing had been disturbing to the dragonet.
"Ott, come over here son and sit down. We have dinner almost ready." My father was turning a large spit holding what looked like a hog. The food smelled wonderful and my appetite drove all other considerations from my mind.
I sat down on a chunk of log. "Well, my head does not hurt but I am still getting dizzy. Is that normal Stain?" The smell of pig was causing my mouth to water.
"Normally it takes a couple of days for even the headache to clear. The fact that yours is already gone is a great relief. The dizzy spells should fade after we get you on the outside of some of the hog." Stain smiled and started to slice off strips of meat. He handed a platter to me and turned back to the large hog. "Most likely the dizziness is from lack of food more than from your head. So dig in and let’s see if I am right." He handed meat to my father and tossed a hock to Pat. His platter was full as he sat down.
We ate in companionable silence cut only by the sound of the fire and appreciative sounds from each of us.
"Tomorrow we need to travel to Sunnydale. I have to report the attack and see your aunt. Most of our supplies are destroyed or fouled, so I need to figure out something with that." My father looked at me across the fire. "The winter would be hard out here without what was destroyed. We may run into problems." A small grin seemed to tug at his face. "Of course we could always stay with your aunt. she would love to have you to boss around all winter. I could sell my labor to help cover our expenses. Next spring we could come back and start over."
I groaned. "Aunt Picky, you want to stay with aunt Picky?!" I could not believe my ears, my father did not like my aunt. He barely talked to her when she visited.
"Aunt Picky?" Stain chuckled. "Who would name her that?"
"Me." I stated. "I have called her that since I was little. Her real name is Vicky but she is so picky that the nickname seemed to fit. She just laughs. She is nice but very, very picky."
Lightfoot's smile grew until it shone. "Well Ott, I think a little pickiness would do you a world of good. As for me, I would be out of her reach most times. Selling my labor, remember."
He was laughing at my dread. Last time my aunt came to visit she spent a week teaching me how to weave a basket from feathers. I still had trouble looking at birds without twitching. Who knew that feathers could be so hard to weave with and if I did not get the barbs just right that woman made me redo the entire basket. My only finished basket had held some herbs by the window. I did not know if it had survived.
"Dad is there not anything else that we can do? We could go stay with grandpa. He would let us. You know he would." The thought of getting to spend all winter listening to my grandfathers stories made me excited. He always told the best st
ories and never the same ones.
"Ott, I wish that was possible. But I just cannot travel that far. My leg will not take it." My father seemed genuinely disappointed. He enjoyed grandfather's stories as much as I did. "Sunnydale is the farthest I could walk for a while. As it is, it will take us more than two days to reach." Normally it took us only a day of walking to reach Sunnydale.
"Ok father, if we must, we must. But I refuse to weave any feather baskets. I want all of us to survive the winter. Including me."
Stain laughed, "I think that I will travel with you Lightfoot. At least to Sunnydale. I will see how things go, then decide where else I shall go from there. I must admit, I would love to meet the woman that can make you nervous. She should be very interesting."
Lightfoot looked at Stain and seemed to measure him. "Very well my friend, your company is more than welcome. As for Ott's aunt, interesting is the least of what she is."
As the fire died down Stain shared some of the stories of his travels. He told us about the world that lived beyond the woods. We all bedded down in the cabin as best we could. Pat curled up against my stomach, "Ott, you know I am going with you?" I nodded. I was relieved. The dragonet was my best friend, but I had worried he would want to stay in the forest. "I hope your aunt has given up the idea of making a basket for me. I'm not a cat to curl up in something. I like my space." Pat murmured as he snuggled deeper in my blankets. I smirked. Then, I slept.
***
"Anything else need to be loaded on Tag, Lightfoot?" Stain called out. "I need to balance out his load. His right side is a little off. I do not want him coming up with shell rub. It takes days to buff that out."
"How heavy can it be? I've got some furs that might work." Lightfoot answered.
"Almost anything would work. Tag can carry more than you think." Stain chuckled. "He can carry twice his weight all day with no complaints."
The sound of the two men working outside the cabin had woke me up. They were obviously getting ready for the trip to Sunnydale, but I could not figure out what else they were doing. Time to get up I guess. As I got up Pat grumbled against my stomach. He had provided warmth through the night. I picked him up and set him on the table, he opened one eye and looked at me.
"Why am I on the table, Ott?" Pat asked. He slowly stretched and spread his wings. "I guess it is time to get up. Sounds like Stain and your father are loading that pack-shell I smelled. I better go ask if they will load my stuff too. Otherwise they will probably forget my stash." He jumped off the table and glided out the door. I could hear him calling out to the two men. It sounded like he was making sure that they knew he was up.
I guess it is time for me to get moving. I had some stuff I wanted to take. My father might remember some but not all of my stuff. First I had to figure out what had not been broken and what was still usable. As I looked around I realized that they had already emptied most of the contents of the cabin. My trunk was already gone and it looked like most of dad's stuff was gone. I guess I should see what was outside. There did not seem to be anything in the cabin that I needed to take.
The sun was shining outside but there were definitely clouds in the sky. Good weather for traveling. I got my first look at Stain's pack-shell, Tag. He was larger than most I had seen, about 16 hands long. He was laying there watching Stain and my father load items into sacks and baskets then attaching them to the harness on Tag's shell. Pat sat on top of Tag's shell and gave his opinion of what the two men should do. I noticed that there was a very colorful sack on the ground next to Tag. Pat had packed his stuff evidently.
"Anything I can help with, Dad?" I called. Tag looked my way, as if to make sure I was not a threat. "Did you get all of my stuff packed already? I noticed that there was not much left in the cabin."
"We have most of what we are taking packed, sleepy head. But if you could get your pack together that would be good. You need your staff, bow, arrows, food, and water. You will carry that stuff, but Tag will carry everything else." My father stated as he stretched. "Your pack is over by the door of the cabin, pack all the food you can find in it. Stain and I already packed ours so anything you cannot eat or fit in your pack we need to load on Tag." My father pointed to a pile of items leaning against the cabin's front wall. Most of the items were small containers: jars, baskets, and sacks filled with various foods we had planned on using this winter. "Most of the food got destroyed, that is all that is left. Get to it mister, we are almost done with loading Tag. The food's the last thing we want to load."
I went into the cabin and grabbed all of what my father had mentioned. I realized that everything else that was usable had already been taken outside and loaded on Tag. The only things left was the furniture that had survived the attack. I grabbed my pack and stuffed some clothes into it. I also grabbed my blanket and what little was left in my cubby and put all of in the pack. Plenty of room left for food. I went outside and sorted through what was in the pile. I made three smaller piles; things to eat now, things easy to eat while walking, and things to put on Tag.
"Do not forget that you have to carry my snacks also." Came a voice from above me.
"I know Pat. I made sure to include some jerky and tidbits for you. They are in the yellow sack and green basket. Those can hang on the outside of my pack." I simply stated without looking up. "I plan on making sure I have plenty of food for both of us."
I opened one of the yellow sacks from the 'eat now' pile and pulled out two pieces of jerky. I tossed one straight up knowing that Pat would grab it. I started eating the other one while I loaded my pack. Some containers could tie to the outside of the pack, leaving more room for food inside. I made sure to pack plenty of meat for Pat, but I also included dried fruit and roots for me. Too much meat and I would regret it later. I was able to fit most of the 'eat while walking' pile into the pack. I slowly made my way through the 'eat now' pile with Pat's help. I occasionally tossed food to Stain and my father. Tag looked at me until I tossed him some dried roots which he munched on happily. The empty containers went inside one another as they could, then loaded onto Tag's back towards the top. We might need containers if we found anything as we walked.
"Dad, I am done packing my pack. What do you want me to do with the rest of the food?" I asked as I finished off the last of some berries. The pile was noticeable smaller but there was still a handful that could not fit in my pack.
"Just put them in that brown sack right behind Tag's head." Stain called out from the other side of the pack-shell. "That is for food and cooking items."
The pack-shell looked like he was twice his regular size with everything loaded onto him. I scratched his head as I loaded the food into the bag Stain had pointed out. He seemed to enjoy the attention and closed his eyes in contentment. He seemed to be a fairly good natured pack-shell. I had only seen two before and one had tried to bite my hand when I got too close. The other had been so old it's shell was a dull grey color. Tag seemed to be fairly young.
"Stain, why is his name Tag?" I asked.
"Well my young friend. It is actually a funny story. I shall share it with you as we walk here in a little bit." A smile pulled his face tight. "I think we just might have everything Lightfoot. We need to be moving on before it gets much later. That way we can reach that first campsite you mentioned." Stain grabbed an odd set of items. One was a pack much like mine, if smaller. It rode high on his back. The next item hung from one shoulder and it's strap crossed him down to his hip. It was a woven basket unlike any I had seen. It had a lid that had a hole in it. This was the waist pack I had seen him dig though before. He also grabbed a staff that was as tall as he was. After getting all his stuff settled he looked ready to travel.
My father picked up a small pack and a staff. He also had a bow and quiver over his back. "Ott, you ready to go? We need to get moving."
"Sure dad, I have all my stuff packed and loaded. Pat how are you traveling? It would be easier if I don't have to carry you. Your getting too fat." I teased the dragone
t.
"Ha ha, funny boy. I shall be riding Tag. He is fine with it and even told me that if I scratched his head he would let me sleep occasionally." He proclaimed proudly.
"Wait, he can talk?" I stared at the pack-shell. "No way! I didn't know that!"
"Well, not human speak. But I can speak beast, remember?" Pat snickered. He always enjoyed yanking my tail.
"I wish I could speak beast, it would be really interesting." I sighed. Stain looked at me and smiled.
"So my young friend, shall we begin our journey. Keep your eyes open for any interesting plants. I like to gather as I travel. That means I do not have to stop to gather plants. Makes up for the slow pace I take." He made a motion at Tag and the pack-shell stood up. His legs lifted him and his burden easily. His belly was about two feet off the ground. He moved towards Stain and used his head to bump Stain. Stain chuckled, "Ok my friend, let’s go." He motioned me to join him in front of Tag. "Your father wanted to follow Tag, that way he can fall back and hunt for our supper tonight. You get to keep me company. So, how about the story of Tag's name?"
"Sure Stain. I have never heard of a name like Tag." I consigned myself to walking with Stain. At least he had stories I had never heard.
***
"Well, It was about ten years ago and I was traveling during my journeyman training. I had just discovered that my mule had come up lame and could not go any further that day. I decided to make camp and see what I could do for the poor thing. I made camp beside a stream where a large pool formed. I made sure that the poor mule was comfortable and started to make my dinner. I started to dig out different containers of food when I came across a jar of berry paste that had started to go bad. I could smell them even in the bottom of my pack. I realized that they had gone too bad for me to eat. So I emptied the jar by the pool and rinsed it out. I then made me a bean and sausage soup using some rabbit sausage I had traded for at the last village. I added some spices and it was a good dinner, if a little early by my standards. The mule had started moving around on it's bad foot and I looked at the hoof. A bruise was developing under the frog and so I made a poultice to make the swelling go down. I decided to see if there were any interesting plants around the pool. I found a handful of plants and was making my way back around the pool when I heard the mule making a racket. I figured it was some animal trying to dig through my pack so I ran back as fast as I could.
The Wandering Apprentice Page 2
