by Trevor Darby
Yup. She might not want to admit it, but she did like me.
“Ah, here he is, now,” she said with a look of relief as a sharp rap sounded on the door.
She walked to the front room, gesturing for me to stay put, before returning accompanied by a handsome, pale middle-aged man wearing a white bowtie that contrasted sharply with his jet-black suit and pants. He carried a small, tattered briefcase and shot me a grin.
“Hello, Chace, I’m Twee’s magical items supplier, Seth. It’s so nice to meet you,” he said, reaching out a hand to shake mine. “Twee, do you think there’s any way I could get a cup of tea? I didn't get much sleep last night." He had a deep baritone voice, and he spoke just slowly enough that it seemed odd, the way he enunciated each word.
Twee Twyla stood up, clearly annoyed, and walked towards her kitchen, glancing at me as she left the room.
I reached out and shook his hand, “Nice to meet you, Seth. So, Twee Twyla explained it a little, but can you tell me what exactly the potion is and what it will do for me?” I said. No need for small talk. The faster I could confirm the information I’d been given and sign this contract, so I could get out of here, the sooner I’d see Raven again.
“Eager, aren’t we?” he asked with a wide grin as he rubbed his hands together. “Let’s get right to it, then. Thriple is a very rare elixir made with ground dragon’s scales that, in such a high dosage, allows one to increase their magical energy three-fold for a period of time,” he said calmly, pulling out a vial of silvery liquid from his briefcase. “This vial contains a dosage that should last you a minute or so. Long enough to prevail in a fight against a stronger being, or at least long enough to escape the fight, if that’s what you’re looking for...” He studied me questioningly, and I opened my mouth to correct him and explain what I needed the Thriple for, but then changed my mind. Twee Twyla was right. Something about him felt oily, like one of those guys on those infomercials in the middle of the night who tried to fool you into buying more junk than you needed.
Better to just say as little as possible and get the deal done.
“Can I take a look?” I asked.
He pulled back and shook up the vial before handing it to me with a smile. Flecks of sparkling incandescent flakes swirled through the small vial as I watched. Strange, it was far heavier than I'd expected.
“So why do you want the unicorn tear if you could just take the Thriple instead?” I asked, prying my eyes away from the beautiful liquid.
"The potion increases one's power threefold, but us Warlocks, unlike Hunters such as you, can drink the unicorn tear to increase my power, and then use the Thriple, increasing that amount three-fold as well. Besides,” he added with a shrug, accepting the vial back from me with a nod. “I already have a supply of Thriple. I’m always on the hunt for new and unique collectibles and rarities. Which is where you come in.”
I couldn't be sure if it was my imagination or not, but it felt like his gaze drifted down over the buttons of my shirt.
Instinctively, I folded my arms over my chest, covering my heart.
If I thought about the risks here for a second longer, I’d chicken out. It was now or never.
“Do you have a contract written up?” I blurted as he set the vial on the table between us. He smiled kindly and produced a small scroll from inside his suit. Twee Twyla walked back into the room and handed him a cup of tea before sitting next to me without a word.
“Ah, that was speedy. Thank you, my dear,” he said before turning back to me and laying the scroll on the table and unrolling it. “Just put your finger right here," he pointed to the second of two small circles that sat next to each other at the bottom. "This type of contract is magically binding, and it will enforce exactly what is written on the page."
“Is there any way we can negotiate on what will happen if I don’t get the unicorn tear? I have this bracel- er... ring that I could offer you instead, it contains an incredible amount of magical power.”
“I’m afraid that I can’t budge on that. I've learned over the years that this is the best way to incentivize my clients to fulfill their part of the bargain," he said calmly, in a tone someone might use when talking about the weather. "Just put your thumb there, and we'll be done with it."
“I want to read it first,” I stuttered as Twee Twyla grabbed at my arm and gave me a pointed look.
Seth frowned slightly as I looked down to read the paper. The top section was already signed.
I, Seth, hereby swear that the liquid provided, is, in fact, Thriple and will increase the client's power three-fold for a period of at least one minute. I will give this liquid to the client on loan, which will be considered repaid if the client provides me with a vial of at least one tear from a unicorn.
The second part was mine.
I, Chace Ogden, hereby swear that I will provide the supplier, Seth, with at least one tear from a unicorn. If the supplier doesn't have said vial of unicorn tears by October 1st, 2018, he will receive the source of my magical power, my heart, in lieu of payment, and the debt will then be considered to be repaid in full.
I was about to sign and then paused. "I think you got this date wrong. It says 2018 instead of 2019," I said.
“Oh, silly me. I guess I really am getting old! Good thing you caught that, I'll make the necessary changes," he put his finger over the 2018, and when he pulled it away, it changed to the proper date instead.
“Is it safe to sign it? I’m not going to be held to what it used to say or something?” I said, turning to a frowning Twee Twyla.
“The magic in it will only bind you to what it currently says, it wouldn’t matter even if he used some kind of illusion,” she said as she eyed it over my shoulder with a scowl, “you can sign it.”
I sucked in a breath and put my shaky thumb into the circle and held it there, feeling a pulse of magical energy as it quickly flashed green.
"All set then," he said, flashing a charming grin as he stood, "pleasure doing business with you." He put out his hand. I shook it, doing my best to keep it professional and civil despite his "mistake." He didn't seem like someone whose wrong side I'd want to be on once this was all said and done.
“Good day,” Twee Twyla said tersely as she led him quickly to the door, practically slamming the door behind him.
"That man might be a valuable resource for me, but he gives me the creeps," she said after waiting for him to be out of earshot. "You did well, by the way, boy. It's a good thing you caught that little error he made," she said, putting up air quotes when she said the word "error."
“Do you really think he was trying to fool me?” I asked softly.
"Of course, he was. Even though most people heed my warnings and read closely to catch his little tricks, he always puts something like that in the contract. I think half the time, he just does it to see if he can get away with it. He is a wily trickster.”
"So, what can you tell me about getting a unicorn's tear?" I asked, trying to focus on the immediate future.
“It’ll be a lot easier to make a young one cry than an old one, and, though the adults can be found all over the Magical Realm, they take their foals to graze in the Great Green Meadow. It's as big as a country, but there are thousands of unicorns in it. Once you manage to find one, you’ll have to find a way to make it cry. I’ll look into that in the coming hours and will send you any information I get. Creatures don’t exactly like to share such sensitive information. Don’t try killing one or anything, though! Their tears can only be gathered while they’re alive, as much as the unicorn poachers would love to get their hands on the tears as well as the horn.”
Killing or even hurting a unicorn hadn’t even occurred to me, but I nodded. “Thank you, Twee Twyla,” I said after a pause. “I guess I should get going now, Raven is still out there, waiting.”
“Be careful, boy,” she said, opening the door for me, “and make sure you bring her back with you. I miss that smart-mouthed little girl.”
“Me too. Twyla...Me too.”
Chapter 9
Raven
"Big, daft, evil bag of snot," I muttered under my breath as I furiously swept out the remaining rat droppings and dust from the stone floor of my captor's castle.
I let out a snort at the word. Castle, indeed. It was a crumbling pile of rough stone fashioned into a dwelling of sorts, but with its dank, musty interior and lack of fancy trappings like a toilet or running water, it was much more a dungeon than a palace. Especially given that I was tethered to the place by a long chain.
Still, the boss wanted me to call it a castle, I'd call it a castle.
I set the wicker broom to the side and pressed a gentle finger to the fresh bruise blooming on my cheek.
Never a fan of being bossed around, our journey north had been mostly miserable for me, but things had taken a much darker turn early this morning when we'd finally gotten to Klugg's home. I'd thought I had a good handle on what made him tick—he wasn't exactly a complex creature, after all—but I'd made a critical error. Hungry Klugg was not a troll to be messed with.
We'd skipped breakfast in our rush to get to this dump, and when I'd complained about my feet hurting, he'd responded with a casual backhanded slap that had sent me sprawling.
The blow hurt. Like, my ears were ringing, I saw stars, and even imagined some cartoonish tweety birds flying around me for a few seconds there, kind of hurt. But the knowledge that he'd barely even swept his hand toward me and had almost taken my head clean off was far more painful.
Klugg might be dumb as a box of rocks, but he was as strong as fifty men. If I had any chance of getting away from him on my own, I'd need to get a lot stronger without my amulet or find a way to get my hands on the thing.
Armed with the knowledge that, if I failed, he could kill me on accident with little more than a single punch, I resolved to try and hold my tongue in check until I was free.
"Klugg go out. Girl make sure castle clean, or Klugg get mad!"
His deep voice rang through the halls. I picked up the broom again with a sigh as I heard him leave the front door.
For the next few hours, I put my back into my work, determined to do a good job. Partly for my own safety, but partly for my sanity as well. I'd tripped over massive bones with tidbits of rotting flesh still attached, swept away cobwebs the size and thickness of a mattress, and had my feet get stuck in green goop on the stone floors that I refused to even try to identify. This was my home too—a least for the next short while—and I'd be a lot more comfortable if I weren't surrounded by the ghosts of meals past.
I had just finished disposing of one particularly concerning skull that looked all too human for my taste when the sound of thundering footsteps shook the ground.
"Klugg home! Bring friend meet pet."
Pet?
I curled my lip and wiped the sweat from my brow as I dragged my chains down the long, dark hallway toward the front entrance of the "castle."
"Be nice," I counseled myself softly. "You can do it."
I forced a smile on my face and stepped into the main room of the dwelling, but my short stint in drama class at school hadn't prepared me for what awaited.
Another troll, this one almost as big but twice as gruesome, stood beside him, staring down at me with a twisted expression I could only guess was delight by the way it clapped its hands together and jumped up and down, shaking the very foundation beneath my feet.
"Ah, Klugg, me like pet! So tiny!"
The voice of this troll was pitched slightly higher than Klugg's, and between that, a smear of red lipstick and the dress, I could only assume that this was my captor's girlfriend.
"Girl pet, this Blarg. Klugg soon wife." He eyed me expectantly as I tried to think of the proper response in this situation.
"Um, good day, Blarg," I murmured, bending into some sort of half-curtsy, half-bow like I was being introduced to a queen. "Welcome to Klugg's castle. Can I offer you some..."
I peered behind me into what could loosely be referred to as a kitchen, "bat wings?" I said, swallowing hard and shooting Klugg a glance under my lashes. I had no idea if that was a proper tea-time snack, but unless she had a hankering for cockroaches the size of dinner plates or rotting skulls, that was about the only thing there seemed to be an abundance of to offer her. And Blarg clearly had a healthy appetite.
To my relief, Klugg and his lady friend both broke into fits of roaring laughter.
"Your pet funny!" Blarg bellowed as she bent over to get a closer look at me. "Troll no eat bat wings. Gross! We only eat bat body, silly pet."
I joined in with their laughter just to keep things friendly, but it wasn't easy. As impossible as it seemed, Blarg's breath was even worse than Klugg's. If I'd ever wondered if they had garlic in the Magical Realm, I wondered no more.
They didn't.
Because clearly, Blarg had eaten it all.
"Hey, so why don't I step out, give you guys a little alone time? I can go gather some...critters for you guys to snack on?" I asked, sidling toward the exit, holding my breath. I'd already given up on the idea of escaping without my amulet, especially after Klugg's violent outburst, but I could sure use some fresh air.
To my shock, he nodded. "Pet get Klugg and Blarg some grapples from orchard behind castle," he said.
I didn't know what a grapple was, but I nearly wept with relief as he bent and released me from my shackle. Maybe trying to escape wasn't such a bad idea, after all—
"If pet not back before sun go down, she dead meat. Dragons in north hunt at night. Hurry, pet."
Annnd... suddenly, the chains didn't seem all that bad after all. Call me crazy, but given a choice between being a troll's pet and a dragon's dinner, I'd pick troll pet every time. There was still a silver lining here. I could work on my magic for a little while, and maybe I could also lay some more clues out for Chace as I'd done on our final trek this morning in case he was out there looking for me.
Brain occupied with my new plan, I grabbed the nearly Raven-sized basket Klugg handed me and muscled it out of the "castle." Whistling the tune from Cinderella under my breath, I headed around the massive, stone dwelling and made my way toward the rows of towering trees in the distance. It was a short walk, less than a mile, but I enjoyed every step in spite of my exhaustion. I was free. At least, for a few moments.
Once I reached the fruit trees, I set down my basket and sank to the soft grass with a sigh. Closing my eyes, I let the sun warm my face for a few minutes and tried to get my head together.
Nearly three days had passed since the battle with the Sorcerer of Sumeria. At least, here, in the Magical Realm, nearly three days had passed. I wasn’t sure how many had passed back in the Human Realm, but I had to hope Chace had figured a way to get back to me by now. Heck, he could be out there right now, calling my name as he searched the forest.
I let my eyes drift open and stood. With a wriggle of my fingers, I sent out a spray of magic. Tiny droplets of energy floated around me, drifting in the breeze and clinging to the leaves and blades of grass. It wasn't much and would only linger for a few days, but if Chace saw it or any of the other magical breadcrumbs I'd left as Klugg and I traveled, maybe he'd make the connection.
It was a long shot, and I knew it. Chace might not know it was my magic and he might disregard it even if he did see it. But we had a special connection—as Hunter and Protector, of course. One that gave me hope that Chace would know my trail when he saw it.
And if not?
Well, no harm done. My mental health relied on having some hope because the only thing worse than being a troll's pet was being a troll's pet without any hope of escape...
"Or being plucked out of a grapple orchard by a hungry dragon," I said, glancing at the soon-to-be-setting sun.
I set my sights on the watermelon-sized, purple fruits hanging heavily from the trunk-like tree-branches and rolled up my sleeves.
Time to get my master and his fiancé some grapples. Who knew? Maybe if I
were a good dog and did as I was told, our bond of trust would grow stronger. Deep enough to forgo the chains, even at night, which would allow me to take a stab at getting the amulet. If I could do that, there would be no stopping me.
Because as tough as Klugg might be, he was no match for a healthy Raven with her magical artifact in hand.
Buoyed by the thought, I went to work, thoughts of Chace at the forefront of my mind. He'd be coming soon. I knew it in the deepest part of my heart.
I only hoped that silly boy had done his research and knew about the dragons of the north hunting at night...
"Please be careful, my friend," I whispered into the wind. "I've lost enough of the people I care about. I can't lose you, too."
Chapter 10
Chace
I lifted myself to my feet, feeling only slightly dizzy as I looked around at the lush, green forest surrounding us.
“It worked,” I breathed, letting out a heavy sigh. I’d been feeling really good and strong prior to making the journey this time, but with the extra baggage of Taz and Maps, I’d been nervous. At the very least, I’d expected to feel wiped out by the journey.
It was amazing what a few dozen chocolate bars could do for my stores of magical energy. Or maybe I was just getting stronger now that I’d become more familiar with my true power. Either way, I felt a little fatigued but mostly stoked.
Here we come, Raven.
I released the grip I had on Taz and Maps and gazed around while they recovered and got their bearings.
I could see the cave, which was now basically a pile of rocks with only tiny gaps in between, where I’d last seen Raven just ahead through the trees.
Taz was still groaning and holding his stomach as Maps stood stock-still where she had landed, head turned to her right with mouth agape.
