Jaikus and Reneeke Join the Guild

by Brian S. Pratt

  “I’ll do that.”

  Turning in, he placed the mesh over him in the event of the moth’s return. He thought of their graceful ballet as he drifted off to sleep.

  The following morning dawned with a drizzling rain. An overcast sky was spitting just enough water to make life miserable. It didn’t soak. There wasn’t enough moisture to do that, it just made traveling…unpleasant.

  “We’ll be there a little after noon,” announced Charka. Taking a rope from his pack, he had everyone tie themselves to it until they were secured in tandem.

  “What’s this for?” asked Reneeke.

  “Sythal doesn’t care much for visitors,” explained their leader. “As we get closer, it will try to make us turn aside. Without the rope, we would be scattered and lost in no time.”

  “Can’t we just follow the person in front of us?” asked Jaikus.

  “It isn’t that simple. You’ll see.” And see, he did.

  Tied between Lady Kate and Reneeke, Jaikus thought the whole idea of the rope to be rather foolish. After all, how hard could it be to follow the person in front of you when they were only a few feet away? But when he felt a tug on the rope behind him, and discovered Reneeke had started wandering away on a tangent, Jaikus began understanding the need for the rope.

  Time and again, Jaikus would be following right behind Lady Kate only to feel the pull of the rope and discover that he, too, had begun to wander off. At the head of the line, Hymal the apothecary led them unerringly.

  “How come he doesn’t get misled?”

  “He never does,” replied Lady Kate. “In all the times we have escorted him to Sythal, he has never once become lost, or been misdirected. It’s either magic or some sort of innate ability he possesses.”

  “Intriguing. I…” but then he felt the pull of the rope and discovered he had been moving off to the right before the rope brought him up short. “Damn!”

  “What’s the problem, Jaik?”

  Jaikus glanced over his shoulder to his friend. “I was in the middle of speaking with Lady Kate when I found myself wandering off.”

  “I know. It’s disorienting. I’ve been brought up short by the rope at least half a dozen times by now.”

  “How much farther is this place?” wondered Jaikus.

  “Not much,” came the reply from the front. “Maybe another league or two.”

  Feeling the rope pull him up short yet again, Jaikus sighed. “It can’t be soon enough.”

  Chapter Six

  The transition from the Swamp into Sythal was rather abrupt. One moment they were trudging through a tree-filled, treacherous bog, and the next had emerged onto dry land. The broken remains of what once had been a rather large edifice loomed before them. Its columns were shattered, walls had long since collapsed leaving only a small section still remaining upright.

  “We have arrived,” announced Charka. “You can untie yourselves.”

  Jaikus looked in awe at the remains of the structure. Others could be seen farther back and to either side. None were intact, most were in similar states of ruination as the one before them.

  “Fascinating,” said Reneeke. Once he had untied himself from the rope, he went forward to the building. “How old is this place?”

  Coming up behind him, Hymal replied, “A thousand years, maybe more. I don’t think anyone knows for sure.”

  “What do you know of it?”

  “Not much more than what you have already learned,” was all the answer he was willing to give.

  Coiling the rope they had used to keep from being separated, Charka said, “We don’t have time to stand around talking. We still have an hour or more to go.”

  “Is that correct?” Jaikus asked Hymal.

  The apothecary nodded. “Where I harvest the reagents is still some distance away.”

  “I take it Sythal is large?” asked Reneeke.

  “Larger than Reakla,” replied Seward. “Much larger.”

  Hymal took the lead as they continued on. Skirting around the ruined edifice, he maintained a route that took them past many of the buildings that had fallen in disrepair. When they came to a stone dome rising ten feet out of the ground, Lady Kate pointed it out to the two Springers. “See, there? Most of Sythal lies beneath our feet.”

  “Is there a way to reach the areas below?” asked Jaikus.

  “Oh yes,” she replied. “Everything above ground is but the tops of the buildings buried beneath. Sythal was a massive city in its day. You may not believe this, but once, we found a building that extended a hundred feet below the ground.”

  “No way,” replied Reneeke. Glancing to one of the taller stone structures still partially intact, he tried to picture it extending to such a distance below. “No building could be built so high. Wouldn’t the weight of the stone cause it to collapse in on itself?”

  “Apparently not,” said Lady Kate.

  “Wow.” Jaikus was impressed. If the city extended that far beneath the surface, assuredly there must be treasures down there just waiting to be discovered. He longed to ask if they could take time to investigate, but after the debacle with the trolls, decided to keep his desires to himself. Jaikus would try to remain satisfied in the knowledge that they would have an opportunity to explore the ancient city once Hymal reached his destination.

  The stone dome was but one of the architectural marvels encountered during their trek through Sythal. Tall spires, other domes equally as impressive, even the top of a pyramid were found rising from the depths. One spire appeared to be solid gold, but Seward threw water on the fire of Jaikus’ excitement by stating the substance was not gold, but instead was composed of another material that quickly disintegrated if removed.

  “I’ve never seen its like anywhere,” he explained. “It’s hard as iron, yet can be scraped off as easily as a man’s beard.”

  “That doesn’t seem possible,” argued Reneeke. “If it was that hard, how could you scrape it off?”

  Seward shrugged, then gestured over to the spire. “See for yourself.”

  “We’re not stopping,” announced Charka.

  Reneeke simply had to check it out, his innate curiosity could not be denied. So while the others continued on, he hurried over. Taking out his knife, he tapped the gold-looking plating with its butt and didn’t so much as make a dent in the material. Then, using the knife’s blade, he tried scraping the gold-like material off and it peeled away like butter.

  “Jaik!” he hollered. “Come look at this.” But by the time Jaikus joined him, the part that he scraped off had already disintegrated into dust.

  “How could it do that?” asked his friend.

  Reneeke shrugged. “I have no idea.”

  “Would you two stay with us?” shouted Charka. Having moved off, they were about to round the remains of another large building that still had two walls more-or-less intact.

  The friends left the spire behind and hurried to catch the others.

  For the rest of the journey, they encountered more of the same: a couple of the gold-like spires, one dome protruding from the ground covered in the stuff, and of course, a myriad of buildings of various sizes, all in advance stages of ruination.

  Upon reaching a wide expanse that was bordered on one side by the tops of three columns coming out of the ground, Charka brought their group to a halt. To either side of the columns, jagged remains of what may have once been walls gave the enclosed area a boxed-in feeling. Two fire-pits were in evidence, indicating this area had previously been used.

  “We shall make camp here for the duration of our stay,” Charka told his two Springers.

  “Lady Kate, you and Master Hymal set up camp while Seward and I take our young Springers out to secure the area.”

  “I didn’t think there would be anything around here to worry about?” queried Jaikus.

  Seward laughed. “Whatever gave you that idea?”

  “Well, I just thought…”

  “You thought wrong,” said Charka. “
While it is true that Sythal’s boundary works to keep out all those who seek to enter, it isn’t foolproof. Once in a while, something gets through.”

  “Just like us,” added Seward.

  “Exactly,” agreed Charka. Then he pointed to the three columns and passed his hand to the left. “Seward and I will sweep this area while you two search to the right.” He eyed Jaikus. “This isn’t a treasure hunt. We will do that on the morrow, and when we do, we do it together.”

  “Yes, sir,” replied Reneeke.

  “Go out a hundred yards,” Charka instructed. “Look for fresh tracks, dung, and anything else which would indicate that we are not alone. Then return.”

  “What if we find something?” asked Reneeke.

  “Use your own judgment. But don’t be heroes. Come get us if you think you two can’t handle it.”

  Seward chuckled. “And considering the way you two handle your swords, I’d say anything larger than a rabbit would warrant calling for help.”

  Reneeke smiled as he knew good-natured kidding when he heard it. Jaikus on the other hand took it personally. “I think we could handle ourselves,” he grumbled to himself.

  “Come on, Jaik,” Reneeke said, slapping his friend on the back. “Our first solo mission.”

  “Yeah. Yippee!” he said with voice dripping in sarcasm.

  They made their sweep and found little to indicate the presence of impending danger. Mid-way through their sweep, they came across a ruined building that was in less a state of collapse than most.

  One wall remained completely intact, two others were partially intact, and the fourth had disintegrated into rubble. Looming in the intact wall was the enticing maw of a doorway.

  When Jaikus moved toward it, Reneeke said, “Charka said to wait until tomorrow.”

  “Ah, come on, Rene,” his friend said. “Just one little peek. Who knows what could be in there?”

  “Jaik, you are already on Charka’s bad side. Don’t make it worse.”

  Pausing at the door, Jaikus glanced back to his friend. It was clear by the expression on his face that he very much wanted to go take a look inside that building. Fortunately, the desire to regain the good grace of Charka won out, and he backed away. Sighing, he left the doorway unexplored.

  “We’ll have our time to poke around tomorrow,” Reneeke assured him.

  “That’s true,” said Jaikus. Then with a last, longing look at the doorway, he rejoined his friend and they completed their sweep of the area. Neither group found any evidence of worrisome creatures lurking about.

  After the evening meal was over and a cheery fire kept the darkness and cool night air at bay, Reneeke mentioned the doorway Jaikus had almost investigated. Lady Kate nodded.

  “I know the one you are talking about,” she explained. “We’ve searched through there a couple of times. During the first, we found a few gems and a small, golden statue of a tree that fetched a few coins. Subsequent explorations failed to turn up anything else of value.”

  “Most of the buildings nearby have been searched repeatedly,” added Charka. “There’s a group of them an hour away to the north that we have yet to tackle. We’ll see what they have to offer in the morning.”

  “Master Hymal, will you require assistance in the gathering of your reagents?” asked Reneeke.

  The apothecary shook his head. “No, but thank you for asking. As long as the area is safe, I will be fine by myself.”

  Seward flashed him a mischievous grin then turned his attention to Reneeke. “He doesn’t want anyone to know where he gets them,” the fighter explained.

  “Not true. It’s just that none of you would wish to forego hunting for treasure to come along with me gathering herbs and other essentials.”

  “What kind do you harvest? I have yet to see anything that I would call out of the ordinary around here.”

  Master Hymal smirked. “You just have to know where to look, boy.”

  “I suppose you’re right,” agreed Reneeke.

  “What sort of treasures do you typically find?” Jaikus asked, bringing the conversation back to his favorite topic: treasure hunting.

  “Oh, the usual assortment one would expect to find in a place like this; scrolls, tomes, coins, gems, perhaps a weapon or two. Once we uncovered a room with seventy-seven ingots of gold. It took us three trips before we managed to haul the last one away.”

  “Any magical items?” asked Reneeke. “Like a ring, wand, or crystal ball?”

  “Rarely, but it does happen. As for crystal balls, I’ve never come across one. Those are just something bards put in their tales to spice up a more mundane world.”

  “We did find a Torc of Might once,” offered Lady Kate. Then she jerked a thumb toward Seward, “But he dropped it in the Swamp.”

  Seward made an annoyed sound and rolled his eyes. “Aren’t you ever going to let that go? It wasn’t my fault!”

  “One would think, that with an item such as that, you would have found a better place to carry it than stuffed in your belt.”

  Reneeke chuckled. “In your belt?”

  “Hey, it was very secure there. Besides, I didn’t want it to get scuffed by the equipment in my pack.”

  “In Seward’s defense,” interjected Charka, “he lost the Torc during a scuffle with a mossback. Its jaws had clamped onto his leg and was beginning to pull him beneath the surface. By the time we ‘persuaded’ the mossback to let go, and dragged Seward from the water, the Torc was gone.”

  Seward lifted the leg of his trousers to reveal the mossback’s bite-mark that ran the length of his calf and even up onto his thigh. “They were so mad with me for losing the Torc, that all they gave me was just enough healing potion to save my life. The scar was left as a reminder.”

  “Needless to say, items of such worth are carried in packs from now on.” Charka gave his man a stern gaze, then chuckled. “We live and learn.” His face turned grim as he added, “Or we die.”

  “There is only one thing about this that I don’t understand,” said Reneeke.

  “What’s that?” asked Seward.

  “If the mossback dragged you into the water, why didn’t those little flesh eaters devour you?”

  “I was fortunate in that, that particular stretch of water didn’t have any. Those little fishes aren’t in every pool of water within the Swamp.”

  “How can you tell?” Jaikus wondered.

  “The only sure way is to throw meat into the water and see if there is a reaction,” explained Lady Kate. “Alive, dead, cooked, it makes no difference to them.”

  “That is correct,” added Charka. “They seem to leave trolls and mossbacks alone for some reason. Perhaps the taste of troll isn’t to their liking.”

  Seward nodded. “And a mossback’s hide is far too tough for their little jaws to tackle. Although I did once see a mossback emerging from the water only to shake off a score of the little critters that had tried.”

  Jaikus was excited over the prospect of treasure hunting. His error in judgment may have cost him his share, but that did little to dampen his enthusiasm for the hunt. Delving into hidden rooms, uncovering lost treasure, perhaps even accessing a secret treasure room filled with a king’s ransom, these scenarios and more played through his mind until Charka announced it was time to turn in.

  Lying awake, listening to the fire crackle while Seward moved about the area during his turn at watch, Jaikus found it hard to fall asleep. He was just too anxious for the morning to come, and the fun begin.

  The sun’s first rays woke him to a cool and dew shrouded world. Sitting up, Jaikus looked to the others and found them still asleep. Lady Kate was up as the last watch had fallen to her. He made his way over to where she stood by the fire.

  “Good morning,” he greeted her.

  Turning, she gave him a smile. “And to you as well.”

  Noticing their number was one less than the night before, he asked, “Where’s Master Hymal?”

  “Gone. He will be back tomor
row morning.”

  “Isn’t going off on his own a little…dangerous?”

  She shook her head. “It’s his way. And besides, he is the patron. If he wants to go alone to collect his reagents, who are we to gainsay him?”

  Jaikus noticed that the apothecary’s horse was missing as well. Turning back to Lady Kate, he asked, “When are we to get going?”

  “Charka likes to sleep late in the morning after our arrival. It’s best not to speak too loudly or you may wake him.”

  Nodding, Jaikus glanced over to where their leader still lay asleep. “Do you think he would mind if I looked around some?”

  “Not if you stay nearby. Should you come across any valuables, be sure to let him know. After all, you are working for him.”

  “Of course,” he replied, though doing such was the last thing he wanted to do. But if it would aid him in regaining Charka’s good grace, and thus be put forward for Guild membership, he would do so.

  Reneeke still slept and Jaikus was loathe to awaken him since his friend had just come off his turn at watch. Pointing over to where he and Reneeke had found the building that remained mostly intact with the enticing, opened doorway, he said, “I’ll be over there.”

  Lady Kate glanced in that direction then turned another smile his way. “Going to investigate the building you mentioned last night?”

  “Yes. I thought I might poke about for a bit.”

  “Very well. Just be careful.” As he was about to depart, she laid a hand on his arm. “I’ll send your friend after you once he awakens.”

  Jaikus nodded and headed off toward the building.

  Oh, man, this was going to be good. Rooting around in an ancient building had long been something he has desired to do. Ever since his days spent on the wooden floorboards of The Creaking Tap (the sole tavern of his hometown, Running Brook) as a lad, listening to itinerant bards weave their tales of daring-do.

  He stepped lively as he headed toward the building. The opened doorway gaped just as tantalizingly as the day before. Giddy with excitement, he hurried to the doorway where he paused a moment to peer within. Not seeing much of interest in the room on the other side, he entered and crossed to the opening in the far wall leading to the room beyond.