“You slimy—”
“Easy, Sai, this will all make sense soon enough.”
“Watch the horns,” she said.
***
Sai was marched by her captors for what seemed a terribly long time. Down the steps, out to a
courtyard, into a swift and bumpy carriage that almost seemed ready to tumble around corners.
Then out of the carriage, down a long, silent hal way, up more stairs, past a fragrant garden, through another hal fil ed with murmuring voices, and final y into a large chamber that echoed the sound of
her own footsteps. Where am I?
Hatch pulled the cloth from her head and Sai blinked at the light that blasted her eyes.
“Welcome, Sai Delaronza,” boomed a powerful, yet jovial voice.
Sai shielded her eyes, asking, “How do you know my family name?”
“I know lots of things,” said the seated figure before her. His features came into view as her
eyes adjusted to the light. “But for what I do not know: That is why you are here.”
It was King Jasper!
Sai turned to look at Hatch and gave him a mocking look of how could you. She was unsure of
how to address the monarch. She couldn’t curtsey in her thieving garb and she wasn’t about to
kneel, so she just gave a low bow, never taking her eyes off him.
“You have courage, just as Hatch told me. I like that. You’ll need all you can muster for this
mission.”
“Mission? Your Highness? I think Hatch has misinformed you. I’m not one to take part in any
side. I look out for myself. Any prophecy or world-shaking events are far out of my hands.”
He nodded and gave her a smile that clearly hid pain behind it. “Soon enough, everyone wil
need to take a side.”
Sai cocked a curious eyebrow. She then noticed a man standing to her left. He looked fearsome,
with a wild look in his eye and unkempt auburn hair held back by a ring of silver over his brow. A
whip hung ready at his belt, but what real y caught her eye was the flask of potions he wore too. He must be a jack of all trades, she mused.
King Jasper continued, “The forces of evil are marshaling against us and we must meet them head on. In addition to arranging our meeting with you, Hatch has established a mission to find my
daughter, Princess Citrine, who has gone missing searching for Princess Amethyst.”
“How many daughters have you lost?” Sai blurted.
Hatch snarled, and Sai pul ed away from him, but Jasper raised a hand silencing them both. “No
one has lost more sleep over these things than I. What is done is done and we live with the
consequences of both our actions and inaction. Citrine is strong-wil ed and forceful; she is very
opinionated and headstrong. She was convinced that the vampire, Baron Von Drakk, was involved
with Amethyst’s kidnapping. She put together an expedition and went to the Glauerdoom Moor to
find her sister.” Jasper paused a moment to dry his eyes.
Sai looked to Hatch, who simply raised a finger for keeping silent.
King Jasper continued, “Unfortunately, whatever clues led her there were but a trap. Dark
forces lay in wait and ambushed Citrine’s party.”
“What happened?”
“They were all killed,” Jasper said.
“Including your daughter?”
“She alone was captured and taken away.”
“If al were slain and she was taken, how do you know these things?” asked Sai, despite Hatch’s
disapproving frown.
Jasper gestured to the wild-looking warrior. “Von Wilding can answer that.”
The fierce-looking man stepped forward, bowed to the king and addressed everyone present
with a tale that Sai understood, from his expression, had been repeated several times.
“I am Von Wilding, last of my house, and I wil repeat the sorrowful tale. At the crux of the
swamp and the Moor, where the rivers and vines turn dark, we were ambushed. I was scouting
ahead, and that is the only reason my head was not taken along with the rest of Citrine’s warriors.
The vampire knew we were coming, and though I tried to warn the princess to be wary, we were
taken like lambs to the slaughter.” His voice almost cracked at the strain of repeating these horrific events, but he stood a little taller and finished with, “I have sworn to report these things to the king and recover his daughters no matter the peril I might find myself in. I wil not fail a second time.”
“A second time?” asked Sai, sharply.
“I was ready to throw my life away fighting Von Drakk and his fiends to my last breath, but I
knew Citrine wished me to report to her father.”
“How convenient,” said Sai.
Von Wilding’s eyes flared in anger. Did they change colors? She could swear that the hair on the back of his hands became more visible, but the man restrained himself with a deep growl.
“That’s enough Sai,” snapped Hatch. “He doesn’t answer to you, but to the King.”
King Jasper waited a moment for everyone to quiet. “So, it was a trap set for my daughter and
her companions.” He let that linger for Sai. She looked around expectantly for someone else to
speak. King Jasper continued, “I understand you are very skil ed at getting out of traps.”
Sai smirked. “It’s not the same thing at al . I’m a thief, not a tactician.”
“I know,” said King Jasper, almost patronizingly. “This mission will be made with stealth over
raw power. Your skil s for avoiding trouble and traps wil be most valuable for this endeavor. You
wil be responsible for keeping the others safe. Especial y once you are able to get to Von Drakk’s
mansion. They need someone of your talent to avoid the dangers within.”
She looked to Hatch and then Von Wilding. “And what’s in this for me? Why should I risk life
and limb for this lost princess?”
“I know the crimes you have committed, and I have supreme power vested in me to absolve
you of them. I understand you have enough on record to put you in the dungeons for a very long
time.”
“I must do this?” she asked hesitantly.
King Jasper nodded.
“And I wil be wiped clean?”
“Yes, and you wil keep it that way,” Hatch added.
“Accomplish your part of this mission for me, and you wil always have a place in my court for
your . . . unusual skil s. You wil not want for anything and, best of al , you wil be doing the right thing,” said King Jasper, with a wink.
The wink only confused Sai. There were stil some things about royalty and honor she didn’t
understand. “That hasn’t exactly been my way.”
“We can all change when we need too,” King Jasper answered.
“I’l do it, but I won’t be ordered about like a green recruit,” she said, looking at Hatch.
“You’re all the best of the best. You wil succeed. I know it,” King Jasper said, clapping his
hands together. “But Hatch is in charge. This mission was his idea, and I know he has everyone’s
best interests in mind.”
Sai doubted that. “Who suggested me for this anyway?”
“Why, Hatch did of course. He has been tel ing me you are the best thief in the world for months now,” King Jasper said with a wry grin.
That surprised her. Al this time that she knew Hatch was trailing after her, she never imagined
that he held any admiration for her skil s.
“When do we leave?”
“Immediately. Time is of the essence.”
Sai’s brows raised in surprise. “I’ll need to get my things together.”
&nbs
p; “Already done,” answered Hatch.
She glared at Hatch.
“Turlough sold you out on that one too, but don’t be too mad at him. We need to hurry.
Making you listen was the hard part. I couldn’t have you run, which I knew would happen if I came
to your flat.”
“Guess I can’t trust anyone.”
Hatch shook his head. “That’s where you’re wrong. From here on out, you need to trust us with
your life, just as we will you.”
Von Wilding didn’t look any happier about that than she did, but there wasn’t a choice anymore
was there? She knew Hatch, but she would have to keep an eye on this wild man.
Chapter 3: The Shortcut
Dawn was just kissing the horizon when they rode out of the Castle gates. Hatch hurried them
through the city and then north by northeast along the road. Sai pursed her lips, irritated by this. She expected them to turn, but Hatch led them on, racing his stal ion toward a thick stand of woods.
“I don’t mean to already be complaining about your great leadership, Hatch, but isn’t the
Glauerdoom Moor to the southwest, while we are riding in the opposite direction?”
“I’m taking us to a shortcut,” answered Hatch. “Trust me.”
That was not the answer she wanted to hear but had no choice but to urge her horse on ever
faster as the limbs of spidery trees blocked what little sunlight the day had to offer.
When the road wound by a large patch of Ghostfire Berries, Hatch stopped and began
col ecting them in a sack. “Please, help get as many as we can in the next few minutes.”
“What for? They’re terrible,” Von Wilding asked. “I won’t eat them, and I’ve tasted near
everything you can think of that grows, slithers, or crawls within the Moor.” He showed his teeth.
They looked a little sharp and canine.
Sai made a face at that—she was used to good food, things other people prepared in the city;
she wanted no part of this trailside grazing. Since she was sore from riding already, she took the
opportunity to dismount and help gather some of the pale purple berries. When they had a large
sack full, they got back on their horses and continued down the trail.
Sai found it interesting that Hatch didn’t eat any of the berries, nor did he offer her some, but
after Von Wilding’s comment she wasn’t sure she wanted any.
They came to a crossroads and Hatch suddenly dismounted to examine the ground. This was
not a skil Sai had by any stretch. She considered herself a city girl and wondered what the royal
warden could learn by looking at the hard-packed earth.
Von Wilding helped her understand, while also raising new questions. “Trolls.” He said in
disgust after also scanning the ground. “Perhaps we should go another way to your shortcut,” he
suggested.
Hatch shook his head. “We go right down this fork.”
“I hope you know what you are doing,” said Von Wilding. “We’re a long way from friendly
faces.”
“Wrong direction and trolls. What are you up to, warden?” snipped Sai.
“Like I said before, trust me. This is a shortcut.”
Von Wilding joined in the taunt. “Maybe shortcuts mean something else up here. Down in the Moor they mean an actual shortening of the path.”
Hatch frowned but beckoned for them to follow him as he got back on his horse, kicked his
stallion’s flanks, and ventured down the gloomy road.
They followed, though stil dubious and wary of running smack into a troupe of trolls.
Soon the road became little more than a goat path winding through dense forest. The ground
was fil ed with obstacles, roots and fallen logs, and it was difficult to see more than twenty feet
through the mass of thick greenery. Occasionally, Sai could see the grey faces of cliffs crowding
them inside a canyon.
“You owe us an explanation,” said Von Wilding. “This is wasting time.”
“I already told you, this is a shortcut.”
“In the wrong direction,” griped Sai.
Hatch looked at each of them saying, “Sometimes, the best way is not so obvious. I think we
are almost there.”
They rounded a spot where the cliff walls threatened them by forcing a tight single file squeeze
and Von Wilding looked behind them saying. “This is an excel ent place for a trap.”
“It’s not a trap, just a safe place for someone who wants to be left alone,” Hatch said.
Sai noticed a skul with antlers and feathers hanging in a tree right beside her face. “Maybe we
should leave them alone then? I don’t like the look of this either.”
“It’s just a shaman’s fetish. It’s nothing to worry about.”
“What’s that?” she asked.
“A col ection of magical items to extend a shaman’s or magician’s power.”
“Have you been here before?” asked Von Wilding.
“No,” admitted Hatch. “But I was made aware of this place by a trusted source and we need
this shortcut, plus the help of a friend who lives here.”
Von Wilding put his hand on his sword hilt and loosened the blade in its scabbard, ready to
draw if anything unexpected happened. “Again, I don’t think you know the meaning of the word.”
Hatch glared at him but remained silent.
The tree branches scratched and pul ed at their faces and Sai had to lay low to her horse’s mane
to avoid the drooping leaves and needles. The horses themselves were skittish and slowed to a crawl.
“This isn’t worth it. Going the wrong way, slow as snails—”
“Stop your grumbling,” snapped Hatch. “We’re here.” He and his mount disappeared into a curtain of greenery. Von Wilding followed and then Sai urged her skittish horse through.
They were in an open clearing within a dark canyon. The high grey cliffs surrounded them on
every side. A large tent of skins sat at the back of the clearing as wel as a table, one enormous chair, and the flames of a cookfire coiling in its stone ring. Smoke rose into the sky like a snake dancing to a flute. Numerous fetish pieces hung in the trees surrounding the clearing.
The hairs on the back of Sai’s neck stood straight up. First chance I get, I’m riding out of here.
“Who’s there?” rumbled a deep voice like thunder.
“It’s me, Hatch, the royal warden, come to ask for your debt repaid,” he said as he dismounted.
The others did the same, if a little more tentatively.
“Go away. I’ve no coin for you today. Maybe next month,” rumbled the voice.
Sai felt the rumble of that voice in her bones. It made her think the man inside must be a giant.
“No,” said Hatch firmly. “I’m asking you to repay your debt by granting us passage through the
veil and coming with us on our quest.”
A huge green head, topped with a mat of black hair and covered in warts, stuck outside the tent.
Sai gasped in shock. Von Wilding drew his sword. Hatch raised his hands to calm them.
“Hold! This is Wildflower, a friend. Wildflower, these are my companions,” said Hatch. “They
are with me.”
“Friend?” asked Sai in surprise. Von Wilding reciprocated her astonished look. “A troll named
Wildflower?”
Hatch continued, “I need you to take us beyond the veil of your ancestors and transport us to
Glauerdoom Moor. I am sure your skil wil be most useful in our quest.”
The troll stepped outside of its tent and its great bel y shook with laughter. “You always were
funny, Hatch. And I can take your kidding, but
such a thing has never been done with humans
before,” said Wildflower. “It’s not polite to mock one’s sacred trust.”
“I’m not joking,” answered the warden. “Do me this favor and we are square.”
The troll’s face took on a more cantankerous look, and with a frown, Wildflower said, “No. I
don’t owe you that much.”
“You owe me your life!”
Wildflower slammed its broad hands down on the table, nearly smashing the thing to splinters.
“Aye, I do. But that is less than letting puny humans invade the sacred Spirit Walker realm of the
trolls.”
“I’m not a human, I’m a Riftling,” Sai said.
“Like I care,” answered Wildflower, with a shrug. “I cannot do this for any but trolls.”
Hatch was a big man but stood no tal er than Wildflower’s mid-section. Still, he poked a finger
into the troll’s belly. “Listen. I have an important mission from King Jasper. I must find his
daughters, Princess Citrine and, hopefully, Princess Amethyst too. They have been taken.”
Wildflower sucked at its wrinkled lips and asked, “Taken by who?”
“Likely by Von Drakk and others who serve the Dark Consul. I know you don’t want them to
succeed in their endeavors, so I’m asking for your help with the one thing you can do before this
becomes a ful -blown war. We need your help.”
Wildflower scratched a sudden itch on the back of its neck. “I can’t betray my ancestors and
share that sacred knowledge with humans and Riftlings,” it said, pointing an accusing finger at Sai.
“How can we compromise on this?” Hatch asked. “Can you take us through, without sharing
how you do it?”
Wildflower rubbed its face and pondered, like it took a vast amount of effort to consider the
proposition.
“I brought you a great sack of ghost-berries,” offered Hatch.
“Even though I haven’t said yes, yet?”
“I had to be prepared.” He held the sack out to the troll.
“Let me think and ask the ancestors in my tent,” Wildflower said before disappearing into the
tent.
“What are you negotiating here?” asked Von Wilding urgently. “We can’t trust a trol to lead us
through the Fae Wood. I know the way better than anyone.”
The Glauerdoom Moor_ebook Page 2
