Regulators Revealed

by Toby Neighbors

  “You’re lookin’ for a stranger in a dark robe, right?” Tabitha whispered in his ear again, her thick lips almost brushing his ear lobe.

  Dex nodded, and took another bite from the food on his plate. He glanced around the room, still not seeing anyone he recognized in the group.

  “Finish that food, and I’ll take you up to the loft,” she said. “Just make a show of giving me a coin.”

  “I’m not looking for that,” Dex said.

  “I thought Marshyls paid for information,” she whispered.

  It took all of Dex’s self-control not to jerk away from her as her hand slid onto his knee and gave a playful squeeze.

  “But he’s watchin’, you can be sure o’that,” she continued.

  “I can’t see him,” Dex said.

  “He’s in the shadows. Don’t do anything to give it away. We don’t want a fight here. We’re simple folk and we don’t have the means to rebuild if you destroy the hall with your fight.”

  Dex nodded again, eating faster. He understood what the woman was telling him. The best thing he could do at that moment was to go along with her deception. If his father was watching, he might believe that Dex was being lured up to the loft and let his guard down. He might even make a mistake that Dex could take advantage of. Once they were in the shadows themselves, Dex would be in a better position to watch for his father.

  As soon as he had finished his dinner and drank down the mug of ale, Dex fished in his money pouch and handed Tabitha a small silver coin. She took his arm and led him toward the ladder that led up to the loft. A few of the locals looked at Dex with a glint in their eye, some even nodded encouragingly. Tabitha went up the ladder first, her body swaying seductively with each rung she climbed. Dex took one last look around the gloomy room, then followed her up.

  She was waiting at the top of the ladder. There was just enough light that the couple could be seen from below. Tabitha grabbed Dex by his cloak and pulled him into her. She kissed him before he knew what was happening, her thick lips were soft and wet against his. Dex was so surprised he didn’t move. Tabitha stepped back, grinning, and then pulled him into the darkness. Below, the locals began to whistle and cheer, some making lewd comments and jokes.

  “What did you do that for?” Dex whispered furiously.

  “Had to sell it to the locals,” she said, pulling him down onto a blanket that was spread across the rough wooden planks that made up the loft.

  “I can’t see much more from here,” Dex said.

  “Patience lad, he’ll show ’imself soon enough. That coin’s good for comfort if you’re interested. Take off that armor and I’ll rub down those broad shoulders.”

  “I told you I wasn’t interested,” Dex said, trying to keep his voice down. “The man I’m hunting is extremely dangerous.”

  “All the more reason to make him believe you’re otherwise occupied,” she whispered into his ear.

  “No, I mean it,” Dex said.

  “Suit yourself, lovey, your loss.”

  Dex heard the edge in the woman’s voice. He had offended her, but she didn’t understand the danger they were in. She would get over his rejection. He would let her keep the coin and her virtue, if she had any left to keep.

  After a few minutes upstairs, Dex slithered forward on his stomach, staying in the shadows but angling for a better view downstairs. He knew it was possible that his father could stay under the loft without being seen, but he couldn’t get to the door to leave. The hall was built in the old style and was essentially one big room, with only one way in or out. If his father tried to flee, Dex would see it. In fact, he guessed he could hit his father with the elvish ending curse before he got outside, and then all he would need to do is transport his prisoner back to the Marshyl compound.

  An hour passed, and then another. Tabitha was snoring on the blanket behind him. The air in the loft was warmer than down on the hall’s main floor. The heat rising from the pit spread along the thatched roof and warmed the space where several of the locals made their beds for the night. Dex watched patiently, shaking off the fatigue he felt. An hour later several locals left the building, returning to their homes, but his father wasn’t among them. No one in dark robes came into view, but Dex refused to give up. The fire continued to burn in the pit long after the last patron had turned in for the night. The lamps were extinguished, which made the gloomy hall even more difficult to see in, but Dex could still make out the doorway. He was certain he would see if anyone tried to leave.

  His eyelids grew heavier with each passing hour. He had to get to his feet and move around without making noise that might alert his father. More than once he worried that perhaps he had been wrong, and that his father hadn’t come to the little village after all. Tabitha had said he was there, but perhaps all she wanted was his money. Dex shook his head and did everything he could to stay awake and alert.

  At one point he felt himself swaying, his mind in a daze, before he shook himself awake again. When a rooster crowed outside the hall, Dex knew he had to do something. He moved to the edge of the loft and stepped out into thin air. The intrinsic magic from the opal ring was a levitating spell, and with the platinum it was more than strong enough to catch Dex and lower him slowly to the ground. He grabbed the nearest lamp and cast a simple kindling spell.

  “Flamba,” he said quietly, focusing on the lamp’s wick.

  The fire appeared and took hold, burning the oil that soaked up from the reservoir below. He crossed the entire length of the hall, looking into every corner and even under the benches. There was no sign of his father. He used the levitating spell to lift himself back up into the loft. He saw nearly a dozen locals, including Tabitha, who gazed up at him as if he were being rude to shine a light on her, but there was no sign of his father.

  “Where is he?” Dex demanded.

  “Who, lovey?” Tabitha said.

  “The man in the robe. The one you told me was hiding in the shadows?”

  “I don’t know. ’E musta slipped away when you wasn’t lookin’.”

  Dex wanted to shout curses at the people. They had no idea what they had done. He jumped from the loft, drawing his sword and dashing outside. Dawn was just breaking and the light was pale, but enough to see clearly around the village. There was no movement. Dex ran across the frozen ground, his boots crunching on the thin layer of ice that had formed on the damp ground overnight. He looked in the stable, but only Titan remained. The other horse, and presumably his father, was gone.

  Chapter 9

  “Wait,” said the fat man named Aines, “don’t leave yet. At least have some breakfast.”

  “I don’t have time to eat,” Dex said. “You tricked me.”

  “Had to... sorry. The man you’re after threatened to curse us if we didn’t help him slip away.”

  “And when was that?” Dex asked.

  “Close to midnight. He shed that cloak of his, and put on Olyk’s hat. He left with two other men and you just didn’t notice.”

  “Then he’s half a day’s ride ahead of me,” Dex said, wondering how long he would have to ride to catch up to his father.

  “And heading north into the Greeg Lands. He might be dead already. Best to let him go now.”

  “I can’t do that,” Dex said, trying to keep his temper in check. “He’s killed more Marshyl Knights than any band of outlaw wizards in the last hundred years.”

  “The Greeg will do for him, you can count on that.”

  “No, I can’t. I’ll find him. I have to.”

  “Well, you can’t go into that wasteland without extra water and rations. Just give us a few minutes and you can be on your way. We didn’t want to trick you, but we didn’t have a choice.”

  “There’s always a choice,” Dex said angrily, but he knew the man was right. He needed more water and more food if he was going to survive in the arid wilderness.

  Tabitha brought a large water skin just as Dex was leading Titan out of the little stable. The su
n had risen higher and the day was brighter. The woman looked much older in the sunlight, easily old enough to be Dex’s mother. He felt sorry for her, but also glad he hadn’t given in to her attempts to seduce him.

  “Take this, you’ll need it, lovey,” she told him.

  “Thank you,” Dex said.

  “And this,” Aines said, handing over a small sack of salted pork and hard crusted bread.

  “It’s not much, but it will do in a pinch,” the man said.

  “I’m thankful for your help,” Dex said, forcing himself to show at least a little appreciation.

  “Don’t die out there, that’s all the thanks we need,” Tabitha said.

  Dex nodded, and gave Titan a nudge. The big stallion jumped forward, and Dex left the last settlement he would likely see before reaching Torgyl’s Wall, the ancient structure that separated the Greeg Lands from the northern kingdoms.

  A cold wind blew into Dex’s face as he traveled. There was nothing to see but rocky brown soil in every direction. If the snow had reached the Greeg Lands, it had melted and been absorbed by the thirsty earth, which was dusty and parched, but it was no warmer than the snow-covered fields of Northia.

  There was no road, not even a dirt path. If his father’s horse left hoof prints, the wind erased them. Dex had no choice but to keep moving north, hoping he might spot the elusive executioner who had plagued the Marshyl Guild. There were hills, ridges, great sand dunes, and rugged arroyos. There were plenty of places where a man might hide. Dex hoped that his father, being on horseback, would have fewer options for subterfuge, but he couldn’t be certain. The only hope Dex had of finding his father quickly was the fact that the Executioner hadn’t deviated from his course since attacking the Marshyl compound. He had moved steadfastly north, and Dex continued in that same direction.

  When night fell, Dex led Titan on foot. The terrain was rough, and riding in the dark was dangerous. He didn’t want to light a torch, which would give light to their path but ruin Dex’s vision beyond the tiny circle of light from the fire. So he walked, trudging through the darkness, trying to see what lay ahead while keeping an eye out for his father.

  Dex was tired. He had stayed awake all through the night before, but he pushed himself until well after midnight hoping to make up the distance between himself and his father. He wrapped his cloak around his body and slept on the rocky ground, too tired to care if he was uncomfortable or even cold.

  At dawn he forced himself to get up and get moving. There was no foliage, so Dex fed Titan from the bag of oats the big stallion carried and shared his water. He rode for an hour, then walked for an hour. When he climbed back into the saddle, he saw something on the horizon. It wasn’t much more than a dark smudge, but it was the first hopeful sign he’d come across.

  The wind wasn’t as strong the second day, but Dex could feel that his lips were chapped and his cheeks were wind burned. The dragon armor helmet kept the sun off his head, but not out of his eyes and he wished his cloak had a hood.

  “I think I see something,” Dex said to Titan. “Can we push the pace, big fella?”

  Titan neighed and picked up his pace to a canter. Soon, Dex saw hoof prints ahead of them, and the smudge in the distance turned out to be a small dust cloud kicked up by a horse. There was no way to hide his pursuit, but Titan was strong and kept up the fast pace for nearly an hour, closing the distance significantly. By midafternoon Dex was in shouting distance of the man on horseback in front of him. He drew his sword and aimed it at the rider. A golden beam of light shot out from the leaf-shaped blade, racing across the distance.

  To Dex’s surprise the rider jumped from the saddle just before the golden streak of light shot past him. He turned and drew a wand as Dex kicked Titan into a gallop, turning the horse at an angle so that his dragon shield was between them and the wizard. Red light shot toward them, but Dex easily deflected the spell with his shield. Then, fearing the wizard might target Titan, Dex slipped off the saddle and let the horse run free.

  “Surrender!” Dex ordered. “There’s nowhere left to run.”

  “Who says I’m running,” the man said.

  Dex felt a lump form in his throat. He recognized the voice and felt a tremor pass through his body. It was so familiar, the sound of reassurance he had longed for as a child. The sound of his father’s voice that he never expected to hear again.

  “I know who you are, Maslow,” Dex shouted.

  “And I know you… son.”

  Tears blurred Dex’s eyes. He blinked them away, knowing he couldn’t let his guard down. He couldn’t believe that his father would hurt him, but he also couldn’t allow himself to give the man known to the Marshyl Guild as the Elusive Executioner a chance to hurt him.

  “Ozztia!” Dex said in a quiet but firm voice as he slashed his sword through the air, directing the sweeping spell at his father’s legs.

  Maslow waved his wand and deflected the spell, but smiled at his son.

  “You’ll have to use stronger magic if you want to capture me,” he said. “I won’t make it easy on you.”

  “And I won’t let you go,” Dex said. “I’m taking you back to face the Lord Marshyl for your crimes.”

  “I’ve committed no crimes, Dex. I think you know that,” Maslow said, moving closer to his son. “You have no idea how happy I was to see you. How long has it been, son?”

  “Too long for a father to ignore his family,” Dex said. “This isn’t a reunion. Throw down that wand.”

  “Why don’t we both drop our weapons and we can talk.”

  “I don’t have anything to say to you,” Dex declared.

  “That’s okay,” Maslow replied. “I have plenty to say. I’ll lay down my wand if you lay down your sword. No tricks. You can keep your armor on. I just want to talk.”

  Dex had assumed his father would try to convince him to talk. Dex had a thousand questions and his heart ached from the contradicting emotions raging inside him. It had to be a trick, a last-ditch effort for Maslow to break free from the Marshyl chasing him. Dex didn’t think his father would kill him, but he might injure or subdue him in order to escape. Yet his father did have a point, the dragon armor would still protect Dex if Maslow tried to attack him once he had relinquished his sword. And what the Executioner didn’t know was that Dex had the opal ring bonded to his right hand, and absolutely no intentions of meeting his father on equal ground.

  “Okay,” Dex said. “You first.”

  “I can’t do that,” Maslow said. “But we can set them down at the same time.”

  “Fine,” Dex said, “But don’t think I’ll show you mercy because you’re my father. I’m taking you back with me, no matter what you say.”

  “Let me say my piece, then if you still feel that way, I’ll come back with you, willingly.”

  Dex didn’t believe his father, but he had a plan. They each bent low, both watching the other for any sign of trickery. Maslow did nothing to alert Dex, so he set the sword carefully on the ground. Maslow dropped his wand, then they both stood up straight.

  “See,” the older man said. “No tricks.”

  Dex didn’t wait or announce his intentions, he simply levitated his father’s wand so that it flew hundreds of feet away.

  “That’s low, Dex,” Maslow said. “What have you got? An opal ring? I thought it was against the rules of your cult to use magical items.”

  “You don’t know the first thing about the Marshyl Guild,” Dex said, using his levitating magic to lift his sword back up into his hand. “And you don’t know me.”

  The flash of golden light from the elvish ending curse was fast and unavoidable. It hit Maslow full on in his chest. The older man toppled over like a tree and Dex felt a weight lift from his shoulders. At last he had stopped the Executioner and the chase was over. All he had left to do was return to the Marshyl compound high in the Bitterroot Mountains and his dream of becoming a Knight would be fulfilled.

  Chapter 10

  Dex hurried f
orward, slipping the sword back into its sheath and then checking his father for any hidden weapons. A simple summoning spell brought the wand back to Dex, and a few minutes later he was able to round up both horses. He stowed his father’s wand with the ruby ring he had taken from the mage in Quelltown deep in one of his saddle bags. The sun was setting fast and Dex wasn’t sure exactly how to proceed. He needed time and rest, so he moved the horses to a large rocky outcropping. He had to levitate his father to move him. But once they were in the shelter of the rocks, he managed to round up enough dried shrubs and tumble weed to build a small fire.

  His father hadn’t moved, couldn’t move until Dex released him from the elvish ending curse, which would last for days without something interrupting the spell. Dex looked at his father. Maslow had the same face, but his hair seemed thicker and mostly gray. There were deep lines fanning out from his eyes and running in creases across his forehead. Dex remembered his father being big and strong, but the executioner was thin, his shoulders narrow and the skin on his neck hung loose as if he’d lost a substantial amount of weight.

  There was a small frying pan in one of Dex’s saddle bags. He pulled the saddles from the horses and rubbed their mounts down with a stiff brush. After he gave both of the animals some oats and a small amount of water to drink, he fried some of the salted pork in the pan, which he situated on rocks around the fire. The pork fried up quickly, leaving a fair amount of grease in the pan. Dex diced up some potatoes and onions, which he added to the grease.

  “I’m going to release you from the spell, but I’m still tying you up,” Dex said. “If you try anything at all, I’ll hit you with the curse again and leave you paralyzed all night long. Got it?”

  His father couldn’t answer, but Dex looped some rope around Maslow’s legs. When he released the spell, he immediately cinched the rope tight, binding his father’s legs.

  “I can’t believe you have so little honor,” Maslow said with an edge to his voice.

  “This from the murderer who attacked the Marshyl compound,” Dex said, rolling his father over and tying his left hand to the back of Maslow’s thick, leather belt.