Feeling uncomfortable under his intense stare, Darci had to break the silence. “Would you be able to help me and Taslessian back to our inn? That’s why we were trapped here, we’re new in town and we got lost on our way back from the market.”
The soldier agreed with a slight incline of the head. He introduced himself as a sergeant of the guard as he ordered two of his men to pick up the goods they had dropped. The rest of his men, except for the soldier helping Taslessian, were to take the prisoners to the stocks before returning to their duties.
* * *
Whilst Darci, Taslessian and their new escort made their way back to their accommodations, Maledorian was deep in conversation with the first mate of the ship called Elspeth. He had sauntered into one of the more respectable looking taprooms near the docks, hand on sword, forcing people with his bulk to move out of his way as he ordered a drink. Finally he chose an unaccompanied sailor to talk to. The pub was called the Drunken Bore, and it lived up to its name. Newly landed sailors of all shapes and sizes were squandering their earnings on all the alcohol that they could afford. To them it did not matter what time of day it was, for when on land, any time of day was good for a drink.
“Are all of your men to be trusted?” he asked. “We have a woman and a girl on board, and they are not to be bothered.” The knight wanted to be sure about this point. The sailor he was talking to was of average build. Unkempt stubble covered his long face, hiding his sharp features. Maledorian knew that this man looked questionable, and yet he was still one of the more respectable-looking sailors around.
The sailor did not like the idea of women being aboard his ship. He shook his head in an effort to clear the alcohol-induced fog that seemed to surround his mind. For the amount of money this knight was going to pay him, he would gladly dance naked on a table in the market during crush time. The only problem would be convincing his captain, but the first mate smiled as he thought of the different ways he could deal with that problem.
“Sure, no problem,” he eventually slurred, “I’ll check them all out personally before you get there tomorrow. I’ll deal wit’ em.” He gave the knight a reassuring grin.
“Good,” Maledorian replied. He picked up the bag of money that was tied to his waist. The sailor eagerly held out his callused hand, but Maledorian only half emptied his bag. “You get half now and the other half when we reach Menarik.”
Begrudgingly, the first mate, Argon, spat on his other hand and shook with Maledorian, as was the custom when sealing a deal.
With his newfound wealth, Argon strolled out of the Drunken Bore to deal with the former captain of the Elspeth, while Maledorian finished his mug of ale before heading back to the Blazing Unicorn to tell the others.
* * *
Darci leapt up the uneven wooden stairs two at a time so she could open the door to the boys’ room and have Taslessian taken inside. Physically, nothing seemed to be wrong with him, aside from extreme exhaustion. His eyes flickered when he was spoken to, but he responded in nothing but mumbles. She brushed the fringe out of his eyes before putting the blanket over his inert form. Then she set about searching for his purse, thinking that she should thank the soldiers properly. Fiddling with the coins, she took what she hoped was enough money. When she proposed a free drink to the sergeant of the guard, he smiled warmly, telling her that soldiers never refused a free drink.
The taproom at the Blazing Unicorn already had a few customers, starting early in preparation for the night’s celebration. But there was still plenty of room for Darci, the sergeant and two other soldiers to pick where they wanted to sit.
“Can you please get a mug of ale for each of these three soldiers?” Darci asked one of the serving maids, handing her a flat. The waitress’s eyes bulged and the coin quickly disappeared from sight. The drinks were brought promptly with a few winks and smiles from the waitress.
The sergeant of the guard was staring at Darci thoughtfully. Most women would be sobbing and crying or screaming hysterically at the hands of an attacker, yet this young girl managed to struggle as best she could in relative silence. Normally, attacks like this did not happen in broad daylight. So what had they wanted with the lanky boy and the strange girl?
Darci could see the sergeant regarding her. She was caught between the obvious need for secrecy and the feeling that she could trust this man. It had something to do with the way that he looked. The scar that ran down the side of his face… Yes! That was it! Had not Tallen told her that her father had a scar down the side of his face? Yes, but what was his name?
“Hey Sergeant, is your name Chalier?”
He stared at her with renewed curiosity. “Yes… but how would you know that?” he asked.
Taking a deep breath, Darci quietly told him what had happened at the farmhouse and where Tallen had told her to find her father if she could.
The older man’s eyes were full of pain. What would have happened to his beloved wife and daughter if this young girl and her friends had not been there? He closed his eyes with his hand on his forehead, knowing that he had a duty to protect his family. Yet, what good was protecting his family if the land they lived in was overrun? He had to stay at his post.
“I cannot go back unless the guard no longer needs me. I will not desert my post and I will not dishonour my family.” Chalier’s pride was clear on his face as he made his decision, knowing that despite the dangers, this was the right choice. He was duty bound to uphold his good name by serving his country like his father, uncles and their fathers before him.
Darci could feel herself becoming annoyed. What if the man who attacked her and Tallen came back with some friends? No one would be there to protect her and her mother. Her heart burned with a feeling of guilt, knowing that Domati had brought the man to the barn to attack her, powerless under a trance. But free of Domati’s control, he had still attacked them, and she knew that kind of person would have a lust for revenge.
“Can’t you just explain to your boss what happened? Surely he would understand?”
Chalier’s face was set; his brow furrowed and his jaw clenched. Then his features softened as he tried to explain to Darci that this was yet another consequence of war. Another scar. Wives and daughters would be left to fend for themselves as their sons and husbands went off to fight.
She looked away from him, not knowing what else to say.
Defyance and Lief came through the door then, weighed down with all the items that they had brought. The warrior woman had obviously decided she no longer needed to keep a low profile, as her head was held high with a smile on her face. Their trip had been successful it seemed.
Each held large and bulging hessian bags. Defyance also carried a staff in one hand, thumping it on the floor as she paused in the doorway to look around. Lief waited until she was through the doorway before sliding in behind her, almost unnoticed in his hood, except by those who knew him.
The warrior woman gave all her luggage to a young serving boy, who almost fell over with the sudden weight. Accompanied by Lief, the boy began to labour up the stairs to their room. Defyance walked over to Darci’s table, hands on hips, waiting impatiently for an explanation. She obviously knew who Chalier was, or at least, what position he held.
“What happened?” she asked when neither Darci nor Chalier spoke. The broad shouldered sergeant finally stood as he introduced himself, whilst one of the quick-witted young soldiers pulled a chair over for Defyance. Darci explained about the attack, carefully omitting any facts that could reveal anything about their mission. She would tell Defyance and the others everything else later.
Chalier then told his version. After hearing the tale, Defyance nodded once, her expression unchanged, although her eyes betrayed her annoyance.
“I must thank you my friend, for I am afraid of what might have happened had you and your soldiers had not intervened. Allow me to buy you all a drink.”
This brought an instant smile to Chalier’s face; his earlier concerns forgott
en for the time being. “A good soldier never refuses a free drink,” he said, smiling.
* * *
Smoke escaped from a crack in the single wick lamp resting on the small wooden stool that doubled for a bedside table. The dim light of the cloud-covered night sky was outmatched, albeit barely, by the flickering flame that illuminated the boys’ room. Bellies full of food and wine, the group of five lounged around on the straw beds that Maledorian, Lief and Taslessian had to sleep on. With the muffled noises of the taproom seeping up through the wooden floor, all were using this rare moment of peace to relax while Maledorian relayed his plans for the next day.
As of yet, no further mention of the day’s adventure had been divulged. Darci had been going to bring it up now that they were all alone, but as she opened her mouth, Defyance had placed her hand on Darci’s shoulder with a slight, almost imperceptible shake of her head.
“Tomorrow, at around lunch time, you will board a ship by the name of Elspeth. While that is happening, I will find a suitable abode for our horses and then go to the market to make the final arrangements for our food supply. From there, it will take two to three weeks to get to Menarik provided we have good weather. Any questions?”
Maledorian was sprawled out as best he could on his small bed as he explained the situation. He reached into a wrinkled paper bag to pull out some dried meat to munch on, washing down each mouthful with a swig from his giant mug.
The items they had purchased took up whatever space was left in the small room. Darci now had a new set of clothes, as did everyone. They looked rather bulky on her relatively slim form when she tried them on, but Defyance assured the young girl that they were necessary to keep in the warmth. Where they were going, it was destined to be freezing.
Lief had purchased a new chest belt of pouches filled with various healing herbs that he thought would come in useful, and Defyance had found a supplier of well-made weapons, including daggers and swords. She had acquired several different weapons for everyone – some new arrows for Lief, new throwing daggers for herself, a short sword each for Maledorian and Taslessian, and a small dagger and staff for Darci, who looked around at the quiet expressions of all of her friends.
She could not think of any questions to ask about the trip, but her mind was full of the questions that no one had been able to answer. What was she supposed to do? How could she help this world and all the others avoid a disaster? In one swift motion, she gulped down the rest of her wine. She shuddered as the raw taste burnt her throat. She would figure out what to do. She had to.
* * *
Somewhere in a dark alley later that night, the muffled noises of a scuffle could be heard. Quick steps and a small exclamation of recognition soon turned sour. A glint of steel in the moonlight, a stifled scream, and then silence, as a solitary figure crept out of the alley rubbing his stubbled face.
Chapter 6
Darci’s chest puffed up as she sucked in the fresh smell of the sea air; ending in a coughing fit as she almost choked on the stench of sun dried fish guts. A grubby-looking sailor beside them poured the remainder of his catch over the wharf and into the sea. The docks of Chinta lay before them; a wide wooden peer stretched out in both directions, breaking off to reach its wooden arms out into the depths of the natural port. Sturdy, weatherworn wooden planks were covered in an ocean of people, creaking underneath their every step. Taslessian, Lief, Darci and Defyance were on their way to the ship that was going to take them to Menarik.
Sailors of all sizes and description swept past the group, some carrying their wares, others making deals, but most traveling to and from the local pubs. Different from the rest of the city, there seemed to be hardly any women present in this male-dominated area. The occasional females that Darci did see looked like men in any case, with their bulging muscles, short hair, dark tans, feral expressions and numerous tattoos.
The distinctive noise of the sea lapping against the wood echoed underfoot. All around, vessels of different shapes and sizes rocked to the rhythmic beat of the waves. Walking further down the pier, the ships began to grow in size and grandeur. Darci had never seen such ships up close, only the drawn pictures in history books back on Earth. They looked like the old ships that Captain Cook or Christopher Columbus once sailed on; large wooden tubs with at least one giant mast holding up the material sails. The shadows of the immense crafts engulfed them, and they were forced to crane their necks upwards to try to take it all in.
Darci found the figureheads most interesting. Most were intricate carvings of naked ladies or unknown heroes, an assortment of monsters or family emblems. Defyance suddenly came to an abrupt stop as her eyes fells upon Elspeth. Compared to the other ships, it was not much to look at. The carving of a naked lady on the ship’s bow had half its face and one breast missing. Yellowing sails flapped aimlessly in the gentle breeze, and the ship appeared to be empty. Next to the two magnificent vessels either side of it, the Elspeth looked small and insignificant.
A scruffy-looking sailor with a sabre in his belt walked down the gangplank. “You must be Maledorian’s friends; welcome to the Elspeth! She may not look like much but she’s one of the fastest and well-known vessels in the water! My name is Argon and I’m the… captain of this ship.” Whilst freshly shaven, his face was a mess, suggesting that he did not own a mirror. His dark hair was unkempt and the clothes that he wore were newish but they did not appear to fit, sitting loose on his shoulders as if belonging to another man. His boots were the only part of his attire that looked authentic, being scuffed and well worn.
Defyance introduced everybody to the captain, but the sailor’s attention was elsewhere. Argon’s feet thundered on the gangplank as he marched on deck. “Attention on deck, you sons of dwarves. If I hear any complaints, that dog will spend the next twelve hours in the crow’s nest. Line up!” he shouted, glaring at his crew, waiting for a chance to make his threat a reality.
Grumbling under their breath, the sailors lined up to be inspected by Defyance. None of them seemed too interested in stopping work or loading the cargo, just to please their new captain. Some scratched their nether regions, others coughed and one even belched, which brought an angry stare from Argon.
Defyance followed the weathered captain onto the deck. She knew what sailors were like and she wanted to make sure that this crew was not going to give her any trouble. All eyes on board followed the warrior woman on deck, ignoring the others in her party.
Darci looked up at the first sailor, surprised to find another man as tall as Maledorian. His thick, bald head was set on muscle bound shoulders that stuck out through his sleeveless black shirt. His brown eyes bored down into her so intensely that she was surprised that she had not noticed the tattoos on his face. Intricate patterns of black dots trailed down his nose and around his cheeks back up to his forehead until his whole face was covered. Finally she had to break eye contact because the group had moved on, leaving her behind.
She counted at least twenty sailors. With their unshaven chins, dark tans and mismatched clothing, they all looked like they had spent many hard years at sea. One young sailor stood out from all the others because of his resemblance to Lief. He was small framed and had long, dark coloured hair with ears that were not as pointed as an elf’s but not as rounded as a human’s.
Satisfied that none of the sailors had tried to stare her down, Defyance nodded.
“Back to work,” Argon commanded and then motioned for his guests to follow him. He took them through one of few doors on deck, down a narrow ladder-like staircase into a dank, dark hallway to show them to their room. He grabbed a lantern hooked behind the door, holding it in front of him to illuminate the way. Seeing that the vessel was not very large, he hoped they would be satisfied with sharing a room, pushing the door open with his shoulder.
Darci commented on the aroma of fresh wood chips, and Argon explained they used wood chips to pack some of their more precious wares in.
“More like some of their ill
egal wares,” whispered Lief, which was followed by an almost imperceptible nod from Defyance.
Under the flicker of the single flame, all could see the room was approximately twenty feet wide tapering off towards the hull. It was scantily furnished with five piles of wood chips mixed with hay; they had the luxury of creating their own beds. An old wooden crate had been placed between the piles of bedding, held down by rusted nails, some only half embedded in the floor. With barely any room left to stow their belongings, Darci was glad that they were leaving the horses in Chinta, for there was simply no room left on such a vessel.
“You can place all your belongings in here,” Argon said. He was going to continue, but he was interrupted by a muffled shout on deck. Everybody rushed through the narrow hall and up the stairs to see what was going on. A tense atmosphere greeted them as the sailors crowded around an impending fight. Shoulders squared and chins lifted, Chalier’s head could just be seen over a break in the crowd. He was trying to get to the door that led below deck, but the unmoving form of the tattooed bosun barred his way. Chalier was a big man, yet his head only reached the first mate’s nose.
“Stop!” Darci shouted as she saw the sergeant shoved by an unseen hand from the crowd, but no one paid any attention to her. It looked as if a brawl was going to break out right there on the deck in front of them.
With a sniff, Defyance decided that she did not feel like putting up with a brawl. She pushed the two closest men with some effort, making them stumble out of her way so she could get through the ring of onlooking sailors. Without too much effort she ended up standing between the two men. Men could be so stupid and thoughtless, and she was not in the mood at all for testosterone-fuelled bravado. Seeing Defyance, the atmosphere cooled as some of the sailors returned work.
“What is the meaning of this?” Argon yelled, trying to take control. He was livid with the fact that he had not been called the instant a stranger had stepped aboard his ship. In the back of his mind he was afraid his newly acquired crew would think of him as a coward. Such untruthful lies would set a path towards mutiny.