Chapter 14: Chapter Thirteen

The mage's optimism was justified. They returned to double file and rode to the city gates without issue. The crowd was thick around the entrance but, thankfully it was only guards and a few well-dressed townsfolk giving direction and pointing out the best stables and inns. They had more trouble getting past a man trying to give them directions to a place called The Three Hammers than they did the guard.

Once inside the city walls, and Daybridge was worthy of the name city, they rode until they found an out of the way stable for Maug to deposit the horses. Albaran gave them directions to the house where Wymar was being kept and took off with the mage in tow. He said they needed to ‘plan’. Shorgus seemed delighted with the idea, and Del was too anxious to argue. She just hoped they stayed well out of sight. None of their disguises would hold up under much scrutiny.

The house, which was actually more hovel, was a nondescript brown, with bits of plaster peeling from the front walls and sun-faded curtains blowing in the open windows. Definitely not the place a royal bastard would hide. Not a place a regular bastard would hide, really. Del could see why Albaran had chosen it.

Everyone but Shorgus met in an alley across a market square from the small hovel. They had been watching the entrance for almost an hour and no one had come in or out or even given the place so much as a pacing glance. There were some guards in the town, but not enough to be difficult to get around.

“We should go,” Maug said quietly. Del agreed. Lurking in an alley was probably going to attract more attention than them walking across the square. She nodded to Albaran, and he stepped into the street and raised a hand. They didn’t have to wait long.

Black clouds of smoke appeared over the far end of the town. The air filled with the sharp smell of burning wood. Someone shouted and then the square was in chaos. Some people ran toward the smoke, others away. The three watchers ran the distance to the hovel.

Del was the first to reach the thin wooden door. She knocked twice before it creaked open and she pushed inside. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the dimness. Two people were standing in the little main room. One, a man, had opened the door and was now staring wide-eyed at them as they filed in. Albaran was last, and he shut the door behind him. The other was a woman standing over a small silver tea set that looked out of place among the earthen wear and dirt floor. She just looked tired and resigned to whatever was to come.

“Um…” Del started. She wondered suddenly if they hadn’t just barged into the wrong house. “We are looking for Wymar?”

The man stuttered and the woman’s hands shook as she sat down the teacup she’d been preparing. Albaran moved deeper into the room and pulled the wrap down to reveal his face. The effect on the two was immediate. The woman sagged with relief and the man's gibberish became faster.

“You are Velli. You are here for him. You will take him now, yes?” His dark head bobbed up and down. “Yes? We did as you asked. We did. We did.”

Albaran looked at the man like he was insane, but before he could ask questions, a raised voice came from the only other room.

“Where is my tea, Susa? Is it really so hard to put tea in a cup?”

The woman Del assumed was Susa jumped at the call and went back to the tea.

“Is that,” Del pointed toward the door, “Wymar?” The woman nodded without looking up from the cup she was preparing.

“You are here to take him, aren’t you?” The man asked Albaran again. “We kept him safe, like you said.” He sounded desperate. It must have been a harrowing journey to get here. Albaran only nodded, but by the man’s reaction, he might have offered him a small fortune and a metal for his trouble. “Oh, thank you,” he said, wringing his hands. “Thank you. Thank you.” He went to stand beside the woman.

Del made her way through the beaded curtain that blocked off the other room. On the other side was a tiny, dark bedroom. Pushed against one wall was a pallet made of straw and layers of thick woolen blankets. On the bed laid a young man, thin and pale, with lank dark hair falling to his shoulders. The few chipped beads that adored his braids clattered when he turned to look at Del.

“Seriously,” he glared at her. “Another servant? Eh, at least you are easier to look at than that Susa. Do you have my tea?”

Before she could answer, Maug and Albaran joined her. Maug had evidently taken the ranger dropping his disguise as an excuse to remove his wig. His brown curls were matted to his head. They barely had room to move in the tiny space. Wymar sat up straighter in the bed and looked at each of them.

“Wait, what is this? Who are you?” His eyes fell on Albaran and narrowed. “A Velli? Finally. Are you here to escort me to the capital, then? I’ve been stuck in this,” he wrinkled his small, upturned nose as he looked around his room, “hole for weeks now. And we had to walk here.”

All three of them just stared at the boy. No, not boy Del thought, man. He didn’t look that much younger than her. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected from her cousin and future king, but it wasn’t this sniveling man-child.

“Well,” Maug said behind her. “I don’t suppose we can turn back now.” Del shook her head.

“Ah, this must be the party, then!” Shorgus pushed his way into the small room, smiling cheerily.

“A Vinteran mage?” Wymar snarled. “You can’t seriously expect me to travel with him?”

“This the one you’ve been looking for?” the mage asked skeptically.

“Unfortunately,” Maug said beside her. Del was just happy Wymar hadn’t noticed he was a Larchpaw yet.

“You just let him stay here by himself?” Shorgus looked at Albaran questioningly. “Doesn’t seem particularly safe, given the circumstances.”

“Didn’t you see the servants when you came in?” Del asked.

“Nope. Place is empty.”

Maug stepped through the curtain while Albaran gathered things around the small room. When he returned, he shook his head.

“Gone,” he told them. “And the silver tea set. Imagine they saw their chance and took it.”

“Ungrateful sods,” Wymer muttered, his bottom lip protruding comically. “Too stupid to even make tea. I don’t need them.”

“Yes, can’t imagine why they left such gainful employment,” Shorgus mumbled.

“It matters not.” Albaran had placed the things he’d collected from around the room in a loose blanket and tied it at the top. He threw it in Wymar’s lap. “Get up. We must go. Now.” He went back through the curtain. Shorgus followed.

“I will not be spoken to in that manner. Does he know who I am?”

“Yes. He just doesn’t care.” Maug said.

“I will not allow it. I am a future king. And I will not travel with a Vinteran mage.” His voice became higher the longer his tantrum went on.

“Who told you that?” Del asked.

“The servants, of course.”

“You need to vet your helpers better, it seems,” Maug said to the ranger..

“King?” Shorgus’ head popped through the curtain again. “Did he say King? Ohhh…” Del pushed him back through the curtain.

“You will travel with us or you will stay here and wait for the guard to find you. I’m sure they will be very receptive to your complaints. Completely your choice, of course, your majesty.” She left to join the others.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

They were waiting by the front door, except Shorgus, who was noisily digging through cabinets and drawers.

“Not a drop of liquor in sight. Not even a cheap brew.” The mage slammed the last cabinet.

“They probably drank it the first night,” Maug said. “Have you met that kid? Are we sure this is the best idea?”

“It does not matter if we like him. He has the blood that is needed. We will see him to the capital and the throne. There is no other choice now.” Albaran answered.

Del felt heat rise in her cheeks. ‘No other choice but a petulant child because she refused the job’, was what he meant. But honestly, she thought, he was perfectly suited to lead the Aurelias. He would fit right in with the current line of kings.

"If we are going to do this, might as well get on with it then," she said firmly. Determined to move forward, she turned around and made her way back through the curtain. She found Wymar still pouting on the bed. With a firm grip on his arm, she dragged him into the room. She put his pack in his hand and pushed him toward the front door.

There was still chaos in the open green outside, but it had changed to a controlled chaos. Groups of people huddled between market stalls or outside homes and eyed the smoke still billowing from somewhere deeper in the city. Guards snapped at the heels of anyone who wasn’t fast enough to clear the street when horse-drawn carts came through, carrying large barrels of water. The mage must have caused quite a mess.

Maug and Albaran had dawned their disguises once more before leaving the little house and now they walked as briskly as they could across the green and back to the alley where they had hidden earlier. Del and the ranger, taking the lead, flanked the still glowering Wymar. Del still had a hand on one of his elbows to direct him. When they reached the alley, he pulled away from her violently.

“Where are we going? Do you have transport? Where are the soldiers that will be accompanying us?” He barked the questions at her as if they were orders. He turned his back on her and addressed Albaran. “Well? What is your plan?” Del grabbed his arm and spun him around to face her again.

“We are going to get our horses. That is our transport. Although we don’t have one for you, so you’ll have to double with someone.” Wymar narrowed his close-set eyes and opened his mouth to argue, but she just went on over him. “From there we will find the road and we will make our way to Kingsland.” Shorgus made an inquisitive noise behind her, but a hard look in his directions kept him from actually voicing any questions. “As for who will be accompanying you,” she gestured around the alley, “you’re looking at it.”

“This is completely unacceptable.” He said and then actually stomped his foot. Del stared at him in amazement. “I am the future king. There are people who would kill me, or worse, for what I…” His words cut off as Del grabbed him by the collar and slammed him against the brick wall of the alley.

“Yes, there are people who would kill you if they knew what you were. There are just as many people that would kill us for helping you. And if you keep yelling about being king, you’re going to bring them down on all our heads. So you are going to shut your mouth, get on a horse, and let us take you to the capital. Or,” she said when he protested, “I will leave you here. Do not test me. I would risk you walking alone to Kingsland before I would risk you putting these people in danger. Do you understand?” She gave him a little shake before letting him go.

“Well, then,” Maug said. “I’ll go retrieve the horses then?”

“Yes,” Del said. “The rest of us will meet you at the gate.” He adjusted his wig before he left.

“We should leave by the southern gate. It is closer to our destination.” Albaran said.

“No. It is too dangerous to be in the city now and I do not plan on traveling by road again unless we have to. We’ll stick to the forests as much as we can. All the way to Kingsland, if it’s possible.” She turned to the mage. “You have been a great help to us, Shorgus. We would not have made it here without you. But from here on, this will be a much more dangerous journey. And when we reach Kingsland, it won’t be a warm welcome.”

“You are asking me to leave, then?”

“No. I’m trying to say you can leave and there will be no ill feelings between us. I can’t speak for the others, but you have earned my trust. If you want to come with us, you are welcome, but I don’t want you to come without knowing the risks.”

“Hmm. Well, it’s hard to know the risks without knowing the whole story.”

“This is not the time. But if you come with us, I will tell you.”

“You can not.” Albaran said evenly.

“I can. It is my story to tell, after all. And I will not ask him to risk his life if I’m not willing to be honest.” She turned back to the mage. “So, are you staying?”

“Are you kidding! There is no way I would leave now.” Albaran sighed beside her.

They made it to the gate again without incident, but when they arrived, Maug was not there waiting.

“Something must have happened,” Del said.

“You should have expected this. Why would you ever employ a dirtpaw?” Wymar sneered. That took Del by surprise. Not the snide comment, that seemed pretty on par for the man, but the fact he had seen what Maug was and still had a bigger problem with the Vinteran. Completely ignoring Wymar, she turned to the other two.

“Stay here,” she told them. “I’ll go see if I can figure out what is going on.”

She wove her way through the sparse foot traffic to the stable where they’d left the horses just a few hours before. There was a small stone inn beside the stable but not much else around but homes and other nondescript buildings. They had purposely chosen this stable because it was off the main road. Nothing looked amiss when she came to the entrance of the stable. She could hear voices from the back of the building.

When she rounded the corner she saw Maug, wig sitting slightly ajar, waving a finger in a portly balding Aurelian’s face.

“I don’t care what the city laws say,” Maug yelled. “I say we want our horses back this instant.” Surprisingly, the man cowered under his tirade.

“What’s going on here?” She asked, and the two men turned to her. “What’s going on is this man gave our horses away,” Maug said, adding a belated “my lady” that made the bald man blanch.

“My lady? Oh, dear.” He walked over to Del, bowing the whole time. “I am so sorry. It is not my fault. You must understand…”

“It is your fault though,” Maug snapped. Del held up a hand to stop him.

“What has happened to our horses, good sir?” She tried to keep her voice light. The man seemed terrified.

“It was the fire, my lady. They, the guard, that is, they are allowed to take horses from the stables if they need it for emergencies; fire, flooding, invasion, and such. They always come to my stable first cause they know nobody important stables here.” He wrung his hands before going on. “When they asked for horses, I had to give them yours. Our old Bess would’ve died trying to pull those carts. And you’d only dropped them an hour before, so I’d hoped they would be back before you returned.”

“Alright,” Del said. “We will just wait for them. It should be soon, yes?” The man looked close to tears as he shook his head.

“They say the fire is spreading all over the Racine Quarter. It might take all night to put out.”

Del wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry as she looked from Maug to the stable owner. Maug just shrugged a little and came to stand beside her.

“I tried to get him to replace them, but it seems we were his only borders.” The bald man nodded miserably.

“I’m so sorry, my lady,” he said again. Del was finding it hard to be truly angry at the man. He was quite odd for an Aurelian.

“Well,” she said, turning to Maug. “We can walk. It’ll take longer, but it won’t hurt.”

“Oh, no my lady! You mustn't walk on my account. What would happen to me if people found out a lady was walking because of me? Your horses will be here again by morn.” He was pacing the small yard now, still ringing his hands. “We barely have the custom to stay open as it is. If something like that got around…no, we’d have to pack up and leave. Please, my lady.” He halted and turned to them. “You could stay here, at my inn.” He gestured grandly at the two-story stone building. It definitely wasn’t the worst thing she and Maug had ever slept in, but she would be reluctant even if it were a grand villa.

“We have pressing business to attend to. I don’t think staying is a good idea,” she said.

“If it means we get the horses back in the morning, it might be worth it,” Maug shrugged. “I don’t relish telling our companion he has to walk.”

“We don’t have any other folks here at the moment and the misses would cook you up something nice. No charge, of course, my lady.” He finished with a small bow.

It was a risk. But if the guards knew who they were, they wouldn’t have taken their horses and left. And they surely wouldn’t have risked them accepting the offer of staying in the worst inn in Daybridge. But then, the guard could be very stupid. She looked again at the bald man and his tight, worried face and nodded.

“Alright, Mr.?”

“Andres. Jac Andres, my lady.”

“Alright Mr. Andres. We accept your offer. We will gather our companions and return.”

“Ah, yes. Yes.” He hesitated. “How many companions did you say again?” His question made Del suspicious until she noticed him looking from her to the inn worriedly.

“Five. Not so many we will not fit Mr. Andres.” She said with a smile.

“Oh, good. Good. I will go tell the misses to prepare supper and I will ready your rooms. You just come on in when you get here and we will get you all settled.” He shuffled back off to the little stone building.

“You know Al is going to hate this, right?” Maug asked with a smile. “Let me tell him.”