 |
  |
 |
|
|
|
Back to the previous chapter: Interludes
Second Draft
The town of Hillsdale covered a few acres on the west side of a modest river that cut through a corner of the dale. The town earned its name from the nearby foothills of a modest finger of a mountain range that marked the southeastern corner of the Great Forest. The only reason trade caravans even stopped in Hillsdale was the abundant supply of high-grade iron found in the nearby hills. Like most towns of the Dales, Hillsdale was largely agrarian. However, the rich supply of iron gave Hillsdale an unusually large population of smiths who created ironwares sought throughout the Dales. The road from Eastdale to Plainsdale passed through the northwestern corner of the Hillsdale dale, some fifteen miles from the town proper. A narrow road led from the trade route to Hillsdale. During the wet months, it was little more than a muddy river; during the dry months, it was a dusty stripe across the rich grasslands of the dale.
The day that the party reached Hillsdale, the trail was neither. A bout of cool, damp weather kept the dust to a minimum, and the riders could see depressions in the trail that were almost wet. Sparse clouds overhead kept the sun from warming the ground too much. The cooler weather kept the insects to a mercifully light level.
Ahead of the party lay Hillsdale. A few cookfires cast lazy trails of smoke into the mid-morning sky. A veritable flock of chickens happily milled behind the town's single inn, chasing grasshoppers and other bugs in the low-cropped grass between the inn and the stables beyond it. On the far end of town, a hundred paces from the inn, was a long, low building that had large panels of cloth arranged in a fan pattern on a tower above it. The fan was not turning in the still breeze of the morning.
Beyond the river were the smithys' buildings, open-sided buildings with anvils and forges visible at this distance. Strangely, their firepits were cold and silent.
Eric had been looking around the town as the party approached it. After studying the silent smiths' shops for several minutes, he finally voiced his question. "Why are the smiths not working?"
Bilbus was riding right behind Eric. "What was that?" the mountebank called out.
Eric turned in his saddle to look back at Bilbus. "See the smithys, on the far side of the river? There's no smoke coming from any of them. The forges look like they're cold, or at least, they're not stoked. I would expect smiths around here to work in the mornings, before it got too hot. Is today some sort of holiday?"
Bilbus shrugged. "How would I know?" He called back to Rishala, riding farther back. "Hey, Rishala! You said you wintered in the Dales. Do you know what holiday they might be celebrating today?"
"I stayed in Eastdale. There weren't any holidays there that we don't celebrate in Caledonia or the Kingdom. This village may be different."
The riders stopped in front of the Hillsdale Inn, on the near end of town. As the riders dismounted, Bilbus turned to Eric. "Do you see the building right across the river, next to the smithys? It looks like a public house. I would bet that's where the smiths are. Why don't we take a look?"
"Let's get rooms, first." Eric tied the reins of his horse to a post in front of the inn. "My horse could use a good scrubbing."
Inside the inn, the common room was empty, save for two women sitting at a table near the kitchen door. One of them jumped when she saw Eric walk through the door. "Good day, m'Lord! Do you require a meal?"
Eric waved dismissively. "I will want a meal later. My friends and I need rooms for the night, and I want a stable boy to attend to my horse."
"Right away, m'Lord." To the other woman, the first one said, "Hafren, fetch the stable hands!"
Hafren jumped to her feet, her auburn hair falling out of the tight bun she had used to keep it out of the way. She ran through the back door of the common room, next to the kitchen door, shouting as she did so for the stable boys.
The rest of the party had followed Eric into the common room. They now took seats at three of the tables. The first serving woman bustled about, offering mild ales and warm tea to the travelers.
Bilbus waited until Eric had finished a cup of steaming tea, then leaned towards him. "Shall we check out that pub?"
Eric nodded and set his emptied cup on the table. The two went back out the front door of the inn. Most of the party's horses had already been led back to the stables, but Farran remained standing near the entrance, his reins discarded loosely on his saddle. Bilbus glanced at the warhorse, then quickly crossed to the far side of the road to keep a distance between he and Farran.
The main road crossed from west to east across the southern end of Hillsdale. The two-story Hillsdale Inn anchored one end of the road, and the wind-powered mill anchored the other end. The buildings between the two were single-story structures of wooden construction, many of them the faded gray of unfinished wood. Most of the remainder of the buildings of Hillsdale were like those on the main road -- faded wooden homes and shops. At the mill end of the main road, a wide, low bridge crossed the narrow river, and the road continued past the public house and the six blacksmith's buildings before winding behind the first of the low hills, a mile distant. The road became less and less distinct as it got farther away from town, and it looked like little more than old wagon ruts by the time it vanished behind the hill.
As the Eric and Bilbus walked along the road, they noticed that most of the houses and buildings were single-story affairs. The inn and the mill were the only exceptions on the main road, and one two-story, ornate house south of the main road, away from most of the town, was the only other exception in all of Hillsdale. That ornate house had shiny whitewashed walls, and it really did not look like it fit in with the rest of the dilapidated buildings.
In the common room of the inn, Adria and Breanna shared a table. The younger noble, Adria, was speaking to the older. "I can't believe that Bilbus sometimes. He is such an inconsiderate rat!"
Breanna looked around the common room nervously, afraid that Bilbus might have returned already. "Haven't you tried to talk to him?"
Adria sighed and looked towards the ceiling. "I have. It is no use. Bilbus is so thick headed and full of himself, he doesn't listen. He looks at me and sees a noble, and that's the end of the conversation." She looked at Breanna again. "I almost wish my father would send for me, just so I could get away from him."
Sturm got up from his table, dropping a couple of coins on it, and left. He scowled once towards the women before he was out the door.
Breanna watched the Sun Knight leave, then looked around the common room. Kasey was still in his chair. He had tilted it back against the wall, with his hands cupped behind his head, and he looked like he was sleeping. Rishala had gone out the back door, towards the stables, a minute earlier.
"Why would your father send for you?" Breanna asked.
Adria stared straight ahead, not looking at anyone. "My father let me visit Londoun so I would 'settle down'. He agreed to let me go there, where he could have some family friends keep watch on me, if I agreed to return to Portsdale when he summons me for my wedding."
"You're engaged?"
Adria gave Breanna a suffering stare that answered the question far more effectively than words.
"Sorry," Breanna said immediately. She paused for a moment, than added, "I worry about what sort of man my father will choose for me to marry, too. My sister..." She became misty eyed. When she found her voice again, she said, "My sister died at her husband's hands. There wasn't anything I could do to help her. If... If I would have known what I know now, I could have saved her."
Outside, Sturm got his horse from the stables and quickly saddled it. He rode around the inn, from the stables in back to the main road. In front of the inn, Sturm saw two of the stable boys trying desperately to figure out how they could take Farran's loose reins and lead him back to the stable without further injury. One of the boys was already rubbing a fresh bruise on his forearm. Sturm continued past the boys and followed the road towards the mill.
The Sun Knight approached Eric and Bilbus close to the mill, about a hundred and fifty paces from the inn.
Unaware of the Sun Knight, Bilbus threw his hands into the air. "She is such a stuck-up prissy noble. She is everything your parents aren't, Eric!"
Eric glanced up at Sturm as the knight rode past. He looked back at Bilbus, shaking his head slowly. "Why don't you try talking to her, Bilbus? I do not truly think she is as bad as you say."
Bilbus watched the Sun Knight ride past, but answered Eric as he did. "I have. Really, what's the point? Her nose is so far in the air that she'd have to stoop to smell the clouds. You know, I would love for her dad to call her home. I would punch him in the face for raising a girl like that."
Eric shook his head again, unable to find any reasoned way to argue with the thief.
Sturm had turned along the wide trail that passed for a side road next to the mill. He followed it north looking idly at the modest cottages that house the population of the village. The few people who had not gone into the fields to work stopped to stare at Sturm as he rode past them. None of the villagers were used to seeing a Sun Knight riding alone, much less in Hillsdale. Sturm reached the northern end of town quickly -- it was only a couple hundred paces from the south end to the north end. The road curved back to the south, and it eventually ended on the main road, near the inn. Sturm paused for a moment in front of the inn, but he could hear Adria and Breanna still talking, so he directed his horse westward. He rode out along the road onto the dale.
The public house across the stream from the mill was built of heavy logs. Bilbus and Eric stopped in front of the open doors of the pub, looking up at the full-sized steel anvil hanging from a pair of stout beams directly over the entrance.
Eric glanced at Bilbus, "Let me guess. The pub is called 'The Anvil'."
Bilbus looked at the rusty chains holding the anvil and nodded. "Okay, Eric. This is a public house for commoners. Follow my lead in here."
Bilbus took the lead, walking into the room with his normal swagger. He started to put his fists on his hips when he actually noticed the men in the public house. Each of the seven men was far larger and more muscular than he was. The smallest man had forearms as large as Bilbus's legs.
The man behind the bar, just as large as his patrons, stopped wiping the counter tops. He looked at Bilbus with a dismissive expression and rubbed one hand across his bald scalp. "The inn be down the road. Ye passed it already now."
Quickly regaining his composure, Bilbus asked, "This is a public house, right?"
The barkeeper looked at Bilbus. "This be the Smiths' Guild House. Ye don' look to be a smith to me."
Eric stepped forward. "If I may ask, good master, why do the forges appear cold?"
The barkeeper regarded the Azirian. "We have had no ore for well on a month now. The miners ha'n't been down off the mine for that long or more."
"Has no one gone up to the mine to check them?"
"Aye, some people have. Ain't none who come back."
Bilbus interjected, "Hasn't the mayor done anything?"
"No' yet. He was plannin' to call upon some other towns for help." The man paused. "Now, do we need to show ye the exit? This be a guild hall meeting."
Bilbus left, trying not to look too rushed as he did so. Eric followed the thief, nonplussed in spite of the threat. The two walked back to the Hillsdale Inn, watching several children run screaming along the main road, stopping on occasion to grab clumps of dirt to throw at one another.
When the two entered the inn, Bilbus looked around the common room. He took a deep breath, smelling fresh pies cooking in the kitchen. Kasey was still leaning against the wall, but no one else was in the room. Bilbus glanced down at the Church Knight. "Where is everyone?" he asked when Kasey opened his eyes.
"Oh, Adria and Breanna went up to their room. They said they'd be down for a meal later. Rishala went out back to walk a while, and Sturm left after Adria started talking about you."
Bilbus straightened. "Talking about me?" He grinned rakishly.
"Yeah," Kasey said slowly. "She was saying something about how you aren't a good thief, I think." The large knight stretched, yawning.
Bilbus slumped. "Really... I'll show her..."
Sturm strode into the common room, entering from the back entrance from the stables. He stopped when he saw Bilbus. "Are you through complaining about Adria?" the Sun Knight asked as way of greeting.
"Through?" Bilbus replied. "I haven't started."
Sturm growled to himself, then walked up the stairs towards his room, his heavy boots sounding loudly on the wooden steps.
Bilbus turned to Eric and jerked a thumb towards the receding knight. "What's with him?"
Hours after sunset, Bilbus turned uncomfortably on the floor of one of the rooms of the inn. He had agreed to share a room with Eric and Kasey in an effort to avoid getting dragged out to the stables once more. The mountebank had a pile of blankets scattered on the hardwood floor that looked for all the world like a gigantic rat's nest. His rapier and sword belt lay under the edge of Kasey's bed, and his pack was crammed into the space between the foot of Eric's bed and the inner wall of the room. Bilbus shifted again, trying to get comfortable. This room is too small for two people!
Grumbling, he turned again, wrapping himself in a cocoon of loose bedsheets and blankets. As he looked around the dark room, he noticed an orange flickering at the bottom of the drawn curtains. He wriggled free of the blankets and lifted the bottom of the curtain to peer outside.
The room Bilbus was sharing with the other two men faced north, looking across the main road towards the bulk of Hillsdale. On the northeastern end of the town, several buildings burned. As Bilbus looked, another house started to burn. Several shadows ran in the road, silhouetted against the flames. Small flames arced in the darkness over that end of town. Bilbus was sure they were burning arrows.
The mountebank quickly sloughed the blankets off of him as he stood. He threw the curtains open and shook Eric's bed. "Wake up!" Bilbus shouted, startled at the volume of his own voice in the quiet room. "The town is under attack!"
Two rooms down, Breanna sat upright in her bed. She and Adria had left the curtains and windows open a few inches to get some air in the room. The walls on the far side of the room were now glowing with a flickering orange.
Puzzled, Breanna pulled her shift close around her and leaned towards the window. She lifted one end of it so that she could see outside. She saw the burning buildings on the north end of town, casting a hellish light across the town.
Breanna heard someone shouting in the building just as she yelled, "Fire! Adria, wake up! There's a fire!"
Adria jumped out of bed. She grabbed the dress she had left hanging over the back of a chair and quickly pulled it on over her shift, not bothering with a bodice. Breanna did likewise, wriggling into the dress she had left ready. Someone started pounding on the door.
Bilbus's voice came through the door. "Bree? Adria? There's a fire! Kasey and Sturm are getting the horses ready. I think the town is being attacked!"
Adria threw the door open as soon as she had pulled the laces on the front of her dress. "Take Breanna," the noblewoman ordered. "I'll catch up."
Bilbus squeezed past Adria to grab Breanna's healer's bag as Breanna fell onto her bed to pull her boots on. Bilbus ran down the corridor, stumbling down the darkened stairwell, as Breanna raced to catch the thief. After three bounds, Bilbus was at the bottom of the stairs, running for the wide open rear door of the inn.
Bilbus impatiently held the reins of Breanna's horse as he waited for her. He was already astride Acquisition 2, who was dancing from side to side. As soon as Breanna had sat down on her horse, Bilbus tossed her the reins. Acquisition 2 trotted quickly towards the main road. By the time the two riders had cleared the inn, they could see several more buildings burning, including two of the smithys across the stream. Bilbus pointed down the main road towards the inn. "Come on," he yelled. "I think I see some people over there."
Breanna was just able to pick out the people leaning against the southern wall of the mill, lit by the flickering of the burning smith's shops. She thought she saw other people lying on the ground near the mill, as well. By the time she urged her horse to a canter, Bilbus and Acquisition 2 were already flying away at a fast gallop.
As she raced past the front of the inn, Rishala ran out. He was partially dressed in his Caledonian kilt and boots. The story teller ran across the road to a small crowd of panicked villagers. "You!" He pointed at a few of them. "Get ropes! You two!" He pointed at two others. "Follow me! If there's a raid, we can slow them down!"
A minute later, the villagers were tying ropes across the road, high enough to dismount any riders. Rishala kept directing the villagers as he heard shouts on the north end of town. Some of the voices seemed odd, but he was unwilling to stop the villagers' efforts long enough to identify them.
Sturm had reached the mill on his horse already. He trotted north along the road he had followed earlier in the day, closing with the burning houses at the far end of the road. After he had traveled forty paces, he heard the distinctive "thwack" of something hitting the ground nearby. He glanced down and saw the dark shaft of an arrow that was over a pace long embedded into the dirt nearby. The arrow was slanted at a steep angle, suggesting that it had been fired from a long distance. Sturm ventured that the archers were at least two hundred paces away. He quickly turned his warhorse to the left, hoping that the house now between him and the archers would block their view. Several more arrows landed behind him in the road.
Forty paces ahead, lit by the flames, several people were quickly setting ropes high across the road. Sturm closed with them and dropped from his horse when he spotted Rishala. The knight pulled Rishala to one side. "Does this town have a guard?"
Rishala pointed over his shoulder at a pair of old men wearing mismatched, dried leather armor. The short spears the two men held had rusted heads, and the shafts of the weapons looked like termite havens.
"Great," Sturm said, not meaning it. "Whoever is attacking this village is using longbows. They were dropping arrows near me as I tried to get closer to the burning houses."
Rishala looked worriedly at the Sun Knight. "Longbows?"
Sturm nodded. "Yes. They were firing from across the river. I didn't really want to see any of the arrows from any closer than I did, so I stopped closing with them."
Bilbus reined his horse close to the southernface of the mill. Two villagers stood there, staring at him. Both villagers had barely dressed before they fled their homes -- both wore small clothes, but nothing else. Breanna stopped her horse next to Bilbus's. She looked at the two people who were lying on the ground. Both had arrows sticking out of their abdomens. The healer slid from her horse and kneeled next to the first.
She looked up at Bilbus. "Help me! They're wounded!"
Bilbus jumped down to help Breanna as Kasey and Farran stopped on the road next to the mill. The Church Knight stood in his stirrups, craning to spot the attackers as the third shop started burning. Farran danced lightly back and forth, ready to run. Adria rode up behind the warhorse and climbed down from her horse. She quickly collected Breanna's and Bilbus's horses before they wandered away.
Shouts in the darkness rolled across the stream as Breanna removed the arrow from one of the wounded. The voices were cruel, barks and grunts more than spoken words. Breanna ignored them as she pressed a healing poultice against the wound. One of the half-naked villagers squealed, "Did you hear that? That's not natural! It ain't men!"
Kasey leaned forward. "I hear them. I don't recognize the tongue."
Adria glanced up at the Church Knight. "They're orcs. I remember hearing them yelling in Saltcliffs."
"Orcs?" Kasey asked, suddenly excited. He dropped back to his saddle and shouted something unintelligible. Farran leaped forward, onto the bridge, and cleared the stream in two steps. The giant roan disappeared into the darkness.
"Kasey!" Bilbus shouted. "Wait!" He stood up quickly.
"Now what?" Breanna asked.
"Follow the knight!" Bilbus replied as he clambered onto his horse. Adria threw his reins up to him, then climbed back onto her own horse. Breanna grabbed her horse's reins and swung up onto the saddle.
Acquisition II had already charged across the bridge. Breanna and Adria rushed after him. They were barely able to see the brown horse in the glow of the burning smithys. Just before they lost sight of the fast horse, it suddenly stopped. Breanna and Adria stopped their horses flanking Acquisition II.
Adria looked at Bilbus. "What?"
The thunder of hooves approached from in front of the three riders. Farran appeared out of the darkness, running like a zephyr for the bridge. Kasey had slumped forward on the saddle with a large arrow through his chest.
"Gods!" Bilbus shouted as he sawed on the reins of his horse, turning it quickly. "Let's get out of here!"
As soon as Bilbus finished yelling, several arrows plunged from the darkness to land near the horses. Bilbus and the two noble women raced after Farran, but their horses were unable to catch the large roan until Farran stopped on the south side of the mill.
Adria and Bilbus jumped from their horses. Bilbus grabbed one of the villagers and made him take the reins so he could help Adria ease the knight from his saddle. Breanna had already dropped to the ground. Her medical bag was opened, and she was rummaging through it by feel to pull out poultices and mixtures.
As soon as Adria and Bilbus had Kasey sitting on the ground, Breanna kneeled next to him. "Adria, hold Kasey upright. Bilbus, break the fletching off of the arrow and help me pull the arrow through."
Kasey sat listlessly, leaning against the blonde noble. Bilbus stood on his other side, and Breanna was in front of him. Bilbus snapped the arrow as close to Kasey's chest as he could, then circled behind the knight.
Bilbus looked at Breanna as he grabbed the arrow shaft just behind the head. "Ready?"
Breanna held a poultice in one hand and a wadded piece of clean linen in the other. She nodded. With a smooth pull, Bilbus pulled the arrow out of Kasey. The Church Knight screamed in pain and fell to his side. Breanna quickly pressed a poultice against Kasey's back, covering the wound. Bilbus picked up another of her poultices and channeled Heka into it. From this proximity, Breanna could feel an odd oily sensation as Bilbus directed the Heka into the healing poultice. The healer shuddered.
Bilbus pressed the poultice against the entry wound in Kasey's chest, feeling the slight chill in bundle of herbs as its healing energies mended part of the wound.
"This isn't enough," Breanna muttered to herself as the energy in the poultice she held washed into Kasey's grievous wound. The healer discarded the poultice, its powers spent, and she placed a hand against Kasey's forehead. Bilbus felt a chill and noticed a tenuous glow surround Breanna as she petitioned the gods to direct healing magicks through her hand. Kasey shuddered as the wound through his chest closed, turning to little more than an angry red spot within seconds.
Kasey sat up stiffly and shook his head.
Breanna looked into the knight's eyes, trying to ascertain his condition. "Are you okay, Kasey?"
Kasey stretched his arms slowly, feeling for any twinges or injury. He nodded vigorously. "I'm great. Let's get those orcs!" He quickly regained his feet and charged towards Farran.
"Kasey!" Breanna shouted after the knight. "You're still hurt!"
"I'm better than I was," Kasey retorted as he settled into his saddle.
Desperately, Breanna said, "They've left already. We can follow them in the morning." She was not about to let the man she just saved charge off to certain doom.
"Oh." Kasey covered his mouth with the back of a hand in an effort to stifle a yawn. "Well, I could use some more sleep. And it will be light out in the morning. Easier for tracking."
As the knight settled down, Breanna turned her attentions towards the other wounded villager, whom she had left when she followed Kasey on his charge. The villager was not as badly wounded, and Breanna quickly was able to clean the wound and apply a salve and poultice.
The thumping of a horse approaching from the town got everyone's attention. Sturm stopped his heavy warhorse near the mill, then dismounted. He walked over to Kasey, who likewise dismounted Farran.
Sturm looked towards the burning smithys. "The raid on Hillsdale was a diversion. None of the villagers saw the attackers. They stood back and dropped arrows on anyone they saw, and they used fire arrows to torch a few houses on the north end of town. The people are organizing a fire line."
Bilbus approached the two knights. "Kasey charged towards the smiths. The orcs hit him with an arrow and just about killed him. Bree and I worked on him. It looks like whatever they were doing is over. That, or Kasey and Farran charging them spooked them."
Sturm shook his head. "Orcs are not that skittish. I think they achieved their objective and retreated."
Kasey nodded. "He's right. I almost had them."
Bilbus walked over to his horse. The villager who had been co-opted to hold the reins handed them to the mountebank. "Well, in any case, I am not going to go chasing them right now. We still have an hour or two 'til daybreak. I'm going back to my room."
Adria grabbed her horse's reins and led it back down the road towards the inn. Breanna did likewise, several paces behind the younger noble's horse. Bilbus watched the two walk away, then climbed onto his horse. He steered it towards the bridge and looked into the darkness. The flames of the three burning smithys flickered relentlessly, but Bilbus could see no other movement. After a couple of minutes observing the flames, Bilbus turned to ride back to the inn. Both knights had already left.
Bilbus saw Breanna and Adria standing in front of one of the shops on the main road. He rode up behind them and looked over them at the shop. It was a bakery, with a few loaves of bread and some pastries in the front window.
Breanna spoke to Adria. "That looks pretty good, doesn't it?"
Adria pointed at one of the pastries. "That one? With the fruits on top? Yes, it does."
Bilbus jumped down from Acquisition 2 and gallantly walked to the door of the shop. He pulled a pouch from its hidden pocket between the metal vambraces and the stiff leather of the forearm of his left jacket sleeve. He drew some lock picks from the pouch and leaned against the door, blocking the lock from the nobles' view. Drawing a little Heka, Bilbus shaped the energies into the lock, unlatching it. He pushed the door open, then went into the shop to grab the pastry.
Adria put her hands on her hips and scowled at the thief. "Bilbus!"
Bilbus stepped out of the shop and half-bowed to the women, cupping his hands to hold the pastry towards them as an offering. He looked up mischievously. "What? I left a copper for this thing. That more than pays for it."
Breanna plucked the pastry from Bilbus's outstretched hands. She split the sweetbread in two and gave one piece to Adria. Bilbus turned to reset the door locks, this time actually using the picks. After fiddling with the lock for a moment, it clicked satisfyingly. "Well, what do you know? These picks really work."
Breanna turned back to him. "What?"
"Nothing," Bilbus quickly said. "Let's get some sleep." He hopped back onto his horse and rode back to the inn. The nobles followed on foot.
The sun had just cleared the hills east of town when Bilbus came downstairs to the common room of the inn. Bilbus's traveling companions were the only people in the common room. Breanna and Kasey were absent, but the rest sat around one of the tables. Bilbus took the empty seat next to Adria, across from the Sun Knight, and nodded greeting to them.
After no one spoke, Bilbus said, "Are we ready to check out this mess?"
Adria snorted. "Speak for yourself, Bilbus. I'm heading back to my room to get some rest. Besides," she added, "I can't help anyone out there, anyway."
"Well, fine, m'Lady," Bilbus said, turning to face her. "One wouldn't want to sully one's hands now, would one?"
Adria withheld the urge to punch the thief. Instead, she glared at him and flashed a brief hand sign. Bilbus ignored the nonverbal threat and watched her as she picked up her mug of steaming spiced cider and stormed up the stairs to her room.
"Where's Kasey?" Bilbus asked pleasantly as soon as Adria slammed the door to her room.
Eric answered. "Breanna's keeping him in his room to make him rest. He is still hurt, but not as badly as he was last night."
"Huh," Bilbus said while he rubbed his temples. "Actually, I think I may get some more rest. I'm feeling a little drained, myself."
Eric looked concerned. "Are you catching something, Bilbus?"
"Nah." Bilbus waved a hand dismissively. "I think I just overextended myself helping Breanna patch Kasey."
"Rest well, Bilbus," Eric said. He turned to the other men at the table. "Shall we look over the town?"
Sturm and Rishala followed Eric out of the inn. Bilbus watched them leave, then leaned across the table to grab an untouched biscuit from Sturm's abandoned plate. He went back up the stairs, tossing the biscuit into the air and catching while whistling tunelessly to himself.
When Sturm reached the road north next to the mill, he stopped and pointed up the road towards the still-smoking remains of the houses. Eric and Rishala stopped to look. The houses that had been burned had collapsed. Fires still licked from their rubble, throwing a dark pallor into the air of the village.
"That was a diversion," Sturm said. "They attacked the houses and started some fires to distract the villagers while the real objective is achieved somewhere else."
Rishala looked up at the knight. "What was the real objective, then?"
"I don't know," Sturm admitted. "We might want to talk to the blacksmiths. Three of their buildings were burned last night."
Sturm led the other two across the bridge. Several people stood near the closest of the burned buildings, so Sturm walked towards them. As the three passed the Anvil, Eric noticed that there were no sounds coming from the open doors of the building.
Some of the villagers turned to look at the approaching strangers. When they were closer, Sturm spoke. "Is the smith here? Was he inside?"
One of the women answered. "I haven't seen my husband since last night. No one in the village has. All of the smiths are missing."
Sturm and Rishala exchanged looks. Rishala asked the woman, "All of them are missing?" as Sturm said to Eric, "I think we found the objective of the raid."
Rishala asked the villagers more questions. "Why has nae the mayor done something? Is he out here?"
One of the men glared at Rishala. "You're not from around here, stranger. The mayor has been ill for a long time. He can't even get out of his bed."
Rishala looked at Eric. "Maybe we can ask Lady Breanna to look at him." Eric nodded. The explorer turned to head back to the inn. The knight and storyteller followed.
Bilbus stood in the open doorway to Kasey's room. The inn's two serving women were hovering over the wounded knight, tending to him and feeding him a thick soup of diced chicken and ground oats. Kasey was sitting up in bed, his shirt off, which clearly exposed the blood stained bandages that had been wrapped around his chest. Breanna sat on Eric's bed, her legs folded, clicking her tongue quietly as she looked at her charge.
Bilbus stepped into the room, presenting a platter heaped with hot breakfast breads and pastries. The spiced smell permeated the room, and everyone stopped to look at him.
The mountebank smiled widely. "Breakfast, anyone?"
Breanna looked distressed. "Bilbus! You didn't..."
Before she could finish, he replied, "No! I paid for all of them." He stopped and started pointing at the rolls, as if counting them. "Well, most of them." He looked at Breanna's upset expression. "All but a couple of them. Forget it."
Kasey shuffled on his bed, trying to find a way to get out of the bed without bowling over one or both of the serving women to reach the platter. Both of the women giggled and pressed hands firmly to his shoulders in an effort to keep him pinned. Realizing that the knight was trying hard not to overpower the women, Bilbus stepped closer and held the platter out to Kasey.
Smiling, Kasey took the platter and placed it above the covers on his lap. "Thanks, Bilbus!" He picked up one of the sweetbreads and stuffed it into his mouth. "This is just what I need!"
Adria entered the crowded room behind Bilbus. She sniffed a couple of times, then pushed Bilbus aside to pluck one of the rolls from the platter. "Thank you, Kasey," she said as she stepped back.
"Thank Bilbus, m'Lady. He brought these." The Church Knight grabbed another of the rolls.
"Oh, he did?" she asked. When Kasey nodded, Adria turned to Bilbus. "You didn't steal them, did you?"
Bilbus looked undignified. "No, I did not steal the pastries. They were paid for."
Adria batted her eyes sweetly. "Who paid for them, Bilbus?"
Bilbus threw his hands into the air in disgust and left Kasey's room.
Shouts from downstairs drifted into the room. "Where are they?" a man's voice called out. "They aren't spending all day with that knight! If they expect me to pay them another Spur, they had best come back downstairs right now!"
Both serving women looked mournfully at the Church Knight, then excused themselves from the room.
"At least we have some room to breathe, now," Adria said as she licked the fingers on her hand. She reached for another pastry just as Eric, Sturm, and Rishala crowded into the room. Adria sniffed to herself. "Or maybe not."
Rishala spoke to Breanna. "We found out why the mayor ha' been missing. He's ill. The townspeople say he is too sick to get out of bed."
Breanna unfolded her legs and stood up. "Did they know what the illness was?"
Rishala shrugged. "I dinna ask. They said 'e's been ill for some time."
"Maybe I can help," Breanna said. She squeezed past the men. "Excuse me, please. I am going to check in on him."
Sturm stepped to one side as Eric backed into the hallway. Breanna walked briskly back to her room. Eric called out, "I'll go with you," as he followed her. She quickly came out of her room, her healer's pack slung over one shoulder.
Sturm followed the two down the stairs. Rishala watched them leave, then looked back at Kasey. Kasey grinned and picked up one of the muffins on his tray. He tossed it to the Caledonian. Rishala took a bite out of it and grinned.
"Did you find out anything else?" Adria asked.
"Aye," Rishala said after he took another bite of the muffin. "Sturm says the houses were nae more than a diversion. All of the smiths in town are missing."
"All of them?" Adria asked.
Rishala nodded. "They disappeared last night during the raid. Sturm thinks that was what the raid was about. I would have to agree with him."
"Why would orcs take smiths?" Kasey asked.
Rishala finished the muffin. "Eric mentioned last night that there have been no ore shipments from the mines for a month." Kasey nodded, not really remembering the discussion. "And we found the letter aboard the Sea Ghost that talked about cookware and chefs. I think the orcs may be doing something at the mines."
Kasey moved the tray to one side so he could get out of bed. "We need to do something," he said.
"Aye, but you need your rest, Sir Knight. Let's wait for everyone to get back here before we go charging the mines."
Kasey settled back against the wall. "You're right, I think. We'll wait for everyone to get back, then we'll go after the orcs."
Rishala sighed to himself and looked to Adria. The noble shrugged her shoulders, then left the room.
The mayor of Hillsdale lived in the largest house in town. The two story building, with its well-kept whitewashed walls, faced south towards the rolling forests a mile south of town. The gleaming walls and ornate scrollwork around the door alone were enough to set this house apart from the modest homes of Hillsdale. It looked like a minor noble's home from Londoun or another large metropolis.
Breanna knocked on the front door of the house, while Eric and Sturm stayed a few paces away, looking around. After a few moments, Breanna heard a clatter from the other side of the door. It opened, and a liveried servant peered at her. He wore a bright red shirt with black pants and a black vest. His short-cropped hair matched the dark vest, although his mustache showed a few flecks of gray. He regarded Breanna and her escorts for a moment. "Yes?"
"I heard the mayor is ill. I am an apothecary." Close enough to one, I think. "May I see him?"
A brief flash of hope crossed the servant's face, but it quickly was replaced with sadness. "Our apothecary was unable to help him or any of the others."
"Others?" Breanna asked, concerned.
"Yes, m'Lady. The mayor's brother took ill some months ago. A few of the mayor's friends took ill as well. The apothecary was confounded. Nothing he tried worked." The servant paused for a moment. "And, poor Ivixa..." His voice trailed off.
"Ivixa?"
The servant nodded. "The mayor's wife died but a few days ago. She was in terrible pain when she passed. Sawel could do nothing, even to ease her on her way."
"Please," Breanna said, now determined. "May I see the mayor?"
The servant stepped back from the doorway, admitting Breanna and the two men. He turned to Eric and Sturm. "Wait here, please." He turned back to Breanna. "Mayor Cassal's room is up the stairs. If you will follow me, m'Lady."
Breanna followed him up the stairs to the landing overlooking the entrance. The servant stopped at the first door on the landing and opened it. The stench of decay entered the hall. Breanna placed a hand over her mouth as she looked inside.
The mayor lay on a large, plush bed in the center of a well-appointed room. Bed covers almost encased him, leaving only his head exposed. His face was pale and waxen, and his features were sunken. His eyes appeared hollow. His breathing was shallow and ragged. With the sparse hair covering his head, the mayor looked the part of a rotting corpse.
Breanna kneeled beside the bed. "Mayor Cassal? I am Breanna Ceiturin. I want to try to help you."
The mayor turned his head towards her. His eyes were dull and glazed, and he struggled for a few moments to focus on her. When he started to speak, his voice was a thin, fragile sound that Breanna had to strain to hear.
"They say you can never walk so far into the darkness that you can not return to the light, yes?" He paused to breathe for a few moments. "I tried." His voice became stronger as he cried out, "Oh, Ivixa! Why you? Axransa should never have hurt you." His voice faded again. "It was all my doing..."
Cassal's eyes widened, and, for a moment, he looked lucid. He sat up, throwing the covers off and exposing his sweat-stained linens. The mayor clutched at his chest and gurgled. A look of stark terror twisted his gaunt visage into a parody of humanity as he collapsed back into the bed.
Breanna shouted to the servant. "Fetch some hot towels!" The servant froze, looking at the body of the mayor. "Help me!" Breanna insisted.
The servant stepped out of the door and shouted to others unseen in the household. He returned moments later with several steaming hot towels. He stopped at the foot of the bed, looking at Breanna as she sat on the edge of the bed, looking at Cassal. She glanced up at the servant and pointed impatiently at the foot of the bed, then turned her attentions back to the mayor. She channeled flows of Heka into the body, hoping to find any sign of life still lingering within the shell. The servant gingerly put the towels on the bed, then stepped back a few paces, still watching the young healer.
After a minute of trying unsuccessfully to find life in Cassal, Breanna leaned against the wall by the head of the bed. "I'm too late. I'm very sorry."
The servant looked at his master's twisted face, then met Breanna's gaze. "I can not say that I'm surprised. When the mayor learned that Ivixa had died, he seemed to give up."
Breanna picked up her bag. "If I would have been here sooner, I could have helped."
The servant shrugged. "Perhaps, m'Lady. Perhaps not. Sawel, our apothecary, tried everything he knew. The illness did not respond to any of his potions, and he was unable to comfort Cassal with any of his salves."
Breanna nodded to herself. "I need to return to my companions. They will want to know about this."
The servant nodded sadly and stood to one side. Breanna walked past him and out the door. Sturm and Eric knew the outcome as soon as they saw Breanna's expression. Breanna was particularly quiet on the walk back to the Hillsdale Inn.
Kasey finished the last of the sweetbreads on the platter. He looked up as one of the serving girls -- it was not Hafren, but the other one, the fair-haired woman -- entered Kasey's room. She stopped next to his bed and grinned sheepishly at him as she checked the full pitcher of water on the table next to his bed. She had checked the pitcher five times in the last half hour. Rishala, who was sitting on Eric's bed, stifled a chuckle.
Kasey smiled at her, showing dimples, as he tried to remember her name. Oh, yeah. "Ailen?" Her face flushed as her eyes met his. "Lass, I've not had a chance to drink from the pitcher yet." He lifted the empty platter. "Could you take this platter downstairs? My friend and I need to talk."
Ailen looked embarrassed. She took the platter and curtsied quickly before leaving Kasey's room. Rishala watched her go, eyes on her swaying hips. He chuckled to himself.
Breanna charged into the room, worried. Rishala straightened as he looked at her. "What's wrong, lass?"
"The mayor! He's dead." Breanna was breathing quickly. She stopped and gulped a couple of deep breaths to calm herself. "He said something about walking in the light, and someone shouldn't have hurt Ivixa, and he died!"
Rishala raised his hands. "Slow down, Breanna. Tell me everything. Don't leave anything out."
"Okay. I'll try." Breanna sat down next to Rishala on the bed just as Sturm and Eric entered the room. She started to relate the story, from when she arrived at the mayor's home until she left. Sturm or Eric occasionally interjected something, but they let her tell the story, since they had not been allowed to see the mayor. Breanna finished her narrative by repeating Cassal's final words.
After she finished, Sturm added, "It looks like someone wants to remove the leaders of the town." He paused, then elaborated. "The mayor is dead. Most of his friends -- the powerful people in town -- are either dead or dying of the same illness. The timing is just to convenient between the raid last night and the mayor's death today. I think we must go to the mines."
Kasey started to swing his legs out of bed. Breanna firmly put a hand on his chest. The knight paused as Breanna said, "Tomorrow. Give Kasey another day of rest and I'll be willing to let him travel again. Whatever is going on at the mines will still be happening tomorrow."
Back to the previous chapter: Interludes
Continue to the next chapter: Towers
Back to the Book I Index.
Back to the Dark Mysteries Campaign Chapter Index.
Second Draft 8 December 2001
Original Draft 19 November 2000
Contact for this page: JourneyMaster@BabylonByCandlelight.com