Ch: 25 Twist or Squeeze

Port Fallon was a good sized city, perhaps ninety thousand souls. It bustled and hummed like any big town. Carters dragging or driving their loads across cobblestones set up a terrible din, while hawkers yodeled, sang and screeched their wares.

 

The hammers and saws were non stop, whether repairs, construction or crafting, they were constant and inescapable. Scattered through the ward were the bars and taverns, seedy was the general vibe. 

 

The first brown tiled house they passed had half naked men and women dangling or cavorting in every window. Gary was unsure as to the aromas in play, beyond that any of his companions who stepped out of his ring’s range, quickly found their way back in.

 

The brown roofed houses all had charming and evocative names, ‘The House of Evening Flowers’ or ‘The Garden of Whispers’. The ‘Brown Rose’ was very specific in its clientele. 

“We are being followed.” Gary whispered from his cart.

 

“How dae ye know, is it a gift?” Shai whispered back.

 

“No, they have one of my instruments, I feel it.” Gary was thumping a steady but quiet beat from under his blankets, tracing a thread of his gift from his tiny drum to the instrument. “They are almost here…Dante? Yuzef?” He asked.

 

The two boatmen stepped forward, in their shearling coats and colorful sashes.

“This one begs your forgiveness, unworthy Yuzef pilfered from you before we departed.” He said, holding a parlor sized guitar out with one hand, and one of Yuzef’s earrings in the other. With each syllable he gave the earring a subtle tug drawing a muffled yelp from his victim.

 

“This unworthy apologizes, this one left one bronze and three copper halves on your counter.” The younger man said softly. Too softly apparently, Dante did something unpleasant with the earring, if Yuzef’s yelp was any measure.

 

“This unworthy now understands that a deal must be struck, before action can be taken.” He bowed low, though it was hard to tell how much was humility and how much was earring.

“I found that coin lying there, I dropped it in the cash box in the kitchen.” Becky chimed in. “Gary is always leaving money lying around.”

 

“Hey,” He groaned, “I’m running a business here not some sort of money exchanging… shut up!” He grumbled at Becky, while reaching out from his cart to gently free Yusef’s ear. “We are all friends here, no harm. I give away and trade more than I ever sell anyway.”

 

The two cousins smiled in relief. “Esperanza was most put out at the breach of etiquette. She threatened to ground Yuzef unless we gained your forgiveness.”

They fell in with the troupe as they walked, or in Gary’s case trundled. “Are you unwell Gary?” Yusef asked.

 

“I disagreed with something I ate.” He said with a smile. “I should be fine in a few days. So no grounding for Yuzef?”

 

Dante looked grim at that. “Yes, he will not be abandoned outside the city to beg.”

 

“Oh, guy! Where is Esperanza? Is the boat near?” Gary asked, working on almost sitting up. Which is to say, he moved a little.

 

“Esperanza will not bring the boat into the city. We trade at the docks and then continue our journey.” He leaned closer and said softly; “Port Fallon has many pleasure houses and other difficulties… she may not approach safely.”

“You guys are headed to Port Ellis after, right? We will see you on the way I hope.” Gary called as they nodded and waved, before going on about their trading. 

The inner city housed all the temples, bureaucracy and wealthy quarters. Access was controlled by three gates. The Sun Gate, leading to the noble quarter, was reserved for the wealthy and their higher retainers only. The Trade gate, leading to the bureaucrats ward and the Temple gate were open to all during the day but sealed at eighth bell.

 

There was a gate into the noble’s ward in the temple district; it too was guarded and restricted. 

Nazer and Levin split off at the Temple gate while the others continued on to Trade.

Past the craft halls and in the depths of the ward they found it.

 

The Adventurer’s compound was much like the one in Wheatford, save that it had functional gates and was busy as an ant hill. Red clad figures streamed in and out constantly.

 

Khan led the group confidently up to the administration building and inside.

“We have barracks space,” The red robed clerk said. “It’s simple, just a roof and walls.”

 

“How about an open plot in the compound?” Dannyl asked, hope blooming on his face.

 

“Camping and temporary structures are not allowed in the town or it’s environs.” He said, sounding bored.

 

The Bathers escaped the crowded compound and retreated into the craft ward, Gary’s dog cart continuing to draw eyes if not questions. “Find an inn? Or camp outside town? I feel like I could give this place a miss.” He asked the group

 

“Inn.” Tawny said. “I have some business in town tomorrow morning and would rather not travel to and fro.” 

They wandered the noisy and crowded streets for more than an hour searching for space in the crowded town. Gary’s dog cart spent time parked outside every inn the market and craft wards held, all full.

Down in the dock ward the only inn with enough space for them was the Rotted Oar. It’s aroma gave the innkeeper’s promise of “clean rooms” the lie.

With deep regrets they returned to the Adventurer’s compound and signed in at the desk. 

The freestanding barracks was slightly better than advertised, it had four walls, a roof, and a floor! They also had a small iron stove and a pail of charcoal.  

They settled into one of a dozen or so low, square wooden buildings. Each was painted white, with a small wooden plaque in a different shape and color. Yellow square was not much, but it was home for the night.

 

Annie was posing difficulties, since the stable was full and not up to her standards, according to Khan. “Why doesn't she stay here with us?” Gary asked weakly. “There's room.”

 

The Bathers all stared at him in confusion. “She's a horse, Gary. Do you remember that Annie is a horse?” Tawny asked softly, peering at his eyes and feeling the pulse in his throat.

 

“She’s no more a horse than Otho is a dog.” Gary grumped, visibly sagging from the effort. He caught Shai’s eye, while struggling to stay awake. “I have a bunch of pillows and bedding in my-...” 

It was interesting to watch all his friends suddenly get so much taller… the floor was more comfy anyway, when the lights finally went out he could sleep.

The bathers stood over their once more, unconscious friend and considered. “I hate to admit it… he makes a good point.” Tallum rumbled. 

 

“It's a cold night, these walls are thin and she is a very warm body.” Ivy said with finality.

 

“A horse indoors…” Tawny murmured. “Even asleep, Gary brings chaos and the strange.”

Annie was enthusiastic about the idea, doing little hopping kicks and stamping her hooves in demure joy. It was all very refined.

 

Tawny seemed unsure as Annie stepped gracefully through the door. These buildings were used as warehouses as well so at least the door was wide and high.

 

As the massive creature entered, the room did feel warmer, more homey. The warmth, the smell of hay and her placid aura filled the space like a hug.

Shai was pawing at Gary’s still form like a badger digging a new den. Pillows, blankets, campaign furniture, sweaters and winter clothing of all types came tumbling out of the musician’s backside as Shai dug around. The boy was a treasure trove of small comforts and minor joys.

 

Ivy took Tallum and Gary’s dog cart down to the market ward and returned with a bale of fine, end of summer hay, and two bales of straw. The supplies for the humans took up far less space, but were received with joy.

 

“Beef!” Becky danced with happiness as she unpacked Ivy’s loot. “Crawdaddie is good, but I really wanted something else! Thanks Ivy.”

 

“Tea, coffee, flour and sugar, some dried vegetables and meat.” Ivy announced. “I got a keg of beer and a few bottles of wine too. In case we have to play host again.”

 

While the shoppers were away, the others had set up a cozy home with the contents of Gary. They had a camp table and a few chairs, innumerable pillows and blankets and Gary’s cot and bedroll. That came as a welcome surprise to Shai, and was a source of obvious envy for the rest of the group.

 

Gary had already been tucked in and was gone for the night. Annie, seeing a good idea and being an intelligent creature, grabbed a bale of straw and dragged it with her teeth into a corner. 

 

Within moments she had kicked it into a cozy nest and settled in with a long slow sigh of pleasure. Otho joined her, taking a brief roll in the straw for funzies before making his own nest.

 

Tawny approached Shai, holding another three finger wad of flaky white pollen. “How long dae ye plan tae dose us wi this?”

 

“Until Gary can stand for more than a few minutes and you stop thrashing in your sleep as though someone were sewing your insides back together.”

 

As she tucked Shai in with her musician, Tawny kissed them each lightly. “I worry for you two.” Was all she said, before putting Shai’s lights out with her wand.  

 

The pair were dead to the world, the horse and dog were sacked out too, creating a sleepy vibe that slowly conquered  the entire room. When only Tawny and Khan seemed awake, they sat by the stove talking into the night.

 

#

 

Liam’s insides roiled, making him feel ill and angry. Watching Tawny chat so intimately with the suave older man was torture. He rolled to the other side, coming face to face with Ivy and Tallum. they snuggled together, smiling blissfully in their dreams, that was annoying. Finally he slid between the dog and horse, finding a bed for himself that would be free from distractions.

 

#

 

Shai woke as the crew was getting ready to head out on their errands. 

 

Liam, Tallum and Tawny were headed to the temple of Healer. Tawny had some things to deliver for the Wheatford temple, and expected to receive a bundle for the Port Ellis temple.

 

Several of Gary’s silly songs mentioned a ‘postman’. He claimed that there was an army of men and women who made a living delivering parcels across his entire world. The poor boy was so strange. She smiled, reflecting on her new family and enjoying Liam’s steady presence at her elbow.

 

#

 

It had been a long night, Tawny and Khan had whispered  together for only an hour or so, but the effects lasted far longer. His mind had been churning over partial sentences and chance heard words ever since. He stomped along in a haze of disappointment with himself and general dislike for Khan.

 

Liam noticed her small smile, the one he never saw anymore and it gutted him. That night dancing with her, before he showed up, still played in his dreams whenever he could manage to sleep. 

 

Swaying and drifting across the dance floor while his family played around them… Liam had never felt so free and light. Resuming those burdens when Khan’s knock came to the door was a terrible blow.

 

Helping Tawny put Gary back together was the first time Liam had seen her at work in earnest. She had been cool and calm as a frozen lake, while moving so quickly at her tasks he could only marvel. 

 

He had found himself holding Gary’s left kidney in his hands for a good five minutes while she stitched. Her hands flew through that mess of hideous meat, like two beautiful golden fish swimming in a bucket of offal.

 

The impossibly delicate work came together in a horrid mess of blood, bowels and pond swill that still churned his stomach. The sight had caused Tallum to faint entirely, creating even more concern until Ivy confirmed the big man was ok.

 

Shai had simply stood in place for a moment before collapsing in a dead faint as well. Liam had never seen her stand still before. That was the most concerning thing, she had been off ever since, flipping between quiet and manic.

 

“They will recover, Liam.” Tawny whispered in his ear, as though she had read his thoughts. Her warm breath cast a faint mist that almost felt like a kiss. “Their bond will help them pass this trial, as will ours.”

 

#

 

It was good to see Liam smile again, even on a crowded street in a smelly and unpleasant town. Tawny treasured each of the brief moments of joy she could pry out of her dour and unhappy man.

 

#

Tallum took the lead on the busy streets, his massive form cutting a path for the others to follow. He had been playing that role so long he never really thought about it any more, it just happened. 

 

Shai was always scolding him about the ‘wee folk’, how looking out for the others was his responsibility. They were the same age, but she always felt so much older, wiser. Lately though, she seemed worn through and battered.

 

That was the worst of it. His mistake almost cost him two of the most important people in his life. The two who understood that a person who does not speak much, still needs to be heard.

 

#

 

Almost seven feet of towering, red haired, armored thunderstorm swept down the street. Clearing a path for the elegant veiled priestess and her striking companion. A path that several enterprising ladies fell into, marching in the giant’s wake for the convenience of it.

 

In a town like Wheatford, everyone knew someone who knew any other person you could possibly mention. 

 

As a result, Wheatford’s gossip engine was eerily precise when it came to the players in the dramas they spun. Those aged folks who linger on their stoops watching and chatting, created the primary entertainment for the whole town.

 

In Port Fallon, characters came and went, drifting in and out of the scene seemingly at random. Since no one knew anyone who knew everyone, accuracy took a distant second place to creativity and scandal. 

 

Yeah, it was complicated like that.

 

When Mabel Fishwife, the baker, told Evylyn Monrae the seamstress, who told Hubert Grand the brewer about the new nobles in town masquerading as Adventurers, it had just enough truth to start a firestorm.

 

“They came to town accompanied by minstrels and a baggage train six carts long.” Glenn Seward whispered confidentially, from behind the bar at the Lace Garter. 

 

“...They sent it all away at the gate to keep their secret…”

 

“... she is a baroness, doomed to a loveless marriage of state, she fled with her lover and her bodyguard of loyal warriors…”

 

It was the one in the strange dog drawn cart that fueled the most extravagant speculation.

 

“... a secret envoy from across the inland sea…’

 

“...Come seeking the lost treasure of…”

 

“...cursed to a wasting sickness that can only be cured by…”

Ivy, Dannyl and Becky were in the market ward, stocking up for the journey. For some reason Otho’s dog cart was drawing eyes even more than it had the afternoon before.

 

Looking around, there were other dog carts, some even drawn by familiars as unusual as Otho, though none featured a paint job like theirs. 

 

People kept trying to peek inside; children, teens, adults, even the elderly, would not let them shop in peace. Ivy wound up detailing Dannyl to guard the cart while she and Becky shopped.

 

When they returned with their parcels, Dannyl looked flustered. “Two girls came by flirting with me, but they really just wanted to know what the words on the cart said.” He grumbled. 

 

“And then some man slipped me a copper mark and said there was more where that came from if I answer his questions.” He grinned. “I gave his coin to a beggar child and he got swarmed.”

 

“I don’t like this town, let’s get outta here.” Becky said. “I just saw Levin, he glared at me like I kicked his dog.” Ivy’s eyebrows nearly hit her nose as her face wadded up in displeasure. “Let’s get back.”

 

#

 

The sound of another note slipping under the door barely even annoyed Khan at this point. The gossip mongers had already sewn together a crazy quilt of conspiracy, plot and romance.

 

Just the few missives he had read, because they were addressed to him, spelled out a narrative of grand and confusing scope. In one night and half a day the town had created a fever dream. 

 

The plot elements from at least four major stage plays had been lifted whole cloth. They were incorporated into a wild story of tragedy, forbidden love, lost magics from the past and hidden forces both divine and unclean, moving behind the scenes.

 

When he left the barracks to visit an old subordinate, Adventurer Kileen Maus, she told a tale even more fantastic.

 

“…the man swears to the gods, that a magic brothel appeared in the woods. Then a ‘pervert boy whore who can produce knives and clubs from nowhere’, attacked and chased him for miles through the forest.” She laughed as she told the tale. “Says he nearly died… and the priestess of Healer…” She giggled even harder. “turned him in to Order… for whoring, cause it’s illegal there!”

 

“That’s amusing… this man must be a loon…” Khan said, laughing awkwardly and recalling a tale told to him in a magic inn not long ago. “Who was this spinner of tall tales?” He asked mildly.

 

“Some wandering vagabond trading stories for ale on the road. Who knows.” She said, winking at him. “If drunken stories are what you want, we could go carousing like the old days… but now I’m not under your command.” She almost purred.

 

“Sadly, we depart at midday, though if you find yourself in Wheatford…” He trailed off, letting her come to her own conclusions. 

 

She was not a beautiful woman by any measure, her face was scarred by acid across the right side leaving bare, stippled skin. She owned the mark by having it tattooed into an image of some imagined celestial body, a  pockmarked moon bearing the faint image of a leaping rabbit, by a preternaturally skilled artisan. 

 

Now, in profile she was a striking and exotic figure on the right and a mature and handsome woman on the left.

 

“Come, join me there Luna, we can start a group, like old times, but I’ll be under your command.” His smile spread slowly as he felt her feigned resistance weaken. “This town stinks, and you deserve better. We deserve better.” 

 

He leaned in for the clincher. “Annie found a place she likes, she wants to live in Wheatford.” He said, pulling a small winter apple from his coat and offering it on his palm.

 

She eyed it suspiciously, making dramatic expressions to contort her tattoo in amusing ways. “That’s a pretty weak apple. I feel like Annie would have been better prepared.”

 

“She has faith in my charms and thought anything more would be excessive.” He huffed in mock outrage.

 

“Fortunately, my self esteem is in tatters, due to a years long impossible romance… it’s too, too tragic, don’t ask. So I came prepared…” From another pocket he plucked a round fruit, with a green spiky top and small golden scales. 

 

He bounced it on his palm casually. “A friend of mine grows these. He's a strange kid, has a band of his own passing through town.”

 

Her eyes fixed on the fruit, watching it hungrily. “I haven’t seen a grenadier pear since the dandelion wine festival six summers ago… when you asked me to marry you. The first time.”

 

“I was planning on coming for you in the spring, as we planned. A friend suggested that I act now. She is very wise in these matters.” He said softly. “She said the wisest advice she ever heard was from a very great fool.”

 

“Ohh?” Luna breathed, standing too close to avoid touching. “What were the wise words from a fool?”

 

“The fool said; ‘Grab life by the ballsack and twist freindo, cause it won’t wait for you.’ my dear.” 

 

He dropped to one knee and whispered tenderly. “I am just a man, grabbing a ballsack and wondering whether to squeeze or twist.” He looked up at her with tears gathering in his eyes. 

 

“I will tell this story at our wedding you fool.” She said, Her single eye welling with unshed tears.

 

“My friend will help write our vows, for such a truly great fool, he is a fine poet and philosopher. You should come meet my new friends and run away with me.” He pulled her close and spoke softly, his face buried in her shoulder.

 

“I thought you were running away with me, because I am running away with Annie. I’m still a little hurt that she did not come.” She sulked even as she gathered the loops of two large duffle bags in her hands. 

 

“Your landlord is a man of limited vision and little romance, thus, Annie is waiting with my friends.” Khan muttered with comic woe.

 

“Then I shall need a beast of burden to carry my baggage. I packed my gear, when I heard that Imran Khan had come skulking back into town.” She draped a bag over his shoulder and hefted one herself. “Away?”

 

“Away we go.” He said through a smile that threatened to eat his mustache.

 

They arrived at the barracks and found sir Brennan Fallon attempting to smooth talk his way past Shai with no success. 

 

“He be injured an unconscious, ye dinna ken him and hae no need tae go in. I would fain tell his lordship tae begone…”

 

“Sir Brennan…If you get past mistress Shai, you will find Annie inside.” Khan sang cheerfully.

 

“You keep your horse in your barracks? That is despicable.” The knight muttered, but he stopped trying to get in. 

 

Ivy and her shoppers clattered up at that point, further complicating the game. “I will visit again, at a more opportune time then. My best wishes for a speedy recovery.” He said smoothly, withdrawing as though nothing had occurred.

“Aye that one means nae good.” Shai muttered when he was gone. When her eyes fell on Luna, she started for a moment. “Khan, ye do hae company?”

 

Luna’s hair was dark brown and lustrous, though it only covered the left half of her scalp. Her acid scarred features had been wrought into a marvelous vision of a three quarter moon. Each crater and mark had been picked out in frightening detail. The marks and craters resolved into a leaping rabbit, if you looked just so.

 

She had one pale blue eye and the other covered by a slim leather patch tied on with a braided silk band. She was dressed in good leather, similar to Hanna’s work. There  was a cased bow on her back and a spear propped on her shoulder

 

“Yes, I see Tawny and the others, let’s wait and go inside together.” Khan said, looking a little worried. “We will make introductions then.”

 

#

Khan’s friends were among the strangest groups she had ever encountered. Individually they were each unusual, together as a unit they boggled description.

 

A dutchess heir, traveling under a penitent’s veil. That tradition demanded that no preference for rank or nobility be shown to the wearer, until the veil was removed. It essentially declared her a peasant of the lowest class in rank. Woe betide the person who forced her to surrender the veil and wield her titles.

 

A red haired journeyman smith girl of the lowest common rank seemed to be in charge. She was a half civilized hill woman at that. Luna could scarcely imagine what might drive a journeyman smith into an Adventurer’s life, even a savage from the hills.

 

 The one she would have expected to lead was a short dark haired young man with the bearing of nobility and the most extraordinary panoply. Yet he presented himself as a simple peasant, an orphan no less.

 

Another hillman was next, though this one was huge even by that tribe’s standards and another journeyman smith, stranger still. This one at least was civilized.

 

Next was a lovely blond commoner, with the brightest piercing blue eyes. She claimed to be a mage and an orphan. Who ever heard of an orphan mage? She had a giant dog familiar, so perhaps.

 

There was a slender boy, pale and red haired, but small and quick. He carried some odd weapon on his back and a guitar in his hand almost constantly. He seemed strangely driven but otherwise ordinary. That is what made him stick out in Luna’s mind.

 

Last was a tiny dark skinned wisp of a girl, Luna doubted she was old enough to have her moons yet, never mind become an Adventurer, yet her badge was there, worn proudly beside a well worn and serviceable rapier. 

 

An invalid in the corner was strictly off limits, guarded by the savage smith woman named Shai.

 

“I am Killeen Maus, journeyman Adventurer and proud owner of Imran Khan, call me Luna.” She swept a complicated bow and smiled winningly. “I will be tagging along and abusing your legendary hospitality. At least until we reach Wheatford and Khan makes an honest woman of me.”

 

The little band welcomed her in readily. Though the atmosphere became strained whenever she mentioned, or came near the blanket wrapped bundle in the corner.

 

Once introductions were done they silently began packing up, displaying an almost eerie teamwork. They started by thickly padding the dog cart with the numerous blankets in the room. Ever so gently, the giant moved their pet invalid into the cart.

 

They began bringing things from the room to the savage redhead woman, who stuffed the objects carelessly into the cart on top of the injured person. 

 

Pillows, more blankets, camp chairs, a gods damned bale of hay that must weigh as much as a good sized man! They just kept handing her goods and she stuffed them in somehow.

 

“Dimensional gift? That is rare! Why use the cart though?” Luna asked quietly.

 

“Shush love, not my tale to tell. They will afflict you with it soon enough I’m sure.” He grinned and kissed her excitedly. “Then you will know much less than you do right now. Enjoy the feeling while it lasts.”

Somehow the contents of the room, including an additional bale and a half of straw fit in that dog cart with the sickly man. The whole group was in motion by noon, with the slender young girl sweeping up the floor as they left. The precision of the operation was impressive.

At the inner gate a few eyebrows raised and a runner scampered off, but they were not slowed. 

At the outer gate to the dock ward they were halted, just as Tawny drew a lacy white veil fully in front of her face and raised her hood.

 

“Pray travelers, stop for a moment.” A very polite guard corporal said, raising his hand rather than barring their way with his spear. “His lordship requests that you guest with him at the castle this evening.”

 

Liam stepped up, armored save for his mask, with his spear held comfortably at his shoulder. “You must be mistaken, we are simple Adventurers, our business is done and we are off into the wilds.”

 

“No My lord, this is the group.” The young corporal said. Beginning to sweat through his armor.

 

Liam smiled kindly at the man and asked so sweetly. “To whom is this invitation addressed?” 

 

The corporal coughed and stood straight. “To the Lady Trelawny Belen, Dutchess Heir to Wheatford and Surrounds.” He almost sang, he had practiced.

 

Liam paused, and slowly looked over the group of friends. “The Lady Trelawny Belen, Dutchess Heir to Wheatford? She is certainly not here, we are but simple folk. Crafters and warriors seeking fortune.”

 

“Yes my lord.. and yet…” He began, only to be cut off by Liam.

 

“That lady is renowned across the land as the greatest beauty, I should certainly not hide the fact were she in my company. Cease your japes and let us pass as is the law.” Liam said, no longer friendly.

 

Brennan Fallon came trotting up, hair askew and coat only half buttoned. He ignored the corporal and keyed in on the dog cart. 

 

He rode up near them from behind, calling out; “Lady Trelawny, My Uncle the baron wishes to guest your party at…”

 

Brennan was already kicking himself for not recognizing her at that insane house, now here she was under the damned veil. His uncle would have him digging latrines on a frontier outpost already if he had another viable heir. Now he had to dance on a knife’s edge. 

 

“My apologies, some fool thought a notable personage was passing through.” He glared daggers at the corporal, just because he was there and thought fast. 

 

“Corporal, search this dog cart for contraband. I believe I smell redleaf in the vicinity.” He smiled serenely. “Wait, I will help you since I am here.” He said dismounting and approaching the cart. 

 

The smith bristled like an angry badger when he approached, but the small one in armor held her back. He stuck his head over the rim of the cart and found, not much. 

 

A pile of bedding, and a man swathed in bandages from collar to hips, he tugged the bedding and bandages away to be certain. That elicited a growl from somewhere in the group. 

 

He wasn’t even remarkable, unremarkable in fact. This was the most boring and uninteresting near corpse he had ever encountered. As he examined the nearlifeless mess he caught the faint whiff of purefaction. If not for the faint twitching of the thing’s right hand, toying with some ring, he would assume it was as good as dead.

 

“Be sure to bury that correctly, don’t want it dug up and dragged into the dock ward.” He complained, dropping the bedding back down.

 

An hour later, he realized there might have been something going on with that wretch in the cart. ‘No, impossible.’ He thought, dismissing that nagging idea.

“An we encounter that man in the wilds, it shall be a perilous time.” The smith woman snarled, she radiated her rage as a palpable field of heat.  

 

The tiny girl hugged her as they walked, it was touching. Luna could tell it was only a little bit for the raging blaze the woman was emitting into the cold day.

 

Still the smith never strayed from that cart. Luna never heard or saw movement within, yet the woman never checked on her charge.

 

They continued on the road until long after Khan would ordinarily have called a camp, on the advice of the impressive small warrior.

 

At sundown, just as she was about to scold Khan for making them set camp in the dark, they halted. Tawny (not the duchess heir she reminded herself), Shai the smith and the small one, Liam were consulting quietly by the cart.

 

“Is he still out?” Liam asked

 

“Aye, mostly. We dinae let him marinate long enough, twas bad judgment on mine part.” Shai said, in her upcountry brogue.

 

“Can you do it alone?” Tawny asked.

 

“An I kinnae, we sleep cold this night.” She replied cryptically.

 

The others withdrew as the smith pulled out a violin and began to play. The woman wore an elaborate net of bells and chimes around her hips, they had been an amusing distraction all day. Almost as though her jingling chimes made the miles fly by faster.

 

 As she played, the bells at her hips, a silly affectation that had been entertaining, began to chime in harmony with her instrument. 

 

Luna was entranced, gone was the crude and brusque blacksmith, this creature floated across the meadow as a moonlit dream. The song was simple, one of the common airs played on market days by local musicians. Perhaps that very familiarity made it so profound… 

 

When the mist cleared from her eyes, there was a gods damned inn standing where the meadow was a moment before.

 

“Khaaan!” She shouted. “I had planned to marry you, keep you around for a while and kill you mercifully some bright morning…” She was stomping his way with fury on her face. 

 

“You are unworthy of that mercy, I will kill you, animate your corpse, marry that, then bury you in…” Khan swept her up and kissed her deeply while she kicked him in the shins.

 

Once the rest of the crew was inside, including the invalid, Khan carried her over the threshold, it was corny and sweet, like the man himself.

 

When they were settled she eyed her man and growled. “What are we in the middle of?”

 

Khan looked to the smith woman of all people, waited for her nod and began a story.

 

“This house is the product of two special young people, they come as a pair. One is an orphan who will be indentured. This makes everyone sad.” They all nodded as one, that was creepy.

 

Khan continued on, never the less. “We are going to screw that up, with legal shenanigans and tomfoolery. That will make everyone happy.” They all nodded again. “Each member of the group has a similar nut to crack, so we will be working together on that.” 

He looked around the group and received polite applause.

 

“Thank you, I have been working on that all day.” He said to his audience.

 

“So Shai, the woman, who is the other?” Luna asked.

 

“You haven’t met him yet, he’s not well.” Khan said, eying the mostly dead form and hoping for a miracle. 

 

“Too bad Miracle Max died last winter. That old mage knew his way around a pill press.”