Outcasts of Velrune (6 page)

Tyco stood and walked over to his bedroll. He lay down and quickly went to sleep. Eve rolled over onto her back, so as not to squish Spook, and soon fell asleep herself. Max shook his head and heard a soft chuckle from Mr. Penna.

“I don’t understand her, Mr. Penna.”

“Nor will you ever, Maxwell, not completely. Do not worry though. It is more important that you try, not so much that you actually do. Over the next couple of weeks you must remember that.”

Max shook his head again. “I don’t understand you either. Do you ever just say what you mean?”

Mr. Penna rocked back, slapping his knee and laughing. “There are times you are so much like your father, Maxwell.”

Mr. Penna faced out into the open plains and grew somber. “I believe Mrs. Tassi has put her trust in the right person.”

Max wondered what Mrs. Tassi had to do with the conversation. “What?”

Mr. Penna cleared his throat as he shook off the thought. “Tyco is right, Maxwell. We will need our rest. Get to sleep.”

Max sighed. He knew he wouldn’t get any more information. He flopped down on the ground and fell asleep. Dreams of cats and mice playing together all across Velrune filled his night.

The next morning, the four repacked their gear with Spook supervising from atop Eve’s shoulder. Max mounted Starlight and bent to help Eve up behind him. He noticed at once that she now wore a pink band around her neck. It was about a half inch in width and had a small pink stone set in the front.

“I’ve never seen you wear that before.”

Eve crossed her arms. “Mrs. Tassi gave it to me before we left. It’s popular to wear them in Moenia.”

Max looked at it with some amusement. “If you say so.”

To Max, the band resembled a collar you would find on someone’s pet. The stone looked smooth and seemed to give off a very faint glow unlike anything Max had previously seen. Eve’s crossed arms, however, warned him to drop the subject. He helped her on the horse.

The landscape changed little as they rode north, so Max grew excited when in the afternoon he spotted a line of trees that spanned the horizon.

“Finally, we’re getting somewhere.”

In response, Max heard the familiar, dry, voice Mr. Pennas used in his classes.

“That would be the river Clanrye. The Clanrye starts as a spring in the mountains to the far northeast. Several springs empty into it as it winds down the mountains and across the plains. It then flows over the cliffs and into the dead lands, sustaining the camps below. We will be crossing it shortly before the dropoff as the trail down lies on the other side.”

Max rolled his eyes. “You really do plan on stuffing me with as much information as possible on this trip, don’t you?”

Mr. Penna laughed. “There is always something to be learned, Maxwell.”

The four soon reached the edge of the river. Tyco scanned the bank.

“There should be a ferry somewhere near here that we can use to cross.”

Eve stared nervously at the rushing water and moaned. “A ferry? I was sure I remembered crossing over on a bridge.”

Tyco looked back at Eve. “You most likely crossed at Hedgewood. Unfortunately, that is almost a four day ride to the east.” A grin formed on his face. “We’ll understand if you’re too frightened to cross and continue with us.”

Eve’s eyes stayed fixed on the river as it cascaded down the steep slopes not far to their left. She gave a slight quiver. She really didn’t like Tyco.

“No, I’m going.”

Max twisted around on the horse.

“When did you cross the river, Eve?”

Eve’s voice was distant. “Back when Mr. and Mrs. Tassi brought me to Swiftwater.”

The grin left Tyco’s face and he started riding towards the east. “Let’s head up the river a bit. The crossing shouldn’t be far.”

Max tried to question Eve further, but he could not draw her attention. Before long, they came to a dock with a large winch. On the far side of the river, Max spotted the ferry. Tyco nodded towards it.

“There it is on the other side. We’ll have to pull it back using the winch.”

Tyco dismounted Teak, walked over to the winch and began to turn the attached wheel. Everyone else, except Eve, got off of the horses. She turned to Mr. Penna.

“Um, just how wide is the river?”

Mr. Penna answered without hesitation. “Three hundred and twenty feet; give or take a few feet.”

“A-and how deep?”

“Twenty-five feet in the center.”

Tyco looked up from the winch, that unpleasant grin back.

“Sure you want to go with us Eve? If you’re not careful you might end up going for a swim. Well, I guess lacarnians don’t swim, do they?”

Mr. Penna turned to Eve.

“Don’t worry, Evangeline, a properly weighted ferry is very safe. You will be fine.”

Max reached out and helped Eve off of Starlight. “Yeah Eve, don’t worry. I personally have no intention of going for a swim, so I won’t let you either.”

Eve slid off the horse. She wondered if Tyco came this way on purpose just to try and make her turn back. She shivered again as the small ferry reached the dock.

“That looks awfully small for all of us and the horses to fit on.”

Tyco inspected the ferry. “Well, it was built to only carry two riders and their horses. We’ll need to make two trips. Mr. Penna and I will take Teak and the mare. The ferry is made so you can pull it along the ropes strung over the river. Once we are across, Max, you will have to use the winch to bring it back. When you and Starlight are on, Mr. Penna and I will use the winch on the other side to pull you over.”

Eve crossed her arms “And me.”

“We’ll see.” Tyco grabbed Teak’s reins and led him onto the ferry.

Mr. Penna sighed. “You will be fine, Evangeline.” He led the mare on to the ferry and together he and Tyco began to pull it across the river.

Max watched them cross. “It sure is a lot bigger than the Swiftwater River at home, and a good bit deeper too.”

Eve’s voice cracked. “Yep.”

Max grimaced.
That was a stupid thing to say.

Eve stood trembling, her tail tight in her hands. Max gently took hold of her arm. “You’ve worked hard on your swimming. You’ve gotten pretty good at it.”

“Yeah, but the water in the Swiftwater is only chest deep, and I wasn’t even in the river, it was a small pool off to the side.”

Max let go of Eve’s arm and laughed. “And yet you still almost managed to drown me.”

Eve stared down at her feet and mumbled. “I’m sorry.”

Max wondered what else might be bothering Eve. It was unlike her to be so nervous. He remembered the first time she waded into the little pool by the Swiftwater River. She had shaken with fright, but had still made jokes. Now she stood silently with her head hung low.

Max didn’t know what else he could say, so he remained quiet for the next several minutes. A shout from across the river brought him back to the present. He faced the far bank and saw that Tyco and Mr. Penna had reached it. They signaled him to bring the ferry back across.

Max stepped up to the wheel for the winch. “Come on, Eve, our turn.”

Together they worked the winch to pull the ferry back over to their side. Max led Starlight on to it then turned to check on Eve. Her trembling had resumed. She stood firmly on the edge of the bank.

Max tried to reassure her. “You’ll be fine, Eve.”

“May...Maybe...I…I should just go home.”

Max scratched his head then tried a different tactic.

“I suppose it would be less of a hassle if you did. I’d get into a lot less trouble, and it would certainly be nice not to have to worry about getting pounced on every time I walked by a dark corner.”

Eve’s shaking subsided a little. “You would get into plenty of trouble by yourself. I’m the one always getting you out of it.”

A wry smile crept onto Max’s face. “If that’s the case, you sure have a funny way of doing it. I think you’re confused on what helping means.”

That did it. The fire in Eve’s eyes flared up.

“Maybe I should stay here, and you can get out of your own trouble then.”

“Maybe so, but I’ve got a better idea. Why don’t you let me help you get across this river and show you how you’re supposed to get someone out of trouble? Then, just maybe, I’ll let you come along and see if you can do any better.”

Eve turned her nose up. “I…I suppose we could try that instead.”

“Alright then.”

Max stepped off the ferry and walked over to Eve. She didn’t look as scared, but he could still feel her trembling when he took her hand. Eve, tail in hand, tightly wrapped her other arm around Max’s waist. Together they walked to the ferry where they boarded, moving opposite of Starlight. Max sat down with Eve, her grip around him even tighter.

“Now then, all we have to do is let Tyco and Mr. Penna do all the work while we take a nice ride across.”

“Kay.”

Eve sat stone still the breadth of the river, not making the slightest peep. The ferry soon reached the dock on the other side where Max guided Eve off the ferry. Once on the shore she stopped shaking. Her tail, badly ruffled where she had held it, waved back and forth behind her once more.

Tyco and Mr. Penna had already mounted their horses. Max let go of Eve and went back for Starlight. He led her off the ferry and climbed into the saddle. Mr. Penna gave Eve the pleasant smile he reserved only for her.

“For a minute there, Evangeline, I did not think you were going to be joining us.”

Eve smiled back. “For a moment, I wasn’t sure either.”

Eve turned and looked at the path that led down into the dead lands. One last shiver ran down her as she thought about what lie ahead.

Well, I’ve come this far, and I’m not going back across that river again. Might as well see what happens next.
She took a deep breath, held it for a second, then let it out.

“Well, let’s get going.”

Without any further hesitation, Eve walked west towards the narrow path that led over the cliff wall. The quick change caught Max off guard. She reached the edge of the path without him realizing it.

“Don’t you want to ride, Eve?”

Eve paused and looked back over her shoulder. “Sorry, I can’t now.”

Why do I even try to understand her?
“What do you mean you can’t?”

Mr. Penna cleared his throat. “The path up ahead is narrow and somewhat steep. It would be too dangerous for both of you to be on the horse.”

Eve smiled at Mr. Penna. “Thanks Mr. Penna, but it’s okay.” She faced Max and crossed her arms. “I’m not allowed to ride horses.” She did an about face and continued down the path.

“Huh? Not allowed? But you rode this far.”

Tyco grunted. “lacarna are not allowed to ride horses. Unfortunately, there are not enough Protectors to enforce the laws on this side of the dead lands.” The smirk reformed on Tyco’s face. “There will be in the camps though. She’ll have to abide by the law from here on in.” Tyco nudged Teak and started down the path.

Max turned to Mr. Penna. “There’s actually a law that she can’t ride a horse? Why?”

Mr. Penna sounded rather disgusted. “You will soon find out there are several laws concerning the lacarna. Few for which I can find a good reason. Perhaps it is something you can inquire of the Protectors once you meet them in Moenia. They are the ones responsible for most of them, after all.”

With that Mr. Penna urged his horse after the others, leaving Max with all kinds of questions.
Can’t anyone give a straight answer?

Max nudged Starlight to follow Mr. Penna.
I guess I’ll find out for myself soon enough.

CHAPTER SIX

The narrow path into the dead lands forced the group to travel in single file. Eve led the procession, finding the steep, crumbling trail of little concern. The rest kept to themselves, their focus on every step their horses took down the zig-zagging path. They reached the bottom just as the last few rays of sunlight faded from the sky.

Before them lay the first encampment. A low stone wall curved out from the cliff face to surround the camp, providing a boundary from the dead lands beyond. At its center, a large bonfire blazed high, illuminating three poorly made stone buildings positioned equal distance from the flames. At the far edge of the fire’s light stood several rickety wooden shacks.

Mr. Penna leaned over to Max. “The building next to the cliff wall is the inn. The one closest to us, the stable. The third is the guardhouse.”

“It’s a lot bigger than I expected.”

“It has the towns of Hedgwood and Pike to support it.”

“What are the wooden shacks?”

“Peddlers built them. They sell last minute supplies to those who are about to cross the dead lands. Their goods are rather expensive in order to take advantage of forgetful travelers. That is why I made sure we had everything we needed before leaving Swiftwater.”