The Merchant and the Menace (33 page)

The old Elf deftly produced a small sack from the
folds of his riding cloak and tossed it to Hindle. The young man caught it and
from its weight and feel knew immediately it was filled with gold coin. He
shook his head vigorously and walked back toward Teeg.

“I can’t accept this in good conscience,” said
Hindle holding the sack toward Teeg. “I didn’t earn it.”

“I never said you earned it, my boy!” laughed Teeg.
“But you will.”

“Pardon?” questioned Hindle.

“You’re a bright young man full of initiative and
honesty. Just the sort of lad deserving of a benefactor, don’t you agree?”
asked Teeg.

“Well, I ...uh..” stammered Hindle.

“Exactly! This town requires a skilled, and might I
say sober, artisan to supply them with their forged goods. Master Boon hasn’t
provided this service for some time. The only quality work to come out of his
shop is yours, my boy. Therefore, certain powers are determined that you be
given every opportunity to advance yourself.”

Upon hearing “certain powers”, Hindle glanced at
Ader. Kael wondered what Teeg was up to. Hindle’s eyes narrowed and he smiled.

“And what must I do in return?” asked Hindle.

“Why nothing, my boy. Absolutely nothing. Simply
offer the quality goods and services this community requires to grow and prosper,”
smiled Teeg and he paused. “.... and maybe a few other chores.”

“Such as?”

Teeg’s smile and flippant manner disappeared.

“Continue to keep your keen eyes open. Merely what
you do now. Observe. Maybe a bit of conjecture. Ask some innocent questions
during the course of a conversation. Remember what you learn. Lastly, report
that information to me.”

Hindle became as serious as the old Elf.

“These things I can do, and would do for my crown.
But I know naught of you, Lord Elf, and though your companion’s ring tells me
he is of the royal Elven house, he is no master of mine. Why should I do these
things?” asked Hindle.

“Because this ring asks it of you,” came the reply
from beyond Teeg.

The young man looked past the Elf to see Manfir
sitting on the back of his giant black warhorse. His hand clasped a chain hung
about his neck. Dangling from the end of the silver chain was a large ring.
Hindle inspected it from a distance and smiled.

“My prince calls me to do his bidding and I will
obey,” said Hindle bowing once more.

“You may never face an Ulrog pack, master
blacksmith, but when you do the things Lord Teeg asked of you, you serve as
well as any Guardian of the realm. An army does not support itself. All who
serve are heroes,” stated Manfir.

The village stirred as the group stood in growing
sunlight.

“What of Master Boon?” asked Hindle. “He works me
hard, but pays the wage agreed on and teaches me a skill. He was once a fine
craftsman.”

“Master Boon is a good man,” said Teeg. “He simply
loses sight of what life is about. Once you establish business, he will need
employ. No doubt the townsfolk will come to you over him. Try to help him if
you may, but remember, you are the master now.”

Hindle’s face remained serious and he bowed to Teeg
in acknowledgment. Teeg turned to Ader and Manfir.

“I will hold here a moment while you move on. I
have further instructions for our young friend. He’ll need an effective way to
transport his information. The town wakes and we must depart before too many
eyes fix on our strange troop,” said Teeg.

Manfir nodded and turned the midnight stallion down
the road.

“Fare you well, Master Hindle,” called the Zodrian
prince over his shoulder.

The horses trod slowly through the city as shutters
swung open. Townsfolk moved into the street and called greetings to one
another. Several heads turned and followed the progression of riders. Some of
the inhabitants called out greetings to the weary travelers, and others
narrowed their eyes and stared.

“Any increase in our speed merely calls attention
to us,” said Manfir. “So many men pass through this town lately that five more
will be of no account.”

“Perhaps not my friend, but I’m sure the presence
of an Elf is a rarity,” returned Eidyn as he smiled at a pair of scruffy boys
shadowing the troop.

The boys laughed and ran ahead of the riders
throwing a tightly wrapped ball of cloth back and forth. Kael smiled at the
memory of he and Aemmon doing the exact same thing through the streets of
Kelky. Only a few years ago, when he and Aemmon were the age these boys were,
Kael caught a tongue lashing for spooking the mounts in the stable with such a
ball. When Kael looked over to Ader, he noticed the old man fidgeting on
Tarader’s back. Perhaps it really was difficult for the Seraph to ride bareback
constantly. Kael turned his gaze back up the road and saw one of the boys
standing against the outer wall of a not too distant building. When their gaze
met, the boy instantly disappeared behind the wall.

Kael longed to be that boy’s age again. A few
chores and obligations to meet sometime during the day then freedom and no
worries. He feared he might never attain that freedom again.

“We’re almost through the town. Let’s pick up the
pace in order to reach the walls of Ymril this day,” said Ader. “The further
north we move the riskier it is to spend the evening outside city gates.”

Manfir nodded his assent and gently tapped his
heels into the black stallion’s sides. The big horse snorted and began a light
trot. The remainder of the party did the same and the group moved on in a slow
rolling cantor. They reached the edge of the town and departed as the blue sky
filled with the gray smoke of morning cook fires.

Manfir led them north for several hours. The cool
breezes of the morning disappeared and were replaced by the beating midday sun.
As they crested a small hill Eidyn called ahead to Manfir.

“Perhaps we should hold here a moment.”

The big man reined in the black stallion, and gazed
back south. After a few moments, Teeg came into view. The troop waited for his
arrival. Kael realized they abandoned Granu and didn’t make plans to reunite
with the Keltaran prince. Surely they outpaced him. Teeg’s stallion jogged up
the hill.

“How fare you, my lord?” asked Eidyn.

The old Elf’s usual smug smile crossed his face.

“Quite well. What a remarkable young man is our new
blacksmith. As clever as any man I’ve met. Explain it to him once and he
understands. What a find in the tiny village of Quay. I’ve instructed him to
contact my cousin, Lord Paerrow, with his reports.”

“An excellent choice,” stated Ader.

“Yes. He volunteered to oversee my affairs while I
am away,” replied Teeg. “Master Hindle will provide Lord Paerrow with crucial
information concerning this whole area.”

“That is good, Lord Teeg,” said Manfir. “Now that
you rejoin us, I may increase our speed. We’ll need to rest the horses shortly,
then make a push for Ymril by nightfall.”

“What of Prince Granu?” asked Kael. “With his
injury he’ll never catch us.”

“If he doesn’t rejoin us, he doesn’t rejoin us. I
do not care,” stated Manfir.

“Don’t worry about Granu,” whispered Ader to Kael. 
“He’s quite a remarkable young man himself.”

The group formed up once more and set off north.
Manfir increased the pace and the horses worked up a lather. Manfir kept the
group at this speed for nearly an hour. As the road wound up out of a small
ravine, the riders faced a long flat plane. In the distance, Kael spied a slow
moving cart heading in the same direction. As they came closer, Kael noticed a
single man driving it.

When the group came within fifty yards of the cart,
the driver reined in his horse and pulled to the side of the road. He was short
and powerfully built, the only hair on his shorn head curled in a bushy black
mustache under his nose. He wore a heavy flowing brown robe and leather gloves
covered his hands. Sweat ran down his shiny bald scalp. As the group crept
closer, the driver’s hand slipped inside his cloak and the other rose in
greeting.

“Good day to you, gentlemen,” called the stranger.
“How fare you this fine day?”

“Excellent, good sir,” called Teeg. “And yourself?”

Kael noticed that Ader and Manfir always deferred
to the elder Elf in these matters. Teeg possessed a way of disarming people.
They immediately became talkative around the old Elf.

“A good deal better if I might escape this heat,”
said the trader running a glove over his shiny bald scalp.

“Ah. The sun is unusually hot today,” said Teeg
“But at least her presence keeps bandits from the road.”

“Aye, that’s true,” nodded the trader. “What brings
an Elf lord to this north bound road?”

“On my king’s business I’m afraid. No lord here,”
said Teeg pointing to himself. “Just a tired old messenger heading to Zodra
with correspondence for King Macin. My son and I were lucky to be able to join
these militiamen heading that way. Safety in numbers you know.”

Kael shot a glance at Eidyn, who smiled innocuously
at the trader. The family ring was gone from his hand and his military garb
replaced by a simple cloak and trousers.

“Tis good advice, my friend. These are troubled
times and news of late concerns me. I wish this old nag could keep up with your
fine mounts. I find comfort in your company.”

“Fear not, my good man,” smiled Teeg. “We rode hard
for a good bulk of the day and our mounts require a respite. We need to water
and feed them near the next brook. We shall do the same to ourselves then move
on toward Ymril. If you’re truly inclined, you should join us. What news
troubles you so?”

“Keltaran. Roaming freely in Zodrian territory,”
exclaimed the trader. “That troubles me. The giant brutes overran several of
the western villages, slaughtering all who oppose them. The stories are too
brutal to repeat. My hands quake at the idea of it.”

“Keltaran you say? Down from the mountains and in
the western wood?” asked Manfir eyeing Ader.

“Worse than that Master ....?”

“Rin,” replied the Zodrian prince, then turned and
pointed at Ader, “and my father, Jasper. We travel from Kelky in the South to
serve with our two attendants in the army of our king.”

“Well, your help is needed, Master Rin. All the
king’s men must heed his call. Even your father may be put to some good use,”
said the trader.

Ader scowled deeply but quickly recovered and
addressed the trader.

“Whatever his kind majesty requires of me,” said
Ader in a feeble voice. “Are you called up as well Master ...?”

“Tepi. I’m Tepi from Cagson. And no, I’m not
called. His majesty understands the important service traders provide to the
public,” stated Tepi with his chest puffed out. “With the war escalating,
shortages of food and goods grow. We help alleviate the pressure on the
citizenry by servicing those needs. I travel from Quay, where I delivered
necessary food and supplies.”

“You mentioned trouble worse than Keltaran roaming
the western wood,” said Teeg. “How so?”

“We usually face those abominations lurking along
the borderlands,” stated Tepi. “But they become so bold as to ride out onto the
breaks and prairies of our great land, attacking villages deep in our own
territory. I wager this road itself is no longer safe from them.”

“Surely the king dispatches units from the Guard to
protect the road?” questioned Manfir.

“None can be spared. Ulrog packs flock from the
Northern Wastes and hammer our borders. Without constant reinforcement, the
Ulrog will push out of the mountains. At least these are the stories I hear,”
said Tepi.

“What of the tribes of the Eru plains?” asked
Eidyn. “They’re allied to the Zodrian Guard.”

“Ah, the horsemen are few and far between. They
come when their lands are threatened. Even then, they simply move their herds
deeper into their own territory to protect them,” said Tepi.

This time, Eidyn and Manfir’s eyes met. Kael noted
the deep concern shared by the men, and the sharp-eyed Tepi noticed it as well.

“I don’t give counsel where it’s not requested,”
said the sweating bald man to Manfir. “But four more militia men and a pair of
Elves won’t make a difference in this conflict. You appear to be level headed
gentlemen. Save yourselves and return to your homes in the South. The king
won’t miss you, and your aged father can finish his days in a rocking chair as
opposed to under the edge of a Keltaran battle-ax.”

Ader’s face grew red and he smiled at the trader.

“That may be the way to save ourselves from the
bloodshed now,” said Ader with disdain. “But what of the future. In my
short
time left
, the Ulrog may not advance to Kelky, but what of the lives of
these two young men? Do we run now only to see the enemy eventually arrive on
our doorstep?”

Tepi smiled dismissively at Ader, and turned to
Manfir.