The Unwilling Aviator (Book 4) (9 page)

"Very brave of you, my boy," Ned commented. He patted the boy on the ground. Fred lost his muddy footing on the slick ground and his legs slipped out from under him. He crashed to the ground chin-first and sank into the muck. Ned chuckled, grabbed the young man by the back of the collar and helped him up. "You must be a bit more careful there, my apprentice. You are a very important part of this plan and we wouldn't want you hurt." Fred clutched onto the side of the inn and scowled at his master. Ned ignored the look and turned to Canto and Percy. "If you gentlemen would assist us then we may get out new companion safely upstairs through the back stairs."

Pat frowned. "How do you know there is a backstairs?" she asked him.

"You didn't think I was waiting here in the dark all this time merely to knock this poor fellow out?" Ned returned.

"I could believe such a thing," she grumbled.

"It so happens I inspected the area thoroughly, and since there are no more objections let us carry our friend back into the inn," Ned insisted.

Canto and Percy hefted the man's arms across their shoulders and followed Ned down the alley and around the right-hand corner. There was a single, decrepit back door with a half dozen steps leading up to the entrance. Ned opened that to reveal a rear hallway with a narrow stairwell to their right and a doorway farther down that led to the kitchen. They slunk inside, up the narrow stairs, and popped onto the second floor beside Percy and Canto's room. The pair dragged their captive around the corner into their room while the other four followed them inside. Ned closed the door and turned around to see Ruth grab a chair for their guest.

Percy and Canto sat him in it, and Percy looked to Ned. "You wouldn't happen to have-" Ned pulled a rope from his cloak and tossed it to them. Percy caught it and smiled. "Thanks." The pair tied Crash to the chair and stepped back to admire their work.

Percy set his hand on the dwarf's shoulder. "Admirable tying," he complimented him.

Canto smiled and shrugged. "Not a bad job if Ah do say so myself," he commented.

Pat stepped up beside Crash and turned to the others. "And how will you keep him like this? The tournament won't start for almost two days."

"But it's over in less than one. The actual tournament encompasses a single hour, and then we will release our friend," Ned told her.

"And until that hour comes?" she persisted.

Ned pulled a vial filled with dark liquid from his cloak. "This will keep him comfortable."

Pat nodded at the vial. "What is in there?"

"This vial is filled with venom from the valum snake in the Caston region," Ned replied. "The effect only lasts for four hours, but should anything happen to us and he's left to himself he won't starve to death. He can call for help when he awakens," he told her.

"How comforting," she grumbled.

Ned turned to Fred. "Now, my boy, what say we dress you for the part?"

"Um, no?" Fred replied.

Ned chuckled and stepped over to him. "Nonsense. This will be relatively painless."

Fred stepped back. "Why can't I use these clothes?"

Ned stepped toward him. "Those clothes are far too loose. You will be thrown off balance by the wind."

"Then I guess I can't go up," Fred insisted. Ned stepped toward him, and Fred's back hit the wall of the room.

Ned loomed over Fred and raised his staff. Fred cringed when the staff swung down and tapped him on the head. A bright beam of light swirled around and down him, and as it went it changed his clothes. Fred's eyes widened as he was clothed in a pink dress, complete with pink bow and slippers. The young man yelped and everyone in the room burst into laughter.

Canto came up and patted Ned on the shoulder. "Fine clothes for an aviator," he chuckled.

Ned frowned and rolled up his large, heavy sleeves which promptly rolled back down. "Must be getting rusty," he murmured. He thwacked Fred on the head, harder this time, and the light swirled around him. The dress was replaced by a tight, brown leather jacket over a snug white shirt and pants. His slippers became heavy brown boots. Ned raised an eyebrow. "White. . ." he muttered.

"Not a very practical color in this dusty environment," Percy agreed.

Ned shook his head, but pulled his staff close to him. "It will do."

Fred glanced down at himself. The costume wasn't as comfortable as his jacket, but it fit him. "Is this what all aviators wear?" he asked Ned.

"With slight variations," Ned replied.

Fred pulled open one side of his jacket and felt the interior. His eyes widened when his hand touched a pocket he couldn't see. "Is my other coat still here?" he wondered.

Ned chuckled. "Much like the magic that hid the stones, this outfit is merely a covering over your old clothes. All your clothes still reside just beneath the surface."

"If yer done dressing yer apprentice then why don't we get to enjoying ourselves before the stone tries to kill us? Yer fun with this fellow interrupted our dinner," Canto reminded them.

"I, too, would like a view of the city," Percy agreed. "The last city we visited was less-" Canto glared at him, "-entertaining because of the Helpers," he finished.

Canto nodded. "Aye, and these old bones need a good stretch through the streets," he agreed.

"We can't all go," Pat spoke up. She jerked a thumb towards their captive. "Someone needs to stay with Enburn."

"I will stay. These old bones have had enough jostling for one day," Ned spoke up.

"I will stay, too," Ruth offered.

Ned smiled, but shook his head. "No. We may know where the treasure and stone lay, but you need to practice your flying," he reminded her.

"The treasure? When'd ya learn that?" Canto asked him.

"A short while ago. It's located on the opposite end of the valley to the stone," Ned told him.

Percy smiled. "That makes this adventure rather boring. Now we need only win the stone for ourselves."

"Or steal it if Ned's plan to kill his apprentice doesn't work," Pat added.

Ned straightened and coughed. "Well, it's not fool proof, but we have begun other adventures with worse fortunes."

"That's enough talking for one night, and not nearly enough drinking," Canto protested. He looked to Percy. "Yer with me, and the rest of ya can follow."

Percy smirked. "Wanting the pleasure of my company?" he wondered.

"Nope. Wanting somebody to cover my back in case we get lucky and find ourselves in a fight, now let's get going," Canto replied. The dwarf strode out of the room.

Percy shrugged and turned to the others. "He is so eloquent with words that it seems I have no choice. Anyone care to join me?"

Pat shook her head. "I'll help Ruth find a way up the cliffs and see her off."

"There are stairs in the northern most point of the city. They lead up to the cliffs where the aviators spread their wings," Ned told her.

Percy bowed at the waist. "Then I wish you good hunting, and hopefully we all survive the night." He hurried after Canto.

Ned turned to Fred. "This will be the perfect opportunity for you to see the cliffs yourself, young aviator. No one but the stray tourist visits them at night."

Fred cringed. "I'd rather stay-"

"We would appreciate your company," Ruth interrupted him. He looked to her and she smiled in return.

Fred sighed and nodded. "When do we leave?"

"Right now. Ruth needs all the time she can get to practice," Pat spoke up.

CHAPTER 11

A few minutes later Pat, Fred, and Ruth stepped outside the inn and listened to the noises of the stone city. There were loud arguments, drunken singing, brawls, and that was just from the inn behind them.

Ruth looked to her two companions. "Who should lead us? I am afraid I am very lost in such a sprawling city."

"We just need to head north, so we'll follow the streets until we reach the stairs. It shouldn't be too hard," Pat pointed out.

While those three wound their way through the countless city blocks, Canto and Percy were already a half a city away exploring the nightlife. The streets were lined with torches strapped to poles above the heads of the crowds. There were not quite as many people as earlier in the day, but their boisterousness made up for the fewer voices. Drunken men and women staggered through the streets with their arms slung over one another's shoulders and singing off-tune. In the distance dogs howled in tune with the drunks, and between them no respectable person caught a wink of sleep.

Percy walked behind the experienced dwarf and looked around at the lit buildings with their doorways filled with beautiful women tempting them like mermaids to their seas of drink. Men jostled each other for the attentions of the women, and fights broke out so often that on every corner was a twinner at the ready to resolve disputes.

Percy leaned down to Canto's ear. "What adventure were we hoping to find?" he asked the dwarf.

"What fun is it if ya look for adventure? The adventure has to come to ya to be a real one," Canto countered.

"We may find more than we can handle here," Percy argued.

"Bah," Canto replied. His eyes fell on a large drinking establishment with a half dozen women standing on either side of the swinging doors. A grin slipped onto his whiskered face. "Let's start adventuring in there," he suggested, and marched over to that bar.

Percy sighed and shook his head, but followed behind his mentor in fun. Canto took a moment to admire the products outside, and then the pair walked through the doors into the smoke-filled establishment. A long bar sat at the far end of the left-hand wall and was crowded with society's castoffs, including dark-cloaked assassin types, pimps, gamblers, politicians, and slave traders. Between the door and the bar were four dozen tables crowded with more of the same, and all armed according to occupation. Some had daggers, others held axes stashed against their thick legs, and a few had sharpened cards made from metal that could be tossed like knives.

Canto strode through the mess of villainy and up to the bar. There was a little space left, enough for two people, but the two men on either side sneered at the dwarf. They slid together and shut off access to the bar. Canto stopped and glared at each of them. "Mind moving aside?" he asked them.

"Yep," one of them coolly replied.

Percy came up behind Canto and put his hand on the dwarf's shoulder. "Perhaps we could find a table," he suggested.

"His kind isn't allowed in here," one of the men at the bar yelled.

Percy raised an eyebrow. "His kind?" he repeated.

"Dwarves," another man spoke up. "We don't need them small people coming in here and swinging their blunt axes around the place."

Percy felt Canto stiffen and the dwarf brushed off his hand. "You might want to be rethinking yer words," Canto growled.

The men at the bar laughed, and the room behind Canto and Percy quieted. He was of slight build with the dark cloak of an assassin. "What's wrong, dwarf? Don't like being small?" jeered the first man.

"Ah don't care what ya call me, but no dwarf ever let his ax get blunt," Canto countered.

Percy set his hands back on the dwarf's shoulders. "Have you forgotten our roles as ambassadors?" he whispered to his short friend.

Canto shrugged him off again and glared at the bar men. "Ya can keep being an ambassador, but Ah've had enough of that mess."

"Too
short
of patience for diplomacy?" another man spoke up. That got a round of laughs from the men, but the insulter didn't get to finish his guffaw before the bottom of an ax handle slammed up into his lower jaw. The man's head whipped back and he fell backwards into a crowd of his friends who dropped him to the floor in surprise.

Canto gripped his upside-down ax in his hand and his eyes swept over the menacing group. "Anyone want to see if my ax is blunt?" he challenged them. Many of the men stepped forward and brought out their assortment of weapons.

Percy backed up against Canto's back, pulled his sword from its scabbard, and glanced over his shoulder at his short companion. "Was this wise?" he asked him.

Canto smirked and swung his ax so the blade was on top. "Nope, but we'll have a little fun," he replied.

In the north of the city their three younger friends had their own troubles with the natives. Pat led the way through the crowded, bustling streets and they found themselves in a marketplace. Stalls with tarps over their wooden tables were set up along a long, narrow street. In front of and behind the tables vendors hawked their wares of beautiful paintings, fine pottery, and stinking fish. Pat stopped at the opening to the market and glanced at her companions. "Don't make eye contact with the peddlers. It only encourages them," she warned them.

"Encourages them to do what?" Fred asked her.

"Peddle. Now let's get through this as quickly as possible without losing what little gold we have left after Ned's insanity," she insisted.