They all carried weapons of some kind, swords, axes, pitchforks, hammers, and they were screaming loudly as they charged towards the procession of Wolves, immediately attacking them and the Guild members with extreme ferocity.
The Wolf Guard, surprised by the sudden attack, lost a few soldiers from the initial onslaught, but quickly regrouped and began fighting back against the attackers in a coordinated fashion.
Distracted by the sudden ambush, David’s two guards forgot their guard duty and took up their weapons, jumping into the action.
David tried to run, but his chains were securely fastened to the back of a cart that was filled with supplies for the trip north.
He pulled with all of his might, but the chains wouldn’t budge.
Suddenly, two of the warriors came rushing towards David with their weapons raised.
David threw up his hands to prepare for the attack, only to hear a loud metallic ring and the sound of the chains dropping to the ground. He could feel the weight of the chains drop from the bands around his arms.
He opened his eyes and saw the two warriors standing before him, urging him to follow them before rushing into the alleyway and away from the skirmish. David, startled but recognizing a chance when he has one, saw that his chains had been cut and bolted after the two men.
He ran with all of his might, eager more than ever to get away from the scene of the fighting and, more importantly, Bloodvayne.
He cut corners after the two men who were still rushing through the narrow corridors between the rundown shacks. They clearly knew where they were going and weren’t wasting any time getting there.
Exhausted, he pushed on, afraid of losing sight of the two men until finally they disappeared down an alley to his right just before what seemed to be a dead end.
When he turned into the alley, the men were there waiting for him. One of them grabbed David while the other pulled a cloth bag over his head. He tried to resist, but in the struggle, he fell and hit his head against something hard before everything went black.
Chapter XXVI
Erin and Tyrius had been riding through the wilderness nearly nonstop since they had left the outskirts of the Forest of Immortals, stopping only when necessary to rest the horses to prevent them from becoming too exhausted and keeling over, and to take short rests for themselves so they could continue on their search for David.
It had been a long journey, but they finally reached the crest of one of the hills just outside the great desert city of Brineport. They could see the sprawling port in the distance with dozens of white sails moving up and down the river, and the winding dusty road leading up to the main entrance of the city.
The city was built mostly of sandstone and clay bricks, being located in the hot, dry climate of the Southern Lowlands. The only reprieve from the constant heat was the long winding river that snaked down the Draconian Mountains from the north and into the South Sea a few hundred miles to the south. It gave the city a cooler feel than the surrounding areas and allowed a wide swath of vegetation along its banks that wouldn’t grow anywhere else in the region.
The river, apart from the obvious relief from the sun, was also the city’s lifeline to the abundant natural resources of the sea – fish, crab, shrimp, and of course, sea salt. It was once the most trafficked trade route of the Southern Kingdom, having a direct route from Brineport to Ashmire and the Southern Tunnel that led through the mountains to the Northern Kingdom.
Erin and Tyrius shared a quick look of determination before urging their steeds onward. They galloped for a little over an hour, heading down the hills and through the flatlands before reaching the outer slums of the city.
The sun was high in the sky by the time they reached the first of the buildings, and the heatwaves could be seen rising from the scorched ground like ripples through the air. They quickly found an inn where they could tie off their horses and get them some water at a trough, while cooling off and getting some refreshments of their own at the bar inside.
As they entered the dusty tavern and their eyes adjusted, they quickly found a couple small stools near the bar and took a seat, ordering a set of light-colored ales from the bartender as they did so.
He gave them a quick look down before shaking his head and passing them a pint each and walking to the other end of the bar to converse with some of the locals. The ales were refreshing, with a hint of zesty fruit that neither Tyrius nor Erin had tasted before.
“I don’t like the looks of this place,” said Erin, eyeballing the crowd around them who seemed to be glancing their way frequently and whispering under their breath.
“Me neither, but that heat is just unbearable, and the horses needed a rest as much as we did.” replied Tyrius, wiping the sweat off his forehead with his sleeve.
“Where do you think they’re holding David?” asked Erin, “It’s been several days since he was taken from us. I fear we don’t have much time to waste.” she said, worry in her voice as she glanced nervously around the room for any signs of trouble.
“I know, child, I know. I fear for him too, but trust in the Creator God. His blessing is on our side, we will find David.” replied Tyrius determinedly.
“Yeah…” replied Erin, looking down at her mug not as convinced, “Do you really think so?” she asked, glancing up at her mentor and friend.
“I do, child. Now, finish your drink and let’s get back to our search. Something tells me we are headed in the right direction.” said Tyrius.
When they finished their drinks and left payment for the bartender, they exited the building and returned to their horses. A woman was standing by Erin’s horse, whispering softy to the animal, and tenderly brushing its long white mane with her fingers.
When she saw the two of them approach, she smiled kindly and asked where they had found such beautiful animals.
“They were gifts to us, and only borrowed” replied Erin, smiling in turn.
“I see…” said the woman, “Where are you heading? Do you have shelter for the night?” she asked.
Erin and Tyrius exchanged looks before Tyrius answered her, “We are just passing through, looking for a friend of ours who may have come this way. Have you seen a boy, roughly her age?” asked Tyrius, gesturing towards Erin. “He would have had a brown tunic on, with dark brown shaggy hair and fair skin that had the cares of a traveler worn from a long journey.”
“Hmm…you know, I think I may have seen him. He came through here just this morning. Would you like me to bring you to him?” asked the lady eagerly.
Erin and Tyrius eagerly agreed, feeling fortune had finally come their way but remaining skeptical in case it was some kind of trap. One could never be too careful in the city, Tyrius knew that much.
They followed the woman through the dusty streets of the city for several minutes before they reached the part of town that was clearly where the poor took up residence. The buildings were poorly built, made up of a variety of materials that were probably just found lying around. They looked as if a strong gust of wind would knock them down, some even leaning dangerously far, but somehow still stood tall.
Two men suddenly came out from behind one of the side alleys and stopped the woman in her tracks.
“Missy, Missy…up to no good today, are you?” asked one of the men.
“I don’t know what you mean.” she replied, smiling, and glancing nervously back at Tyrius and Erin who were both now on edge.
“You know exactly what we mean. Now get out of our territory before we send you back home with a reminder of what happens to traitors such as yourself” threatened the man.
Missy grunted in disgust and spit at his feet before she turned and quickly ran past Tyrius and Erin headed back the way they came.
The man shook his head as if he were disappointed before addressing Tyrius and Erin.
“Sorry about that. Missy’s one of the folks who’s loyal to the Guild. She lures unsuspecting travelers such as yourself into a secluded area where members o
f the Guild are waiting to ambush them and throw in prison. But not until they get what they can from them. You’re lucky we saw her when we did.” he said.
Tyrius and Erin looked at the man skeptically, they didn’t know what to believe at this point. For all they knew, he could be one of the Guild himself, and this could all be a part of their tricks.
“The name’s Kal, and this here is Ty. We’re part of the resistance.” he said, holding out his hand for Tyrius and Erin to shake.
They each shared a look of caution before taking his hand in turns and asking him if either of them had seen a boy matching David’s description come through these parts recently.
As soon as they described David, both men shared an equal look of understanding before getting really excited.
“You two must be the friends he’s been talking about!” said Ty, nodding his head enthusiastically.
“Come on, we’ll lead you to him! He’s not far from here, actually.” agreed Kal.
The two men led them through a series of interconnected alleys before they came to a section that crisscrossed through the center of the makeshift slums, before stopping as they reached a plain looking building made of sandstone with a red clay roof and a wooden door. The door was composed of several wooden planks that had been nailed together to make a panel, and it was placed unevenly on its hinges.
Ty knocked on the door three times, then opened the door and walked in, urging them to follow.
When they entered the small building and their eyes adjusted to the dimmer light, Erin’s heart almost leapt with joy.
There in the corner of the room, seated at a small table, was David.
He hadn’t seen her yet, as his head was resting on the top of the table with a wet cloth over his neck.
She couldn’t hold in her excitement and rushed over to the table, only for the men around the table to quickly jump up with their weapons drawn, pointing towards Erin in a threatening gesture.
“Easy does it!” said one of the men towards the front.
With the commotion of the men jumping up and the swords being drawn, David lifted his head to see what had suddenly caused all the excitement.
When his eyes found Erin he nearly jumped from the bench and knocked over the table, startling the men around him.
He quickly urged them to put down their swords and ran over to Erin, embracing her in an enormous hug, lifting her off the ground and spinning her in a circle.
When he finally put her down and let her go, he held her at arm’s length to make sure it was really her, then pulled her in for a passionate kiss.
Finally, Tyrius had to gently remind David of his manners, loudly clearing his throat in the process, to which David pulled back from Erin, smiling sheepishly.
“Sorry, Tyrius.” he said, ears beet red. “I’m just so happy to see you both!”
“No need to apologize, David. I’m just as happy as you are!” said Tyrius, smiling. “How did you get away from Jakob?” he asked as they picked up the fallen table and sat down, two of the men giving up their seats for Erin and Tyrius to sit.
“These men rescued me.” said David, looking around the room at the men seated beside him. “When I was thrown in prison, after I had been taken here by Jakob Zander, I met a man named Riyan who was also being held prisoner there. He found out who I was and that I possessed the Orb of Power, and that night while I slept he told his crew through the bars of his prison window of the Wolf Guard’s plan to lead me out of the city the next morning. They set up an ambush and the next morning when I was being led through the slums, they rushed us from all sides. It was enough to provide a distraction long enough to free me from my chains and lead me away from the fight.
“When I caught up to the men who led me away, they tried to cover my face so they could take me to their headquarters and question me without revealing the location of their headquarters, to make sure I was indeed who Riyan said I was, but I fought back not knowing what was going on. In the struggle, I knocked my head against the wall and when I woke up, I was here!” he said, holding up his arms.
“Thank you all, truly. You’ve done an incredible service to us all!” said Tyrius, looking around the room at the men and women who were now standing throughout the small building.
They were a rough looking bunch of people, but they seemed to be good natured and honest.
“They need our help, Erin.” said David as the room finally quieted down. “They’ve been oppressed by the Southern Wolf Guard and the local Guild for a long time. That’s why they helped me escape – they think I can make a difference in their fight for freedom. That I can be a beacon of hope that will inspire the locals to rebel.” said David, the men and women in the room all nodding in agreement.
Seeing the look on Erin and Tyrius’ face as David revealed the news, Kal spoke up.
“We heard about his powers, how they are being blocked. We don’t need him to fight, we just need him to be seen, so the people can see that he is on our side and he is here to help them claim their victory. The legend of the bearer of the Orb is one that our people have been told for generations. If the people knew we had David on our side, we think that is all they will need to become inspired enough to fight back against the Guild and Wolf Guard and bring us victory. If even just half of the population fought back, the Wolf Guard and Guild would be outnumbered by far.” he said.
Tyrius looked at David and the others before responding, “David, I understand you want to help these people, but we have a greater mission than this that is at stake. We have to get you to the Crystal Caverns to awaken your powers so you can stop the Defiant One. We can’t afford to put that on hold, no matter what the circumstance. We’ve already been delayed long enough as it is. You know this…” he said, sadly.
“Look, I understand that…I do. But these people need me, and right now, I am in a position to help them. I can’t turn my back on them now, not after all they’ve risked to free me.” said David, his jaw set and a look of determination in his eyes.
“Please…” he added, grabbing Erin’s hands in his own.
Erin looked over at Tyrius and shrugged, smiling.
Tyrius let out a long sigh and after a moment of silence and much internal debating, finally caved in and agreed to help in whatever way they could.
If they were going to inspire a rebellion without sacrificing too much time from David’s main quest, they would need to get started immediately and had no time to spare.
They spent the rest of the day plotting out their course of action.
They determined that in order to get the message around they would need to send out small groups of rebels to infiltrate the population and spread the word quietly that the warrior from legend had come to free them from their oppression. In addition, David would reveal himself to small, isolated groups of the strongest believers. His appearance would reinforce the rumors going around town that the bearer of the Orb had in fact arrived to lead them out of bondage, and the news would spread throughout the city like wildfire.
It was important that they remain careful with who they reveal the information to, as it would be unwise to try to solicit those who were loyal to the Guild or the Wolf Guard – as some, hard to believe as it was, were happy with the way things were being run.
For some, the reduced crime due to the fear of retribution was enough to keep them content. For others, it was the increased business they earned from being located close to the headquarters in the central part of the city where most of the wealthy people took up residence to have their voices heard by the Guild and the Wolf Guard as well as to remain under their protection.
If any of these people were to find out about their plot, and the knowledge that they had David still hidden within the city, they would certainly go running to the Wolf Guard and Guild in order to betray their cause in hopes for a sizeable reward.
Once they decided what they needed to do to spread the word to as many people as they could without risking being ex
posed, they started to plan their uprising.
“How long do you think you will need to gather enough people to make a large enough force?” asked Tyrius, ever conscious of their main task and how it was being delayed.
“It should only take a day or two max. Word spreads quickly in the slums, we are all living so closely and have a very interconnected network used for spreading information – mostly for keeping everyone informed of important events happening in the city that may affect us, or when there is a group of Guild members or Wolf Guard headed our way causing trouble – that way we can always stay ahead of their moves.” replied one of the leaders named Natan.
Like most of the men and women in Brineport, he was dark skinned, with bright eyes and short, jet black hair. He was roughly middle aged and thin, but healthy, his muscles cut like chiseled rock from a lifetime of manual labor on the docks moving supplies to and from the fishermen to the storehouses for salting.
People in Natan’s status were never allowed on the boats – they were only for the wealthy. They were the ones who owned and manned the ships, taking them out to sea for long expeditions and bringing back their catch of thousands of fish and, sometimes, whale.
It was a lucrative business, as it supplied the majority of the meat to the city, and those who controlled the food supply, controlled the wealth. The first of the selections would always go to the Wolf Guard, then to the Guild members, before reaching the owners and their friends and families. Finally, the last of the scraps, and always the worst quality, went to the slums.
Like most of the population, Natan had been born and raised in the slums and lost his parents in a similar uprising when he was young, forcing him to live off the streets and depend on the care and help of the community around him to survive.
David Bishop and the Mystic of Creation Page 20