Fixing her saber that was attached to her saddle, Mary waved her hand and the group carried on.
As the cart passed by him, the guard caught the newcomer’s gaze and froze, sure that he was looking in the eyes of a demon. But the moment he blinked, all he saw was a smiling young man waving goodbye to him.
Ash watched as the poor guard nearly ran to the messengers, the travelers delivering messages to any known place in the world. Some considered them to be the most notorious of Ternites, because of no one faced as many dangers on the road as they did due to oftentimes carrying bags full of valuable items and documents to far off lands. Ash could only imagine how expensive their services could be.
“No wonder.”He chuckled to himself. “One must always take care of their skin first.”
The group soon reached the Mystra Road, which was lined with knights. The king, having learned of what Vane had done, decided to secure the roads. Ash looked away, unable to directly stare at the shine of the brilliant steel. He never liked it.
Going along the wide road, the travelers would often meet their friends and engage in conversation. Some boasted of a lucrative business, others how they managed to swindle someone for the coin, and some shared their future plans. Sometimes, you could see lonely riders with satchels and sacks of all sizes and content strapped to their saddles, as well as detachments of soldiers. If you’re lucky, you can even run into a Guild, a unit so huge that it could easily hold within itself around two hundred Ternites.
At any other time of the year, these people would be going to various lands on their business, but right now, they were all heading to the same place — the Blacksnake Hollow. It was here that these monsters, a cross between a chicken, snake, and a toad, had made their home.
“Mary!” someone called from behind her.
Ash almost fell off the cart in surprise. From around the corner came a whole cavalry, on the head of which was its gloomy-looking commander in heavy armor adorned with gold. To his right was his lieutenant, and to the left his adjutant, carrying a banner depicting a golden roaring lion devouring a star. There was hardly anyone who never saw this coat of arms, as it belonged to the strongest Guild on this side of the Continent — the Mad Lions. Or just Mad, for short.
“Eric!” Mary smiled at her old friend.
Chapter 12
D espite his nickname, Eric the Arrogant was all but arrogant, so many wondered why he even had got that name. But what everyone did know was that Eric participated in the Zek’nir Necropolis campaign in which, despite suffering major losses, he defeated the Great Litch. As these creatures were equal to power to the higher demons, it was no wonder that Eric’s name soon found its place in ballads, and became an inspiration to many young paladins.
Having reached the group, Eric shook hands with Mary and smiled.
“Tul!” He nodded to the archer. “Blackbeard, Lari, and, of course, lovely Alice.”
Blushing a deep red, the girl lowered her gaze and continued fiddling with her wand.
“And...?”
“Ash!” the young man exclaimed joyfully. “Nice to meet you!”
Eric nodded and, raising an eyebrow, turned his gaze to Mary, who just rolled her eyes and waved her hand as if trying to say that he shouldn’t bother asking.
“Where are you headed this time?” Eric asked, flashing a pearly-white smile.“Ah, a secret, isn’t it?” he asked, seeing Mary’s smile. The girl didn’t utter a word.
“As for us, we are heading to explore the Valley,” Eric added.
“You have no intention of leaving anything to the loners this year either, do you?” Mary asked.
“Who knows? For the right price, everything is possible...”
“By the way, have you read my letter?”
“Of course I did.” If by “reading,” one meant “tossing the unopened envelope into the fire.”
“So? What did you decide?”
“I’m sorry, Eric. You’re on your own. We never joined guilds,” she replied regretfully.
After a moment of silence, Eric put on his helmet.
“A storm’s coming, Mary. You’ll regret not accepting shelter.”
With those words, he spurred his horse and rushed off, rising a cloud of dust. The rest of his companions hurried to follow him.
When they disappeared from sight, Mary spat and shuddered as if she had seen something disgusting in front of her.
“Bastard,” she hissed.
“I’ll challenge him to a duel one day, mark my words,” Lari said.
“Tired of living, are you, Lari? You do know that he has probably honed his skills to perfection by now. Who knows, perhaps he has reached the rank of a Master... Maybe one of the Dozens will be summoned soon...”
“He’s a big wig, that’s for sure, but he can’t do shit without his mutts.”
“You underestimate him,” Tul intervened. “An underestimated enemy is the most dangerous one.”
“Dangerous or not, his letters are annoying me.” Mary grimaced.
“And yet you keep driving him away,” Alice squeaked. “Go on a date with him once, no one’s asking you to sign a contract or anything.”
“That’s exactly what they’re asking,” Mary retorted. “If I go on a date with him, rumors will begin to spread. That’s the last thing we want.”
The group fell silent, which greatly bothered Ash. He had never been a fan of silence and did his best to avoid it.
“I’ll fight with him if you want!” he exclaimed. “I’ll be the wiener, you’ll see... Wait... Wiener? No... Winner! That’s the one!”
The rest of the group members burst out laughing. Alice’s laugh sounded the sweetest, akin to the chime of bells on the wind. Ash liked her laugh so much that he was ready to make a fool out of himself on a regular basis just to hear it again. He was also glad that he had managed to make Mary smile, even though she had turned around to hide it.
“I’m afraid,” she coughed, “that you can’t defeat him.”
“Really?” Ash sighed and lowered his gaze. “And here I thought that I was the most powerful mage on this side of the Continent.”
A new wave of laughter filled the air, making the passersby stare at them in confusion. However, this helped relax the tense atmosphere and the group continued on the journey, chatting merrily about this and that.
The journey to the Fiery Mountains would take them about three months, unless, of course, something or someone doesn’t spoil their plans. Nobody knew what was in store for them.
Once they had gotten off the main road and stepped hoof and wheel onto the beaten country roads, they found themselves surrounded by the lush vegetation of tall, green grass and wildflowers. Looking around, one had a feeling as if they had stepped into the canvas of some artist.
Somewhere to the west were mountains; so far away and pale blue that it was difficult to see their outline that had almost merged with the clear skies. From this distance, they didn’t seem as fiery as their name suggested.
Mary glanced toward the woodland area to the northwest and ordered the squad to halt. Dismounting from her trusty horse, she walked over to Ash, who didn’t seem to have any intention of getting off.
“This is your last chance to give up,” she told him.
“Nah.” He grinned, tapping his staff against the wood. “I’m with you.”
Mary shook her head and motioned him to get down. Ash, making a comically distressed face, jumped off the cart reluctantly.
“Listen, we’re not going there for a vacation. We’re going there per Garangan’s orders.”
“The king? Fun guy had tea with him once...”
“Stop fooling around! This is a serious matter. What I’m about to tell you is a closely guarded secret that only a few know... The king’s daughter, Princess Elanor, fell ill with the Fiery Fever.”
“The cure for which is made from the Star Flower that grows only on the slopes of the Fiery Mountains,” Ash said thoughtfully, surprising everyone wit
h the sudden change of tone. “So, we need a flower to save the princess... Of course, I’ll help you!”
“It’s going to be very dangerous, deadly even...”
The mage waved his hand. “It wouldn’t be interesting otherwise. Now, for the most important issue — when are we gonna eat?”
Silence.
“What?” Mary blurted out.
“I mean,” Ash scratched the back of his head, “isn’t that why we stopped?”
Marry slapped her forehead; the squad snickered. Blackbeard almost dropped the brush with which he was grooming his beard. Ash, on the other hand, looked at them with a puzzled expression as he patted his rumbling stomach.
“Here.” Lari rummaged through his bag and threw him a pie.
Ash, like a puppy, jumped up and caught the treat with his mouth. He flashed Alice a content smile as he chewed. Chuckling, Alice patted his head as if he were a little poodle rather than a grown man.
“Stop that!” Mary barked. “Lari, if you touch our stash once more time, I will chop your hand off.”
“As the Queen orders,” he replied jokingly and bowed, taking off his imaginary hat.
Given the way he was holding the map in front of his face, Tul was trying to hide his grin rather than chart their way forward. The map was drawn on an old piece of parchment because quality paper, which was more durable, cost more coins than they could afford. As did an enchanted bag. As one might’ve assumed, it was a bag in which one could fit just about anything, even an elephant if they were so pleased. But since they cost a hefty sum, only the richest of Guilds could afford such bags.
“Ash!”
The young man winked at Alice and turned to Mary. In his opinion, she was taking all of this a little bit too seriously. Well, he had three months to teach her and her friends how to relax and have fun.
“Yes?”
“Since you’re still without a mount, you ought to pick someone to ride with. The cart is for luggage only!”
Ash looked down, feeling as if he had forgotten something again, though he was sure that it had something to do with this mount. While he pondered, the rest of the group started discussing who will be the unlucky one to have to share their saddle.
Not paying attention to them, Ash closed his eyes, grabbed his staff, and raised it slightly above the ground.
Chapter 13
T he wind blew, playing with the hem of his tattered cloak. The sun shone a bit brighter, making the armor peeking out of the crates on the cart glitter like diamonds. The group continued arguing, finding the most ridiculous and absurd reasons for why they shouldn’t be the ones to share their saddle. And Ash... Ash stood still, face devoid of any trace of his usual childishness.
Finally, he slammed his staff into the ground. There was a clink, like hitting a crystal glass with a spoon to announce a toast. The group fell silent, watching as tiny circles detached themselves from the mage’s staff. Unlike circles made by pebbles tossed into a lake, these didn’t fade away over time. When they reached the forest, they shook the trees, scaring away birds and small animals.
“What are you doing?” Tul asked, a little concerned.
None of them had ever seen or heard of a Word that could ripple the grass and trees as if they were water. They moved their bewildered gazes back to Ash who was grinning and licking breadcrumbs from the corners of his mouth
“So,” Mary said calmly, bringing them back to the original topic. “Ash, you will ride with—”
“Guido!” he interrupted, waving his hand in greeting.
From the direction of the forest emerged a powerful horse, similar to those often represented on paintings of the most epic battles. It rushed toward them, black mane glistening on the sun like an inky waterfall, contrasting sharply with the pale gray of its hair. On its forehead was a black spot resembling in its shape a wolf’s head. It ran so fast that one could barely track the movement of its legs, but you could still see the muscles rippling under its skin, and chest heaving with every movement.
Ignoring the neighs of its frightened cousins and stunned gasps of the rest of the group, it halted beside its old friend. It nudged the young man with its snout and then laid its head on his shoulder. Smiling, Ash sank his hands into the majestic mane and scratched Guido’s head.
“So? What do you think?” he asked the stunned Lari. “This is Guido. My horse.”
“You call that a horse?!” Mary exclaimed. “Why does it have fangs?!”
Ash turned to look at Guido, whose fangs were so big and strong that it could tear out a bear’s throat. On the horse’s menu were not only bears but also lynxes, foxes, rabbits, badgers, wolverines, and other inhabitants of the forest.
“Wolves raised him,” Ash replied, jumping onto Guido’s back.
“That’s dumb,” Blackbeard snorted. “They don’t raise horses, they eat them.”
“And yet, there are stories of wolves raising human children,” Ash replied. “What’s to stop them from raising a horse?”
“...nothing, I suppose,” Alice whispered barely audibly. She was shy around new people, no matter if they were human or not.
“Right? I saved Guido when he was a foal and asked a pack of wolves to raise him as their own.”
“You can talk to animals?” Mary asked in surprise.
“I can,” Ash mumbled and lowered his gaze, realizing that he had said a bit too much. “I know a couple of Words, but that’s it.”
“It may come in handy,” she said thoughtfully.
According to legends, mages could talk to just about everything that existed in this universe if, of course, they knew the right Word. However, in reality, rare were those who went beyond learning how to communicate with a couple of objects. Mages mostly talked with weapons. After all, there was no better companion on the road than a trusty blade.
If Ash was a druid, him knowing some beast Words wouldn’t be all that surprising, but he was a mage. However, this fact somehow slipped Mary’s mind.
“Wait,” she suddenly said, “will he attack our horses?”
“Of course not! He’s well-mannered! Aren’t you, Guido?”
Guido let out a low growl of affirmation, scaring its relatives who started to anxiously bite on their reins.
“If he does anything, you’ll be the one to blame!” Mary snapped. “All right, boys and girls, we’ll be riding without stopping until nightfall. We’ve given the rest of the groups a big head start, so we have a lot of catching up to do!”
“Aye!” the group responded in unison and spurred their horses.
“No racing today,” Ash whispered to Guido who snorted in frustration and stomped the ground with his right hoof. “I’m sorry, my friend. However, there are dangers and adventures ahead, so look forward to those...”
Guido neighed with joy and menace — for both Ash and him, one of the best pleasures in life was a good fight.
With another neigh, Guido took off. In a matter of seconds, he caught up with the rest of the group. Unfortunately for the Wandering Stumps, they had no idea just what they had gotten themselves into when they decided to accept Ash into their ranks.
Two days later
Lari took a stick and poked Ash in the thigh. The mage staggered, then collapsed, causing everyone present to burst out laughing.
“All right, break time,” he said, offering Ash his hand so that he could get up.
“Meanie,” the mage muttered.
Waving the offered hand away, he lay down on the grass. Covered in sweat and panting, he stared at the sky, arms outstretched, and head full of cotton. The azure seemed so far away that even the birds seemed unable to reach the white clouds driven by the playful winds.
“You’re still too focused on tracking where the weapon is going,” Lari said, plopping next to him. “You need to be more aware of your arms and shoulders...”
Ash closed his eyes and nodded. Under normal circumstances, he would’ve killed Lari in a heartbeat, but he had to restrain himself and upkee
p his image of a foolish, naïve mage. This surprisingly turned out to be more difficult than any sort of training.
“I know, I know...” He sighed.
“We’ll continue in half an hour.”
Muttering something in a very offended tone, Ash opened his eyes and rolled them. Mary, who was watching them train, smirked and crossed her arms. It wasn’t that she was enjoying Ash’s pain, just that she believed that it was good for both the body and the soul to train as hard as one could. She also believed that there was no time for fooling around when the life of a princess was at stake.
The rest of the squad, however, was less uptight than her and even found Ash’s cheerfulness refreshing. Alice cast a glance in the mage’s direction, imagining him as the hero of the romance novel she had been immersed into. Had he not been so lazy and childish, he would’ve made for a good prince. Tul and Blackbeard were playing chess and discussing politics, trying to guess which state would go to war first and with whom. Such conversations had long become commonplace so no one really paid attention to the two as they could go on about it until the cows came home.
“Look! Herald!” Alice exclaimed, sitting in the shade of the cart.
The rest of the group immediately turned their gaze in the direction in which Alice was pointing and saw a small dot approaching the clearing. It gradually grew in size, becoming more and more visible until it turned into a pigeon with a folded newspaper attached to it.
If you told someone that a pigeon could carry such a weight, they’d probably laugh at you, but the answer was simple — magic and gnomish engineering. The pigeon wasn’t a living, breathing being, but that made of metal and cogs. Its iron feathers sparkled in the sun, and its glassy stare oftentimes frightened the receivers of its messages.
The pigeon landed on Mary’s shoulder; a slit appeared in its chest, into which Mary put three copper coins that she took from her pocket. Satisfied, the bird let out a mechanical whistle and took off, squeaking with its metallic wings.
Mary looked down at the latest issue of the Herald. She’d always order the newspaper when they were on a long journey in order to keep up with the events going on in the country. Information was, after all, vital in her line of business. The subscription fee wasn’t all that high, so it wouldn’t leave a dent in their budget
Ash. The Legends of the Nameless World. Progression Gamelit Story Page 7