by Allan Joyal
“But,” Heather said again only for Cimbra to reach out and put a hand over her mouth.
“Ron is right, heart sister. They didn’t want to fight. They hoped that their numbers might intimidate us or get us to give them something, but they weren’t going to fight. Ron acted wisely under the circumstances,” Cimbra told Heather.
“Hey Ron!” Hencktor shouted from ahead of us. “Something for you to see!”
I looked forward. The sandstone walls had closed in and at one point nearly touched the stone road. They were only about fifteen feet high and a stone archway stood over the road just past their closest point. Hanging from the archway were three monstrous spiders. Heather shrieked in fear as I walked up to meet with Hencktor.
I could hear my friends halting the cart. There was a lot of confusion behind me as I joined Hencktor in staring at the spiders about one hundred feet ahead of us.
One of the spiders turned slightly on the strand it was dangling from. When it did I realized there was something on its back. “Is that?”
“They look like the ones you killed earlier,” Hencktor said. “All three spiders have riders.”
I carefully walked forward, watching the spiders carefully. The riders started to hoot when I was fifty feet away, and I slowed to a halt. I was standing at the narrowest point of the gorge. At first I worried about an ambush, but then the left and right spiders of the trio started to descend to the ground.
The spiders landed, and I noticed that each one had two riders. The right spider approached me as the other one waited on the ground. I set my spear defensively, but when the spider was ten feet away it turned around. One of the kobolds riding its back jumped off. The creature ran up to stand about five feet in front of me. It held a bundle in its arms.
The bundle was reverently placed on the ground in front of me, and then the kobold backed away. Once it was close to the spider it scurried onto its back. The driver of the spider kicked it into motion, and it returned to the archway.
Before I had a chance to kneel down and look at the bundle the other spider on the ground skittered forward. This one moved much more quickly. It was running along the base of the cliff and at first I worried it might jump at me, but once again at ten feet away it spun around. A kobold jumped off, but the spider did not wait for him. As soon as the kobold’s feet were on the ground the spider dashed back to the archway. The two spiders on the ground began climbing into the air. The other spider joined them as they climbed to the archway and disappeared from sight.
“Cimbra!” I shouted as the kobold left on the ground came forward and knelt by the bundle.
The creature remained kneeling on the ground in front of me. With it being only a few feet away, I had a chance to look a bit more closely. The green skin and thin arms and legs reminded me a bit of a frog or toad. But the creature looked up at me with shining eyes that displayed some intelligence. It was wearing a loincloth that appeared to be made out of some large thick leaf, and it had another bundle held tightly in its arms.
I felt a hand on my shoulder. “He’s ours for now,” Cimbra said. “The other bundle is some kind of tribute.”
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“Pick up the bundle,” Cimbra said. “We can look at it later. The kobold will stay with us for a while. Probably only until we leave the territory claimed by the tribe.”
“They claim these stonelands?” I asked.
“Probably not,” Cimbra admitted. “But their spider riders can get this far quickly.”
“I’m glad we didn’t see those when we first encountered them. They looked more dangerous than the kobolds,” I observed. I stepped forward and carefully picked up the bundle left by the first kobold. The kneeling one watched me warily.
I stepped back and then waved to Hencktor. “Let’s get moving again. But we should probably look for a campsite soon.”
Hencktor nodded and then pointed at the kobold. “What about him?”
“He can follow or not,” I said. “Keep him out of the carts and wagons. There is a good chance he knows some of the dangers ahead. We watch him, and if he starts running away we figure out why. Kind of like a canary in a coal mine.”
“A what?” Hencktor said. “Why would you want to take a bird into a mine?”
“It was a technique used my miners where we came from. The air wasn’t always good, and if you breathed it too long it could kill you. So you would bring a small bird in a cage with you. If the bird started to have trouble breathing and fell over, you knew the air was bad. The bird would show the signs before a human would,” I said.
“So we use him like that little bird since he’ll probably start running before we might detect the problem otherwise?” Hencktor said.
“We’ll see, but I expect it will work,” I said. “For now let’s just find a place to camp. It’s been another long day.”
Hencktor nodded and walked past the kobold. It remained kneeling for a few moments longer. I pretended to ignore it and walked on, leaving it in the middle of the road. As I did I picked up and opened the bundle left by the other kobold. To my surprise it contained a pair of small stone tablets. There were a series of marks carved into them that looked a lot like writing. I slowed down and waved for Cimbra to view them.
Cimbra came over and gasped. “I’ve heard of using stone tablets for writing, but I’d never seen it done.”
“Can you read it?” I asked.
Cimbra shook her head. “I can’t read old Imperial. Shaylin should be able to read it though.”
“Do I ask what it is?”
Cimbra turned and started walking backwards. “Shaylin, come here we need you,” the dark elf shouted.
Shaylin ran up making sure to circle the kobold. The first cart was bearing down on him, and I worried he would get trampled, but the creature jumped up and scurried out of the way of the mules. It then began scuttling alongside the cart, staying just out of reach of Amalya and Victoria.
Shaylin ignored this as she looked at Cimbra. “Oh great Mistress of Mysteries and the Dark, what cruel punishment have I not earned today?” she quipped.
Cimbra glared at me. “Heather and Victoria have taught Shay to be less than polite.” The woman turned to look at Shaylin who smirked as she walked with us. “Ron has two stone tablets. We were hoping you can read them.”
Shaylin held her hands out. I passed the two tablets to her. She frowned a bit, but stacked them on top of each other and then had to spin the top one around.
The young girl used her teeth to bite on her lower lip as she tried to walk and read the tablet. I could not follow where she was, but after a moment she sighed and switched which tablet was on top. “That one was just an announcement of some new taxes on river trade. I’m not even sure why that was kept,” Shaylin said.
“Bureaucracies do that. They keep every announcement under the theory that someday they might need to refer to it,” I replied. “Well, I guess we can use the stone to crack someone over the head.”
Shaylin giggled. She was looking at the other stone tablet. I expected her to hand it back to me, but suddenly she hissed. “This is… Ron, it describes how to build a water pump. It’s not complete, I’m missing some of the instructions on how to form the pieces, but it describes how to seal the bellows so that water can come in through one opening and be forced out of another in a way to lift water as high as a grown man’s knee.”
“Does it describe where to get the material for the seals?” I asked.
“Only that it’s best to use sap from the… I’m sorry I can’t translate the name of the plant. But it’s some kind of sap that they used to make the seal,” Shaylin said.
“Rubber or an equivalent,” I mused. “And I was explaining how the loss of writing can lose knowledge. Well, Shaylin someday we’ll ask you to copy that. For now can you deliver both to the first cart?”
“Both?” Cimbra asked.
“We’ll use the first for translation and language practice,” I s
aid. “At least we can until we need it to bash someone’s head in.”
Cimbra started to laugh. She kept on laughing for the next few miles while Hencktor sought to find a box canyon we could use to camp for the night.
Chapter 25: Through the Badlands
We soon discovered that the kobold was both an annoyance and a blessing. The creature could not communicate in words. Instead, he regularly emitted a series of hoots, growls, and howls that echoed strangely in the canyons we followed. Most were accompanied by the creature pointing.
The first two times the creature did that, we discovered small springs hidden in alcoves to the side of the road. These springs fed pools of clear, cold water. These were welcome as we were able to stop and allow our herds to drink. The creature swam in both pools, splashing merrily during our pauses. He quickly rejoined the caravan once we started moving again.
Hencktor was having trouble finding a place to stop and camp. The road was a possibility, but the stone ground and walls offered little for the herds to graze on. He slowed some as the shadows grew longer, and I was walking alongside him when the kobold scurried forward along the right wall of the canyon. He raced ahead until he was about thirty feet away and then pointed into a side canyon. His hoots for attention echoed in the dying light.
“Soldrin!” I shouted. “Go and take a peek. Be careful.”
The young man ran ahead. He watched the kobold who appeared to be jumping with excitement. Neither interacted as Soldrin entered the side canyon.
A moment later Soldrin reappeared. He waved and shouted. “There’s a hidden valley back here. It has grass and a nice pool of water.”
“And that thing proves useful again,” Hencktor said with a chuckle. “Lydia will want me to kill it, but I have to admit so far we have no reason to complain.”
“And the canyon opening is wide enough for us to enter. I wonder if the people who ran the empire placed it here deliberately,” I noted.
We entered the valley to find that it was perfectly laid out for setting up a camp. The pond appeared on the west side of the valley, and the water from it flowed to the south until it disappeared into the cliff face. The meadow was filled with lush grass that grew knee high. Several of the cattle rushed forward once they had entered the canyon and were quickly grazing the meadow. There was even a sheltered corner where a raw stone circle had been carved into the valley floor. We were able to find some wood, and Kariy soon had a fire going.
The kobold seemed fascinated by the fire, but clearly understood that it could be harmful if touched. I would scamper to the edge of the stone circle and stare into the flames for a moment before dashing off, only to return a few minutes later. The ladies tried to ignore the being as they laid out the camp and prepared our evening meal.
I was sitting and relaxing when Al, Jeff, and Lawus walked up to me. “What do we do with…” Al began.
“So far we have found two springs and then this valley thanks to the help the kobold has provided,” I said. “I don’t want to say we can trust everything it does, but I think we shouldn’t just force it away.”
Jeff nodded. He was frowning as he watched the creature approach the herd. One of our sheepdogs chased it away. The kobold appeared to find that great fun as it kept approaching the herd and then racing away when the sheepdogs reacted.
Heather walked over carrying two bowls filled with a still steaming soup. At the same time Yveney ran up. “The only exit is the way we came in,” she said. “The herds can’t sneak out, and there are no predators.”
I nodded. “We can probably have just a single herder watching for each shift,” I said. “The others can get a longer sleep.”
“I like that idea,” Dafalia said as the rest of the herders gathered in front of me. “But it doesn’t make sense. How can this be here.”
“Magic,” Shaylin said as she wandered over to join us. “I can feel an ancient magic here.”
I looked over at Hencktor. He was sitting next to Lydia and laughing at some comment she made. “The only idea I have is that this road was part of the empire’s trade network, and someone set this up as a regular campsite for caravans. Remember the camps we ran into while hiking down from the mountains?”
“But why only here,” Heather asked. “We didn’t see a single one between Purahomp and Saraloncto.”
“We have no idea how difficult the spells are, or how hard it would be to make the spell last,” I said.
Heather looked over at Shaylin. Our young enchantress shook her head. “I know that there are powerful warding spells, but none of the books I have describe those spells. And enchanting one to last forever is a lost art. The few that still exist near the Wizard’s Academy are often maintained by dwarves or elves. The wizards are more likely to summon a servant to provide them any luxury they desire.”
Heather looked back at me. I concentrated on eating the still warm soup. It had a surprisingly sweet flavor to it. I paused and looked over at Kariy who had snuck in to sit next to me.
“Esme suggested that I use some of the dried fruits in the soup,” Kariy said. “I guess it sweetened the soup a bit more than I expected.”
“It’s good,” I replied before taking another sip. “How are we doing for food?”
“We really need to get more fresh meat,” Heather said. “I have a few sausages left, but we haven’t had much meat. The kids turn in a few small animals that they’ve killed with slings, but no one has done any major hunting.”
“We won’t find anything in the canyons, but I’ll mention it to Krys,” I affirmed. “Meanwhile, how are you doing? We haven’t talked much.”
Kariy giggled. “Of course not, you now have two women hanging around.”
I hissed in surprise, but Kariy put a hand on my arm. “No, don’t get upset. Everyone understands. You are the one in charge.”
I glanced over at Heather who had a smirk on her face. “It’s good to be the king,” she said flippantly.
“Lydia, have you been teaching people about me?” I asked.
“Would I do that?” my friend said mock innocently. “Would I tell others about your favorite movies and your sense of humor?”
I shook my head. “Fine, I’ll stop complaining. But I’m taking first watch.”
There was a happy chorus in reply. Somehow this campsite had everyone feeling relaxed and safe. I finished my soup and then helped Mary with the washing. The pregnant woman chattered merrily about how Lawus had promised to love this child and help Mary bring it up. She offered me a hug when we finished and then gathered up his children before heading to their shared bedroll.
The kobold had watched us eat. I had offered him some soup, but after a single taste the creature shook its head and produced some dried fruit from the bundle it carried. It kept one hand over the bundle as it quickly devoured a couple of pieces. Once it had finished, it climbed about halfway up the canyon wall and settled on a ledge. It looked over at the group with its beady eyes as we prepared for sleep.
I had promised to take first watch, so I moved to a rock near the entrance to the canyon and sat down. The rock was surprisingly comfortable and actually offered some support for my back as I sat there watching the last of the light vanish.
As I sat watching the entrance to the canyon, Oleiana surprised me by climbing into my lap. I put my left arm around her. “Is something wrong?” I asked.
Oleiana buried her face into my chest and shook her head. She wrapped her arms around me and just held me as the shadows marched up the side of the canyon.
“I think she just wanted to be with you,” Heather said as she walked up and sat next to me. “And I’m sorry about earlier.”
“I’m just confused at times. On Earth you wouldn’t have spoken to me if I had approached you. Now you not only….,” I started.
“Ron,” Heather interrupted me. “On Earth I was a college student still trying to find her way in the world and enjoying the fact that I was finally considered an adult. Here, I look at Borlan
and Joelia and realize that in many ways they are far more adult than I am. They are also far more ready for the trials we face. You offered me the opportunity to grow here, and you won’t try to completely remake me. As for Cimbra. She’s beautiful, smart, and really does care deeply for others. No one else would have touched her, so it had to be you.”
“I love her, but it’s not fair to either of you,” I grumbled. “And I have no time for anyone. You realize that I haven’t just held Olieana since we left Saraloncto. I’m stunned she came over here.”
“She understands,” Cimbra said as she appeared at my left shoulder. “We all do. Ron, what you have to understand is that you are what the group needs. Don’t fear how they will react all the time. For now, just get us to a valley we can call home.”
I pointed over my shoulder at the meadow where our herds grazed peacefully. “One like this, only bigger so we can have houses and farms. That’s what we want.”
Heather and Cimbra looked around as I cuddled Olieana. “And I’m sure we’ll find just that kind of valley for you Oleiana. One where you can play to your heart’s content and even learn to swim. I’m sure you’ll like that.”
Oleiana nodded into my chest. I noticed she shivered just a bit.
“Does the kobold worry you?” I asked.
Oleiana nodded again into my chest. I patted her back. “Fine then, I’ll protect you for tonight. No kobold will steal you away.”
Heather and Cimbra each gave me a hug and wandered back to the camp. I held Oleiana until she fell asleep in my embrace. Just as she dozed, Al came over to take over on guard, so I carefully picked up the slumbering girl and carried her back to my bedroll where she slept for the rest of the night.
The next day we woke feeling refreshed. The herds seemed reenergized as well. The herders were able to get them sorted quickly, and we were on our way before the first rays of the sun reached the floor of the canyon where we had slept.
We returned to the road and turned east. As the morning progressed the sandstone cliffs lining our path slowly became lower. The kobold continued to show his worth as he pointed out two more good springs. It was about midday when he surprised us again. The trail had curved to the south and for a few moments we could not see much on the right side due to a spur of rock blocking the view. When we cleared the spur, there was a large pool of water about twenty feet away from the road on the south side. Previously the kobold had run to any pool of water once we noticed it, but this time he crossed the road to avoid the water.