The Dark Passenger (Book 1)

by Joshua Thomas

  Relieved, Edwin thanked the man and sat down. A few minutes later the old man waddled out from behind the bar with some stale bread and a bowl of leek soup.

  “Oh no, I can’t pay you for this,” Edwin said.

  “It’s on the house,” the man said. Then, laughing a loud, boisterous laugh, he added, “You’re a small thing. I can barely see ya over the table. Ya blend in with the wall with that mop of black hair and gray uniform. Go on, eat up.”

  Edwin thanked the man again, who grunted like it was nothing and went back to the bar. But food was never nothing in Chardwick, and Edwin was sincerely grateful. He was picking at his bread when two middle-aged women walked in.

  “Mortley, two drinks! The usual,” one called.

  The old man’s jowl shook as he laughed. “Before work?”

  “Yeah, and hurry. We’re already late,” replied the other woman as they sat down at a nearby table.

  While the fat barkeep poured their drinks, the first woman said, “And I heard Nemain was at Hawthorne last night.” It was clearly the continuation of an earlier conversation, and Edwin, sitting behind them, hung onto every word.

  “That sty? No place for Lucent Weston’s pretty little ward. Why would she be interested in the little Medgard boy?”

  “I donno.”

  “I heard there’s something not right about him. Burnt down their barn, he did. And tried to kill that poor gentle couple’s new baby boy.”

  “I heard that he tried to drop their little boy off the pass.”

  “Right, couldn’t stand not being an only child.” She turned to the bar and shouted, “Mortley, where’re those drinks?”

  “Comin’, comin’,” the fat barkeep said, and he left the bar with two mugs in his hands. When Mortley went back to the bar, the two women leaned in close.

  One woman took a gulp from her mug and wiped foam from her mouth. The other woman covered her mouth as she gave a small burp. “Now, what I wanted to tell you. I heard Nemain and the Medgard boy, they’re related.”

  “No!”

  “Yes!” the other lady clucked. “Mother was Rona Goodfellow, I heard.”

  “Nemain’s sister? I haven’t thought of her in years.”

  “The very one.”

  “But I remember, Rona Goodfellow disappeared and took her baby with her. Lady Nemain was devastated. The Lucent too. Raised those girls from infancy, he did. Loves ’em like his own. It’s no wonder Nemain trains like she does with the Fury. Losing her father like she did, and then her sister and nephew disappearing like that.”

  “No, that’s wrong. Rona Goodfellow disappeared, but not her baby. They took the boy to the inn, to be safe.”

  “Who took him? Safe from what?”

  The woman shrugged. “Old Carrion made Nemain let him go. Nemain wanted the boy for herself, she did, but Carrion thought he knew better.”

  “And now the boy’s back. Does he know? What’s Nemain waiting for? Leaving her own nephew in that rat hole of an orphanage.”

  If only, Edwin thought. He’d love to find a real live rat.

  “No one knows, but if I had to place coin on it—”

  “Ya still here, ladies?” Mortley taunted. “Better get on out of here. Master Danagger is gonna notice.”

  “We ain’t no ladies… and if the mine is opening back up, we’d best drink while we can,” said one of the women. Slowly, in no particular hurry, they both took one last gulp from their mugs, collected their bags and scarves, and left. They never saw Edwin in the corner.

  Edwin waited until they were good and gone before thanking the kind old barkeep again and leaving. Outside, Master Carrion was waiting for him with a scowl on his face.

  “Spying is a nasty habit. A boy could get in a lot of trouble—or worse,” said Master Carrion.

  “H-how did you know?” Edwin asked. Suddenly he sensed his spirit growing near, fast, as though alarmed. But Master Carrion changed the subject.

  “You’re going to want to meet Lady Nemain now. She’s waiting for us at my shop. Come along then,” he said. Even with a bad leg and cane, Master Carrion was pretty fast, and Edwin had to run to keep up.

  The spirit followed close behind.

  * * *

  Master Carrion stood behind Edwin, as though worried he’d run. “It seems Edwin got lost on his way here,” Master Carrion told Lady Nemain.

  “Isn’t it a good thing he ran into you, then, Carrion,” she said evenly. Up close Edwin saw that she had the most defined arms he had ever seen. But her face was soft, delicate even, and if she didn’t have a few strands of gray hair Edwin would have guessed she was much younger than she was. She wore a simple green dress and still had her hair tied in a thick black braid. Her lips were her only embellishment, covered with bright red lipstick that few women in Chardwick could afford. At the moment her tightly pursed lips only drew attention to what she wasn’t letting herself say; a few choice words appeared to be on the tip of her tongue. When Master Carrion didn’t leave, she asked, “Is that all?”

  “Yes,” he growled. “I’ll be up with Sam in my workshop.” With Lady Nemain watching, he hobbled away slowly on his cane, and Edwin wondered if he was taking pleasure in her annoyance. When he reached the stairs, they groaned loudly with every step.

  Edwin and Nemain were in a small room piled high with boxes of ingredients for Master Carrion’s potions, but the room did have a cleared table and two chairs. Nemain sat in one, and she motioned for Edwin to take the other. With Master Carrion gone, her smile opened up, and Edwin saw the same sweet looking woman he had met last night at Hawthorne. “I apologize for the location. Carrion insisted. Now what are we going to do with you? I don’t suppose you want to go to the mines,” she said, her voice kind.

  Edwin shook his head, but he wasn’t sure what she wanted to hear. He imagined most people must find Lady Nemain’s smile infectious, but she was looking at him in a strange way that made him nervous and he thought of what he had heard in the pub. Even if she was only interested in him because she thought he was her nephew, he couldn’t afford for her to discover his spirit, and her attention to him made her dangerous. He fought the nervous desire to scratch his hand. “You’ll be with me twice a week, of course. After last night’s attack, my trainings with you young people are to continue in earnest. Between us, it’s the only time I ever really feel useful.”

  Edwin stared at her dumbly, having no idea what she was talking about.

  “And then Master Carrion wants to see you here. I couldn’t deny him, unfortunately. Potions are important to many trades, and he has his allies on the Council. But it’s only a few days a week. That still leaves time for an apprenticeship. The Council will be expecting you to have one.”

  Edwin nodded, but was distracted by a cloud of smoke climbing up the wall of boxes behind Lady Nemain’s head. She was still talking, but Edwin couldn’t focus on what she was saying. He wondered what the creature wanted or might do. A few moments later he met Lady Nemain’s gaze and gave a jump.

  “Huh?” he said. She was waiting for him.

  “I asked what you like to do. Do you have any talents?”

  He shrugged and tried to keep his eyes off the spirit.

  “I know every person in Chardwick. If there’s anything you’d like to do, or anything you’d like to learn, you have only to ask.”

  Edwin could tell that he was being given a great opportunity here, but he didn’t know what to ask for. Then—

  “I like animals,” he offered.

  “Animals?” she repeated, frowning. “We don’t have much livestock here in Chardwick. Newick uses beasts to haul their carts down the pass, but they look after their own and we trade for our meat. The salt we quarry from the mines keeps it from spoiling, and we really only have animals in Chardwick a few times a year for the slaughters.”

  “Oh,” Edwin said, disappointed. His mouth felt dry, and he was anxious to leave; the spirit was now circling just above Lady Nemain’s head.

  “
Is everything all right, Edwin? You seem distracted. You know, if you’re having some sort of trouble adjusting, you can tell me. Maybe I can help.”

  “No, I’m fine,” Edwin squeaked. “I just… people… make me nervous.”

  Nemain looked at him so intently, so kindly, that he worried she was going to cry. But she held herself together, and said, “I think I know just the place for you.”

  * * *

  At the end of the day, Edwin exited Master Carrion’s shop to find Walt waiting for him on White Foot Way. A light snow fluttered in the wind that was so slight that it seemed to disappear before it reached the ground. The sun had already set and all the other children were gone.

  “Hi Nemain,” Walt said in a tone that Edwin thought was too casual.

  “Hello, Walt,” Lady Nemain replied. “I’ll leave you two boys to yourselves.”

  “Good night,” Walt said.

  Lady Nemain handed Edwin a pile of books, and Walt rushed forward to help carry them. Walt waited until she was out of earshot before he said, “Where were you all day?”

  Edwin was exhausted after his day talking with Lady Nemain and walking all over Chardwick to collect these books. It hadn’t help that the spirit had taunted him the entire day. “I’ve been with Lady Nemain. She gave me these b-b-books to try to learn what I missed up at the inn,” Edwin replied.

  “The history of Chardwick? You didn’t miss much. Listen, you have a problem. Do you remember the tree you stepped on this morning? Someone noticed. The Lucent is giving a speech this evening.”

  The strain in Walt’s voice was contagious. “You think the speech is about the tree?” Edwin asked, his voice shaking slightly. He wondered if the spirit was listening. He could sense it nearby.

  “It could be last night’s attack…” Walt conceded. “But everyone’s already talking about the tree, and everyone knows that creature got nowhere near the village square.”

  “But no one saw me step on it,” Edwin stammered. “And besides, it was an accident!”

  “It doesn’t matter that it was an accident. The tree is sacred.”

  “How can a tree be sacred?”

  Walt shrugged. “This tree is different. It’s special. There’s not another one like it in all the world. One stone cut from its amber is worth more than all the minerals quarried from the mines in a whole year.”

  Edwin’s skin itched under his new Hawthorne uniform. He couldn’t understand why they would be more concerned about a silly tree than the dead man lying next to it, but he was glad for Walt’s help. “What should I do?” he asked.

  “Don’t tell anyone it was you. Seriously, not anyone. If anyone mentions it, act like you don’t know anything about it. People might question you since you’re new here. Just tell them you were with me.”

  “But I was with you.”

  “Exactly,” Walt replied. “And I’ll tell them we didn’t go anywhere near it.”

  There were few other people on the road as Edwin and Walt made their way through the village, but the air was tense. Anxiety was written on the faces of the men and women they saw returning from the mines, as well as on the opaque expressions of the people staring at him out their windows. Edwin kept his head down; it was the first time in his life that he wanted to be shorter—small enough that he could disappear. The more they walked, the more uncomfortable he felt, and he tried to console himself with the fact that at least the tree was distracting him from the spirit and his hand.

  “Everyone is staring at you,” Walt said, echoing his own thoughts.

  “I n-noticed,” Edwin replied.

  “Don’t worry. They would stare at you no matter what. Stop looking so guilty. Everything is going to be all right. Try smiling. Act like I just said something funny.”

  “What?”

  Walt began laughing. It came out more like a bark, but it was still pretty convincing. “Oh Edwin, you’re hilarious,” he cried.

  Edwin wanted to look less uncomfortable, but the more he worried, the more awkward he was sure he looked. Walt must have noticed because he suggested they race back to Hawthorne.

  “Sure,” he replied, taking off.

  Edwin dropped one of his books and Walt easily won, but even so Walt teased Edwin for trying to get a head start.

  * * *

  Headmistress Vanora came out of her office at the sound of Edwin and Walt opening the front door. “Where have you two been?” she said, scowling. “The Lucent’s speech is tonight, and you both missed cleaning duty. Ashton did it all himself, bless him.”

  “Sorry, Headmistress Vanora,” Walt said. “Edwin didn’t know about cleaning du—”

  “I don’t want to hear excuses,” Headmistress Vanora said. “Now hurry upstairs and get ready.”

  Upstairs, Ashton was in a foul but smug mood, glad that it was he who had pleased the Headmistress. A few minutes later, everyone from Hawthorne was back outside, walking together to the village square. Headmistress Vanora led the way, and somehow Edwin and Walt ended up right behind her. Looking back, Edwin saw the other children huddled together in a tightly moving circle.

  “He didn’t!” shrieked the girl with pigtails, which was followed by more hushed whispering. Walt nudged his arm. “Ignore them,” he said.

  The village square was more crowded than Edwin could have imagined. Headmistress Vanora tried to lead everyone forward, but the children scattered, heading to their own corners. She scowled, but Edwin could see that she wasn’t really mad. She was glad to be rid of the lot of them. Only her Oculi, Ashton and the girl with pigtails, stayed behind.

  Edwin followed Walt through the crowd of fretted villagers. The miners were covered in soot and their expressions seemed warier than they had this morning. “What d-do you see?” Edwin asked Walt. He couldn’t see over the wall of shoulders.

  “There’s a stage over by the Lucent’s mansion, but so far it’s empty. Do you want to get closer?”

  Edwin nodded and led the way. A benefit of being small was that Edwin found it easy to weave around people’s feet, and with his forward momentum, he was able to drag Walt behind him. But it wasn’t until they reached the tree, which someone had decided to rope off, that he was able to tell how far he’d gone. Some of the snow had been cleared from around the tree’s branches, and he saw where his foot had partially snapped its thin trunk. The dead man’s body was gone, and the snow was scraped clean.

  “Who would do such a thing?” he heard a man say as he shoved past.

  A few steps more and Walt stopped him. “The Lucent is climbing on stage.”

  “I still can’t see anything,” Edwin complained.

  “Turn around. Come on, just do it,” Walt said. Edwin turned, and Walt placed his hands underneath Edwin’s arms and hoisted him up and onto his shoulders.

  “What are you—” Edwin cried, feeling exposed. But the view over Walt’s shoulders was good enough to make him shut his mouth.

  Up on the last step of the platform, Edwin saw a bespectacled old man shuffling forward with a kind of ageless grace. The old man was dressed in the whitest of robes and was flanked by two acolytes. The acolytes kept their heads bowed so low that their hoods hung over their faces, and Edwin could only see the red of their robes.

  Reaching the center podium, the Lucent stopped and clasped his hands together. Being so old, Edwin had expected the man’s voice to be coarse and harsh, but instead its pure, clean melody put him and everyone else in Chardwick at ease. “My brethren, as many of you have already heard, the hallow tree, our protector, was desecrated this very day.” A gasp lingered in the air. “We know not who would do such a thing, but its portent could not be clearer: dark forces gather at our doorsteps.”

  Edwin’s mouth was dry, and he could barely swallow. He had only been walking; he hadn’t meant anything by it, and he couldn’t understand why everyone was upset by a tiny little tree. But from Walt’s shoulders he could see the villagers’ distressed faces, and he knew he would face serious consequences if a
nyone ever found out. Consumed by his own worries, Edwin missed much of what the Lucent said until he heard the Lucent mention the other, older tree of Chardwick.

  “…for much seemed lost with the loss of the mother tree, our ancient hallow tree, those fifteen years past. But our village survived then, and it will survive now. Now with the hallow tree weakened, it is with a heavy heart that I warn that the unexplainable deaths that continue to befall our people, though already too high, may rise. To you who have recently lost a loved one, we all share your pain. But the hallow tree is life, and its growth will continue to push the dark forces from our village and back into the mines.”

  Edwin felt ill. He wondered how a little tree could push the ‘dark forces’ from Chardwick and what it had to do with the dead man he had seen earlier that day.

  The Lucent continued: “Sadly, the crime against our beloved protector also means that the bloodletting must increase.”

  Edwin turned around and saw two bound women kneeling by the tree, each flanked by a robed acolyte. With the crowd so quiet, Edwin could hear one of the women whimper, “We didn’t mean nothin’ by it. We always took our responsibilities seriously. It was just one drink.” They were the women from The Bitter Hart. Everyone in the village square balled their right hands into fists and pounded their chests over their hearts. Edwin looked around, confused.

  “It’s a sign of solidarity,” Walt explained. “It’s to show our gratitude for their sacrifice.”

  As Walt spoke, the crowd shifted apart to make a path from the stage to the hallow tree. The acolytes led the women forward and stopped at the hallow tree. The women were crying profusely. Then, as fast as serpents, the acolytes each struck out with a dagger and slit the women’s throats. The women fell face first into the ground and carpeted the snow with blood. First Edwin was shocked, then nauseated, but no one in the crowd made a sound. He wondered if they were afraid, or bloodthirsty, or if this was so commonplace down here that they were just indifferent.

  The Lucent broke the silence: “Let us all remember the importance of our work and let this sacrifice give the hallow tree the strength she needs to heal and grow.” His voice was so steady it gave Edwin chills. “And forget not, my people, that we may all be required to make further sacrifices, though we have already sacrificed so much. Remember the dark period. Remember last night. Remember that night fifteen years past when we lost our great protector. And remember why we fight.