Blades spread his hands wide and shrugged. “What does any of it matter? All I care is that the troll’s not here. Maybe it climbed up the mountain to die, for all we know.”
“Or it’s chasing the goblin for some reason we don’t understand. And that dragon is out there somewhere with Lord’s books. For some reason I can’t place a finger on, that goblin is a key to this.”
“We should have killed the little creep.”
Billy and his men had collected an intact crate with a few bundles of dried oats that had become sodden from the rain. Alma sniffed a package.
“Doesn’t smell moldy. Make a fire. Let’s fill our bellies. Then we head south. Billy, keep watch.”
He nodded. “And where will you be?”
“I’m going to follow these tracks for a little ways and see what I can see.”
She didn’t mean to scout so far. Like the others, she needed to eat. But the tracks continued inland and led near the road, where they ran parallel. Just to the south lay the goblin village they had raided. The troll’s path cut that direction with little regard for trees and thorny patches of vines. Then, as if having changed its mind, the troll headed uphill.
Alma stopped at the road.
There were recent boot prints in the mud. Some of the shoe marks appeared ragged, like soft-soled moccasins. At least one man was barefoot. No care was given to concealing their passage. The prints were headed south. But whoever it was had no horse with them.
She detected smells, too. Any military unit on the road left its telltale marks on the land, be it bent grass, litter, or human waste.
The Empire of the Inland Sea was a coalition of over a hundred villages that had sworn allegiance to Pater the Zealot. The largest of the villages lay on the west shore of the Inland Sea north of Eel Port, with Midsea as the empire’s capital. But if there was a general muster to fight the archduke, then it made sense that groups of men would be moving along the east shore road.
It had been a matter of luck they hadn’t encountered any soldiers before. That they had no horse indicated their poor state of supply.
She returned to the beach.
The small fire burned and shed a white plume. In a recovered cookpot simmered a paste of sticky oatmeal. One of the men stirred with a piece of driftwood while Blades watched, a spoon in hand. By the smell, Alma knew the porridge had been made with seawater.
She sighed. She let the men eat while she stood guard. Using her fingers, she finished off the pot and tried not to think about the flavor.
All of them looked to her once she was finished.
“Our situation is far from hopeless,” she said. “The troll is gone. It doesn’t care about us. Right now, no one knows we’re here. There are signs of soldiers on the road. But we’re better trained than any of them. If we’re careful and quiet, we can continue south, collect what information we can, and find a way to cross the sea and get ourselves back home.”
On their tired faces she saw a glimmer of hope. No doubt the food helped. Only Blades appeared skeptical. She ignored him.
“So that’s the plan?” Billy asked. “Go south?”
She rubbed her hands clean in sand. “Yes. But also, we’ll take down all the information we can. Troop movements. Anything else we can see and record. That way when we make contact with the archduke’s army, we don’t come in empty-handed.”
Blades snorted. “You think a spy report will keep us from the rope?”
“One hurdle at a time. We’re going to need more supplies than this. Horses. A boat.”
The mention of a boat was met with downcast eyes. She showed her bow and placed her finger in the center of the glyph. This caught the attention of Billy and the two soldiers.
“The dragon knocked me off a ledge. The blow should have crushed me. I was saved by the smallest strap of leather. This bow never left my side and my luck has held. It will continue to carry me to safety. You can be safe, too. Lord didn’t believe and look what it cost him.”
Billy was the first to place his own hand on her bow. Both Vine and Elias followed suit.
Blades was shaking his head. “It worked for that goblin, didn’t it? So why not.” He too put his hand with the others.
“Good,” Alma said. “We have enemies all around us. But they’re the ones who should be afraid. Now put out the fire and let’s make time while there’s daylight.”
Chapter Thirteen
The guards and dogs that had been patrolling the streets of Bliss were out of sight as Spicy made his way back to the harbor.
The hour was late.
Most of the lights inside the houses were extinguished. Even humans needed sleep. But the shadows in every alley could have concealed a dozen men along with packs of dogs. Spicy tried to calm down and move quietly, but he found himself trotting along the muddy lane leading to the water.
The closest guardhouse on the wall had a lantern burning but no one was visible. The air held a growing bite that robbed Spicy of all the warmth he had felt while inside the home of Daphne’s master. No doubt the guards were bundled and taking shelter.
The boats tied to the piers were of varied shapes and sizes, yet Spicy knew he wouldn’t be able to pilot one himself. The smallest could be used by one person working the oars. But rowing across the sea didn’t sound possible.
“Hog!” he hissed. After waiting a moment he called louder, but the water didn’t stir. Even if she were right underneath the rolling sea around the docks, there would be no way for her to hear him.
He hopped down onto one large boat that was big enough to take twenty men on board. There were a few small barrels on deck that reeked of rotting fish. Prying off a lid, he confirmed the container indeed held fish, or at least parts of fish. He lifted the barrel to the edge and poured the contents into the water.
It didn’t take long.
Hog rose from the dark sea, noisily sucking down water and fish parts. It was too loud. Spicy waved at her, trying to shush her, but she paid him no attention as she continued to slurp down the floating chunks of fish. He turned to watch the guardhouse. No one stirred.
“Hog, you have to be quiet!”
Finally she drew herself up alongside the boat. Standing, her head came just above the gunwale. A jet of water erupted from her mouth as she spat. Then she started laughing.
“Are you done?” Spicy asked.
“Is there more?”
Spicy fed the troll once she promised to eat more quietly. She gulped the contents of each barrel as if it were the last meal she might ever eat. She smacked her mouth as she chewed. A belch escaped her throat.
A man appeared on the wall by the guardhouse.
Spicy snapped his fingers to get her attention. “Pick me up. Time to go. But I have books. Can you keep me dry?”
Hog grunted. Then she sank into the water. He searched for her and only saw bubbles. A rope dangling from the prow went taut and ran out into the harbor. The boat beneath him jerked. He almost lost his balance as he clung to the side. The boat shifted and the rope strained, but the vessel only bobbed as it remained secured to the pilings along the dock.
“Wait, wait, wait.”
Spicy rushed to the other side of the boat. The knots were complex and impossible to figure out. He tugged on one rope, trying to slip it over the piling. It didn’t budge. He climbed to the dock for a better grip, but the ropes held fast.
Meanwhile, Hog continued to pull.
The ropes tightened and then went slack. The boat began to thump against the dock.
“Who’s over there?” the guard on the wall shouted.
At the end of the dock was a small handcart filled with kindling wood. Next to it lay stacks of logs for burning. Spicy ran over and found a small hatchet.
The guard on the wall shouted again, and a second one answered from the opposite side of the harbor. A dog started barking. Two dogs. Bliss’s canine population was waking once again.
Returning to the boat, Spicy whacked at a rope. On the t
hird chop, it snapped. A second line held the bow. This he severed on his first try, and then the boat was moving. He jumped and landed hard on the deck. Bright lights flashed across the boat. The men at two of the guardhouses had reflectors attached to their lanterns.
“Alarm! Alarm! Boat thief!”
Spicy scrambled to the bow. Hog was marching forward, only the top of her head visible.
“Hurry, hurry, hurry,” he urged.
A light found him. He had to shield his eyes.
“There!”
More men were shouting from the wall. An arrow flew past, striking the water.
Spicy got down as another arrow thunked into the prow and another whizzed past where he had just been standing. More arrows struck the back of the boat as Hog pulled them deeper, her head vanishing under the gentle waves of the sea. Soon the arrows stopped and the shouts grew more distant.
He called Hog’s name.
The sea was moving the boat up and down and making him dizzy. He shouted her name again, over and over until his throat grew sore. Just as he was about to give up, the line leading forward went slack.
Hog stood erect, her nose and mouth rising just above the surface, with the prow line between her teeth.
Spicy waved at her. “The humans will come for the boat. But we can’t leave without the dragon.”
She just stared.
He gestured back towards land with a chopping motion. She mumbled something, the water bubbling, and down she went.
The boat shifted and jerked forward once more. But they were turning and heading for land. Spicy could barely think of anything besides getting back onto shore where the ground didn’t move. Soon a scraping sound came from underneath the boat and the vessel shuddered as it touched ground.
Hog rose up and tossed the rope away. She stood thigh-deep.
Spicy didn’t wait for her to help. He threw himself overboard. The water was deeper than he expected and he sank to his chest before scrambling out of the water. It was freezing. He managed to keep his pack held aloft as he waded to dry sand. The bathrobe swelled and hung like a weight on his shoulders. Hog followed and towered over him.
It looked like all the lanterns along the walls of Bliss were lit and many were shining out at the water. Men were moving along the pier. Dogs too, and their barks carried and echoed in the trees. But their stolen boat was out of range of the lights, just a dark shape in the black night.
Spicy would have to make his way inland to find Fath. He couldn’t abandon the creature. But then what? Fath would insist they continue south. Pursuing Rime and the children would mean having to cross the sea towards Eel Port to the west.
Perhaps the atlas with its incomplete map might sway the dragon to find a better chart over in Eel Port. Meanwhile, the other map in his pocket would have to remain hidden.
And if Fath decided a map wasn’t worth the trouble? Any delay would mean losing the stolen goblins to whatever slave owner held them. Spicy would have to be persuasive. He still feared the dragon and what he might do if Spicy openly defied him.
He was shivering.
“We go find worm?” Hog asked.
“No. Hog, how far could you drag this boat? Can you do it while swimming when the water gets deep? Could you take me all the way across the sea to the other human town?”
She made a low grunt. “Water stinks.”
“Yes, it does. I’d like nothing more than never to be on it ever again. But my friends are over there on the other side.”
“Then Hog will take Meat there.”
Spicy looked out at the darkness. The dragon, his master, the creature who was teaching him reading and the strange letters, would have to make his own way. Spicy turned and waded back into the water.
A black shape slithered from the shadows and coiled up on the shore. “Where are you going, child?”
Spicy spun and almost fell. “Fath? I was…we were…”
Fath rose. He was breathing hard. Steam trickled from his nostrils. The words caught in Spicy’s throat as the dragon’s head bobbed side to side.
“Choose your next words carefully,” Fath said. “I can smell lies. Like the lies about the map. Unless my ears deceive me, which they never do, your intention was to break your promise and forfeit your duty to me.”
Spicy fumbled for the atlas. He held it out for the dragon to see. “I have a book of maps. It’s still not helpful, as they’re incomplete. The humans speak of many towns and even cities. We need to know where they are so we can steer clear of them.”
“And?”
“There’s a town across the water where we can find good maps that will show us where Devil Mountain is.”
Fath’s head came closer. “You mock me with what your words leave out, child. Speak truth.”
Spicy let out a sharp exhale. The cold from the water and wet clothes was making his jaw tremble.
“It’s my friend Rime and the children from my village. They were taken by the humans. We just missed them. A man bought them as slaves and is crossing the water to a town called Eel Port. I was going to go find them.”
“And the map?”
“I found one in the camp of soldiers.”
“There is dignity in truth. Alas, I have no more use for you.”
The dragon inhaled. Its insides were a roiling furnace. Spicy was frozen in fear. He didn’t believe the shallow water would shield him from the scalding steam.
“Please,” he began.
A rock struck the dragon in the side of the face. Hog roared and came charging forward, another stone in her hand. This she smashed into Fath’s neck, sending him tumbling into the water. A torrent of steam belched out into the air. The troll pounced but Fath was moving, spinning onto his back, his claws thrusting up into the troll and tearing at her flesh. The troll landed on top of him, and they began to tumble in the water. Hog hammered at the dragon with the rock. Fath’s talons slashed away at her arms and side. He let out a vicious snarl as she caught his head in a vice grip and drove it under water. Fath’s rear talons latched on to her head and dug in, his tail wrapping around her throat. They struggled, but Hog continued to hold Fath’s head under.
There were lights shining around them. Lanterns. Torches. Men on horses coming their way.
Fath’s tail began beating on the surface of the water as he thrashed. All four claws were sunk into the troll’s flesh. He was making a mewling sound as bubbles foamed. But his movements slowed. Soon he went limp.
The men’s horses were neighing. A line of men appeared on the road above the water. Several dogs were barking and baying.
“Troll! Troll!” a man began shouting.
Hog looked up at Spicy. She was covered in blood, yet she smiled.
“We have to get out of here,” Spicy said.
Hog pulled the dragon’s claws out of her flesh. She waded forward towards the boat and released the dragon’s head. Once she did, he moved. Like a spring, he launched out of the water and landed on her back. Hog bellowed and spun about but was unable to dislodge him. He clamped his teeth down onto her neck.
“Fath!” Spicy shouted. “The humans are here! If you don’t stop fighting, they’ll kill all of us!”
Hog had both hands behind her head, struggling to grab the dragon. But she couldn’t escape his grasp. She fell to her knees. Spicy waded forward and grabbed a rock. He threw it and struck Fath.
“Stop! They’re coming. We can get out of here together. But we need Hog alive.”
Fath’s teeth let go of Hog but he kept all his claws sunk inside her. “I’ll kill all the humans.”
Spicy picked up a second rock, and it just missed Fath’s face.
Fath locked eyes on Spicy. “You dare!”
“I dare. I don’t want to, but I dare. Hog’s my friend. And I promised to help you with your letters and to take you where you want to go. I want to do that. I really do. But I have to save the ones taken from my village while I still have a chance to free them.”
From above
came the crashing of bushes and brush. The men were riding their horses towards them.
In the growing glow of the lanterns the dragon’s own wounds were visible.
“Let her go,” Spicy said. “Get on the boat. Or with you dies everything you know.”
The dragon hesitated only for a moment. He released Hog and crawled through the water. The boat tilted as he slithered aboard.
Spicy ran to Hog but she was already rising.
“You have to get in the water and drag us out of here.”
“Kill worm,” she said with a low growl.
Three dogs came charging at them. They stopped at the water’s edge, barking and snapping their teeth. The men had bows out and were readying arrows but were having difficulty calming their horses. One man had dropped his lantern and his horse was spinning to avoid the pool of flame.
Spicy pushed at Hog with both hands. “Come on! No one is killing anyone if we leave now. The worm will behave once you’re in the water.”
Hog struggled to rise. She grabbed Spicy and plopped him on board the boat. He rose but had to duck as an arrow hissed past. Hog launched herself into the water and grabbed the rope. More arrows flew as the boat turned and was hauled into the sea.
The dragon was curled up at the stern of the boat. Fath watched him with cold eyes as more arrows smacked the hull and whizzed past into darkness. But soon the men stopped firing.
“You’re hurt,” Spicy said.
“It was your deception which cost me.”
“I got you your map.”
“Which you concealed from me.”
Spicy realized how vulnerable he was. With a flick of his wrist, the dragon could crush him. Hog was underwater and wouldn’t know what was happening in the boat above.
“I didn’t mean for it to happen like this,” Spicy said, trying his best to sound reverent and humble. “I want to learn what you have to teach. But I have to save my friends. I’m not lying when I say the maps we have are bad. If you help me, we can find good ones. Once I free my friends, I’ll work harder than any apprentice you could ever hope for.”
Goblin Apprentice Page 6