“I will also send word to my contacts in Chio and have someone there to meet you when you arrive.”
Natis, who had been sitting quietly throughout the conversation, addressed the group. “What of the artifacts we discovered?”
“I would suggest that we take them with us to Alexon.” Landis remarked.
The mage was in agreement. “Good, from there I can contact Lonia and see about having them come to retrieve Aaron’s staff, and we can find out what needs to be done with these so-called Pearls of the Elf Lords.”
The mage had one further suggestion, “Perhaps it is best that I travel with the group heading to Aeth. I can ride in the carriage and even provide a little illusion that Petra is riding with me. That way I can get there ahead of you and send word to the Tower to save us time. Besides, having a wizard traveling with you might bring about too much unneeded attention.”
Chapter 15
Seven riders rode into the dirt packed streets of Chio at dusk. No one took note of them as they trotted down the road. It had been an uneventful two-day ride since breaking off from the company of armed militia that was headed to Sedau, with orders to rid the area of any remaining orcs and snow-elves; assuming that they had not already determined that the prize they sought had already been taken from the dead city.
There first order of business after separating had been to change out of the official military garb of Birhimian soldiers and into their regular traveling clothes. Even though she had changed, Petra was still dressed in such a way as to disguise the princess as a man. She was forced to wear the hood of her cloak up at all times in order to prevent any passersby—of which there had been none—from observing that a female rode with them. At her side hung the Sword of Alexon in a plain leather sheath—so as not attract any undue notice—that Jobez had supplied.
Chio was the kind of town that most decent travelers took caution to bypass, unless they were too desperate or ignorant to do otherwise. It sat on the western shore of the Green River, below the once thriving mines that had birthed the town into existence many decades before. Rich mineral deposits coming from the mountains and mines upstream gave the water the odd greenish shade that brought about its name. The mines for the most part had begun drying up over the past thirty-odd years, but thanks to the many vices and corrupt desires that were readily available the town continued to survive. The inhabitants were now mostly people of ill repute who had been run off from other more reputable cities or were fleeing legal persecution elsewhere. Thieves came from all over to hock their ill-gotten goods with few questions asked, while others traveled from nearby towns and villages to feed their lustful or unusual tastes. It had been said that if anything evil could be found in the Westland, it could be found in Chio.
Eric spat onto the ground from atop his horse. “Lovely place.”
“It looks worse than I remember.” Landis said as he looked about. “We need to find The Ogre’s Lair and secure lodging for the night.”
“That must be the place.” Jaylen pointed to a wooden shingle crudely depicting an ogre resting on a bed of straw. The sign was hanging out in front of a two story wooden building that was one of the larger establishments on this part of the street. They rode over to the inn and climbed down from their horses.
“You stay here.” Landis instructed Jordan, Petra and Konik, “The rest of you come inside with me.”
The four men entered the room, surreptitiously assessing the crowd as they approached the bar. There were a dozen tables in the room with men sitting at more than half of them. Most of the clientele were drinking while others were also gambling by either rolling bones or playing Chips. Landis observed three men at one table playing a game known as Shut the Box, which surprised the half-elf as it was a more sophisticated game of removing numbers to gain a low score that he had only seen played by more refined people than those who patronized the Ogre’s Lair. Five women moved about the room bantering with many of the men. A fat man with a balding head half-heartedly greeted them as they approached the bar. “What’ll you have?” He asked while wiping down the counter with a dirty rag.
“Two rooms for the night.” Landis asked, “Adjoining if possible, but side-by-side at the least, and preferably facing the street.”
The big man snickered, “What do you think this is, Aeth? I can give you two rooms next to each other, but we do not have adjoining rooms. How many are in your party?”
“Seven.” Landis answered.
“Seven: You could all pile into one room.” The innkeeper suggested. Lodging was normally by the person and not the room. Renting out a second room to this group could cost him revenue if he happened to become booked up and have to turn away other travelers.
“We need two rooms, one of our friends is having stomach problems and we do not wish to have him keep us awake all night. His brother can suffer with him, but I would rather not.” Landis explained.
“I suppose you have seven horses that need boarding?” The innkeeper inquired, tallying figures in his head as the half-elf nodded in agreement.
The two began bartering on the price. The innkeeper came down a bit but then remained firm, insisting that any lower fee would be for one room only. Landis begrudgingly accepted the price and paid the fat man, who swept the coins into his meaty hand and pointed to the steps, “The two rooms at the end of the hall on the left are all I have remaining that are side by side. You get dinner and breakfast included, but everything else will cost you. Take your horses around back and my son will put them up for you.”
Landis thanked the man and sent Jaylen out to care for the horses and to send the others inside. As they stepped away from the bar Eric asked, “Why did you dicker so much on the price? It was a fair offer considering, and we have plenty to spend, thanks to my father.”
“Had I accepted too quickly he would have become suspicious, thinking that we were up to something, or that we are wealthy merchants traveling incognito. No sense in drawing any unwanted attention to us.”
Konik, Jordon and Petra entered carrying the rest of their belongings. The big man looked at the women in the room as he neared Landis, “Since we have to be here anyway, why not take advantage of the situation and enjoy ourselves?”
“Konik.” Trevor admonished his friend, causing his smile to dissipate, especially after he realized that Petra had overheard his remark.
“You cannot blame a man for trying, can you? It has been a long time since we have been able to sit back with a nice mug of ale and relax.” He mumbled as he followed Landis up the stairs.
“It isn’t relaxation that you have on your mind.” Eric joked as he climbed the stairs behind him.
“Can you think of a better way to end up relaxed?” Konik responded.
Landis entered the first room and looked about before doing the same in the second room. As he came back into the hallway he pointed his thumb over his shoulder at the room he was leaving, saying, “That will be your room, Petra. It is the easiest to defend.”
“Do you plan to leave her unguarded?” Jordan asked.
“Certainly not,” Landis refuted, “We will take turns at watch with one of us watching Petra’s door from ours at all times.”
“Who will protect her from someone entering through the window?” The Squire asked.
Landis had not considered that. Turning to Petra he said, “I suppose that we can have someone sleep in your room with you, after you have deemed yourself suitable.” The half-elf offered to Petra.
She considered the suggestion, “Very well, Landis. Since you are family and have seen me in my bedclothes before then I suppose that it would be okay for you to sleep on the floor in my room.”
Konik chuckled.
“What is so funny?” Petra asked him.
“You have not looked in the room yet, have you? We will all be sleeping on the floor. All the rooms have are straw mats for bedding.”
* * * * *
After settling into their rooms, the seven travelers went do
wnstairs and secured a table as near to a far corner as possible. They sat Petra with her back to the crowd, still wearing her hooded traveling cloak, while they all ate a somewhat bland meal consisting of a stew made with wild game and vegetables poured over chunks of bread. Petra did not find the quality of the food enjoyable but made no comment or expression hinting at her displeasure as she finished her meal. As earlier agreed upon, Petra and most of their group went upstairs while Landis, Trevor and Eric remained downstairs to mingle with the other patrons and await the possible arrival of their contact that Jobez had promised.
Landis sat down with three men to play Chips: A game consisting of forty flat, round, thin wooden chips with each depicting a numeric value and a drawing of a sword, coin, cup or arrow. Each player was dealt four chips and could replace up to three while gambling on the outcome. The object of the game was to score the best hand of sequential pairs, order or other predetermined arrangements to win the money being gambled for each round. Landis was an experienced chips player and was doing well enough to come out ahead. Not wanting to bring any notice upon himself, the half-elf chose to lose enough hands so that while he still won more than he had to begin with, he would not appear to be doing as good as he knew that he could have.
Trevor and Eric spent their time rolling bones at another table. The object was to toss a pair of six-sided bone squares with numbers on each side, and then hope to roll a matching score within a set number of rolls while everyone bet on the outcome. Neither man was having much luck but still they pressed on.
The night wore on and the men who were playing chips with Landis began calling it quits and heading either to their homes or to their rooms upstairs. The half-elf ordered a mug of ale and sat at an empty table watching Trevor and Eric as they attempted to win back some of their lost money. He was surprised when a pale-white skinned fellow with white hair and big cat-like eyes sat down across from him at the table. Landis recognized him for a snow-elf at once.
“Greetings,” The Snow-Elf spoke in a slightly distorted version of the common tongue. “I believe that you have something that I am seeking.”
“And who might you be?” Landis asked.
“My name is Zenon, and you are the half-man who stole the pearls from Sedau.”
“I do not know what you are talking about.” Landis lied.
“Do not take me for a fool, half-man. I know that you carry with you the three pearls. I can feel their presence with you.”
Landis noticed a black scepter in the snow-elf’s belt. The scepter was adorned with a very large round black pearl at its top. He knew at once that this was the black Pearl of the Elf-Lords, and probably the means by which this snow-elf had tracked them. Landis’ hand dropped below the table and across his lap so that he could quickly grab his sword if necessary.
“I am not here to fight you.” Zenon informed Landis, holding both hands palm out demonstrating that he was no danger to the half-elf. “I would like to discuss the purchase of the pearls. I can provide you with enough gold to allow you to live a life of luxury for a long, long time.”
“And what if I do not need your gold?” Landis asked.
Zenon’s eyes glared at him. “You would be a fool to refuse my offer, half-man. I come before you tonight in peace. Should you reject my offer then the next time we meet I will take them as well as take the lives of you and your friends.”
The Snow-Elf lowered his hands to the table. “Do we have a deal?”
“No,” Landis answered, “And perhaps we can settle matters here and now.”
Landis stood, drawing his sword in the same motion. As he prepared to strike across the table with the blade he found the chair opposite him empty. He looked all about the room, but the snow-elf was no where to be found. The room had gone quiet as everyone stopped what they were doing to stare at Landis as he stood there alone waving his sword, threatening an empty chair.
Chapter 16
“I will let you know when I am ready for bed.” Petra told Jordan, Konik and Jaylen as she stood to leave, heading for her room to change out of her baggy clothing. Konik was still grumbling about being left upstairs to play nursemaid while Trevor was downstairs drinking and carousing with Landis and Eric. Petra dutifully pulled her hood up over her head before opening the door. Looking up and down the hall and seeing no one, she stepped out into the hallway and opened the door to her room. Finding the room dark, she wished that she had brought a candle with her. Now she was going to have to find the candle and matches on the only table in her room in the darkness.
Petra gasped as a pair of powerful hands grabbed her from behind. She tried to call out but was unable to do so as one of the hands tightly covered her mouth.
“Cut his throat before someone hears him.” She heard someone whispering from nearby.
Petra began struggling even more so at the implied threat. The hand not covering her mouth slid down over her chest seeking a better position to hold her. The hand crossed her right breast and stopped. “This is a woman, Leron.” The man behind her said.
“What?” The voice that Petra now knew belonged to someone named Leron said. A match struck and the candle that Petra had been seeking lit up the room. She could see the man named Leron clearly now as he came closer. He was an ugly brute with shaggy hair and a whiskery face. He was muscular and wearing dirty clothing. She could see behind him that the window was open. The two men must be thieves who had entered seeking any valuables that these travelers would have in their rooms while they drank downstairs. Pulling her hood down to reveal her face he said, “She most certainly is a woman.”
“This is our lucky night.” The man behind her said as he fondled Petra’s right breast. The Princess was more outraged than afraid at the way she was being manhandled. Leron produced a knife and held it to Petra’s throat. “If you make a sound then I will just kill you and we will take our enjoyment out on your dead body. Stay quiet and you might even enjoy it.”
Petra noticed that the hand over her mouth had moved enough for her to speak. “Then you better kill me first.” She said in defiance.
The man behind her resumed his forceful grip over her mouth preventing her from saying anything more as Leron began tearing at the front of Petra’s shirt.
* * * * *
“I wonder what is taking them so long?” Jordan said as he paced the floor. “I think I am going to go down and see what they are doing.”
“We are supposed to stay up here, Jordan.” Jaylen reminded the squire.
“Let him go. It would be good to remind our friends that we are up here waiting for them.” Konik approved.
Jordan opened the door and stepped out into the hallway. He started for the stairs then thought that he heard something coming from Petra’s room. He stepped closer, listening to the door and hoping that he was not going to get caught eavesdropping on the Princess. Jordan heard a man’s voice laughing, and the sounds of struggle. Without hesitation he drew his sword and opened the unlocked door. He saw one dark haired chubby man holding Petra securely while another, more menacing man, was tearing at her clothes.
“Halt!” Jordan yelled, for lack of anything better to say as he rushed into the room. The man pawing at Petra faltered upon seeing the armed young man entering the room. It was all the time that Petra needed to deliver a swift knee to his groin. The man behind her released his grip as he reached for the dagger in his belt. Before he could turn around Jordan had run him through with his sword.
Petra was awash with fear and rage. She stepped aside and freed the Sword of Alexon. Leron recovered enough from the pain between his legs to stumble forward after her, still holding his dagger. Petra seethed with anger at the man who had intended on raping—and perhaps murdering—her. She thrust the sword into his chest. Blood dribbled from between Leron’s lips as the man backed away from the fatal blow and crumpled to the floor.
* * * * *
“I am telling you that there was a snow-elf sitting in front of me and threatening to kill
us all.” Landis insisted as he walked up the stairs with Trevor and Eric in tow.
“But I saw no one sitting with you, Landis.” Trevor insisted. “How did he get here and where did he go?”
“Magic.” Landis tried to explain as he stepped onto the landing at the top of the stairs and turned into the hallway. He saw Petra’s door open and Jordan standing there with someone falling at his feet. The half-elf had his sword in hand and was running down the hall just as the door to his room opened and Jaylen and Konik rushed out into the hallway, having heard the sound of trouble coming from next door.
“What happened?” Landis asked as he pushed past Jordan to find Petra standing over a second dead body, with her shirt torn and holding a bloody sword in her hand.
“Jordan saved my life.” She explained. Her knuckles were turning white from clenching the sword so tightly.
“It looks as if you did a pretty good job of saving yourself too.” Konik congratulated the Princess.
“Are they assassins?” Eric asked, checking the hall behind them to make certain that no one was approaching.
Petra tried to calm down. “I do not think so. I surprised them when I entered and they were even more surprised when they discovered that I was a woman.”
“I heard a sound coming from her room and walked in on them.” Jordan stammered, still in a state of shock at what had happened.
“You did well, both of you.” Jaylen offered.
“What was Petra doing in here alone?” Eric demanded.
“Relax, Eric. I only came in here to have some privacy while I changed.” Looking to Jordan she added, “Thank you, Jordan. I am forever in your debt.”
“It is my duty and my honor.” Jordan bowed politely.
Landis closed the door. “We need to get rid of these bodies and clean the place up. And clean your swords.” He instructed Jordan and Petra.
Elf Lords: 01 - Pearls of the Elf Lords Page 12