The Rose Thief

by Claire Buss

  Griff had his people cram the visitors into empty barrels with hidden fillers, so even if the lids were opened, they would look like barrels of salted fish and not barrels of wanted people. Time had run out. Theo had noticed his guests were gone and an underground missive had been sent out with a hefty reward for scalped heads and even more for entire skins. Griff had received several versions from his network of spies. Theo didn't seem too bothered about whether the group returned inside their skins or not. Clearly he felt that murdering the Emperor of Roshaven wasn't a big deal. Griff smiled to himself as he remembered the quickly masked surprise on Fourteen's face as she registered who he was. He had travelled far and wide, even spending a little time in Roshaven's Imperial Court. He knew the Emperor's secret and held it along with many of his own and he was doubly pleased that Ned had hitched his wagon there. About time that lad had some happiness 'twixt the sheets. Ah young love! He pondered on the wonderfulness of it as an arrow slammed into his chest with a wet thunk. 'Huh.' Griff toppled to the floor, mouth open in surprise. That wasn't supposed to happen.

  Ned woke up feeling like he had been stuffed into a barrel. Then he realised he was actually stuffed in a barrel. It appeared to be bobbing and that smell! Salted fish. His stomach was churning and panic was setting in as he realised he couldn't move his arms, or his legs, or his head. And now all the air was disappearing. It wasn't, but panic said it was. He tried to flex his muscles, such as they were to see if the barrel would magically collapse around him. All that happened was a slight cramp developed in his left foot. So now he was trapped, about to suffocate, and in pain - great. His thoughts jumped to Fourteen and his panic level tripled. What if she were trapped in a barrel too? What if her air was running out? What if – a sob caught in his throat – she was dead?

  Something coursed through his veins and the poor innocent barrel that encased him was blown to smithereens and a trembling Ned stretched to standing on a decrepit looking skiff. There were five other barrels, one of which was spinning wildly before it too exploded. Ned ducked, covering his face to avoid splinter missiles and peeked out to see an angry looking sprite. Jenni clicked her fingers and the rest of the barrels disappeared. Everyone else was still comatose. Ned dragged his gaze away from Fourteen, not knowing whether he should try and wake her or not.

  'Wot 'appened, Boss? Where are we?' asked Jenni.

  Jenni and Ned looked around. They were bobbing on the ocean. Fidelia Quay was still visible in the distance, but the skiff had been cut loose. There were several oiled brown paper parcels piled in the centre of the skiff, one or two had arrows in them and one had a note with a jewelled dagger holding it in place. Ned reached out with an unsteady hand and plucked the note loose. It was badly smeared with what looked like blood.

  Theo too far. Betrayed. Done for. Right this. G

  Ned blinked several times, damn grit in his eye. His brother had murdered Griff for helping them. It had been a mistake to come here, supplies or no supplies. The others were beginning to stir. Stiff limbs stretched out and consciousness came back. Everyone was surprised and confused, Ned gave them a run down.

  'We're in the Fidelia's port. Theo tried to kill us. Griff saved us.' He paused for that damn dust in his eye. 'Joe, check through the supplies, make sure we've got everything we need. Jenni, can we get this skiff moving? We need to get closer to the mountain. Finish this bloody quest.'

  Jenni peered over the edge of the skiff and sniffed. 'Dunno Boss. This is Sea-Witch territory. She don't get on with Momma K but she might talk wi' me. I'll see.' She licked her finger, leant over the skiff and stuck her finger in the water. Nothing happened.

  Joe called softly for Ned's attention. 'We've got everything, Boss, it's all here. I don't know how they found it so quickly but we've got everything we need.' He rubbed his nose anxiously. 'It will work, won't it?'

  Ned didn't reply. He bloody hoped so. How had it come to this anyway? He was tasked with chasing a bloody rose thief – who he had found, thank you very much. Now he was helping the thief defeat her sorcerer father. A sorcerer! He didn't even know they still existed. I mean magic was magic but sorcery was old school tomfoolery. And then what happened when the evil sorcerer was defeated? Could Fourteen love him publicly? Would he have to become a concubine – concubus – concubina? Whatever. His head hurt. 'Any food?' he asked.

  Joe passed him a pasty. It was still warm. Guilt sloshed over him as he thought of his mate Griff and that belly laugh that was not going to shake again anytime soon.

  Chapter 33

  The skiff wallowed somewhat in the ocean, neither drifting forwards or backwards, the wind half-heartedly ruffling Willow's leaves and keeping the passengers cool, but not helping them move in any particular direction. This was beginning to cause a problem as Theo's men had now noticed the skiff, eye glasses had confirmed the inhabitants and heavily armed row boats were being assembled.

  'Jenni, anything?' asked Ned.

  The sprite was now elbow deep in ocean and concentrating. 'She wants payment upfront, Boss.'

  Right. Payment for the Sea Witch, what would that be? Ned cast his eyes over the skiff looking at the different bags and boxes piled in the centre. The pitiful wind had perked up and was making some paper dance in the breeze. Hang on, paper? Ned eased the note out from under two boxes and his heart banged harder as he recognised the scrawl.

  You'll have to pay the witch. Look in the red bag, it's no-one you know eh!

  Griff. Bloody Griff saving their lives, again. The red bag was sitting soggily off to one side. It was with some trepidation Ned peered inside. The head and entrails of grease ball looked up at him. Squashing the squeamishness out of his stomach Ned picked the bag up and hurled the contents out into the water. Instantly Jenni yanked her hand out and the sea began to boil. Eddies began to appear and then white topped waves caressing the skiff were the only sign they were moving and moving fast. That and the sudden lurch away from Fidelia. And the splash as Joe fell in.

  Before anyone had time to react, a huge hand of water hoicked Joe out and threw him back to the skiff with surprising accuracy. He landed wetly and gasped, much like a fish out of water. Ned decided not to dwell too much on the size of the helping hand and instead looked out across the bay. They didn't want to go too far out into the real ocean where monsters roamed eating ships for fun. Just that headland, in the distance, you know - the one that looked like a load of knobbly old rocks. The one that was coming into focus more and more quickly. How fast were they travelling? Ned risked a look backwards and could no longer make out the row boats as anything other than faint dots on the horizon. Didn't mean Theo would not come. Just meant they had a slight advantage.

  Fourteen's gasp turned his attention back to the headland which was now in your face-land as the skiff careered out of the water and broke across a particularly jagged rock. There was a lot of groaning. Amazingly the piece of skiff with all the supplies on was still in one piece. It was the periphery and the people who had been banged out of shape. Ned lay still for a moment. He knew he had to get up and do a headcount, get people moving to a safe place to camp and lick their wounds, but right now he lacked the energy to even lift his head. Griff was dead. And it was his fault.

  'Come on, up you get. You alright, Willow? See to Joe will you, love. Mia, all good? Yes, I can see. Here, Jenni, use mine.' It was Fourteen. She was marshalling everyone, checking, reassuring, being a leader. Exactly what he should be doing. Damn that dust in his eye.

  The group left Ned alone for about three and a half minutes.

  'Boss, we're good to go.' Jenni said.

  He sat up and saw that all the supplies had been stowed and were now being carried, mostly by Brogan but then, you have got to make use of a hulking barbarian where you can. The group looked resolute, a little dented but determined to make it through.

  'Right.' Ned's voice sounded thick in his own ears as he stood. 'Let's try and find some shelter.' He led them off the jagged shoreline, not believing he should
be in front but feeling better with each step he took. It was like his old boss, Norm, always used to say – fake it till you make it, then run off with the gold. There might not be any gold here but Ned could fake it with the best of them.

  They trudged wearily off the sands and into desolate countryside. They were nearing mountain territory and that meant trolls, ogres, giants, anything of large mass that hadn't managed to make it down into civilisation yet. It was hard trying to teach a rock with a pea brain that it couldn't do what it liked and yes it owed taxes and no, I'm not going to collect them, thank you very much for the offer of what to do with your club but if it's all the same I'm going to run away screaming. Well, that is not entirely fair. The trolls, ogres, giants and other creatures of large size and indeterminate nature understood the last part well. They called it dinner and a show.

  At last they found a cave. It looked to be abandoned but you never can tell this close to the mountains, so Jenni let a spell loose inside. A few bats, snakes, spiders, lizards, rats, and other creepy crawlies made a fast exit, but other than that it was free and clear of things trying to kill you in your sleep. Except for any nocturnal visitors. And a cave-in. Ned wished his brain would shut up. He had always disliked the mountains. Give him the crowded, smelly streets of Roshaven any day. Fourteen matched his dislike of outdoors. At least in the city you knew who was trying to kill you, out here you had to be on guard for everything. That plant over there? Probably toxic. Those innocuous looking ants? Probably eat the flesh right off your face. That boulder? That will crush you in the night. Nature had the last laugh out here, back in Roshaven no-one even knew what nature was.

  They huddled near the entrance, all of them reluctant to venture any further into the cave which was probably for the best. Jenni started a magical fire, iridescent flames flickered warmly reflecting unusual colours on the pale faces that surrounded it.

  Joe began rummaging through the various bags and boxes piled on the floor besides him, muttering to himself and making several excited exclamations. He finally flourished a bag of marshmallows. 'C'mon guys, let's forget everything for a little while.' He passed out the bag, which had helpful toasting sticks included and they all became busy burning sugar. It actually made the group feel better. The marshmallows were sticky, ooey and gooey and while you were trying to get the perfect blend between charring and burning you couldn't think of anything else. Peace descended, if only for a short while.

  Once the marshmallows were gone Ned turned to Joe. 'You sure you've got everything for this spell?'

  'I think so.'

  'Are you going to tell us about it now?' Ned asked.

  Joe flushed. Up until now he had managed to avoid talking about it. To be honest he wasn't even entirely sure he could perform the spell, but had sort of been hoping that something else would happen and he wouldn't have to. Sons performing magic against their fathers never ended well in the legends. Not that Joe thought he was legend material but you can have hope that your quest will at least be successful. He realised he had been inner-monologuing a touch too long and now everyone was watching him with exasperated expectation.

  'Right, yes, well. It's relatively simple.' He drew the grimoire out of his satchel and flipped to the correct page. 'Um, you've got to make a magic broth and then dip the weapon of choice into it, imbue it with a couple more spells and incantations and then er, hope for the best I guess.'

  'Hope for the best?' Mia asked flatly. 'You're putting all our lives on the line with hope for the best? Do you have any idea the kind of person you're dealing with Joe? He's not going to stand around waiting for you to stutter and stammer your way through the spells. You've got to be on it. You've got to be in control, looking like you know what you're doing.'

  'I do know what I'm doing!' Joe retorted.

  'What's the first part of the spell?' Mia asked.

  'Er, um, just a minute, let me see.' Joe began flipping pages frantically.

  'See, you don't even know. You're a joke, Joe. Can't someone else do this spell?' She looked meaningfully at Jenni.

  'Nope. I ain't got the right kind of whoosh. S'gotta be 'uman, see.'

  Willow was whispering to Joe, trying to boost his confidence and stroking his hair with various tendrils. She turned to stare at Mia, thorns in her eyes.

  'Well, maybe you could give me my magic back?' There was a hint of desperation in Mia's voice.

  'You have to answer for the murders you were involved with. No magic for you.' Ned was emphatic. 'Hey Joe, maybe I can be your understudy. Spells seem to be working for me at the moment, wouldn't hurt for two of us to know what we're doing.'

  Joe seemed to melt with gratitude and he looked like he might cry. Clearly the boy was not cut out for this sort of thing. He scooted around the fire so he could sit closer to Ned and began to show him the various spell pages. It was long and complicated and Ned could feel his head hurting already. Then Fourteen put her hand in his and everything felt like it was going to be okay.

  Several hours and a banging headache later Ned made himself recite back the elements he had mastered so far, to Joe and Jenni. Everyone else was out looking for food.

  'So, we have to boil the magical berries, I forget what they're called but we've only got one sort so we can't muck that up. Yes, so boil berries in the enchanted water from the spring of eternal happiness.' He clattered through the various bottles and vials lined up in front of him, finally choosing a bright pink one with a sunshine yellow stopper. 'This. And then, and then mash 'em all up with a pinch of, a pinch of...' He trailed off as he searched through the various packets on the ground. 'This! A pinch of this. Sand from somewhere or other. That's right, isn't it?'

  Joe was fascinated at how nonchalantly Ned dealt with the incredibly rare magical ingredients that littered the ground in front of him. Some of them could kill them all instantly if not handled properly. No wonder Ned's magic was blocked - he had no respect.

  'Yes, Boss,' said Joe. 'That will create the paste to cover the weapon. Have we decided what to go with, yet?'

  Ned shook his head. They had few options. Within the party they owned one rather rusty sword, which was more for show than anything else. Griff had provided a snazzy looking mini crossbow, but no-one knew how to work the mechanisms - it looked extremely newfangled. Most of them had throwing knives of one sort or another but the problem with knives was you either had to be up close and personal to jab 'em in good or have superb aim that wouldn't be put off by any magical force-fields that may or may not be in place. The most sensible idea would be to give everyone a knife dipped in the magical paste and orchestrate a complex attack so the evil sorcerer wouldn't know which direction his death was coming from. Only they didn't have enough knives. The only other weapon Griff had supplied was a bow and arrow. Ned had instantly dismissed that. Bows and arrows were gentry weapons of choice - no use here at all.

  'Let's make as much as we can and then put it on everything. Fights rarely go to plan in my experience.'

  Joe nodded miserably. He thought his father would easily deflect any such attack but he didn't want to tell Ned that.

  'What do we do with him once we've managed to stab him? I mean this paste should rob him of his power and hopefully hit a vital organ but what then?' asked Ned.

  Joe stared blankly at Ned. 'I hadn't thought about that.'

  'Maybe we could tie him up somewhere?' called Willow as she investigated the nearby vegetation.

  'Maybe,' agreed Ned but privately he thought tying up would only lead to an escape. They needed a more permanent solution.

  'Wot about sending 'im to the middle of nowhere, Boss? 'E ain't gonna get out of there.' Jenni nudged Joe and winked at him.

  'That is not a bad idea Jenni, not a bad idea at all.' Ned started putting the ingredients together into the sturdy pestle Griff had supplied. How had that guy anticipated exactly what they needed? 'You alright to have that spell ready?' He asked as he steadily ground each new ingredient to a fine powder and finally mixed t
hem all together. Jenni nodded confidently and looked over his shoulder in approval. It looked like glittery black sand. By the time he was ready to pour in the liquid part of the mixture the others had returned from the hunt. Willow had gathered every conceivable edible plant you might think to find betwixt mountain and sea whilst Brogan proudly lay a fat fish on a nearby rock. His smile faltered somewhat as Fourteen put down a brace of conies.

  'Snares,' she explained shyly.

  Mia looked over everything and then nodded towards her brother. 'We gathered, you cook.'

  'I can't right now Mia, we're making the paste.'

  'Well I'm not doing it,' Mia retorted.

  'But, you didn't even catch anything by the look of things,' Joe argued.

  'Brogan's counts as mine.' And Mia stalked off to go sit as far away from the cooking pot as possible but close enough to be able to see when it was ready.

  'It's alright, I don't mind doing it.' Fourteen began to gut the fish with her belt knife. 'I don't get to cook often.'

  Ned watched her skill with surprised appreciation. 'How do you even know how to do this stuff? Surely that's not standard emperor training?'

  'You'd be surprised.' Fourteen smiled fondly in memory of her training. Some of the happiest days of her childhood had been spent with the various imperial groundsmen her father had employed. She had been liberal in using the phrase 'But I am the Emperor's daughter!' Besides folk didn't mind when it was clear she was actually interested in their trade and more to the point showed deft aptitude to everything she turned her hand at.