The Map Maker's Choice

by Matthew J. Krengel

  “Lenny, how are you?” Jacob asked.

  “Wow, man,” Lenny finally said. A corny grim filled his face as he leaned over and eyed Jacob. “You been holding out on me.” The smile was reflected in his blue eyes, and he reached over to the dashboard and grabbed a slice of gum to put in his mouth.

  Jacob rolled his eyes and looked over at Jane, “He thinks he’s a little bit of a player. Do you want to ride in the front seat or should I?”

  “You can go ahead,” Jane replied. “We’ll take the backseat.” She stepped back and opened the back door, then she motioned to Eriunia. “Have a seat, this could be a long ride.” Once she quietly showed them how to buckle in, Lenny dropped the Cadillac into gear and off they went, headed north.

  “So, Jake, why are you going to Lake of the Woods?” Lenny asked as he guided the boat of a vehicle back onto the road leading out of the park. He carefully adjusted the rearview mirror so he could see all three women in the backseat and did his best to give each of them a smile.

  “Looking for a friend of Coronia’s,” Jacob said. He tilted his head toward the backseat.

  “I’d like to meet a friend of hers if she’s single and lives near here,” Lenny said with a wink.

  “Keep your eyes on the road, you bum,” Jacob replied. He shook his head and glanced back at the three women. This would be a long ride with Lenny hitting on them every chance he got.

  * * * * *

  Puck stepped out of the mushroom circle and looked around. It was day on this side of the world. Stretching high into the sky, the great cold iron tower, constructed by the Adherents in the early days of their rise to power, grew from a wide base to a tapered point. The structure made it hard—in fact, almost impossible—to use the underpaths anywhere within miles of this place. It had taken Puck almost all of his skill to navigate the blocks and finally arrive here.

  He encountered a few startled looks when he stepped out onto the street, but he noticed the usual large number of Adherent black robes were absent. This was not looking good for the rebels or the wider world, for that matter. Puck ignored the looks from people and hurried toward the Temple building. The Adherents had taken over the largest temple in the city, a soaring structure with arched supports. It was a couple of miles from the tower to the cathedral and the complex of buildings that supported the Adherent Temple here in Paris. Despite the distance, Puck covered the run in record time.

  When he arrived at the Temple he was winded and leaned over, resting his hands on his knees. He could see no one was watching the gate, so Puck entered the complex. Trash and broken crates lay spread out across the courtyard.

  “We’re in big trouble,” Puck groaned. He knew the entire place was empty without searching. Instead of wasting any more time, he turned and jogged back to the gate. Without warning, Puck was tackled from the side and wrestled to the ground. Strong hands grabbed his arms and pulled them around behind his back, and a pair of cold iron restraints were placed on his wrists.

  “Puck, you are under arrest,” a hard voice said in his ear. He could smell the hint of liquor and knew he had made a mistake coming back to the old world. The Seeli Council had a warrant out for his arrest, and it seemed they had never rescinded it.

  “Please, I have to warn—”

  Puck’s voice stopped cold when a thick wooden cudgel struck the back of his head and made his forehead bounce once off the bricks. His attackers—two leprechauns, a human, and an elf—released their grips and stood.

  “Truss him up and bring him with us. People on the Seeli Council will want to speak to him.”

  The unconscious Puck was loaded into the back of a horse-drawn wagon and whisked toward the teeming port. His dire warnings played in his mind but found no way to escape his dreams.

  * * * * *

  Carvin and Jackie slept in late their first morning back in Isle Royale. When Carvin finally awoke, he felt rested and ready to tackle the day. He slipped down to the main floor of the fortress and found his way to the pantry. Someone had organized a cooking detail for the forces staying here, and fresh bread had been lined up to cool. He cut slices for himself and Jackie and grabbed a couple of apples and a jar of strawberry jam before returning to the room they shared.

  Jackie was awake when he returned, and they ate together, enjoying each other’s company. They had finished eating and were heading out to start their day when the rush of booted feet sounded in the main hallway.

  “Carvin!” Captain Argiilla shouted. She rushed toward them waving her arms.

  “What is it?” Carvin asked. He saw the panic in her face.

  “Word just reached us,” Captain Argiilla said between gasps. “Adherents have been spotted on shore. They’re setting up an encampment. Ships have been spotted to the south and east, all flying the black colors of the Temple.”

  “So a few Adherents are camping on shore,” Carvin said. “We’ll drive them out.”

  “No, sir, you don’t understand,” Captain Argiilla replied. “I’ve never seen this many Adherents in one place. I think they’ve gathered every Adherent in the world, and they’re all sitting at our doorstep.”

  Jackie and Carvin gasped and gave each other startled looks, all thoughts of a slow morning gone. Captain Argiilla waved for them to follow and left at a faster run than Carvin had ever seen from her before. They exited the fortress and headed north along the island on the backs of three of the horses the rebellion had found. The northern side of Isle Royale was still somewhat wild, and the few houses there were rough log dwellings. A major lumber mill and a long dock supplied lumber to the island, but most of the logs came from shore. The hills were rugged and a couple of sturdy watchtowers looked out over the waters of Lake Superior.

  Along the way, Carvin, Jackie, and Captain Argiilla saw hundreds of rebel soldiers working to construct rough earthworks to provide a bit of protection if the Adherents brought their cannons. When they arrived at the highest of the watchtowers, Carvin vaulted from his mount and raced to the structure, which was built of timber and held together with thick spikes and strong rope. He scrambled up the ladder ahead of Jackie and the captain. When he reached the top, he took the offered spyglass from the soldier keeping watch.

  After a moment of adjusting the focus on the far northern shores of the mainland, he took in the scene before him.

  “Oh, my,” Carvin breathed. Spread out across the hills and stretching down to the shore were rank after rank of Adherents in their black robes, carrying muskets and repeaters. Centaurs in chains dragged cannons, and pairs of heavy trolls from the swamps of the old world muscled along massive wagons loaded with supplies and more weapons. This was an army formed for the destruction of the rebels in Duluth.

  He swept the spyglass south along the shore and saw scores of boats launching from the water’s edge and rowing furiously for the island. What safety those people thought they would find here on Isle Royale was beyond him. He saw smaller groups of black robes sweeping south along the shore, but, though they had chances to fire on those leaving, they simply watched, allowing them to flee.

  “Ironships to the north and east!”

  Carvin heard the shouts and swung the spyglass around until he found the hulking masses of iron. He counted as they came into view. When he reached twenty-three, he finally stopped.

  “We just received word from the port,” Captain Argiilla said. “They’ve spotted a force moving to block any exit from the island. I’m willing to bet they have another force to the south.”

  “Trapped like rats,” Carvin muttered. “Well, so be it. I wonder if any of those Adherents have ever tried to pick up a cornered rat.” He said the words grimly, knowing the soldiers of this rebellion had nothing to lose. Everything had already been taken from them once. They would fight to the bitter end, even against overwhelming odds.

  “How many Ironships could
we put to water if needed?” Carvin asked the diminutive captain.

  “Maybe twenty-five if we had the force from Madeline Island here,” she guessed. “Sending them out against that many would be suicide.”

  “Prepare every ship and boat we have just in case,” Carvin replied. “If we use the Ironships as bait and draw them into a battle, the rest might stand a chance of escaping.” He handed the spyglass to Jackie and turned back to where Captain Argiilla was leaning on the railing of the lookout tower. Carvin was not used to seeing the worried look on her face. “Better spread the word to everyone,” he said gently. “If we give the order to flee, they should not wait for anything and should travel light. Tell everyone to make for shore and disappear into the forest. Our ships and fighters will give them time to escape if the Adherents look like they’re going to move on the island.”

  Captain Argiilla nodded but stayed silent.

  Jackie scanned the shore and immediately agreed with Carvin’s assessment. Without a map maker, they were stuck. Even if one of the fairies started work on a connection to the underpaths, it would take days to create the circle. By then, it would be too late.

  Carvin and Jackie circled the island for the rest of the day, riding from watchtower to watchtower. At each one they climbed to the top and looked out over the lake. More of the black-robed soldiers set up encampments on the shoreline and went to work breaking up the ground and felling trees. As the day progressed, the works on the shore took shape, and ramparts began to face the island.

  “We managed to get a messenger out to Madeline Island, I think,” Carvin reported later in evening. The twelve commanders who led the rebel troops were gathered in the fortress with him, discussing their next move.

  “We’re outnumbered twenty to one.”

  The man who spoke was a grizzled veteran of a hundred battles and had lost most of his family to the Adherents. He adjusted the musket strapped to his back and pointed to the map before them.

  “We can defend half of the island with the ground forces we have and still leave enough warriors to crew the ships,” he guessed. He ran his finger down the middle of the map as if to make a point. “They have enough ships and troops to hit us on all sides if they so choose, or they can blockade the island. If they do that, eventually we’ll run out of supplies and be forced to attack them.”

  “Hit them now while they are unprepared,” Actur rumbled. He raised his mighty ax and shook it. “Use the ships to draw them off and send every boat we can ashore, loaded with ground troops. We’ll flank around the side of the defenses and sell ourselves dearly, giving everyone else a chance to escape.”

  “I understand everyone’s willingness for desperate measures, and I admit things look bleak,” Carvin said. “But don’t throw away lives needlessly. If the Adherents are forced to attack us here on the island, we’re in the better position. For now, we’ll use the time they give us to arrange our defenses and build fallback lines. If they attack us here, I want them to regret the day they came at us. If this is every Adherent soldier in the world, I want people to say in the future that the free men and women of the north destroyed a great evil against overwhelming odds.”

  A fierce look lit Carvin’s eyes, and the fire and determination spread to the others. The despair that had begun to fill the soldiers vanished in a grim desire to leave a legacy that would last for a hundred years. If they were going to die, it would be on their terms, and they would inflict such horrible losses on the Adherents they would regret the day they came to Lake Superior.

  16: The Black Wolf

  Jane leaned back in the faded and cracked leather seat and tried to sleep. Every once in a while, she felt Bella shift inside her vest. The old Cadillac Lenny had ran wonderfully and rode smoothly down the highway, but the air conditioning was spotty. At times the interior of the car was nearly frigid, and at other times way too warm.

  “I think the thermostat’s going out, but I haven’t had a chance to replace it,” Lenny commented when Jacob asked him about it. “The engine runs a little hot in town, but it’s fine on the highway.”

  After they left the park, they drove west through a couple of small towns whose names were lost to Jane. All she knew was that they were on Highway 72 driving north.

  Eriunia stared out the window in amazement. All the great forests on this side of the Divide had been conquered. She saw long stretches of forest and trees, but she could tell the difference between old growth and new growth. Houses dotted the side of the road every few miles, and they passed dozens of automobiles, as Jane called them. Humans were moving everywhere without a care in the world.

  “This is a big town?” Coronia asked quietly. She tried to stare everywhere in awe as they entered the town of Waskish.

  “No, this is a small town,” Jane replied with a smile. “The Twin Cities is a big place—well, really it’s a collection of medium and small towns around two big ones. But the whole area has millions of people living in it.”

  “Millions?” Eriunia asked.

  “Yeah,” Jane said with a shrug. “I guess so.”

  Eriunia could hardly believe what she was hearing. This world had many times more people living in it than her side of the Divide. Suddenly her attention was drawn by a roar. A flying machine crossed the sky high above. She watched as it circled around and came in lower and lower. Just when she thought it would crash, it landed.

  “Amazing,” Eriunia muttered.

  “Oh, they have an airport here,” Jane said quietly. She pointed to the small tower overlooking a single runway. “Can’t have much air traffic, though, not like the airport in the Cities. They have jumbo jets flying in every couple of minutes from around the world.”

  “Amazing,” Eriunia replied.

  “There’s part of Red Lake,” Lenny said from the front seat. He jerked his thumb toward the vast body of water but kept his eyes on the road.

  “I’d love to swim in that lake and meet whoever lives in it,” Coronia said quietly. She got the hint this Lenny character would not understand if she acted too amazed and confused by what they saw, but it was so difficult not to gape in wonder.

  The two-lane blacktop road brought them into town, and Lenny slowed for an exit.

  “There’s a Dairy Queen up here on the right,” Lenny said over his shoulder. “How about we stop and get something?”

  “Is this queen giving something away?” Coronia asked curiously.

  “Umm,” Lenny replied.

  “It’s a place to get food,” Jane whispered hurriedly.

  “Sounds great,” Jacob interjected. “I’m starving. Haven’t had a good hamburger in a long time.”

  “What’s a hamburger?” Eriunia asked Jane. She’d leaned over and tried to keep her voice down, but Lenny must have heard her ask.

  “You’ve never had a hamburger?” Lenny asked in amazement. “What part of the world did you grow up in? I can’t seem to place the accent.”

  “Long way from here,” Jacob said. “She’s foreign.” Jacob said the last words in a conspiratorial tone as though he was trying not to insult her. “She doesn’t like it when people point it out.”

  “Gotcha,” Lenny replied with a roll of his eyes.

  He pulled the car to the restaurant and slid up to the drive-through. Jacob and Jane called out orders for everyone, and Jacob opened his wallet to pull out one of his last twenty-dollar bills to help pay. Once the food was sorted out and everyone was happily munching away, Lenny pointed the car up Highway 72 and they kept rolling north.

  “This road will bring us out close to Baudette,” Lenny reported. He set the cruise control and glanced into the rearview mirror. He looked up just in time to see Coronia take a tentative sip of the Cherry Coke Jacob had ordered.

  “This is wonderful,” Coronia reported when she had taken her first drink. “What do you call it?”r />
  “Cherry Coke,” Jacob replied.

  “Let me guess,” Lenny said. “She isn’t from around here, either?”

  “Not really,” Jacob replied mysteriously.

  “Dude,” Lenny said finally. “I don’t know where you found these gals, but you’re running with really strange people. Anyway, where on Lake of the Woods do you want to go?” Lenny scratched his head, trying to decide if Coronia was crazy or just really strange.

  “To the water,” Coronia replied. “It’ll tell us where to go.”

  “Ummm,” Lenny said. “It’s a really big lake. We can go anywhere from Hackett to Warroad. At least, without getting passports. Used to be able to just drive into Canada, but you can’t anymore.”

  “I just need to get to the water,” Coronia replied. “Someplace without a lot of people watching.” She didn’t understand why this was so hard for this boy to understand. Maybe he hadn’t had to deal with mermaids before and didn’t understand the connection they all had to the water. True, she had felt her body change, but she could still sense the bodies of water around her and she still knew how to contact the Lady of Woods Lake.

  “Okay, the water it is,” Lenny replied. He kept the car rolling down the road until they reached Baudette, where he turned onto Highway 172. It took another twenty minutes to reach Hackett and then another ten to find a road that swung out toward the beach. When they arrived, the sun was riding low in the sky.

  “This do?” Lenny asked. He slipped the DeVille into park and killed the engine on the side of County Road 4 and motioned ahead of them, where the grand vista of Lake of the Woods opened up before them.

  “Perfectly,” Coronia replied. She smiled and patted Jane on the shoulder. “Let’s go see if we can talk to the Lady of Woods Lake.”