The unsuspecting mage ms-1

by Brian S. Pratt

  Curious, James walks over to the door and peers through to see what’s going on. He finds the two men entering the stables, while the single man makes his way across the courtyard to a window in the side of the stable and looks inside. The man gazes through the window for a few seconds, and then quickly glances around the courtyard. James ducks back from the doorway then peers around again a second later. He sees that the man is no longer looking through the window. Instead, he’s walking around to the stable door where he slips inside.

  Leaving the inn, James hurries across the courtyard to the stable’s door. Coming from within the stables he hears hushed voices, but is unable to make out the words. Nearing the entrance, he begins to be able to make out what is being said inside.

  “…Now!” says a voice, menacingly.

  “Here, take it! Just don’t hurt us.” James recognizes the voice of the older of the two gentlemen. Cautiously peering around the door, he sees the older man handing a purse over to the robber. The robber is standing with sword drawn, the point scant inches from the chest of the younger man. Taking the purse, he gauges the weight of the coins contained within and then places it inside his tunic.

  “Thank you, gentlemen,” the robber says. He begins backing toward James slowly, his sword still leveled at the two men.

  James quickly looks around and sees a pile of old broken boards lying next to the side of the stable. He quickly and quietly takes a two foot long piece and then stands ready to wallop the robber as he exits.

  From where he stands with the board raised high, he hears the robber coming closer to the doorway. When he judges that the robber is close enough, James swings the board with all his might and feels a soft thud as it connects with the back of the robber.

  The robber stumbles forward from the force of the blow, his sword sailing out of his hand. Falling to the floor, he quickly rolls and regains his feet, knife drawn.

  The two men, though surprised by James’ attack, quickly react as they draw their swords and advance on the robber. The robber realizes his advantage is lost and leaves his sword on the ground where it fell. Making a quick leap through the side window, he hits the ground on the other side.

  “Thief!” the older man yells. The younger man starts running for the door where James stands and gives chase to the robber.

  James glances toward the robber as he gains his feet and for a short second, their eyes lock. He can see the hate behind those eyes, directed at him. Then the robber turns and runs to where a saddled horse is tied to the hitching post. The younger man rushes through the door and runs after him, but is not fast enough to catch the robber before he mounts his horse. Spurring him to a gallop, the robber quickly races between the buildings until he is out of sight.

  The older gentleman comes to James and holds his hand out, “Thank you, sir.”

  “You’re welcome. I’m just sorry he got away,” he replies, shaking the man’s hand.

  Holding up the pouch, the man says, “When you hit him, our money fell out of his tunic as he hit the ground. We are in your debt.”

  The younger one comes up as James asks, “Did you know him?”

  Shaking his head the younger one replies, “No.” Looking at the older man he asks, “Have you father?”

  “No,” replies his father. “But I’ll know him if I ever see him again.” Looking around, he stares at the courtyard, empty except for themselves and James. No one even bothered themselves to come and give aid when he called ‘Thief!’

  Turning to James the father says, “I guess we’re pretty lucky not all people are cowards. My name’s Renlon, this here is my son Kinney. We’re heading north if you’d care to travel with us.”

  Smiling at the offer he replies, “No thank you, I’m on my way south to Bearn. My name’s James.”

  “Well James, if you’re ever in Illion, you’re welcome to our hospitality,” the father says. “We own and operate an iron mine and smelter. Maybe you’ve heard of us, Renlon’s Iron?”

  “No, sorry, never heard of it. I’m new to the area,” he explains. “I will definitely stop by should I be that way.”

  Digging into his purse he hands James two gold coins. “Here, take this with our gratitude.”

  Taking the gold, he says “Thank you.”

  Placing the gold in with his other coins, he then goes and checks on his horse, finding that he has been well taken care of. James then saddles him and walks him over to the hitching post near the front of the inn. Tying him there, he returns to the inn to gather his belongings left by the table when he went to investigate the happenings at the stable. He brings them out and secures them to the saddle before mounting. As he turns to leave the inn, he spies Renlon and his son and waves goodbye. They wave back and soon James has put the inn far behind as he continues his way south.

  On the road again…, he begins singing one of his favorite songs. Spirits once again high, he brings his horse to a trot and exhilarates in his freedom. No demands, no tests, no grandparents pushing him to get a job. What could be better? The rest of the day goes by pretty uneventfully. Long before Bearn appears on the horizon, the untamed countryside turns into farmland with hardworking farmers out in their fields. By the time Bearn finally appears in the distance ahead, the sun is only a couple hours away from dipping below the horizon. Two days, just as Corbin said.

  He finds Bearn to be much bigger than Trendle. The city seems to stretch for over a mile to the east of the river and probably half as much on the west side. There’s a large bridge spanning the river near the center of the city as well as a smaller one further to the south.

  An encircling wall gives the city some security and protection. The road passes through a gate in the north wall allowing entry into the city. Approaching the gate, he notices several guards maintaining order, occasionally pulling aside various travelers and asking questions. As James approaches the gate, one of the guards comes over and states, “Welcome to Bearn. Please state your name and reason for visiting.”

  The guard looks bored, as if he has already asked this question a thousand times today.

  “My name is James,” he explains. “I am just passing through, though I plan on staying the night at the Flying Swan. Maybe a day or two at the most.”

  The guard nods his head, makes a quick notation on a piece of paper, and then waves James on through.

  Once through, he finds merchant stalls lining the street, each with a loud proprietor trying to entice people entering the city to buy their goods. Some people occasionally stop to inspect the goods offered while others pointedly ignore them as they attempt to get by without being hassled.

  Several street boys come up to James, each pitching some business or other where they could take him.

  “Come with me sir, I can take you to the prettiest girls in town,” one lad offers.

  “His girls are the ugliest,” yells another. “Come to Banif’s and you’ll see the best.”

  Holding up his hand for quiet, James asks “Can one of you take me to the Flying Swan?”

  Several hands fly into the air and he points to one of about thirteen. The boy heads off with James following close behind.

  The boy takes him down several streets and then heads west, crossing over the big bridge that he saw earlier. The boy occasionally glances back to make sure that he hasn’t lost him. They finally arrive at a building bearing a colorful sign depicting a white swan in flight over a lake. The boy stops in front of the Flying Swan and says, “Here you are, sir.”

  James reaches into his pouch and takes out two coppers and tosses them to the boy. Catching the coins out of the air, the boy seems satisfied. “Do you need more help sir?” asks the boy.

  “Not right now and thank you for your help,” he replies.

  “If you ever have need of a guide while you’re here, come to the gate where we met,” says the boy. “My name is Miko.”

  James considers the offer and says, “Maybe tomorrow morning you could come here. I have a few things I
need and maybe you could help me find what I require?”

  Smiling, the boy replies, “Ok! I’ll be here, bright and early.”

  “I’ll see you then, Miko,” says James.

  The boy turns and scampers back into the crowd. In a flash he is gone.

  Nice boy, James thinks to himself. He ties up his horse to the hitching post and walks into the Flying Swan.

  Chapter Seven

  The Flying Swan turns out to be a nice, clean place. In fact, it’s the best he’s seen so far since coming to this world. Upon entering he can readily tell that it’s a cut above the Bend in the River, the inn where he stayed the night before. Curtains drape the windows and candelabra hang from the ceiling. Each table is draped with a clean white tablecloth and the employees present a neat, tidy appearance. One of them, a man in his middle years and dressed slightly better than the rest, sees him enter and moves toward him.

  “Welcome to the Flying Swan good sir,” he says with a warm and friendly smile.

  “Thank you,” replies James. “I met a traveler on the road and she said this would be a good place to stay while I am in Bearn.”

  “Of course, of course, the reputation of the Flying Swan is well deserved.” Smiling broader he says, “And who might I thank for such a good recommendation?”

  “A lady trader by the name of Celienda,” James explains.

  “Ah, little Celienda,” he replies. “Yes, I know her and her father well. They are old and dear friends. How were they when you last saw them?”

  “They were well and she said to tell Jillian that she sends her wishes,” he tells him.

  “I am Jillian and I appreciate the deliverance of her message” replies the man. “We do have several nice rooms available. The ones on the bottom floor go for a silver a night and the ones on the second floor are a silver and three coppers.”

  “A room on the second floor would be perfect,” he relied. “Perhaps one with a window overlooking the river?”

  “I have one that would suit you. Do you have a steed as well?” he asks.

  “Yes I do. He’s out front,” replies James.

  Motioning for a lad of about fourteen years to come over, Jillian says to James, “Elren will take you and your horse to the stables out back. It’s another three coppers a night for your horse, but that does include grain.”

  “That will be fine.” Turning toward Elren, he gives the lad a nod.

  Elren returns James’ nod with a slight one of his own and then precedes him out the front door.

  As James turns to follow, Jillian says, “When your horse is settled in nicely, come back inside and I’ll have someone show you to your room.”

  Nodding his understanding, James follows Elren outside where he unties his horse and follows the lad around back through a gate, into an enclosed rear courtyard. “We lock the gate at night to prevent thieves from making off with the horses,” he explains. “I sleep in the rear of the stable for added security.”

  “Thieving a problem in Bearn?” asks James.

  “No, not really,” replies the lad. “But why take chances.”

  The stables are just as nice and well kept as was the inn. The lad leads James to the stall for his horse and assists him with removing the saddle and tack. The lad then produces a pail of grain for the horse and starts to brush out his coat. Seeing that his horse will be in good hands, James returns to the inn to find Jillian who gives him a key on a chain with the number ten engraved in a small, iron disc attached to it.

  Waving over a small boy, Jillian has him show James to his room.

  “Follow me sir,” the boy says as he takes James’ bags. The boy walks over to the stairs and leads him to the second floor. The first door on the right off the stairs is number ten. The boy opens it and precedes James into the room then stops and holds the door open for him as he enters.

  Once James is in the room, the boy sits the bags on the floor and turns toward James, waiting expectantly.

  Realizing a tip is expected, he digs out a copper and gives it to the boy saying, “Thank you.”

  “Will there be anything else I can help you with?” the boy asks as he pockets the coin.

  “What time is dinner?” he inquires.

  “There is always something available,” the boy explains. “The full menu is available an hour before sunset until late.”

  “Thank you,” says James.

  The boy nods and walks out of the room, closing the door as he leaves.

  The room is much nicer than the one in which he spent the night before. He’s pleased to note there are two windows, one in the wall opposite the door and another in the wall to the right which overlooks the river. The bed is larger than the one from last night and when he sits on it, finds it softer as well.

  There’s a table with two chairs, a nightstand and a picture of a swan in flight on the wall. There is also an upright closet with two doors along the left wall. James opens the doors and finds a rod with several hangers available. He puts his bags in the closet then lies down on the bed. Tired from his journey, his eyes quickly close and he nods off for a little nap before dinner.

  Music coming from downstairs draws him from a particularly nostalgic dream of home. The sun’s gone down already and the room is dark, with some light coming in through the windows from the moon above and lamps along the street. He feels very relaxed but the grumbling of his stomach will not be denied. With the music coming through the floorboards, he gets up and makes his way carefully through the darkened room to the door.

  Out in the hallway there is but a single candle positioned in the middle of the hallway to ward off the dark, its light barely reaching the door to James’ room. Removing the key from his pocket, he closes the door and locks it. He then puts the key in an inner pocket before going down the stairs to the well lit, crowded dinning area.

  A small stage is set along one wall and a man is there playing what looks to be something similar to a guitar, entertaining the inn’s patrons with a song. Finding an empty table along one wall, he sits with his back to the wall so he can watch the bard. The song reminds him of folk music, something from one of the old Errol Flynn movies he and his grandfather used to watch together.

  He listens to the music and gets a touch of homesickness. Before the song comes to its end, a server approaches his table and asks, “Good evening sir,” a young woman greets him. “What can I get for you this evening?”

  “I’ll take the house special and some ale,” he replies.

  “We do have some good mulberry wine if you would care to try that instead?” she suggests.

  “Ok, I’ll try that,” he agrees, feeling adventurous.

  “I’ll have the wine over in a second, but the special will require several more minutes,” she explains.

  “That’s okay, I’m not in any hurry.” James sits back as she leaves his table and continues to enjoy the music the bard is playing. The song is a happy one with a good beat and a catchy chorus. He catches himself tapping his finger to the rhythm of the music.

  His server brings over a glass and a bottle. She opens the bottle and fills his glass with the dark red liquid. Setting the bottle on the table, she smiles at him and then moves to another table and waits on another person.

  Holding the glass for a moment, he lifts it to his nose and enjoys the aroma of the wine, it has a strong berry scent. Lifting it to his lips, he takes a small sip and berry flavor bursts in his mouth, sweet and mellow. Man that’s good! Downing the rest of the glass, he pours himself another, this time intending to take his time in drinking it.

  The bard finishes the song to a rousing applause by the audience. Bowing to their admiration, he starts into another one, this time a ballad of love, soft and slow. About this time his server brings over a large platter with a whole stuffed goose. The goose has been roasted to a golden brown and the stuffing within steams, emitting an aroma of nuts and honey. Encircling the goose is an assortment of varying vegetables, all well cooked and soft to th
e touch. She also sets a basket with several rolls down next to the platter with the goose along with a bowl of gravy.

  “Here you go sir. Do you require anything else?” she asks.

  Taking out his knife, he says, “No thanks, I think I’ll be fine for a while.” Looking around, he notices that people are using their hands, spoons and knives to eat. Apparently forks are not the custom.

  “If you need anything, just catch my eye and I’ll be over,” she says before returning to the kitchen.

  James sets to with a hearty appetite. The goose is fantastic, the skin crisp and the flesh juicy with not a trace of pink. The rolls have a mouth watering aroma, he takes one and dips it in the gravy. Biting into it, he finds that it’s soft and fluffy. This is perhaps the best meal he’s had since coming to this world.

  During the course of the meal, the bard plays several more songs before taking a break. James spies a bowl sitting at the edge of the stage. From the glint of metal within, he realizes that it contains several coins. During the break he notices how several of the patrons walk over and drop coins in. Must be tipping the bard, he reasons. Digging into his pouch he comes out with a gold and walks over, dropping it into the bowl. His is the only gold among the coppers and a couple silvers. He returns to his table and resumes his meal.

  Soon the bard again takes the stage and starts with another fast paced song. He has the crowd singing along with him after a short time, everyone is having a marvelous time. Upon finishing that song, someone shouts out, “Do the Story of Deagan.” Others shout in agreement and the bard starts on a serious ballad about a man on a quest, who slays the bad guy, rescues the damsel and finally dies in the end. Thunderous applause erupts at the end of the song and shouts for other favorites bombard the bard until he begins yet another. He continues singing requests throughout the night, with only an occasional break for him to get a drink and rest his voice.

  Having finished his meal, James leans back in his chair and listens to the bard sing the songs. The waitress comes over and clears off the dirty plates, leaving him with just his bottle of mulberry wine and the glass. The music is good and listening to it gives him more of an understanding about the people of this world. Without even realizing it, he finishes the bottle so he signals his server for another. She brings it over and he tips her a copper. Pouring himself a glassful he sits back and enjoys more of the music.