Kara folder her arms and scowled at no one in particular, she chose to ignore Flare's question.
Flare sighed. He had never realized how difficult leadership really was.
Murleen opened her mouth to speak but closed it again, as a soldier rushed into the tent. “Sir,” the young soldier started saying, all out of breath, “there is a man at the edge of the camp who demands to see you. He says his name is Dale Stonewood.” He glanced to where Elona was sitting. “I think it's about her.”
'Here we go,' Flare thought. “Escort him in,” He ordered the soldier, “but only him. No one else is to accompany him.”
Flare turned toward Enton and Atock, who had been quietly listening to the women argue. “I want the two of you to stand on either side of him; I want to put him at a disadvantage.”
Enton smiled as he stood, loosening the axe that hung across his back.
The man who entered the tent, was a big man nearing forty years old, but was in good physical shape. His dirty blond hair was thinning, and his pock marked skin was starting to sag. He had a thin mustache that hung down to his chin and was starting to gray. He wore a leather jerkin over a stained shirt, and his britches were brown and had a patch on one knee.
Dale Stonewood marked Flare as the leader the moment he entered. He strode into the tent as if he owned it and headed right for Flare. Enton stepped in his path, stopping him several paces short.
“I demand the immediate return of my girl. I also demand an apology and just compensation for the money that she has lost.” His words were rough and there was an intense anger in them. His whole body seemed poised on the verge of springing; this was a man who was used to getting his way.
Flare rose to his feet, “You demand a lot of things, don't you? We were just discussing whether or not to hold her until we reach Fort Mul-Dune.”
The man's mouth dropped open; apparently, he had not considered that as an option. It took a moment for the man to find his voice, “You can not do that! I am a current member of the guild, sanctioned by the King. We have done nothing wrong and you have no legal reason to hold her.” As he spoke he gestured wildly with arms to emphasize his point.
Flare motioned to Elona, “She did break the law. She trespassed into a military camp without authorization. I am well within my rights to hold her.”
A sickly smile split the man's face, “Perhaps we could reach an agreement.” He said weakly, “I'm sure that Elona wouldn't mind spending some time with you and your officers.” He looked up at Enton, who was busy glaring at him. “And I would be willing to pay a small fine for the trespassing.”
'This man is a pig!' Flare thought. “Mister Stonewood, here is what I am going to do. I will release Elona back to you and have the two of you escorted out of camp. But I also intend to give orders that any person who is caught trespassing, is to be arrested and held until we reach Fort Mul-Dune. The next time I catch one of your girls, they will not be released back to you so easily.”
“You can't do that!” Dale said quietly, but forcefully, “You are interfering with our legal right to practice our profession.”
Flare smiled, “Not at all. I can not stop you, but you will not do it in my camp. Do not let me catch another of your girls, do you understand?”
There was a glint of danger in the man's eyes, and Atock drew one of his swords. Dale glanced briefly at Atock, and turned and strode from the tent. He slowed only long enough to growl, “Elona! Come on.”
They sat in silence for several moments, and then Kara stood and stalked from the tent without so much as a word to anyone. Enton and Atock glanced at each other and followed Kara from the tent leaving Flare alone with Murleen.
“I can't believe that she is as stubborn as she is.” Murleen said through clinched teeth.
Flare considered his words, “I almost agree with Kara.” Then seeing the surprised look on Murleen's face, he added, “I mean that man is a pig and I feel bad for Elona.”
Murleen nodded her head, “As do I, but she is a grown woman and she has a right to make a stupid decision. Does Kara think that the church should make the decision for everyone? And what happens when the church makes a decision that she doesn't like?” The frustration in her words was clearly evident. “What I really hate is that it seems like I am defending that man.”
Flare smiled, “Yeah. He was a bit of an ass, wasn't he?”
A touch of a smile appeared on Murleen's face, and for the first time he realized that she was sort of attractive, but it was a fleeting thought and was gone almost as quick as it had came. “I'm hungry. Let's get something to eat.”
As they stood and headed out of the tent, he once again had that sinking feeling hit him. 'What's going to happen next?'
The man walked carefully through the streets of Telur, straining to hear any sound. It was not too late yet, and there was still quite a few people entering and leaving the taverns and inns, and guards still patrolled the streets. It wasn't that he was doing anything illegal, but he still wanted to avoid being seen or recognized.
He stopped suddenly and listened for the noise to repeat itself, but after several moments he moved forward slowly. The hood on his cloak was pulled low to hide his face, but that had the undesired affect of masking the direction of the sounds.
Several times he stopped and stepped back into the shadows and waited to see if anyone was following him. Each time the result was the same, silence.
As he got near his destination, relief began to wash over him and he moved quicker. He rounded the corner of the building and headed for the side entrance, when all of a sudden, a large figure lurched from the shadows and grabbed at him.
Caught by surprise, the cloaked man almost lost control of his bodily functions, but instead jumped back away from the large shadow.
Making a sound like a ship beaching itself, the large figure fell forward onto his stomach, his chin rebounding off of the stone with a loud clack. A low gurgle escaped his lips.
Relief again washed over the cloaked man as realized what had happened. Looking around to see is anyone had noticed the commotion, the cloaked figure skirted around the collapsed drunk and headed for the door.
Entering the side door, his heart still beating rapidly, the cloaked figure climbed the stairs to the room at the top. Opening the wooden door, he slipped inside.
The room inside was darkly lit, the only light coming from several small candles. There were no windows, and the only door was the one that the cloaked man had entered through. There were five small wooden chairs in the room, four of which were occupied by figures dressed in cloaks just like he wore.
He closed the door behind him, and stepped forward in front of the lone unoccupied chair. The other four figures watched him without saying a word until he sat down. Their heads didn't even move, and they gave no sign that they were even alive.
The last person to arrive, the cloaked man sighed a loud sigh as he sat down.
“Trouble?” Someone asked, it was hard to tell from where the voice had come, but the words were slightly slurred and hard to understand.
“No, just a drunk who surprised me.”
Another figure nodded. “It would seem that we are living in momentous times, it appears that this elven prince may be the one prophesied about.”
A gnawing fear settled in the man's stomach and he rubbed his old wrinkled hands together, though the cold he felt had nothing to do with the coolness of the room. “Are we sure? The child of prophecy was supposed to born under the sign of the prince.”
Another cloaked head turned toward him. “No.” This voice belonged to a woman, and she sounded strangely familiar, but he didn't recognize who she was. Even though this group had met many times before, each time was just like this, cloaked and in complete secrecy. Each member kept his or her identity to themselves. It was a hard group to join, no one volunteered for it, instead the only way to join was to be asked. “But this young prince seems to satisfy line after line of the prophecy, and now h
e's headed to Mul-Dune.”
The old man nodded his head. “I think that he's a forerunner of the prophecy.”
“What's that mean?” The female voice asked.
The old man leaned back in his chair. “I think he is a forerunner of the one that Kelcer spoke of.”
Several of the others nodded.
“You mean he's not the one Kelcer warned about?” A man's voice asked. It was impossible to tell who had spoken, and it gave the question a disembodied quality.
The old man shook his head, “He simply doesn't fit the prophecy. Do we have anyone there that can help him and guide him?”
Several heads shook a negative answer, but only one voice spoke. This time it was a different man's voice, it too seemed familiar. “No, but we are trying to find someone to get close to him.”
That particular choice of words bothered the old man, he didn't like what they implied, but that thought was pushed firmly from his mind by another more urgent thought. “If he's headed to Mul-Dune, then that means that something bad might happen there.”
Silence answered the old man's words and the gnawing fear intensified.
Chapter 10
After the rocky start to the trip, Flare was afraid that the entire trip would be one big disaster. He was relieved when things fell into a somewhat enjoyable routine.
Kara was still angry at him for letting Dale Stonewood's group trail along behind them, and she was also furious at the soldiers who would leave camp every night to visits the girls.
Flare, for his part, completely ignored her. Instead, he chose to follow Murleen's adage, 'She'll get over it or she won't'.
He enjoyed the trip westward. The road from Telur to fort Mul-Dune was well maintained, and made for easy riding. It helped that he rode in front of the troop. The other guardians always complained about bringing up the rear, as they choked on the dust all day long.
The first half of the journey, the land started out as farmland and then slowly changed to thinly forested woodlands. The trees were primarily pine trees, with a few oaks trees scattered in. Game was plentiful, and gentle streams made the journey seem like paradise. The other few travelers were friendly and peaceful enough.
The second half of the trip, the trees became more thick, and the ground slowly began rising. The trees gradually began changing from pine to fir. Lone outcroppings of rock became more common, as the soldiers entered the outskirts of the mountains. There was less towns in the mountains, but they still occasionally passed a mining town or small mountain village.
Finally, after almost four weeks of traveling, they came within sight of Fort Mul-Dune.Fort Mul-Dune stretched across a valley formed by two gigantic mountain peaks. The fort’s walls were made of grey stone block, and were thirty feet high. A massive wooden gate was placed in the middle of the wall. The gap between the peaks was just over five hundred yards wide, and the walls spanned the entire distance.
Soldiers paced the tops of the walls, but they were spread far too thin.
Flare was rather proud of reaching Mul-Dune only twenty-five days after receiving his orders, three days ahead of his target date. As the soldiers approached, the gate swung open to admit them.
The inside of the fort was less impressive than the outside. The ground was mainly pebbles and small rocks. A wide avenue led directly from the gate in the eastern wall, to another gate directly opposite in the west wall. Even though the fort was only five hundred yards wide, it was rather a long way from the eastern gate to the western gate. Lodges, and other buildings, were haphazardly scattered around, and a well was placed directly in the middle of the yard. Small farm animals scurried to get out of the way of the soldiers, as smoke billowed from the tops of the buildings. Fort Mul-Dune was a complete, although small, town.
Flare rode to the middle of the yard, where an officer stood waiting. Dismounting, Flare snapped a crisp salute. “Sergeant Flaranthalas Eldanari reporting as ordered with reinforcements.”
“Sergeant. Colonel Holt is busy, but he will see you as soon as possible.” The Lieutenant pointed backward to the right. “All the lodges over there are empty. Separate the men, and get some rest. I’m sure the colonel will want to see you in the morning.” The lieutenant pointed towards a large home against the northern wall, “Report to Colonel Holt in the morning.”
The next morning, Flare left Atock and Philip to sort out breakfast for the soldiers, and headed to see Colonel Holt.
He walked up a narrow road that wound around to the northern section of the fort. He was pleased to see several inns, and more importantly taverns attached to those inns.
The fort was primarily a military outpost, but certain necessary trades had forced the establishment of various shops and businesses. He observed a smithy, a brothel, and several small stores on his way to find the colonel.
The Colonel's office was a building that had soldiers streaming in and out. He climbed the three steps and paused in front of the two guards stationed beside the entrance. Both guards had been watching him approach.
“I’m looking for Colonel Holt. Is he in there?” Flare asked.
The guards gave him directions to the Colonel's office and let him pass.
Once in the building, he had to wait about an hour before being led in to the colonel’s office. He entered the office and snapped to attention, “Sergeant Flaranthlas Eldanari reporting as ordered with reinforcements.”
Colonel Holt was sitting behind a large desk. He looked rather prim and proper, but something else caught Flare's attention and made his heart skip a beat. Sitting on a couch and looking smug was none other that Dale Stonewood. He was wearing a wicked looking grin.
The colonel looked young for his rank. He had a sharp nose that was too large for his face, and thinning blond hair. He was well tanned and tall, but a little on the thin side.
A large wooden desk was sitting in front of a window, facing the doorway. A couch and several chairs were arranged in a semi-circle facing the desk. Several paintings and a notched battle ax were hanging on the walls. One of the paintings was of the church in Telur. Another painting depicted the god Adel locked in mortal combat with the god Thal.
The colonel waited for several moments, before he spoke. “Well done, sergeant. You were not supposed to be here for another couple of days. You made the journey in excellent time.”
“Thank you, sir. My orders were to get the reinforcements here as soon as possible.”
“Reinforcements!?” Colonel Holt stood and walked around the desk, “The force of four hundred and fifty men that you brought, doubles the complement of men at this fort. That gives me about nine hundred men to guard and defend this fort. Do you think that is enough?”
“No, sir!” Flare answered quickly. He had no idea how many men it would take, but he could tell that was not the answer that Colonel Holt wanted to hear.
Colonel Holt was pacing back in forth in front of the desk. “No indeed. In times of war, this fort had a complement of almost ten thousand. Ten thousand!” The colonel was working himself into a frenzy. This was apparently not a topic he was fond of discussing. “In times of peace, the complement never dropped below five thousand. So what do they do when Telur is threatened? They take almost all of my men, and give me five hundred recruits.”
“Uh, Sir. I assure you that we will do our best.”
“What? Oh. Yes I’m sure you will sergeant.” The colonel paused briefly, when Dale cleared his throat. “Oh yes. I almost forgot about guild-man Stonewood. I believe that you owe him an apology, and I guess we will have to confiscate some of your pay as payment for the lost wages you cost him.”
“Excuse me.” Flare said, not liking the sound of this at all, and the growing smile on the face of Dale was not helping.
The Colonel looked more irritated than anything. “Didn't you interfere with his legal right to practice his profession?”
“No sir. I interfered with his girls trespassing in a military camp.”
Colonel Holt seeme
d clearly taken aback by his answer.
Dale sensed the weakening of his position, “Good Colonel, the King himself says that our profession can be practiced anywhere in the realm. This soldier obviously overstepped himself by interfering.”
“Anywhere in the realm?” Flare repeated, looking as he spoke at the religious pictures on the walls. “Perhaps then, your profession could be practiced in the middle of the temple?”
Colonel Holt's expression was one of shock, and Dale regarded him with a flat look.
“What do you mean by that?” The Colonel finally managed.
Flare responded in a calm manner, “I'm simply suggesting that while he can practice his profession, he cannot do it anywhere he chooses. I allowed the men under my command to leave the camp at night and visit his wagons. I simply did not allow his girls to use my encampment as a brothel.”
The Colonel's left eyebrow rose and he half smiled. “I see your point.”
“But Colonel, remember our discussion about how he should be punished.” Dale said,
Flare spoke quickly, not wanting to give the Colonel a chance to change his mind. He leaned over near the Colonel, “Sir, technically my orders came from General Vergillion. I believe that while under his command, any complaint against me would have to go through him.”
Colonel Holt regarded Flare for several moments. “Guild-man Stonewood, please wait outside for a moment.”
“Now wait just...” Dale started saying, but the Colonel cut him off.
“Now!” Colonel Holt said, his voice rising.
Dale regarded the both of them for just a moment, his anger and hatred for Flare obvious. Then he stomped out of the room.
Colonel Holt continued to regard Flare for several more moments, and Flare began to itch under the scrutiny. “You're a cunning one and you wiggled out of that trouble easily enough. I hope that you won't have to wiggle out of anything else while you're under my command.”
The Guardians: Book One of the Restoration Series Page 17