“Me, dramatic?” Favio said in a high-pitched voice, throwing his hand over his forehead as if he were tired. “Never.”
“I came to talk to you, Favio. Do you have a moment to talk in one of the private dining chambers? It is a matter of critical importance to the realm.”
Favio sobered; he knew that Dawyn did not say something was critical if it was not true. He nodded and said, “Yes, of course, I am free. Let me tell the band to go on again in my stead.” He stepped away for a few moments to talk to band and then returned. “Lead the way.”
Stopping at the kitchens, Dawyn requested the use of one of the private dining chambers and Elizabeth told him that number four was free. He thanked her and gave her the same description of Alivia that he had shared with Bruno. She agreed to send her in if she saw her.
They entered the room and took a seat. These dining chambers were designed for both comfort and privacy. There was a large round table in the center of the room and they each took a chair around the table. Elizabeth came in a short while later, carrying a large platter of sliced meat and cooked vegetables slathered in gravy. Dawyn could hear his stomach growling as he looked over the feast.
“Thank you so much, Elizabeth,” Dawyn said. “I know I tell you this all of the time, but I really appreciate all you do for me.”
“Oh, Dawyn, I would do anything for you. Just ring the bell in the corner by the door if you need anything and I’ll be in as quick as I can. Enjoy your meal.”
The three companions began eating right away. Better to eat before getting down to business. Besides, Dawyn wanted to wait for Alivia’s arrival before going much further.
“Mmmm, this is delicious,” Favio exclaimed. “I don’t think there is anything that woman can’t make taste good. In fact, one time I swear she had put a boot into the stew, but when I tasted it, I came back for seconds!”
As they ate, they made idle chit-chat. Dawyn told Favio about what he had been up to recently and, of course, about how he and Anwyn had met. Favio seemed most intrigued about that story.
“So you’re a druid, and they trapped you as a bear? That is amazing. I had no idea such a thing was possible. I feel a new ballad coming on.” Favio grabbed a small notepad from a pouch on his belt and jotted down some notes.
“Trust me,” Anwyn replied dryly, “it was anything but ‘amazing’ living the experience.”
Favio returned the courtesy and told the two all about what he had been doing for the past several months and years gone by. Had he not been interrupted, he could have told tales all night – all of them true, or at least mostly true, so far as Dawyn could tell.
As Favio was in the midst of reciting his third tale, a story about him masquerading as a prince in an attempt to gain the favor of a princess, the door to the private dining chamber opened to admit Alivia. She had changed out of the dress and slippers and was now wearing a pair of brown knee-high boots, tight forest green trousers and tunic and a dark brown vest. Her hair, which had been undone within the castle, was tied back with a strap. Upon the brown belt fastened at her waist, was a variety of pouches and a small dagger. “Sorry I’m late,” she said. “I couldn’t decide on what to wear.”
Favio ceased the telling of his tale and turned at Alivia’s voice to see the newcomer. From the angle that Dawyn was sitting, he could see Favio’s eyes grow wide. “My goodness,” Favio said, rising, “but aren’t you a beautiful sight for such a weary soul as myself.” Dawyn rolled his eyes. Favio stepped forward and, as he had done with Anwyn, attempted to pick up her hand to kiss it.
To Favio's dismay, Alivia was not one for people kissing her hand and she pulled it from his grasp before he could do so. “What are you doing?” she demanded.
“I was attempting to kiss the hand of the beautiful lady who has stolen my heart, my dear lady,” Favio said smoothly. He bowed low, as if he had just finished a performance. “I do apologize for my forwardness.”
“You can apologize by not trying to do it again,” Alivia said. Turning her gaze to Dawyn she asked “Is he one of your companions? He seems a little odd.” Favio sniffed at the comment and sat down. Dawyn sensed disbelief in the man that his charm had not worked on her.
“I haven’t yet asked him if he will join us on our quest, Alivia,” Dawyn said with a chuckle. “But I would ask that you not irritate him too much or he won’t join us. Please, have a seat.” Dawyn gestured to chair across from him.
Alivia took the seat offered and looked to her right at Anwyn. She extended her hand to shake that of Anwyn. “Hello, I am Alivia. I don’t believe we have met. Are you Anwyn?”
Anwyn seemed surprised that Alivia knew her name. She cast a quick glance at Dawyn before looking at Alivia and shaking her hand awkwardly. “Yes, I am Anwyn. How did you guess?”
“Dawyn told the king a brief version of your tale. I must say that the king was quite sympathetic of your experience. If there is anything that I can assist you with, please do not hesitate to ask.”
“Thank you for your kind words,” Anwyn replied.
Dawyn cleared his throat. “Now that we are all here, I would like to tell you why I have asked you here. Our kingdom and the lands of neighboring allies are threatened by a large organization of assassins and thieves led by a man calling himself Lord Garik. The man has succeeded in consolidating every large guild between the White and Windy Mountains under his sole command by removing their leaders.” Dawyn proceeded to tell them the story that had been relayed by the king to him and Alivia. As he finished, he looked at each of them in turn. “Let me know if you are interested in joining this quest. I can’t promise it will be an easy task, but I can promise you that you’ll be doing the right thing.”
Both Favio and Anwyn were quiet for a few moments. Then Favio spoke up. “You know I’m in, Dawyn. I can’t pass up a good fight and you’re right, it’s for a good cause.”
“I’m in as well, Dawyn,” Anwyn said. “After all they put me through; it’s time to exact some revenge.”
Dawyn breathed a large sigh of relief. He had been somewhat confident that both people would join this quest, but he hadn’t been 100% sure. Hearing the confirmation from them, and with such conviction, eased a burden from his mind.
“Now that that’s settled,” Alivia said, “what’s the next step in the plan? Just go walking up to the nearest assassin and ask him where to find Garik?”
“Well now, I’ve been giving some thought to that. Listen up and let me know what you think…”
Chapter 10: Rumors
As Dawyn had outlined the plan, the other companions had given their opinions and thoughts on the matter, giving suggestions. The plan they came up with, several hours and tankards of beer later, was to first infiltrate Favio into the ranks of the thieves’ guild, which would put him in direct contact with the assassins’ guild. The problem with infiltration, as Favio pointed out, was that he may have to go through an initiation to join the guild, which may involve breaking the law. Dawyn assured him he had the ear of the king and would ensure any and all charges brought against Favio would be dropped. He was acting on the king’s behalf, after all. He couldn’t very well be punished for such a thing.
Once they had found Garik’s latest location, they had to track him. Only by watching his actions could they predict him and prepare a trap for him. They also needed to identify the powerful mage and veiled assassin who accompanied him and try to neutralize both. That’s where Alivia and Dawyn came in. They would be best suited to fight the companions of Garik, while Anwyn would track Garik and act as support when things got violent, as Dawyn was sure they would. As Favio put it, Anwyn would step in if things got “hairy.”
After they had tailed Garik for a time, they would lay their plan to capture or eliminate him and his lieutenants. Garik wouldn’t be expecting such a small group of people to come after him and would be complacent. This would be his weakness.
Their first stop in order to begin Favio’s infiltration was going to be Henry’s Crossing, located tw
o day’s ride south of Tar Ebon along the banks of the Tar River. Because the river was narrowest at this point, Henry’s Crossing possessed a bridge that arched high into the air allowing for tall vessels to go beneath it. Cross through the Narrows, as it was called, could be dangerous work for all but the most skilled captain of an ocean-going vessel. More often than not, ocean vessels would dock at the port city of Valnos, located where the muddy water of the Tar River mixed with the clear blue waters of the Eryth Sea. The vessels would offload their cargo onto shallow-hulled barges and small ships that were capable of making the trip to Tar Ebon, and then continued on their way.
In the pre-dawn light after their meeting, the group made preparations to set out for Henry’s Crossing. The first order of business was for each of them to gather their belongings. They agreed to allow a full day for everyone to put their affairs in order. They would depart Tar Ebon the next day at dawn.
“Remember,” Dawyn said, “only bring the most essential of items along with you. We don’t have time to bring a cart or burden the horses with extra weight. We must make good time to Henry’s Crossing. If it’s something we can buy in the new city, leave it here. Bring a few changes of clothes, your money and small personal mementos, if you choose, and some rations, but otherwise that’s all. It should be able to fit in a pack on your back and in your saddle bags.”
The group parted ways after eating a hearty breakfast prepared by Elizabeth.
Dawyn made his way to the Celestial Palace on Shadow and went to his quarters. There, he packed several pairs of plain woodsman-style clothes, all of his small-clothes, his travel blanket and a small leather pouch that contained items very dear to his heart, including a letter, a picture of his sister and a family photograph. He removed the Shara’han collar from his belt pouch and placed it into this leather pouch for safe-keeping.
That leather pouch contained all of the most valuable items that still remained in Dawyn’s possession. His sister had been taken from him when they first arrived in these lands, stolen away in the night. Dawyn had been framed for the murder of the kind family that had taken them in when they had nowhere else to go. Twenty-five years had passed since that day and he had long ago given up hope he would find her. He presumed she was dead, buried in some unmarked grave in the forest. The photographs he carried were the only thing of her that remained.
Before departing the palace, Dawyn stopped at the king’s antechamber and retrieved the maps and pouches of money from Wilfred. Afterward, Dawyn stopped at the Shadow Watch Guard headquarters within the barracks. There, he found Lieutenant Commander Rodney Fitzgerald at his desk. The man stood up and saluted as Dawyn entered. “Good morning, sir, how are you?”
“I’m good, Rodney,” Dawyn replied, returning the salute. “I am going away on a mission for the king starting on the morrow. I want to make sure you know that you will be in charge in my absence. I know you’re up for it. I don’t know how long I’ll be, and I can’t tell you what my mission involves, but rest assured that I will be back as soon as possible.”
“Yes, sir, I will take good care of things in your absence,” Rodney said, giving yet another salute.
“Good man,” Dawyn said. He remained in the barracks for a short period of time, briefing Rodney on the latest happenings among the Guard, ensuring that he had all of the knowledge he would need to command in Dawyn’s absence. The lieutenant commander had been with the Guard for over five years and Dawyn was confident he could handle things in his absence.
After leaving the barracks, Dawyn found it was already midday. Leaving Shadow in the palace stables to allow him to rest up, he made his way on foot to the Market District. Once there, he stopped at the bakery for a few slices of bread, a couple of the vegetable stands for fresh vegetables and the fruit stands for fresh imported and domestic fruit. With spring came the ships from afar, carrying precious cargo in the form of pineapples, bananas and other perishable items held in ice boxes aboard the ships.
After gathering everything, he sat down on one of the benches surrounding the Celestial Fountain and ate his lunch. It felt good being out of his uniform for once. People didn’t look at him out of the corner of their eyes or shy away from him. The vendors had all treated him different, still with respect, but not the same as when wearing the uniform of the Guard.
After lunch, Dawyn walked through the Mage District in order to gaze up at the mighty Tower of the Seven Stars. It was even more daunting up close than it was from a distance. The Tower dominated the city skyline. Nothing else showed above the city walls save the dome of the palace. Dawyn could not approach too close, for the Tower was a place of restricted access to common citizens. Today, Dawyn was as common as a person could be.
After leaving the Mage District, Dawyn decided to move on to the Trade District. He stood at the end of one of the docks and watched the loading and unloading of a wide variety of vessels that were docked in the harbor while customs officers moved among them.
Most of the vessels present were shallow-hulled river and coastal merchant cogs – ships designed to navigate the shallow waters that were ripe with potential navigational hazards. These ships were designed to move cargo or people to places where bigger ships couldn’t. Barges that plied the waters north of Tar Ebon were also present, ferrying goods to the harbor where they would be loaded on larger coastal merchant vessels and sent south. One or two ocean-going vessels were in port – those that had shallow enough hulls to not run aground but deep enough to withstand an ocean storm when laden with goods.
The Tar River flowed outside of the Tar Ebon harbor. Here the river was too wide to be bridged, so a river ferry carried people and cargo across the Tar River into the harbor. At the entrance to the harbor stood two black towers, like silent sentinels standing watch. Dawyn knew that between the two towers lay a heavy chain. The chain sat at the bottom of the river, but could be raised in a time of siege to prevent enemy ships from crossing into the harbor. Archers could be placed upon the towers, while ships from within the harbor could come to its mouth to beat back their enemies. There had never been a siege of Tar Ebon since the Founding, so the chain had never had to be used.
Finding the nearest tavern to the docks, Dawyn went in search of food. The Gull Tavern was a rowdy establishment, with many men gathered around long tables eating and drinking to their hearts’ content. In other areas of the place, men were dicing or playing cards for money. Women wearing next to no clothing roamed the building, searching for men willing to indulge in their services. Dawyn almost turned around, but he reminded himself, today, he was not Commander Darklance; he was just Dawyn, a common traveler visiting Tar Ebon and looking for food. Despite the disheveled atmosphere, the roast beef was delicious and the cold mug of ale was brewed just right.
As Dawyn ate, he listened to the talk of people around him. “Did ya hear about the Empire?” one older man, with graying hair and a weathered face, asked. “I heard they have declared war on two of their neighboring kingdoms. Word is they’re winning, too.”
“Bah, I ain’t heard no such thing,” another weathered man said. “I did hear about that ship docked at the Citadel, though. The captain claimed he had come from the lands beyond the storm wall. Had all sorts of crazy tales to tell of mages in chains, strange dress and warrior maidens. He claimed he almost didn't make it off the island alive. He claimed half his crew were killed or captured by the local soldiers, though I think they starved and he’s not telling the whole truth. You ask me, the captain was a little crazy. Everyone knows the storm wall can’t be crossed.”
The other men nodded in agreement to his statement. The storm wall was a massive super storm that ran around the world like a ring around a woman's finger. The storm ran in what seemed to be a straight line and never stopped. During the warmer summer months, the storm wall would eject smaller storms, north toward cooler waters. These smaller storms, while not as dangerous to traverse as the storm wall itself, were a hazard to be watched for close to the wall.
> Ship captains foolish enough to enter the storm zone found themselves in the midst of waves several meters high, torrential rain that could drown a ship and lightning that shot from the sky like angry daggers being flung from the heavens. If the ship and crew somehow managed to survive, they soon found themselves blown off course and re-located either north or south of the wall. Those who tried to cross the storm wall seldom came back. No one quite knew the origin of the storm wall, or why it had been created. Men who knew the seas said the storm wall could not have been a natural occurrence. Many scholars attributed its creation to the Founders, but then, they attributed almost everything unexplained to the Founders.
Other men spoke of the early streak of warm weather they were having in this region and how this would affect commodity prices. Still others bartered merchandise over mugs of ale and heaping plates of food. Taverns in a port city like Tar Ebon were where the majority of trade deals took place. They were public establishments that offered some semblance of safety, money-changers were easy to find and they offered privacy in that the tavern was so loud that it would be difficult to hear the entirety of another person's conversation without their knowledge. Dawyn could tell they were making deals because of the wild gestures with their hands and the signing of documents.
Leaving a generous tip for his serving girl, Dawyn left the tavern and set out down Port Street, the main thoroughfare that ran north-south parallel with the docks. He decided to head back to the palace, collect his belongings and take Shadow to the Dancing Mare. They had all agreed to spend the night there, in separate rooms of course, so that they could leave on time. Every moment they delayed took them further from Lord Garik.
Chapter 11: Leaving Town
The day after the meeting with the king, as the bright spring sun lit up the sky, Dawyn and his companions gathered in the Dancing Mare common room. Each person had prepared a pack to place upon their back and had filled their saddlebags. Both of the women were dressed in functional woodsman attire- boots with earth-colored tunics and trousers. Alivia had removed her headband with the white diamond, though it was close at hand in one of her belt pouches, and had swapped out her cloak with the emblem of the Tower for a more non-descript brown cloak.
Blood and Shadows (The Saga of the Seven Stars Book 1) Page 7