by Bill Ricardi
Once again, Max continued despite my outburst. “We’ll need the infrastructure, since the University’s newest teleportation gazebo will be built right here, as a link to the Southern Orc Tribes. I’ll be making the announcement tomorrow. How did I phrase it the first time? Ah right: ‘As their reward for sacrificing the Voodoo Engine to save the world from war, and to celebrate their new dedication to magic, peace, and multiculturalism.’ That was it.”
I shook my head in disbelief. “So the baths are to make us more presentable to visitors. And maybe a tourist attraction? A way for others to get their feet wet in tribal culture, so to speak. That leading to cultural trade, and commerce, and so on and so on.”
Max nodded.
Again we stared at the black glass crater in silence for a while.
“Hemitath’s idea?”
“Yeah.”
I murmured, “It’s a bold plan. There are a lot of different tribes that are part of the Southern Clans. A lot of different cultures to account for. We’ll have to make this place a real safe zone. There’s a reason that places like Eastern Hook exist. If you tried to tackle that kind of dangerous wilderness without some kind of civilized buffer, you would have a lot of dead travelers.”
Max agreed, “Security is paramount. We want a lot of options so that there will be a place for everyone who wants to get involved. But it has to be coordinated enough so that gaps in safety are kept to a minimum. Your input is welcome.”
I said, “Absolutely, get as many of the Jeywafa tribe’s traditional allies involved as possible. And given Shaman’s speech, there’s going to be room for outside help. The Champions of the Four Winds and all that. A lot of people around here have been yearning for outside contact for decades, so it isn’t a new sentiment. How do you think it will all play out?”
Max turned both of his palms upwards, as if leaving that question up in the air. “I’m not certain. I say we go with what we have outlined, and then we can shift plans depending on what the general reaction is.”
I nodded. “The new chief approved?”
Max murmured, “He was indisposed, but his wife assured me that he would be on board.”
I said, “Yeah. I imagine that’s going to happen a lot.”
The aged human asked me, “You’ve been to see him then?”
I shook my head. “I’m on my way right now. You look like you’re packed. Are you off?”
Max nodded. He said, “I rested when you did. I’ve sent word to the elves, they’ll be able to provide transport back to Arbitros whenever you’re ready to come back.”
I hesitated. “With all that’s happened, I’m not sure when that might be. My tribe needs me.”
He reiterated, “Whenever you’re ready.”
We traded nods, then the Headmaster closed his eyes. I watched as he murmured the words to the powerful Teleportation spell. It still amazed me that there was no sacrifice required, no gesturing; just a masterful understanding of magic. A few moment later, and Max was gone.
I asked one of my passing tribeswomen where the chief was. She pointed out one of the tents to the west. A little green flag fluttered in the breeze. I nodded my thanks, and then made my way over to pay respects to our new leader.
I ducked under the tent flap, only to find that the chief and his wife were seated in padded wooden chairs, holding court. Benno was off in the corner with the two familiars. Three of the hammer-maidens were talking about future relations with the Jeywafa clan. By the tone of the conversation, things were going well. Hemitath was talking about efforts to secure more Amulets of Enhanced Enchanting, which would allow some of their new husbands to perform feats of magic on a regular basis. Shaman was smiling and nodding. His expression was simple, but peaceful.
As all this went on, Benno was feeding both Lizzy and Dutch. First the flying lizard would get a fresh chunk of meat, then the emerald tree boa would get a larger chunk. I strongly suspected that I knew where the chunks of meat had come from, but didn’t voice an objection. It was about time that the late Chief got around to feeding someone other than himself.
The hammer-maidens pledged physical protection of the tribe, as well as guardianship of the proposed Circle of Transport, in exchange for use of the teleporter for commerce and the eventual enhancement of their new magic using husbands with these amulets that Hemitath spoke of. There was agreement all around, and Shaman granted them the blessing of Kenvunk.
Two of the Nightbane women went over to kiss Benno on the cheek, who squirmed and objected of course. “Goodbye nephew.” one of the hammer-maidens said, before slipping out of the tent. That made me curious. Calling someone who was older and respected ‘Auntie’ or ‘Uncle’ was common amongst the tribes. But ‘nephew’ usually referred to an actual blood relative, the son of a brother or sister.
Hemitath’s voice snapped me out of my reverie. “So now you’re Hero of the Southern Clans as well. You’re making a habit of collecting these titles, Sorch.”
I smiled at her kind words. “Chief. Skua.” The latter referring to Hemitath as the chief’s wife. “Thank you for your kind words, may they be echoed by the hills and return to you tenfold.”
Shaman snorted at my flowery language. “Sit butt down.”
I laughed and pulled up a chair so that I could sit in front of them. Then I reached into my belt pouch. “I have a gift for the new chief. I hope he likes it.”
I held out a little bag to Shaman. He tilted his head and took what I had offered. My old friend’s eyes got wide when he opened the drawstring and peered inside.
I explained, “The platinum sovereigns are worth one hundred gold each. It’s 863 gold, all that I owe you from my adventures. The tribe will be fed, and we can start to rebuild.”
Hemitath smiled, watching Shaman’s reaction. The new chief sniffled and managed to murmur, “You a good boy.” He slowly drew the coin bag closed and handed it to his wife. “Dis help lots.”
I said, “It’s the least I can do. I have more funds as well. Once I re-establish myself back here, I’ll be able to help fund projects. Maybe buy another amulet or two. I can…”
I trailed off because both Shaman and Hemitath were shaking their heads.
The other orc said, “Don’t make kick out twice.”
Hemitath said, as a reaction to my apparently wounded expression, “Shaman means that you’re of far more use to us, to Panos, elsewhere. And there are other concerns as well.” She glanced at Shaman.
Shaman nodded. “Love. Take boy out for while?”
I sat in confused, somewhat hurt silence as Hemitath gathered up Dutch. Lizzy landed on Benno’s shoulder, and the four of them proceeded out of the tent.
I grit my teeth, trying my best to control my emotions. My oldest friend and my former Headmaster were telling me that I wasn’t welcome back into the tribe. “Okay Shaman, what is it?”
The chieftain drew a deep breath, then let it out. “You remember first mating?”
That caught me off guard. I felt myself flush. “Y-yes. The night of my adulthood ceremony. Shaman, what’s that have to do with anyt-”
He cut me off. “Nightbane girl, yes? Same girl see you go to Silverfish?”
Shaman wasn’t being very expressive. I said, “You’re saying that the hammer-maiden that saw me and let me go when I was on my way to the Silverfish was the one that I spent the night with that time?”
He nodded.
I frowned. “It was years later, I didn’t really…” I cleared my throat. “I never really saw her face in well lit conditions. She was visiting and the encounter was unexpected. In the morning she was gone.”
The new chief snorted. “She pass on few week after Silverfish. Just met with sisters.”
I tried to parse what Shaman was trying to say. It all made sense to him, clearly. It took me a few moments before I put all of the pieces together.
I said, “They called him nephew.”
Now Shaman was nodding vigorously. “Yes.”
“H-he
’d be just about the right age to be-”
“Yes.”
I sat, stunned at the revelation. And then angry. “You knew since well before the last time I visited. I had met him! Why didn’t you say anything?”
Shaman said, “Same reason. Same as why not come back.”
“It’s because you need to have a life of your own Sorch.”
Hemitath had returned upon hearing my raised voice. She walked over and stroked Shaman’s head. “It’s because you had escaped this life, and we didn’t have a solution. It would have put you in an impossible position. If you returned you were still a threat to the Chief. If Benno disappeared completely, the Nightbane orcs would have asked questions that could have led to war. He was under our care. Shaman was already under the Chief’s thumb. So we...” she trailed off.
Shaman said, “Sorch. He need dad. Smart dad. I can’t. Before, yes. Now, no.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “But you’re saying not here? Why? This is his home.”
Hemitath said, “But it’s not Ames’ home. And it isn’t your home Sorch, not anymore. Ames has insisted that you finish school, and we all agreed.”
I briefly felt more outrage rise. But it quickly died back down. I sighed, “Of course Ames knew before I did.”
Shaman murmured, “My fault. Let slip again. Stupid.”
The former headmaster bent to kiss her mate on the forehead. “It was an honest mistake dear.” To me, the elven archmage said, “I’m retiring from the Arcane University on a permanent basis. The unified Elven Council has known my intentions for some weeks now. Max is the new Headmaster. It will all be officially announced tomorrow. But as my last act as Headmaster, I’ve waived Benno’s requirements testing. I can personally vouch for his readiness to take on the role of a learning apprentice.”
I said, “You want me to take him with me.”
Hemitath replied, “Actually, that’s what Ames wanted. I simply agreed. You’re free to come up with an alternate plan. He’s your son after all. Discuss it with your mate, that would be my suggestion. But someone with his abilities? With his potential?”
I nodded slowly. Hemitath didn’t need to continue. She was right, obviously. Then I noticed that Shaman had quietly fallen asleep. Hemitath continued to stroke his head.
I asked, softly, “What about him?”
Hemitath murmured, “I’ll be staying with Shaman full time to help with any possible intelligence enhancement. I’ll take over all of the apprentice training. With Max’s help, and I hope your own, I want to find a permanent solution to the orc curse. Then maybe… but either way, I love him.”
I nodded. “So do I. Anything I can do, Hemitath. You need but ask.”
The archmage smiled a little bit. “We have good friends. Toby and Tara have agreed to help out, as have their Orders. I still have contacts at the University and within Arbitros who wish to see a new era of peace with the Southern Tribes. As the chief’s wife, it will be well within the parameters of my role to visit the other tribes, find the best and the brightest, and offer to spread the knowledge of magic. Give me a dozen amulets and a couple of years, and I guarantee that you and Benno will have the company of other orcs at the University.”
I said, “Well I thought you had a pretty good plan up until you mentioned the last bit. But we’ll endure.”
Hemitath heaved a mock-sigh. “Anything else?”
“Your brother Jarotath is kind of cute.”
The older elf shrugged, helplessly. “Why are you telling me this now?”
I sighed. “I don’t know. I guess that I was afraid to tell him to his face. And it never seemed to be the right time.”
Hemitath shot me a half smile. “I’ll pass on the message. Your son is waiting outside. Why don’t you take him over to Ames for a family meeting, hmmm?”
I bowed. “Skua.”
She nodded. “Sorch.”
As I exited, two visitors were waiting to enter. Politely, I held the tent flap open for Lizzy and Dutch, then I stepped outside.
Benno was standing a couple of paces away, absently kicking the ground and staring off into the distance. I closed the gap between us and laid a hand on his shoulder.
The young man chose to speak with his voice rather than his mind. “Guess we gotta go, huh?”
I said, “Just over to see Ames, for now. Hey. You know about all this? About me, and who I am to you?”
The young orc nodded shyly. He started to head across the village, to the tent where Ames was recovering. “Uncle tell me just after you leave Max here.”
I murmured, “Why am I always the last to know these things?”
Benno did his best to explain, “When you tell smart person thing, it get out of control. Sometimes, best keep simple.”
I had to laugh. That was absolutely true. “Alright. Are you okay leaving this place to go to a real magic school? I’ll be with you. You can meet the rest of my friends.”
“We can come back and visit, yeah?”
I decided to try to be the cool dad. “Well that depends. Are you okay riding on the back of a giant wolf?”
Benno slowed his walk so that he could look up at me. “Dat crazy. You crazy.”
I sighed as my attempt to impress him fell flat. “Yeah, I am sometimes. It might be a while before they build the Circle of Transport here Benno. But the elves might be able to help us out in the meantime. Will that be okay?”
The lad shrugged. “Sure. Auntie is elf. As long as not ride giant wolf.”
I rolled my eyes. “You rode a giant minotaur and you loved it!”
Benno actually had to consider that one. “Huh. Well, maybe try. Just once.”
We paused a few paces from the tent where Ames was resting. My son and I looked out at the devastation where the Voodoo Engine once sat. I explained Hemitath’s and Max’s plans to Benno: The well, the baths. The teleportation circle that would bring people here from all over the world. The new merchants and students, the extra amulets that would allow smart orcs to perform real magic.
My boy considered all of this. Then he said, “Yeah. I’m okay with dat.”
I tousled my son’s hair, and we started moving again. As we approached the tent flap I said, “Okay. So I’m going to teach you how to get super smart like me, we’re going to go to school together, and under no circumstances do you tell Ames that we already agreed to all of this. Okay?”
“Oh. Kitty already know, we arrange all dis before you wake up.”
I was still rubbing my temples with my left hand when Benno dragged me into the family tent.
Ames was sitting up, cleaning a set of lockpicks. My bag was still in the were-cat’s possession, presumably minus anything that the feline wanted to take, including the jerky. I sighed, resigned to my fate.
After walking over and giving the cat a welcome nosing, I said, “Benno has caught me up. I know that you already knew everything. I know you withheld.”
Ames shrugged with one shoulder, on the side opposite the chest wound. “I was bored. Needed something to do while you were being lazy. Plotting behind your back is quite amusing, as it turns out.”
Benno chimed in, “I tell dad what we gonna do, he agree.”
Ames reached out to pat the smaller orc’s shoulder. “This is why you’re my favorite son, Benno.” Ames was loving this.
I grumbled, “Okay, enough. How is this going to work with The Spastic Vole?”
Benno said, far too eagerly, “Oh, place with the dancing on poles?”
I stared at Ames. “You told him about the pole dancing?!”
The were-cat smirked. “I’m not starting off my stint at parenthood by lying to the kid. I assume the two of you are alright splitting your time between Ice House, the University, and when the Circle of Transport is established, the tribe. I think it’s important that we concentrate on getting to know each other as a family before we do anything else adventurous. Agreed?”
Benno and I both nodded.
I said, “
If we need to make ends meet, I can always do some work shaping stone. It’s a fairly rarified skill.”
Ames insisted, “You’re finishing out the school year, at minimum. And if it was up to me, the next school year as well. But we’ll reassess in two seasons and figure it out from there. We’re not going to need money Sorch, the Vole is in great shape now, and we’re getting a reward from all this as well. Max still doesn’t have an exact figure, but it’s going to be sizable.”
I smiled. “I’m not going to object to that. If you want to be the only employed member of the family, putting food on the table for Benno and I…”
Benno chimed in with, “I eat lots.”
I continued, “...then I have no objection. In a year and a half, I might be able to test out. If I really apply myself, they might offer me a position at the Arcane University.”
The were-cat tilted their head. “You’d give up adventuring?”
I looked down at my son. “I guess it depends on how things go. I wouldn’t force the lifestyle on Benno.”
The lad stared up at me. He said, “You kidding? You gotta show me world. Dat your job as dad.”
The idea was quite appealing. We all needed to get to know each other, and although the Arcane University was one way to do that, it didn’t really represent the more wild side of our natures. I thought back to my list of goals, written so long ago in the basement of The Magic Shop in Limt. With this latest reward, I would likely have the means to accomplish everything on that list. So I asked my son the all-important question:
“Do you like boats?”
End of Book 2
If you enjoyed ‘Another Stupid Demon’, please consider leaving a positive review on Amazon and Goodreads. The more five star reviews that we get, the more people we can reach. And the more people we can reach, the more Panos books I’ll be able to write.
To join the fan club and mailing list, please sign up at the top of Bill Ricardi’s fan site - http://billricardi.com
If you would like to go the extra mile to support the author, please consider:
Sponsoring my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/billricardi