Table of Contents
Dedication
Map of the Realm
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Dedication
Dad, this one is for you. It was never just about the book. It was about a father and son spending time together.
Map of the Realm
Chapter 1
“Did you find anything?” whispered the tall youth from outside the open window. His younger companion inside did not respond. He spoke again. “Kalo, did you find anything?”
“No,” came a reluctant reply, “and be still.”
Tythan Pree grew impatient as he stood outside in the shadows of the building. “Let’s get out of here. It’s too bright out.” A moment passed and he added, “I shouldn’t have asked you to do this so early. We should have waited until later.”
His voice trailed off as he turned his head to look east, up the alley toward the street, then glanced quickly in the other direction, across the river. Kyff’s Works, the coppersmith’s shop, sat on a narrow plot on the wharf. It did not extend onto a pier like many of the other buildings on this side of the street. Ty had chosen this setting because the chance of being discovered would likely come only from someone on the street.
The night air was cool, and a light breeze usually whispered through the city of Riverlok in the early evening hours this time of year. The sun had gone down only an hour before. A full moon had already risen high in the cloudless autumn sky, and its bright reflection sparkled on the slowly drifting waters of the Green Provide. As the night wore on, shadows from the city wall to the west reached across the river to the wharf like a blackened blanket, and the old buildings along the waterfront were made even darker by their contrast to the moonlit streets. It was surprisingly quiet this early in the night. A dog’s faint barking in the distance and the water lapping against the breaker wall were the only sounds.
Inside the small one-story building, Kalo’s agile figure moved quickly about in the darkness with complete silence. His shadowy form floated from one corner of the room to the next in search of the perfect item. The faint shapes of the craftsman’s wares covered the walls and filled small display cases. A metallic taste hung in the air.
“Ty, I can’t find the right case. He must have moved it,” he whispered from inside.
At that, the older boy stuck his head through the open window. “Come out of there, Kalo, or I’m coming in after you.” He added an incentive. “We’ll find something to eat.” A moment passed, and his voice changed from a plea to a command. “If we’re caught, we could be flogged, or worse. Come on!”
Suddenly Kalo appeared at the window, smiling broadly. “How’s this?” he asked, brandishing a copper belt buckle with a silver inlay.
Ty took the buckle in his hand and fondled it. The fear of capture left him as he examined the prize in the light of the full moon. “Will he miss it? We don’t want to overdo it, now.”
“Not a chance.” Kalo shook his head. “I rearranged the other pieces. He won’t notice it’s gone.” They were at ease now, talking casually through the open windowpane of the freshly burgled shop. Kalo adjusted his shirt, and a small ferret climbed out and rested on the sill between the two boys.
“Come here, Nikki,” said Kalo as he picked up the slender foot-long animal and cuddled him in his arms. The rock ferret climbed up his chest and rested on his shoulder, burrowing its small head in his auburn hair and licking his ear.
“Why couldn’t Nikki have picked out a piece for us?” asked Ty, turning the buckle back and forth in the moonlight. “You’ve been training him for months.”
“He only picks out gold, not copper.” Kalo reached up to stroke the soft coat of the ferret thief, then placed him back inside the large fold in his shirt.
“He’s too good for copper?” Ty inquired, gently pushing the booty into a soft leather pouch fastened about his waist.
Kalo was silent. He found it impossible to explain how he’d taught the ferret to work with him. No one understood his gift with animals, including himself. The concept of stealing was man’s invention, based upon the idea of personal property and ownership. The rock ferret held no such sentiment. The task for Kalo became not to teach Nikki to pilfer, but simply what item to take and when. The learning process took both time and patience, but with the gift of the link, it had been promising. Nikki could now recognize gold. For now, Kalo still had to pick out the valuable copper pieces. Ty would not understand how Kalo teamed with the ferret to steal the best pieces, so Kalo kept these things to himself.
“I’m going to sell this right now. I’ll meet you back at the loft, and then we’ll find something to eat,” Ty told him. He looked up and down the alleyway, then back at Kalo. “Can you close up by yourself?”
“Sure,” Kalo responded; the contortion of his body as he twisted out through the window lengthened the word.
“You know, Kalo, it bothers me to have you do the stealing,” said Ty. He put his arms about the smaller boy’s torso and lifted him into the alley. “I want to take the risks, not you.”
“Go,” said the young thief as he gained his footing. “The longer you stand there, the hungrier I get.”
That was all the older boy needed to hear. He spun around and ran quickly, effortlessly, and silently down the alleyway, keeping to the shadows. His shape was visible for only an instant as he crossed the street into the dark and disappeared from sight.
Kalo carefully lifted a grime-covered pane of glass that had been resting against the exterior of the building. He spat on the tip of his fingers and rubbed the moisture on each corner. With gentle care, he placed the pane into the open window frame he had just exited. It fit perfectly, as it should. Propping the glass with one hand, he reached into his oversized shirt pocket with the other.
“Move over, Nikki,” he said softly. The rock ferret snuggled against the boy’s body in his shirt and moved out of position as the boy’s hand moved in. Kalo pulled out a small wooden peg and wedged it between the pane and frame. He found three other pegs and did the same. Quietly but firmly, he tapped the window to test it. It felt secure. As a finishing touch, he scooped up a small amount of dust from the alleyway and tossed it into each spit-moistened corner of the window. The coppersmith would not know that his young nonpaying customers had visited again tonight.
Kalo wiped his hands on his shirt, then ran them through his hair and admired his work. He was more thorough than Ty. He did not enjoy stealing, but he was very good at it. His obsession with covering his thefts was something Ty did not fully understand. Ty found it clever because it allowed them to do it over and over, but for Kalo, it was simply easier to steal from those who did not know they were victims. And it was kinder.
Suddenly, he heard his name. “Kalo.”
The young thief whirled about to see the dark silhouett
e of his friend standing before him.
“What are you doing here?” gasped Kalo, his hand on his chest. “You scared me to death.”
“I came back for you.” Tythan Pree stepped silently into the shadow of the building. “I decided I should show you how I sell our goods.”
“I don’t want to know, Ty.”
“You need to learn the trade.”
“We’re thieves, Ty. It’s not a trade.” Kalo could not see his friend’s face, but he knew his words had hurt him. Kalo was still unnerved from being startled. “All right, show me how you sell them.”
Ty put his arm about Kalo, and the two young thieves of Riverlok walked out of the alleyway and into the dark streets of the waterfront. “I think we’ll take the scenic route, over the bridge. I know a way right through the West Wall, across the river—but not tonight. Tonight, you get to see where our customers really live.” Kalo didn’t ask for further explanation. It was hard for him to think of the buyers who paid for their thievery as “customers.”
The Green Provide flowed south from the northern mountains and could be crossed from the city of Riverlok in two locations, the Northgate and the Southgate. They were heading toward the Northgate Bridge to cross over into the West Bank settlement.
The two thieves walked side by side down the cobblestone street and past the Kingfisher Inn. The waterfront was deserted, and the faint din of voices coming from the ancient tavern was testimony that this was where the people gathered to dine and enjoy one another’s company. A column of smoke spiraled up from the old tavern’s chimney, and the thought of a warm fire beckoned the two boys. Although neither of them said anything, they both gazed longingly through the smoke-covered windows. They had not eaten that day, and the smell of brewing stew made their stomachs pang in hunger. Reluctantly, they pulled away from the inviting warmth of the Kingfisher and continued to march alongside the Green Provide.
The streets were bright, and as the two boys stepped out of the shadows of the buildings and into the light, their own shadows streaked across the cobblestones. Other than the two, the streets were empty of pedestrians. An occasional carriage passed. When it did, the boys could hear it coming from a distance, and they blended into the sides of the buildings lining the streets.
Soon they reached the Northgate Bridge as the street turned west. At the ramp to the gate, the boys stopped in the shadows. “Let me do the talking,” said Ty. Kalo smiled to himself. Speaking to the gatekeeper was the last thing he would want to do. He’d rather swim across to the West Bank. He’d done that before, on a day when he was just curious about what was on the other side of the world. The problem was finding a hole in the thirty-foot-high wall of ancient timber that separated the West Bank settlement from the city of Riverlok. Once he saw the depravity that lay beyond, he understood the reason for the wall—and for placing a gatekeeper on the bridge.
The two thieves had studied the riverfront well enough to know that this time of night, there was only one guard on duty. They walked up the north side of the bridge. They made little sound, although not intentionally, as it was their normal manner of walking.
As they drew within sight of the guardhouse and the faint glow of an unseen lantern, Ty called out, “Captain! Captain! Two approaching.” Kalo could see the guard jerk awake. The startled gatekeeper straightened his helmet as he stepped out of the guardhouse, peering into the dark in the direction of the sound that had awoken him. Ty called out again, “Captain! Captain! Two approaching.”
The gatekeeper straightened his frame and made himself look as large as he could. “Advance and halt!” he boomed.
Kalo fell in close to his companion. Ty’s brazen stunts made him uncomfortable. Ty toyed with danger. Kalo dreaded it. What was this trickery going to be? Would it work?
Chapter 2
At the voice of the gatekeeper, the ravens perched on the nearby bridge railing squawked. A few lifted off the railing a foot or so, then settled back. Within moments, the two thieves of Riverlok were before him, and Ty immediately began. “It’s Tythan Pree, Captain. My lord brought a workhorse team from across the bridge this morning, and this stable boy came with them. The cook fed him, but he smells something terrible, sir.” He held Kalo by the shirt collar and suddenly pushed him forward at arm’s length. “I was told to take him back across and then hurry home. It won’t take long, Captain.”
The gatekeeper stopped and leaned back slightly. He was silent as he studied the two small, dark figures along the bridge walkway. Then he motioned with a quick wave of his arm. “Go.”
Ty started forward quickly. “Thank you, sir. I’ll be crossing back over shortly.” The gatekeeper didn’t reply. A few ravens stirred on the bridge railing as they moved on.
“So, I smell bad, do I?” said Kalo finally when they were beyond the gatekeeper’s shack.
“As a matter of fact, we both do!” said Ty, releasing his friend’s shirt collar with a playful push.
The two boys soon left the ramp of the Northgate Bridge behind for the West Bank. They turned south and headed in the direction parallel to the street across the river and the coppersmith’s shop they had burgled.
Broken lanterns hung limply from the buildings and looked like they had not been lit for years. Ty guided Kalo down a series of dark side streets. They moved quietly and quickly among the shadows. The dirt streets narrowed further, and piles of debris languished against the sides of buildings.
They stopped at a corner near an abandoned shop, and Ty motioned across the street toward a dark space between two tall buildings. “Here. Follow me and say nothing.” Kalo nodded and followed as Ty led him down the narrow alley.
Something moved in the darkness. Ty stopped abruptly and held up a hand. Kalo fell in beside him and squinted into the darkness, for he had learned from experience he could see much better in the night than his companions. The shape shifted again, and two fearful eyes gleamed back at them from the gloom. Then it rose. It appeared: a massive animal covered in dark bristled hair.
“It’s just a dog,” Kalo breathed.
“I know that,” said Ty softly; he remained frozen.
Kalo immediately focused his thoughts on the dog and felt a connection with the animal. He extended an invisible hand, his palm down. The dog smelled the unseen hand of the stranger; her muscles relaxed, and she changed her posture. Nikki stirred within the young thief’s clothing. Kalo placed his hand on Ty’s back and gently pressed forward. “She’s a stray, not a guard dog. We can pass.”
Ty took a few cautious steps, then halted at a dark reinforced door. The huge dog stood to the side and glanced up at them with calm eyes. A low light flickered in a side window. Kalo could faintly smell the river as a brisk wind whistled between the two tall buildings that loomed above them like massive shadowed giants. In the moonlight, he could make out the tall, ancient wall of timber at the end of the alley, running along the west bank of the Green Provide waters.
Ty faced the door. He knocked three times, paused, then knocked twice more. A curtain parted, and the two young thieves could feel a pair of eyes studying them. A metal latch lifted and the door opened slightly. A candle’s light flickered in the opening, masking the face of its holder.
“What do you want?”
“It’s a piece for Dreegle.”
“Can’t it wait?”
“It’s a beauty.” Ty held up the small belt buckle and turned it so the candlelight would flicker on the copper. “I could find another buyer across the river, but I thought Dreegle would want it.”
There was a pause, and the door opened wider. The figure of a hulking man appeared, silhouetted in the light of a single lantern hanging above a table. In the light of his candle, he studied the two uninvited guests closely, as though judging their worth.
“All right. Come in.”
The door opened further, the big man turned aside, and the two boys entered. The space reeked of ungroomed men, causing Kalo to catch his breath. It was a sparse room with low
lights. Besides the single lantern over the table, another hung from a brace on the back wall, emitting just enough light to reveal the dimensions of the space. Ty and Kalo rapidly searched the room with their eyes, their heads turning about, first looking for exits, then counting the men in the room, noting their positioning, and locating visual weapons. Four more men bent slightly over a table. They were all larger than either of the boys. In front of them were gaming cards and small piles of coins. Two other men, clothed in near rags, sat on stools not far away. As the boys appeared, stiff necks slowly turned, and glaring eyes fell upon the young thieves. Ty did not step into the center of the room. Instead, he stayed close to the door where they had entered, and Kalo stayed even closer, tucked behind Ty’s shoulder.
One at the table spoke—not the one who had opened the door. “Let’s see what you got.”
“Dreegle is usually quite generous,” said Ty, his voice uncomfortably high pitched as he stepped forward, passed the copper buckle to the man nearest to him, then stepped back toward the door.
“Is he now?” said the man who asked to see the stolen piece, turning it in the dim lamplight. “We wouldn’t want to disrespect the great Dreegle.” Another man at the table nodded eagerly, as though he might be smiling behind his full beard. In the silence, the two rag-bound men slid down from their perch on the stools and moved toward the door. Kalo stepped aside, pressing even closer to Ty to let them pass. They smelled of urine, and Kalo turned his head to watch them leave.
“Get out of the way, mutt!” one yelled at the dog outside. The door was still open, and Kalo saw him kick the animal in the ribs, driving it against the wall. The big dog yelped and cowered in the corner.
The ferret in Kalo’s clothing stirred. Kalo reached back and closed the door partly, but not so it would latch. He sent out the link and felt the dog’s hunger and fear. The big stray would bear this abuse; sometimes there was food to be found, so she lingered here. She had young mouths to feed, and she would endure this treatment to get what she had come for.
The Ruins of Melda Page 1