The girl Aleya they hooked up with after Saragon, Jiron and she seem to be getting serious as well. She’s currently back at The Ranch. Jiron offered her to come with him, but when she found out Roland was teaching people to read, she opted to stay there and learn. That had hurt his feelings but not much he could do about it.
Actually, the class of just a few students has grown as news circulated through the community. Now he not only has all of the irregulars, Jorry and Uther have joined as well as many of the sons and daughters of the farmers in the area. Roland has set the limit for his class at twenty, charging two coppers a week for those not affiliated with The Ranch.
James at first argued with him about charging, but his reasoning was this: if they’re willing to pay then they’ll be willing to learn. He didn’t want a bunch of deadbeats hanging around just so they’ll be out of their parent’s way for awhile. Remembering the layabouts in his classes back home that were there simply because they had to be, he understands the logic.
Once they’ve moved past Villigun and enter the Kelewan Forest, he’s surprised at how much his anxiety level rises. The memories of those first few fateful days upon this world still haunt him. Although this time he’s in the company of friends and has little to worry about from a pack of wolves. His magic could take care of them readily enough.
As they’re setting up camp, Miko removes his crossbow from the pack mule and goes in search of dinner. By the time they have a fire going, he’s returned with two large rabbits. In no time at all, they’re skinned and roasting over the fire.
A light drizzle begins by the time they’re ready to call it a night. Fortunately they’ve managed to find a tall tree with wide limbs under which they can take shelter. Only a very little water works its way down to where they are, the majority runs off the outer limbs leaving them dry.
The drizzle continues on through the night and is still present when they get underway the next morning. From what the locals tell him, this sort of weather is common for this time of year. When winter comes in full force, it gets rather cold and a foot of snow from a single storm isn’t unheard of.
As they make their way through the forest, the canopy of leaves which covers the road keeps the worst of it off of them. The road is fairly straight and they make good time. With only a brief stop for lunch before continuing on, they ride fast and are pretty sure they’re close to Trendle when daylight begins to fade.
A shadow disengages itself from the treeline ahead of them and when they draw near can see that it’s Yern.
“What are you doing here?” James asks.
“Waiting for your return,” he says.
“Why?” he asks. “Nothing wrong is there?”
“Don’t know for sure,” he replies. “It’s just that Ceryn has us posted along the roads from Trademeet looking for you. He would like you to meet him at his cabin.” He holds up his hand to forestall any further questions and then adds, “He didn’t tell us why, just said it was important for you to go there, alone, before you return to The Ranch.”
“Alone?” he asks.
Nodding, Yern says “Alone.”
James glances to Jiron who only shrugs. “Don’t look at me,” he says.
“Could you be in some kind of trouble?” Miko asks. “Lord Colerain maybe?”
Worried, James replies, “I don’t know.” To the others he says, “When we get to Ceryn’s cabin, you continue on to The Ranch and I’ll be there later.”
“As you wish,” Jiron says.
It isn’t very far before they come to where Ceryn’s cabin lies, sitting off the road a little ways. Two horses are tied out front, neither of them are Ceryns’. “Looks like he’s got company” states Jiron.
“Looks that way,” replies James. Turning his horse toward the cabin, he says, “You all go on home. I’ll be along directly.”
“Good luck,” Miko says as he and the others continue on toward Trendle and The Ranch.
He sees a light coming from the front window as he rides up. Securing his horse to the front post next to the others, he starts walking to the door when it opens and Ceryn steps out.
“Greetings James,” he says, a smile on his face.
The fact that he’s smiling puts him at ease as he replies, “You too, Ceryn.” Extending his hand he gives him a firm handshake. “What did you need to see me about?”
“Come inside and we’ll explain,” he says as he leads him into his cabin.
“We?” James asks as he follows Ceryn in. A smile breaks across his face when he sees Perrilin sitting in a chair against one of the walls, his instrument propped up beside him. “Perrilin!” he exclaims as he comes over to greet him.
Coming to his feet, the bard asks, “Been a while hasn’t it?”
Giving him a hearty handshake as well, James nods then takes the seat across from him and asks, “What brings you around here?”
“Actually, that’s a rather interesting story…” he begins as the door to the bedroom creaks as it starts to open.
James’ attention is drawn to it. Suddenly, the door swings wide and a young man steps out. His lower jaw quivers, eyes are opened wide. “J…James?” he stammers.
Jumping to his feet, James replies in utter astonishment, “Dave?”
Chapter Two
“Oh James,” he cries out and comes forward, tears streaming down his face.
James takes him in his arms, concerned for his friend as wracking sobs come from him. “Here, here, it’s alright,” he says in a soothing manner. He glances back to Perrilin.
“I found him in the Empire,” he explains. “I was playing that song of yours and he came forward. Thought there was something odd about the way he was acting so I investigated. It was hard to piece things together, he doesn’t speak the common tongue at all and only a smattering of the Empire’s. But the fact he didn’t speak any language I knew well, plus his reaction to the song all made me realize something was odd. Then it hit me that he might have come from where you did.”
Taking his friend over to one of the chairs by the table, he sets him down and then takes the seat next to him. “Are you okay?” he asks.
Dave’s face comes up, tear tracks down both cheeks as he asks, “What?”
Then it hits him, Dave was still talking in English and he had asked the question in the common tongue. Having been so immersed in the language of this world for the past month or so, he has to consciously work at getting the correct English pronunciation out. “Are you okay?” he asks again, this time in English.
Dave nods his head, “I am now.”
“What happened?” he asks. “How did you get here?”
“After you went through the door for the interview, I sat there and waited for you,” he explains. “I must have waited there for an hour before I started getting impatient. I got up and went over to the door to listen to what was going on inside but couldn’t hear anything.”
“I knocked on the door and when I didn’t receive any answer I opened it. You could believe my surprise when all that I saw on the other side was an empty office with no other way out.”
“An office?” asks James. “Didn’t you make it to this world when you went through the door?”
Shaking his head, he says, “That came later. I got worried and called your name. I knew you hadn’t come back out through the waiting room so I didn’t know what to think. Then the
stories of the missing people came to mind and I hurried down to the lobby where I called 911.”
“The police showed up quickly and cordoned off the entire area. When I told them what happened, they didn’t believe me. They searched the office and didn’t find any trace that anyone had ever been in there. They did find traces of you and me in the waiting room.”
“They took me down to the police station and questioned me extensively. What they were asking me began to make me think they thought I had something to do with your disappearance. After what must’ve been hours, my mom and dad finally were allowed
to take me home.”
“Outside the police station, the reporters began their inquisition as my dad took me to the car. My mom said a brief statement about how she was just glad I was okay before getting into the car with us. When we got home, your grandparents were waiting for us in the driveway.”
James sat back at that. He knew they would’ve had a bad reaction about his disappearance and now he’s going to hear about it.
“Your grandfather asked me what happened while your grandmother cried. I sure felt sorry for them and told them all I knew, which really wasn’t very much. My parents invited them in and while I went to bed, they stayed up all night talking. The police stopped by sometime in the night and asked my parents more questions. Sometime before I woke up, your grandparents left for home.”
“I wish I could tell them I’m okay,” James says sadly.
“I know,” replies Dave. “They really care about you. Anyway, I stayed home all day Sunday, didn’t leave my room. I was hoping you would call or the police would find you since they knew where you had last been, but nothing. When the news hit about you and that I was the last one to have seen you, Seth’s dad shows up at our place, demanding that I tell him where his boy is.”
“He grew angry and almost came to blows with my dad. In a fit of rage, he finally left, but not before giving me a look saying ‘this isn’t over’. That’s when my dad turned and saw me there. He gave me a look, a look that cast doubts about whether he believed me or if I hadn’t told everything. What more could I say?”
Ceryn comes over with two cups of ale and sets them in front of the two friends then returns to his seat. Neither he nor Perrilin are able to understand what’s being said.
Taking the offered cup, Dave takes a drink then continues. “Seth’s dad was seen driving slowly past our house a couple of times that afternoon but thankfully never stopped. My dad was worried about what he might do. He suggested that I stay home from school on Monday but I didn’t want to just stay at home and dwell on things. I actually thought going to school would take my mind off things. How wrong I was.”
“I no sooner got to school the next day when other students, kids I’ve grown up with come to me and begin accusing me of being the killer. Can you believe that? Me? A couple friends of Seth from the football team dragged me in the boy’s bathroom and beat the crap out of me, at which time I was sent home. I was suspended for fighting!”
“A group of reporters were waiting for me outside my home when I got back. They flew at me like a pack of vultures and started asking me the most outlandish questions. Like, ‘Why did I kill my best friend?’ and ‘How does it feel to know everyone thinks I’m a killer?’ stuff like that. I tried to bull my way through but they were blocking my way. Finally my dad showed up from work and shoved them aside. After we were inside and the door was shut, I went straight to my room and closed the door.”
“My life was beginning to spiral down into the gutter. Not only do I have the worry of what happened to you, but now everyone thinks I’m guilty. Even my parents were no longer as supportive as they had been. Of course in my state of mind I may have imagined that, but I knew I had to find out what happened to you. And the only place to do that was back where I last saw you.”
“So later that night I sneaked out and wearing that hat from Bakersfield that was always too big for me, I was able to sneak to the bus stop before anyone recognized me. I took the bus downtown and made it to the building on Commercial. A cop was stationed in the lobby. I waited until he was distracted by another person then hurried over to the elevator and got in. The door closed before he had a chance to see me. I got off on the twenty third floor and went down to room 2334.”
“The doorway was covered in that yellow police tape. I didn’t really expect to find anything there, after all the police had gone through with a fine tooth comb and they didn’t come up with anything. But I knew I had to do this. Removing the tape, I opened the door and stepped within.”
“That’s when I was hit from behind and fell to the floor. I turned and saw Seth’s dad standing there. ‘I thought you might come back here. The killer always returns to the scene of the crime,’ he said. I then told him, ‘I did not kill anyone!’ But he didn’t believe me.”
“He came at me and I scooted away, knocking over a table in my attempt to escape. He kept yelling at me to tell him what happened to Seth and the others all the while trying to reach me. I scrambled away, finally got back to my feet.”
“I saw the blow coming and tried to block it but it connected with my jaw and actually knocked me back off my feet. I crashed into the wall and fell onto one of those small tables that were there and knocked it over. Books and magazines went flying. I felt a static shock from something before he grabbed me and threw me across the room.”
“Hurt and praying nothing was broken, I got back up and looked into the eyes of a madman as he approached me. I had to get out of there, all thoughts about finding out what happened to you gone. I was now simply worried about my own survival. He was between me and the door to the hallway outside. I tried to make it around him but he caught me and after a quick two blows to my stomach, threw me again across the room where I crashed through a door and hit the floor.”
“Groaning, I twisted to look at him coming and the shock of what I saw, after all I’ve been through must’ve been too much and I passed out.”
“What did you see?” James asks.
“When I came to, I was lying in a clearing. Standing over me was this little creature, it had a weird hat and some kind of vest or something. It frightened me and I got up and ran away through the trees. I could hear it calling to me but I wasn’t paying any attention to what it was saying. The enormity of what I was experiencing was overwhelming.”
“At first I thought I was hallucinating, and then after awhile thought maybe this was the afterlife, though it sure wasn’t any afterlife I’d ever heard about.” He takes the cup in his hand and takes several more drinks.
James can see he’s looking to him for a response, but he’s not sure what kind to give him. That creature was definitely Igor, of that can be no doubt. But why doesn’t Dave have an understanding of the language like he did? Could it have been because he ran away from Igor? Hard to say for sure.
“I experienced the same thing when I went through the door to the interview,” he tells him. “The creature you met is an agent of a god in this world, he’s really not all that bad.” After taking a drink himself, he asks, “Then what happened?”
“What happened?” parrots Dave. “I ran and ran and ran hoping to find a way home. I eventually came to the edge of the forest and saw several people riding horses, as well as one man leading a team of horses pulling a covered wagon. Running out of the forest, I yelled to them and flagged them down.” A haunted look comes over him as his voice softens, “I thought they would help me. I was wrong.” Tears begin welling up in his eyes and a sob begins to escape him.
“They weren’t interested in helping me,” he says, eyes looking toward the floor. “When I came close to them, they began talking to me in a language I never heard before. I tried to tell them I was an American and that I spoke English, but they didn’t understand.”
James can see his emotions getting the better of him and says, “It’s okay, you don’t have to tell me anymore.”
“I need to,” he says as a tear runs down his cheek. “I was later to find out they were slavers, on a raid to take people so they could sell them at a slave market.”
“When one of them dismounted and drew a wicked looking knife, I knew I was in trouble and tried to get out of there. I turned and ran but was soon overtaken. I fought with them, but they overpowered me. They tied my hands behind my back and with their knives, cut my clothes off of me. Stripped naked, they hauled me up into the back of the wagon. Two other people were there, one was a young girl. I…” Overcome with emotion, he stops his narrative.
James lays a hand on his shoulder and says, “I understand.
I’ve run across these slavers before and I know the kind of people they are. You needn’t tell me anymore than you feel you must.”
Dave brings his eyes up off the floor and gazes into his friend’s as a smile comes to him. “That first night was the worse. The things they did to that poor girl…” a shiver runs through him. “Anyway, we traveled for days. I gradually began to be able to understand basic commands. They captured several more, and when they had ten of us tied and naked in the back of the wagon, they made for the slave market.”
“We traveled for days and that covered wagon got extremely hot while the sun was beating down upon it. When we at last came to the slave market, we were separated and ushered into pens. I was there for three days before it became my turn up on the slave block.”
“My first master was none too pleased to discover I didn’t speak the language and beat me often. Within days, he sold me to another who treated me even worse. I longed to die, just to end the humiliation and agony which had become my life. But I simply couldn’t bring myself to do it.”
Lifting up his tunic, he shows James the patchwork of scars, the result of being beaten and tortured by his former owners. From neck to waist, he can see where his friend had been cut, burned and who knows what. Dave twists and he can see his back is even worse. “I’m sorry,” is all he can think to say at the horror his friend must have endured.
Replacing his tunic, he continues, “Finally I was sold to an inn and worked there until I heard him play ‘Home on the Range’. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing at first. Then something came over me and I had to reach him, to see if he was real. In the back of my mind I knew I would be facing a beating, but I couldn’t stop myself. I rushed through the crowd and made for the stage where he was playing. But I didn’t make it. They stopped me before I could reach him and dragged me out of there. I was beat to within an inch of my life.”
“As I lay there in my pen later that evening, pain throbbing in every part of my body, Perrilin came to me. You know the rest.”
The star of Morcyth ms-5 Page 2