The Merchant and the Menace

by Daniel F McHugh

“Fare you well, Master Hindle,” called the Zodrian prince over his shoulder.

  The horses trod slowly through the city as shutters swung open. Townsfolk moved into the street and called greetings to one another. Several heads turned and followed the progression of riders. Some of the inhabitants called out greetings to the weary travelers, and others narrowed their eyes and stared.

  “Any increase in our speed merely calls attention to us,” said Manfir. “So many men pass through this town lately that five more will be of no account.”

  “Perhaps not my friend, but I’m sure the presence of an Elf is a rarity,” returned Eidyn as he smiled at a pair of scruffy boys shadowing the troop.

  The boys laughed and ran ahead of the riders throwing a tightly wrapped ball of cloth back and forth. Kael smiled at the memory of he and Aemmon doing the exact same thing through the streets of Kelky. Only a few years ago, when he and Aemmon were the age these boys were, Kael caught a tongue lashing for spooking the mounts in the stable with such a ball. When Kael looked over to Ader, he noticed the old man fidgeting on Tarader’s back. Perhaps it really was difficult for the Seraph to ride bareback constantly. Kael turned his gaze back up the road and saw one of the boys standing against the outer wall of a not too distant building. When their gaze met, the boy instantly disappeared behind the wall.

  Kael longed to be that boy’s age again. A few chores and obligations to meet sometime during the day then freedom and no worries. He feared he might never attain that freedom again.

  “We’re almost through the town. Let’s pick up the pace in order to reach the walls of Ymril this day,” said Ader. “The further north we move the riskier it is to spend the evening outside city gates.”

  Manfir nodded his assent and gently tapped his heels into the black stallion’s sides. The big horse snorted and began a light trot. The remainder of the party did the same and the group moved on in a slow rolling cantor. They reached the edge of the town and departed as the blue sky filled with the gray smoke of morning cook fires.

  CHAPTER 18: THE MERCHANT AND THE MENACE

  Manfir led them north for several hours. The cool breezes of the morning disappeared and were replaced by the beating midday sun. As they crested a small hill Eidyn called ahead to Manfir.

  “Perhaps we should hold here a moment.”

  The big man reined in the black stallion, and gazed back south. After a few moments, Teeg came into view. The troop waited for his arrival. Kael realized they abandoned Granu and didn’t make plans to reunite with the Keltaran prince. Surely they outpaced him. Teeg’s stallion jogged up the hill.

  “How fare you, my lord?” asked Eidyn.

  The old Elf’s usual smug smile crossed his face.

  “Quite well. What a remarkable young man is our new blacksmith. As clever as any man I’ve met. Explain it to him once and he understands. What a find in the tiny village of Quay. I’ve instructed him to contact my cousin, Lord Paerrow, with his reports.”

  “An excellent choice,” stated Ader.

  “Yes. He volunteered to oversee my affairs while I am away,” replied Teeg. “Master Hindle will provide Lord Paerrow with crucial information concerning this whole area.”

  “That is good, Lord Teeg,” said Manfir. “Now that you rejoin us, I may increase our speed. We’ll need to rest the horses shortly, then make a push for Ymril by nightfall.”

  “What of Prince Granu?” asked Kael. “With his injury he’ll never catch us.”

  “If he doesn’t rejoin us, he doesn’t rejoin us. I do not care,” stated Manfir.

  “Don’t worry about Granu,” whispered Ader to Kael. “He’s quite a remarkable young man himself.”

  The group formed up once more and set off north. Manfir increased the pace and the horses worked up a lather. Manfir kept the group at this speed for nearly an hour. As the road wound up out of a small ravine, the riders faced a long flat plane. In the distance, Kael spied a slow moving cart heading in the same direction. As they came closer, Kael noticed a single man driving it.

  When the group came within fifty yards of the cart, the driver reined in his horse and pulled to the side of the road. He was short and powerfully built, the only hair on his shorn head curled in a bushy black mustache under his nose. He wore a heavy flowing brown robe and leather gloves covered his hands. Sweat ran down his shiny bald scalp. As the group crept closer, the driver’s hand slipped inside his cloak and the other rose in greeting.

  “Good day to you, gentlemen,” called the stranger. “How fare you this fine day?”

  “Excellent, good sir,” called Teeg. “And yourself?”

  Kael noticed that Ader and Manfir always deferred to the elder Elf in these matters. Teeg possessed a way of disarming people. They immediately became talkative around the old Elf.

  “A good deal better if I might escape this heat,” said the trader running a glove over his shiny bald scalp.

  “Ah. The sun is unusually hot today,” said Teeg “But at least her presence keeps bandits from the road.”

  “Aye, that’s true,” nodded the trader. “What brings an Elf lord to this north bound road?”

  “On my king’s business I’m afraid. No lord here,” said Teeg pointing to himself. “Just a tired old messenger heading to Zodra with correspondence for King Macin. My son and I were lucky to be able to join these militiamen heading that way. Safety in numbers you know.”

  Kael shot a glance at Eidyn, who smiled innocuously at the trader. The family ring was gone from his hand and his military garb replaced by a simple cloak and trousers.

  “Tis good advice, my friend. These are troubled times and news of late concerns me. I wish this old nag could keep up with your fine mounts. I find comfort in your company.”

  “Fear not, my good man,” smiled Teeg. “We rode hard for a good bulk of the day and our mounts require a respite. We need to water and feed them near the next brook. We shall do the same to ourselves then move on toward Ymril. If you’re truly inclined, you should join us. What news troubles you so?”

  “Keltaran. Roaming freely in Zodrian territory,” exclaimed the trader. “That troubles me. The giant brutes overran several of the western villages, slaughtering all who oppose them. The stories are too brutal to repeat. My hands quake at the idea of it.”

  “Keltaran you say? Down from the mountains and in the western wood?” asked Manfir eyeing Ader.

  “Worse than that Master ....?”

  “Rin,” replied the Zodrian prince, then turned and pointed at Ader, “and my father, Jasper. We travel from Kelky in the South to serve with our two attendants in the army of our king.”

  “Well, your help is needed, Master Rin. All the king’s men must heed his call. Even your father may be put to some good use,” said the trader.

  Ader scowled deeply but quickly recovered and addressed the trader.

  “Whatever his kind majesty requires of me,” said Ader in a feeble voice. “Are you called up as well Master ...?”

  “Tepi. I’m Tepi from Cagson. And no, I’m not called. His majesty understands the important service traders provide to the public,” stated Tepi with his chest puffed out. “With the war escalating, shortages of food and goods grow. We help alleviate the pressure on the citizenry by servicing those needs. I travel from Quay, where I delivered necessary food and supplies.”

  “You mentioned trouble worse than Keltaran roaming the western wood,” said Teeg. “How so?”

  “We usually face those abominations lurking along the borderlands,” stated Tepi. “But they become so bold as to ride out onto the breaks and prairies of our great land, attacking villages deep in our own territory. I wager this road itself is no longer safe from them.”

  “Surely the king dispatches units from the Guard to protect the road?” questioned Manfir.

  “None can be spared. Ulrog packs flock from the Northern Wastes and hammer our borders. Without constant reinforcement, the Ulrog will push out of the mountains. At least these are the stories I
hear,” said Tepi.

  “What of the tribes of the Eru plains?” asked Eidyn. “They’re allied to the Zodrian Guard.”

  “Ah, the horsemen are few and far between. They come when their lands are threatened. Even then, they simply move their herds deeper into their own territory to protect them,” said Tepi.

  This time, Eidyn and Manfir’s eyes met. Kael noted the deep concern shared by the men, and the sharp-eyed Tepi noticed it as well.

  “I don’t give counsel where it’s not requested,” said the sweating bald man to Manfir. “But four more militia men and a pair of Elves won’t make a difference in this conflict. You appear to be level headed gentlemen. Save yourselves and return to your homes in the South. The king won’t miss you, and your aged father can finish his days in a rocking chair as opposed to under the edge of a Keltaran battle-ax.”

  Ader’s face grew red and he smiled at the trader.

  “That may be the way to save ourselves from the bloodshed now,” said Ader with disdain. “But what of the future. In my short time left, the Ulrog may not advance to Kelky, but what of the lives of these two young men? Do we run now only to see the enemy eventually arrive on our doorstep?”

  Tepi smiled dismissively at Ader, and turned to Manfir.

  “Your father holds the sentiments of an earlier time. The world changes. The crown conscripts an army for such matters. Let those who train partake in the bloodshed, and those of us skilled in other matters go on with our lives.” stated Tepi as his eyes bore down on Manfir.

  “Your advice is noted, although it was not requested, Master Tepi,” stated Ader in a strong voice. “We will answer the call of our king. If you wish to join us on the road, you may.”

  The trader’s eyes bore down on Manfir.

  “Then you must do as your father says,” said Tepi in a cool steady voice.

  “I must,” replied Manfir.

  The prince spun his horse northward and began a light trot up the road. The others in the group quickly fell in behind him. Tepi glanced back and forth across the roadway and put his whip to the old nag pulling his wagon. The beast snorted and lurched the swaying wagon forward.

  After twenty minutes at this pace, Kael noted a telltale depression in the road about a half league ahead. A stream crossed at this point.

  “We’ll break from the road ahead and water the horses to the east of it,” said Manfir.

  After several minutes they were within fifty yards of the shallow stream. Manfir reined in and turned to the east. Another hundred yards from the road a small grove of trees grew close to the stream’s side. Manfir motioned to the grove and the group headed that way, Tepi’s wagon bouncing behind them. Kael was happy to see Manfir choose a shady area for them to rest. As they wandered through the thickets and brambles that grew beside the road, Kael thought he saw a figure sitting in the shade of the grove. Just ahead of him, Eidyn drew his bow and notched an arrow. The young men glanced at one another nervously.

  “Your injury hasn’t affected your speed my friend,” called Teeg into the grove.

  The black form awakened from a slumber or trance and grabbed the tree it leaned against for support. It grunted and pulled itself to its feet. There, with his black robe covering him from head to toe, stood Granu. Kael knew it must be the Keltaran, for no man in these parts stood that tall.

  “It’s difficult to travel while avoiding the road, but I felt it best,” said Granu as he removed the cowl which covered his face.

  Ader made a quick hand motion and the giant halted as Tepi’s cart clanged into the grove. The trader glanced about the area and gasped when he spied Granu.

  “Who .... who’ve we run into here?” gulped the trader.

  “A mutual friend and servant of my people,” stated Teeg offhandedly. “My master, King Leinor, spared his life once and the brute became indentured to my kingdom.”

  “Is ... is it dangerous?” exclaimed Tepi slipping his hand inside his robe once more.

  “You may consider the Keltaran a brutal race, Master Tepi, but their word is their bond. This fellow hasn’t seen his homeland in fifteen seasons, and is true to his service. If he was not, Leinor would put him to death,” lied Teeg.

  Tepi relaxed, but his hand never left his robe.

  “What’s the thing doing here in the wilderness all alone?” asked the trader.

  “He’s an excellent servant and bears almost any burden I require,” commented Teeg. “But he does tend to upset the locals when we travel in these less than, shall we say, civilized locations. I often order him to jump ahead of us and wait. In this manner, no one gets upset. A worldly man like yourself must realize how these small villages get ugly when the townsfolk are upset.”

  Tepi relaxed even further and winked his assent.

  “They’re a backward folk these Southerners,” laughed Tepi then shot a glance to Manfir. “No offense, of course.”

  “None taken,” returned Manfir eyeing Granu. “We don’t take kindly to outlanders.”

  “Nor do you treat them kindly,” stated Granu.

  “Not when they enter our lands armed and full of bloodlust!” shouted Manfir. “Master Tepi, inform our Keltaran servant of the deeds of his people this very week.”

  “I might, but it loathes me to talk to the creature,” smiled Tepi.

  “You may not wish to talk to me, but you will not refer to me as a creature in my own presence. I’m a man, and a better one than some here I might add,” growled Granu.

  Tepi took a step backward and shrunk beneath the giant’s withering glare.

  “Lord Elf,” sniveled Tepi. “Did you hear that? Your servant threatened me. Do you control it or not?”

  “Murder and butchery on a massive scale,” exclaimed Manfir with fists clenched. “My people suffer at the hands of yours. Women and children! Barbaric!”

  “This is a mistake. Slander spreads. My people aren’t capable of this deed!” said Granu moving toward Manfir.

  “Capable and willing!” shouted Manfir advancing on the giant. “I hold you personally responsible for these atrocities!”

  “Yes! Yes!” squealed Tepi in a frenzy. “Now is the time! Now!”

  “Enough!” yelled Teeg. “Nothing is to be done now. The Keltaran is under my protection and that of my king. I’ll hear no more of revenge.”

  Granu and Manfir glowered at one another across the grove. Tepi narrowed his venomous eyes at the old Elf and spat on the ground. Granu broke eye contact with Manfir and turned to Teeg.

  “I am yours to command. Do you require anything, master?” asked the giant.

  “Of course you imbecile,” snapped Teeg. “These horses will not water themselves! And make sure they’re well fed this afternoon. We have a long journey ahead of us.”

  The giant bowed and gathered the reins of the Elf’s horses in his hands. Teeg and Eidyn dismounted and the other travelers followed suit. Flair immediately tended to the remaining horses, and Kael gathered wood for a small fire. The remainder of the group stretched out on the ground under the shade. Muscles were stiff and backsides sore from many hours in the saddle.

  Kael wandered to the southeast of the grove in search of firewood. His mind wandered over the day’s events. These men were so unusual, able to switch their personalities on and off to suit the situation. They acted like actors in a huge play.

  Who was the real Teeg? The tottering, helpless old Elf; The cunning provider of information to his crown; The arrogant, flippant member of the Elven court. Kael was unsure if the man truly was any of these. They all confused him so. Ader; Crusty, clever old trader; Powerful, controlling statesman; Mouthpiece of the Creator himself. Manfir; Silent, brooding commoner; Outspoken prince of the realm; Fierce, fiery warrior.

  He even confounded himself. Son of an innkeeper; an earl; a Guardsman. Was he himself something he was unsure of? He knew he was different from the others. He was always different from Aemmon. The memory of his brother brought a tear to his eye as he looked out over leagues of scru
bland.

  Awareness startled him. Something or someone was among the grasses. He concentrated and picked up sounds of movement thirty yards ahead and to the left. His heart raced. Was it a prairie deer, hiding amongst the thickets? Langre cats prowled these ravines and breaks. Did he stumble into one? He backed away slowly and reached into his tunic to draw his blade. As he stepped backward he bumped into something behind him and his heart leapt. Strong arms held his shoulders and a voice whispered in his ear.

  “Remain calm.”

  Eidyn stepped to Kael’s left and carefully unslung his bow. He notched an arrow and took a bead on a thicket thirty yards in front of the pair. Kael saw no movement, but was sure something hid behind the bushes. The bowstring creaked as Eidyn slowly drew the arrow backward. Eidyn loosed the arrow at the exact moment a figure flashed from the thicket and into the shadows of another. The Elven archer quickly notched another and drew it back. The voice of Ader broke the silence.

  “Prince Eidyn, now is not the time for sport! Return to the grove and rest yourself.”

  Eidyn and Kael turned to the old man in surprise. Out of the corner of his eye, Kael saw another flash as the figure behind the bush retreated even further from the men. Kael was sure it would never be caught now.

  “Ader,” said Eidyn. “Something stalks us from the brambles.”

  “We’re not in need of food, Eidyn. Leave the creature be and come back to the grove,” said Ader calmly.

  “But Master Ader,” interrupted Kael. “I don’t think it’s an animal. I believe it’s a person.”

  “Nonsense. Eidyn would know instantly,” Ader turned to Eidyn. “Do you think a person is stalking Kael from the scrub out there?”

  Eidyn hesitated a moment and then looked to Kael.

  “I’ve been uneasy ever since we left Luxlor. Perhaps the discovery of the bodies of my kin upsets me, but I feel watched and trailed on this journey. I can’t confirm whether the creature was a prairie deer or a person. Whoever or whatever it was, it reacted with amazing speed and cleverness. The shaft of my arrow barely left my bow when it was on the move,” said Eidyn.