From Blood and Magic

by Dave Skinner

  “We have almost nothing left in the food sack,” Brayson said when they had identified a campsite. “I will take a look around to see if I can find something. Will you keep me company, Remi?”

  “We will both go with you,” Reese informed him. “I told Remi what your friend said about you telling him to capture her. Neither of us wants to be alone with either of you. My mother always said that pirates are not to be trusted.”

  “I agree with you, most pirates are untrustworthy, but I thought rescuing Remi would have helped you trust us a little.”

  “If you hadn’t captured her in the first place, it would have.”

  “Did Nails tell you why we captured her?”

  “Oh, you have a reason for your actions, do you?” Reese snarled.

  “We did it to save her life.”

  “I was holding you all off,” Remi interrupted.

  “Exactly,” Brayson said. “No one could disarm you or even get close. That is why the captain sent his first mate to get a crossbow. He wanted you dead before you killed more of his men. I had to stick Nails with my knife before he would charge you.”

  “We didn’t know that part,” Remi said after glancing at Reese.

  “And you would be a fool to ask us to clarify, right? We are pirates, after all.” Brayson looked at Nails. “Why not gather some driftwood for a fire, Nails. I can gather dinner on my own.” He turned and entered the woods.

  Chapter 9

  Conversation the next day, as they sailed to Gore, never got further than courtesies. Reese tried to say a few things, but Brayson ignored her. Eventually, she gave up her efforts with a huff. They landed at a private dock in Gore and tied up beside a large ship displaying the name, Red Witch II. It was a handsome craft, wider than other ships he had seen, and carrying its wrapped sails in a strange configuration. Brayson wanted to ask about it but he was reluctant to start the conversation. He also got the impression that Reese just wanted them gone.

  “What should we do to help secure your ship?” he asked when they were tied up.

  “Your help is not required,” Reese told him as she threw her bag onto the wharf. She picked up his sailcloth bag and passed it to him. “This is yours, I believe.” Brayson looked in the bag and then reached in and pulled out the last small end of sausage.

  “Can you suggest a good place to buy supplies for our trip?” he asked. He passed the sausage to Nails who popped it into his mouth. “Or an inn to stay at?”

  Reese pointed to a large commercial wharf off to the right. “You will find everything you need on the road that connects with that wharf. Have a nice trip.” She turned away from them. “Come on, Remi, my parents are probably worried.”

  “Could you wait a moment, Remi? I have something I need to tell you,” Brayson said. Remi looked from Brayson to Reese. He didn’t need his faerie inherited ability to see she was torn with indecision. He was about to blurt out that he was her half-brother when a storm, in the form of a red-haired woman, came charging down the wharf. The streaks of grey among the red and the breadth to her body spoke of maturity, but her vitality made light of the suggestion. Nails tapped on Brayson’s shoulder, nodded at the woman and then at a gorgeous figurehead statue on the bow of the Red Witch II. Brayson saw the resemblance immediately.

  “There you are. I have been worried about you both,” the woman said, as she gathered the girls into a hug.

  “Remi’s ship was attacked by pirates, and she was taken prisoner, mother,” Reese responded.

  “These men rescued me,” Remi added as she pointed towards Brayson and Nails, “and then Reese rescued all of us.”

  “Well, that calls for a thank-you meal, I would say.”

  “I would love any kind of meal,” Nails replied.

  “Mother, inviting these men to a meal is not a good idea. They are pirates. They are responsible for capturing Remi,” Reese told her.

  “Captured her, and also rescued her? My curiosity is piqued. Your father will want to hear this story as well. Will you come to dinner, boys? Of course you will. Come along all of you. We saw your sail and Ran started cooking. The meal should be almost ready by the time we get there.” The woman, walking arm in arm with both girls, led them to a large house farther along the water, away from the city proper.

  As they approached the chest-high brick wall that seemed to surround the house, Brayson could only just see the second story behind it. To him, the house looked heavy and imposing. He had been raised in a far darrig village and then in Crosstown, and both tended towards lighter structures. They entered through a small opening in the wall and he took in the full view. The log construction gave it heft, although there was an abundance of finely carved accoutrements like shutters and door trims that spoke of faerie influence. He was paying so much attention to the building that, as he followed the women through the wall opening, he ran into a second parallel wall, almost as high as the first, but two steps beyond it. The second wall was only an arm span long and he recognized it immediately as a defensive structure.

  “Strange place for a wall,” Nails commented.

  “Useful if you are fighting to keep others out,” Brayson said.

  The wall continued down both sides about four broad steps away from the house, becoming higher as it went back. Various flowers and greenery grew all along the inside of the wall for as far as he could see.

  “The plants are nice,” Nails said. Brayson, having grown up with little people and mixed-bloods, immediately recognized the true nature of the garden. Anyone who climbed over the wall would be hindered by stingers, clingers and pain-bringers, as they tried to push through.

  A roofed porch ran along the front of the house. For a few moments, Brayson wondered why it extended so far beyond the posts and railing structure that held it up until he considered trying to climb to the porch roof. The overhang was such that a ladder would be required to do that. This house was built for defense, he realized. He was about to climb the two steps to the porch when the front door swung open.

  “Father!” Reese exclaimed before she was buried in a hug. “I’m fine, Father,” Brayson heard Reese say in a strangled voice. “No need to squeeze so hard.”

  The man was big, as tall as Nails, thick-necked, and broader across his chest and shoulders. He seemed to glow with vitality and strength. The word “hero” came to Brayson’s mind. With a large smile, the man stooped and lifted Remi into an embrace.

  “So good to see you again, Remi. How is your family?” he said.

  “Everyone is fine, Ran. Father and Mother say hello.

  “I see you brought company,” Ran said looking at Brayson and Nails. His eyes stayed on Nails. “Do I know you?” he asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Nails said.

  “You look like someone I knew a long time ago. He died in the Destroyer War.”

  “Then it wasn’t me,” Nails said. This brought a smile to the man’s face.

  “Is dinner ready?” the red-haired woman asked.

  “Yes, it is one of my better efforts, in honour of Remi’s visit. There is a well behind the house if you boys would like to wash up. Come in through the back door and straight through to the main room.”

  “Come on, Brayson,” Nails said. “Let’s get cleaned up quickly. My stomach is empty.”

  Brayson followed Nails around to the side of the house and towards the back. The height of the wall rose as they walked until it stretched far above their heads. It extended well past the back of the house which resulted in a large enclosed yard area with a double door in the wall to the right and another in the rear wall towards the water. After pulling up a bucket, they washed the dust off and entered the house through the sizable kitchen. Ran was there gathering up food platters.

  “Drop your stuff by the door, and then give me a hand carrying the food,” he said. Nails and Brayson unbuckled their weapon belts, dropped them against the back wall and picked up the remaining bowls and dishes to carr
y in. Brayson’s mouth watered at the sight and smell of fresh bread, creamy butter, and two pitchers of wine: the events of the last two days faded in significance.

  Chapter 10

  “That was an excellent meal,” Brayson said to Manda. Nails was still eating his third helping, but he nodded vigorously in agreement. Manda and Ran had introduced themselves before the meal. Brayson and Nails had shared their names also. Now, as the meal was wrapping up, Brayson sensed that questions were the next thing on the menu.

  “Thank you, but Ran is the cook,” Manda replied.

  “The flavours remind me of my mother’s cooking,” Brayson said. “I usually don’t detect those spices in non-fey meals.”

  “I learned cooking from a gnome,” Ran told him. “Her food was amazing. What branch of the little people does your mother belong to?”

  “Far darrig,” Brayson said.

  “Where was your home?”

  “On the north shore of South Lake.”

  “Around Lower Thesia?” Ran asked

  “Farther west.”

  “I spent a few days at an inn run by hobs in that area. It was called the Great Deer Inn. Biggest common room I have ever seen.”

  “I have heard of it, but never visited. I was only six when I left, but my mother talked about it. She was there for a meeting of all the fey before the Destroyer War.”

  “I was there at the same time!” Ran exclaimed.

  “You must have been there with the wizard’s group then,” Brayson said.

  “I joined their group for a while, but I came with a nymph, some gnomes and some goblins.” Brayson’s mouth fell open as he realized who he was talking to. His mother often told him stories of this man when he was going to sleep.

  “You are one of the Dragon Riders!” Brayson exclaimed. “My mother told me about you. She guided the wizard’s party to the meeting.”

  “Then your mother is Amadella,” Ran stated. “And you are—” Brayson stood. He knew where this conversation was going.

  “Please, Ran, I have tried to tell her, but could not find the time.” Him, Manda and Ran all looked at Remi.

  “Why are you looking at me?” Remi asked.

  “Remi,” began Brayson. He hesitated before pushing on. “I have been trying to tell you something ever since we met. I am your half-brother.”

  “What...no...my brother is...how could you...excuse me,” she stammered, darting up from the table and running from the room. Reese went after her, scowling back at Brayson as she left.

  “I take it she has not been told about me,” Brayson stated. “I hope I haven’t upset her terribly.”

  “Remi is a strong girl,” Manda said. “But I think you are correct. I doubt if Bray ever told her. He wouldn’t want Lee reminded, if she even knew. Lee can be a hellcat. It might be wise to stop talking about this until she is over the shock.”

  “Good idea,” Ran agreed. “We can find out more about you two. How did a Cross and a KaAnian come together?”

  “Reese said you were pirates,” Manda said. “I would like to hear about that. Pirates are not typically my favourite people.”

  “Nor your daughter’s,” Brayson replied. “Nails and I were slaves on a ship that was taken by pirates. They allowed us to live if we joined their crew.”

  “Wait a moment. What do you mean you were slaves?” Ran asked.

  “I was drugged when I was in Lower Thesia, and woke up chained to a rower’s bench. Nails came aboard at Delvingford. He thought he was getting a job.”

  “How long were you with the pirates?” Manda asked.

  “Three turns of the seasons. We lived in a village on the southeast shore of Swanrock.”

  “We tried to stay out of the fighting and only row,” Nails offered.

  “Could you find the village again?” Manda asked. “Those pirates should be driven out and destroyed.”

  “Some of their families are still there, but the crew and ship sunk while we were escaping with Remi and Reese.”

  “Sunk? How?”

  “Nails blew the front off the ship. It sank. No one survived.”

  “Blew the front off the ship? Are you a wizard, Nails?” Ran asked.

  “I don’t think so. Sometimes I get excited and things happen. We are on our way to Crosstown to see if the magic woman there can help.”

  Brayson heard footsteps and soon Remi and Reese reentered the room. Remi walked up to Brayson, who stood as she came closer.

  “I’m sorry, Brayson,” she said and hugged him. “I reacted badly. I shouldn’t take it out on you. My father has some things to answer for when I see him again.”

  “My mother is a far darrig with some siren blood. From what I hear, your father had no choice in the matter.”

  “I would love to hear about your life,” Remi said.

  “Yes, Brayson, I think we all are interested,” Manda added.

  “It is not an exciting tale. I lived with my mother’s people until my sixth name-day. My size and my mixed blood were starting to isolate me from far darrigs of my age. My mother took me to Crosstown where I lived with children who had lost their parents in the Destroyer War. I lived there until my tenth summer. Something happened then, and I decided to leave and return to my mother. I made my way to Thesia and was working carrying loads up and down the stairs when I was offered a job as a cabin boy. But it was a lie. I was drugged and ended up a slave.”

  “What happened that made you leave?” Remi asked.

  “There is a woman in Crosstown who is a favourite of the Mother.”

  “Are you speaking of Adel?” Ran asked.

  “Yes, do you…oh, of course you know her.”

  “Yes, but go on with your story.”

  “Adel was not someone I knew or even spoke to. Sometimes she would walk about with her husband, Fairchild, the Prince, and talk with people. She was sweet and pleasant at those times, and she is a great healer. Hobs bring their children to her if they start to behave peculiarly. She has some special magic I did not understand. Usually, after a session with a young hob, she would be seen walking about. Flowers bloomed at her feet as she walked, birds and butterflies would land on her shoulders and she would talk to the Mother. At other times...actually, I should say often...we would hear her screaming at night. They say she has terrible nightmares,” Brayson paused, reluctant to remember the rest. “My friends and I were sitting around a fire one evening. I was telling a story my mother had told me when suddenly Adel came charging out of the night and attacked me. It was a physical assault, not a magical one. I am grateful for that. I was unable to shake the fear of her after, so I left.”

  “But this is the woman you are taking Nails to see,” Reese said. “Is that safe?”

  “I believe so. She is stable most of the time. I will refrain from telling stories of my mother while I am there. It is a chance I am willing to take if it means Nails can be helped.”

  “Perhaps you should see the Gore wizard,” Ran suggested. “It might save you a trip.”

  “Would you agree to that, Nails?” Brayson asked. Nails nodded.

  “Then tomorrow morning I will take you around to see him.”

  ***

  A clacking sound woke Nails the following morning. He tried to bury his head under a pillow to drown it out, but it persisted. Finally, he opened his eyes and stretched. Brayson was standing looking out their bedroom window.

  “What is that irritating sound?”

  “Reese and Remi are fighting with wooden swords.”

  Nails climbed out of bed and joined him at the window. Below him, in the backyard, the two girls were practicing. Off to the side, Ran was engaged in some type of dance.

  “They are very good, aren’t they?” Nails said.

  “We knew Remi was good from the fight on the ship, but Reese is better. They have stopped a number of times while Reese demonstrated strokes. Both of them are better than me. I think even you would be hard-pre
ssed to stand against them.”

  “What dance is Ran doing?”

  “I believe it is a type of exercise.”

  “I wonder if they have eaten.”

  “Let us go and see,” Brayson said with a laugh.

  They dressed and made their way downstairs to the main room of the house. No one was in there, so they walked along a hallway towards the back. Like the pleasure house in Delvingford, the complete back of the building was kitchen and storage. Finding no one, and more importantly no food, in the kitchen, they proceeded into the backyard. A long harvest table sat under the porch roof that ran across the back of the house. The table contained a buffet of eggs, bread, bacon, honey and pitchers of water and wine. Manda was sitting there sipping from a mug.

  “Pull up a chair, boys, before the food gets cold,” she said. Nails didn’t need a second invitation. He scooped up a plate and filled it. Brayson smacked his hand with a wooden spoon when he reached for a second fistful of bacon.

  “Leave some for others, Nails.”

  Manda laughed. “Everyone else has eaten. You can finish it off,” she said. Nails stretched out his hand towards the bacon and Brayson smacked it with the spoon again.

  “You can finish it off after I get some,” he said.

  They picked from an abundance of chairs scattered about the table. Some of the chairs were huge while others were tiny, smaller even than the hob and far darrig chairs Brayson was familiar with. Nails settled and began to eat while watching the girls practice.

  “Their sword work is excellent,” Brayson said.

  “Yes,” Manda agreed. “They both take after their fathers, although Remi dances like her mother.”

  “Is that what Ran is doing?” Nails asked. “Dancing, I mean.”

  “He calls it his stretching exercise. It is based on moves he used when he practiced with a sword, only slowed down.”

  “Last night I saw the sword mounted above the mantle,” Brayson said. “It is the longest sword I have ever seen.”

  “Bray gave it to Ran before they fought the Destroyer.” Nails saw that Ran had finished his exercise and was approaching the table. “Brayson was just commenting on your Nadian sword,” Manda told him.