The Star of Morcyth: The Morcyth Saga Book Five (6 page)

“You be careful,” Tersa hollers to her
brother from her position by the front of the house.

Jiron turns and waves to her as he gives her
a reassuring smile. Next to her stands Aleya. Things have cooled
off between them since his return from Trademeet, he’s not sure
why.

Errin has the watch at the end of the lane
today and she comes to attention as they ride by. James gives her a
nod in passing and then turns onto the road heading south. Four
long days lie ahead of them before they reach the walls of
Cardri.

He can’t help but be a little overwhelmed at
being summoned by the king. From what he’s heard of the man, the
king is a just and kind ruler whom the entire populace of Cardri
adores.

The grey sky above prevents the sun from
warming the morning chill from the air. Fall is in full swing, the
colors of the trees bright and cheery as the leaves begin turning
orange, red and yellow. A gust of breeze now and then sends a
flurry of leaves scattering across the road.

The evening of the second day, they find
themselves an hour south of Bearn. Passing through made James a
little leery as it’s the home of Lord Colerain and the man has had
it in for him almost since his coming to this world. For some
reason, he has the idea that James stole something from him. Of
course James has not, but he’s had two attempts made on him.

It wasn’t very long ago when he made the
last attempt. He actually had the temerity to send men out to The
Ranch to abduct him. It would’ve worked except Miko recognized one
of the captors which led them to Bearn. And Bearn led them to Lord
Colerain. After Illan and the others rescued him, he told Lord
Colerain that if he again moved against him that he would come back
to Bearn and raze his house to the ground and destroy everything of
his that he could find. So far, it seemed the man had heeded the
warning. James is usually a patient man and has the philosophy of
live and let live but Lord Colerain has pushed him beyond that.

As the sun begins to set, a cluster of
buildings begins to appear ahead of them, just another of the small
areas set up to cater to travelers. Most of the ones they’ve passed
the last two days only had an inn, a chandler’s shop, and little
else. This one is no different.

No sign on the inn, but the fact that it is
an inn is unmistakable. “Shall we stop here for the night?” James
asks Illan.

Nodding, he replies, “I doubt if we’ll find
another before dark.”

“Alright.” Dismounting, he and Illan go
inside to see about rooms while the others stay with the
horses.

Inside they find a man bearing a tray of
drinks over to a table. He pauses when he sees them enter and says,
“Just a moment and I’ll be with you.”

“No problem,” responds James.

After setting the mugs of ale on the table
before two customers, he makes his way back to where they’re
waiting. “My name is Jared, welcome to the Restful Traveler. Can I
help you sirs?” he asks.

“Need three rooms and stalls for six
horses,” replies James.

Nodding, the man says, “It’ll be three
coppers a room, meals are extra. And another copper for each of the
stalls.”

“Very well,” replies James and he removes
the required number of coins from his pouch and hands them to the
man. Walking with Jared over to the counter, he accepts three keys
from him for the rooms.

“The stalls for the horses are around back,”
he tells them.

“Thank you,” says James and then he and
Illan return outside to the others.

Leading their horses around to the back,
they get them situated in their stalls before returning to the inn.
They then go upstairs and put their things in their rooms before
heading down to the common room for dinner.

During the course of eating dinner, a
commotion near the entrance of the inn draws their attention.

“I said not to come around here again!”
Jared the innkeeper says sternly.

James looks over and sees a young woman,
obviously very poor and looking destitute turn around and leave.
When their serving girl comes near, he asks her what that was
about.

“Oh, she comes by here from time to time,
looking for a handout,” she explains. “My father used to give her
food but then she started coming every night and annoying the
customers. That’s when he put a stop to it. Poor girl, I feel sorry
for her but what can you do?”

“Thank you,” he says.

“You’re welcome,” the girl replies as she
moves along to help another customer.

“Kind of feel sorry for people like that
don’t you?” asks James to no one in particular.

“Some,” agrees Fifer.

Before the end of the meal, an itinerant
musician sets up in one corner of the common room and places a bowl
on the floor before him for any donations the patrons would care to
give. Most musicians of this world have no paying patrons and just
go from tavern to tavern looking for a place to play. If the
proprietor has no one to provide music already, he’ll let the
musician set up and play for tips, often supplying his dinner if he
plays well.

They sit back after the meal and listen as
he plays. Not nearly Perrilin’s standard, but who is? Still, he
does play well and the songs he sings are on key. During one
intermission, James goes over and puts a silver in his bowl.

Sitting back down, he notices Dave is gone.
“Where did Dave go?”

“Who cares?” says Jiron. His feelings for
Dave have hardly become better over the last couple days. While
Dave has done nothing further to antagonize anyone, if anything
he’s been trying hard to get along, he still has yet to allay
Jiron’s feeling of distrust.

“Jiron, stop that,” Illan says
disapprovingly. To James he adds, “He said he was tired and was
going up to sleep.”

A big yawn escaping him, James says, “I may
go on up too.” Then the musician begins playing a song James has
heard before, one he especially likes. Sitting back down, he looks
to Illan and says with a smile, “Maybe after one more song.”

Illan laughs and James sits back as the
musician makes his way through the piece. It’s a whimsical song
about a layabout who winds up mistakenly courting his benefactor’s
daughter. Rather a long song, but from the reaction of the other
patrons there, more than just James like it.

When the song ends, he gets up and
stretches. “Definitely off to bed now,” he says amidst another big
yawn. “See you all tomorrow.”

“Good night James,” Illan says. The others
bid him good night as well.

Heading up to his room, he finds Dave asleep
in bed just as Illan had said. Getting undressed quietly so as not
to awaken his friend, he slips into his own bed and relaxes as he
begins drifting off to sleep.

The following morning when they’re in the
common room having a quick bite to eat before heading out, everyone
seems to be mellowing toward Dave. Jiron still has an edge, but
it’s beginning to soften somewhat as he gets to know him a little
bit better. It’s unlikely he’ll ever have total trust in him, but
as time goes on, James hopes he will.

They finish their morning meal quickly and
are soon on the road. As they pass by the last of the buildings
James sees someone standing against the wall of the last building,
staring at their party. It’s the woman who the night before the
innkeeper told to leave his place. When she notices him looking at
her, she turns and runs away. Not looking back, she goes around the
corner behind the building and is soon out of sight.

Odd,
he muses to himself. Dismissing
it as the vagaries of humanity, he returns his attention to the
road ahead. Dave beside him begins whistling a tune from their
world and he soon joins in.

The next two days fly by fast. By the end of
the fourth day, the walls of Cardri come into sight. When the view
first appears before them, James can hear a gasp from his friend
Dave. Turning toward him, he sees the awe in his eyes. “Told you it
was impressive,” he tells his friend.

“I know,” he replies softly. “But I never
expected this.”

The scene before them is one of breathtaking
beauty. Far away on the horizon, the sun lies low near the ocean,
its light a dazzling display of sparkles upon the water. Ships of
every size are either at anchor at one of the many docks lining the
shoreline or upon the water under sail. The walls of the castle
itself gleam in the light and the city surrounding it sprawls for
miles in every direction.

To Illan, James says, “There’s an inn called
the Silver Bells located within the second wall. I know the
proprietress and it would be a good place to stay while we’re
here.”

Shrugging, he says, “One place is as good as
another.”

A branch of the Kelewan River flows to the
east around the city before emptying into the sea. Just as they are
about to ride onto the bridge spanning the river, Fifer points off
to the east and exclaims, “Illan!”

In an area adjacent to the river, sits a
large encampment of tents. The pennant flying from the largest of
the tents bears the Empire’s insignia. “What are they doing here?”
James asks.

“I don’t know,” replies Illan as he glances
at him, a worried expression upon his face.

“Can’t have anything to do with me could
it?” asks James.

“I wouldn’t think so,” he says. “Best to
give them a wide berth. No sense looking for trouble.”

“I agree,” replies James. To the rest he
adds, “While we’re in town, keep your ears open for what they may
be doing here.”

“You got it,” replies Miko.

Just knowing they’re over there gives James
a bad feeling. What could they be here for?

The evening crowd moving through the gates
into the city is not very busy and they soon reach the gates. After
a few brief questions by the guards on duty, they’re waved on
through. Somewhat familiar with the layout of Cardri, James takes
the lead and they work through the city to the gates in the second
wall.

As they approach, the guards have them
pause. “What business do you have here in Cardri?” one of them
asks.

“I have an audience with the king,” replies
James. “Plan to stay at the Silver Bells while I’m here.”

Nodding, the guard steps back and waves them
on through. Passing to the other side, he gets his bearings and
turns down the street in the direction of the Silver Bells. He’s
not exactly sure he went the right way and when he sees the three
silver bells hanging in front of the inn, he breathes an internal
sigh of relief.

He brings them to a stop when they reach the
front and then dismounts. “You stay here, I’ll be right back,” he
tells the others. While he moves to the front door, they
dismount.

Opening the door, he enters the inn and it’s
just as he remembers it. Clean and opulent, expensive too if he
remembers correctly. Off to one side, he sees Miss Gilena berating
one of her workers over some infraction the poor man made.

“…think they grow on trees?” she asks the
miserable looking man. “Next time be more careful or I’ll take it
out of your pay. Understand?”

“Yes ma’am,” he says dejectedly.

“Now go about your work,” she tells him. He
then turns and leaves, carrying a bundle of tablecloths. Turning,
she sees James approaching and breaks into a broad, warm smile.
“Well bless my soul,” she says, coming toward him. “I didn’t think
to see you again so soon.”

“I have business here and am in need of
three rooms,” he tells her.

When she reaches him, she wraps her arms
around him and proceeds to give him a big hug. Disengaging himself
from her embrace, he steps back a moment and asks, “Has Perrilin
been by lately?”

Shaking her head, she says, “No. Most likely
up to no good again. I swear that man can’t keep himself out of
trouble.” She begins walking over to the counter where she keeps
the room keys.

James takes out the golds she’ll need for
the rooms and has them ready before she produces the keys for the
rooms.

“You remember eh?” she asks with a smile.
Taking the golds, she gives him the keys.

“I would be hard pressed to forget my last
experience in your fine establishment,” he says.

Laughing, she replies, “True. So, what
brings you to Cardri?”

“The king sent a summons for me to appear
before him,” he replies.

“Why?” she asks, the smile fading from her
eyes. “Nothing wrong is there?”

Shrugging, he says, “I don’t know. I was
simply told to present myself before the Royal Court.”

“I hope it goes well,” she says, a worried
expression now upon her face.

“Me too,” he agrees. “Be back in a bit,” he
tells her as he turns to rejoin his friends out front.

“Good to see you again,” she says.

“You too,” he replies just before exiting
through the door.

Out front, the others turn toward him as he
leaves the inn. “We’ll take the horses around back and get them
settled in,” he announces. “In the morning, I’ll go up to the
castle to find out what’s going on.” Taking the reins of his horse,
he leads them around to the stables.

Back by the stables, Gunther the stableboy
shows them which stalls will be theirs. Once the horses are secured
within their stalls, he gets pails of grain ready for each and then
starts currying them.

James and the others make their way to the
inn and enter through the back door. Taking the stairs, they head
up to their rooms where they get settled in before going downstairs
for dinner.

Miko is somewhat put out about having to
share a room with Jiron. He would rather be sharing one with James,
but his friend Dave has that honor. “I don’t see why he has to
always get to be with James,” he complains to Jiron.

Turning to him, Jiron explains, “They’ve
known each other a long time, far longer than any of us have known
him. Besides, he still doesn’t speak the language very well though
he is doing better.”