A Stolen Crown (22 page)

“Milli,” Aaron said.

“Milli would not have told him,” Carly said, but Aaron voiced her next thought for her.

“She might not have had to,” he said. “If that mage wanted to know what she was thinking, he could have just used his power to read her mind.”

“Dakar would most certainly do such a thing,” Nathas said. “I have to be on my guard with him at all times, careful what I think about when he is near. Even though the priesthood claims it is still prohibited for mages to use such power, Dakar conveniently forgets that particular law when it suits him and there are very few mages around these days willing to take him to task about it. If anything, more of them are abusing their powers of late.”

“Couldn't you have done something?” Aaron asked.

“What would have had me do?” Carly asked. “I know a mage when I see one and it would have been suicide to take him on. She was already gone and there was nothing I could do except wait until he left then come down this way, hoping that the princess might have washed ashore. Instead of her, I found the two of you.”

“You've got some experience dealing with mages, and you managed to get a knife to my throat,” Nathas commented, taking another look at the girl. “You're not what you seem to be.”

“Many people aren't,” Carly replied. “What of it?”

“What was the plan, once you got the princess to safety?” Nathas asked.

“We were going to make our way over to the main river then I was going to make sure she made it to the southern road, where she was supposed to meet up with this fellow here, then they were supposed to go south. I figured I'd go along since I've got business in that direction anyway,” Carly told him.

“What about this river?” Aaron asked. “What if we followed it further? Maybe Ariana is still alive.”

“That would be a sure way to find your death,” Carly told him. “You don't just go wandering into those forests.”

“She's right, Aaron,” Nathas said. “This river runs towards Elvanar and unless you have permission to be there, you don't want to find yourself wandering around the Elven lands.”

Aaron closed his eyes and reached out with his power to see if he could sense Ariana anywhere nearby but he found nothing. He ignored the twinge of pain in his neck and pushed harder, widening his search in the direction the river was flowing, but still there was no sign of her. Frustrated, he let go of his power and focused his breathing, trying to will away the pain in his head. He started to despair for a moment but then he reminded himself that just because he could not sense the princess did not mean that she was dead. Aaron did not want to believe that, and for some reason he was sure she was still alive. He was worried though. Ariana might be unconscious, injured and alone somewhere but there was no way of knowing where she might be.

The three of them turned when they heard voices drawing near and they saw the faint glow of torches moving toward them. It was the soldiers working their way along the river, calling out and searching for Nathas, the way Aaron wished he could for Ariana.

“Aaron,” Nathas said. “You have to go, now.”

“Nathas, I swore to protect her,” Aaron objected. Nathas shook his head.

“And, as your commander, I relieve you of that duty,” he told him. Nathas turned to Carly. “You said you were going to get the princess to safety. Can you take Aaron with you instead, wherever it was you were going?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Aaron, you go with this woman. I will search for Princess Ariana.”

“Nathas...” Aaron started, but the older man cut him off.

“That's an order, Aaron. There's no time to debate this. The best thing is for you to get clear of this place and let me do what I can to slow down the madness. If the princess is to be found, then I will find her and I will send word.”

“Fine,” Aaron said, grudgingly. “How will we stay in contact?”

“I see you still have the ring I gave you,” Nathas pointed to Aaron's hand. “I was hoping I would have more time to teach you about what the ring means, but it will have to wait. If you want to get word, find a Ranger. They're in every city, in ever land, not just in Maramyr.”

“Won't they just report it to Cerric?” Aaron asked. Nathas smiled.

“One of the first things Cerric did was to disband the Rangers of Maramyr, but the Rangers exist in all the lands and they remain loyal, after a fashion, regardless of who happens to sit on the throne of the various kingdoms. I will try to put the word out to them about what has happened if I can. Now get going.”

“There’s a trail not far from here that leads to a crossing a little further on that will take us overland to the main river,” Carly told Aaron. “Let's go.”

“Lead the way,” Aaron said, and followed the mysterious woman into the darkness of the forest.

Once Nathas was sure the two of them were far enough away, he shouted to the soldiers, letting them know he was alive. Once they found their way to him, he told them he had wounded the fugitive and had seen his body floating downstream. He issued orders that his men should search the riverbanks for Aaron's body, although he hoped they would find the princess instead, and preferably still alive.

*****

Aaron followed Carly through the trees and, from the way she moved, he figured she not only knew this route through the forest very well, but also had some experience traveling without making a sound. He found it interesting that the seemingly despondent young woman he had met at Milli's was gone, replaced by a different creature altogether. Carly even spoke differently than she had had before and Aaron wondered why she would have pretended to be someone she was not, especially to work at a place Milli's. He was about to ask her about it when she stopped abruptly and he almost bumped into her.

“We’re in luck. He’s still here.” Carly pointed ahead through the trees ahead to the orange glow of a fire. “Just let me do the talking when we get in there. Malek can be, shall we say, a difficult man.”

In a small clearing at the side of the river, there was a small camp that had a sense of semi-permanence about it, though Aaron thought if it were not for the burning campfire, the place would otherwise look deserted. Carly motioned for Aaron to keep quiet then tiptoed past the fire to where he could see a man standing with his back to them, silhouetted by the darkness behind him. Carly gently snuck up behind the man, careful not to make a sound. She could hear him whistling quietly as he relieved himself into the bushes. Grinning to herself, she reached around in front of him.

“Need a hand with that there, Malek?” she said, laughing coarsely. The man jumped and yelled.

“Whoa there, girl. You nearly made me wet myself with fright, though I do appreciate the offer of your assistance. I wasn't expecting you for another few days, Carly,” the man said as he finished his business.

The man, Malek adjusted his clothes as he walked back toward the fire with Carly. The firelight illuminated his face and Aaron saw that Malek fit the picture of what he had always imaged a pirate would look like. His long red beard flowed down to one of the most garish outfits Aaron had ever seen and Malek even had an eye patch and a scar running through it and down his cheek.

“What brings you down to the river’s elbow?” he asked then he saw Aaron. “I see you’ve brought a friend.” With his one eye, he sized up Aaron and glanced at the two swords at his waist then he frowned and looked over at Carly suspiciously. “What does Milli want now? You didn't mention bringing someone new.”

“No, Malek, it's nothing like that. It's worse.” She fixed him with a serious expression. “It's about our little business arrangement. Rivergate is crawling with soldiers and we just can't get goods out of the city anymore so it looks like we're going to have to close up shop here, at least for a while.” Malek looked even more suspicious, then he let out a great sigh and shook his head then sat down by the fire and used a stick to pull an iron kettle from the coals.

“Well, it was good while it lasted,” Malek said. “So you've come to warn me off? You said there were soldiers up at Rivergate?”

“I thought it best to get word to you that things had changed and that it might not be such a good idea to spend your time hanging about in these parts.”

“So, who's this then?” he asked, glancing over at Aaron.

“This is Antal,” Carly replied. “He's a friend and he'll be coming with us downriver.”

“Antal, huh? Is that right?” Malek did not look particularly pleased by the idea.

“Well met, Malek,” Aaron said, offering his hand to the man. Malek just grunted and started rummaging around in a cloth sack that clanked and rattled.

“Come, Malek,” Carly said. “He's part of the deal and besides, you owe me a favor. If things go sour, you take me downriver, just like we agreed.” Malek pulled a few tin cups from the sack and tossed one each to both Aaron and Carly.

“Would either of you care for some tea? I’d offer wine, but I’m plain out. Drank the last of it yesterday. Was getting ready to sail in a couple days anyway, so I figured I'd get my head clear.”

Malek could tell from Aaron's expression that he had no idea what he was talking about. Clearly, the young man was a landlubber. He groaned then explained as he poured tea from the kettle into the cups.

“Point of pride. A true seafarer never drinks on the seas, or even a river or a lake for that matter. Too easy to run aground when you’re already half tossed in the drink as it were. That’s why the lads all get right drenched up every time the get to shore. The best thing is, with enough drink, solid land feels like a rolling ship. That way, ya never lose yer sea legs. Bet you never knew that did ya?”

Aaron admitted that he had never heard of such a custom though he remembered Tarnath joking about how sailors were known to enjoy their drinking. Carly took a sip of her tea and wrapped her arm around Malek’s shoulder.

“Malek, you wouldn't be trying to strike a bargain here, would you?” Carly asked with a smile. Malek gave her a sideways look.

“What would give you that idea, lass?” Malek took a sip of his tea.

“You forget, we're not the Ansari. And while this tea is very lovely, we really don't have time to discuss things. While I doubt they would be able to track me all the way here, there's a good chance the nice soldiers of Maramyr are out looking for us. Let's just say we’re in a spot of trouble and we’re wanting to get clear away.” Malek scowled at her, then at Aaron.

“So you’re in trouble and you come runnin' here?” he said, with irritation brewing in his voice. “I don't want to mess with soldiers or guards. I'm a trader now and that's it, Carly.”

“All the more reason we should leave, now,” Carly said with a smile.

“You and I need to have a little talk, ladylass,” Malek said with a scowl. Carly smiled at Aaron.

“Excuse us for a moment,” she said and followed Malek a short distance away where they began an animated discussion.

Aaron could have listened in on their conversation if he used his power, but he was exhausted, both physically and mentally and he did not want to push his luck with another headache, especially since he was already focused trying to healing he wounds he sustained during the escape from Rivergate. He swallowed some of the tea Malek had given him and found it refreshing despite its bitter taste.

Aaron sat down on a large log that lay next to the fire and he watched the flames flicker and dance and he wondered about Ariana. He worried about her, and while part of him hoped Nathas might be able to find her, another part of him also worried about what might happen if he did. Nathas had been made a Captain General of the Maramyrian Army, but that did not mean he was all-powerful, especially with Dakar around, who was, from what Ariana had told him, a high-ranking mage in the priesthood and the top advisor to her uncle Cerric. His old Academy instructor was right, things were different now, and the lands of Maramyr were no longer safe for him, or for Ariana, if she was even still alive.

Malek and Carly returned to the fire and the old trader quickly dumped the rest of the tea from the kettle, collected the tin cups from Aaron and Carly then tossed a few more items in the cloth sack. He kicked dirt over the fire and walked a few paces then stomped on the ground. Aaron was surprised to see a saber and scabbard fly up from the dirt and land in the man's hand. Malek hung the scabbard on his belt and marched off toward a large stand of trees next to the river.

“Shall we?” Carly said with a grin, motioning for Aaron to follow.

It was a short distance along the bank of the river to the group of trees that grew right up to the water's edge. They waded out into the water a little ways in order to get around the thick brush and branches that jutted out from shore, but the ground was solid in the shallows and they traversed it easily. Nestled in a small inlet on the river, surrounded by trees and rocks, was a boat that Aaron thought was easily large enough to be considered a small ship. The little caravel floated at anchor in the shadows of the trees hidden from sight, and quietly awaiting it's master's return.

Malek pulled a plank of wood from the nearby trees and stepped up onto a large rock that stood almost as high as the deck of the ship. He laid the plank between from the rock to the deck of the ship then walked across it with ease. Carly followed him and Aaron trailed along behind her, stepping a little more gingerly than the other two as he felt the board move and sway as the ship settled in the water under the weight of its passengers. Once they were aboard, Malek pulled the plank onto the deck and set about readying the boat to get underway.