Adventurers Wanted 1) Slathbog's Gold (32 page)

“Forgive me, my friends, my sorrow is too great. I cannot join you for the midday meal,” said Osrik, looking incredibly old and sad.

“You have our sympathy,” said Bregnest as they all stood and bowed to Osrik.

Thrain motioned for the company to follow him. He led them back to their sleeping chamber without speaking, a troubled and worried look on his face. Alex wondered if Thrain was reconsidering his desire to become an adventurer, now that he realized how dangerous it could be.

After Thrain left, Alex turned to Arconn. “What is the
ceremony for returning a lost bag?”

“It’s a little different, depending on where you are,” said Arconn.

“The Handbook doesn’t say anything about a ceremony,” said Alex nervously.

“You’ll be fine,” said Bregnest, breathing a heavy sigh and putting one hand on Alex’s shoulder. “I should not have let you carry this burden on your first adventure.”

“It was his right and his choice,” said Thrang, taking a seat next to Alex. “Besides, it’s not that difficult really.”

“Will you explain it, please?” Alex asked. “I don’t want to upset the ceremony, or make a fool of myself.”

“Among dwarfs, the ceremony is almost always the same.” Thrang stopped to gather his thoughts before continuing. “The ceremony will take place in the feasting hall. You will be called to the front of the hall by the king. He will ask if you are the bearer of the lost bag, stating the name of the adventurer who was lost. You simply reply, ‘I am.’”

“And then what happens?” Alex questioned.

“Well, you’ll hold up the lost bag so everyone can see it,” Thrang went on. “Then the king will call the adventurer’s heir forward and ask him to state his name and titles. Then the king will ask you if you believe that the person is the rightful heir.”

“It will be, won’t it?” Alex asked in a worried tone. “I mean, I don’t think Osrik would call the wrong person forward.”

“It has been known to happen,” said Arconn, listening closely to Thrang’s explanation.

“So what should I say?”

“Say that you accept the heir and his claim, but that the lost adventurer requires proof,” answered Thrang, stroking his beard. “Then the heir will whisper the bag’s passwords in your ear.”

“But I thought those words were secret,” Alex interrupted.

“They are,” said Thrang. “But the heir will know what they are
and be able to tell you. Use the passwords to go in and then come out of the bag. Once you’ve done that, you will say the lost adventurer is satisfied. The king will ask what payment the heir will give for the return of the bag and the heir will make an offer. If the offer sounds good to you, say, ‘It is fair,’ and then hand the bag to the heir.”

“What do you mean, payment?” Alex questioned.

“Reward may be a better word,” said Arconn with a smile. “A reward is always offered for the return of a lost bag. You should know that from your reading, Alex.”

“What if the offer—sorry, reward—doesn’t sound good?” Skeld asked with a wicked smile.

Thrang looked slightly worried. “Then you say, ‘It is unjust,’ and the king will ask the heir to make another offer.”

“Is the offer likely to be unjust?” Alex asked, trying hard to remember everything Thrang was saying.

“It might be,” said Thrang. “Normally the heir will offer part of the treasure in the bag. Sometimes the heir will offer something else as well as part of the treasure. You know, in case there isn’t much treasure in the bag. Or, if they think there’s a lot of treasure in the bag, they might offer something else and a smaller share of the bag’s treasure.”

“What would you consider a fair offer?” Alex questioned.

“It’s not my place to say,” said Thrang, shrugging his shoulders. “I’d say, if the heir offers you one-in-ten or one-in-twelve of the bag’s treasure, you should consider it fair. Anything less than that, though, would be an insult.”

“What if I forget what to say?”

“You’ll be fine,” said Thrang, smiling. “And if you don’t think the offer is fair, feel free to say so.”

“What if the offer seems like too much?” Alex asked, wondering if that ever happened.

“Then you say, ‘You are too generous,’ and say what you will accept instead,” Thrang replied. “But be careful because if you offer a lot less than the heir has offered, he may take it as an insult.”

“Right,” said Alex, rubbing his hands together and trying to remember what to say and when to say it. He remembered what Andy told him about dwarfs and their money and he hoped he wouldn’t insult the heir to the bag. Then another thought came to him.

“What happens if the heir doesn’t know the passwords?”

“I’ve never heard of that happening, so I’m sure you don’t need to worry about it.”

“But what if he doesn’t know?” Alex persisted.

“Well, then, I suppose the lost adventurer can’t be satisfied and you can’t give the bag back,” said Thrang. “And if that happens, the heir will need to visit either the Oracle or the bag maker in Telous to find out what the passwords are.”

“And I’d have to carry the bag until he does?”

“Yes,” said Thrang.

“What, and wait here until the heir finds out what the passwords are?”

“Not at all,” said Arconn with a soft laugh. “You would be free to go. If the heir doesn’t know the passwords, he will have to find out what they are and then wait until you come back again.”

“But don’t worry,” said Thrang, slapping Alex on the shoulder. “The heir will know the words, and you’ll do fine. Just remember not to insult him by asking too little for the bag. After all, the return of a lost bag is about more than the treasure in the bag. Among dwarfs, the return of a lost bag to the adventurer’s heir is also a return of lost honor.”

As the afternoon wore on, Alex thumbed through his
Adventurer’s Handbook
without reading any of it. He was worried and nervous about the upcoming ceremony, and he hoped everything would work out all right. The idea of accepting a reward for returning a lost bag troubled him, and he was concerned about how much the heir would offer. He really hoped the heir’s first offer would be fair. More than anything else, he hoped the heir would know the bag’s passwords.

All too soon, the company was summoned back to the feasting hall. Alex carried the lost adventurer’s bag over his shoulder and walked quietly beside Thrang. He was still nervous, but Thrang’s instructions returned to his mind and that calmed him a little. When they entered the hall, they were seated at a table to the king’s right.

Alex could see several richly dressed and important-looking dwarfs seated around the king, and he hoped that his clean but plain clothes would be acceptable.

“Master Taylor, please come forward,” Osrik called loudly.

Alex hadn’t been paying attention to what was going on as he worried about his appearance. Thrang nudged him gently and nodded toward the king. Alex stood up and walked forward nervously, carrying the lost magic bag in his hands.

“Are you the bearer of the magic bag that once belonged to Umbar, son of Olin, the adventurer who was lost?” questioned Osrik.

“I am,” Alex replied and held the bag high above his head so everyone in the hall could see it.

The ceremony proceeded, and Alex was relieved he didn’t forget anything Thrang had told him. He worried a little when the heir—Umbar, son of Umbar—told him the bag’s passwords. The words were obviously dwarfish, and Alex was afraid he wouldn’t be able to pronounce them correctly. He managed to get in and out of the bag without too much trouble, though he had to repeat the exit password twice to get it right. Then it was time for the heir to say what he would offer for the bag’s return.

“I will give one hundred true silver pennies and one-half of all the bag contains for its return,” Umbar said loudly.

Alex was stunned. Even with his limited understanding of treasure, he had not expected such an extravagant offer.

“You are too generous,” Alex replied slowly, thinking that one-in-ten of all the treasure would perhaps be a better number.

As this thought went through his mind, Alex saw Thrang out of the corner of his eye. Thrang was mouthing “one-third” wildly, while trying not to attract too much attention to himself. Alex considered again Andy’s words about dwarfs and their money, and what Thrang had said about not asking for too little. Not wanting to offend Umbar, he decided to take Thrang’s advice.

“I will ask for one-third of the treasure in the bag,” said Alex, looking Umbar in the eye.

“It is acceptable,” said Umbar, bowing low to Alex, a look of relief and happiness on his face.

Alex presented the bag to Umbar and bowed as well. The ceremony complete, both Alex and Umbar bowed to Osrik and returned to their seats.

“The payment for the bag’s return will begin tomorrow after the midday meal,” said Osrik in a commanding voice. “Now, let us feast in memory of Umbar, who was lost.”

“You did very well,” said Thrang as Alex returned to his chair. “I was afraid you’d ask too little and insult the heir.”

“I could see you saying one-third,” replied Alex with a smile. “And knowing very little about what might offend a dwarf, I took your advice.”

“You’ve done very well for yourself,” Thrang laughed. “A hundred true silver pennies and one-third of the bag’s treasure. That could be a fair amount.”

“We get the silver pennies as well?” Alex questioned.

“You do,” said Thrang, taking a long drink from his mug. “Your treasure room could be a respectable size once payment is made.”

“You mean, all of our treasure rooms,” Alex corrected. “After all, we are to share the reward.”

“We shall see,” said Bregnest, smiling at Alex.

Alex didn’t say anything, but it sounded to him like Bregnest and the others would not be willing to accept a share of the reward for returning the lost bag. This annoyed Alex, but there was a feast going on, so he held his tongue.

The next day, Alex asked Thrang about the true silver pennies.

“Long ago, true silver pennies were the standard currency in the dwarf realms, but true silver is too rare these days,” Thrang commented thoughtfully. “And not many of the
pennies are left now anyway, so they’re quite valuable.”

“Every penny would be worth at least twenty gold coins,” said Halfdan, taking a seat next to Alex. “Quite a bit more than that in some places.”

“Then Umbar has been extremely generous,” said Alex.

“As he should be,” Thrang replied with a smile. “You’ve done him a great service after all. The return of the lost bag is also a return of his family’s lost honor, as I told you.”

Alex sat quietly, thinking. He knew he had done a service for Umbar by returning his father’s bag, and he also knew his own honor had increased because of what he’d done. Still, he didn’t really understand what his friends meant when they talked about honor. Things they said were honorable seemed odd to him because Alex simply thought of them as the right thing to do.

After they had finished their midday meal, Alex tried to say something to his friends about dividing the reward, but he didn’t get a chance to say anything. One of Osrik’s officers appeared and led them all to a large room deep inside the dwarf city. When they arrived, Osrik was waiting for them with Umbar at his side. Both dwarfs smiled brightly as the company entered, and Osrik winked at Alex.

“You have done me a great kindness,” said Umbar, stepping forward and bowing to Alex. “You have been both kind and generous.”