Rise of the Serpent (Serpent's War Book 2) (7 page)

“You seem to know them well. Why is that?”

“I used to be one.”

Namitus gaped at him a moment and then chuckled. “All right, I guess that makes you an expert then.”

Gor glanced back at the table before returning his attention to Namitus. “I wanted to hire them, but I didn’t have enough gold. So I joined them. I figured I’d work my way up through their ranks and try to take control. I had time.”

“That didn’t work either, obviously.”

He nodded. “Not so well. I lost a bid for power and ended up with no company, no friends, and no chance of revenge.”

Namitus nodded. “Bad turn of luck.”

“You’ve no idea.”

The rogue smiled. “Probably not. I can’t promise you revenge, Gor. I can’t promise anything, but I can tell you that if you’re as genuine as I think you are, I will be your friend.”

Gor snorted. “Haven’t had much for friends in a long time.”

Namitus grinned and clapped the big man on the shoulder. “I’ve learned their value over the past few years. People smart enough to know you’re doing something stupid, but tied to you with bonds that make them come along with you regardless.”

Gor nodded. “Sounds good to me. Helps that I’ve nothing left to fight for.”

Namitus chuckled and stepped away from the bar. “I’ll take it. Come, let’s have a decent meal before we set off again.”

Chapter 6

“I’ve had enough of the rain,” Amra said in a muffled voice. Her head was tucked between Namitus’s shoulder blades instead of looking into the forest the road wound through.

“Only bath we’ve had for near a week now,” Namitus said over his shoulder. “Maybe longer for some of us.”

A loud slap of flesh against flesh came from behind them. “Damn bugs,” Gor called out. “I thought the rain would drive them to the deep woods?”

“Couldn’t have planned that better,” Namitus muttered.

Amra giggled, her head and arms jostling him.

“Up ahead,” Corian called back to them. Since he’d borrowed the horse that Namitus bought, he’d taken the lead and kept an eye ahead on the road. “I can make out buildings. Is it Easthall, or another village?”

“I’ve never been this far south,” Namitus admitted. “I’m not sure.”

“Never been here either,” Gor admitted. “I’ve been to Ironwell, Shadowmarsh, everything south of that, and dozens of villages in between.”

“You get around,” Jillystria noted.

Gor straightened in his saddle and blushed. “I suppose I have.”

“I think this is it,” Corian called back to them. He slowed his horse until they closed the ten paces between them. “A large number of buildings and some wooden towers.”

“How can you tell?” Allisandra asked. “I can’t see through the rain.”

“I can,” Corian said.

Jillystria rose out of her saddle a few inches and sat back down. “He’s right,” she said. “Elves have keen eyes.”

“I’ll say,” the young woman said and mopped the water off her face with the sleeve of her shirt.

They rode through the rain without comment until they reached the open gate of the timber walls. Guards huddled inside the gate under the walkway, out of the worst of the rain. They looked up and eyed them as they rode through but didn’t bother stopping or talking to them.

“Anyone could ride into these cities and cause trouble,” Namitus noted.

“Why, are you planning your lord’s next conquest?” Corian asked.

Namitus frowned and ignored the elf. He turned and studied the merchants who were huddling in the rain or under makeshift covers. One of them drew his eye; the merchant had cloaks, robes, tunics, and hats for sale. “A hat!” he mumbled and twitched his reins towards the merchant.

“Fine day to you!” the merchant called when he caught Namitus’s eye and the rogue didn’t look away.

Amra lifted her head and peered around his side. “What are you doing?”

Namitus reached back and patted her knee with his hand. He kept his hand moving and held it out, palm up, to catch the rain. “Not so fine, I think, but perhaps you can fix that?”

The merchant grinned and glanced at the others in Namitus’s group. “Finest clothing to be found in all of Easthall. Treated with fish oil to block the water!”

The rogue turned knight glanced over his shoulder and asked, “Anything catch your eye?”

“What?”

“A hat. I think I’d like a hat,” he said.

“A hat?” Amra repeated. “Okay…”

Namitus turned the horse while she looked over what the merchant had on his racks. She giggled and pointed. “That one.”

The merchant grabbed the hat before Namitus could see what she was pointing at. He gave it a quick brush to remove any dirt or water. He offered it to Namitus with a grin. “Excellent choice, ma’am.”

“Knightly,” Amra agreed with a grin.

Namitus groaned and took the hat. The cavalier style hat had a wide brim that was flat on the left and curled up on the right. A large white feather plume was sewn into the curled-up brim and stuck out the back. He raised an eyebrow and then slipped it over his wet hair.

Amra leaned back and failed to stifle a giggle.

“You look like a peacock,” Gor called out.

“I’ll take it,” Namitus said. He reached for his pouch and asked, “How much?”

“A fine hat for a fine gentlemen,” the merchant said. “And with the day so poor, I’d be happy to outfit your friends as well.”

Namitus turned and received glares and a shake of Allisandra’s head. He drew out five golden coins and handed them to the man. “Only this.”

The merchant’s eyes widened. He started to put them in his pouch and stopped to look at them more closely. “What’s this then? A sword and axe crossed over a sun?”

“The crest of the Kingdom of Altonia, far to the north,” Namitus said. “Originally it was the crest of the Blades of Leander, a small mercenary outfit responsible for defeating the dragon Sarya and freeing the north from Rosalyn, the Dragon Queen.”

The merchant tilted his head and then raised a coin to bite on it. He pulled it out of his lips and stared at it, nodding. “Real gold,” he said. “Weight’s right. I don’t care where it comes from.”

Namitus shook his head and chuckled. “Good tidings, friend. Enjoy the rest of this fine day.”

The merchant chuckled. “The same to you, kind sir.”

Namitus turned the horse away and nodded to the others. Water poured off the brim of his hat onto his horse, earning a disturbed whinny. The others snickered at him.

“Let’s get this fine hat out of the rain,” Namitus said. “The clouds are hiding the sun and I’ve no idea what time it is, but I’d like to dry off and eat something. If we’re lucky, we’ll take long enough we can spend the night indoors.”

“I’ll eat slow,” Amra offered.

Amid the chuckles, Corian led them to a tavern with a small stable set up beside it. He dismounted first and staggered a few steps through the mud until he regained control of his legs. He limped back to his borrowed horse and stood steady with his hand on the pommel of the saddle. “I’ll see the horses are stabled,” he offered.

Namitus hid his grin and nodded. Amra slid off and landed in a puddle, causing her to yelp. Namitus steadied his horse and dropped down beside her. He handed Corian the reins to his horse and nodded before turning and heading into the tavern.

They found a table near the center of the room and began ordering their drinks. Corian walked in, dripping and muddy, and made his way to the table. He scowled as he sat down and ordered a spiced wine.

His sister turned to him. “You’re drinking that?”

Corian ran his fingers through his hair, ringing out water, and said, “I’m hoping the spices are strong enough to kill the poor grapes.”

“The grapes might be good,” Allisandra said.

Corian raised a doubting eyebrow.

“Well, I mean, I don’t know anything about wine, but even where I’m from a few people had vineyards,” she added.

“The climate’s good for grapes,” Namitus added.

Gor surprised them by adding in his gruff voice, “Wet enough to be juicy and sweet. Should make for some good white wines.”

“You know something of wine?” Namitus asked.

Gor smirked. “It’s got alcohol in it, doesn’t it?”

“Gor…”

Gor sighed at Allisandra’s warning tone. “I didn’t say I was drinking any now.”

Namitus chuckled and tried to change the topic. “I thought we’d see more splisskin down this way.”

Amra jerked her head around to look at him. “You want to see splisskin?”

“The sooner we can start getting answers, the better,” Namitus said.

Gor scowled. “Why would one of the snakes this way know anything?”

“I have no idea if they would or not,” he admitted. “But if they really are trying to pull their numbers together, I’d think word would have spread.”

“And you think they’ll just tell you?” Corian sneered.

“If we ask the right way, they might.”

Corian’s eyes narrowed in confusion. Before he could ask more, the barmaid turned from the table next to them and began to distribute the drinks on the platter she carried. She started to turn away and then thought better of it. “You seek splisskin?”

Namitus turned and screwed up a smile. “Yes! Yes we are. I’m searching for genuine splisskin weapons, so I figured the best way to do it was to find a tribe of them and purchase them.”

The barmaid stared at him with a smile that faded when his expression didn’t change. “You’re serious?”

“As an ogre with a toothache.”

She blinked and then let a laugh slip out. “Well, in that case, there’s a splisskin village in the plains to the west. A day and a half of walking, if you push hard.”

“We’ve got horses,” Allisandra said.

The barmaid turned and studied her. She smiled and nodded. “Then you’ll get there sooner. A day, with these rains.”

Namitus grinned. “You’ve earned your tip!”

She smiled. “I’ll have meals out in a bit.”

Namitus nodded. “Sooner, if you can. I’ll make the cook’s wrath worth your while.”

She smiled and hurried back through the common room to the kitchen. As she left, Corian turned his furrowed brow on Namitus. “Sooner? What’s the rush?”

“We don’t want to come on the splisskin village at night, do we?”

The elf’s eyebrows lowered further. “What’s that mean? Why would we?”

“She said it’s a day’s ride, with the rain. So if we leave in the morning, we’ll show up at sunset. I’d rather we head out this afternoon.”

“And sleep in the rain?” Amra squeaked.

Namitus grinned. “No sense in putting off what can be done now. Besides, all this traveling is growing monotonous.”

Amra sighed. “You’re right about that. This is taking too long. A day filled with riding is boring.”

“You’re not complaining about your bottom hurting anymore, at least,” he pointed out.

Amra blushed and took a drink of her ale. “I’m getting used to it,” she mumbled after swallowing.

“Where’s the barmaid?” Corian wondered aloud. He tipped his cup and dripped the last few drops of spiced wine into his mouth.

“You liked the wine?” Allisandra asked.

He shrugged. “Not bad, for human wine,” he said. “I trust I’ll need something to brace me against the rain.”

“That’s a good idea,” Gor admitted. “Maybe I should—”

“Gor!” Allisandra cried. “You said you—”

Gor waved her off. “Bah, you’re worse than a wife.”

“I need you,” she reminded him.

Gor sighed and nodded. Before he could say more, the barmaid walked out of the kitchen with a fresh platter filled with plates and bowls of steaming food. Thoughts of rain and more time in the saddle disappeared at the promise of warm food in their bellies.

* * * *

Namitus led the following morning through the matted grasses of the plains. The sky was overcast but the rain had stopped in the early morning hours while they huddled among the edge of the forest in their camp. The air was thick with fog as the morning gave way to midday and tried to burn off the water that made the ground soggy.

He spied a hut taking shape in the mists and turned his head back to call out to the others. “Up ahead,” he announced. “Looks like we found them.”

Corian sat up higher in his saddle and searched ahead. He grunted and settled back into it, satisfied with what he saw. Namitus urged his horse ahead to ensure he kept the lead ahead of the hot-tempered elf and swallowed to quiet the butterflies in his stomach.

The last time he’d been among a large number of splisskin, he’d been bound and hanging over a pit of spikes. They’d beaten him to the brink of death and healed him enough to keep him alive long enough to torture him again. They flayed him with whips and cut him with their knives. They peeled his skin in strips and bled him until he didn’t think he could bleed again.

Through it all, he knew he only had to hold on a little longer. His friends would come for him. Alto and Patrina, the two people he cared enough about to reconsider everything he’d learned in life. They were more than friends: they were his family. His absent mother and his estranged grandmother were nothing to him. Strangers. Corian, his uncle who often acted like an undisciplined child, was even worse.

Alto and Patrina wouldn’t come for him this time. If something went wrong, it was out of their hands. They’d saved him last time, with Garrick, Modrim, Kar, Karthor, and Carson’s help. Then they’d gone on to defeat Myskakroth, the dragon in the guise of a splisskin that was leading that chapter of the Order of the Dragon.

He took a deep breath and let it out, trying to settle his nerves. Amra shifted on the horse behind him and adjusted her grip on his sides. “Is something wrong? You’ve been fidgeting all morning and now you tensed up.”

Namitus glanced back at her and offered a thin smile. “Just preparing myself,” he said. “I’m not quite sure how to get information out of them without things getting dangerous, fast.”

“I can take care of myself,” she reminded him. “I’ve been getting better every night, haven’t I?”

He chuckled. “Better, yes, but those are play fights, not real battle.”

She frowned. “How much worse can it be?”

“I hope you never find out.”

She harrumphed and settled back onto the horse while it rode on. The hooves of the horses squelched and splashed through the puddles another minute before splisskin began to emerge from the huts and move to intercept them. Several of them had a brace of thin javelins on their backs and slender curved swords at their sides.