The Unsuspecting Mage (17 page)

Candle wick,

Light quick
.

A barely perceptible surge of power flows from James and the wick bursts into flame, giving off a comforting light. He sets his backpack and travel bags down in the far corner and then sits on the bed. It’s sort of soft with a few lumps. The sheets and pillows are stained and not entirely clean. The room, though small, doesn’t feel cramped. Aside from the bed there is a small table with two chairs.

Getting up from the bed, he crosses the room and opens the window to let in some fresh air. He finds that it overlooks the stable and courtyard below. Now that the window is open, the noise from the common room is more pronounced. It’s not long until he hears a knock on the door.

Opening the door he finds Melinda carrying a tray of food balanced on one hand with a flagon of ale held in the other. He takes the tray from her and sets it down on the table. She brings over his ale and asks if there is anything else he would like.

“No, not right now, thank you,” James tells her.

“I’ll be back in a while to take the tray back downstairs, after you’ve finished.” With that she leaves him to his dinner.

The roast beef is surprisingly good, not too tough and a little juicy. The half loaf of bread that came with the roast beef is somewhat fresh, with a hint of nuttiness about it. It doesn’t take him long to finish the meal. After sopping the last bit of juice up with some bread, he goes over and stretches out on the bed. He lies there awhile, thinking about the last few days and where the next ones will take him.

Knock! Knock!

Coming over, she sits on the bed next to him, “Are you sure there is nothing else that you want?” She lays her hand on his leg and gives him a look that leaves little doubt what else there is available.

With the state of personal hygiene that he has seen since coming to this world ever present on his mind, he says “No, not tonight I’m afraid.”

Getting up off the bed, she gives him a disappointed look and then goes over to the table to gather the dinnerware. As she leaves, she turns to him and says, “I’ll be around all night if you should change your mind.” And with that she turns and walks out the door, closing it behind her.

James gets up and hurries over to the door, securing the lock. Turning to the table he blows out the candle and then gets undressed before crawling into bed. He fervently hopes there will be no biting bedbugs, then slowly drifts off to sleep.

The morning dawns bright and sunny, the sunlight coming through his window awakens him from a dream of home. Getting up, he quickly dresses and after gathering his things, heads downstairs for breakfast. There are still a few people at the tables eating and he makes his way to the same table under the window where he sat the night before.

It doesn’t take long before a girl comes over to take his order and is soon enjoying a breakfast of ham steak, potatoes and eggs. While he eats, he notices two gentlemen at a table in the middle of the room in the midst of a friendly conversation. One is in his mid forties and the other is a younger man, perhaps early twenties. They look like father and son, both dark haired and dressed well.

James takes notice of another man sitting alone at a table in the corner. He isn’t eating, just having a drink. He soon comes to realize the man in the corner is taking an unusual interest in the two men. His clothes are a bit ragged and is unshaven, hair uncombed. His eyes never stay on the two men for any length of time, but James notices that they come to rest on them often.

Finishing his meal, James sits back and takes his time finishing his drink. Wondering what the man in the corner is up to, he just relaxes and waits. Sipping on his ale, it’s almost gone when the two men finally finish their meal and head for the exit leading out to the stables. Out of the corner of his eye, James sees the man’s attention is now completely focused on the two men. As they exit the inn, the man gets up and follows them out.

Curious, James walks over to the door and peers through to see what’s going on. He finds the two men entering the stables, while the single man makes his way across the courtyard to a window in the side of the stable and looks inside. The man gazes through the window for a few seconds, and then quickly glances around the courtyard. James ducks back from the doorway then peers around again a second later. He sees that the man is no longer looking through the window. Instead, he’s walking around to the stable door where he slips inside.

Leaving the inn, James hurries across the courtyard to the stable’s door. Coming from within the stables he hears hushed voices, but is unable to make out the words. Nearing the entrance, he begins to be able to make out what is being said inside.

“…Now!” says a voice, menacingly.

“Here, take it! Just don’t hurt us.” James recognizes the voice of the older of the two gentlemen. Cautiously peering around the door, he sees the older man handing a purse over to the robber. The robber is standing with sword drawn, the point scant inches from the chest of the younger man. Taking the purse, he gauges the weight of the coins contained within and then places it inside his tunic.

“Thank you, gentlemen,” the robber says. He begins backing toward James slowly, his sword still leveled at the two men.

James quickly looks around and sees a pile of old broken boards lying next to the side of the stable. He quickly and quietly takes a two foot long piece and then stands ready to wallop the robber as he exits.

From where he stands with the board raised high, he hears the robber coming closer to the doorway. When he judges that the robber is close enough, James swings the board with all his might and feels a soft thud as it connects with the back of the robber.

The robber stumbles forward from the force of the blow, his sword sailing out of his hand. Falling to the floor, he quickly rolls and regains his feet, knife drawn.

The two men, though surprised by James’ attack, quickly react as they draw their swords and advance on the robber. The robber realizes his advantage is lost and leaves his sword on the ground where it fell. Making a quick leap through the side window, he hits the ground on the other side.

“Thief!” the older man yells. The younger man starts running for the door where James stands and gives chase to the robber.

James glances toward the robber as he gains his feet and for a short second, their eyes lock. He can see the hate behind those eyes, directed at him. Then the robber turns and runs to where a saddled horse is tied to the hitching post. The younger man rushes through the door and runs after him, but is not fast enough to catch the robber before he mounts his horse. Spurring him to a gallop, the robber quickly races between the buildings until he is out of sight.

“No,” replies his father. “But I’ll know him if I ever see him again.” Looking around, he stares at the courtyard, empty except for themselves and James. No one even bothered themselves to come and give aid when he called ‘Thief!’

Turning to James the father says, “I guess we’re pretty lucky not all people are cowards. My name’s Renlon, this here is my son Kinney. We’re heading north if you’d care to travel with us.”

Smiling at the offer he replies, “No thank you, I’m on my way south to Bearn. My name’s James.”

“Well James, if you’re ever in Illion, you’re welcome to our hospitality,” the father says. “We own and operate an iron mine and smelter. Maybe you’ve heard of us, Renlon’s Iron?”

Placing the gold in with his other coins, he then goes and checks on his horse, finding that he has been well taken care of. James then saddles him and walks him over to the hitching post near the front of the inn. Tying him there, he returns to the inn to gather his belongings left by the table when he went to investigate the happenings at the stable. He brings them out and secures them to the saddle before mounting. As he turns to leave the inn, he spies Renlon and his son and waves goodbye. They wave back and soon James has put the inn far behind as he continues his way south.

On the road again…,
he begins singing one of his favorite songs. Spirits once again high, he brings his horse to a trot and exhilarates in his freedom. No demands, no tests, no grandparents pushing him to get a job. What could be better? The rest of the day goes by pretty uneventfully. Long before Bearn appears on the horizon, the untamed countryside turns into farmland with hardworking farmers out in their fields. By the time Bearn finally appears in the distance ahead, the sun is only a couple hours away from dipping below the horizon. Two days, just as Corbin said.

He finds Bearn to be much bigger than Trendle. The city seems to stretch for over a mile to the east of the river and probably half as much on the west side. There’s a large bridge spanning the river near the center of the city as well as a smaller one further to the south.

An encircling wall gives the city some security and protection. The road passes through a gate in the north wall allowing entry into the city. Approaching the gate, he notices several guards maintaining order, occasionally pulling aside various travelers and asking questions. As James approaches the gate, one of the guards comes over and states, “Welcome to Bearn. Please state your name and reason for visiting.”

The guard looks bored, as if he has already asked this question a thousand times today.

“My name is James,” he explains. “I am just passing through, though I plan on staying the night at the Flying Swan. Maybe a day or two at the most.”

The guard nods his head, makes a quick notation on a piece of paper, and then waves James on through.

Once through, he finds merchant stalls lining the street, each with a loud proprietor trying to entice people entering the city to buy their goods. Some people occasionally stop to inspect the goods offered while others pointedly ignore them as they attempt to get by without being hassled.

The boy takes him down several streets and then heads west, crossing over the big bridge that he saw earlier. The boy occasionally glances back to make sure that he hasn’t lost him. They finally arrive at a building bearing a colorful sign depicting a white swan in flight over a lake. The boy stops in front of the Flying Swan and says, “Here you are, sir.”

James reaches into his pouch and takes out two coppers and tosses them to the boy. Catching the coins out of the air, the boy seems satisfied. “Do you need more help sir?” asks the boy.

“Not right now and thank you for your help,” he replies.

“If you ever have need of a guide while you’re here, come to the gate where we met,” says the boy. “My name is Miko.”

James considers the offer and says, “Maybe tomorrow morning you could come here. I have a few things I need and maybe you could help me find what I require?”

Nice boy
, James thinks to himself. He ties up his horse to the hitching post and walks into the Flying Swan.

_______________________

The Flying Swan turns out to be a nice, clean place. In fact, it’s the best he’s seen so far since coming to this world. Upon entering he can readily tell that it’s a cut above the Bend in the River, the inn where he stayed the night before. Curtains drape the windows and candelabra hang from the ceiling. Each table is draped with a clean white tablecloth and the employees present a neat, tidy appearance. One of them, a man in his middle years and dressed slightly better than the rest, sees him enter and moves toward him.

“Welcome to the Flying Swan good sir,” he says with a warm and friendly smile.

“Thank you,” replies James. “I met a traveler on the road and she said this would be a good place to stay while I am in Bearn.”

“Of course, of course, the reputation of the Flying Swan is well deserved.” Smiling broader he says, “And who might I thank for such a good recommendation?”