Tides of Faith: Travail of The Dark Mage Book Two (66 page)

“My money’s on Scar,” Shorty said.
“From the description given, it has to be him.”

From the lead, Tinok said, “I
agree.”

Several men loitered about the
entrance to the inn. As Tinok led them to the hitching post, he
rested his hand on one of his two knives. He was slightly
disappointed when the men failed to prove hostile and he and the
others managed to reach the inn without incident.

“Wait here,” he said as he
dismounted. “I’ll see if they’re here.” Heading for the door, he
heard Shorty whisper, “Don’t kill anyone.”
Only if I have too
, he replied
silently.

Once through the door and into the
inn’s foyer, he paused to scan those in the common room. A rather
rowdy bunch with most tables occupied. From a small raised platform
near the back, a bard plucked a merry tune on a lute. Two serving
girls moved throughout.

Two long tables near the middle were
occupied by Lord Cytok’s men; he recognized their insignia. Now
touting himself as the Emperor, Lord Cytok’s men retained the same
uniform as they had before the fracturing of the Empire.

His scan of the common room failed to
uncover their two friends. Leaving the foyer, he made for the
crowded bar and the hard-looking man behind it. Teamsters and other
travelers stood before it laughing, drinking and in some cases
swearing. He had to nudge one burly man aside in order to reach it.
The man gave him an annoyed look, then returned his attention to
the young woman on his other side.

“Yeah?”

Turning to the barkeep, Tinok said,
“Looking for two friends of mine that may have come this way. One
was sick, possibly paralyzed. Have you seen them?”

The barkeep eyed him a moment, then
shook his head. “Can’t say that I have. You gonna have
something?”

Tinok laid a couple coppers on the
counter. “Ale.”

Taking the coins, the barkeep placed a
frothy mug before him. “Might know something about it if you’re
interested…?”

Tinok produced a silver and held it
up. “If your information is worthwhile.”

“Fair enough.” The barkeep leaned
close and spoke in a whisper. “You may want to talk to Farhan. He
came in a little after dusk talking about curses, death and
blood.”

“What does this have to do with my
friends?”

Lowering his voice even further, the
barkeep said, “He claimed that he and several others encountered
two travelers on the road leading a string of horses. One was
either dead or close to it, the other was spitting blood and saying
he was cursed. Farhan claimed that before he fled the curse struck
down at least three of his comrades.”

“At least?”

“There were two others. One supposedly
escaped with him but where he is, is anyone’s guess.”

“And the other?”

The bartender shrugged. “He doesn’t
know. An hour ago some men went to check out his story. He refused
to go.” Eyeing Tinok thoughtfully, he asked, “Were they your
friends?”

Shaking his head and chuckling, Tinok
replied, “Doesn’t sound like it.” He laid the coin on the bar,
“Good story though.”

He sipped his ale while gazing about
the common room, his gaze lingered upon the soldiers. None looked
familiar from his time in the Empire, but many more knew him than
he, them. Finishing it, he set the mug on the bar then left the
inn.

Father Vickor stood near the others
who remained mounted.

“Are they in there?” he
asked.

Tinok shook his head. “No.” He eyed
the men standing nearby and stepped closer to Father Vickor. In a
quiet voice he related the barkeep’s story.

“So that’s what happened to those
bodies we found.”

“Yeah. We should get out of here
before those men return. Also, there are soldiers inside. I don’t
think any recognized me.” He paused a moment. “Do you think
Potbelly could really be cursed?”

“I don’t know. But if he is, we need
to find him as soon as possible.”

Tinok nodded. “Agreed.”

Swinging up into the saddle, Father
Vickor asked, “Where could they be?”

“If Potbelly did kill those men...,”
mounting, he turned his horse to where the road continued
southward, “he’d have avoided this place as if it was a strumpet
with the pox. My guess is we’ll find them somewhere farther down
the road, in a location where he can keep an eye out for when we
pass by yet not be too noticeable by others.”

“Can we find them?”

“We can but try.” Tinok kicked his
horse into motion and they left the inn behind.

“I think it is time we
try.”

James glanced to Miko and sighed. “It
has been a while; we might have a few seconds before the shimmering
appears.”

Now well past sundown, they
continued making their way through the
Waste
. In the dark it was hard to
tell if they were keeping to a more or less southerly direction.
James was sure there was a way to tell by using the stars. Back
home he’d have used the North Star, his dad had showed him how on a
camping trip before the accident.
But on
this world?
He gazed up at the blanket of
lights he had grown familiar with over the last six years. If there
was a North Star up there, he had no idea where it would be or what
it would look like.

Earlier, Miko had suggested
that James cast one of his searching spells to locate a suitable
patch of vines in which they could spend the night. James had been
leery of making the attempt, he hadn’t wanted the shimmering field
to reappear and wreak havoc as it had previously. But now that more
time had passed, it might be feasible. Besides, he couldn’t help
but think that with Miko having to maintain the healing power of
Morcyth to ward off the radiation, they blazed like a beacon. May
as well ring the dinner bell for all nocturnal predators.
Come and get it!

“If you see anything, let me
know.”

Miko nodded and turned his attention
upward.

James gathered magic while visualizing
a withered center ringed by a large patch of vines. Along with the
visualization, he added the impetus to find one close. Then upon
the palm of his hand he formed a luminescent orb.

“Find it.”

With that, he released the magic and
the orb shot from his palm. Immediately he felt the tingling
sensation.

“How close is it?”

Miko searched the sky until spotting
the leading edge of the shimmering field. “Mile away I
think.”

James held onto the magic as the orb
hovered in the air a moment before it headed out into the night. He
let it travel for a few seconds only, just long enough to know in
which direction to go. Even in that short a time, he felt the
effects of the shimmering field, seeking to undo the magic and rent
it asunder. When he let the magic go, the orb faded and the
tingling sensation subsided.

Miko cast him a questioning
glance.

“Not sure how far it is,” he
replied.

“At least we now know which way to
go.”

James nodded. “Indeed.”

They set off along the path
taken by the orb. He hoped the patch of vines would not be too far
away. While they walked, James pondered the enigma of the
shimmering field.
What was it? Who was
behind it? And most importantly, why did it affect his magic and
not Miko’s?
He had a deep foreboding that
knowing the answers to those questions may very well prove vital in
the coming days.

An hour and over a dozen dead stalkers
later, they still walked the desert in search of the vines. They
paused once more so he could send out another seeking orb. As
before, the shimmering appeared some distance away and quickly made
its way toward them. James maintained the spell just long enough to
know they continued in the correct direction. This time he could
also tell the vine patch was not too far away. Then just before the
spell subsided, the orb’s light illuminated a stalker herd heading
their way.

“Did you see that?” Miko
asked.

“Yeah,” James replied. “Looked like a
lot.”

His pockets contained a good supply of
stones scavenged from along their route. He grabbed a handful in
his left hand and readied one in his right. “The vine patch isn’t
too far away,” he said. “But they stand in our way.”

Miko drew his sword. “Then let us
dispatch them.”

“First we need to see
them.”

Magic flowed and starbursts began
exploding in mid-air above where they had seen the stalkers. He
used as little magic as possible and kept each very short. One
would explode revealing the approaching creatures. Two stones would
sail through the air on their deadly missions. As soon as the
second stone was thrown, the night would again be dark and he’d
cast the spell for another starburst.

His arms tingled in greater intensity
as each starburst came and went. Maintaining the integrity of the
spells grew difficult after the third, but he kept on.

The herd was large and moved their way
fast. Five starbursts flared and died leaving ten stalkers dead
before the first reached the area illuminated by Morcyth’s glow.
After that, stones dropped them with deadly precision and speed. As
before, the tingling was curiously absent when he just threw
stones.

One after another the stalkers
appeared only to be felled by James’ deadly projectiles. Once
several stalkers appeared out of the darkness simultaneously;
stones flew but he could not down them in time.

Miko’s sword danced as they approached
and the few who breached James’ defense fell to hacks, slashes and
thrusts. The battle was soon over as the last stalker fell to
Miko’s blade.

“I would think that by
tomorrow night,” Miko began, “we will be near the fringe of
the
Waste
and
these creatures will no longer be a problem.”

James nodded. “And be out of the
radiation, too.”

“As much as using the power of Morcyth
comforts me, maintaining it for such an extended period does grow
tiresome.”

“I bet.” As they left the dead
stalkers behind, he added, “The vines aren’t too far away. You can
drop it once we are safely inside.” Less than ten minutes later,
the outer fringe of vines appeared from out of the
darkness.

It was a large patch. The outer ring
of healthy vines was at least sixty feet across and the withered,
middle section stretched farther than Morcyth’s glow could
illuminate. Once they were within the safe area, Miko released the
power and the world grew dark.

“Shall I take the first
watch?”

James glanced to Miko’s faint
silhouette in the starlight. “No. I will.”

“Thank you,” came the wearied
response.

“Just get some rest. We got a long day
tomorrow.”

As James laid back with head on his
pack, his thoughts drifted to his beloved Meliana and son Kenny. It
wouldn’t be soon enough when they would again be together. In short
order, Miko’s soft snores wafted upon the gentle evening
breeze.

The road wound through
rugged hills. Storm clouds on the horizon promised misery to any
foolish enough not to seek shelter. And at his side walked a young
girl.

Who she was remained a
mystery. Though they had traveled a great distance together, he
still didn’t even know her name. He had long since tried to ferret
information from her, her responses being little more than a nod or
shake of the head. Could she speak? He hadn’t a clue as she had not
uttered a single word.

His steps were quick as a
sense of urgency propelled him forward. They had to reach their
destination before the storm came full upon them. He eyed the
gathering clouds, their darkness broken by flashes of lightning and
quickened his step yet again.

The hills through which
the road ran came to an end at an open, grass-covered plain. There
the road split. Veering to the right, the main road continued
smooth and straight and just at the horizon rose a city’s
skyline.

To the left wound a trail
that was little more than ruts and potholes. Rocks and debris
littered the trail making any attempt to travel upon it difficult
at best. At the end sat a broken-down stone hovel. Little more than
one wall remained intact and if there had been a roof it had long
since rotted away.

Miko turned to the road
leading to the city. “If we take this, we can reach it before the
storm hits.”

The girl merely looked at
him, not giving any indication of her thoughts.

“Let us go.” Taking her by
the hand he led her toward the town.

The rumble of thunder
rolled over the plains as they rushed for the city. Winds whipped
them with ever greater intensity. He held onto her hand all the
tighter; bent low so as not to be blown over, they fought their way
forward.

The first drops of rain
fell and they were still a ways from the gate. Lightning came in
ever greater flashes. Not only ripping through the clouds, but
striking the ground; each seeming closer than the one
before.