Ravendorn's Quest - Chapter 4

Ravendorn’s Quest
By: Dragavan

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Chapter 4: Return to the Bluff

     The rest of the day was spent quietly traveling down the mountain trail, as no one was pleased with the events they just went through. Losing a man is never easy, but usually it comes swift and as a surprise. This was neither. Despondently they walk with heads hung low and without speaking, other than to point out directions or dangers.
     Kobe walks far ahead of the others, even farther than before, so he won’t have to speak to any of them or voice his mind on the subject. Unlike the others he didn’t know Morgan well, having just met him as they left Howling Bluff, so he felt his opinions on the subject didn’t matter. He had a good idea that his opinion would closely match Althea’s, but there was no need to test the waters. The idea that the Duke would sanction this just sickened him to the core. Bastard. He thinks to himself, shaking his head angrily. Life is so cheap to the likes of him.
     Sadie was lost in turmoil between the excitement of having not only see but spoken with a real Dragon and being horrified with witnessing the death of a man so close. At the moment the ill feeling in her stomach was a sign that she was definitely leaning towards the latter. But it was a real Dragon.
     There were no words that could describe what Althea was going through. She had lost another man under her command. She had broken her vow made on the steps of her own personal Land of Worms. Every thought in her head was tearing herself apart, yet she still had a job to do and another vow to fulfill. She was doing her best to push her anger, resentment, and frustration about Morgan into a little box in the back of her mind so she could continue without completely shutting down.
     It wasn’t until they set up camp that night that any of them really spoke about it. Althea set her roll down away from the others and tried to go right to sleep. Her eyes were closed but sleep was far away as she listened to her men talk around the fire. Kobe and Sadie sat with them but stayed quiet, not exactly feeling comfortable or part of the unit.
     “He was too new to have gone like this.” James said taking a drink from his skin.
     “He did what none of us were willing to do.” Darth replied.
     “He was the best of us.” Dragavan speaks solemnly. “Even if he was a worthless scrub.” A small smile crosses his lips.
     “Oh, that goes without saying.” James too cracks a smile. “Still too green for any of this, but the best of us none the less.”
     “You remember that time he mistook Althea’s surcoat for part of his new uniform?” Dragavan starts to say.”
     “Yeah,” continues James, “And he started to take it in to make it fit him better.”
     Dragavan starts to chuckle. “We could have told him.”
     “But it was too much fun to watch.” Darth adds.
     “If it wasn’t his second day with us she would have torn him a new one.” James stares off towards her apparently sleeping body. “She almost did anyway.”
     “You sure could see it in her eyes though.” Dragavan’s eyes turn a little sad and his voice lowers. “Nothing like what she is now.”
     “Remember when he bought those flowers to Katie down at the Green Dragon?” James says, keeping his tone more jovial.
     “Silly kid.” Darth shakes his head. “Not that he was the first to take her flirting as more than it was.”
     “Or the shield thing.” Dragavan starts to chuckle and spits some of his drink. “I couldn’t believe he tried to fit the…”
     “The whole thing.” James says at the same time. “I thought I was going to die with laughter.”
     The remembrances continue from the three of them for hours, as the mood continues to go from light to solemn and back again, much like a wake should be. It does Althea’s heart good to hear them and she eventually fades off into sleep, although not a restful one.
     The next day’s journey is not nearly as quiet but the mood is still somber. Althea seems to be handling things better, but her usual stoic nature seems colder still. Eye contact is rare with her, other than with Drall, who seems more of an extension of her than a person of his own.
     They seem to be traveling faster than before for by the following nightfall they are nearly at the base of the mountain trail. The next day brings them to Fort Donovin and back to their horses. Travel from there is swift, for by the seventh evening after leaving the Bluff they are riding back through it’s cobble stone streets as the sun sets in the distance.

-

     Sir Althea left the others in the courtyard of Ravendorn Manor to care for the horses and with strict orders to go right to the barracks without mentioning anything about their journey to anyone outside of themselves. Then she and Mr. Blain walked quickly into the manor house. The Duke must have known they were on their way in because the butler was waiting at the door to lead them into the study.
     Duke Ravendorn was sitting in a large chair in front of the fire and placed the book he was reading on the side table as they entered. A small smile crossed his face, but soon faded as he saw the grim look on Althea’s. “Welcome back.” He said in a low even tone, waving them towards the other chairs near him.
     Mr. Blain slides over and stands beside one of the chairs, using it as an armrest but doesn’t sit. Althea, on the other hand, gladly takes a seat in the nearest chair and looks back at the Duke seriously.
     He glances at the two of them, settling his gaze on Althea before he speaks again. “So, did you get it? And the name of the temple?” He does his best to keep his voice even, keeping the eager excitement buried.
     Mr. Blain’s hand extends from his robe and an amulet on a chain drops down about a foot before the chain catches. It hangs there, slowly swinging and spinning, catching the firelight and making it shine and sparkle. The crystal in the middle seems to shine faint beams of light around the room, points of light dancing around the walls of the study.
     Ravendorn’s eyes light up as he looks at it. Almost in an inaudible sigh he says, “That’s it. It’s real.” He can’t hide the excitement in his face or voice this time. “What about the temple? Do we have a name?”
     Althea, still looking cold and expressionless, nods slightly as she speaks. “Yes. Moorpam. The beast said it was far east, near the base of the Crescent Moon Mountains. But…”
     Before she can finish what she had to say Ravendorn gasps in excitement. “Excellent. More than I expected. We should be able to pinpoint it in no time.” He turns to address Mr. Blain, but doesn’t get to speak as Althea finishes her previous thought in the brief pause.
     “There was a price beyond what we expected. A price I am not comfortable with. We lost a man. That monster took Morgan Dragg as payment. Killed him right in front of us before he would give us the name.”
     Duke Fredrick Ravendorn’s face drooped. The excitement was still there behind the surface, but his eyes showed a sorrow that wasn’t there before. His voice was also lower and less spry. “I should have known Gran-Dar-Rik would pull something like this. Damn Dragons can’t really be trusted to treat an honor debt the same as the rest of us. Greedy bastards.”
     He sighs deeply before continuing. “Nothing we can do now except honor his death by moving forward. We have even more reason to succeed now.”
     Althea nods, but doesn’t seem comforted at all.
     “But now we have some research to do.” Ravendorn says looking back at Mr. Blain briefly, before addressing Althea one last time. “We can’t risk the others talking too much or getting involved in anything before I need them together again. Tomorrow I will have a little delivery job for the lot of you, just to pass the time while Mr. Blain and I head the research and keep you all together.”
     Althea acknowledges this with a nod. “What about Kobekoon Minasela Roontasa and Mercedes Windsmith? They are not part of my unit but they were there at the cave as well. I know Kobekoon has a debt to fulfill but Mercedes has no such need to come.”
     “Take them with you anyway.” He says with a slightly distracted look. “They may not be needed for this delivery but they will be needed for what follows, and I can’t have them running their mouths off around town. Sorry, it’s just two more you will have to baby-sit on this trip.”
     She nods again and rises to leave, but stops halfway to her feet and looks back at the Duke. “Two more?” she asks with a confused and worried tone. “Two more than what?”
     “I’ll explain everything in the morning.” He says, waving her question off for the time being. “Right now Mr. Blain and I have a lot to go over and discuss.”
     Althea half shrugs and nods to him before turning to leave the room. Ravendorn rises immediately afterwards and grabs the amulet from where it hung under Mr. Blain’s hand. Examining it closely he smiles. In that nearly inaudible voice he speaks again. “The time is close now. This one is real. I can feel it. Soon it will finally be over.”
     Mr. Blain nods and the two of them turn to leave the room. Right before they get the door the Duke jerks his head up, remembering something, and rushes back to his seat. He grabs the small stack of books he had sitting on the table there and carries them out of the room, handing the top one to Mr. Blain.

-

     After unloading the equipment from the horses and passing them off to the stable boys, the rest of the group returned to the barracks. The men dropped off the equipment in a storeroom just off the entrance, leaving it to the servants to sort out, before sitting at a table in the common room dining area. Within minutes Dragavan has taken out his deck and they were playing.
     Sadie just kept walking and up the stairs to the room they arranged for her. She wasn’t much in a social mood at the moment. Her feelings of conflict had waned as the excitement of seeing a real Dragon had faded during the journey. Only the horrific vision of seeing that young man die before her remained at the moment. She just wanted to sleep and hoped she didn’t dream of the scene again.
     Drall was not interested in socializing either, but also wasn’t going anywhere. He sat down in a more comfortable chair near the large stone fireplace on the far end of the room. He pulled out a large book full of sketches of creatures and animals, along with descriptions of their common traits, and started to study it again.
     This was something he often did while Althea was away on business with the Duke or out on some job without him. Since he could not speak and none of the men knew sign language there was little point in trying to participate in any games or conversations with them. Besides, he figured he could be of more use to his charge if he knew more about the kinds of things they might come across in their journeys.
     Kobe, on the other hand, was joining the men in their game. They played cards and talked casually about nothing important most of the evening. Once again Dragavan seems to be on a winning streak, as he slowly seems to take all the money the others brought to the table.
     “So, any idea what The Duke has in store for us next?” Kobe asks, trying to sound casual.
     Dragavan puffs on his cigar and shrugs.
     James shrugs as well, but says, “Nope. Most likely won’t be doing anything for a while though. Most of these jobs are rather spread out. And after what happened this time I have a feeling we are going to get a little extra down time.”
     “Besides, Althea won’t tell us anything until it’s nearly time to go anyway.” Darth adds with another shrug.
     Dragavan takes his cigar out of his mouth with his left hand, since his right holds his cards, and looks at Kobe. “Doesn’t matter.” He then looks down at the coins on and table, up at Kobe’s hand, and then back to his face. “What does matter is, are you in or not?”
     As Dragavan puts the cigar back between his teeth Kobe tosses two silvers on the pile. “Yeah, I’m in. Sorry. Call.”
     Play goes around the table in relative silence for a round, finally broken by James, who turns to Kobe again. “Is it true you socked the Duke’s son? And that’s how you ended up working with us?”
     Kobe lowers his head and closes his eyes a moment, remembering the day in the Green Dragon when his good turn went punished. He raises his head, slowly shaking it as he does, and looks back at James with tired eyes. “I did not know who he was when I struck him, but yes. I have to do three specific jobs before I am free, but I don’t know what they are going to be.”
     James smiles broadly before Kobe even finished. “Lucky bastard. I hate that little twit.” The others all nod in agreement as he continues. “I sure would love to give Kendrick a good what for. Pow! Right in that smug face of his.”
     “Nothing like his father.” Dragavan casually adds, talking around the cigar. “But it is his father’s fault. Too soft on him.”
     Kobe has trouble believing at least the first of these statements. From what he’s seen they are both arrogant and out of touch with the common man and common morals. His fathering methods, however, may very well have led to his son’s bad attitude, but so might have the bloodline.
     “I’m just glad we don’t have to spend much time with him.” James starts again. “Other than the occasional official gathering or escort, and the accidental meeting down at the Green Dragon, we only have to deal with him if he wants us to do something for him and his father has him tell us personally.”
     All the soldiers shudders slightly.
     Darth finally says something on the subject, although brief. “Those are the worst.”
     “Remember the time he had us escort him down to that little village so he could seem important when meeting with that blond he was trying to scam a little play from?” James shakes his head. “Poor girl would have gone through with it if that old tree wouldn’t have crashed through the window and ruined things for him. Lucky girl.”
     Kobe catches Dragavan smirking slyly a moment as James talks. Hmm. He thinks. I bet there is more to that story than they are telling.
     James, wide eyed, like he just remembered something major, continues. “Or, how about that time he wanted us to go down and arrest that gambler for Illegal Betting? Bastard just wanted his money back after losing it on that arena event.”
     Dragavan nods and pulls out the cigar again. “Good thing Althea suddenly needed us to meet her up at the Jernak Outpost.”
     “Yeah.” James nods back to him. “Such luck. That letter arrived just in the nick of time. I wonder why she felt she needed us though? Things sure didn’t seem that important once we got there. Oh, well. Guess I shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”
     Dragavan puffs on his cigar again, small smirk returning. “I’ll just be glad if we don’t have to deal with him again for a good long time.” They all nod, even Kobe, and get back to playing the game until Althea walks in a short time later.
     “Hit the bunks boys.” She says, walking through the room briskly. “We have another job first thing tomorrow and I want you all rested.”
     Without waiting for a response she walks right on through the room and up the stairs on the far side. Drall hastily closes his book and rushes up after her, before she is even out of sight. The others mill around a little longer, but end the game after the current hand.
     “So much for getting a break for a few days.” Kobe comments as they pick up their things.
     “Could be worse.” James smiles. “Could have been stuck with Kendrick.”
     They all chuckle and head to their rooms.