The Glauerdoom Moor Read online

  It was King Jasper!

  Sai turned to look at Hatch and gave him a mocking look of how could you. She was unsure of how to address the monarch. She couldn’t curtsey in her thieving garb and she wasn’t about to kneel, so she just gave a low bow, never taking her eyes off him.

  “You have courage, just as Hatch told me. I like that. You’ll need all you can muster for this mission.”

  “Mission? Your Highness? I think Hatch has misinformed you. I’m not one to take part in any side. I look out for myself. Any prophecy or world-shaking events are far out of my hands.”

  He nodded and gave her a smile that clearly hid pain behind it. “Soon enough, everyone will need to take a side.”

  Sai cocked a curious eyebrow. She then noticed a man standing to her left. He looked fearsome, with a wild look in his eye and unkempt auburn hair held back by a ring of silver over his brow. A whip hung ready at his belt, but what really caught her eye was the flask of potions he wore too. He must be a jack of all trades, she mused.

  King Jasper continued, “The forces of evil are marshaling against us and we must meet them head on. In addition to arranging our meeting with you, Hatch has established a mission to find my daughter, Princess Citrine, who has gone missing searching for Princess Amethyst.”

  “How many daughters have you lost?” Sai blurted.

  Hatch snarled, and Sai pulled away from him, but Jasper raised a hand silencing them both. “No one has lost more sleep over these things than I. What is done is done and we live with the consequences of both our actions and inaction. Citrine is strong-willed and forceful; she is very opinionated and headstrong. She was convinced that the vampire, Baron Von Drakk, was involved with Amethyst’s kidnapping. She put together an expedition and went to the Glauerdoom Moor to find her sister.” Jasper paused a moment to dry his eyes.

  Sai looked to Hatch, who simply raised a finger for keeping silent.

  King Jasper continued, “Unfortunately, whatever clues led her there were but a trap. Dark forces lay in wait and ambushed Citrine’s party.”

  “What happened?”

  “They were all killed,” Jasper said.

  “Including your daughter?”

  “She alone was captured and taken away.”

  “If all were slain and she was taken, how do you know these things?” asked Sai, despite Hatch’s disapproving frown.

  Jasper gestured to the wild-looking warrior. “Von Wilding can answer that.”

  The fierce-looking man stepped forward, bowed to the king and addressed everyone present with a tale that Sai understood, from his expression, had been repeated several times.

  “I am Von Wilding, last of my house, and I will repeat the sorrowful tale. At the crux of the swamp and the Moor, where the rivers and vines turn dark, we were ambushed. I was scouting ahead, and that is the only reason my head was not taken along with the rest of Citrine’s warriors. The vampire knew we were coming, and though I tried to warn the princess to be wary, we were taken like lambs to the slaughter.” His voice almost cracked at the strain of repeating these horrific events, but he stood a little taller and finished with, “I have sworn to report these things to the king and recover his daughters no matter the peril I might find myself in. I will not fail a second time.”

  “A second time?” asked Sai, sharply.

  “I was ready to throw my life away fighting Von Drakk and his fiends to my last breath, but I knew Citrine wished me to report to her father.”

  “How convenient,” said Sai.

  Von Wilding’s eyes flared in anger. Did they change colors? She could swear that the hair on the back of his hands became more visible, but the man restrained himself with a deep growl.

  “That’s enough Sai,” snapped Hatch. “He doesn’t answer to you, but to the King.”

  King Jasper waited a moment for everyone to quiet. “So, it was a trap set for my daughter and her companions.” He let that linger for Sai. She looked around expectantly for someone else to speak. King Jasper continued, “I understand you are very skilled at getting out of traps.”

  Sai smirked. “It’s not the same thing at all. I’m a thief, not a tactician.”

  “I know,” said King Jasper, almost patronizingly. “This mission will be made with stealth over raw power. Your skills for avoiding trouble and traps will be most valuable for this endeavor. You will be responsible for keeping the others safe. Especially once you are able to get to Von Drakk’s mansion. They need someone of your talent to avoid the dangers within.”

  She looked to Hatch and then Von Wilding. “And what’s in this for me? Why should I risk life and limb for this lost princess?”

  “I know the crimes you have committed, and I have supreme power vested in me to absolve you of them. I understand you have enough on record to put you in the dungeons for a very long time.”

  “I must do this?” she asked hesitantly.

  King Jasper nodded.

  “And I will be wiped clean?”

  “Yes, and you will keep it that way,” Hatch added.

  “Accomplish your part of this mission for me, and you will always have a place in my court for your . . . unusual skills. You will not want for anything and, best of all, you will be doing the right thing,” said King Jasper, with a wink.

  The wink only confused Sai. There were still some things about royalty and honor she didn’t understand. “That hasn’t exactly been my way.”

  “We can all change when we need too,” King Jasper answered.

  “I’ll do it, but I won’t be ordered about like a green recruit,” she said, looking at Hatch.

  “You’re all the best of the best. You will succeed. I know it,” King Jasper said, clapping his hands together. “But Hatch is in charge. This mission was his idea, and I know he has everyone’s best interests in mind.”

  Sai doubted that. “Who suggested me for this anyway?”

  “Why, Hatch did of course. He has been telling me you are the best thief in the world for months now,” King Jasper said with a wry grin.

  That surprised her. All this time that she knew Hatch was trailing after her, she never imagined that he held any admiration for her skills.

  “When do we leave?”

  “Immediately. Time is of the essence.”

  Sai’s brows raised in surprise. “I’ll need to get my things together.”

  “Already done,” answered Hatch.

  She glared at Hatch.

  “Turlough sold you out on that one too, but don’t be too mad at him. We need to hurry. Making you listen was the hard part. I couldn’t have you run, which I knew would happen if I came to your flat.”

  “Guess I can’t trust anyone.”

  Hatch shook his head. “That’s where you’re wrong. From here on out, you need to trust us with your life, just as we will you.”

  Von Wilding didn’t look any happier about that than she did, but there wasn’t a choice anymore was there? She knew Hatch, but she would have to keep an eye on this wild man.

  Chapter 3: The Shortcut

  Dawn was just kissing the horizon when they rode out of the Castle gates. Hatch hurried them through the city and then north by northeast along the road. Sai pursed her lips, irritated by this. She expected them to turn, but Hatch led them on, racing his stallion toward a thick stand of woods.

  “I don’t mean to already be complaining about your great leadership, Hatch, but isn’t the Glauerdoom Moor to the southwest, while we are riding in the opposite direction?”

  “I’m taking us to a shortcut,” answered Hatch. “Trust me.”

  That was not the answer she wanted to hear but had no choice but to urge her horse on ever faster as the limbs of spidery trees blocked what little sunlight the day had to offer.

  When the road wound by a large patch of Ghostfire Berries, Hatch stopped and began collecting them in a sack. “Please, help get as many as we can in the next few minutes.”

 
“What for? They’re terrible,” Von Wilding asked. “I won’t eat them, and I’ve tasted near everything you can think of that grows, slithers, or crawls within the Moor.” He showed his teeth. They looked a little sharp and canine.

  Sai made a face at that—she was used to good food, things other people prepared in the city; she wanted no part of this trailside grazing. Since she was sore from riding already, she took the opportunity to dismount and help gather some of the pale purple berries. When they had a large sack full, they got back on their horses and continued down the trail.

  Sai found it interesting that Hatch didn’t eat any of the berries, nor did he offer her some, but after Von Wilding’s comment she wasn’t sure she wanted any.

  They came to a crossroads and Hatch suddenly dismounted to examine the ground. This was not a skill Sai had by any stretch. She considered herself a city girl and wondered what the royal warden could learn by looking at the hard-packed earth.

  Von Wilding helped her understand, while also raising new questions. “Trolls.” He said in disgust after also scanning the ground. “Perhaps we should go another way to your shortcut,” he suggested.

  Hatch shook his head. “We go right down this fork.”

  “I hope you know what you are doing,” said Von Wilding. “We’re a long way from friendly faces.”

  “Wrong direction and trolls. What are you up to, warden?” snipped Sai.

  “Like I said before, trust me. This is a shortcut.”

  Von Wilding joined in the taunt. “Maybe shortcuts mean something else up here. Down in the Moor they mean an actual shortening of the path.”

  Hatch frowned but beckoned for them to follow him as he got back on his horse, kicked his stallion’s flanks, and ventured down the gloomy road.

  They followed, though still dubious and wary of running smack into a troupe of trolls.

  Soon the road became little more than a goat path winding through dense forest. The ground was filled with obstacles, roots and fallen logs, and it was difficult to see more than twenty feet through the mass of thick greenery. Occasionally, Sai could see the grey faces of cliffs crowding them inside a canyon.

  “You owe us an explanation,” said Von Wilding. “This is wasting time.”

  “I already told you, this is a shortcut.”

  “In the wrong direction,” griped Sai.

  Hatch looked at each of them saying, “Sometimes, the best way is not so obvious. I think we are almost there.”

  They rounded a spot where the cliff walls threatened them by forcing a tight single file squeeze and Von Wilding looked behind them saying. “This is an excellent place for a trap.”

  “It’s not a trap, just a safe place for someone who wants to be left alone,” Hatch said.

  Sai noticed a skull with antlers and feathers hanging in a tree right beside her face. “Maybe we should leave them alone then? I don’t like the look of this either.”

  “It’s just a shaman’s fetish. It’s nothing to worry about.”

  “What’s that?” she asked.

  “A collection of magical items to extend a shaman’s or magician’s power.”

  “Have you been here before?” asked Von Wilding.

  “No,” admitted Hatch. “But I was made aware of this place by a trusted source and we need this shortcut, plus the help of a friend who lives here.”

  Von Wilding put his hand on his sword hilt and loosened the blade in its scabbard, ready to draw if anything unexpected happened. “Again, I don’t think you know the meaning of the word.”

  Hatch glared at him but remained silent.

  The tree branches scratched and pulled at their faces and Sai had to lay low to her horse’s mane to avoid the drooping leaves and needles. The horses themselves were skittish and slowed to a crawl. “This isn’t worth it. Going the wrong way, slow as snails—”

  “Stop your grumbling,” snapped Hatch. “We’re here.” He and his mount disappeared into a curtain of greenery. Von Wilding followed and then Sai urged her skittish horse through.

  They were in an open clearing within a dark canyon. The high grey cliffs surrounded them on every side. A large tent of skins sat at the back of the clearing as well as a table, one enormous chair, and the flames of a cookfire coiling in its stone ring. Smoke rose into the sky like a snake dancing to a flute. Numerous fetish pieces hung in the trees surrounding the clearing.

  The hairs on the back of Sai’s neck stood straight up. First chance I get, I’m riding out of here.

  “Who’s there?” rumbled a deep voice like thunder.

  “It’s me, Hatch, the royal warden, come to ask for your debt repaid,” he said as he dismounted. The others did the same, if a little more tentatively.

  “Go away. I’ve no coin for you today. Maybe next month,” rumbled the voice.

  Sai felt the rumble of that voice in her bones. It made her think the man inside must be a giant.

  “No,” said Hatch firmly. “I’m asking you to repay your debt by granting us passage through the veil and coming with us on our quest.”

  A huge green head, topped with a mat of black hair and covered in warts, stuck outside the tent. Sai gasped in shock. Von Wilding drew his sword. Hatch raised his hands to calm them.

  “Hold! This is Wildflower, a friend. Wildflower, these are my companions,” said Hatch. “They are with me.”

  “Friend?” asked Sai in surprise. Von Wilding reciprocated her astonished look. “A troll named Wildflower?”

  Hatch continued, “I need you to take us beyond the veil of your ancestors and transport us to Glauerdoom Moor. I am sure your skill will be most useful in our quest.”

  The troll stepped outside of its tent and its great belly shook with laughter. “You always were funny, Hatch. And I can take your kidding, but such a thing has never been done with humans before,” said Wildflower. “It’s not polite to mock one’s sacred trust.”

  “I’m not joking,” answered the warden. “Do me this favor and we are square.”

  The troll’s face took on a more cantankerous look, and with a frown, Wildflower said, “No. I don’t owe you that much.”

  “You owe me your life!”

  Wildflower slammed its broad hands down on the table, nearly smashing the thing to splinters. “Aye, I do. But that is less than letting puny humans invade the sacred Spirit Walker realm of the trolls.”

  “I’m not a human, I’m a Riftling,” Sai said.

  “Like I care,” answered Wildflower, with a shrug. “I cannot do this for any but trolls.”

  Hatch was a big man but stood no taller than Wildflower’s mid-section. Still, he poked a finger into the troll’s belly. “Listen. I have an important mission from King Jasper. I must find his daughters, Princess Citrine and, hopefully, Princess Amethyst too. They have been taken.”

  Wildflower sucked at its wrinkled lips and asked, “Taken by who?”

  “Likely by Von Drakk and others who serve the Dark Consul. I know you don’t want them to succeed in their endeavors, so I’m asking for your help with the one thing you can do before this becomes a full-blown war. We need your help.”

  Wildflower scratched a sudden itch on the back of its neck. “I can’t betray my ancestors and share that sacred knowledge with humans and Riftlings,” it said, pointing an accusing finger at Sai.

  “How can we compromise on this?” Hatch asked. “Can you take us through, without sharing how you do it?”

  Wildflower rubbed its face and pondered, like it took a vast amount of effort to consider the proposition.

  “I brought you a great sack of ghost-berries,” offered Hatch.

  “Even though I haven’t said yes, yet?”

  “I had to be prepared.” He held the sack out to the troll.

  “Let me think and ask the ancestors in my tent,” Wildflower said before disappearing into the tent.

  “What are you negotiating here?” asked Von Wilding urgently. “We can’t t
rust a troll to lead us through the Fae Wood. I know the way better than anyone.”

  Hatch stopped him. “I’m not taking us through the Fae Wood. It would take too long. Wildflower is a Spirit Walker Troll.”

  “What’s that?” asked Sai.

  “A shaman, a priest of sorts, that can commune with the spirits of their departed ancestors. They can also travel through portals. That’s why some troll raiding parties can be so tricky and deadly.”

  Von Wilding took Hatch by the shoulder and whispered, “And you’re suggesting we trust one and enter their realm?”

  Hatch nodded. “Yes, I am. Besides she could be big help in the Moor too. Muscle and primitive brain that knows almost as much about the Moor as you do.”

  “I still don’t think it’s a good idea. Seems dangerous. Like we’re asking for trouble,” Von Wilding said.

  “Trust me, Wildflower will change her mind and take us through.”

  “Her? That’s a her?” asked Sai in shock.

  Hatch grinned and nodded. “Yeah, I saved her from a party of Billmen when she was sorely wounded. She owes me her life.”

  Von Wilding broke in. “Still, I don’t like the idea of traveling through a troll portal. What if we get trapped there or are ambushed by another pack of trolls coming the other way?”

  “I don’t think it works like that.”

  “Well, how does it work?”

  Hatch looked to Sai. “I think Sai has the most experience with portals.”

  Sai looked at each of them. “I can move.” She demonstrated for them, vanishing in one spot and reappearing ten feet away. “But that’s as far as I’ve gotten so far.”

  “What does it look like when you do?” asked Von Wilding.

  Sai puzzled at that. She had never thought about it. “It always happens so fast. It’s so dark I don’t see anything really.”

  “Try again.”

  She concentrated and ported several times around the clearing. Then she was in front of them again. “It’s like a world of shadows and I see everything, but through a smoky mirror.”

  “Any trolls?” teased Hatch.