“This will do,” Kevik stated.
“I think so too,” agreed Riyan. Turning to the journeyman cartographer, he said, “How much?”
“A gold and six silver,” he stated.
Riyan’s eyes widened at the price.
“Why so much?” asked Chad. He too felt the map would prove useful for them, but a gold six?
“It takes time to carefully draw a map,” the young man explained. “Meticulous attention to detail must be maintained for the map to be accurate.”
“Where’s Sandlun?” Kevik suddenly interjected.
“What?” Riyan asked as he turned to the magic user.
“Sandlun,” repeated Kevik. “The town that was sacked some months ago.”
The journeyman indicated a place southeast of Kendruck. “Here,” he said.
Riyan looked at the spot for a moment then handed over the coins for the map.
“Thank you,” the apprentice said as he took the coins. “Would you care to look at any other maps?”
“No,” replied Riyan. Rolling up the map, he placed it inside his pack. “I think this will be all we need.”
“If you should ever require another,” the journeyman said, “remember that Orren’s maps are the best and most accurate.”
“We will,” Riyan assured him before turning to head for the door. Once they were outside and heading back to the inn, he asked Kevik why he had asked about Sandlun.
He shrugged and said, “I was curious.”
Riyan grinned. “Let’s hurry back and see if Bart has met with any success at the trading house.” But when they got back to the inn, they found that he hadn’t.
Bart was not in a very good mood. “They wouldn’t even talk to us,” he told them. “We had no sooner entered the building when two Tribesmen came and said we had to leave. I tried to explain why we were there, but they quickly ushered us out and shut the door.”
“At least we have the map,” Chad said. At which point Riyan produced it and spread the map out on one of the tables.
Once it was unrolled, Riyan pointed to Kendruck. “Here’s where we are,” he stated. Then his finger began following the road heading south. “If we follow this road, it will eventually take us to Hylith.” His finger continued to follow the road until it came to the city.
“Then what?” asked Chyfe.
Riyan glanced up from the map and asked, “What do you mean?”
“Once we get there, what do we plan to do?” he asked. “If what we can expect from the locals is anything like what we experienced at the trading house, things could get dicey.”
“Play it by ear,” Bart said. “We should have an idea of what to expect by the time we get there.”
“Then once we are there,” continued Riyan, “try to locate the last segment of the key.”
“How?” asked Chyfe.
“The previous two keys we found were both secreted beneath ruins dating back to the time of the King,” he explained. “All we have to do is locate such ruins in the area and get it.”
“But there could be ruins all over the place!” asserted Chyfe. “And even if we find such, there’s no guarantee that the segment will lie within.”
“But they all won’t have the coat of arms that we are looking for,” interjected Soth. “Each of the previous two were found in ruins bearing one of the coats of arms. All we need to do is find an area bearing the final coat of arms and we’re in business.”
“All the while the locals could be after our blood,” added Seth. “You know what is said about the Tribesmen, and our visit to the trading house only proved its validity. They’re not tolerant of strangers.”
Bart removed the wine bottle that he had taken with them to the trading house. “All we can do is but try,” he said, then held the bottle up before the others. “We’ll be agents of a merchant looking to acquire a contract for quantities of this wine.”
“Might work,” Riyan said. Even Chyfe agreed it was worth a shot.
The rest of the morning and afternoon, they spent restocking their supplies. Then when the sun rose the following morning to a sky all but devoid of clouds, they rode through the southern gates on their way to Hylith.
Chapter Nine
The sun brought a welcomed warmth to the world as Kendruck disappeared behind them. All that was left of the snow which had fallen on their trip down were small patches in the lee of hills or under the sheltering branches of pines. Off to their right, the white peaks of the Tinderlock Mountains were a stark contrast to the blue of the sky behind them.
While they remained on Byrdlon’s side of the border, Riyan and Bart rode point. But it had been decided that once they crossed over and were in Tribes territory, Seth and Soth should lead. Though it was true their ancestry couldn’t be directly traced to the Tribes, it was hoped their appearance would soften an otherwise harsh reaction.
The walls of Kendruck had barely disappeared before they encountered a Byrdlon patrol. A score of riders appeared out of the east, and once the riders had taken notice of their party, immediately altered course to intercept.
Riyan brought them to a halt as the horsemen drew near. “Think this is trouble?” he asked Bart.
“I wouldn’t think so,” he replied. “We’ve done nothing wrong and Byrdlon isn’t officially at war yet. They most likely want to know what we’re doing.”
Of the twenty riders approaching them, five were quite young. Seth made the comment that they must be some of the Recruits turned Armsmen that the Guild had sent down to the border as per Duke Knor’s request. The rider in the fore of the group was an older man with a smart looking uniform whose insignia marked him as a captain. Obviously a career soldier and leader of the group.
As the riders drew close, Riyan waved to the leader and said, “Good day to you Captain.”
Coming to a halt the captain replied, “And to you sir.”
“Is there a problem?” Bart asked.
“Not that I’m aware,” the captain replied. The way he said it made it sound like there should have been a ‘yet’ at the end of his sentence. “What brings you down this road?”
“On our way to Hylith,” Riyan replied. “We are agents for a merchant who is interested in procuring a contract for a certain wine that he’s heard has recently become available.”
The captain glanced to Riyan then at the group behind him. He took special note of Kevik and his staff. “You’ll not find any welcome in Hylith,” he told them. “They don’t care much for those of us from north of the border.”
“So we understand,” Bart said. “But surely they would tolerate an agent whose only purpose is to increase trade?”
“Never know with them,” the captain said. “Bloodthirsty and treacherous they are.” Then he caught sight of Seth and Soth. Moving his horse forward, he passed by Riyan and came to them.
Before he had a chance to speak, Seth said, “We are not Tribesmen though we understand our appearance is similar. My brother and I are members of the Gilbeth Warrior Guild and our father is in service to Lord Dreaden of Gilbeth.”
The captain mulled that over for a moment, most likely deciding whether to believe them or not.
“Could you tell us how far it is to the border?” Riyan asked.
The captain gave Seth and Soth another once over then returned his attention to Riyan. “Several miles to the south you will find the village of Marl Crest. It marks the beginning of the area disputed by both sides. Another ten miles after that you’ll cross over what we consider to be their northern border.”
“Is it safe?” asked Soth.
“I would never assume to be safe once past Marl Crest,” the captain advised. “Tribesmen raiders quite often roam through the area. It wouldn’t be in your best interest to be discovered by such.”
