to the hull and their manacles are secured to them. Left there in the dark, Miko begins to get scared and a little nauseous from the motion of the ship and the smells from the hold.
After what seems like hours, the ship finally begins to move. Even though he’s held in the cargo hold as a slave, Miko enjoys the roll of the ship despite being nauseated as it makes its way out to sea.
After twenty minutes into the voyage, one of the slaves further down from Miko starts throwing up when the rocking of the ship gets the better of him, spraying it all over. The odor only adds to the already unbearable stench in the hold. Miko’s stomach begins to protest as he continues to smell the other man’s vomit.
Before too long, others begin vomiting as well, including Miko whose stomach can no longer stand the combined odor and the rocking of the ship. The voyage that started out as one of excitement for him, now is pure misery as he gets sicker and sicker, vomiting several more times.
At last, the rocking of the ship diminishes and they feel the hull scrape alongside another dock. The ship comes to a stop and they hear footsteps on the deck above them coming over to the hatch. The hatch above them opens, allowing light and fresh air to come in, much to everyone’s relief.
A sailor comes and begins removing their manacles from the eye rings in the floor. They’re then told to come up and when Miko steps out of that foul hell hole, he sees that the ship is resting next to a small pier on a heavily wooded island, at least he thinks it’s an island. At the end of the pier are several buildings as well as a guard tower upon which two guards with crossbows are standing watch.
The men are disembarked from the ship and formed into lines upon the pier. A guard steps forward and takes several papers from the captain of the ship and then turns to the slaves. After making a short speech that Miko is unable to comprehend, they begin marching along the pier toward an area with several large barrels. A slave stands with a bucket near the first barrel.
As the first of the new arrivals reaches the slave with the bucket, he pours the water in the bucket over the slave’s head who then commences to rub as much of the filth he acquired in the hold off as he can. When it’s Miko’s turn, he steps forward and feels the water flow over him gratefully, the stench from the hold of the ship at last being washed away. A faint odor still remains despite his efforts to remove it all, but nothing like what they smelled like before, a hot bath would do the trick a whole lot better. After the last of the slaves has had a bucket’s worth of water poured over him, the line begins moving again.
They march for about an hour, the fresh air and exercise is a pleasant change after the length of time on the wagon and then in the bottom of the cargo hold. From out of the forest ahead of them, a wooden palisade suddenly appears and begins running along the side of the road. Guards armed with crossbows can be seen walking along the top of the wall and look their way as they approach.
A gate large enough to accommodate a wagon swings open as they near the middle of the palisade and they’re marched through. Once on the other side of the gate, Miko sees a large open pit in front of them, with a winding road that follows the outer edge as it circles down into the depths.
Surrounding the pit are many wooden buildings, with the wall encompassing the entire area. Wagons are rolling along the road as they make their way from out of the depths of the pit. The guards march Miko and the others over toward the road that leads into the pit and then follow the road as it descends into the pit.
Chapter Twenty Three
James awakens to the sound of waves crashing upon rocks. Though his head hurts like it’s about to split open, he sits up and sees Jiron sitting over near the entrance to a cave, staring out at the water. Their two horses are standing over by the opposite side of the cave.
A groan escapes from James as he sits up. Jiron glances back over his shoulder at him and smiles. “Didn’t think you were ever going to come back to the land of the living,” he says.
Holding his head in his hands to try and ease the pain, James replies with a raspy voice, “Not sure that I have.”
Jiron gets up and brings him a water bottle, “Like some water?”
Reaching out his hand, he takes the offered bottle and drains the entire contents. Looking around, he asks, “Just where are we?”
“In a cave near the ocean,” Jiron explains.
“How did we get here?” he asks as he hands the bottle back.
“After we left Al-Kur,” he begins to explain, “I initially took us out into the desert but ran across a patrol, they saw us and gave chase. I had to back track toward the coast, we didn’t lose them until night fell. After that, we rode all night until I saw this cave opening revealed in the moonlight.”
“Been here for two days,” he tells him. “Wasn’t sure if you were going to make it at first, but by the end of the first day you were getting less restless and began to quiet down. I was afraid the noise you were making would alert anyone passing by to our presence here. I did some scouting around and we seem to be in a remote area, I doubt if anyone will think to look for us here.”
“Me too,” agrees James, his throat still a little raspy. “Do we have any food?” he inquires.
“A little,” he replies and then moves over to one of the saddle bags. He takes out a cloth containing some rations and brings it over to James. “I figure we have a day’s worth left,” he says, “maybe more.”
James takes it and when he takes his first bite, his stomach lets out a large growl and he begins eating in earnest.
“Are you going to need more rest?” Jiron asks him.
“I think so,” James replies just as a yawn escapes him. “Most likely another day at the most, then I think I’ll be okay to travel.”
“In that case I better go and find us more food or we’ll be out by morning,” he tells him. “It looks like you’re going to be needing a lot.”
“I usually do after major magic like I did back at Al-Kur,” he explains.
Jiron looks to him and asks, “Will you be okay by yourself?”
He shrugs and says, “If no one shows up, yes. I doubt if I could do anything to defend myself now if someone should come by.”
“I won’t be long,” he says as he goes over and begins to saddle one of the horses.
James finishes eating and already his body is telling him it’s time to rest. Trying to stifle another big yawn he says, “Hurry back.”
“I will,” he assures him. Leading the horse outside the cave, he mounts and glances back inside to James before he leaves. Already, he’s fallen asleep.
Jiron quickly leaves the cave behind as he makes his way through the hills, away from the beach area. The rolling hills give him some cover as he follows the coast south, hoping to come across a town where he can acquire some food.
The light begins to fade as the sun drops below the horizon. The approach of darkness makes Jiron more at ease, in the dark is when he’s most effective. Before the sun slips completely beyond the horizon, he comes across a small fishing village. A couple dozen huts and one main building is all there is to it. A small dock extends into the water and several small boats are tied to it.
Satisfied to have found a town so readily, Jiron turns around and leads his horse away from the village. He finds a place back in the hills that will keep his horse hidden while he goes in search of food. Taking the reins, he ties him to a scrub tree in a hollow between two hills. Patting him on the neck before returning to the village, he says, “I’ll be back soon, boy.”
Working his way back to the village on foot, he stops when he begins to see the light coming from the outlying buildings. He waits there, hidden in amongst some trees and bushes as he observes the inhabitants, thankful that there are no soldiers or guards patrolling the streets. This place is just not big enough to warrant any.
Once darkness has completely set in, he stealthily makes his way to the outskirts of town and over to one of the houses that remains dark. Hoping that since the house is still dark, there would be no one within, he creeps to a window and looks inside.
It’s a small home and appears that there isn’t anyone currently inside. Going to the door, he slowly opens it
