bunnies on both sides of the world.” With this he gave off a huge burp.
Milli and Petra stifled giggles, “Brogus, that’s disgusting,” said the halfing girl while covering her mouth.
“We can’t take him anywhere,” said Petra.
“Go to sleep,” said Dol from under his own bedroll. “If we head into town in the morning we don’t know what we’ll find. It could be dangerous. We don’t speak the language.”
“We have the amulet Manetho gave us,” said Milli. “Whoever wears it can understand and be understood.”
“We’ll be strangers,” said Dol. “Strangers are never well received. There could be fighting.”
“We’ve already decided,” said the sleepy voice of Petra into the night air. “We’re going into town one way or the other. Get some sleep.”
“I still don’t understand my reading,” said Brogus.
“Be quiet,” said Dol.
“It was perfectly simple,” said Milli.
“It was not,” said Brogus.
“You could have asked something more complex than when you were going to meet a nice dwarf girl,” said Milli.
“I didn’t say nice,” said Brogus.
“Obviously,” said Milli.
“Then why did you say I said it,” said Brogus.
“Go to sleep,” said Petra.
“I didn’t say nice,” said Brogus with a snort. “Who wants to meet a nice girl?”
“For the love of Davim, shut up!” shouted Dol and rolled over so that he faced away from the rest of them.
“Can I do another fortune tomorrow?” said Brogus. “I’ve got a better question now. I just didn’t have time to think and I panicked.”
Petra rolled over and put her arm over her ears.
“Did you hear me?” said Brogus.
Silence came over the little camp.
“I said, did you hear me?” said Brogus in a louder voice.
“Oh, for Davim’s sake, answer him, Petra,” said Milli. “He’ll go on all night.”
“No, no more fortunes,” stated Petra with finality.
“Why not?”
Petra rolled her eyes but didn’t answer.
“I just want one more chance,” said Brogus.
“If you don’t shut up…,” said Dol.
“It’s not fair,” mumbled Brogus. “Fine, I’m going to sleep, but I want you to know that it’s not fair. Not one bit.”
Silence once again came over the little camp. Within two minutes, Brogus’s snores roared through the night.
“I don’t believe it,” said Milli and pulled her blanket up over her head.
Chapter 20
“It’s a nice enough place,” said the slight dwarf as he and Uldex wandered down a cobblestone street that seemed to bisect the town along a north-south axis. “There’s got to be a pub around here somewhere… don’t pretend you couldn’t use a stout, you old wanderer you.”
Uldex looked at his small friend and shrugged his shoulders, “It’s been a while I’ll admit. I wouldn’t mind a drink. They’ll take our gold sure enough but keep your purse hidden. We don’t speak the language so don’t get yourself into any fights. We’re strangers,” with this he looked around as the people of the town went about their business without paying too much attention to the pair, “but it looks like they’re used to such like us around here. Nobody giving us the eye, so dwarves must be common folk. We’ll find a place to stay first and then a drink.”
“I wouldn’t mind a bath and a whore,” said the little dwarf and clapped Uldex on the back.
“Not necessarily in that order,” replied Uldex as his face broke into a wide grin.
“I’ll have the bath first. There,” said the small dwarf pointing to a placard with a bed on it and a feathered snake, “If that’s not an inn then my names not Carus Blackiron.”
“An inn for certain. The Feathered Snake perhaps,” speculated Uldex and strode over to the door. It swung open with an easy push and he walked inside the building with a couple of steady strides. Just inside the door and to his right was a long wooden counter, and a tall human with greasy black hair tied back behind his head waited behind it. The man turned his head to them and said something in a strange language.
“I don’t speak your lingo,” said Uldex and walked over to him. He put his hands together by his face and then tilted his head down on them. Then he made scrubbing motions along his body and finished his pantomime with a drinking motion and the universal glug, glug sound.
The man behind the counter smiled and said something unintelligible but gave a reassuring nod. He tried some other words, apparently in another language, but they still didn’t understand him. He then went through three or four more phrases each in different languages before he held up one finger and shouted out something to a back room.
Uldex looked over past a set of swinging doors across from them and saw a group of long tables with small lamps on them. The smell of chicken wafted from what must be a kitchen beyond, and he felt the saliva forming in his mouth. They’d eaten nothing but game for the last few weeks as they followed the moron Cleathelm; odd little rabbits that tasted funny and a variety of fruits and vegetables they found along the trail. A strange berry slightly poisoned them once but they’d avoided any mushrooms that looked dangerous and managed all right without a major crisis.
A moment later a smallish woman with a thick forehead and wide jaws that spoke of orc heritage came from the back room as she pulled a little medallion over her head, “Now then,” she said in a deep voice for a woman, “you’ll be wanting a room?”
“That’s right,” said Uldex and reached under his tunic for the small purse he kept there. His larger purse, filled with golden coins and gemstones, lay deep in his vest beyond easy reach. “At least one night and we’ll be wanting baths and whores if you keep those sorts here.”
“We have both,” said the woman with a smile. “Andreaus here speaks several dwarf tongues but you don’t speak the same?”
Uldex shrugged, “We’re from a ways off, travelers. You haven’t seen any other dwarves that don’t speak the local lingo by any chance?”
“I haven’t,” said the woman, “but I can ask around. We’ll weigh your silver if you don’t have coins of the realm.” She bent down under the counter and pulled out a little scale. “You’ll want to see that it’s zeroed out, we’re not cheats here at the Feathered Serpent.”
“Good enough,” said Uldex and pulled out a small handful of large silver coins. “We’ll want one room with two beds. Also, have you seen a tall dwarf, maybe traveling with a pretty halfling girl?”
“No,” said the woman without hesitation and shook her head while maintaining eye contact with Uldex. “You’re meeting friends then?”
“Something like that,” said Uldex as the woman took seven of his proffered coins and put them on the scale. It dipped down almost to the top of the counter. The woman looked surprised and took off three of the coins considerably lightening the load. “That’s enough for two nights, baths, food, and drink; you’ll have to pay separate for the whores, that’s between you and them. Your silver’s pure. Where do you do your mining if you don’t mind me asking?”
Carus gave Uldex a sidelong glance, the four silver coins wouldn’t even purchase a meal back in Craggen Steep. “North of here,” said Uldex with a smile. “We wanted to travel with as few coins as possible so we brought good silver. You said there are dwarves here in the south?”
