Going for the Juggler
4
Flaming Torches…
“THIS MUST BE THE ONE,” Persephone announced. “I’m certain it is perfect.”
We had reviewed and rejected somewhere near twenty missions. Some were rejected because they were simply too remote, some because they were the wrong direction from High Castle, some because they were deemed not sufficiently in distress, and two because they had been captured by dragons. We all wept over those as we saw their names scratched off the list as we were watching the screen. They were dead. As far as Seph knew there had only been one or two successful rescues from a dragon in the history of the program since dragons were a protected species and were not to be killed.
“Tell us the profile and the distress,” I said.
“Twins…” Seph started. I moaned. “Bring back either one or both,” she continued. “They are located on the eastern border of Lord Chang’s lands, so you need to be careful and not incite the owner to battle. You can’t just kill him and leave. You’d never be allowed back into the South again. Or at least into Lord Chang’s domain.”
“The owner?” Cadence said. “What kind of distress are they in?” She’d begun to come to grips with the hard realities of the Damsels’ plight on Chaos. Seeing the two captured by dragons listed as killed had saddened her deeply.
“Forgive me, please,” Seph said through her laughter. “They are working in a perfume factory.”
“Doesn’t sound too bad,” I ventured.
“I thought this was the dark ages,” Cadence said. “How did we get a perfume factory?”
“A little history lesson is needed,” Seph responded. “The colonies on Chaos were planted from twelfth and thirteenth century villages on Earth. Asian civilization was considerably more advanced than European civilization at that time. And in the Middle East, while it might seem primitive by your standards today, a very powerful religious movement was pulling nomadic tribes together under one system of justice so there was stability for the first time in centuries. While the religious elements were removed from people’s memories when they were moved to Chaos, the civilization structure was not, any more than that of Europe had been. Perfume has been known and manufactured on Earth in those cultures for four thousand years. Even in the large cities of Europe, perfumes were being manufactured in the thirteenth century. Monks were producing various scented oils in Italy. Of course, it wasn’t until the sixteenth century that Europe got around to constructing manufactured scents to mask body odor, starting with Catherine de’ Medici. But we are most concerned with the Asiatic cultures and the Middle Eastern cultures when we talk about the areas where the Damsels are located.”
“How do you know this stuff?” Cadence asked.
“I got a PhD in thirteenth century Earth history while Hero Lincoln was on his last mission,” Seph said. Damn! Another one? “I also discovered that the history of Chaos is presented selectively. Since most Europeans and Americans are sent to the North on their missions, little was presented regarding the South, so our history indicated that villages were extracted from Europe during what you call the Dark Ages. But at the same time, entire populations have been transplanted to other areas of Chaos from other parts of Earth. We would never have known about the differences in the South had you not needed to chase the circus south on your last mission. Now, you are considered a hero of the South as well as the North.”
“It still doesn’t sound like a distressing situation,” I said. “What can be so hard about making perfume? Is it toxic?” Seph sighed.
“Hero Lincoln, you have seen how the pheromones of Damsels affect the men of Chaos. They will incite them to rape, even with the promise of the legendary cock burn. What would an upper-class woman of Chaos not do to have such allure?” Seph said. “The Damsels are not ‘working’ in the perfume factory. Their scent is being harvested.”
I looked at Cadence and we held eye contact as we puzzled this out. Both of us obviously reached the same conclusion at the same time. We turned to Seph. She nodded.
“They are being… stimulated… incessantly. The output of their scent glands is being harvested, blended, bottled, and sold to women to attract the men they want,” Persephone said.
“Holy fuck!” Cadence said. “Those poor women. Lincoln, we have to rescue them.”
“They might not be in danger of immediate death, but in a very real way, they are being tortured,” Seph said.
“Put together a plan,” I suggested. “We should start as soon as possible.”
“Am I ready, Persephone?” Cadence asked in a small voice. Seph looked her over in her tight black leathers and gave her a hug. She looked like a young, sexy Xena, the Warrior Princess. The hug turned into a long, languorous kiss that started to remind me of Xena and Gabrielle in every man’s fantasy.
“You are ready, my Hero’s Companion. Be sure you keep all Hero Lincoln’s needs tended to, whether they are in battle or in bed. He depends on you and you alone,” Seph said. Then she turned to me.
“Be brave, but do not be foolish, Hero Minstrel Lincoln. It is not only the Damsels that depend on you, but our Caretaker Lisa and your Companion Cadence. And me. I depend on you, Lincoln. I could not stand to go back to that place where I would always be without you. I love you, my Hero. Bring us back our loved ones.” Persephone kissed me long and hard. I nearly pushed her back into the room to make love one more time before I departed. Instead, I stood straight and looked her in the eye.
“I love you, Persephone,” I said. “I have never lied when I said ‘I love you’.” I glanced at Cadence and she smiled at me. Seph reached up and dabbed her rose scented oil on our noses.
“You’ll need this.”
The portal activated and Cadence and I stepped into the bank vault.
I’d made a rather hasty retreat from Chaos on my last visit—bleeding from the stab wound Cathy Temp had inflicted. I’d pretty much thrown stuff into my box and slammed the lid shut. I know I lost a few knives and shuriken in the process, but just hoped my sword and purse had made it into the box before I closed it. My recollection of that bit of confusion was less than clear. I’d been in the healing chamber less than a minute later.
The box was a mess. Cadence curiously pointed at things and I handed her my sword belt.
“What are you going to carry?” she asked.
“Well, I need to acquire a new dagger, a couple shuriken, and some throwing knives. You, however, are my new bodyguard, warrior woman. I will be armed with crutches and a cithara.” I pulled the instrument from the box. It had a broken string. “And, by the way,” I continued, “you look as deadly as I know you are.” Persephone had insisted that Cadence wear a silk blouse under her leather vest. It was perfectly tailored to her curves, thanks to Computer’s programming. And it was as black as the leather she wore over it. The only flaw in her outfit, if any, was that it was too perfectly new and clean. Cadence had last worn it at a board meeting of Pesciano Holdings. She fastened my southern-style sword to her belt—a gently curved saber. “You know, your pretty boots are going to be a mess shortly,” I said, looking at my own worn moccasins.
“I know. Seph said that Computer would polish them up as good as new when I got back. He took very complete measurements. If I didn’t know he was a computer, I’d have been a little offended or have thought he was just a dirty old man. Do you know that my boobs, at the exact point where they join my chest, are 18.39 inches in circumference? I am not going to tell you the circumference of my thighs,” she said.
“I’m certain that he can project an exact holographic model of you in every detail,” I laughed as I restrung my cithara. I tested the tuning. The strings would stretch as soon as we left the vault into whatever season it was in High Castle. “Well, are you ready to meet the stench of Chaos?”
“Am I okay?” Cadence asked. “I’ll do my best to defend you.”
I handed her a bow and a quiver of arrows to sling over her back, then closed the lid of my box. It disappeared with a pop. Cadence flinched and her hand went automatically to her sword. Good.
We walked out of the vault.
As soon as we entered the common room of the bank, we were accosted by the general smell of unwashed humanity. I assumed the shit smell would hit us when we left. That, however, was delayed.
“Halt!” a guard snapped as we headed toward the door. Again, Cadence had her sword half drawn before I placed a hand on her arm to slow her down. The guard had not drawn a weapon but positioned himself between us and the door. “Are you the minstrel known as Lincoln?”
“Who wants to know?” I asked.
“The Duke has left instructions that Lincoln Minstrel was to be greeted here and escorted immediately to his audience chamber. If you are that minstrel, I will conduct you to the Duke at once,” the guard said. I leaned on my canes and looked him over.
“We accept your escort,” I said. “I am Lincoln Minstrel. Lead on.” The guard preceded us through the door and we were met with a blast of cold air. There was a dusting of snow on the frozen ground. That explained the lack of sewage smell. It was less in winter but would be god-awful when the spring thaws came.
“I am privileged to be the one on duty to greet you,” our escort said. He cast a curious glance at Cadence who shivered in her leathers. We weren’t really dressed for the cold. “There are those who call this the ghost shift,” he continued. “They say we are waiting for a specter to appear.”
“Well, we are flesh and blood. How fares the Duke?”
“Oh, well, sir. And the citadel prospers under his leadership. We actually have a trading center, though we’ve had to expand the walls to lower ground so the merchants don’t have to make the grade up to the castle.” Wow! A lot had been happening since I left and that caused a shiver that was unrelated to the cold. How long had we been gone?
It was scarcely a ten-minute walk to the Duke’s private chambers and it was obvious that a runner had been sent ahead of us. The chamberlain and three footmen met us at the door, threw blankets over our shoulders and handed us steaming cups of the chicory-like brew that passed for coffee here. We were led into the audience chamber and the chamberlain explained that the Duke had been summoned from the training grounds and would arrive shortly. He gave us chairs by the fire and made us comfortable. I was happy that the Duke seemed to be expecting us and was providing everything he could to make us at home. We sat and I let Cadence ramble on about what she had experienced in her first fifteen minutes on Chaos.
“Ah. He deigns to return to our humble world. Greetings, Hero Lincoln.” I turned in my chair and rose to meet the duke. I noticed his beard was graying, but he looked to be fit and in good health. His beard style, a Balbo with just mustache and goatee, was tightly trimmed and even though graying made him look younger than I knew his age to be. But he had no beard when I was here last. And I was sure his hair was much longer now. He shook my hand and pulled me into a hug that was heartfelt.
“Duke, may I present my Companion and fiancée, Cadence,” I said. Cadence shed the blanket she was warming in and stood beside me. The Duke reached out to take her hand but as soon as they touched, he was lost in her eyes.
“Mio Dio,” he breathed. “It’s true. Welcome to High Castle, niece.”
“Thank you…” Cadence began. “What?”
“The resemblance is unmistakable. You could only be Cosimo’s daughter. When Lisa told me, I was certain it could not be true. Now it is obvious that it is,” the duke said. “Your grandfather, Hero Alfonso Pesciano, was my father. I am saddened for your loss and my own.”
“Holy shit!” Cadence said. “Did you know him? My father?”
“Very well,” Duke Niccolò said. “He was a good bit older than I am—nearly twenty years my senior. But all my childhood, it was as important to see my brother as it was to see my father when the Hero came to call.”
“My father was a Hero, too?”
“Ah. This tale requires some refreshment for the telling. Are you sufficiently warmed to accompany me to my private chambers? I will have dinner served and we’ll talk of many things: Of shoes—and ships—and sealing wax—of cabbages—and kings.”
“I recall that did not end so well for the oysters,” I said. “Tell me, Niccolò, how long have I been gone?”
“Somewhat more than five years,” the duke said. Cadence fainted.
“Lisa,” I said as soon as we were seated in the Duke’s private dining room. The four of us, including Allegra’s one-time chaperone Georgia, sat at the table. Cadence had been unable to speak yet, but I knew what she wanted to know. “Is Lisa well?”
“Yes. I would say the last time she was here she was getting a bit aggravated with you for not being back yet, but she has maintained the annual circuit, adding performances here in late summer and then heading back for Mule’s Crossing and the South. She is nearly two months ahead of you, but on good horses with no wagons, you should be able to close the distance in three weeks.”
“My poor mommy,” Cadence cried. “She’ll be old.”
“We don’t age on Chaos, sweetheart,” I said. “She’ll have five more years of experience, but will be no older than she was the day we left a week ago.”
“Only a week?” Niccolò mused. “My father once tried to explain how time worked between our worlds, but it still baffles me. Yet, you are right about one thing. Lisa, or Master Lees, does not seem a day older than when she first arrived.”
“Nonetheless, she has lived here through the same time in these five years that you have,” I said. “Though I hate to cut our visit short, we will need to acquire horses and gear tomorrow and leave as quickly as we can.”
“That will be arranged,” Niccolò said. “When you left so abruptly after your last visit, Lisa took charge of making sure I had an appropriate welcome for you when you returned. I have maintained a watch at the bank ever since. I understand the soldiers called it the ghost watch, but that young man who greeted you at the bank today just became a very wealthy man. There has been a sum accumulating since the day you left, like a lottery. The man on duty when you appeared wins it all.”
“Well, good for him.”
“Lisa also left your two black horses and tack. They have been exercised and trained daily since your departure. They will carry you well. I have two pack horses for you and all the equipment you will need to start tomorrow if you wish. Though I would recommend that you get some better outerwear. You’ll shed it in two weeks as you reach the warmer climes, but it will be cold for a while,” he said.
“Allegra is going to be so happy to meet her cousin,” Georgia said. “And so jealous.”
“Cousin? Jealous?” Cadence said.
“Allegra is my sister’s, your Aunt Carlotta’s, daughter,” Niccolò said.
“That makes her your cousin,” Georgia continued. “But I understand that you are Companion and fiancée to the Hero. For that she will be jealous. She so hoped she could find a way to be Lincoln’s lover.”
“I think he has enough for the time being,” Cadence said. She turned a feral grin on me and I nodded. “But you promised to tell me about my father and his time here on Chaos.”
“Indeed,” Niccolò said. “When Alfonso was young, he began traveling to Chaos. As I understand it, however, his wife died soon after Cosimo was born. This left him quite lonely on Earth, but he had his businesses and his son to raise. When Cosimo was in his late teens, perhaps twenty, he began accompanying his father as a Companion. I’m not certain how it evolved that Cosimo decided part of his responsibility in supplying for all of Alfonso’s needs included finding him a woman. Cosimo himself had a girlfriend and then wife at home that he was fiercely loyal to. However, he set about finding an attractive young woman to bed and wed our father.”
“I thought it was against the rules for a Hero to have relations with a Chaosian,” I said.
“This was Alfonso’s understanding, as well. However, on a long quest in which he was supported by a fairly large entourage, Cosimo introduced him to Isabelle, my mother. They enjoyed each other’s company and inevitably fell in love, though it was chaste. At least, as chaste as Allegra’s love for Lincoln. That is not to say it was frigid,” Niccolò laughed. “On the last night of the quest, Alfonso awoke to find Isabelle ‘posting on his cock,’ as he put it. Unable to help himself, the couple completed their lovemaking, even though Alfonso was certain that he would be denied access to the portal when he took his Damsel there in the morning, or being granted access, he would be unable to return. As I understand it, there was a discussion with the powers that be on Crossroads and it was determined that the liaison had not been his fault, but that since it had occurred, Al was to consider himself married to Isabelle and must remain celibate on Earth. When he was allowed to return to Chaos, he found me happily bouncing on my mother’s knee. Carlotta was born before he managed to rescue his next Damsel.”
“So, Al was married to Isabelle,” I said. “I wonder if that changes any of the inheritance terms.”
“I’d be happy if it does,” Cadence said. “Niccolò, would you like to come to Earth and inherit your father’s businesses?”
“No, niece. I cannot come to Earth. I am half Chaosian and that part of my blood binds me to this world. Believe me, Al tried and I was left standing alone in a bank vault looking at the empty air where my father and his Damsel had just stood.”
“That’s harsh,” I said. “Cosimo kept coming back with Al?”
“Not for a while. His father punished him by leaving him home for the period of five trips. By that time, I was nearly old enough to join him on his quests and he drilled me on my weapons skills daily when he was here. When Cosimo returned, I joined the quests under his care. But the part of the story you are interested in came when my mother died. By that time, Carlotta had married and Al saw his two grandchildren. Allegra’s sister still lives with her mother and shows no inclination that she would like to travel farther than the shoemaker’s house where a strapping young man awaits her. But when Isabelle died, Al bade us all farewell and said he would not return to Chaos again. Instead, Cosimo and his friend, Gino, arrived one day, set on an adventure.”
“Hmm. My father was a Hero,” Cadence said.
“An ill-fated one, I fear. I offered to accompany him, but he insisted that he needed to prove himself before I was allowed to join him. That proof went awry. He went up against a particularly nasty bunch of slavers to rescue a Damsel. The small band of slavers he went after had joined up with a larger band and he was overwhelmed. He was killed in the attempt. His Companion, Gino, was enslaved alongside the Damsel and forced into hard labor.”
“Gino came to Chaos,” Cadence said. “No wonder he knew about the ring and the portal.”
“We had not even heard the news that Cosimo was dead when Alfonso burst out of the bank vault. I understand that you never knew your grandfather, Cadence. He was a remarkable man and I wish you had known him. But the Hero that came from that vault was a different man than I had known up to that time. Seeing his intent to saddle and leave at once, I called together ten men and followed him. He would have attacked the camp of slavers alone, I believe. There were nearly a hundred of them and at least fifty slaves. My men attacked.”
“I thought the Hero could not initiate an attack,” I broke in.
“I am no Hero,” Niccolò said. “I was not a Companion, either. I was a Chaosian warlord with highly trained troops attacking an enemy of the people. Alfonso only dealt with those actually guarding the Damsel and Gino. The dozen slavers who survived the attack were branded on their foreheads and indentured for life to the former slaves. I fear they were not used well, but that was of no concern to me. I followed my father, his Damsel, and Gino back to High Castle with nine of my men and one body strapped across a horse. We arrived, ate, slept, and the next morning he once again bade me farewell and took his Damsel and Gino to the vault. That was the last time I saw him.”
“It seems my father was as rash as I was,” Cadence said. “Still, I’m glad to know this bit of history.”
“Are you carrying your grandfather’s ring?” he asked. Cadence fished it out of her blouse where it hung in a pouch on a leather cord. “I think you will be glad of this, as well,” Niccolò said. He handed her an envelope. “Take this back to Earth when you return. He left it here on his last visit and said that one day, if all went well, his earthly progeny would collect it. It was only then that I found out Cosimo had fathered a daughter.” Cadence fingered the envelope.
“The riddle,” she said. “This is what I’m supposed to bring back.”
“Now,” I said, “all we need to do is get to Lisa, rescue our Damsels, and return to Crossroads. Piece of cake.”
That night, Cadence got her first taste of the common watered wine of Chaos. We went to a local pub and I entertained. Few of the soldiers actually knew who I was by more than a passing reference, but simply having a minstrel in town was enough to draw a crowd. I was thinking that if I’d be showing up in High Castle with any regularity, maybe I should buy a tavern here.
That got me thinking. What happened to my property if I didn’t return to Chaos?
I already knew that when Computer registered that my portal had been destroyed as I was passing through it, I was assumed dead on Earth. Persephone had been sent back to Cassandra. But that apparently didn’t affect how I was viewed on Chaos. When I returned, my box had everything in it that I’d left there in the same haphazard condition I’d packed it. I assumed the Inn of the Two Brothers was still functioning. Lisa was still traveling with the Circus. And I’d been gone over five years local time. At what point would I be declared dead and all my property forfeited to the current holders? Did I need a will? Heirs? I got Seth’s ring and portal on Earth, but I didn’t inherit anything on Chaos. At least not that I knew of. I needed to talk to Persephone.
Since that wasn’t currently an option, I sang. I danced on my canes and even did some acrobatics balanced on top of them. I guess one good thing about having been gone five years was that all my material was fresh and had never been heard by my audience. All I had to do was recycle it.
When the pub closed, Cadence and I were escorted by a merry troupe of soldiers back to the Duke’s dwelling in the castle. Once back, we spent the night making love, the first time for Cadence on Chaos.
Wow!
It was the first time I’d had sex on Chaos, too. I was going to like this trip.
In the morning, we checked our equipment, got long, heavy woolen coats treated with tallow to be waterproof, and packed our animals. Two soldiers were ‘privileged’ to accompany us to Mule’s Crossing. This time, we took accommodation in an Inn and I entertained for the locals. In the morning, we would head South. Unfortunately, the tallow, which already gave our heavy coats a distinctive ‘fragrance’, could be expected to generate more of a ‘pong’ as we moved into warmer climes, but at least the warmth might let us take them off.
Our guards left us at breakfast to turn north to Raven Crest, another trading center two weeks’ journey from Mule’s Crossing. It was one of the routes the Duke’s soldiers patrolled regularly. Cadence and I had breakfast at the inn and went out to prepare our horses and pack animals. We led them toward the ford.
“Watch where yer going,” a brawny man yelled as he stumbled into Cadence from the side. He didn’t appear to be drunk, but it was obvious that it was he that ran into her and not the other way around. “I’ll take no insult from you, Mister!” he continued. “Think the streets are yours? You just run down innocent citizens?” A crowd began to gather. “You’ve broken my foot with your big horse, you bastard. I demand recompense!”
I got it now. This was a scam. I turned to warn Cadence but she had bent to examine her horse’s hoof.
“I believe it was you who ran into my horse. You may have caused him to go lame,” she growled at the conman. “If so, you will owe me a conch so I can replace him and continue my journey.”
“You dare to challenge a man slighted by your belligerence?” he growled. “Take that!” He swung at Cadence, a blow that would have leveled her if he’d landed it, but Cadence was far better prepared than he expected. She sidestepped his swing and placed a boot in his back, propelling him back to the wooden walk beside the muddy street. This was not going well.
“Cadence, it’s a ruse. If he comes at you, you have to put him down. Completely. He has attacked you. You can kill him with impunity,” I said.
“Really?” she said. The burly conman came up with his sword in hand.
“Now I’ll show you that you don’t go pushing Jack Large around,” he growled. He made one step forward, which was all the time it took for Cadence’s coat to slide from her shoulders. When Jack Large saw he was facing a woman, he stopped short. Before he could start again, Cadence’s sword was in her hand.
“See here, Jack Large,” she said. “Retreat now and you will live to try conning another traveler. Proceed another step and you will die.”
“He fights with a saber like you do,” I said to her. “Swing, don’t thrust. And for god’s sake get out of my way so I can throw a knife.” That was all I had time to say. Jack Large came at Cadence thinking he would have a quick victory over a woman. His first swing would have taken the head from her shoulders if she was slower. She was not where he thought she would be. He barely parried her swing and I saw a dagger appear in his off hand. I could see Cadence already had one in her left hand, held low and slightly behind her left hip. She sidestepped him again, but I was blocked from throwing a knife as he stumbled behind the horses.
“Stand still and die!” he yelled.
“You first,” she responded. Bond. James Bond. Just kill him, Cadence. His dagger flew toward her and she swatted it out of the air with her sword. It was the opening he hoped to provoke by the throw and he swung at an angle down toward her neck. It was a move designed to prevent a foe from ducking or jumping back. He was not expecting his much smaller opponent to move toward him. He’d already thrown his dagger and the new position made swinging his sword at her next to impossible. Cadence spun under his arm and her saber raked across his ample stomach, spilling its contents onto the street. The startled man held still as he stared down at his guts. He was still just long enough for Cadence’s dagger to lodge in his left eye.
Jack Large fell on his face in the mud.
“Yuck!” Cadence cried. She wiped her sword and dagger on the man’s back. “I can’t believe you made me do that! You bastard!” She kicked the dead man in the side.
“Cadence, you need to loudly declare that you claim all this man’s possessions as your own. Then strip his weapons and money pouch from him. You need to do this, Cadence.”
“This lout attacked me on the street. He has paid for his offense with his life,” Cadence yelled. “I claim all that is on his person and anything of value that he owns as my just due for his assault.”
“Here! What do you think you are doing? You can’t just come into our fair town and kill people to claim what is theirs,” a man yelled coming out of a tavern a few doors away. “You’ve killed Jack Large! A fair and honest citizen of this town. Hand over your weapons.”
“He was the attacker as was witnessed by all the people on this street,” I said. I looked around and saw that people were rapidly dispersing.
“I see no witnesses,” the new man said. “I see a dead citizen and a whore who took his life.”
“I advise that you watch your tongue or I’ll have it cut out,” I growled.
“And who are you, cripple, that you think you could do that?”
“I am Lincoln Minstrel and this lout accosted my Companion and bodyguard. She is the niece of Duke Niccolò and I am riding to join the Minstrel’s Traveling Show. Stand aside and conduct us to the possessions of this foul beast. This is not my first time in Mule’s Crossing, and I have seen this ploy before. How many has he killed and robbed right here in the middle of your town?”
“He’s never…” The newcomer paused and assessed the situation. There were no longer any witnesses standing around. It was obvious that this was an accomplice of Jack Large, not a representative of the town. I needed to talk to the Duke about how the towns were policed. Having safe roads didn’t amount to much if you could be robbed and killed in the middle of town. The accomplice seemed to think better of what he was about to do. Instead, he kicked the body. “This ne’er-do-well? He had nothing. In fact, half of what is in his purse is mine. No reason for us to quarrel. Take his sword if you must, but give me the purse.”
“Ownership is in possession. We will take all that is on him. Leave now before we decide to take yours as well.”
“Damned unfriendly,” the newcomer said. But he backed off several steps and watched as Cadence stripped the weapons and a heavy purse from the man, then pulled her coat back on. She pulled the knife the man had thrown from where it lodged in her saddlebag and checked the horse to be sure he wasn’t hurt. She didn’t say anything more but scowled around her and turned her horse between her and the man still standing. We headed toward the river ford. As we approached, we heard murmurs and the queue of wagons and animals waiting their turn to cross parted to let us through. When we were in the thick, someone started clapping and then all the merchants, traders, and travelers applauded Cadence as we were given priority to cross the river. I watched over my shoulder as we mounted and crossed, making sure the remaining villain was not trying anything else.
No, that one would be sneakier. He would lie in wait somewhere and attempt to ambush us where we could not fight.
It was going to be a long journey South.
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