Dawn of the Dreamsmith (The Raven's Tale Book 1) (72 page)

Raven’s eyes flicked momentarily towards him, before returning to his mistress. “Your guard is skilled, I’m sure, but one man could not be expected to protect such a noble lady if a pack of bandits attacked.”

Lady Talgarth reddened. “Well, it’s such a short journey, it hardly seemed worth going to the trouble of bringing anybody but Hastings here,” she began in a flustered tone.

Raven nodded thoughtfully. “Even so, my lady, the roads are more dangerous than ever. I feel I would be doing you a great disservice if I allowed you to travel further without adequate protection.”

Hastings, the guard, murmured in his mistress’ ear. A steely look came into her eyes. “I could not afford to pay you, my dear, if that is what you are looking for,” said the viscountess, a trifle coldly. “I travel without funds.”

“Such a thought never occurred to me, my lady, I assure you,” Raven replied, affecting a wounded expression. “It is merely that myself and my companion are travelling in the same direction, and I thought that our presence alongside your carriage may be enough to discourage any bandits along the road that might otherwise wish you harm.”

“Well, in that case I would be delighted to accept your offer, my dear.” Lady Talgarth beamed, unable to believe her good fortune. It seemed that her desire for a bargain overrode any misgivings she still harboured.

Raven nodded, then added: “All I ask, my lady, is for some token bearing your proud crest, that myself and my companion can wear, which will let any who see us know that we are in the employ of your house.”

It was not a request that Lady Talgarth could readily refuse, when such a generous offer had already been agreed. She found a tabard with the smith’s hammer emblem that fit Raven well enough, while Cole was handed a painted wooden shield, which until that moment had hung upon the rear of the carriage.

As they resumed their journey, this time acting as the official escort for the Viscountess of Blackridge, Cole could only applaud Raven’s ingenuity. They had split up, Raven leading their small procession and Cole bringing up the rear, and anyone that looked upon them would have no reason to believe they weren’t guardsmen in the Lady’s employ. Even their travel-worn clothes were fully in keeping with the rather shabby appearance of the carriage. For her part, Lady Talgarth was so grateful for their assistance she would not think to mention the deception to the imperial soldiers at the gates of Ehrenburg, and having not paid to receive their aid would have no objections when they left her side once they entered the city.

So it proved. For the rest of that morning, the city walls grew before his eyes, obscured though his view was by the plodding carriage in front of him. If the Spire seemed large from a distance, then closer to it was obviously on an immense scale. Usually, he would have found such a sight quite awe-inspiring, but there was something about the tower that disquieted him. Perhaps his opinion of it was coloured by the knowledge of who resided within. He could not say for sure. But it seemed unnatural, in the city but not of it. The closer they got, the more it reminded him of the entomology displays he had seen at the Crag’s library; it was as if it pinned the city to the ground like a dead insect.

Just as he had during the approach to Strathearn, Cole felt himself grow tense as the gates of Ehrenburg drew nearer. In scale, the outer walls of the city were not dissimilar. But where Strathearn was almost starkly functional, no little effort had been made to make the walls of the imperial capital pleasing on the eye. A brighter stone had been used in their construction, which was kept so clean it practically gleamed in the sunlight. Huge banners bearing the imperial standard adorned the stonework. The various guard towers that lined the top of the wall were rounded, with pointed archways and topped by conical roofs, protected by slates that were almost as blue as the sky. Flags that also bore the imperial crest fluttered proudly from poles at the top of these turrets. None who approached could be left in any doubt that this city was the crown jewel of the Empire.

To his surprise and relief, it proved as simple to gain entry as it had in Strathearn. The guards they passed seemed more alert, and Cole held his breath when they laid eyes upon him. But when they saw the Blackridge crest their attention moved on to the wagon behind, and then their small procession was rolling over the cobblestones that ran beneath the city’s enormous gatehouse. They only paused for the city toll-collector, who approached the carriage and was handed a small, clinking pouch. Having seen the state of her conveyance, manservants and their livery, Cole would not have been surprised to learn that had indeed been all the coin Lady Talgarth carried. That transaction over, they resumed their progress through the passage.

For the first time, Cole began to feel as though their mission might not be impossible after all. It was something they had needed to work towards, of course, but there had always been a small part of himself that doubted it could be achieved. Some of the obstacles had just loomed too large in his mind, but now one of them was being negotiated with no difficulty at all. That feeling came to an abrupt end.

“Hold!” The shout rang through the air just as he emerged through the inner arch of the gateway. “Hold there I say!”

Startled, Cole brought his mount to a stop. Raven had evidently either not heard the cry, or did not realise that it was directed at them, as the carriage continued to trundle along the street behind her. Cole looked round, and saw a guardsman in shining armour marching towards him. The red plume in his helmet seemed to mark him as an officer of some kind, as Cole had not noticed such on the soldiers standing by the outer arch.

The guard reached him, and stared up at Cole. The man’s eyes took in his face, his shabby clothes and finally came to rest on the wooden shield he still carried. “From where do you hail, soldier?” The guard’s words came out with clipped precision.

“Blackridge,” answered Cole, his heart pounding against his ribcage. “Sir!” he blurted as an afterthought.

The guard nodded. “I thought as much,” he said finally. “I’m from the mining country myself. My cousin serves with the town watch.” He gave Cole’s attire another critical glance. “I see you do not wear their uniform.”

Cole forced a smile onto his face, hoping that it would not betray the terror that gripped his stomach. “We don’t belong to the watch, sir. My friend and I were caravan guards just arrived at Blackridge, when Lady Talgarth hired us to be her escort.”

“Did she now?” The guard stroked his chin. “No doubt all the calls for levies have left the watch undermanned. Not that it’s particularly well-stocked at the best of times. God’s teeth, I swear I even saw Hastings riding with her. I thought the old bastard died years ago.”

“I’m not entirely sure he didn’t,” Cole replied, with a sickly grin.

The guard chuckled. “If she hired you, then I doubt she’s paying you much. You won’t afford any of the uptown brothels on a pittance, if that’s what you’re thinking. I know well what goes through a young lad’s mind once he reaches the big city.”

“As a matter of fact, sir, she isn’t paying us at all.”

The guard stared at him, then roared with laughter. “That sounds like the old buzzard, right enough,” he said. “No doubt she’s promised the viscount will find something for you now that you’re here. I wouldn’t hold your breath, lad, that well ran dry a long time ago.”

Cole made an act of appearing crestfallen. “Perhaps you could tell me where the cheapest...um, places to go... are in that case, sir.”

“Head to the port, lad. There’s doxies there that will spread their legs for less than the price of a mug of gut-rot gin.” The guard jerked a thumb in the direction the carriage had disappeared. “You’d better go make sure your mistress gets where she’s going. Look after her, she’s not a bad old bird. Tight as a nun’s chuff, of course, but her heart is in the right place.”

“Yes sir, thank you sir.” Cole tugged at the lip of his hood, and pressed his heels into the sides of his mount. He did so rather too hurriedly, and it took off faster than he expected, nearly pitching him head-first onto the cobblestones. Feeling rather shame-faced, he got the beast under control as best he could and trotted off after Raven.

His companion was waiting for him a short way up the street, after it had bent round past a row of buildings. She had dismounted and was holding her bay horse by its reins. There was no sign of Lady Talgarth’s carriage. “There you are,” said Raven as she spied Cole. “I know you don’t know your way around the city, but I didn’t expect you to get lost within sight of the gates.”

“Sorry, I just stopped to have a friendly chat with the guards,” Cole replied, leaping down from his saddle. “Nice people.”

Raven gave him a withering look. “In all your lessons at the Crag, they never taught you the meaning of ‘incognito’ then, I take it?”

“You should be pleased,” Cole shot back, grinning. “Your little ruse worked. The captain stopped me to talk because he recognised the crest and was born in Blackridge. I can’t deny my heart stopped a couple of times, but by the end he was practically giving me a tour of the city.”

Raven shook her head bemusedly. “Well, we made it here safely, at least. Come, there’s a stable not far from here where we can leave the duke’s horses.”

“Can we afford it?” Cole asked, following Raven as she led her horse along the main street.

“If I said no, what would your plan be?” Raven smiled. “Would you ride your mount into a tavern, or up the Spire? Would you confront the Archon from horseback?”

“Oh, I don’t know, it might lend a bit more weight to my words,” Cole mused. “‘Stop your nonsense, blackguard, or else Bobbin here will nibble your cassock’. I think I’d have him eating out of my palm instantly.”

“It would almost be worth seeing that.” Raven replied. “But in answer to your original question, no, but it shouldn’t matter. At the stables of Ehrenburg you pay when you collect your steed. There’s little risk to the stable-master, as if you can’t pay he still gets a horse from it.”

“So what will we do when we need to retrieve our horses?”

Raven shrugged. “Bearing in mind our business here, it’s something we’ll either have to worry about it, or we won’t. I say we just see what our future holds.”

It made sense to Cole, who nodded thoughtfully. “What happened to Lady Talgarth?”

“Gone to her family’s townhouse,” Raven replied. “She seemed anxious to part ways as soon as possible. Perhaps she thought I’d try to get payment from her once we reached the city. She didn’t even seem particularly worried about getting back the equipment she loaned us; whether through haste to get away or guilt about receiving a free escort, I’m not certain.”

“That’s good, isn’t it? It’ll mean people think we’re part of her household, won’t they?”

Raven chewed her lip uncertainly. “Possibly,” she said. “I think we should get rid of both, though. The disguise shouldn’t be necessary in the city, and if we run into others of their house it might lead to some awkward questions.”

They reached the stable and deposited their mounts with a lanky young groom, who led them inside. Cole felt a tug of sadness as he watched the animal disappear from view, knowing it may well be the last time he would see it. It had proven to be a doughty steed, and over the past few days he had become quite attached to it. Afterwards, Raven ducked briefly down a small alley to remove her Blackridge tabard. At her suggestion, Cole hid the shield behind a pile of old sacks.

“So, was what you said to Lady Talgarth true?” Cole asked, after they had emerged from the alley. The question had been playing on his mind for much of that day. “Did your father really make a breastplate for her son?”

“He did.” A fond smile came to her lips as she remembered. “I stayed up for four nights watching him labour over it at the forge. I learned a lot of new words, most not fit for polite company. It was hard, but when it was done he seemed proud of it. When the viscount’s man came to collect it, papa wouldn’t accept any payment. I think he was just pleased to work on something so fine. He had great skill, but was rarely called upon to use it in our village.”

“Your village then... it is not far from here?”

“Far enough.” They walked in silence for a few moments. “Blackridge was the nearest big town, but I never saw it until... well, until I left. There’s nothing left there now.”

Cole felt suddenly uncomfortable. “So, now we’re here, what’s the plan? What do we do next?”

Raven stopped, eyeing the streets around them. They were walking along a row of houses; built from stone but small, with no obvious outward sign of wealth. There were a couple of shops: a chandlery and tailor-shop. On the corner was a larger building, from which the sound of bawdy laughter and raised voices drifted. Raven seemed to reach a decision. “I don’t know about you,” she said. “But I could really use a drink.”

It had been hard to discern from the street, but when they pushed open the heavy tavern door, any concerns that Cole may have had regarding his safety disappeared. What had sounded like rowdiness was in fact, when standing upon the establishment’s threshold, mere good spirits. Everywhere that he looked, Cole saw people laughing and talking companionably in large groups. The place was packed almost to the rafters, and yet even the landlord, who might have been expected to appear harried by the sheer volume of patrons, went about his business with a broad smile on his face.

“Well, this is pleasant,” Cole said, as they picked their way through the revelry. Surprisingly, they found a free table in a dim corner. Cole stood by it while Raven disappeared through the throng in the direction of the bar. Table was a rather grand description for the surface he found himself leaning upon, Cole reflected. In reality it was little more than a barrel stood on its end with a flat lid, but at least it offered some protection against jostling backs and elbows, as good-humoured as any such contact was received by those around him.