Origins: A Deepwoods Book - a Collection of Deepwoods Short Stories (Deepwoods Series 0) (20 page)

“Indeed. Please keep an eye out for him as well. Beirly-ren
and Siobhan-ajie can handle themselves well in a fight as long as they are not
unduly outnumbered.”

“Understood.” Tran flashed a smile at the girl as she set
down four more rolls and he promptly picked one up.

Fei opened his mouth as if to say something, only to visibly
change his mind before speaking. “Wolf-ren is fighting a nasty head cold at the
moment. I am trying to take on the harder tasks so that he does not overdo and
grow worse.”

Granted, he’d seen the man cough last night, but… “He can
fight like that while sick?”

“Imagine what he’s like well.”

It made a shiver of anticipation go up his spine. “Does he
like to spar?”

“You have to spar with weapons when going up against
Wolf-ren,” Fei warned seriously. “That iron hand of his is a weapon in and of
itself. I nearly broke an arm trying to spar with him hand-to-hand.”

That was a very good point. “He nearly broke my jaw with
it.” In fact, the bruise still ached if Tran’s mouth opened up too wide. “How
did he lose the hand to begin with?”

“The Teherani and the Wynngaardians have something in
common: they both enjoy a story well told.”

In other words, ask the man himself if he wanted to know.
Right. Tran pushed aside his curiosity and reached for another roll. “Anything
else I should know?”

Fei shook his head. “The way we are going is a familiar one
to us, a route well-traveled. Grae-ren checked the path on the way back three
months ago, so we do not anticipate problems. Just keep an eye out for the
safety of the guild and we should be fine.”

His new guildmaster was a woman that believed in getting up
early. Tran barely had his eyes open and clothes on when she gave a quick rap
at his door and called through, “Hope you’re up!”

“I am, Siobhan-maee.”

“Good. We’ve got breakfast waiting downstairs.”

Was that the typical routine, to have breakfast prepared on
the day of departure, instead of everyone being in charge of their own? Tran
slotted his feet into new boots—courtesy of his new guildmaster—grabbed his pack,
and headed downstairs.

Everyone was up, gathered around a table, although only a
few were sitting. Tran recognized a variety of breakfast rolls, likely from
Fei’s favorite bakery, and people were consuming them with gusto. Siobhan
spotted him and handed him a plate and mug of steaming tea that smelled good if
unfamiliar. “Good morning.”

“Good morning,” he returned. “The caravan?”

“We’ll meet them at South Gate.” She continued without
prompting: “They came in from Stott, and I believe camped just outside East
Gate last night. By the time we get out there, they’ll be ready to move out.
Now, Fei mentioned that he told you the breakdown. Grae confirmed it this
morning that we’ll have to split into three groups. We’ll travel to Turton and
stay there overnight.”

Tran brought up a mental map of the world and frowned. “We
can’t go directly to Vellshire?”

“Ohhh, I’m impressed, you know your geography. You’re right,
the cities are more or less in a straight line, but there’s a hiccup. First, no
path is strong enough to go that whole distance, not with the weight we’re
taking.”

Grae, who was standing right behind her, swallowed what was
in his mouth to add, “And there’s water in between the cities. It’s a small
enough river to not show up on a world map, but large enough that it takes a
ferry to cross over into Kalvaar Woods. By the time that we have taken all
three parts of the caravan to Turton, then ferried over to Kalvaar Woods, we’ll
have lost all daylight. Safer to stay in Turton overnight.”

The logistics now made sense. Tran roved his eyes over the
group as a whole. Fei looked as bright eyed and bushy tailed as he had
yesterday, Beirly was munching through breakfast methodically while fixing a
buckle at the table, Siobhan and Grae both were eating in a hurry as if they
wanted to get out the door quickly, Sylvie was jotting down something on a pad
of paper, breakfast half-ignored at her elbow, and Wolf…uh-oh. Fei had
mentioned yesterday that Wolf had caught something and whatever it was had
definitely gotten worse overnight. The man was almost visibly swaying on his
feet, face unnaturally flushed.

Siobhan must have noticed his stare as she leaned in and
whispered, “He’s not doing at all well this morning. He went and got medicine
yesterday but it hasn’t done much good. Tran, I hate to ask this, but try to
take up his slack. I can’t afford to leave him home on this trip, we’re barely
making do with the hands we have, and he wouldn’t stay even if I tried to
strong arm him into it anyway.”

No, with what little Tran knew of the man’s protective
nature, he wouldn’t. “I’ll try, Siobhan-maee.”

“Thank you.” Raising her voice, she said to the lot of them,
“Eat quickly. Grae and I are going ahead to start organizing them.”

Wolf was instantly on his feet. “I’m ready.”

Siobhan pointed a stern finger at him. “You finish
breakfast. Fei’s done eating, he’ll come with us.”

Fei didn’t take any umbrage at this abrupt command, only
gave Wolf a reassuring look before taking up his pack and sword, following his
guildmates out the door.

Judging that he had maybe a minute before Wolf would take
off in pursuit, Tran finished off his roll, tea, and grabbed another roll
before taking up his pack.

Everyone else seemed to be of the same mind, as they all
finished their breakfasts quickly and shouldered their gear before heading out
the door. Beirly turned and locked the door soundly behind them. As Tran barely
knew the layout of the city, he fell into step beside Sylvie, who confidently
led them out. Besides, with her near him, he could keep an eye on her.

“Sylvie-maee, it comes to me that I might need a signal with
you.” He had been thinking about this ever since his talk with Fei over
breakfast and that was the conclusion he’d reached.

“A signal?” she repeated, glancing up at him. “Why?”

“I’d rather not wait for things to escalate to the point
where a fight breaks out. Not while we’re traveling like this. But with you,
it’s hard to tell if the men are just flirting, or if they’re putting unwanted
pressure on you. If you can give me a signal that you want a rescue, before
things get out of hand, that would be best.”

“Like a secret code?” She gained a sparkle in her eyes,
excited by the idea like a five year old would be.

He hadn’t quite meant it that way, but…his mischievous side
fired at her excitement. “Sure. Why not?”

“You do scare lesser beings just by standing there and
breathing. I should take advantage of that, somehow.” She fell to thinking,
lips pursed.

Tran saw part of the problem in that moment. He knew,
without a doubt, that there wasn’t an ounce of anything sensual in Sylvie’s
mind at that moment. She was contemplating something, and that was all. But
with that particular expression on her face, it looked like she was doing
sultry teasing. Fei was right. She really could turn a corner and find trouble
with men. Her looks alone guaranteed it.

“Let’s have degrees,” she finally declared. “Something that
says I just need your help, and something else that says I think I’m in trouble
and to come
now
.”

Smart. “It would help me, yes. What shall it be for the
first level?”

“I think I’ll just call your name.”

“Simple and effective. I like it. For the second level?”

Sylvie gave him an outrageous grin. “I call for my husband.”

Startled, he choked on a laugh. “Husband? Really?”

“Think about it,” she urged, nearly giggling. “Would
you
want to tangle with another man’s wife, especially if he looked as big and
strong as you?”

She made a very good point. “I take it I need to loom over
them and look jealous and possessive.”

Putting a coy hand to her heart, she fluttered her eyelashes
at him. “Only if you want to.”

What a conniving woman. Tran strangely liked her because of
it. “Jealous husband it is. If I put an arm around your shoulders, it’s play
acting, but it’s also to get you away from them. So play along, alright?”

“I will,” she promised.

They were early enough that there was light traffic on the
streets and they could move as a group without having to dodge any other
pedestrians. South Gate, as it turned out, was only about seven streets down
and one over. There were four men on gate duty and they exchanged amiable good
mornings as they passed through, although the four gave Tran a sharp once-over.
If he had been alone, he would have been stopped and questioned. It was only
his inclusion in this group that gave him the go-ahead.

Tran went out four steps and took in the whole scene with
raised eyebrows. When they said it was a large caravan, they hadn’t been
kidding, had they? Just from where he stood, he counted twenty-four wagons, all
of them being pulled by draft reinmals.

“Sylvie.”

She turned and looked up. “Yes?”

“Does the guild normally handle caravans this big?”

“Not normally. Only about three or four times a year. We’re
one of the few guilds in northern Robarge than can take clients like this on.”

So Grae was that good of a Pathmaker? Tran had worked with
many a Pathmaker for seven years and he had rarely seen one that could handle a
caravan of this nature. Even splitting it up into three groups would mean a lot
of weight. His initial estimate of the quiet man rose a few notches.

Siobhan grabbed a wagon wheel and used it to prop herself up
a few feet. “Tran!” Waving an arm above her head, she sought to get his
attention.

Tran had to slip around several people to reach her side. “Yes,
Siobhan-maee?”

“This is John, the driver in charge of the second group,”
she introduced. A stout man with a thick neck and ruddy skin ducked his head in
greeting. Tran nodded back. “John, this is Tran Amar, one of my enforcers. His
fighting skill is on par with Wolf’s, so I’m leaving you in capable hands while
we’re separated.”

John let out a low whistle. “Wolf’s a legend in this group,
so that’s saying something. Nice to meetcha, Tran Amar.”

“Likewise.” He wondered at the introduction, but was it Siobhan’s
way of smoothing things over with a new face? John now seemed more inclined to
trust him than he had in the first ten seconds. Tran was used to having to win
people over because of his thug-like appearance, and this easy-going greeting
was abnormal.

Grae got the first section of the caravan on the path and
the rest of the guild fell into their places like a well-oiled machine. Even
Sylvie, who had only been with them a short time, did not hesitate or seem at
all uncertain. Was this because of Siobhan’s leadership?

From prior experience, Tran knew that taking that first
section of caravan to the city would take at least two hours. Distance like
that, even by path, would take an hour to cross and then it would take another
hour for Grae to return. Tran spent that time going to each driver and
introducing himself, talking to them, and getting a general feel for his group.
If something went wrong, he wanted to be able to call the driver by name.

Wolf’s group went next, then his, and Tran was very impressed
with the smoothness of the path. He had been on some that seemed jerky, or the
air felt oppressive, or it seemed as if the very path was shaking from
instability. Grae’s path was as solid as a rock and while the air felt slightly
humid, it was nothing compared to his hometown. Tran also appreciated just how
quickly the time went by as it barely felt five minutes to him before the walls
of Turton were in view.

The time estimate that Grae had given was dead-on. By the
time they had gotten all of the caravan to the walls, it was early afternoon.
They wouldn’t have the time necessary to get across the river and into Kalvar
Woods. Besides, why would they? No one would choose to camp next to the woods
(where there were known bandits living) when they could have the comfort of a
bed and a hot meal instead. The enforcers especially were glad to not have to
be on duty all night against possible bandit raids.

Tran had never been in this direction—he only knew of the
place because of a world map he had seen once—so he took the time to really get
a good look.

Turton was not on any particular trade route and the lack of
stable income showed. The walls were in need of repair, the tops of it
crumbling, and there was a single enforcer standing guard at the main gates. Siobhan
stood at his elbow, clearly waiting on the rest of the caravan to arrive, and
she ushered them through with the guard’s bored nod of approval.

Siobhan motioned Tran over and said to him in a low voice,
“Our inn is dead ahead on this street, The Lingering Mouse. I’m taking charge
of Wolf and making him go straight to bed.” Pointing to the caravan, she asked,
“See if they need any help settling in, but I think they know where they’re
going and what to do.”

Wolf had been stubbornly standing this whole time even
though he was weaving on his feet. Tran tapped his heart twice in
understanding. “Vaah.”

She gave him a strange look. “What does that mean?”

“I understand,” he translated.

“Oh? I’ll remember.” Chin up, shoulders squared, she marched
towards Wolf.

 Tran obeyed orders and went to his drivers first, as they
knew him best, and asked if there was anything he could help with. A few took
him up on the offer, using his height and strength to do some of the heavier
lifting, but most were capable of settling in without an issue.

With nothing else to do, Tran headed for the inn. Someone
had taken his bag ahead with them, but he had no idea what the room assignments
were, and he wouldn’t mind a mid-afternoon snack.

Siobhan’s directions were right on target and he found the
inn without any trouble at all. It wasn’t much of a place, at least the look of
it from the outside would give a man pause, but upon stepping inside he found
that it was decent enough. The floors were swept clean, there was a hearth fire
going, and the smells coming from the kitchen would make a dog roll over and
beg.

His guild was more or less gathered around a table in the
main section of the room and he weaved his way toward them, greeting them as he
came. “The caravan is settled.”

“Good work.” Siobhan handed him a room key. “Yours is the
fourth door on the second story to the left. We threw your bag in there
already. The master says dinner will be available in about an hour but until
then he’s offering rolls and beverages to tide us over.”

Grae scraped his chair back from the table. “In that case,
I’ll take the time to go check the path. I’ll be back by dinner.”

Tran watched him go with a frown. The man might be brilliant
at his craft but he was not a fighter. His heart just wasn’t in it. Unless the
opponent was at his strength or weaker, odds were the gentle Pathmaker was
going to get hurt. Wolf was likely upstairs resting, leaving him and Fei as the
only enforcers left and in that moment, he felt it better to go with Grae than
to stay with Siobhan and Beirly. Those two were decent at fighting and Tran
frankly felt sorry for anyone that crossed Siobhan. Her attitude alone made her
a worthy opponent.

He caught Fei’s eye and the other gave him a questioning
look. He silently indicated the door and Fei nodded in understanding and
agreement.

Getting up, Tran scooted his chair back with a boot and
followed Grae out the door. He was barely ten steps behind and catching up
quickly, due to his longer legs, but something made him pause. Coming up behind
Grae was a pickpocket. Oh, the man was slick, he looked like he was just about
his own business with not a nefarious thought in his head, but that sidling
move he was making made it obvious what his profession was.