The Wanderers of the Water-Realm (20 page)

Darryl and the boat hand finished eating a hearty breakfast and then accompanied Agar-Marduk back to the dockyard. They spent the morning supervising the wharf labourers as they unloaded the portion of the iron rails that had been promised to the old merchant. A little before noon, they walked over to a nearby wharf to say goodbye to the three narrsmen who had been such good shipmates during the dangerous journey down the Exit River. They watched, with a hint of sadness, as the men boarded a chartered river boat, heavily laden with bags of Thoa flour and other commodities needed by the people of the Fruitful Stream. They continued watching as the craft cleared the mouth of the dockyard and departed upon its long journey up-river.

The boatmaster spat upon the ground and shook his head.

“To the devil with work,” He declared. “We’ll make the rest of today a holiday and see something of yonder city.”

The two men then sought out Agar-Marduk who was busily employed in his house of accounts and stated their intention. In reply, the old merchant ran his hands over a pile of scrolls and ledgers and declared his inability to accompany them. However, he gave orders for Carl Hems, the overseer of his warehouses to go in his stead and act as their guide for the day.He also detailed two of his strongest dock labourers to accompany them and provide some much needed protection when they ventured into the crowded streets of Calar.

“Enjoy yourselves.” He advised, as the group turned to leave. “And view the breadth of our city, for you will not see it’s like anywhere else in the Water-Realm.”

Carl Hems led the group back through the gate and into the city, but this time he took a sharp turn away from the direction of the old merchant’s house, leading them into a quarter of the city that was given over to its great marketplaces.

First, he took them to the leather market, where the factors stood cheek by jowl and argued over the prices that were to be paid for the great stacks of narr-skins standing on every side. Afterwards, a short walk down a narrow crowded street led them to the square of the woollen merchant’s, where other factors wearing conical hats, were busily engaged in selling this season’s crop of fleeces to the city’s rich spinning magnates.

The party then visited the corn exchange, the rope emporium and many other commodity markets, until the newcomers were heartily tired of fighting their way through crowds of stinking porters and requested to be taken to a quieter part of the city.

Carl Hems led them to a tranquil quarter where large and opulent mansions stood amidst broad parklands and flower decked decorative gardens.

“Here,” the overseer explained. “Is where the ruling aristocracy of Calar have their town houses and where they live when they come to Calar on business from their various country estates.”

By mid-afternoon, the five suns were shining down mercilessly and the overseer led the little group to a wayside tavern where they took shelter beneath a fabric awning and ate a light meal of bread and small do-fowl egg omelette’s delicately flavoured with aromatic herbs.

Carl Hems ordered flagons of light Thoa-beer to wash down the repast and then addressed his charges.

“My master suggests that you spend another darkening as guests at his house near the dockyard gate. If this plan meets with your approval, then you will have no need to exit the city before the gates close after nightfall. This will give us ample time to visit the oldest quarter of Calar and still rejoin Agar-Marduk and his women for the last meal of the day.” He paused. “The landlord here has a passenger cart for hire and we can travel to the old quarter in comfort and avoid the worst of the late afternoon heat.”

Darryl wiped the sweat from his forehead and readily agreed with the suggestion, for the heat was extremely oppressive to the two travellers. Comfort, however, proved to be a relative term, for their conveyance turned out to be a crude two wheeled un-sprung cart drawn by four malnourished slaves; poor creatures who clung to the rough towing shaft like a covey of displaced scarecrows.Apair of hard wooden forms served as seats and the travellers were soon in danger of developing bruised posteriors as the vehicle bumped laboriously through the potholed streets.

The old quarter of Calar, the place where the very first settlement of the city had taken place, was a visual revelation to the newcomers as they finally climbed out of the cart. Gone were the elegant villas of the city rulers, instead, this portion of the city seemed to resemble some ancient Earth cleric’s description of purgatory.

Tall spider-like buildings seemed to wind their way ever upwards, from the narrow stinking alleyways lying adjacent to the ground floors, to the upper stories of the tallest buildings that almost reached to the height of the massive city walls and enclosed the old quarter of the city on three sides. Darryl gasped in amazement at the sight, for the very tallest of the eccentric buildings even eclipsed the line of the great walls and the structure must have stood a good two hundred and fifty feet from street level up to its crowning spire.

Nor were the buildings isolated from each other, for countless timber causeways reached out from one building to its neighbour and the entire old quarter had the appearance of having grown skywards, like some mad organic entity, striving to climb ever upwards in search of fresh air and heat from the life-giving suns.

“By all that’s holy,” breathed the boatmaster. “Can human beings possible live within yonder hell?”

“Yes indeed.” Replied the overseer, as he dismissed the passenger wagon. “More than two out of three of the citizens of Calar call this place home.”

He pointed towards an alleyway that ran between two of the gimcrack towers.

“We will not venture far, because robbers abound in this portion of the city, but there lies the ‘Street of the Bone-carvers’ and no one should visit Calar without viewing the work of the artists who dwell within. Even so, I caution you to keep together for your own safety.”

The ‘Street of the Bone-carvers’was long and dark and was little more than two arm-spans in width. The flaring torches, set in brackets in the surrounding walls, were absolutely indispensable in supplementing the faint trickle of daylight filtering down from the distant upper levels. However, the newcomers were impressed by the sheer quality of the art works that were on display in the tiny booths lying on every side; and they marvelled at the array of geometric and organic ornaments, which the artists of Calar had fashioned from fragments of polished bone.

Darryl haggled determinedly with one of the artists for the possession of a piece of bone upon which the craftsman had depicted a wild narr hunt and had eventually succeeded in obtaining the artefact for the price of three copper discs. George, meanwhile, had successfully obtained a tiny bone sculpture of a Thoa tree. Unfortunately, the men had become so engrossed with their bargaining that the overseer’s words of warning were forgotten, and the travellers were taken completely by surprise when the ambush suddenly occurred.

The incident began when a small urchin darted from the shelter of one of the booths and snatched the newly purchased sculpture from the young boat hand’s grasp. George had instantly flown in pursuit of the diminutive thief. But this action had dire consequences, for he immediately became separated from his companions and was hopelessly vulnerable when unseen hands thrust a heavy wagon out of a side-alley and blocked the narrow passageway behind him. Six burly thugs then flung a net over the young man, and, despite his struggles, they quickly bore him to the ground and dragged him inside one of the spider-like towers.

George’s companions instantly recognized his plight and attempted to clamber over the stalled wagon and come to his aid, but even as they did so, a line of darter projectiles were launched from the shadows above them and thudded menacingly into the woodwork of the wagon. A second flight followed the first and there was no mistaking the message they brought.

“Hold! We can do nothing to help our friend!” Shouted the overseer who was white as a ghost and visibly shaken by the episode. “Except return to my master’s house, as quickly as possible and apprise him of the situation.”

Darryl ground his teeth in frustration, but there was nothing that he could do and he was immediately forced to agree.

Carl Hems managed to hire a pair of twin litters from a portage establishment that was situated close to the ‘Street of the Bone-carvers’ and the four men reached the merchant’s dwelling about half an hour after darkening.

Darryl and the overseer were immediately conducted into a small reception room where Agar-Marduk was waiting to receive them.

The boatmaster was about to speak when the merchant raised his hand and forestalled him.

“I already know what has befallen you.” He said quietly. “For a messenger boy reached my house about an hour ago, bearing a written message from the young man’s abductors. They state that we must surrender all of the iron that remains aboard your vessel, if we wish him to be returned to us alive!’ The rogues have allowed us the space of this present darkening, then another full day from tomorrow sunrise, to make up our minds. At the second dawn from now, the very same boy will arrive at my door and receive our reply.

“There can be no question as to what our answer will be,” stated the boatmaster.

“The iron must be given up to obtain George’s release.”

But he merchant looked doubtful. “The decision is yours my friend. But the criminals of Calar generally kill their hostages, even when payment is made in full, simply to safeguard their own identities. You had best prepare yourselves for the worst, even if you comply with their demands!”

Agar-Marduk paused and rubbed his chin.

“The criminals obviously know the nature of your cargo meaning that I have a traitor in my employ. I will find him, for there are many petty jealousies amongst my slaves and wharf labourers and someone will know his name.”

He paused again.

“But such enquires will take time and there is very little chance that I will be able to discover the names of George’s abductors, or their whereabouts, before the criminal’s deadline expires.” The merchant shook his head. “I must sadly admit, that I cannot think of a way of ensuring your friend’s safety!”

Darryl cradled his head in his hands and almost wept in despair. But at that very moment, his brain seemed to give a strange and almost inexplicable lurch and the parting words of old Noor-Balsam, the master-at-arms, flashed into his mind as though implanted there by some outside agency…

…
I will give you both the name of a man in Calar of the Mighty Walls, who will give you assistance, should the need arise
…

He is Ali, son of Grom, a whoremaster who can be found in the Street of Women, beneath the sign of the ‘Crimson Nipple’
…

Say who sent you… For he is an old comerade from the wars, who owes his life to the skill of my sword
…

The boatmaster’s head cleared and the feeling of black despondency evaporated, for he now knew what he must do. He gave a rapid summery of Noor-Balsams words to Agar-Marduk and requested the use of a litter to take him immediately to the ‘Street of Women.’ However the old merchant pulled at his white beard and stated that this request was quite impossible to fulfil, for the ‘Street of Women’was situated in the ‘Quarter of all Pleasures,’and this quarter could only be reached by passing through the portion of the city were George’s abduction had taken place. Litter-bearers, it transpired, could not be induced to traverse this lawless district at night, no matter what financial inducements were offered to them.

“You must depart at first light and with an armed guard to see you safely through the old quarter.” The old merchant said firmly. “You will still arrive at the ‘Street of Women’ well before midday, and you will have ample time to seek out this whoremaster of whom you speak. Meanwhile, eat and sleep, for tomorrow you may need all of the strength that you can possibly muster!”