Ch 3 The Outer Circle ... Pt 3 continues...

After Dustin had told his tales from his home town, the four retired to the inn. Here the inn was refurbished; only two months ago the inn had been the only saloon in town. At least the food was good. The lodgings were not so great. There was only enough room for small cots set up in about four different rooms on the second floor of the saloon.

Bingham was a growing village, only about eighty people lived in the village. The numbers were gradually climbing. Dustin had some time to look around before he retired for the night. Around the edge of the village some new buildings were under construction. It was clear that the village had been growing. Dustin did not get much of a chance to talk with some of the people around the village, but he did learn that the new buildings were for people who would be displaced by some coming expansions of the barracks. The inn had been housing most of these people but they had to move on soon. Six families in total would be displaced just for the addition of a barracks in the town.

When the sun returned on the horizon the next morning, Dustin was up and ready. He had already left the room he was sharing and was sitting on the porch waiting for the others to get up. They wouldn’t sleep much longer. There was no celebration for messengers, just long winded stories, food and shelter. No real worries except for the space in between towns and villages.

The four would be leaving Bingham and the forests as well. Grenfell was the only town between Bingham and Colodia. From what Galen was saying about Grenfell, Dustin knew they would have to stay for a while in Grenfell.

Dustin’s mind turned to the apprentices that would be joining the three for the journey. He could remember his time as an apprentice. It was his father that first showed him the ropes. His father had been stern with him, especially on his first trip to Maldor. They had encountered a wolf pack and barely made it out of there; but he was still quite young back then.

He wondered which of the three apprentices the town had would accompany them to Grenfell. They had met all three yesterday after Dustin had regaled the people of tales from Atanna.All three were relatively young, Sandy looked to be about thirteen, Andrew looked to be about twelve and Sven looked to be the oldest of the bunch; roughly fifteen. Of the three apprentices Dustin thought that Sven would be the most useful. As Sven was the oldest he would prove to be more useful if they were attacked on the road to Grenfell.

Draven was the first to emerge from the inn. Dustin was still sitting on the porch watching the few people who were just starting the day. There were only a few people, mostly vendors from the market that were on their way to set up their kiosk to barter their wares. Draven sat down beside Dustin on the porch.

“We move on to Grenfell today” Draven stated. “You should grab something to eat before we leave. It’s going to be a long journey.”

“I know,” Dustin replied. “Is the cook up, I’ll have to enjoy more of his offerings before we leave.”

“I don’t think so; you may have to grab something from the market. We will be leaving as soon as Marcus brings the apprentice by.”

“Which one will be going with us?” Dustin asked.

“I think it will be Sven” Draven replied. “I asked Marcus about him while you were looking around yesterday. Apparently he has been to Grenfell a number of times and is almost ready to make the trip on his own.”

“Really,” Dustin stood up. “I was hoping we’d get the oldest. I didn’t think that he was ready to be a messenger. Looks can be deceiving.”

He started towards the market when he spotted Sven. Sven was on his way over to the inn. He carried with him a few supplies and he was ready for the trek to Grenfell. Sven was the only one of the apprentices that wore a helm, this was uncommon. Most messengers wore hooded cloaks with the hood resting on their backs. This was the fashion for most messengers; Dustin wore a blue cloak without a hood.

Sven walked up to the two of them on the porch; his pimply face partially hidden by the wisp of hair that fell out of his helm. “Are you guys ready?”

“We will be leaving shortly” Draven replied. “We still need to have something to eat before we travel. Sit a spell in the saloon while we go grab something to eat.” And with that Draven and Dustin walked over to the market leaving Sven behind.

Come back next week for Part 4

Norfolk ... Pt 4

The training continued for about a week. At the end of the week Dustin had learned how to handle a sword and was ready to use the sword his father left him. His Father's sword was the only thing other than some supplies that he kept in his saddle bag. He still was no where near being an expert with a sword, but Draven had taught him well. Although old habits die hard and it was his axe that he still preferred. The time for travelling was near though and he would rely on his axe more than his sword.

Draven, Dustin and Galen had trained hard and had given the small militia in Norfolk a good head start. Tomorrow the three would be off. Their quest to Colodia would resume and Norfolk would be just a distant memory. Never the less, Dustin couldn't shake the feeling that the world had moved on with out him. Was he ready for the trip to Pespid? For that matter was he ready to continue on to Colodia?

"Dustin I hope you will be ready to leave in the morning. We have been waiting for the messenger from Pespid to continue. He should make it in to town later today." Galen continued, "He will be bringing some news from Pespid and then joining us for the trip to Pespid. Make sure that you have everything you need before he gets here."

"Will we need a lot of supplies for the journey to Pespid? I know that it's a few days journey but what else will I need other than some preserves for the trip?" Dustin asked.

"You will need enough preserves for at least four days. You should be able to find everything in the market" Galen replied.

Dustin and Galen parted for the moment. The market in Norfolk wasn't very big at all. It was about the size of the centre of town in Maldor. For a village of about 200 people the market was quite busy. There were multiple stands selling food preserves as well as fresh fruits and vegetables. A clothing stand was the only thing that really seemed to be out of the norm for this market, but it was what was hidden behind the clothing stand that caught Dustin's attention.

He had only been here once and that was just to buy some fresh food from one of the vendors at the market last time he was here. The armoury was neatly hidden behind a clothing stand and this time Dustin noticed it. Dustin slipped quietly behind the clothing stand and walked in the open door of the armoury. Inside were two men, one obviously the owner of the shop and the other was a hired hand that had been training with the rest of the militia. He didn't know the guard's name, but he did notice that his armour was a little stronger than his own.

Inside there were quite a few different types of swords, axes and some different types of armour. There was a couple of different pieces of armour that was hanging on the wall that Dustin was interested in. They looked stronger than the armour he currently was wearing.

Dustin approached the small counter at the back of the shop. The old man who was the proprietor of the shop turned to look at him. "Can I help you?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm interested in trying some of your armour." Dustin said, pointing at some of the plated leather armour on the wall.

"Ah, that is one of our finer pieces of armour. Pricey but an excellent choice." The old man said walking over to the armour on the wall.

"Just how much are you talking about?" Dustin asked, as he checked to make sure that his money bag was still tied to his waist. Usually when he was looking for new armour the cost was only about four or five pieces of gold. He normally carried much more than that but still four or five pieces of gold was expensive.

"This particular piece is ten pieces of gold." The old man said. "But seeing as you are one of the messengers training our little militia, I can give it to you for eight."

"That is a little pricey, how about six pieces of gold?" Dustin said, trying to haggle with the old man.

"I can't let this fine piece of armour go for only six pieces of gold." The old man said, "Maybe for seven?"

"I don't usually pay more than five pieces of gold for armour, but since this is finest piece I've seen so far, I will throw in the armour I have now and give you six pieces of gold" Dustin replied to the old mans second offer.

"You drive a hard bargain. I'll take your offer, even though your current armour really won't fetch more than a gold coin." The old man was hesitant to hand over the armour, but he did hand it over after Dustin had removed his armour. "I thank you for purchasing this fine piece of armour. Can I offer you something else, maybe a nice broad sword or a strong battle axe?" The old man asked, trying to get more from Dustin.

"No, you've dipped into my money pouch further than I had hoped." Dustin replied. He put his new armour on and left the armoury.

To Be continued....

Part 4 will be continued on February 23, 2008 come on back for more!

Image source: Wiki Media Commons

Norfolk ... Pt 2

Some food came for them. It certainly was not a posh meal but a meal none the less. Just a simple stew made from rabbit and some vegetables, very thick. Dustin was glad to eat something it had been a couple of days since he ate. The last time he ate anything was in Maldor at the saloon. There was no beer here to wash the meal down with, just some slightly murky water from the well in the centre square.

It was unusual that they would be kept out of the town hall while Draven was telling the news from Pespid. In most cases the news from other towns was shared with other travelling messengers, something was a little off. Thankfully the stew was not.

An old man walked into the small saloon style room, “Draven will see you in the morning.” He stated.

The sun was still high in the sky, why would they have to wait so long to see their counter part? “Why the wait, we should not have to wait, there is urgent business that the three of us need to discuss.” Galen spoke up. “This is not custom to make messengers wait!”

“I’m sorry sir, but you will have to wait, we have Draven under guard right now and he will not be able to meet with you until the morning.” The old man replied.

“This is highly unusual, do you doubt our credentials?” Dustin chimed in.

“No we don’t doubt your credentials sir; there have been some changes in this village. We now have a different structure to abide by.”

“That is no excuse to keep a messenger waiting! The three of us are expected in Pespid in two days, time is of the essence. We will speak with Draven with or with out your blessings.” Galen retorted. His hand moved to the hilt of his sword.

Just as Galen stood up, the old man was pushed aside by Draven. “Sit down old man; did you forget who keeps this town safe?” Draven said. “I’m sorry about my friend here but things are changing in this town. Dustin it’s good to see you again.” He said sitting down at the table with Galen and Dustin.

“It hasn’t been that long my friend.” Dustin chimed in, “So what kind of changes are happening in this town?”

“Well since this place has grown since I first got into the messenger business, they want a leader who will be here all the time instead of us messengers who are almost always away on business.” Draven replied.

“So what news did you bring from Pespid?” Galen asked eager to hear the news from the next town.

“Well things have been changing there too.” Draven started, “people are very uneasy in Pespid. There have been more news from other towns and Pespid has started a small militia. Similar to what is going on here in Norfolk.

“With more news about the growing anarchy in the outer circle, people have become paranoid. There are rumours of cities in the outer circle aligning themselves with cities from the inner circle. Everything is a mess. The larger inner cities are building armies but nobody has a clear idea why, just rabid rumours that are spreading like wildfire.”

“Armies, outer and inner circle cities” Dustin questioned. “How large are these cities? I’ve heard rumours of large cities before, but I never thought they existed. How far away are they from here?”

“Quite a few days journey, but we can’t start in the morning. We have to help with some training. There are some new recruits and the three of us will help them train for a few days. We are not expected in Pespid for several days, this will give us a chance to create a game plan.” Draven explained.

To Be Continued...

Next installment: February 9, 2008

Norfolk

Norfolk was one of the larger villages in this part of the known world. Dustin had only been here once before, Galen a seasoned messenger claims to have been here over a hundred times. The large wooden doors of Norfolk were always locked; you had to be a resident or a known messenger to gain entrance.

The forest seemed to drop away from the village, for a small village it was heavily fortified. One would think that the village was a strong hold for a large army by the size of the wall encompassing it. There was no castle here, just a large wall with two entrances, one on either side. The path leading up to the gates gradually changed from dirt to a cobblestone road. The sound of their horse’s feet changed from a thump to a click as they approached.

On the wooden gate were two large iron rings and a small hole just big enough for a pair of eyes to peer out. Dustin used the ring to knock on the gates. A pair of eyes peered out from the hole in the gate; “Oi, who goes there?”

“Galen of Colodia and Dustin of Atanna” Galen exclaimed. “We have an appointment with Draven, let us pass!”

Shouts came from behind the gate, and they could hear men removing the plank of wood that served as a lock for the gate. The gates opened and behind them were four lightly armoured men. Dustin did not remember seeing any lightly armoured men on his last visit to Norfolk. This was new.

“Draven is in the town hall, he has just returned from Pespid. You will have to wait until he has finished bringing us news.” A raggedly dressed man called out from just behind the gates. “These men will accompany you to the inn.”

They just nodded and followed the four lightly armoured men to the inn. Dustin doubted that these men were well trained, definitely not by any military standards. As a messenger he was used to pomp and circumstance when he arrived at a town or village, he was not used to an armoured escort. This was new to him. Galen on the other hand was; Colodia welcomed all their messengers with armoured escorts. Colodia was one of the largest towns in the known world.

Two of the escorts returned to the gates and two stayed outside of the inn. Galen being accustomed to being escorted was not surprised. Dustin was full of questions. After checking in, Galen and Dustin sat down in a room similar to a saloon.

“I don’t remember any armed escorts on my last trip here, were they here the last time you came through here?” Dustin asked.

“No, they were still being trained” Galen replied. “There was no need for any armed forces here last time I came through, something has changed.”

“I can understand a need to protect the village, but why would you train anybody other than messenger hopefuls?”

“Well times are changing Dustin, that’s why I’m bringing you to Colodia. There is a new threat on the horizon, not just wild angry animals. There is a real need for people who can fight and are trained to fight. Right now messengers from all of the out land towns and villages are being brought to Colodia. All will be revealed in time, Draven undoubtedly has heard about the new threat. I’m sure he will give us some new information as well as tell us of some new developments.”

To Be Continued....

Next Instalment: February 2, 2008.

Image source: http://newcastle.northernlife.biz/castles2.html

The Road Behind...Pt 4

"So where are you planning on going?" Dustin asked. "Us messenger types only make appointments if we're going some where."

Galen hesitated. He looked into the fire and said "I will explain in the morning, now get some rest, we still have another half day to Norfolk."

At the first sign of the new day the forest around them erupted with life. The sun had just peaked over the horizon to give the forest its first spot of day light as Dustin woke up. Galen was already up and packing up his horse.

"Get up sleepy head, we have to go."

Dustin put his arms over his head and quickly sat up.

"We'll be at the gates of Norfolk by high sun if we get moving now." Galen said before jumping on his horse.

At either end of the clearing was a narrow path, just wide enough for one horse. Galen was in the lead, setting the pace. Dustin was still curious about what their appointment with Draven was all about. He knew that Galen had promised to show him how to get to Colodia, its possible that he was going to show Draven how to get there as well. But why wouldn't Galen tell him that's why they were headed to Norfolk, and why were they in such a hurry?

Travelling between the villages was dangerous. But that didn't explain why they were in such a hurry. A messenger usually travels between towns as quick as possible to minimize the threat of a wolf pack trying to make you their dinner, but when travelling with another messenger gives you more of an opportunity to defend yourself against a wolf pack. More often then not a wolf pack will leave you alone if you are travelling with some one. On the narrow roads like this one, the biggest danger you face is a rogue boar angry with you just because it can see you. The horses hooves thundered along the ground and Galen was showing no signs of slowing.

The forest started to get thinner, this was a good sign. A small patch of civilization was near, Norfolk was only about an hour away now. The road began to widen and Dustin tried to catch up to Galen. He wanted to ask him again why they had an appointment with Draven.

"So I've been thinking, are you showing Draven how to get to Colodia as well?" Dustin asked "Is that why we're going to Norfolk?"

"You're partly right, Draven is going to Colodia with us, but he already knows the way." Galen shouted. "There are three villages between Norfolk and Colodia. We are expected in Norfolk and Pespid, but the other two are much farther out, they won't be expecting us."

The large wooden doors of Norfolk were in view now. The stone wall surrounding Norfolk was clearly visible. All will be revealed soon.

To Be Continued....

Next installment: Jan 26, 2008

The Road Behind... Pt 3

The road to Norfolk was narrow; not enough room for two horses to run side by side. Dustin and Galen raced through the thick forest; it would not be long now before they would reach Norfolk. It was only a short distance between Maldor and Norfolk compared to the distance between Atanna and Maldor, or even Colodia and Maldor. There wasn't many places to stop on the road to Norfolk, but from the pace Galen was setting, Dustin and Galen wouldn't be stopping to give their horses a rest.

The sun was starting its slow descent on its journey to the other side of the world. Up ahead Dustin could see the forest get a little thinner. There's a clearing ahead, he remembered. Draven had made him stop there on their last trip, it would be safer to stop for the evening, no telling what wild beasts were lurking in the forest. Galen slowed his horse as the path gradually got wider.

"We'll camp in the clearing tonight," Galen shouted back at Dustin. "At first light we will continue on to Norfolk. We have an appointment to keep with Draven. You remember Draven don't you?"

"Of course, it hasn't been that long since he brought me out this way." Dustin replied. He let out a sigh of relief, it was good to finally know why they were headed to Norfolk instead of Colodia.

The forest slowly gave way to a large clearing. Scattered around were the remnants of previous travellers camp fires. Branches from trees were occasionally piled near the ashes. As the sound of his heart pounding in his ears subsided, Dustin could hear the sounds of the forest.

"Gather up some wood, we'll need a fire." Galen ordered. Galen wasn't used to travelling with another person. He was on a mission and he needed Dustin to complete it. "We'll need to keep the fire going all night, lets be quick, the light is nearly gone."

The two of them gathered branches that lay around. All of the piles that were left by previous messengers would help. There were no more travellers anymore. The world had grown distant, and people were more apt to stay in one village all of their lives. Once Dustin had heard of a band of mercenaries who aided those who wanted to see other towns, but that had been a rumour from his childhood.

Dustin pulled out a small bow and relatively straight branch from his saddle bag. He had used these two items to start many fires in the past. Just as he was about to make an attempt to start a fire, Galen struck some flint a couple of times and within seconds there was the warm light of fire upon his face. "Where did you get that?" Dustin asked. Flint was very rare; he had heard of it before but never actually seen it.

"We have lots of it in Colodia" Galen exclaimed. "When we finish up in Norfolk, I'll make sure you get some in Colodia.

"So what's this appointment with Draven all about?" Dustin Asked.

To Be continued: Next installment Jan 18, 2008

Image Source: Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection

The Road Behind... Pt 2

Dustin walked into the Inn, and made arrangements for his stay. Only one night, that's all he needed. Tomorrow would be another day, and he would hopefully be on his way.

The sun was still high in the sky, a nice drink from the saloon would be perfect, he thought. Maldor was still buzzing; even the blacksmith was still working. You could here him swing his hammer onto some white hot metal in the warm afternoon. But Dustin was headed for the saloon; he would stop by the blacksmith tomorrow before Galen was to arrive. But for now, he needed a drink.

One of the benefits of being a messenger is that he could drink for almost nothing. A round of drinks for the folks at the bar would only cost one gold coin. That was pretty cheap considering everyone else was only served two drinks for a gold coin.

There was always plenty of room in the saloon, most towns were sparsely populated, the largest Dustin had seen was his own town of Atanna with close to 90 people residing. Maldor was home to only 30, not including the three messengers that hailed from here. The saloon in Maldor doubled as a town hall. Townsfolk would meet here to discuss a variety of topics that affected their small town. Although the need for these gatherings was usually dictated by messengers coming into to town, undoubtedly there would be another of these gatherings following the return of Galen from Colodia.

Dustin spent the rest of the day in the saloon, listening to tales from locals until the sun hid behind the horizon. He returned to the hotel and turned in, the trip from Atanna had been long and he was tired. Tomorrow would be a long day.

He woke late in the morning. There was a commotion in the centre square of the town. He jumped up, threw on some clothes and strapped his axe to his back. Looking out the window of the room he could see the whole village gathered around a man on a horse. Dustin recognized him; it was Galen from Colodia, no doubt delivering news from his home town. Dustin rushed down the small flight of stairs and rushed out to hear the news.

"Dustin, come quick!" Galen shouted as Dustin walked out of the Inn.

Dustin pushed his way through the small crowd, "What's the rush?" Dustin asked.

"Get your horse, we have to leave fast!" Galen exclaimed.

"Why? What has happened?" A member of the crowd shouted.

"I'll explain on the way," Galen said talking only to Dustin. "Saddle up, we have to go!"

Dustin turned and ran. He would have to get his horse ready himself, as the whole town was in the centre square. It would only take a minute and they'd be rushing off.

"Let's go!" Galen commanded, turning his horse to the north as Dustin rode out from behind the Inn.

They rode out of town to the north. Ahead was the village of Norfolk, Dustin had known about Norfolk, he had been there once before. It had been months since he had seen Norfolk. Draven, the messenger he had met from Norfolk had been his guide on that trip. This time he rode with Galen of Colodia. He was confused. Dustin had been under the impression that he would be accompanied by Galen to Colodia, why were they headed to Norfolk?

Galen pushed his horse as Dustin struggled to keep up. Galen's horse was faster than Dustin's trusty steed. The sun had just reached its zenith and the two rode hard and fast. The road to Norfolk was lined with a thick forest on either side of the dirt road. Travelling this road had been dangerous in the past; Dustin had encountered many beasts intent on making him their dinner on his last trip. This time the forest was silent, only the thundering sound of the two horses galloping through filled the air. If the horses could keep up their pace, they would be in Norfolk in less than a day.

To be continued: Next installment January 11, 2008.

Image source: Alpena

The Road Behind....

Dustin began his journey in Maldor. Maldor was in the east, wasn't known for anything, but in this time frame most people only knew what the surrounding cities were. Each town was separated by large farms, various farm animals roamed through some fields. But all the towns were small, no more than 30 buildings per town. He was the only link between townships, travelling back and forth looking for news and bringing news back.

Communication between townships was difficult, the distance between townships prevented towns from interacting with others. Maldor was a quiet little town, that is until Dustin rolled in. He had been travelling by horse, just like anybody else who wanted to go to another town.

The town was a small X on the map of the known area. Maldor was between five other towns, and had two main streets. About 20 structures were lined up on either side of the two roads running through town. At the intersection in the centre of town was an Inn on one corner, a saloon on the opposite corner, a jail and a blacksmith on the other opposing corners. It was quaint. Sun was still high in the sky and all of the town was busy.

The Inn would have a place to tie up his horse, the journey to the next town would have wait until tomorrow. This was his thirtieth trip to Maldor he had made one or two friends in Maldor. The messenger business was booming he made a decent amount of gold just delivering messages between towns. As he grew up in Atanna, a neighbouring town, he had heard rumors of Maldor, and the three other towns surrounding Atanna. But this time he was only passing through.

Dustin had an appointment to keep with the messenger from Colodia. Galen was his name. The two had met on Dustin's last trip to Maldor, fifteen days ago. Curiosity had seized Dustin the occasional messenger from two towns away would stop into town. Messengers always drew a crowd they were the celebrities of the known world. There were rumors of great big towns, the handful of messengers that had seen them always had a story to tell of them. This time Galen was meeting him to bring him into Colodia. He had been promised a guide to bring news to Colodia from Atanna.

He didn't have any news for Maldor today none of the towns people even noticed him. Usually he was greeted with fanfare, today was different. The air even had a different smell to. Something had changed.

There was a distinct difference between the way people of the town went about their business than in previous trips, he knew his trip to the town of Colodia was ahead and the journey between the two towns would take at least six days. At least that is how Galen described his trek, not many details, just the number of days between Maldor and Colodia. Dustin walked his horse into the stables at the Inn, requesting lodgings for his horse for the night from the stable hand. Of course he still had to make arrangements for his lodgings for the night. Thankfully the small Inn really only catered to messengers, there was only a handful of them and a room for each of them.

He always carried his saddle bag with him, even though his horse was safely stowed in the stables, there still was a few items he needed to carry with him. Of course he carried gold on him, they were coins, only an inch big, but one of the necessary evils of the messenger trade. He also carried a very large axe this was sheathed and slung across his back. Each trip carried its own dangers he knew the trip to Colodia was no different. Danger was part of the job, he accepted that.

To Be Continued - Next installment January 4, 2008

Image source: Federal Highway Administration

Let the Saga Begin...

The wind rustled the leaves whistling unnamed tunes. Dustin's campfire burned low, slowly turning to coals. He reached down and grabbed a couple twigs to throw into the fire to keep it going.

The half moon half lit the small clearing. He had stumbled upon this clearing two days ago. Dustin stood up, hearing an owl cry out in the distance. This forest had not been too kind to Dustin they were filled with wolves, large angry hawks and packs of boars. The journey from Maldor to this clearing had been long and troublesome. Now was his time to rest.

The sounds of the forest were full of noise, at least until you were the hunted, then the silence was deafening. Makes sleeping and almost impossible act, but he would be moving on soon. The next stop would be in Nevny Garen, another three day journey from this clearing. His water reserves were pretty low he would have to find some soon. He could hear a river raging away nearby, could be a mile away, he would have to go investigate, any source of water is a good source of water. He would follow the sound of the river in the morning, but first he would put some larger branches on the fire for now. The light it offered cast the whole clearing in a yellowish glow and kept the wild out of striking distance.

The sun would come soon...