The Time Shield Read online

  “On to Rexford, then!” I shouted, putting my fist in the air. “Whatever small, crappy town that is!”

  Chapter 10

  The journey towards Rexford wasn’t as exciting, or quick, as I had hoped it would be. Every hour or so, Dhot would tell us to stop, and he’d pull out his map to check where we were. I didn’t see why we had to keep checking it, but if that made the goblin feel more confident then so be it.

  This part of Truska was a mix of grasslands and forest, and the flowers were in full bloom. The aroma was pleasant, and the breeze nice and cool without being too cold. I would almost have felt at peace, if it wasn’t for the fact that Nicole’s group, and possibly the Tumblers, were out looking for us at that moment.

  As the sun began to set, I started to realize we weren’t as alone as I thought we were. Deer, rabbits, and other smaller creatures ran about, occasionally pausing to watch our strange group. The more we walked, the less friendly the wildlife became, though. I caught the reflection of a wolf’s eyes more than once, always examining us from a distance. I was glad to not be traveling alone, or the beasts would have eventually become an issue.

  “Do either of you have any spare food or water?” asked Dhot when the sun disappeared. The moon was high and bright tonight, so we would probably continue on for a while longer before stopping for some rest.

  Cassandra and I checked out bags.

  “Not really, but I can give you some,” I said, reaching in and breaking off some of the small loaf of bread I had left.

  “I’m running low, too,” said Cassandra as I handed the food to the goblin. “Did you really not bring any rations along with you?”

  Dhot gratefully took my food, pushing his goggles up to his forehead. “Of course I didn’t. Do you think I expected to be heading to Rexford this morning? Maha!”

  “But you were planning on stealing the Lance,” I pointed out as he quickly devoured the bread. “Surely you knew you were going to be on the run.”

  “Not at all,” he said, wiping a hand across his mouth. “I was planning on taking the Lance without too much of an issue, sneaking out in all the confusion. I was going to hang around Vorova for a few more days, wait for the heat to die down. After that, I was gonna get supplies and then head off to Brumark.”

  “Brumark?” I asked, a bit surprised. “Why Brumark?”

  “I figured I would setup a base of operations up there,” he explained, taking a sudden right when we came to a large rock. “It’s so cold, I doubt the black and reds would want to bother going up there! Maha!”

  “Aren’t there a lot of blue dragons up there, though?” asked Cassandra as we followed the goblin. “I thought you didn’t like dragons in general.”

  “I don’t,” he nodded. “But my understanding is that the blues stay away from most of the dwarven towns, mostly keeping to themselves in cities of their own.”

  “The blues don’t like to interfere in the ongoings of other races like the gold and silvers do,” I explained as we walked. “The dwarves also don’t put up with dragons as well as humans do. If the blues tried to rise in the political system throughout the dwarven towns, they wouldn’t stand a chance.”

  We continued on quietly, left to our own thoughts. I was beginning to worry about our rations. We wouldn’t have enough to fill all three of us tonight, which would mean tomorrow was going to be rough. Not life threatening, but not fun. Hopefully, we’d come across a stream to fill back up on water, and maybe we’d stumble across some fruits or berries.

  Glancing around, I noticed that the forest had grown quiet. There were no longer any wolves stalking about, and the breeze had died down completely. That was odd.

  “That’s strange,” mumbled Dhot.

  He must have noticed the same thing I had.

  “It is, isn’t it?” I asked. “I wonder what’s going on with the wolves.”

  “Wolves?” he asked. “No, I mean that’s strange someone is living this far out.”

  The goblin pointed over to our left, past a few trees. On the other side we could just make out a large, wooden hut.

  “Should we get a closer lo-” I stopped as I watched Cassandra already crouching up to the trees.

  Silly me. Why bother trying to decide things as a group?

  The three of us looked around from the cover of the trees, trying to get a better look of the hut. There were several windows all around, and we could see a light from inside. Gardens surrounded the hut, with peppers, tomatoes, and other foods scattered about.

  “Food! We’re in luck!” squealed Dhot.

  Suddenly, the front door opened up. A human woman walked out, taking a left and heading for a small garden off to the side.

  “They’re probably poor farmers,” I sighed. “I don’t really want to steal from them.”

  “We’ve got money,” Cassandra pointed out. “Why don’t we go see if they’re will to sell us some supplies? I’m sure they’d be happy to have random buyers.”

  “Smart,” nodded Dhot.

  “That’s not a bad-”

  Dhot and Cassandra broke free from the trees and approached the woman.

  “-idea,” I said. We really needed to work on our communication.

  I jogged up to join them as the farmer woman stood and watched us. We all kept our hands up to show we meant her no harm, but it apparently wasn’t necessary. The woman didn’t seem startled or bothered at all.

  “Excuse me, ma’am,” said Cassandra. “We’re running low on supplies and were wondering if you could help us out. We’ve got quat and would be happy to pay.”

  “Anything you have would… be… nice…” I said, trailing off at the end. It wasn’t until we had gotten closer that I noticed how strikingly beautiful the woman was. She had long, blonde hair, with big, blue eyes. She looked more like a queen than a poor farmer.

  “Very… nice…” mumbled Dhot. Sounded like he noticed for the first time, too.

  “Why, of course!” smiled the woman, reaching her hand out. “I’m Sandra, by the way.”

  “R-Reimar,” I mumbled, blushing as I took her hand.

  “Dhot Skullsong, at your service,” bowed the goblin.

  “Uh… Cassandra,” said the elf slowly, looking at the two of us with concern.

  “Where are you three headed, if I may ask?”

  “Rexford,” I blurted out. Cassandra shot another look at me, but I didn’t care. She probably wasn’t too happy with me giving away so much information.

  “Rexford, huh?” giggled Sandra. It was one of the most beautiful sounds I ever heard. “I’m afraid you’ll be walking through the whole night to get there! I probably have enough beds to keep you till morning, if you’d like.”

  “We’d like!” shouted Dhot.

  “That won’t be necessary,” laughed Cassandra nervously. “We’re just looking for a bit of food and drink.”

  “Dinner is nearly ready, if the three of you would like to join us!” said Sandra.

  “Us?” asked Cassandra.

  “Yes,” nodded the woman, heading back to the door.

  My heart sank, but I did my best to follow. Of course she was married. Probably had a loving family, too. Maybe a dog.

  She opened it, calling something out inside. Two more women walked over, each as beautiful as Sandra. In fact, aside from their hair and eyes, it looked like they could be triplets. The red head with green eyes smiled down at Dhot, while the brunette gave us a small wave.

  “These are my sisters,” she beamed, gesturing at the two other women. “The red head is Sabrina, and the brunette is Sophia!”

  “Your parent’s really enjoyed the letter ‘s’, I see,” mumbled Cassandra, eyeing all three of the women with suspicion.

  “I’m afraid I don’t understand what you mean,” laughed Sandra, taking my arm and pulling me inside.

  No husband? Maybe I was in luck after all!

  I turned back to see Dhot following behind with a large grin. Cassandra looked much less pleased, but eve
ntually came in, too.

  We looked around the hut, which was surprisingly larger than it appeared from the outside. Inside the room we were in was a large table with eight chairs, plates and silverware already set. Off to the side was a kitchen, with a fire going and a large cauldron above it emitting the delicious smell of venison. Also attached to this room were four doors, each of which opened to separate bedrooms.

  “This is quite the place you guys have! Maha!” said Dhot, his eyes not leaving the cauldron for more than a few seconds at a time.

  “It’s not much, but it’s ours,” smiled Sophia.

  “Poor little guy seems hungry,” said Sabrina, bending over and pouting at Dhot.

  The goblin turned a darker shade of green and nodded bashfully. “I could eat… assuming the three of your have any leftovers, of course.”

  “Nonsense!” said Sandra, her arm still wrapped around mine. “There is more than enough for six! Why, there should even be some leftovers for you to take with.”

  “That’s very kind of you,” I smiled. She really was kind. And pretty. And warm.

  “It has gotten pretty dark out, too,” noted Sophia, walking over to a window. “We’ve got more than enough space for the three of you to spend the night here, if you’d like.”

  “We’d like,” said Dhot and I in unison.

  The three sisters giggled at that, but Cassandra didn’t seem to find it very funny.

  “I’m going to steal him away for a quick moment,” said Cassandra to Sandra, taking my other arm and yanking on it.

  Not kind. Not very warm, either.

  Sandra let go with a pout as the two of us walked back outside. Cassandra closed the door behind us, then faced me with arms crossed.

  “We can’t stay here,” she whispered.

  “What?! Why not?” I demanded. “They’re offering us free food and beds!”

  “Something here… it just isn’t right. I don’t know how to explain it, but there’s something more going on here. This all seems too nice and convenient.”

  “I think I know what’s going on here,” I nodded slowly. Of course… how was it not obvious? I should’ve seen this coming a mile away.

  “You do?” she said, eyes brightening. “I knew it wasn’t just me! What do you think it is?”

  “You’re bothered that three beautiful women are taking an interest in Dhot and me,” I said, gently patting her arm. “There’s no reason to be jealous, Cassandra. I’m sure there’s someone out there for you, too.”

  Cassandra’s eyes darkened as she took my hand from her arm and twisted it.

  “Ow, ow, ow!” I begged, trying to wiggle free.

  “I’m. Not. Jealous,” She hissed, finally letting go of my hand. “This is just like what happened with Stalrik and the Greeners! They tried to make us feel welcomed, and then they turned on us.”

  “I highly doubt these three are dragons,” I laughed.

  “Don’t laugh, I’m being serious!”

  “Stalrik traveled with a group of scary looking goblins and orcs,” I said. “It was clear almost immediately that there was something off and evil about them. Look at these three sisters, though. They look like they don’t have a mean bone in their body, and aren’t even carrying any weapons.”

  “We don’t know that, yet,” she said, eyes narrowing. “Although I’m sure you and Dhot will do everything in your power to frisk them down later.”

  “You think we’d get that lucky?” I asked. Cassandra glare told me to change subjects. “Don’t worry, okay? Even if they mean us harm, it looks like you could easily take all three of them by yourself.”

  Cassandra shifted as she thought about it. “That’s a good point…”

  “They had food and beds for us,” I continued. “I don’t know about you, but I’d rather spend the rest of the hike up to Rexford tomorrow on a full stomach and a good night’s rest.”

  Cassandra sighed, refusing to look at me.

  “Okay, fine. We can stay the night. But if anything starts to go wrong, we’re out of here.”

  “Maha!” came Dhot’s laugh from inside, followed by an explosion of giggling from the sisters.

  “Deal,” I nodded, running back into the hut to join in the fun. I didn’t know what Cassandra’s problem was, but I had no doubt it was going to be a fun, relaxing night.

  Chapter 11

  We all took a seat at the table as Sandra prepared our plates. Taking large scoops of the venison stew, she added large chunks of bread and carrots to each serving. Sophia helped set the dishes down before us, before the two sat down to enjoy.

  Dhot and I both picked up our forks and knives, eager to rip into the dinner. Before either of us could, though, Cassandra, who was sitting between us, grabbed our arms.

  “Don’t eat until they do,” she whispered.

  “Oh, right,” nodded Dhot. “That would be rude. Maha!”

  “Or, it could be poisoned,” she whispered back.

  To our delight and her dismay, the three sisters began eating without hesitation. If there was any poison in the food, they would be eating it too.

  Cassandra released her grip and let us start in on the meal.

  “This is amazing!” shouted Dhot after a few mouthfuls.

  “I agree,” I nodded enthusiastically. “You’ll have to share the recipe with us!”

  “Of course!” smiled Sandra. “We cook this meal all the time, actually. It’s one of our favorites.”

  “Eat all you can,” laughed Sabrina. “We got plenty to spare!”

  The rest of the meal was filled with stories from both sides of the table. Dhot explained his background, with being driven from Tu’Wun and being the sole survivor of his clan. They all listened somberly, water welling up in their eyes as he described the destruction that the red dragons brought with them. They didn’t even doubt him when he finished, only pausing to let him gather himself again.

  I asked about them next. I wanted to know more about how the three came to this hut, and why they stayed here instead of moving to a town, where it would surely be safer. The three sisters explained that they grew up here, and after their parents passed away they couldn’t bare to leave the only home they ever knew. They were rarely disturbed here, and had all the food and comfort they could need.

  “The only thing we’re really missing are some men,” blushed Sandra, looking nervously at me.

  “O-Oh,” I mumbled. “That’s… that’s too bad, isn’t it Dhot.”

  The goblin nearly broke his neck from nodding as quickly as he did. “Sounds horrible! We’ll definitely be on the lookout for eligible bachelors… if you’d mention what your interested in.”

  “I’ve always had a thing for goblins,” said Sabrina, leaning closer to the table. “I just love their green skin and how smart they are.”

  “M-Maha!” laughed Dhot nervously.

  “Wow… what are the odds,” mumbled Cassandra, picking slowly at her food. Even though it was clearly not poisoned, she didn’t seem to have much of an appetite.

  “What was that?” asked Sophia.

  “Um, I was just asking why there aren’t any wolves around here,” said the elf, clearing her throat and glancing at me.

  “I’m afraid I don’t understand,” smiled Sophia. “There aren’t any wolves in this part of the woods.”

  “Right,” said Cassandra slowly. “But wolves have been following us for quite some time. Ever since we got off the road, really. However… I noticed they all disappeared once we got close to your hut.”

  “Well, how lucky we are, then!” cheered Sophia. “We wouldn’t want any nasty beasts wandering around, so close to us!”

  “That’s just the thing, though,” said Cassandra, setting her silverware down. “You’re food smells nearly as good as it tastes… surely the wolves would’ve smelled this from farther away than we could, and would want to come around here.”

  “Oh, most of the food we cook doesn’t have much of a scent, really,” said Sandra. “W
e wouldn’t want to attract anything here that might mean us ill will.”

  “Then why did you just mentioned that you ladies cook it all the time?” asked Cassandra, an edge appearing in her voice.

  The three women stopped eating and stared at the elf.

  “Cassandra,” I whispered, even though everyone had stopped talking and could clearly hear me. “They were probably just trying to be polite. I’m sure they don’t cook this all the time. Where would the manage to find all this venison?”

  “This doesn’t seem right,” she whispered back, nervously running her hand over the hilt of the Shattered Sword. “This isn’t adding up.”

  “What a beautiful sword you have there,” said Sophia, trying to change subjects. I felt bad that they were offering us all these comforts while Cassandra was being such a poor guest. Maybe this was the way elves treated their hosts down in Aelric, but she should really read the room. “How did you come across it?”

  “None of your busines-”

  “Funny story,” I said, cutting her off. “The two of us were after a mythical sword of old. The Shattered Sword, actually… perhaps you three have heard of it?”

  The women nodded, smiles returning to their faces.

  “Papaw would tell us the wildest tales of the Sword when we were children!” said Sandra, clapping her hands together.

  “I thought it wasn’t real,” said Sabrina.

  “So did I,” I laughed. “I remember when Cassandra first told me about her goal of trying to find it. Oh, how stupid and naive I thought she was!”

  Cassandra turned and whispered something to Dhot while I spoke, ignoring my insult. The three sisters giggled at me, so I continued.

  “Anyway, the two of us went on a great adventure! We passed through the town of Trenton on the other side of Truska, up to Kra’Gar in Gorland, before finally finding ourselves in the Willows of Wander.”

  The goblin shook his head at the elf. “No reason to,” he muttered.

  “And you escaped?” gasped Sandra. “You are so brave!”

  “Well, you know…” I said, sitting up a little straighter. “With this silly elf going on and on about trying to find this make believe sword, I wasn’t about to let her go off on her own to her death. We made it through to the middle of the Willows, where we found the Ruin’s of Le’Ma-”