Finally, I was back in a human settlement. Even though there was a palisade and guards, Eichendall looked more like a large village than a town. The houses along the road were mostly made of wood, in the center of the village there were also some buildings made of stone. The shutters on most windows were closed, every now and then a ray of light penetrated to the outside. It looked like candlelight. The street was unpaved, but quite clean.
I reached the square in the middle of the village relatively quickly, which confirmed my suspicions about the size of the settlement. The inn was indeed impossible to miss. While the square sank into darkness, bright light came from the windows of the inn. The tables inside seemed to be well occupied. I saw a waitress hurrying around the room with several large clay mugs. A glowing glass globe hung above the entrance, emitting warm, steady light. I could have sworn it was an electric lamp.
Curious, I stepped closer. Wait a minute. The light ball was simply hanging in the air, a hand’s width from the wall. There was a polished stone slab on the wall next to it that reflected the light, but there was no connection between it and the lamp! Hm... I gently poked the sphere with my finger. The glass was cold, so whatever was producing the light, heat was not being produced. When prodded, the lamp gave minimally, but stayed put.
“Well, haven’t you hillbilly ever seen a magic lamp?” the amused voice startled me. The man must have come around the corner of the building, I hadn’t heard his footsteps. Before I could answer, he slapped me kindly on the shoulder and went into the building. I followed him.
While the man walked to his table, I stopped in the doorway and looked around. The interior of the inn made a rustic impression. Heavy furniture made of solid dark wood stood in the room. Next to most of the tables were long benches, a few smaller tables also offered heavy chairs. The seats were well occupied, there were only a few empty seats. Guests were eating, drinking and talking. Laughter could be heard here and there. On the wall opposite the entrance was a counter, the man behind it was busily filling the large mugs. Three waitresses scurried around the room, serving drinks, collecting dishes, and joking with the people at the tables. No one paid any attention to me.
Hesitantly, I crossed the room and stepped up to the counter. The innkeeper looked at me suspiciously. Given my appearance, I couldn’t blame him. “What do you want?” he asked gruffly. “I...I’d like something to eat. But I don’t have any money, I’ve been robbed...” His face darkened. “Maybe you have some work for me?” I quickly added. The man relaxed a little, but remained reserved. “See that table in the corner?” he pointed. “There’s someone sitting there who’d be happy to buy you a meal. That’s the best I can do for you.”
At said table sat two middle-aged men sharing a bottle of wine and talking. The man on the left side of the table had some papers lying next to him. He had on dark green clothing that looked like a uniform. At his side hung a scabbard with a dagger. When he glanced at me briefly, I saw an old scar running from his left eye to his ear. The eye was affected by the scar, his vision was probably worse on that side. His counterpart, who was talking, was wearing cool looking leather armor. With that, and his hair tied up in a braid, he would fit in well at a biker club.
Why would any of them want to buy me a meal? I had no idea, but hunger left me no choice. I would have to find out. Determined, I walked over to the table. The men just laughed and reached for their cups. After they finished their drinks, the man with the scar eyed me intently. “Well, what have we here? I suppose you want to join the glorious army of Astlan the Conqueror, boy?”
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My mind raced. Join an army? I got it, the man must have been a recruiter, looking for soldiers to enlist. Well, I didn’t think much of armies, blindly following orders and killing other people really wasn’t my thing. On the other hand... An army took care of its soldiers, didn’t it? Gave them food and a roof over their heads, maybe even some money? That’s exactly what I needed at the moment. “Yes... Lar. May I know more about it?”
“No, my boy, I’m not a Lar. You can call me sergeant, sergeant Rieg. What’s there to know?” he winked at his tablemate. “You sign the recruitment contract and join me and my men. On the way to Harthum, we’ll visit three other villages to find more brave warriors. Then in Harthum, our paths will part, you will stay there and I will make another round.”
“Clear as far as it goes, sergeant. But what are the conditions? How long is the term of service? How much is the pay? Would I have to fight?”
“I see... I guess you’re one of those who wants to know everything exactly,” Rieg said with an undertone that was hard to interpret. “Let me see your hands, boy!”
I held out my hands to him, which were quite bruised from all the falls on the night road. He grabbed my right hand and ran his thumb over the palm at the base of the fingers and the fingertips. “Soft like a virgin maiden’s ass! What are you, a merchant’s apprentice who ran off with his master's purse? In any case, you are not an archer and you have no experience with fighting. Someone like you comes to the pikemen, 10 copper coins a day for a start. The contract is for three years, with the option of renewal. Would you have to fight? Boy, that’s an army, and good King Astlan apparently got a taste for it after the conquest of Ethiri. So chances are you’ll be sent into battle. But it’s good! The war pay is double and there’s loot, isn’t there, Orthok?” The other man at the table grunted in agreement and refilled the cups.
“And if I were a... mage?”, I asked.
“Oho! We made a big catch, Orthok! The Lar mage has strayed into our realms! What kind of mage are you supposed to be?” the sergeant grinned at me. “A healer you are certainly not,” he pointed his finger at my black eye. “Can you blow out this candle with your magic?”, he nodded to the thick burning candle standing on the table and immediately blew it out. “Or better yet, turn that candle back on! No?” He reached for his mug, finished his drink, and slammed it down on the table. “I could use a drink of water, will you do me that favor?” He looked at me expectantly. I stood there motionless. What the hell had gotten into me?
Rieg contorted his face in disgust. “Pikemen, that’s all there is for you! Sign or get lost!”
“Fine, I’ll sign,” I said in a croaky voice.
The recruiter fished out a sheet from the pack of papers. “Name? Age?” “Jason Envoy, 23” He entered the dates on the contract, then pulled out a vial of brownish liquid. Carefully, he dripped some onto the paper. Contrary to expectations, the stuff didn’t run or get absorbed. A small, round puddle with a slightly curved surface formed. The sergeant looked at me promptly, but for the life of me, I didn’t know what he expected me to do. Astonished, he raised his eyebrows. “What are you waiting for? Don’t you know the procedure? What kind of merchant’s apprentice are you?” he snorted contemptuously. “Put your thumb here!”
I carefully placed the pad of my right thumb on the puddle. A searing pain went through my hand as if I had held it to the fire, but before I flinched, it was gone. Suspiciously, I eyed the thumb, but there was nothing there. A perfect imprint of my thumb had formed on the paper that would have pleased any police fingerprint expert.
“That’s it, friend, now you’re in the army!”, satisfied, Rieg put the contract away. “Find a seat and we’ll get you something to eat.” He waved at the host and pointed his finger at me, whereupon the host nodded and yelled something in the direction of the kitchen.
Just then, a group of people left the room and I sat down at the table that had been vacated. A waitress came by, cleared away the empty dishes, and then brought me a bowl of stew, half a loaf of bread, and a mug of beer. Greedily, I wolfed down the food. The dish was hot, the bread a little dried, and the beer watery, but at that moment I didn’t care about any of that. After two days without food, I had the feeling that I had never eaten anything more delicious in my life.