Missteps

Chapter 70 – The Beginning of a Long Night

About half a mile away from the battle, Carric pulled on the reins of the horse and brought the beast to a stop. His heart still pounded in his ears as he scanned the area for a sign that they were being chased. Slung face-down in front of him over the horse's back, the small form of Ander didn't move. Below, Shomma's breaths came in large gulps, her back arched as she surveyed the area as well.

A twig snapped to his left, and Carric whipped his head towards it.

He breathed a sigh of relief as he watched the dark-colored form of Bitey walk out of the shadows. A pale and sweat-drenched Elaine straddled clumsily on its back, her right arm held protectively against her body.

The ranger dismounted and ran over to assist Elaine as she did the same. As he did, Carric reached out with his mind towards Lia's beast form, trying to form a connection with her like he could with other animals. However, the connection wouldn't form. Even though she was in the body of an animal, Lia's mind was still her own.

Once Elaine was safely on firm ground, Lia shifted back to her elven form. She ran over to Ander.

"How long do you think he'll be out?" She asked as she moved his messy brown hair away from his face.

"A few hours probably." Elaine's voice cracked as she softly prodded her injuries with her left hand. If not for Carric's assistance, Lia wasn't sure that the cleric could stand on her own.

Carric's eyes narrowed. "We need to get you to a doctor or a healer." He looked up at the late afternoon sky. "If we leave now, we should make it to Silverbank before sunset."

The cleric shook her head. "We don't have time, we need to find out where they're taking Iados and Jun." She tried to get out of the ranger's grasp but stopped with a loud gasp of pain.

Lia shook her head. "You and Ander are in no condition to chase them down." The elf gently reminded her friend.

Elaine sighed heavily. "Then leave us behind." She looked up at Carric. "Set up the tower, leave the two of us inside, and go after them."

Carric hesitated for a few moments, trying to find a valid reason to say 'no' besides just his protective instincts. Finally, he conceded.

The druid dug the tower cube out of Ander's pack, set it up, and spoke the magic words. As Carric helped Elaine through the doorway, Lia went back to the horse and picked up Ander.

As she carried the unconscious form that was no smaller than a child in her arms, she realized that Ander had never actually seemed this small before. His presence had always made it seem as if he was just as large as everyone else in the group. It actually scared her to see him so still and quiet. He wasn't even like this when he was asleep.

Carric ran upstairs and hauled down a mess of blankets that they could lay Ander on.

"Do you want me to help you take off your armor?" Lia asked as she helped Elaine sit down on a bench.

The cleric waved her off. "There's no time, every minute the two of you spend here fussing, the farther away Iados and Jun are taken. Grab the rest of the packs, throw them inside, and then head out. We'll be fine here." The ranger and druid quickly complied and left their friends alone inside the magic tower.

With an apology to the horse, the two of them clambered onto its bare back and headed back towards the ambush site.

When they got near, both of them of dismounted and stealthed quietly through the brush to the edge of the embankment. Hiding in the same bushes the goblins had before, the duo watched as the unconscious and tied-up forms of Iados and Jun were loaded into the back of their cart by the goblins. The process seemed to be slow-going as it was just the goblins themselves doing the hauling. The three bugbears stood huddled a few feet away, animatedly talking amongst themselves, gesturing a lot at their prisoners. If Lia had to guess, they were deciding how much to sell them for.

The bush next to Lia began to rustle before a goblin head poked out of the brush. The small beady eyes widened as it took in the two of them. It opened its mouth to scream, but Carric was faster as he shoved a stick right down the creature's throat.

As the goblin sputtered, the ranger replaced the stick with a handful of dried underbrush, and forcefully pulled the small creature back out of the bushes and towards their horse. Lia kept an eye out for more wayward goblins as she followed.

Once back at their horse, Carric picked up the squirming creature and placed it on the horse's back. He grabbed the reins and wrapped them around the goblin's neck.

"Here's the deal, ordinarily I would just either avoid your kind or shoot you, but today's special." The ranger tightened the reins hold just a little bit. "Today, we need some information. Where are they taking our friends?"

The goblin sputtered at the pressure and looked towards Lia, who stood off to the side.

The druid had their arms crossed tightly across their chest. "The faster you talk, the faster this is over." She watched as the goblin gulped, its eyes wide as they moved back to Carric.

"Slave market." The creature gasped.

Carric released some of the pressure and gestured for the goblin to continue. "Where's this market?"

"Don't know. Location changes, only Masters know." The goblin fidgeted with the edge of their thick shirt. "Let me go, before they realize I'm missing."

"What'll happen if they realize?" Lia asked as she took a step forward.

"Kill me or sell me." The green-tinted skin of the goblin began to pale. "Don't want to be sold, contract almost up, and don't want to die."

Carric's eyes softened just a bit. "Contract? As in a Slave Contract? I thought you were a lackey."

The goblin shook their head. "No, Masters hold my contract for another one year and three months. After that, I get to go home."

The ranger slowly took the reins off from the goblin's neck. "Do you know when the next market is?"

The goblin nodded. "It'll open tomorrow, that's why Masters are in such a hurry for product." It reached up and gently massaged the lightly bruised skin. "Masters said they'd sell us if they didn't have new product."

Lia looked over at Carric. "Do you think the two of us could rescue Jun and Iados?"

The ranger shook his head. "The goblins would overrun us in a second, and that's before those bugbears would get involved." His mind drifted back to the bugbear he'd met before in the Sister's tower. Now he wished they'd actually fought him so he could get a handle on how strong an opponent they could be. He ran a hand through his short hair before he turned back to the captured goblin. "Any chance you and your buddies would help take down your Masters?"

The goblin shook their head so much Lia was afraid they'd puke. "Once word reached Master's kinsmen about our betrayal, they would kill rest of our clan as punishment."

Carric gave a heavy sigh. "If we let you go, will you tell your Master about this conversation?"

The goblin didn't answer, and nor did he meet the ranger's eyes.

"The Master's know already that we're gonna rescue our friends." Lia stated. "They heard Iados say it before I ran. What harm will letting him go?"

"They could come after us before we're ready." Carric pulled out one of his swords.

The goblin's eyes widened and he began to blubber in the goblin tongue as the ranger raised the blade.

"Wait!" Lia yelled out, but Carric ignored her as he struck the small body.

However, instead of using the blade, he used the hilt. The goblin still flew off the back of the horse and landed on the group in a crumbled heap, but was still breathing.

The ranger sheathed his sword. "I'm not sure how long he'll be out, but it should be enough time for us to gain some distance." He reached out and gathered the horse's reins.

"Would you have killed him if I wasn't here?" Lia asked as she watched him clamber onto the creature's back.

"Probably," he reached down and offered his hand for the druid.

Lia didn't take his hand. "How is my being here any different? Why not kill him?"

Carric shook his head. "It's one thing to take a life, even a goblins, when you're alone, but it's another to have an audience." He leaned down, grabbed her arm, and forcefully pulled her towards the horse. "I don't want you to think less of me over a goblin."

"Good to know you care what I think." Lia climbed up behind the ranger and they headed back towards the tower.

Once there, Lia helped Elaine fashion a sling for her arm. All the packs save for Lia's were left behind in the tower when it was closed up. Carric made sure to pull everyone's ID papers out and stash them with the elf's. It was a bit of a struggle to get Elaine on the horse, but eventually, it was done, and Carric secured her to the animal with some rope from the tower. After Carric loaded the still-out halfling onto his back, the foursome headed towards Silverbank.

The sun had just set when they reached the main gate. At this time of night, there were only a few other carts in front of them.

A guard, partially hidden in the shadow of the torch mounted behind him, held out a hand. "Halt, what's your business this late at night?"

"We were ambushed by bugbears. We're in need of medical attention." Carric adjusted the halfling on his back, who thankfully had started to moan and twitch. Next to him Lia brought out their papers and handed them to a second guard. The second guard took the identification to the small booth and quickly perused them.

The guard ran an eye over the foursome, as the second guard came back from the booth, nodded to their coworker, and handed the papers back to Lia.

"Sorry to hear about your ordeal. We'll get someone to take you to the hospital." The guard whistled and waved someone over. Two more guards, both in the official uniform and red-feathered helmet of the town guard ran over.

Carric hesitated before following their escort. "Would you send a message to Koe and let them know I need to talk to them right away?"

The guard raised an eyebrow. "Why would I bother the town representative over something like this?"

Lia turned back. "Two of our companions were captured, and they're going to be sold at a slave market tomorrow."

All the guard's widened their eyes.

"Do you know where?" The first guard asked.

Carric shook his head. "That's what we want to speak to Koe about. Please, tell them Carric wants to speak to them, they'll know who I am."

The guard nodded and immediately sent his companion off.

That taken care of, Carric followed their escorts without complaint.

They were led to a hospital within the second ring of the city. In the middle of a circular drive, was a barren fountain, with a wheel-chair bound woman in the center, her arms outstretched with a large vial in each hand. They all recognized this as the goddess Erexeb, the goddess of herbalism.

Their escorts didn't bother with knocking on the large wooden doors, they merely shouldered both of them open and waved their charges through. On the other side was a large hallway with many doors.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

"We need help!" The smaller of the two guards yelled.

An elven figure with blonde hair dressed all in white with a red armband, popped their head up from behind a large desk situated just down the hall from the doors. Their eyes widened as they immediately took in the forms of Ander and Elaine. The elf grasped a small mallet from atop their desk. Carric was the only one in a position to see the small gong set up behind it, but everyone heard the deep ring it made.

"What the hell Yeni?" A tall human man thundered as he stumbled out from behind one of the doors. A bright blue armband was tied around his left bicep. He gave a loud yawn as he rubbed his eyes.

"Patients Dr. Mona!" Yeni yelped as she scrambled over the top of the desk. The barely four-foot woman rushed to Elaine's side and began to examine her arm. The tips of the elf's fingers shone with a soft light as she gently ran it down the injured arm.

Dr. Mona's eyes opened fully as he took in the scene. "Oh, I see what you mean." He ran over and gently took a groggy Ander off of Carric's back. "What happened?"

"He got hit with some sort of dart that knocked him out for a few hours, and she was hit with a warhammer." Carric explained.

The doctor nodded as he took in the halfling's condition. He handed the small body back to the ranger and gestured down the hall. "Go ahead and take him into exam room three and lay him on the bed." He turned his attention over to Elaine. "What's the verdict Yeni?"

The small elf bit her lip. "Not good, a lot of the bone seems to be shattered." She looked up at Elaine with a frown. "You must be in a lot of pain, I'm sorry. We'll get you something right away."

Dr. Mona clicked his tongue. "Go ahead and get her settled in a room Yeni, and we'll see how fast we can get Elick in here."

The small elf nodded and led the way for Elaine and Lia down the hall. Carric followed along and was glad to see the girls placed in a room across the hall from Ander. As both parties entered their rooms, they could hear Dr. Mona send the guards to go get this Elick.

Once he got Ander situated on the small bed, Carric propped the door open and stood out in the hall. He watched as Yeni left Elaine's room, and then come back a few minutes with a small cup filled with a purple liquid.

She hesitated as she made eye contact with Carric. "Don't worry, it's just a pain reliever." The small woman assured him.

"Who's this Elick?" Carric asked.

"He's a doctor like Dr. Mona, but he can use magic." The small woman explained. "We need to repair as much of the shattered bone as possible before it has a chance to heal. The fastest way to do that is through magic."

The ranger nodded. "Elaine's a cleric, she has magic, as does the woman, Lia."

Yeni smiled softly. "I'm sure they do, but the procedure is delicate. Trust me, you want Dr. Elick here." She gave him another reassuring look before disappearing into the room.

Carric sighed heavily and leaned against the wooden wall. He slid and sat down on the cold floor, Shomma climbing into his lap. A few minutes later Lia came out of the room and sat down next to him. Silence hung between them.

The small elven woman exited Elaine's room, propping the door open as she left. Through the doorway, the duo could see their cleric asleep in the bed, injured arm propped up on a large pillow next to them.

About a half hour later, a small contingent stumbled through the doors. A halfling man still in a blue nightshirt with a black knit cap on his head walked in. Next to him was a dark man with black dreadlocks in yellow lounge pants and a white vest. The two guards from before flanked both of them.

"MONA!" The halfling bellowed as they stalked down the hall in their slippers. "Did you forget that I just got off a 36-hour shift five hours ago? This had better be life or death."

Dr. Mona, who'd been sitting with their feet propped up on the desk, rolled their eyes. "Will you stop being so dramatic?" He hopped up and ushered the halfling into Elaine's room, with Yeni following behind, closing the door behind them.

Meanwhile, the dreadlocked figure approached Carric with a grim expression. "What's this I hear about a slave market?"

"Good to see you too, Koe." The ranger moved Shomma over to Lia and got to their feet. "We got ambushed a few hours ago by a group of bugbears looking to get new slave product. When we questioned a goblin slave, they told us that a market is opening in the morning."

Koe ran a hand down their face. "Any idea where it's gonna be?"

"Was kind of hoping you had an idea. Those bastards got a couple of our guys." Carric flicked an eye into Ander's room, glad to see the small form sitting up and listening.

"Afraid not, those who participate in those circles have gone underground, and the markets aren't exactly common knowledge anymore." The city representative shook their head. "We've made great strides these past few years to lessen the slave community, but that's just forced the slavers to get more creative."

"Isn't slavery illegal?" Lia piped up from the floor.

Koe smiled grimly. "It is unless the Master has a current Slave Contract."

The elf tilted her head to the side. "The goblin mentioned that before, what is it?"

"A hold out from Marblebrooke's beginnings," Koe explained. "It was put into law by the First Queen as a kind of concession to the wandering tribes that practiced slavery. As long as the Master holds a valid and current contract, the slave is considered the Master's legal property. These contracts are only for specific periods of time, but even today are still legal and are upheld in court."

Carric stretched his back as he frowned. "These contracts were one of the reasons for the Civil War, as they were almost exclusively used by nobility and the military."

The older ranger nodded. "In the years since the war, an effort has been made to quash the practice, but since the contracts are still technically legal, it's an uphill battle."

Lia's jaw dropped. "So Iados and Jun could already be under one of these contracts? Is there a way to get them out of one?"

Koe held up their hands. "One of the contract's provisions is that they can't be placed on someone until they've been a captive for at least twenty-four hours. So legally, we've still got time." The representative turned back to the guards who'd escorted them. "Go to Headquarters House and tell them to wake up every guard in the city. We need to find this market and find out who the buyers and sellers are. Go!" The two guards saluted the city rep and ran out of the hospital.

Carric placed a hand on his pseudo-mentors shoulder and turned them to face him. "Koe, tell me the truth, think we got a shot of finding our friends before the twenty-hours are up?"

The older ranger patted Carric's hand but didn't smile. "Ask me again when the sun comes up." With that Koe left the hospital.

"Well, that didn't sound reassuring."

Carric turned around and saw Ander leaning against the doorframe. "Yeah, I got the same feeling." He sighed and sat back down next to Lia.

The halfling looked down at his teammates. "We got a plan B?"

Lia shook her head, but Carric nodded.

Ander raised an eyebrow. "What you got?"

"You're not gonna like it." The ranger cautioned.

The halfling flicked his eyes towards Elaine's closed door. "Unless we have another idea, I'll try to suck it up."

Carric hesitated for another second. "We go see the Rabble Lord."

Lia sucked in a mouth of air as her eyes widened. Her last experience with the thieves' guild leader did not go well for her.

Ander meanwhile just nodded. "You know where to find him?"

Carric shrugged. "I know how to get to The Crooked Raven, that thieves' bar Kerri took us to last time."

The wizard looked over at Lia. "I think you should stay here with Elaine, not sure how welcome you'd be after last time."

The elf frowned. "Just promise me you'll be careful. The Rabble Lord doesn't do anything for free." She dug the tower cube out of her pack and handed it over to the wizard. "You might need your gear."

Ander didn't say anything as he took the cube. He looked at Carric. "Well, lead the way."

With a final pat on Shomma's head and a command to stay, the ranger stood up and headed towards the door.

"Where they going?"

Lia looked over and saw Dr. Mona come out of Elaine's room. Behind him, she caught a glimpse of Dr. Elick balanced on a stool, his glowing hands hovering just above Elaine's injured arm. The black-haired human doctor shut the door softly.

The elf sighed and leaned back against the wall. "To save our friends."

Dr. Mona leaned against the door as he stared down at Lia. He reached up and scratched the faintest hint of stubble on his chin. "The little one really should have waited for me to release him. Oh well." He moved off the door and slid down the wall next to Lia. "So, why didn't you go with them?"

Lia snorted. "Trust me when I say I'd be more of a hindrance where those two are going." She tilted her head towards the closed door. "How is she?"

"Hard to tell," Dr. Mona sighed heavily. "As Yeni said earlier, a lot of the bone had shattered. It's hard to tell what damage came from the initial blow and how much of it is a result of the bone fragments."

"I should have given her a heal spell earlier." The druid hung her head. "I offered, but she told me to hold off."

The doctor nodded. "Smart girl," He continued when he saw Lia's confused face. "Elick's work would be a lot harder now if you'd started the healing process. Right now, he's using his magic to basically reconstruct the fragments back into a solid piece of bone. It's a delicate process, and one that is very slow going."

Lia's jaw dropped. "I've never heard of that kind of healing magic."

"It's a specialized disciplined. Elick gave up a lot of other aspects of the magic afforded to him by his goddess in order to gain this ability, and he's spent years honing it. When you get to talk to him, don't be offended if he comes off a bit cocky." Dr. Mona grinned and gently patted her shoulder. "He's the best at this kind of healing, and he knows it."

"How long until she's fully healed?" The druid asked.

Dr. Mona shrugged. "We'll have to wait and see what Elick says. It depends on what kind of soft tissue or muscular damage there is." He raked an eye over her and eventually pointed to her upper arm. "Did you get hurt in the attack?"

Lia looked down at the small circular barely-there bruise where a rock had gotten her. "A bit, but my injuries mostly healed when I shifted in and out of my animal form." She gave a small shiver as a cold chill swept down the hall.

Dr. Mona stood up and offered her his hand. "Come on, let's get you set up in your friend's old room. At the very least you need some sleep. Elick will be working on your friend for most of the night, so it makes no sense for you to sit here and freeze."

"Only if the door stays propped open." Lia countered. The doctor nodded, and she let him pull her off the floor and gently guide her into Ander's abandoned room. She laid down on the bed, her head situated at the foot so she could easily stare out at Elaine's room. Shomma cuddled up next to her under the thick woolen blanket provided by Dr. Mona. She didn't even notice when she'd closed her eyes and fell asleep.

***

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" Ander asked as the duo headed down another quiet alleyway.

"Yes, now just shut up and let me think." The ranger mumbled as he swept his eyes back and forth over their surroundings. They were approaching the hideout from a different direction than Kerri had brought him last time, so at this point, he was looking for any landmarks.

Finally, his eyes landed on a familiar metallic street post, and he knew where he was. After a couple of more turns, they came upon the two-story structure that sat upon the secret bar. He led the halfling around the side to the basement door and promptly knocked.

The slit slide open, and a set of green eyes peered out. "Password?"

Carric squeezed his eyes shut. "Uh, something something Shamser's children."

He heard the person behind the door give a loud laugh. "You're gonna have to do better than that."

The ranger rested a closed fist next to the slit and leaned in close to the set of eyes. "Listen, I've had a long, hard day, and I wish I could say we're here to unwind and have a little fun. Unfortunately, that's not the case. We're here to see the Rabble Lord and, perhaps unwisely, ask him for help. So please, just let us in."

After he finished speaking, there was maybe a second of silence before the locks clicked and the door swung inward. A large orc in leather armor waved the two of them in.

"Thank you," Carric started to go down the sconce-lined hallway, but was stopped by a meaty orc hand.

"You still have to pay to enter." The orc held out their other hand, palm up.

Ander cleared his throat, drawing the orc's attention. He dug out three gold from a pouch at his waist and held them up. The orc lowered the hand, and the halfling deposited the coins in it. "Feel free to keep one of those for yourself, as thanks for being so amenable."

The orc grinned as he did indeed take one of the coins and stash it in his boot. As he turned back to the door, he gestured for the duo to continue down the hall.

Soon enough they went through the beaded curtain and onto the second-floor balcony of the octangular room. Both of them paused to soak in the room lit by the two large chandeliers above them.

Same as last time, a plethora of tables, chairs, and couches lined the encircling balcony. Three spiral staircases led the way down to the main floor where a multitude of gambling tables were set up in the back half. Two large bars were set up on either side of the room, while a small stage and dance floor occupied the front half.

As the two of them scoped the area, searching for a sign of the Rabble Lord or Maron, a different sight caught their eye.

Standing in front of the small band, stood a very familiar half-elf. Dressed in a purple skirt that ended just above her knee and a white puffy-sleeved blouse under a black corset, was Kerri. With lute in hand, she led an energizing performance to a rather distracted crowd.

"What's she doing here?" Ander asked as he looked through the bars of the sparse railing down at their friend.

Carric grinned. "Saving our butts. Come on." With a slight nudge to the halfling's shoulder, he led the way down the staircase. He paused halfway and turned to look at his companion as he jutted his thumb towards the card tables. "Want me to hold your coin purse?"

The halfling bit his lip as he considered the proposal. After a moment, he nodded and handed it over. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it." The ranger quietly stashed it with his own, and then continued down to the main floor. They weaved their way through the tables and servers till they were in front of the stage.

Kerri's eyes went wide as she saw them, and her face broke out in a large smile as she continued on with her performance. After another minute or two, the song came to a close and she announced to the band that she was going on break.

The young half-elf launched herself off the stage and into Carric's arms. "What are you doing here?"

Carric chuckled as he set her down. "We could ask the same of you. Weren't you supposed to be off finding answers?"

She nodded. "I realized that I needed to go back to the beginning of this whole mess, back to Liratha."

Ander crossed his arms. "Aren't you exiled?"

"Technically no, but I still can't just board a ship and go across the strait," Kerri explained. "I struck a deal with the Rabble Lord for passage on his next smuggling trip. In exchange, I'm the in-house entertainment for the club for the time being." She dragged the two of them over to a nearby table. "So what are you guys doing here?"

Carric sighed. "We were hoping to speak to the Rabble Lord. The group ran into some trouble on the way here." He filled Kerri in on the events of the day. She listened, her jaw dropping and her eyes widening with each new detail. Ander listened intently as well, as many of the details were still brand-new to him.

"We were hoping the Lord might know where the slave market is." Carric finished.

The bard leaned back in her seat, arms crossed over her chest. "Seeing as the Lord's main duties involve shipping and smuggling illegal goods, it's a good chance that he's got at least a few toes in the slave trade. Whether or not he'd work with you is a completely different matter."

She looked towards the bar and made a motion toward someone.

Looking over his shoulder, Ander saw Maron slink out of a shadowy corner and make his way over. "Ah, still the Rabble Lord's flunky I take it?" He said as the ex-prince got close.

Maron smiled. "We've all got to pay our dues. What do you need?"

"Can I assume that you heard all that?" Kerri asked.

The ex-boyfriend shrugged. "I heard enough. You want me to go see if the Lord will grant them an audience?"

The bard leaned forward onto her elbows and nodded. "He likes you so much, there's no way he'll say 'no'."

Maron leaned in close to her face, his eyes full of concern as he gestured at her party members. "Just don't go making any promises I can't keep, you wouldn't want to be called a liar now."

She laughed. "Go on and ask him, and then we'll see who's the liar."

With a final shake of his head, Maron turned and left the bar through a side door.

Kerri turned back to her friends. "As we wait, tell me, how did that thing with Bymer turn out?"