Black sot fumed into the clouds above. The city was surrounded by large thick stone walls. Torches burned endless all around the outskirts. The snow here was as black as the night. People wandered in and out of the gate. Tents, stands and blankets were set up all around with colorful signs. Beside them were strange contraptions and gadgets, the like which Ridley had never seen before and it made him curious.

As he made his way through the crowds of distracted people, Ridley couldn’t help but let his hands wander. A few coins here and there, a pocket watch or two and some nice looking jewelry; all of which ended up in his pocket.

“You there, son.” A voice called out. Ridley froze in his tracks. His heart began to sink. His eyes carefully drifted towards the source of the voice. Beside him was a man, a tall man, roughly about the same height as Ridley. He wore a fancy black and white suit with a black top hat and his shoes were so polished and shiny you can see them shine in the dark. Ridley remained silent and cracked a half smile.

“Yes you.” The tall man called out. “You see, son. I have what many in my field call a ‘good eye’ and I’ve used that in my time to make my fortune.” The tall man said proudly.

“Oh my god, is he going to keep talking?” Ridley thought to himself.

“And it’s because of this good eye, that I was able to spot you young man. Perusing the shops on this glorious night.”

“Damn it. He’s using big words now. Okay just nod your head like you know what he’s talking about.” Ridley thought to himself as he started to tilt and nod his head in approval. Suddenly a shine caught his eye. It was a ring. A shiny gold ring with a green snake. Ridley felt his eyes drawn to it.

“In conclusion my boy, I would like to hire your unique set of skills in retrieving something of value of mine that has gone missing.” The tall man said with gusto. Ridley blinked a few times.

“Wait, what?” He asked in confusion. The man let out a laugh.

“Excellent. I shall pay you plenty for this small retrieval of missing goods.”

“Money…?” Ridley asked confusedly.

“Yes, lad. Now these goods that were supposed to be brought here have gone missing and as suspected to be stolen. I need you to head up further into the mountains and retrieve such stolen property.”

Ridley looked around. “What does it look like?”

The man let out another laugh. “Sharp with my boy. Sharp wit indeed. You will know it by its unusually large size. Nothing like it. I need you to bring back here, drag it if you have to. And if you shall find the thief, deal with them as well.” The man said as he reached into his pockets and pulled out several gold coins. “Partial payment now, the rest after the job is completed.”

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

Ridley eyed the shiny gold coins and his finger twitched with anticipation. His hand moved faster than he could process and before he knew it he was holding several coins of gold in his hand.

“There’s a good lad. Now off with you.” The man said as he pointed towards the path that led further up the mountain. Ridley looked up the mountain, pocked the coins and headed in the direction where the man pointed with much gusto. As soon as the wind hit his face and the lights from the city began to dim in the background, his enthusiasm quickly smoldered.

“‘Up the mountain’ he said. ‘You’ll know it when you see it’ he says. Wonderful ratbag that ass is.” Ridley thought to himself. As he left the city limits he suddenly stopped. A blank expression washed over his face with a sudden realization. He let out a shout of frustration.

“Ah crap! I forgot about the riddle!” Ridley shouted as he flew his hands in the air. “Just my luck, I see something shiny and I completely forget what I was doing.” Ridley said as he kicked a pile of snow nearby. He stared off in the blackness ahead. He let out a small grunt and started to proceed forward, mumbling to himself about things like gold, and crates and fancy suit-wearing monkeys with tophats.

The wind howled and encircled Ridley as he continued to march. The snow started to get deeper and the air became harder for him to breathe. Though he could not feel the cold’s blight whipping across his face he was starting to get tired of marching in the snow. The stars shone brightly in the night sky and the trees gently swayed with the wind in a hypnotic fashion that one would assume was a dance. Ridley sat down on a wet rock under a tree to catch his breath. He reached into his pack and pulled out a small piece of old bread. He eyed it with distaste and tossed it into the snow. As he pulled out a piece of jerky he felt the ground around him start to rumble. He froze in fear and didn’t look as a ten foot tall figure stood next to him.

Ridley slowly turned his head upwards. The figure was about ten feet tall and full of muscle. He had shaggy black hair that covered most of his face and he was only dressed in a torn piece of dirty cloth wrapped around his waist. Ridley gave the large man a smile and the large man smiled back. Ridley slowly extended his hand with the jerky in it towards him. The large man nodded and carefully reached out and took the piece of jerky. He then shuffled his way over to Ridley and sat down next to him.

“Okay...this might as well be happening.” Ridley thought to himself as he reached in and pulled out another piece of jerky and bit into it.

“Thank...you” The large man said. Ridley froze. He had already gotten used to the silence and the unexpecting silence broke him.

“You’re welcome.” Ridley replied as his eyes wandered around. He looked up at the man.

“Seen any cargo around here? Some bigwig in town lost something of his.” Ridley said in a casual tone.

The man turned to him and grimaced. “Not from around here, are you?” The man said. His voice monotone. He displayed his arms to Ridley. They were covered in horrific scars and the flesh around the wrists were brighter than the rest of his skin. Ridley slowly slumped his shoulders.

“Oh…” He said in a low tone of disappointment.

“I am the cargo.” The man said in a disheartened tone.

“That’s...not right.” Ridley said as he turned his head away. After a moment of silence Ridley quickly bounced up on his feet.

“Well” He started. “I didn’t see you. I didn’t see shit and now I shall return back to the city.” Ridley said as he quickly turned around.

“Wait.” The man called out. Ridley froze in his tracks. He let out a sigh and turned around. “I have family in that city. Can you help me?” The man asked. Ridley stood in silence for a moment. The weight of his letters to his sister began to weigh heavily in his coat pocket upon hearing the word ‘family’.

“What would Samclam say?” He thought to himself. He let out another sigh. “All right. I’ll help. Same bigwig?”

“Small man. Top hat. Smells of lies and deceit. Needs a good beatdown.”

“I’m glad we’re on the same page with that one.” Ridley said as he clapped his hands together. “All right, so where are they being kept?”

“In the shed. It’s brown and smells of mold and feces.”

Ridley could feel a pain in his chest. He was afraid to ask more. He didn’t say anything else to the man, only nodded. And with a turn and a brisk pace back to the city, he formulated a breakout.