Call of Ring(Compleled)

19 Goodbye Empire

The wooden bar counter had caught fire. A couple of mini-explosions went off as the fire found alcohol-filled mugs. Blake had to protect himself before helping Apollos, so he jumped over the bar, ducking behind it. From there he had the opportunity to size up his competition.

The bar was dimly lit, so Blake had trouble making out a description of his attacker’s face, but his size was instantly noticeable. A short bearded man; he looked short enough to be a dwarf. Blake then remembered the conversation that he had overheard earlier in the day during his training with Apollos. The patriarch of dwarfs, Aesar himself had incited this small attacker to eliminate Blake once and for all. Blake considered that Aesar must have been miffed by his freedom from the captivity of King Adelai. He then wondered how the King had managed to get the recipe for the sedative from the dwarf in his castle. Regardless of motive, Blake was keenly aware his life was at risk.

‘Listening’ would not benefit him in this chaotic scene of a bar fight. ‘Feeling’? Nonsense! All he felt was the need to win.

“What did you sense?” the words of Apollos echoed in his ears.

“Sense the elements, Blake,” he coached himself internally.

The enemy dwarf was scanning the room looking for Blake. His eyes locked in on the wooden bar counter, zooming in on the place where Blake hid. Blake had a view of him through a crack in the only barrier that protected him. Half of the structure had already caught fire. Blake could tell from the dwarf’s demeanor that another strike was eminent. Grabbing a bottle of liquor, Blake tossed it in the direction of the dwarf just as a lightning strike left his enemy’s fingertips. The bottle met the strike in mid-air, exploding upon impact. The collision sent flaming shards of glass in the direction of the dwarf. It wasn’t a fatal hit, but he could hear screams of protest coming from the dwarf.

This move bought Blake enough time to check on his friend. Apollos was badly injured. The whole right side of his upper boy was badly burned. He was still breathing but was slumped over on the countertop of the bar. There was no time to move him. Blake decided instead to whisper a few reassuring words at his friend.

“Hang on Apollos. I will get you help as soon as I can.”

Suddenly, Apollos grabbed him by the collar of his robe and pulled him close mumbling something into his ear: “I will not survive this battle Blake. I have taught you all you need to know. Sense the elements, kill this bastard, and leave immediately for the Calvin School of Magic. You are no longer safe here, and your training must continue.”

Blake was surprised by the number of words Apollos was able to utter, given his condition. But then again, Apollos seemed to do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted to. Blake wanted to protest the conclusion Apollos had declared for himself of not surviving this battle, but there was no time to respond.

Another lightning strike came. Apollos was struck and his body served as an unwitting shield for Blake. Instantly Blake knew it was a fatal blow. He was now on his own. There was no time to mourn the loss of his drunk mentor. Blake paused a moment, closed his eyes, and tried to lean into his senses.

“Fight fire with fire,” was the phrase that came to Blake.

He opened his eyes. Surprisingly, Shamos was next to him behind the bar. Blake wondered where he had come from, but this was no time for trivial questions. Shamos tossed him a wooden staff and concealed himself in a small closet out of harm’s way.

Blake peered over the countertop, looking for his enemy. The dwarf was bent over, pulling a shard of glass from his leg, just a few yards away. Blake pointed the large stick at the unsuspecting man, and with a flick of his wrist, the staff spewed fire. Instantly, the dwarf was engulfed in flames. He began to shriek loudly as his flesh burned. The dwarf tried to pat himself down to put out the flames, but he was so distracted by the pain, he didn’t see what came next. Blake threw another bottle of liquor at him, and it exploded. This proved to be the fatal blow. After a horrific scream, the dwarf fell to the ground, every part of his flesh burning as his body convulsed on the ground. Less than a minute later, no movement was detected, although the body still lay there burning.

Shamos slowly emerged from the closet, reappearing next to Blake.

“Well done Blake. Something told me you would need this random stick, so I came to help. I’m not surprised that you were able to use something ordinary to defeat yet another enemy.”

Blake was too stunned to respond.

“We must quickly honor the memory of Apollos before you leave on your journey,” Shamos said out loud.

He grabbed a surviving bottle of Singani from a shelf and poured two glasses.

“To the memory of Apollos. It was his time to go.”

They both drank, but Blake’s gaze was fixated on a small smoldering body just a few yards away.

Shamos filled the glasses again, and after the second shots were consumed, he handed Blake a small sack. 

“Apollos prepared this for you, and he told me to meet you here at this time and give it to you. He only said that you would be leaving for a journey today, and that it was of great importance that I meet you here to ensure you receive it.”

So many questions flooded Blake’s mind, but he could only utter a polite thank you in response.

“You must leave immediately. Walk to the end of the market. You may stop at Sharina’s booth, but speak to no one else. Make the right hand turn down the path toward your old host family’s home, but before you arrive at their house, look for a path on your left. Follow that and you will be well on your way out of our city.”

“Thank you again for your kindness Shamos,” Blake managed to say.

“It is my pleasure Blake, but before you go… Someone once said that the third one is the charm.”

The two drank the third shot of Singani.

“I feel compelled to pass along some advice before I leave,” stated Blake rather abruptly.

“I am intrigued by the premise of advice. Please share with me what it is you want to say,” replied Shamos with a curious look on his face.

“You need to try aging the Singani. It was evident to me that what you served us in your yard was of superior taste to anything I have tried including even the recipe served to me by King Adelai himself.”

Shamos blushed a bit at this inference, almost as if the words spoken were blasphemous.

“What do you mean by aging?” asked Shamos with increasing curiosity.

“Seal the Muscat grape recipe you use in a wooden barrel for one year. Make another batch and then leave it sealed for two years. Then three, four, and five years. You’ll notice a marked difference in the taste. And because you know your materials well from your trade. Use oak to construct your barrels. Do not use the pine that we used to make the traps.”

The words Blake used to present the idea confused Shamos, almost as if he was speaking a foreign language from another world. But he was more intrigued than confused. After all, he had no idea that simple traps could eliminate the threat of wild beasts that preyed upon the children of his community. He never dreamed of having the opportunity to avenge his son’s death. Shamos determined in that moment that he would follow Blake’s advice also on the craft of liquor.

“Thank you for the advice. I will be sure to try everything you have suggested,” Shamos responded. He then bid him farewell.

“A safe journey to you Blake.”

“Thank you Shamos. It was a pleasure meeting you.”

Blake stepped over the dwarf’s body, glancing only for a second down at his charred remains. He then exited the bar and made his way back into the market. He kept his head down, trying not to draw any unnecessary attention to himself. But he did stop at Sharina’s booth. It was almost as if she had been waiting for him.

“A snack for your travel,” she said as she handed him a small package wrapped in cloth.

“Thank you kindly Sharina. I will miss your morning fritters,” replied Blake somewhat awkwardly.

“And I will miss serving them to you Blake,” she replied with the same steady smile.

Blake bowed slightly and left, turning right out of the market as if he was on his way back to the house of Dorkus and Gaius. He found the path on the left, made his turn, and kept walking.

After about ten minutes of walking, Blake looked back and realized that he had been hiking slightly uphill. But the perspective was surprising. In the distance, he could see White Mountain, and the plains beyond it. To his left, which he guessed was East from his reading, he could see King Adelai’s castle. The path was heading in a direction that he presumed to be due South. It was his best guess, but nonetheless, it was what he concluded.

Seeing no one around and feeling somewhat secluded and indeed protected from any perceived threat, he sat down on a large rock. Blake opened the small cloth Sharina had given him. He grabbed a still warmed fritter and sunk his teeth into it. As he unrolled the cloth, a small flask dropped to the ground. He opened the lid and smelled the distinct smell of Singani. Taking a sip, he noticed it was the recipe of Shamos. Smiling as he took another sip, he mused at how his advice might change Shamos’ future, and possibly the whole of the Midori Kingdom. He then wondered how Sharina had a flask containing Shamos’ recipe in the first place. Blake scolded himself for having so many wandering thoughts. He decided he should explore the contents of the sack that had been given to him by Shamos, a gift that had originated from Apollos.

Inside the sack were some fresh rolls, breads of different types. The sack also contained aged cheese with small bricks of several varieties. He packaged them up again and placed them carefully back in the sack. But as he did so, he felt a piece of paper at the bottom. Pulling it out, he realized that it was a hand-sketched map. As he examined the page more closely, he noticed that there was also a note at the bottom of the page.

The map was a small sketch of the Delphine Continent. Blake recognized the geography from some of the books he had read. But within the Midori Empire was a path that was labeled, “Path of Senna”. The path wandered out of Midori Empire through Desert Blanche, touching the tip of the Plain of Aeryn leading right into the territory of the Vex Empire. Blake concluded this was the path he was on.

         At the bottom of the map, the note was brief:

“I hope this helps. I wish you well on your journey, my friend. –Apollos”

After packing everything back in his sack, he took one more sip of Singani, and then continued on his journey.

After about two hours of hiking down a dusty and windy path, Blake crested a hill. Looking back briefly, he could no longer see any recognizable landmarks from the Midori Empire. He wondered how the borders were defined between Empires other than the rude markings on a hand sketched map. He felt very alone, but confident that he was heading in the right direction. Just as the hill peeked, Blake noticed a fresh stream in the distance. It was down an embankment, nestled into the lower part of a valley. A ravine between the hills.  

“Fresh water would be a nice break from the Singani I’ve been sipping to keep my throat from becoming too dry,” he thought.

As Blake approached the stream, he suddenly became aware of voices in the distance.

“They must be just around the corner of that hill, concealed from my view,” he thought, fear suddenly gripping him.  

He wasn’t sure what to do next.

“Should I reveal myself? Will they prove to be friend or foe?”