Call of Ring(Compleled)

11 The Plan

         Male vendors scurried out of their booths, leaving them unattended. A group of them exited the market and began running toward the fields just outside the woods. Screams began to ring out one by one. And then a distinct sound of whaling. In response to the horrific cries for help, Blake left the market following some of the men at a distance. Blake continued through the fields. He was now sprinting toward an increasingly desperate situation.

         Suddenly, one man stopped in front of him. A cry of a whale shrieked from the man as he witnessed what lay before him. A child marred beyond recognition. Blake wondered if a father could somehow detect that it was his child, despite the mangled remains.

“That God-awfully pained sound could only come from a parent,” Blake concluded.

         The cries must have occurred at least a dozen times from different places in the open field. Another father, another child.

         “Something must be done,” Blake determined.

         Somewhat discouraged and yet resolute, Blake returned to the house of Gaius and Dorkus. No one was home. Blake knew what he had to do.

         He grabbed a lantern. Then he went straight away to the back yard. Looking both ways as he had seen modeled for him before, he nudged the piece of wood covering the den of books. As he descended the stairs, he lit the lantern and replaced the covering overhead.

         “I have to learn everything I can about this world. Certainly answers can be found in these books,” he thought silently wrestling with his thoughts. “And these children have to be saved.”

         Blake had lost himself in a book of history about the Delphine Continent. He wasn’t sure how much time had passed before he heard a noise above him. Slowly, the wood covering was pushed aside. Gaius and Dorkus made their way down the steps and replaced the covering above them. No words were exchanged. They simply chose a book each, sat down and joined him in silent reading.

         Yet again, the time in the book den seemed timeless. Somehow, the decision to exit seemed simultaneous. When they emerged, it was dark. And just as the night before, without words exchanged, they retired to their separate rooms.

         Blake awoke the next morning more determined than ever to set in motion a plan to capture and kill the wild beasts that were plaguing this community. He had read a lot about the practice of magic. He now knew more about what he would need to learn to become a mage. But he had also read more about these dangerous animals. Wild boars, enlarged rodents, and oversized wolves were the predators that lived in Stella Woods.

Once again he was served tea by Dorkus. While seated, he sipped and began to ask questions. “You heard about the attacks yesterday?”

        “Yes. It is awful,” replied Dorkus. “Twelve children lost.”

         “How often do these attacks occur?” inquired Blake.

         “We never know. We go for years without a single attack, and then as soon as we let our guard down, there is an episode like this!” replied Gaius.

         “I have an idea,” stated Blake in response. “I’m going to work on it today.”

         A few more minutes of conversation took place, but it now seemed time to go. Blake rose to his feet, thanking his hosts for the tea. But as he readied himself to leave, Gaius called him over to the table and handed him another two coins. Blake thanked them and left quickly, knowing he had much work to do.

         He began his workday with a return trip to the market. Another fritter from the red-haired lady. A smile was exchanged when he handed over the single coin, just as the day before. Before Blake sank into his fritter, he heard a greeting coming from behind him.

“Good day Blake.”

Blake turned to see the man he had met the day before named Apollos.

“You are surely aware of the extend of our loss?”, he asked.

“I am. A shocking tragedy indeed.”

“I’m interested to see which bright minds will emerge to help us solve this problem,” Apollos replied.  

Blake’s mind wandered back to his plan, and with this distraction, he looked beyond Apollos toward the other end of the market. He suddenly realized that he had not responded to his new acquaintance, but as his eyes shifted back in front of him, Apollos was nowhere to be seen. Again, he had disappeared.

Confused, Blake continued to wander a more subdued market, assuming that the community was still recovering from yesterday’s losses. He was in search of a vendor who had supplies to help him accomplish the plan.

         Blake stopped at a booth selling slabs of meat. In the back of the booth, he saw assorted wood materials and presumed that it was leftover supplies from hauling the merchandise. The vendor was a large man, taller and older than Blake, but also more muscular. He had a full head of brown hair, but oddly a distinctive red mustache. A charming smile met Blake as he stopped in front of the booth.

         “How can I help you today, Sir?”

         “Well, I have a rather unusual request,” Blake replied.

         “I am here to serve; please tell me how I can help,” the vendor answered.

         Blake continued. “I want to help solve the problem that is ravaging this town. But I need your help.”

         “Again sir, please tell me how I can be of service to you, especially in light of what you are suggesting,” the vendor proceeded to say.

         “Thank you for your willingness to help. I will need at 10 slabs of assorted meat, and all the scrap wood you can give me. But I only have one coin to pay you.” Blake responded.

         “One coin is all I require. I will summon a few volunteers to help you with your project,” the vendor answered. 

         “Why thank you,” replied Blake, pleasantly surprised by the offer of support.

         “My name is Shamos, by the way.”

         “And my name is Blake. Nice to meet you.”

         They began sorting through the assorted pieces of wood, stacking to one side what Blake indicated he would need. Without much notice, three other men appeared and after greeting Shamos warmly, he introduced them to Blake as the help he had promised.

         Before long, they had loaded up all the supplies, including the selected cuts of meat. What happened next shocked Blake even more. Shamos spoke up.

“Blake, my house is less than a minute from here. I have a large yard that you can use to build. I think we’d all be happy to help. Besides, I’m excited to see your vision.”

Blake gratefully accepted the invitation.

Within a few minutes, they began the short trek to his house. Shamos had packed up his market booth. Blake’s purchases had cleaned out all of his supply for the day.  

After their arrival, Blake began directing the volunteers with instructions. These relative strangers seemed fascinated by his ingenuity. It looked like they had never seen the simple construction of traps before. Blake used descriptions he had read about the wild beasts to inform the way he built the traps. He also was intentional to glean whatever information could be gathered from this small group of men.  

“Of the three wild beasts that are rumored to be in Stella Woods, which one is the largest in size: the rodent, the wolf, or the boar?” Blake inquired.

“The wolves,” they replied in unison.

“We have to build these wooden structures large enough to trap one of those wolves.” Blake instructed.

The next few hours were spent building twelve wooden traps.

The whole process took several hours. Upon completion, the volunteers took a seat and examined their work.

One of them asked, “Why twelve traps?”

“Great question”, replied Blake. He went on to explain. “I’m a big believer in numbers. One must pay attention to details in life. For now, you’ll just have to trust my instincts on this one.”

Blake had read in a book the day before exactly twelve stories with artist rendered pictures of the wild beasts. Twelve recorded eye witness accounts from the history of the wild beasts from Stella Woods. The number was not confirmed as to the number of beasts in that forest. It was instead Blake’s superstition for numbers that led him to decide on twelve traps. Blake did not want to share this information out loud for fear of exposing the hidden cave of books. He was unsure about what kind of access others had to books, or any recorded history for that matter.

Shamos spoke up again: “Blake, it’s time to introduce you to the place where we frequent to have some good liquor. Today, you have earned this right.”

The mood went from tired after hard work, to one of anticipation for what lay ahead. Maybe it was the sweet temptation of liquor or the potential of capturing the wild beasts. It was probably a bit of both. Regardless, the men left the yard together and made their way back toward the market. Moving past the fritter stand, they walked to the very end of the market and turned right down a narrow path. Not a minute later, they arrived at the local watering hole.

A few men were already inside. Sitting up at the bar was a man that Blake recognized immediately.

Apollos turned to meet Blake, almost as if he knew he had been recognized. Blake realized that he had spent his last coin on the supplies for the traps and wondered how he would pay for a drink. His worried thoughts were interrupted by a coin being slammed down on the counter, “A drink for my friend Blake,” Apollos exclaimed in a loud voice.

The next hour was spent drinking. And while the drinks flowed, Blake explained his plan to Apollos. After quite a bit of time had passed, it was Blake who made the exit this time. He thanked Shamos and his friends, and once again reminded them that they would meet back in the yard at first light of the following day.

Blake left the bar feeling only slightly buzzed. He felt more affected by the bright light of the afternoon sun than the liquor he had consumed. Making a left turn back into the market, Blake walked through it and made an effort to exchange smiles with the red-haired lady as he arrived at the other end. He rounded the corner finding the path that would lead him back to the house of Gaius and Dorkus. But after only a few steps down the path and out of the crowded view of the market, his brown gown suddenly caught fire.

Sheer instinct kicked in. Blake dropped to the ground and rolled around. Regaining his composure, he was relieved to note that the fire had gone out. But as he looked around, he spotted a man staring straight at him, holding a large staff. A menacing look was spread across the stranger’s face. It was the look of a man who was intent on inflicting harm.