Quests Volume One Read online

  He went back to packing, still a little upset by the gift.

  "We'll sleep at an inn tonight," Bellinda said cheerfully. "A real bed at last."

  Hinrik smiled briefly before saddling his horse. That was a nice thought.

  ***

  Baes was an average town with stone walls and few gates. It had been built on the shore of the Ondan that was by now too wide to have a bridge crossing it, therefore there was a ferry service for whoever wished to go to the lands of the tribes.

  The nearest tavern was a few blocks from the entrance, but it didn't have stables, so they were directed further down the main road to the Painted Harlot. The buildings were shoddily constructed and the streets poorly labeled, but the locals were friendly and helpful.

  The Painted Harlot was medium sized and decently clean. The innkeeper was a matron who stared at them before grinning and welcoming them into her humble inn. Bellinda wondered if she was the painted harlot that had given name to the establishment, but kept the thought to herself.

  The food variety was limited but decent and fairly priced. The rooms were small and mostly vacant, which meant Bellinda could have a single room all for herself. Keneith asked Hinrik if he wanted to share, though, and Hinrik nodded.

  Bellinda had known since she'd left home that she'd spend a fortune on single rooms, but she also knew she could earn enough by healing people in towns. She could have asked Hinrik to pay for her room in return for healing him, but she had already decided that was a healing she'd have done anyway.

  She got paid when she got paid. She was never going to refuse to heal someone who couldn't pay her. Rich sick people would pay for the poor. And since her healing powers worked on animals too, peasants and farmers could barter food for a healed cow or horse, which was fine with her.

  She dropped her bag in the room and went back downstairs. The healthy crowd seemed mostly law-abiding and there were dancing girls in a corner. The noise was quiet but cheerful and she sat with Keneith and Hinrik to try the house roast beef.

  The maid was very friendly, especially with the two men, so they got some information on Baes.

  The town had one nominally elected official, thus it was more a city-state than part of any kingdom. It had a museum and beautiful new architecture on the southern side. The girl was particularly enthusiastic about the exceptional sanitation, probably thanks to the closeness of the Ondan.

  They didn't have public baths, but they had local fighting schools and expansive markets. There was little crime and the guards were easily bribed. The guilds ran the city and the town's economy was based on farming and fishing.

  "I would like to see the local fighting schools," Hinrik said, thoughtful.

  "And then buy armor and all the warrior gear?" Keneith teased.

  "You can win one!" the maid enthused. "There's the schools competition this week, and the grand prize is bronze plate armor and chainmail with a helmet, a battle-axe and a shield! If you can beat the local champions, that is."

  Hinrik smiled. "I could try that!"

  "So you are a warrior after all," Bellinda said, amused. "Games and championships are less dangerous than real wars, I guess. You might want to play in a gladiator ring if we find one."

  "I don't know, we'll see how this competition goes," Hinrik replied.

  The maid explained to him where he should go to sign up, then she was called to other tables and left with a sorry look on her face.

  "I guess we're staying a few days in town, then," Bellinda said. "Before we go exploring, would you like to change your room arrangements?"

  "Why?" Hinrik asked, puzzled, while Keneith chuckled.

  "I don't mind sharing a woman," the wizard said, winking at Bellinda.

  Hinrik gasped and looked away.

  "I... I don't think I'm ready for that," he muttered.

  "Then we'll keep her out of our room," Keneith replied. "I don't need to screw every being who smiles at me, you know?"

  Hinrik exhaled. "Thanks."

  Bellinda laughed. "How about we go exploring Baes, then? There may be brothels around."

  "Why going for a brothel when we're at a harlot's place?" Keneith joked.

  Bellinda noticed Hinrik's cheeks were still flushed red and shook her head with a smile.

  "Let's go, I'm curious about the expansive markets."

  "And my lady doesn't even like shopping, but she's darn curious," Keneith told Hinrik who smiled sheepishly.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Hinrik slumped on the single bed with a sigh of relief. Keneith closed the door of the room and went to sit on the other bed, putting the oil lamp on the bed table between them.

  "Thank you for doing this," Hinrik said, pulling himself up to take off his boots. "I don't think I could have spent the night with someone."

  "I can tell you'll have to beat them away with a stick, now that they don't know who you really are." Keneith smiled. "Which might be good for your ego, and eventually you might find one you want to spend the night with."

  "I don't know." Hinrik unbuckled the sword-belt and put it on the floor next to the boots. "I'm afraid I don't function anymore."

  "Of course you function. Your body is healed. It's your mind that refuses most of what's happening to you."

  Hinrik looked into those hazel eyes that seemed kind more than anything else. Keneith looked as if he really cared for him, in spite of having declared he didn't have feelings.

  "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger," Keneith continued. "You survived for twenty-five years, it means you're tougher than you think. Stop blaming others for what happens to you, and everything will be all right."

  "I'm not..." Hinrik stopped and pondered. That was exactly what he was doing – blaming his mother, his father, the people who openly despised him. Maybe it wasn't their fault, it was him. "I should probably start loving and respecting myself a little more," he admitted with a sigh. "But I can't find any virtue in me."

  "We'll have to boost that self-esteem of yours, then. Do you think you can win those competitions? Without our help?"

  Startled, Hinrik looked at Keneith's grin.

  "Why, you would have helped me?"

  "I don't like watching people get a beating. But prove to me you can win, and learn to love yourself. You're not the last of the down-and-out, Hinrik. You're young, handsome and strong. Believe in yourself and people will start falling all over you."

  Hinrik had never thought that his not loving himself might be the reason why people didn't like him much in Salamar. He had indeed been complaining and playing the victim a lot in the past. His mother often scolded him because he couldn't stand up for himself.

  "I never had a father figure to look up to," he said at last. "Can I come to you if I have doubts?"

  "Sure." Keneith smiled. "I could be your father, but I'd rather be considered an elder brother, if you don't mind."

  "Why, how old are you?"

  Hinrik gaped at the answer. Keneith looked so much younger with his black hair and oval, clean-shaven face!

  "Do you ever shave?" he asked shyly.

  "No. Perks of being half-blood. You should know."

  Hinrik scoffed and looked away. "That's why the bearded Varians did what they did. They said I didn't look like a warrior."

  "And how many were they?"

  "Five, I think."

  "Talk about cowards... five against one. You're the warrior, not them. You'd have defeated them one-to-one."

  "That's for sure!" Hinrik straightened his back proudly. "But they assaulted me all together. I was trying to help my wounded captain to get on his horse. They killed him and then toyed with me." His shoulders slumped again. "Everybody had run away and nobody came to help me..."

  "But they didn't kill you," Keneith replied. "And Bellinda healed your body. You might want to go and look for them, but revenge sometimes is really useless. Just forget about what they did to you and move on. Learn to use your mixed blood also for protection, and you will never ever hav
e to go through this again."

  "Will you teach me?" Hinrik asked, hopeful.

  "I'll do what I can," Keneith promised. "Now get some sleep. You want to beat them tomorrow or what?"

  Hinrik smiled and nodded. Now he felt the tiredness of the day again. He lay down on the bed and stared at the wooden ceiling while Keneith put out the lamp. As darkness enfolded them, Hinrik rolled on his side and hugged the pillow.

  "Thank you, Keneith. Good night."

  "Sweet dreams, Hinrik..."

  ***

  Bellinda didn't like watching men hurt each other – either playfully or hatefully – but she was worried for Hinrik, therefore she had to watch the competition. Luckily there was no tournament, only duels to prove swordsmanship and wrestling matches. And the duels were with blunt swords.

  "He might get bruised, but not badly hurt," Keneith said, watching with her as Hinrik joined the students and teachers ready to confront each other in the courtyard of the biggest school. Younger students watched from the windows above the courtyard and the parents of the final year students lined the walls, leaving room for movement.

  Bellinda and Keneith stood in a corner in the shadow of the building. The grand prize was set up behind the judges' table, with the helmet put over the pole where it hung and the battle-axe and shield on the wall behind it, probably attached to the iron rings that at night held the torches to light the courtyard.

  "Which one is your son?" a plump merchant asked them.

  "Our friend is the tall guy with strange blue eyes over there," Bellinda answered, pointing at Hinrik who was receiving his blunt dagger for the duel.

  "I think he's going to fight one of the teachers," Keneith added. "What if he wins and they want to hire him?"

  "Not everybody can be a teacher," she replied with a smile.

  "Unless it's his true calling."

  She nodded, thoughtful. She doubted Hinrik could be a good teacher. He was too much of an introvert to actually pass on what he knew.

  The students dueled first, then the teachers showed off their skills. Hinrik stood his ground, although the swordmaster was more skilled. He couldn't win the duel, but when it was time to wrestle, he beat them all.

  Bellinda had already seen his muscles, and now all the people in the courtyard whispered admiringly at the strong young man from Salamar – a city that for them could be at the end of the world, since most of them had never gone outside the walls of Baes.

  "And it's only the first day," Keneith commented while a sweaty Hinrik joined them with his tunic on his shoulder.

  "I need to go to the river," he said. "See you at the inn for dinner."

  "What's the challenge tomorrow?" Bellinda asked.

  "Archery." Hinrik quickly pulled on his tunic. "See you later."

  He squeezed himself through the crowd and left.

  "Don't you feel useless?" Keneith asked with a chuckle. "He went to the river to heal!"

  "Of course, he's known water gives him strength for years." She shrugged. "Let's see if I can fix some of these bruised young men... Maybe some parents can even pay me!"

  "Good luck. I'm going back to the Harlot, just in case Envana is there."

  "I think she prefers Hinrik," she said, skeptical. The maid had drooled over the young warrior the night before.

  "But Hinrik doesn't want her, thus Keneith scores." He winked and left too.

  She rolled her eyes. Men! And then the pain from the bruised youth hit her and she forgot her travel companions.

  ***

  Hinrik was quite happy with himself. He hadn't taken a beating on the first day of the competition and had won the archery contest on the second day. The maid at the inn kept staring longingly at him, but he wasn't sure he could do anything yet.

  His body might be healed, but he still felt battered inside. Although the schools competition was boosting his confidence a little. Keneith was right, he needed to stand up for himself. He needed to trust himself more. He wasn't stupid and had had the same training as others.

  What if he didn't need to shave? He was twenty-five, he was adult by Human standards. He shouldn't let anyone take him down only because of a lack of facial hair. And when it came to games and playful fights, he was stronger than many.

  In Baes they didn't know he was the son of an unmarried woman and a magical being. They only saw him fight like a pro. And he was a veteran after all. He wanted to win that plate armor and chainmail, the helmet, shield and battle-axe, and he set out to reach that goal.

  He accumulated points through the various games and eventually made it. The armor became his on the fifth day. He proudly wore it to go back to the tavern where the innkeeper, the maid and the dancing girls surrounded him and spoiled him for the evening.

  He managed to leave the women outside of the bedroom, though. Keneith's amused stare made him blush as he undressed and put the armor and weapons in his travel bag – except the shield that stayed against the wall.

  "We should leave tomorrow," he said. "You can pretend to be a lord and lady and I'll be your bodyguard."

  "If you want," Keneith replied. "But we don't really need a bodyguard. Since you look so impressive in that armor, though, you might keep bandits and robbers away from us. That would definitely save me the energy to raise magical protective shields!"

  "Is that what you did up to now?" Hinrik asked, puzzled.

  "Yes, I have this bad habit of surrounding myself with a magic shield when I sleep. And it usually encloses my travel companions." Keneith grinned.

  "Oh. But it's invisible."

  "It wouldn't be a magic shield if it were visible."

  "Right. Well, thank you for protecting us."

  "In the wild, not in town, of course."

  "Of course. Thank you."

  "I did it for myself, not for you. Get your beauty sleep, champion, tomorrow we leave this town!"

  Hinrik nodded and lay down on the small bed. "I like being on the road," he said as Keneith put out the oil lamp.

  "And the adventure has just begun."

  Hinrik grinned in the darkness. He looked forward to continuing his travels. He should have left as soon as his mother had passed away.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  They left Baes soon after breakfast and headed east on a road that crossed the forest. The horses had brand new shoes and seemed eager to be out of the cramped stables. The travelers had some fodder with them, but they'd better not tally until they reached the next town, Louxara. There wasn't much grass growing under the trees and the animals would fare better in a stable.

  There were marshes and meres close to the unpaved road, so water wasn't a problem. Finding a dry clearing to pitch the tent and make a fire proved to be a little more challenging, hence the more hurried pace of the next leg of the journey.

  "If we're going towards the coast, how are we going to keep the horses fed between towns?" Hinrik asked as they camped somewhere along the forest road. He glanced worried at Shytur.

  "That's a good question," Keneith said. "I traveled on foot from Kelvia, so I only had myself to care for."

  "Maybe we should resell the horses in Louxara and buy a wagon instead," Bellinda said, thoughtful.

  "You'd still need an animal to move it," Keneith said.

  "Why, can't you move it with your magic?" She batted her eyelids at him with her most innocent smile. He burst out laughing and shook his head.

  "No, Bel, I'm not wasting my energies on moving a wagon," he said leaning towards her and winking.

  She pretended to pout. "You're mean, Ken." Then she realized Hinrik had taken everything literally and stared at both of them wide-eyed. "We're joking, Hinrik. Do you think you could be a warrior without a horse?"

  "Shytur isn't a war stallion anyway," Hinrik replied, relaxing. "But I'd miss him."

  "You should really cut your ties with the past if you want to start a new life," Keneith said. "You were just a soldier in the Salamar army. Now you're the winner of the Baes fighting schools champion
ship. And there was no horsemanship in those competitions."

  Hinrik nodded, thoughtful, but didn't look happy.

  "You don't have to sell him if you don't want to," Bellinda said. "He's your horse. But I guess our money will last longer if we don't have horses to feed besides ourselves."

  "Should we go back to Baes's expansive markets?" Hinrik asked.

  "Nah, I'm sure there's a market in Louxara too..."

  ***

  Louxara was a small town built on the coast at the mouth of a river. It had wooden walls with weak gates and the nearest inn was near the entrance. The streets were in disrepair and the buildings had small backyards, including the Howling Mug Tavern that had stables in its own backyard.

  Being on the coast, the economic base of the town was fishing and the main catch halibut. It was on all menus, either boiled, deep-fried or grilled. Hinrik wrinkled his nose, since he preferred salmon or freshwater shrimp, but the cook of the inn served it with an interesting sauce that made it almost good.

  The inn was large, decently clean, but of rotten quality, with limited drink variety – to which Hinrik was very happy to prefer water – and poor food variety – nothing besides the halibut and a salad.

  The rooms were fairly small and Keneith suggested they all took single rooms. Hinrik wondered if Keneith wanted company for the night, and then decided it was a good thing they took separate rooms. He was used to sleeping alone in his own house, but had shared tents and quarters when in the army.

  The main room was crowded with many shady characters and most patrons were drunk and openly armed, which made him keep the armor on at all times – just in case. It was a good way to deter people from picking fights with him if he walked around in his armor with a sword by his side.

  The innkeeper had a foreign accent, but seemed quite hospitable.

  "Welcome to the town of rangers and thieves," he said upon seeing them. "How long do you plan to stay?"

  "Not long, I'm afraid. Our horses need new shoes, do you provide that service too?" Keneith answered.

  After lunch – the grilled halibut with the strange sauce – they went looking for the local market.