Dragon Riders of Etrea—Chapter 9

Bedrolls and saddle pillows weren’t the most comfortable things to sleep on, but the calm nature of the grasslands had them all out in no time. Henrik slept deeply, uninterrupted by dreams or loud drunks stumbling about on the street. It had been quite some time since he had slept that well, in fact. While he loved living in a city, the simple nature of sleeping peacefully had him reconsidering things.

Rasud was the last to wake, although all three of them woke with the sunrise. He stretched his arms over his head and let out a loud yawn, then twisted to each side until his back popped.

“Perhaps I should just retire out here, eh?” Rasud asked no one in particular as he clambered to his feet. “It’s rather peaceful, and as much fresh air as I can breathe. I’d build my house right…there,” he said, pointing just to the north. “No, that wouldn’t work. I’d need a stream or river nearby. I don’t know if I could dig deep enough for a well. I guess my search continues.”

“Can you create water with magic?” Tobias asked.

Rasud frowned for a moment. “Not like you think. Not in any way that would be helpful, at least.”

“What’s that even mean?” Tobias asked.

“It means he’s spent his entire life using magic to survive and kill,” Henrik explained. “So he could probably pull the water from your blood, but he can’t dig a well.”

Rasud snapped his fingers and pointed at Henrik. “My colleague here is correct. I can, in fact, pull the water from your blood. It’s rather difficult, though, so I’d prefer not to. Plus, then we wouldn’t know where to go.”

“Thanks,” Tobias said dryly.

“You’re quite welcome!” Rasud replied.

“So, onward to Limestone today?” Henrik asked as he rolled up his blankets and tied them firmly.

Tobias nodded. “Another day with only ourselves as company, so as long as Rasud here doesn’t drive us insane, I think it’ll be a peaceful time. Plus, we’ll sleep in beds tonight.”

“I do rather enjoy it out here, though,” Rasud said. “I wonder if I could simply bring a bed with me next time. Hmm….”

“Then you’d have to hitch your horse to a cart and lug all that around with you,” Tobias said, completely missing Rasud’s sarcasm. 

“Exactly how far to Limestone?” Rasud asked.

“We’ll get there this evening,” Tobias said.

“I don’t suppose the serving girls are easy in a small town like that,” Rasud said to no one in particular.

“I wouldn’t even try, that far east,” Henrik said. “Especially if they’re having trouble with orcs. No offense, my friend.”

“None taken,” Rasud said. “And you’re right. I suppose I should pull my hood forward and be mysterious for a night. Perhaps I’ll just get some rest and confer with my ancestors.”

“Probably the best bet,” Tobias said. “Country folk can be touchy at times, and you never know what might set them off. But one thing that definitely would set them off would be an orc. Or, in your case, a half-orc.”

“Okay, I get the point,” Rasud said.

“Only trying to keep you safe,” Tobias said.

“If they bother me too much, I’ll just set them on fire,” Rasud muttered.

“Can he do that?” Tobias asked.

“Hmm? Yes, he can,” Henrik said. “I’ve seen him set three men on fire before. Burned them like bacon in a matter of seconds.”

“There you go again, talking about meat,” Rasud said. “I swear, it’s gone to your brain.”

No one spoke for a time after that. The three men just enjoyed the peace of the grasslands. Birds chirped on occasion and once they saw a large rabbit scurry away, but nothing larger than that. Granted, anything larger would be difficult to skin and clean, but Henrik found himself almost shocked at how sparse the grasslands were.

“What do people do out here?” Rasud asked. “Or more specifically, in a place like Limestone?”

“Have you never left the city?” Tobias asked.

“Only once,” Rasud said. “I was running from a large-breasted beauty I had spent the night with. When she woke and sobered up, she realized I was only half human and tried to stab me.”

“Sounds like your love life has been problematic,” Tobias said, meaning for sympathy.

“Ah, that was Susie though. She was one of the good ones,” Rasud said, smiling. “She was just figuring out what her love language was.”

Henrik burst out into laughter. With Rasud, there was no way to tell if he was recounting something from his past or making it up on the spot. The stranger the stories became, the more likely they were true, that much Henrik knew. Rasud was a strange man with an endless amount of stories.

“And you, Henrik?” Tobias asked.

“Are we sharing our life stories now?” Henrik asked.

Tobias shrugged. “We have to fill this time somehow, so we’ll talk of women and wine. Unless you can think of something better. Is there anyone back home for you?”

Henrik shook his head. “No,” he said simply.

“Henrik here has known the loving embrace of a woman more than most men, but he longs for a strong woman. Isn’t that right, Henrik?” Rasud grinned at him.

“Don’t make me hit you,” Henrik replied. 

“A strong woman?” Tobias asked. “You mean a warrior woman? Someone to fight by your side?”

“Exactly,” Henrik said. “Sitting at home in front of a fireplace is not the life for me, at least not until I’m old and gray. I want to go out and grab life by the horns, and what better way to do it than with a woman by my side? A fierce woman that will watch my back during the day and warm my blankets at night.”

“Sorry, I look bad in a dress,” Rasud said with an exaggerated sigh. “Although I doubt many women could live up to the standard I’ve set in terms of battle prowess.”

Tobias frowned. “What’s that even mean? Are you saying you wear dresses?”

“No!” Rasud huffed. “I’m clearly joking, Tobias. Really, you need to learn to better appreciate my efforts, here.”

Tobias ran his fingers through his hair. “You are a strange man, Rasud,” he said.

“Thank you,” Rasud replied. “Did you want to finish your story, Henrik? You’ve lived an interesting life, after all.”

Henrik pursed his lips and thought. He still didn’t trust Tobias, but there was no harm in sharing life stories. As he said, they had to pass the time somehow.

“My early years are a bit fuzzy,” he began. “But from what I remember and have been able to piece together, I was sold to slavers as a young child. Or perhaps people posing as honest citizens, but they were secretly slavers. Either way, one of my earliest memories is being torn from my mother’s arms. I cried as they beat her.”

Tobias blinked. “I wasn’t expecting that.”

Henrik grunted. “It shaped me. I worked with the slavers until I was about eight, and tried to escape every chance I got.”

“He has the scars to prove it,” Rasud added.

“I finally managed to sneak away and came back to the city. After asking around, I found an orphanage, and spent the rest of my childhood there. That’s where I met Rasud.”

“I’m sorry you had to go through all that,” Tobias said. “So you know nothing of your parents?”

Henrik shook his head. “Shortly after I arrived at the orphanage, the head mistress told me she might have seen my mother. She said the woman had visited the orphanage several times, looking for a child that fit my description. Her last visit was several months before I arrived.”

“So you never saw her?” Tobias asked.

“No,” Henrik said. “On her last visit, she wept for an hour and said she had lost all hope in life. After that, she left.”

“Do you think you could find her?”

Henrik shrugged. “Probably not. That was around fifteen years ago.”

“Well, that explains your brooding nature, but let’s talk of happier things,” Rasud said. “Do you think they’ll have wine in Limestone?”

“Wine?” Tobias shook his head. “No, a small town like that is more likely to have beer. They get enough travelers that the beer should be fresh, at least. Good wine is much more difficult to make than good beer.” He gestured out to the side. “Besides, this looks like the perfect place to grow barley.”

“I shall have to ask my ancestors if they can turn beer into wine,” Rasud said.

Tobias turned and looked a question at him.

“His magic,” Henrik explained. “The spirits of his ancestors do things for him.”

Tobias blinked. “Is this one of your jokes again?”

Rasud shook his head. “It comes from my orc blood. The gift is very rare among them, even rarer so for a halfbreed. But it’s rather strong with me. Yes, I can confer with the spirits of my ancestors. They are restless in the afterlife, so it’s easy to have them do things for me.”

“Things like….” Tobias began.

“Remember the man in Selfoss yesterday?” Rasud asked. “I asked the spirits to break his leg. They were eager to help.”

Tobias frowned. “So these spirits. They’re violent?”

“Not really,” Rasud said. “But they are my ancestors. They enjoy helping me and seeing me succeed, and they are fierce when it comes to fighting for me. Plus, when I call on them, they get a taste of life again. It’s a win-win situation for both of us.”

“Fascinating,” Tobias said. “I have never heard of this kind of magic.”

“Most people haven’t, outside of the orcs,” Rasud said. “Interestingly enough, I cannot learn what you would call normal magic. I have no ability with it whatsoever.”

“And what about you, big man?” Tobias asked, looking over at Henrik.

“Huh?” Henrik asked.

“Any special talents, other than what we’ve seen with a bow?” Tobias clarified.

Henrik shrugged. He didn’t like talking about himself, unless maybe he was threatening someone.

“My friend here is too modest to boast,” Rasud said. “But you can travel for a hundred miles in any direction and you won’t find someone that can best him with a sword. Or fists, for that matter.”

“Is that so?” Tobias asked, looking at him in a new light. “Shame we don’t have any practice blades handy. I would enjoy a sparring partner.”

Henrik just shrugged again.

“Really, we have to work on your social skills, Henrik,” Rasud said. “You can’t just whore and fight your way through life.”

“I can certainly try,” Henrik said.

“Well, as long as you don’t mix the two and start fighting whores,” Rasud said. “I won’t stand for that.”

Henrik just rolled his eyes.

“How long have you two been working together?” Tobias asked after a period of silence.

Rasud and Henrik looked at each other. “Since we first met,” Henrik replied.

“We grew up in the same orphanage, remember,” Rasud explained. “On the south side of the city. One meant for halfbreeds and other outcasts. Not the best place, but the mothers there did their best.”

Tobias frowned for a moment. “I don’t know if it’s something that’s important to you or not, but when we get back you could probably convince Duke Ardun to donate some money to that orphanage. Even a small donation from him will fund them for a decade.”

“That is something to consider. I thank you,” Rasud said.

They rode in silence for a while after that, eating a cold lunch in the saddle. Rasud managed to keep his complaining to a minimum while munching on crusty bread and hard cheese, but he made it clear he wouldn’t be touching any of the dried meat. Henrik just took it for himself. He ate twice as much as the small man anyways, so he could use the extra food.

And finally, as the evening sun was approaching the horizon, the town of Limestone came into view.