The Wizard's Chalice, page 19
part #2 of Gags & Pepper: Protection Agents Series
Soxus showed up. “You liked that?” His eyes were on the pail. Gags had put everything back including the paper.
“My compliments to the cook. A great breakfast.”
Soxus gave Gags a knowing smile. “I thought you’d like it. The cook is a Perian and said he’d know what you’d like.”
“He was right.” Gags hoped he would be able to talk to the cook about the Calessian spice. That might be something he could import or recreate in Yearsend.
“Leave that here. We are going to visit Honian,” Soxus said. “I don’t have to tell you to watch what you say.”
“But you did, anyway,” Gags said. “I’ll take your advice.”
Soxus took Gags to Honian’s cabin. The merchant was behind his desk.
“Both of you can sit. This is an informal meeting. I’ve already talked to your partner,” Honian said to Gags, who nodded without replying.
“My niece wanted you two along. Mexius wanted you killed.”
“And you?” Gags asked.
Honian smiled. “I am a practical businessman. You and your partner are assets that can be useful to me, so I dragged you along. Mexius is…”
Gags was interested how Honian would describe Portia’s husband.
“…a fool, but I’m sure you share in that assessment.”
“But he is an asset who can be useful to you.”
“Indeed. I could make a lot of money through Mexius. How much money can I make working with your partner and you?”
“Your life is worth more than money?” Gags said. “We can help ensure the fool doesn’t make a mistake that is fatal to you, or Soxus, or Patricia.”
“Not a bad answer,” Honian said, “but not the best one.” He leaned forward. “I will allow you and your partner to proceed to Sheerport. Soxus will be your direct contact, not Patricia. Tibbeus Pepper will return to your cabin. I’m not comfortable with his current accommodations. I don’t want you on the open deck when Mexius is around.”
“I can eat what I want?”
“Soxus will be eating with you. No gorging, understand?”
Gags nodded. “I will behave.”
Honian glared at Gags. “You better.”
~
Soxus brought their weapons to the cabin with Pepper carrying his own along with a bag of clothes that Gags knew Pepper had never bought.
“You brought Patricia’s pet with you?” Gags said to Soxus.
Pepper frowned, but that made Gags laugh even more. “Did she take good care of you?”
Lifting his chin, Pepper said, “Better care than Soxus took care of you.”
“He was nice to me in his own way,” Gags said. “You will note I’m not banished to the hold.”
Pepper’s eyebrows went up. “What did you do?”
“Our friend was like an animal searching through the garbage dump for food.”
“And you were caught?” Pepper asked.
“I was,” Gags said. “That was why Soxus answered the door this morning. And what did you do last night?”
Pepper turned red. “Patricia put me to sleep.”
Soxus grinned. “Honian told me that you two spent the night together.”
“I was asleep the whole time. I suppose she wanted a bed warmer,” Pepper said. “I woke up in the servant’s bed and there she was.”
“A likely story. I’m sure Honian wasn’t happy to hear of your adventure with Lady Patricia,” Soxus said.
“He didn’t tell you?” Pepper said.
Soxus laughed. “And I wasn’t about to ask!”
Gags went through Pepper’s bag and found a pair of black silk pants.
Pepper protested. “Don’t go through my things!”
“Are these yours?” Gags asked.
“Perhaps it’s time to go to the main deck,” Pepper said turning red as he said it, and pulling the sword out of the scabbard a few inches before slamming it home.
Gags grinned. “Do you want to join us on deck, Soxus?”
“There is no want,” Soxus said. “I will. Remember, Honian said no visit to the main deck if Mexius is there.”
“Let’s hope he is lubricating his organs with alcohol,” Pepper said.
“Is there a reason for that statement?” Gags asked.
“He visited Patricia and me last night. That is when she put me to sleep,” Pepper said.
Soxus laughed. “He caught you in an embrace?”
Pepper’s eyes grew. “How did you know?”
Soxus bent over, still laughing. “I didn’t, until now. That sounds like Lady Patricia.” He straightened up. “I’ll go check on the deck.”
After getting the all clear, they assembled on the deck. The seas weren’t calm, but Gags always thought that a mildly rolling ship was good for balance. He led them in warmups. Pepper was familiar with Gags’s routine by now, but Soxus needed a little schooling.
Soxus worked hard. “What’s next?” he said to Gags.
“A little sparring,” Pepper said. “I’ll watch.”
“No,” Gags said. “I’ll do the watching. I’ll stop you when I spot something.”
“But I’m not in shape,” Pepper said.
“Do you want to land in Sheerport without being in fighting shape?” Gags asked.
Soxus narrowed his eyes. “Why should he be in fighting shape?”
“Do you know what we will face when we land?” Gags asked Soxus. “I don’t, but Honian has agreed to come.”
“And you trust Mexius?” Gags asked. “I don’t.
“I don’t either,” Pepper said.
“Does that make two of us or three of us?” Gags asked.
“Three,” Soxus said quietly.
Pepper and Soxus faced off. Pepper worked hard and gave Soxus a challenge, although Gags would give the sparring match to Pepper. He noticed Pepper glancing at the steering deck and Gags followed his eyes to see Patricia looking on. Patricia’s bright eyes looked at Pepper with interest. Although Honian’s niece did some unexplainable things, it was clear to Gags that she had true feelings for his partner. Gags wondered how or when her feelings would be tested and how Pepper would react.
“Your turn,” Soxus said.
Gags grinned and gave Soxus a clinic on Perian swordsmanship before they faced each other. Soxus needed to learn He Bin’s technique for putting sips of magic into his swordplay.
Soxus turned to look at the door opening onto the deck, and out staggered Mexius.
“Time to get back to your cabin. We will get another chance, later,” Soxus said.
Mexius didn’t notice them as he made it to the railing, leaning over the edge.
“Now,” Soxus said quietly and they left the main deck to the tune of Mexius retching into the sea.
Chapter Twenty-Five
~
G ags felt like he was ready to face whatever happened in Sheerport, as he looked out the miniscule porthole at the Perian coastline. If he looked out the edge, he could see the ship approaching the port. Soxus was helping Mexius and Patricia get ready for shore. Soxus told Pepper that Patricia had asked her uncle to have Pepper personally help her, but Honian would have none of it.
The couple didn’t have much time together during the voyage, but Patricia was allowed to have both Gags and Pepper join her for the final dinner before landing. Gags let them sit on the servant’s bed with the closet door partially closed while he finished what Pepper and Patricia didn’t eat. Soxus had broken that discussion up by entering Patricia’s cabin and escorting Gags and Pepper to their cabin.
“Will they allow us to buy some new clothes?” Pepper asked. “I can hardly wear those silk things that Patricia gave me.”
“I hope so,” Gags said.
The ship put in and Soxus made Gags and Pepper stay in their cabin until everything was unloaded. “They want to get the children off the ship before we can do anything about it,” Gags said.
“Then we can escape?” Pepper said.
“Do you want to escape? You’ll never see Patricia again if we do.”
Pepper frowned. “I’m thinking about it. She wouldn’t be the first girl I’ve left.”
“Or the first one that’s left you?” Gags said trying to distract his friend.
“That, too.”
Soxus stuck his head in the cabin. “Time to leave this bucket,” Soxus said. “I never like being on the sea,” he said. “Give me the open space of the dry lands.”
They didn’t have much to take with them other than the bag of useless clothes that Pepper carried. They saw a box wagon leave the docks while Mexius, Honian, and Patricia stood next to a carriage looking up at them.
Gags was glad to return to Perian soil, but he really wanted to get another letter off to Pophius and another to Portia, and he hoped he’d get his opportunity before they were made to travel to Fetishing.
“Go to the carriage,” Soxus said. He held a knife to Pepper’s back. “I’m sorry, but I have to do this.”
Gags shrugged. He had expected to be put to sleep again. “I wish you were threatening Mexius rather than Pepper. I’d refuse to leave the ship.”
Soxus smiled and shook his head. “Please don’t make me laugh. It isn’t a good look.”
They walked down the gangway and Pepper was ushered into the carriage where Patricia made a show of putting Pepper to sleep.
“A combination,” Gags said to himself, as he noticed two saddled horses being brought up.
“You and I will ride,” Soxus said.
“I don’t understand why you don’t let us go.”
Soxus sighed. “It isn’t my decision at this point.”
Gags noticed the qualifier in Soxus’s reply. “I need to get two letters off. Can you let me do that?”
“Who to?”
“Mexius’s wife, who still is my true client, and to my associates at Yearsend.”
“What are you going to tell Mexius’s wife?”
“I’ll tell her that Mexius is back in Peria and that our contract has ended. My letter to Yearsend will let them know that I am still breathing as of the date I send the letter.”
“Let’s hope you breathe long after that,” Soxus said with a wink.
“So do I,” Gags said.
“We will be staying at an inn tonight. If no other opportunity arises, you can write your letters and leave them with the innkeeper.”
Gags nodded. “Thanks.”
“Don’t mention it. If you do, I’ll probably be in trouble.”
The carriage rolled away from the docks followed by Soxus and Gags on horseback. They headed north out of Sheerport. They passed a large depot filled with wagons waiting for guards and a wagon master to lead them to points north. Gags wanted to see if the Sheerport people were as bad as the ones on the other end of the road far to the north, but he didn’t have the time.
A few hours later, they stopped at a roadside restaurant to eat lunch. Pepper still slumbered in the carriage while they ate. Gags wanted to order two plates but Honian wouldn’t permit it, since he was paying. Not far from the restaurant they took a road west and stopped in the late afternoon at a small town. They rode through the central square and Gags observed the market filled with people. He also spotted a post house with two post carriages waiting outside.
“I need to buy some clothes. Can you escort me to the market? I know Pepper’s size, so I’ll get him something more sensible than what he has.”
“And you’ll visit the post house? Isn’t that where letters are sent?”
“Oh, was there one?” Gags said with a half-smile.
“I’ll get permission,” Soxus said.
The carriage turned into a stableyard and Gags and Soxus followed them inside.
Gags helped Soxus carry Pepper up backstairs and into a room with four beds.
“We will sleep in here tonight,” Soxus said. “You will have to be put asleep, but Patricia said she knows how to make it so you wake in the morning.”
“She should,” Gags said. “What about the market?”
Soxus nodded. “Permission granted. Don’t take advantage of me, and you must leave your weapons in the room.”
“I will gladly concede,” Gags said.
Pepper was tucked in and they walked to the market. Gags walked through the market once to see who sold the best clothes for the best price, and then he purchased two sets of clothes for himself and Pepper using hidden money from his boot.
“Now for the post house,” Gags said. He was about to walk out of the market and across the street when Soxus grabbed his sleeve.
“Mexius,” Soxus said, nodding toward the building. Mexius walked down the steps and entered a pub.
“Now can I go?” Gags asked.
“Yes.”
The letters were short and Pepper had to think hard about what to say on each of them since Soxus insisted on watching what he wrote. When his messages were complete, he sent them off. He felt bad about the letter to Portia. She would be disappointed and heartbroken that Mexius would abscond with their savings, but Gags thought Portia was a strong woman and would find a way to recover.
The letter to Yearsend only said that Pepper and he were fine and were on their way to Fetishing as part of their contract. He put in a line to make sure Pophius let Miria know that he’d be returning home soon.
On their way to the inn, Soxus smiled. “Can Pophius talk to the unicorn that is supposedly in Dixoia?”
“Ah, I told you her name, didn’t I?”
“On the way to Basheer. It was a memorable story,” Soxus said. “Do you really think your friends will find you in Fetishing in time to save you? Isn’t Yearsend weeks away?”
“Less with hard riding,” Gags said. “Why didn’t you stop me from sending it?”
“I wouldn’t mind meeting what kind of people you are surrounding yourself with. I thought there wasn’t much to Pepper, but it took a unique person to get into the tomb in Rezzura.”
“And that is why he’s my partner. He can do things I can’t,” Gags said.
“And the others?” Soxus asked.
“They have their own unique points. Maybe you’ll find out.” Gags hoped he’d live long enough to see the day that happened. He didn’t tell Soxus that someone could get from Yearsend to Fetishing in a week, if they rode hard.
Chapter Twenty-Six
~
P epper woke, washed, put on the new clothes that Gags had bought, ate breakfast, and was promptly put back to sleep. Gags and Soxus rode behind the carriage again. Fetishing was two days away according to the area map that Gags had tried to memorize in the post house.
“What about the children?” Gags said once the carriage was underway.
“They are being escorted by local guards and are a day ahead of us,” Soxus said. “We will see them again after we’ve been to Fetishing.”
Gags would have gladly left Honian to his own devices, but Pepper was still held hostage and Gags began to wonder why they kept them alive. The only reason Gags could come up with was that they knew too much.
They spent the next night at a roadside inn on a crossroads. The fief of Fetishing began on the other side of the crossroads and according to the innkeeper, the city was four or five hours away by coach. That matched the mental map that Gags had made of the area and after three days, they approached the city of Fetishing.
Fetishing had seen better times. The current population was much smaller than once graced the city. Gags guessed that half or less of the buildings were occupied. They passed through districts where buildings had been knocked down for building materials. If Gags had to name a decaying city, Fetishing would be the first on his list, but as they approached the center, the place looked normal except that many of the bricks on the walls didn’t seem to match. The buildings were in better repair, people, wagons, carts, and carriages began to fill the streets.
Gags shrugged as they rode block after block. Fetishing was once the capital of all of south Peria including Karkle Cross, but those days were long gone after countless wars. The decay of an empire left Fetishing a crumbling remnant of ancient glory. There were mansions that were well maintained amidst other mansions that looked more like the outskirts of Fetishing, ready to crumble into a pile of bricks.
They turned into the central square, much too ambitious for the current city. The palace rose five stories to dominate the square. Repairs through the centuries had made the walls a patchwork of colors. What was originally ornate carvings had worn to nubs, knobs, or shapeless pillars.
“The Emperor of Fettuchia once sat in court there,” Gags told Soxus.
“Really?”
Gags gave a brief history of the southern empire. “Before Fettuchia, the Perian Emperor ruled over the entire continent for five hundred years, so the histories say, in an ancient lost city called Go-Greva,” Gags said.
“Maybe it isn’t so lost,” Soxus said. He held up his hand. “I won’t say another word. It is up to Honian to tell you his part of the tale.”
“I thought he hadn’t been here before.”
Soxus smiled. “Mexius has been here a few times, or so he says.”
“Are we close to the inn?”
Soxus shook his head. “No inn, tonight. We will be dining with the Lord of Fetishing, who fancies himself as a future king.”
Gags barked a laugh. “No way. Fetishing isn’t any more a kingdom than Karkle Cross is.”
“You’ll see.”
Gags was going to ignore all that Soxus said until they went through the square, and after Soxus rode to the front to talk to the guards, the gate entered and Gags wondered who was right.
They rode around the back to a stable that looked rebuilt from a selection of building materials like the rest of the buildings in the city.
“Out,” Mexius said, having gained some confidence as they entered Fetishing, but he was on home ground, it seemed. He helped Patricia down from the carriage and then he graced Honian with a little assistance and the three of them walked up the impressively wide steps and through a palace door.
