Dim Prisons and Drakes, chapter 52. (Patreon)

Somehow, this wasn't posted. In a weird coincidence, just like the last time I posted this tale, one of the chapters seems to have been eaten by the site. Or I somehow just... didn't post it. Anyway, here it is, out of order and presented completely unprofessionally. Sorry, and please enjoy.

The forest was beautiful, as forests were wont to be. The elves were hidden, as elves were wont to be. Well, all but the one keeping pace with us, a far too serious guy who was wearing leather armor over green cloth, along with an actual ranger hat of all things, complete with the gold braided trim.

It made him look a bit of a tool, but I wasn't about to tell him that; he was far too sour faced to banter with. He was blond and a bit tall for one of us, with that lithe swimmer's build that spoke of easy outdoor work and a slight tan that also spoke of easy outdoor work.

So far, after a day, he'd struck me as that classic mayor or rich man's son archetype, a guy who hadn't really had much struggle in his life, and so he thought he could do no wrong.

I couldn't really hate him for it, but he wasn't making it hard to guess how he felt about us, and of course, if you act like someone you just met is an annoyance to you, then those people rapidly begin to pick up on it and consider you a nuisance all on your own.

An elven chad-bro douche was not what I was expecting, but it was a little refreshing, in a way.

What was even more refreshing was how Randolf was handling things: "Hey, you said we were close before; how far now?"

The variations of 'are we there yet' were coming fast and furious. I swear, he was an overgrown child sometimes. For whatever reason, though, it was funny this time, and I found myself hiding my smile more than once as the too-serious park ranger swept his eyes across us.

He answered again. "Just a few hours now at most. Less if you'll all move faster."

That was the same answer he gave last time, of course. He didn't notice, but Randolf ever so slightly slowed down as the elf glared at Ethan. Ethan also slowed down just a touch as that glare switched to the road ahead.

We all matched their new pace. I'd be high-fiving both later.

It said a lot about someone, when even Karl was low-key trolling them. This guy should never have been put in charge of us.

Poe had a better answer, of course. I'd kept him with me for the entirety of the other day, but with the morning, I'd let him fly. I'd been worried the elves would take it as a case of spying, but no one had said anything to me, and I'd detected no hostile actions taken against my somewhat fragile familiar.

It was spying, of course, as my familiar could make out the elves around us, and had even seen the small village, which was pretty much a series of tree houses writ larger. Complete stereotyping on the part of whatever happened, which raised a few questions I'd like to have answered. Chiefly, 'how much did our thoughts influence whatever happened?' It seemed like either our thoughts on elves might have influenced this area, or maybe whatever happened here influenced our thoughts somehow. Maybe even past events, if such events had happened.

The village was well hidden, but not as the crow flew. I half expected a road leading to it, but if there was one, Poe couldn't find it. Still, one had to exist, if only for trade. Surely these people weren't going to backpack all the heavy things they needed in when a single wheeled cart could do the job; that'd be silly.

It was refreshing to see the pristine forest, though. Refreshing in a way I couldn't really explain, but in a way I was sure I'd felt before, as a kid on vacation to Maine. Watching some of the elves remove dead brush and tree matter with my sky-high view was quite convincing; these people really were on the up and up, and meant what they'd said.

They weren't going to let anyone else log here, and I pitied anyone who tried. Some of that dead wood was still good, though, and with treatment, it'd be fine to use. A shame about trees taking so long to grow; there would be more places like this, where people would come into conflict over trees.

All sorts of things, really; with our manufacturing and shipping systems down, it was likely already happening, but it seemed particularly stupid to have it happen over trees.

Next, it'd be clear water, I was sure. There was a river through this area, and several streams. We hadn't had trouble finding freshwater since whatever had happened, happened. But as sure as the sun would come up tomorrow, some idiot would start a war over it.

Karl signaled me, asking me how close we were to getting out of here, and I signaled back the proper answer. The elves ignored our flashing hand signs, as was only polite when you were playing host to weirdos like us, and we moved on.

Randolf opened his mouth again, and this time Karl's flashing signs were directed at him; the man saw and closed his mouth without a word.

I could just barely make out the sigh of relief from our erstwhile guide.

A deep breath brought the enjoyable smells to me; I wouldn't have these simple pleasures much longer.

"Missing it already?"

Matt knew me too well. "In a way. It's.... nice. refreshing, somehow. The smell of pine and maple, the flowers, the sounds, it's not like back home."

Matt nodded. "Yeah, I get you. Maybe we can stop by on the way back, no matter what happens. I believe we'll all need a vacation after this."

Never was a statement more true. If we figured out what happened or not, I at least would need some down time, and Matt would join me whether he felt he did or not. That was just how he was.

"We would be happy to host you should you come back," our host replied, and it occurred to me that I didn't remember the man's name. That I hadn't really tried to.

He clearly knew who I was, though, since he'd only addressed me personally with polite respect. It was obvious enough that everyone else had noticed, even though they weren't saying anything.

Still, that was another talk for later, when there wasn't over a dozen extra ears to hear.

That wouldn't be today, I was sure. We were about to be escorted out of the area whether we knew or not, whether we cared or not. I could see the party of people - elves, in place at the border of the forest to do it.

They also had a bear. What is it with these people and bears? How the hell did they hide a bear in grass? Poe was the only way to see them, I was sure.

Then the sun was before us, a clear line of demarcation. A few more steps and we were out. Our supposed guide stopped.

"This is as far as I go. Keep following the road here, and it'll lead you to the old capital. There should be signs, but even if there aren't, if you stick to the road you should be fine."

He sounded so sure, I had to ask. "Have you been down there?"

"Not since whatever happened," came the expected reply. "But last year, it was a straight shot down the road. We haven't been able to go check anything; there aren't enough of us to do our jobs as is."

That was a clear lie; they had dozens just hanging out in grasslands in front of this stretch of forest. My guess is they didn't want to leave, and had no desire to check things out. No wanderlust or curiosity at all, perhaps.

That was fine; we didn't all have to, but it seemed to be a little odd. Another piece of the puzzle? Who could say?

Another question, for sure. One that would go into the journal.

We kept going, stepping out into the sun, and I of course was blinded instantly for a good few seconds.

I blinked the gentle but surprising amount of light clear to find my friends waiting patiently for me. Karl and Randolf had their arms folded, a clear sign of irritation.

"Shade your eyes next time, noob." Matt scolded.

"I was a little focused on other things, scrub."

I wasn't lying; it wasn't like Poe was affected by the light change since he'd been in it from the start. I could tell the elves were amused at the sight of me staggering around, even if I couldn't tell from my other set. Seriously, not a rustle in that grass.

Karl got into the action: "Focus on the here and now please, and leave the other stuff to when we aren't in some kind of danger or another."

As if we were in danger. "We'd been granted safe passage; we weren't in any danger."

Even if you had me making sure, and even if I'd agreed with the precaution, I wasn't going to admit as much while these people were around, and Karl should know it.

His eyes narrowed, but he said nothing; he simply turned around and started off.

We all fell in behind.

"Try not to trip," Randolf stage-whispered out.

Whatever, never let it be said I couldn't make - or take - a joke. So I mock protested: "I haven't done that in at least a week!"

I smirked at him, and he smirked back. It was a smirk-off!

Hm, that made me think of Smirnoff. I could use some. Maybe some white Russians.

Hell, I'd settle for some of that rotgut ale at this point. I wonder if the capital had honey mead? They should probably have honey mead.

"Thoughts?" Matt asked.

"Ale, actually."

"Hell yeah," Matt enthused immediately. "I'm all for that. Strong ale and women of ill repute."

He could keep the women, and I told him so. In response, he got a crafty look on his face. Crafty enough that I put two and two together.

"Not like that. I'm just saying, ill-repute has never been my thing; it's more of a you thing."

"I mean, you're not wrong. Fine then, let's find you a GND to cuddle next to."

Les looked confused. "A GND?"

Matt was all too happy to explain because he'd been waiting for someone to step into the verbal trap: "A girl next door. The quiet beauty that likes wholesome things and just might be, if you are very lucky, an absolute freak in the sheets."

Les just shook his head. "I'm not sure what's worse. The fact that you have an acronym for that, or the fact that I understood you there."

Matt leaned over and clapped him on the shoulder: "You're a holy man, but you're not dead."

Then, with his ominous threat delivered, he turned and sped up a bit, no doubt trying to avoid the awkwardness he had tried to sew in the ranks.

Les just looked to me. What could I do but look back and shrug?

I wasn't even sure what this body was into. No, that wasn't quite true, I had an inkling, but I wasn't about to entertain it, no matter what. I'd find out what happened, and work to fix it, and then everything would be back to normal and I wouldn't have to worry about it. The same for everyone else.

Les looked like he knew a little bit of that himself. Maybe we were due another heart-to-heart tonight. Surely our elven friends would fuck off home by tonight, even if they showed no sign of doing so now.

I'm sure they were revealing themselves to me on purpose, as a courtesy. The only other one of us I knew for sure that knew they were there was Thom. Though Phil was sticking closer than he normally did, that could just be natural caution though.

"We missed another chance at horses," Karl sighed out. Loudly, so maybe he knew too.

"Not sure the elves would have given us any, even if they had some." Who would just hand us valuable transport, even if we could pay?

"Good point. Still, I probably should have asked," came the reply.

I hadn't seen a single elf on a horse the entire time. They all seemed pre-occupied with their feet. "There will be another town close enough; we can ask there."

"Right. They will likely care more for the gold we're carrying. Such as it is."

We were very close to broke, even with the jobs we'd done along the way and the rewards we'd gotten. Turns out saving a bunch of knights from certain death and the loss of a castle or a bunch of villagers from certain death didn't pay as well as it should.

Horses would likely wipe us out cash wise, but we had enough equipment and food to manage. We'd all have to get jobs once we made it to the capital, though. Not that we couldn't find work. Not that I couldn't find work; a magic user of my caliber should be sought after, even in a place where I could likely throw a stone and hit one.

Once we made it there, I'd scout for safe places, maybe even buy one, and make a way to teleport to it. Then we could go home as needed, and I could just pop back to learn what everyone else had learned.

Assuming the problem hadn't already been discovered, that is.

I was really hoping better heads than mine had already worked the problem; if the world relied on me to figure it out, they were bound to be disappointed.

"So. Want to play a game?"

Ugh. "No Les, no one wants to play your game." His game was always 'I spy' and it always sucked because there was only so much you could see, none of it was really interesting, and we had whole minutes to guess because we weren't speeding along in a car.

"No thanks," Matt agreed with me. "Once was enough."

"Spoil sports. It could always be Randy singing the one song he knows."

Oh Gods, please no.

Randolf just grinned and stayed mercifully silent.

The silence was golden, and it last until the sun began to set and the grass began to give way to farmland. We'd made good time - at least I thought so - and the lands of civilization we all recognized were ahead.

I was able to pinpoint the moment the elves stopped shadowing us. I had Poe do a wing over to say goodbye. It was returned with a smile by the group that saw it.

"Think we'll make a town by nightfall?"

Of course Karl was asking me, because of course Poe was supposed to be scouting ahead. Even so, I knew enough of what was going on around us.

"Got about another hour's walk at this pace." Plenty of time, really. Poe could see a good distance when the ground was this flat, so I wasn't lying; there was a town or village ahead, and while there were fires, it wasn't on fire. Always a plus, and not something we could take for granted.

The road was as straight as the ground was level; beautiful in its own way.

"Does it look big enough for us to get horses there?"

Right, because of course he'd ask that. "Can't really say; maybe? If so, they won't be good quality. Draft animals might be the best we can get."

Though there was one building there, right in the village, that looked large and shone a bit in the sun as if it were stone. Interesting.

"Before you ask, nothing on the road between us and the place, and no ambushes I can spot. Nothing lethal to us anywhere nearby."

"Right. At least there's that." Karl just stepped it up, setting the pace a bit faster.

Nothing we couldn't keep up with, of course. Even if it made Ethan puff along like an asthmatic.

So much of adventuring was walking, always walking. It felt like such a waste of time, in a way - but it was the best we had. I could summon my own mount, of course, but that felt like a betrayal of sorts to my companions, and I'd still have to go slowly. An elemental spirit of wind in the shape of a horse would be pretty sweet, though.

Maybe I could take the time and build a magic carpet or something, that would be even better. what would I even need for such a thing, other than the obvious carpet? A tentative list came to mind....

"Hey, wake up. Town's coming into view. It's got a fort in it."

Matt's words brought me out of my fog. There was indeed a small fort in the town - the stone building I'd spotted before was a two story square block with four three story towers on each side, surrounded by a small wall that also had four towers. Poe could see a small yard and some stables there, and the movement of knights along the walls and horses in that yard.

"Looks like some sort of medieval cop station, or a knight chapter house."

The other buildings were all made of wood, and there was no wall around them; the village was completely open. There were people walking about and doing various tasks, and all seemed well. The difference from the village on the other side of the forest was night and day.

"How's it look?" Karl asked, dropping his 'waiting patiently' act.

"Looks peaceful. There are knights around. I count four visible, so there are probably eight total? I can't imagine that many fit in that building all at once. Maybe ten max."

It was a sturdy little mini-fort, but there wasn't that much space to it all told.

"Two guards over the main road, nothing else. Both knights." They looked young, but walked like the ones we'd helped had... like hardened veterans.

"Whatever, we can take 'em," Randolf added, the bloodthirsty bastard.

"The point isn't to take them," Karl reminded. "The point is to see how suspicious they are, to see if they want to take us."

"Doesn't look like it. If I had to guess, this place is peaceful because the elves filter out the riff-raff from this direction, and the other directions have other chapter houses like this one that deal with the other stuff."

"You're probably right," Les agreed. "It's unlikely anything truly dangerous comes this way."

I could see the moment when the knight stopped pacing the road and faced us; the moment he stiffened. "We're spotted."

There was no alarm that I could hear, but moments later, not even twenty steps later, three of the four knights I'd seen were on the road and facing us.

No shields were up, no weapons drawn, they gave every appearance of just casually waiting around.

We were close enough for everyone else to make them out by this point, so I didn't state the obvious.

More walking until we got in range; I felt like we were doing this a lot too. Far too often, really.

The knights struck first, but in a good way: "Hello!"

"Hello," Karl returned. "Are we welcome here?"

The knight had the grace to look confused. "Why wouldn't you be? You here to cause trouble?"

"No."

He was far too lax... and he didn't look a day over twenty-five. "Then sure. What brings you?"

"Heading to the capital."

One of the other knights, darker colored physically and in tone, muttered his thoughts loud enough to hear: "Another one of those, then. You owe me a gold, Marcus."

Karl sounded as amused as I was: "Another one of what?"

The guy looked us in the eyes. "Another group heading to the capital, hoping to find the answers there. You're not the first, and probably won't be the last."

I see. Made sense, really. It was even something we were looking for, that sharing of information. "How many?"

"Youre the third one this week, but the first to come by this route. where did you travel from?"

I saw no reason to hide it, and neither did Karl: "The far side of Ohio."

"A respectable distance, have any trouble?"

More than you could know, little knight. "Some fair bit. You guys seem well-informed."

The knight nodded, conceding the point. "Well, we are fairly close. We get rotated out every couple of weeks, and last time we were there, we saw the other groups. The city is packed to the gills right now with people like yourself, all trying to figure out what happened and why. As of a week ago, there was no announcement of any discoveries, so I wish you luck in that."

The man sounded like he'd either given up hope or didn't care in the first place what happened. Maybe he was satisfied with his lot in life now. The guy next to him, with a knot of rank on his shoulder, shot him a rapid look of supreme disgust.

"Come on, you're no doubt tired from your journey. There is a small inn, which is fortunately empty. You can rent it out."

"Have any horses for sale around here?"

The knight in charge shook his head. "Not us. Just our mounts and one spare in case of accident. The farmers might, but I would recommend buying those. They aren't in good shape."

"You think the capital might have some?"

All Karl got were head shakes for the trouble of asking that one. The ranked knight answered, at least. "No, not with all the extra people there. I mean, you can try it, but I don't think we have much spare anything."

Didn't that sound ominous?

"Typical," was all Karl sighed out in reply.