The mason yawned and stretched his arms as he slowly awoke. He had to admit, Elf made beds were the most comfortable to sleep upon, and left a person feeling more refreshed than an individual ever thought possible.
As his mind and eyes gained focus, he scanned the bed, then the room for his son. But the boy was nowhere to be seen. He then heard laughter drifting in through the room’s open door, and his steadily increasing heart rate slowed.
The big man entered the main living area of the Elf’s house, only to find his son enthralled as Suds recounted stories to him.
For several minutes, the mason just stood in the doorway of the room and watched on as his boy clapped and laughed at the ridiculous tales the Elf told.
The Elf’s eye flicked to him, then returned to his son. “Seems your father has finally decided to honor us with his presence. So would you mind helping me with breakfast, Faen?”
The boy jumped to his feet. “Of course. What do you want me to do?”
“Well, if you could cook it, serve it, then tidy away, that would be marvelous.”
“And what are you going to do?”
“Why, watch of course.”
The boy rolled his eyes then looked at his father. “Morning, Da. Are eggs alright?”
The mason nodded and strolled over to where the Elf sat. “Did you sleep?”
The Elf shrugged. “A little. Just enough to catch up with old friends.”
“Old friends?”
The Elf waved away the big man’s confused question. “I have packed everything we might need for our journey. As soon as we’ve eaten, we should head out.”
The mason nodded as he watched his son place a giant frying pan on a rack above the flames of the fire. “Have you thought much about the route we should take?”
The Elf crossed his arms over his chest and looked up at the ceiling as he contemplated the mason’s words.
“Where are we going?” the boy asked as he started to crack a dozen eggs into the large pan.
Suds’ attention shifted from the ceiling to the boy. “The Wizard’s Mountains.”
The boy had an egg in his hand and was about to crack it on the pan when Suds spoke. He stopped and turned to look at the Elf, egg still in hand. “The Wizard’s Mountains! They are clean on the other side of Yedinerth. It would take us months to walk there.”
The Elf nodded. “At least two months if we follow the roads, which we cannot. I fear the journey may take closer to six, as we have to travel more unseen paths.”
The boy blinked, then returned to his work.
“I think we should head east, toward the coast,” the mason said as he kept his gaze locked on his son. “Once we hit the coast, we head north until we pass Lourbo Landing, then we head west.”
Suds nodded slowly. “It’s a good idea, as it takes us behind where the enemy has already passed, which they would not expect. Trouble is, it will make the first leg of our journey around two hundred miles or more.”
“Aye, about that. But the eastern coastline is rugged, windswept, and is prone to sudden, violent storms. It is unlikely we’ll encounter anyone along the way,” the mason said as he reached for his pipe and some leaf.
The boy looked over his shoulder as he began to toss the frying eggs. “If Lourbo Landing is untouched by the plague, perhaps we could visit with the masons there.”
The boy’s father looked to Suds, and the Elf spoke on the matter. “Last I heard, Lourbo Landing was indeed free of the blight killing mortal men.”
The mason’s eyes flicked to his son, then back to the Elf again. “Is my brother and his family there?”
Suds closed his eye and reached out into the Light of the Elves. “I cannot see them, but the sight of the Elves is not what it once was. Plus, Lourbo Landing is distant and blanketed in mist, both natural and otherwise.”
The mason nodded. “But the town hasn’t been visited by the two lords?”
Suds shook his head. “No, but word of what is happening has reached the town, and many have fled to their ships.” Suds now looked to the boy as he whispered to the mason in Elvish. “Word was also sent to your brother informing him to flee to the mountains. There’s a strong chance he and his family will be gone by the time we arrive.”
“I understand,” replied the mason, also in Elvish.
The boy, who was now carrying the pan of fried eggs to the table, stopped mid-stride. “Da, you speak the Elf’s tongue! Will wonders never cease?”
“I tell you what should cease, Young Master,” the Elf said with a grin. “Your jabbering, for I’m hungry, and those eggs smell good. So hurry up and bring them over.”
The boy did as asked and served four eggs onto the Elf’s plate. He then did the same for his father’s and his own.
“Da,” the boy said as he sat, “if it’s a two-hundred-mile walk to Lourbo Landing, how long will it take us to get there?”
“With luck, twenty-five days or so. Maybe quicker if the weather isn’t too bad.”
“Which it always is,” the Elf added. “For the life of me, I can’t understand why anyone would want to live there.”
The mason dug into his eggs as he answered the Elf’s question. “It is true, Lourbo Landing is inhospitable, but it’s roughly halfway between The King’s Citadel and South Port. The ships that traverse the east coastline use Lourbo Landing as a resting point before pushing on to the citadel. It is also within one-hundred and fifty nautical miles of The Dwarf Mines of Calbreath. So, inhospitable or not, it is a lucrative place to live.”
The Elf shook his head. “I have never understood Men’s obsession with wealth. Men are almost as bad as Dwarves in that respect.” Suds then looked down at his eggs. “These look perfectly cooked, Master Faen. But did you salt them?”
“No, Master Elf,” the boy replied as he dug into his breakfast. “If you want them seasoned, then feel free to do it yourself.”
Suds looked at the boy and bowed his head. “I meant not to offend the chef. My apologies.”
“Just eat, you old fool,” the mason added as he shoveled down his food. “We must be away within the hour, and with your incessant gabbing, that will never happen.”
***
With breakfast eaten and Suds’ home secured, the three of them headed to the small barn attached to the rear of the house.
“Meet, Dilly, the fourth member of our party,” Suds said as he swung open the door to the barn.
Inside stood a donkey, already ladened with all they might need for the journey.
The boy rushed in and instantly started stroking the animal’s nose, then he pulled a carrot from a nearby bucket and fed it to the beast.
“Hello, Dilly, I’m Faen.” The boy looked to Suds, then back to the donkey. “That’s not my real Lords’ name, just the one yonder Elf gave me. Nevertheless, I’m pleased to meet you.”
The donkey chomped on the carrot as her big, brown eyes stared into the boy’s.
“Young Master, seeing as you and Dilly have hit it off so, I put you in charge of taking care of her.”
The boy beamed. “ I give you my word, I’ll make sure she’s well-fed and brushed down every night, Suds.”
The Elf nodded. “Good. Now, shall we?” he said as he gestured for them to leave. “Cal, seeing as you came up with the idea of heading east, might you not lead the way?”
The mason turned and started walking, followed by Suds, and finally Dilly and the boy.
As they exited the barn, the door shut behind them of its own accord, then bolted itself locked. After a dozen feet or so, they reached the magical veil that hid Suds’ house from prying eyes. Like curtains being parted, the veil opened, and the small group passed through it without hindrance.
As Dilly and the boy passed through, he looked over his shoulder and watched the veil close behind them again.
“Wondrous,” the boy whispered to himself as the house shimmered from view.
Dilly nudged the boy with her nose, and he returned his gaze to the ground in front of him.
The night before, the trees appeared impenetrable and tightly packed. Yet now they seemed farther apart, and a clear path seemed to lead away from Suds’ home. Was this path here the night before, or had it formed to make their passing easier?
As if reading the boy’s mind, Suds looked back over his shoulder at him and winked.
“We will pass beyond the Ironwoods within a few hours,” Suds said, obviously for the boy’s benefit. “Then the trek to the coast will be steadily uphill.”
“Fear not, Master Elf, my legs are strong from years of running up ladders with buckets of mud on my shoulder.”
“I wasn’t talking to you, Young Master. I was talking to Dilly.”
The boy looked at the donkey, and to his astonishment, the beast winked at him.
“Suds, I think Dilly just winked at me.”
“Dilly has a good sense of humor, so she most likely did.”
“But she’s a donkey.”
“Aye, but a donkey bred by Elves. Such beasts are not always as they seem.”
The boy looked from the Elf then back to the beast. “Dilly, I apologize for mistaking you for a mere beast of burden.”
The animal’s rough tongue shot out and licked the side of his face, which he took to mean, ‘apology accepted.’
The group emerged from the forest into bright midday sunlight, which caused the mason and his son to shade their eyes as they acclimatized after spending so many hours in the darkness beneath the tree’s canopy.
Suds, however, stepped forward and scanned the horizon with his one remaining eye.
Like all Elves, Suds’ sight was sharper than an eagle’s, and he could see for miles upon end.
After a few seconds, the mason joined the Elf and asked, “Are we alone?”
Suds scanned the wide-open grasslands before them one more time. “Aye, Cal, we are. But I sense those who hunt us are not far away.”
The mason looked back at the forest.
“No,” Suds said as he followed his friend’s gaze. “No one has entered the forest; I would’ve known if they had. They avoided passing through the trees, so I sense we have a good head start on them.”
“Do they have hounds?”
The Elf closed his eye and tilted his head. “No, I sense hounds out there, but they do not use them to pursue us.” Suds opened his eye and looked skyward.
“What is it?” the mason asked.
“I’m not sure, but we must move.”
With that, the mason retook the lead, and this time they moved off at a brisk trot. If the enemy was at their rear, then they needed to widen that gap.
The land through which they ran was lush and green, with grass that reached the knee. Ideal land for grazing, but no farmer had ever ventured past The Jagged Forest because it was too far from the protection of Garisa.
This meant between the forest behind them and Lourbo Landing, they could expect to encounter less than a handful of Men.
Unfortunately, the wild eastern shoreline of Yedinerth was still a dangerous region, as many of the beasts driven out of more populated areas now called the lands home. Yet, what hunted them to their rear posed the most significant threat.
If their pursuers caught up with them, they’d be forced to fight, which neither the Elf nor the mason wanted. Their only hope was those who hunted them never acquired their trail.