One night, Ricky stood outside the light of the flame when Hobbie approached looking around in the darkness.
“Where’s your unicorn?”
“Right here,” Neighbor said, close enough to his ear to cause his hair to flutter.
Hobbie screamed and jumped behind Ricky. Ricky laughed and the camouflage spell over Neighbor dropped, exposing her entire body, including her horn, which had grown back nicely over the winter.
“That wasn’t very funny, Boss.”
“I was trying an experiment. Let’s go back to the fire.” When they arrived, Ricky informed his companions, “I want to experiment with some magic, but I need your help.”
“No, thank you,” Synne said, rising from the log.
“What do you require?” Rogerin asked.
“I want to see how far I can extend my camouflage spell, how many people I can include without making the trees disappear as well.”
“Will it hurt?” Hobbie asked. Rick shook his head.
“I’ve got someplace else to be,” Synne said, and skirted off into the dark.
“Did you just make her disappear?” Hobbie asked.
Ricky had them stand in a line spread out an arm’s length from each other. He stood at one end facing the line. Rogerin was at the far end. Rick started by covering himself.
“Oh, no,” Hobbie, who was next, said, and quickly disappeared. “Hey. I can’t see me. Can anyone hear me?”
“Shut up,” Rogerin said.
So far so good.
“Does it hurt?” Jarvis asked. “Maybe I should join—Hey!” He vanished. “No, it doesn’t. I just feel tingly.”
“Ow,” Hobbie shouted. “You punched me.”
“Just wanting to know where you are,” Jarvis said.
Gaufrid, Bertran, and Rogerin disappeared. The log by Rogerin wavered, like something seen on the other side of a fire or through a fog, but it was still obviously a log. Suddenly the log vanished before reappearing as solid-looking as before.
“What hap—” Rick started. The spell dropped and everyone became visible. Hobbie rubbed his arms, then slugged Jarvis, telling him never to punch him again. This was the farthest Ricky had been able to extend the spell, but something wasn’t right. He hadn’t been able to go completely around the sitting log, but all at once the spell did.
“That will do for now,” Ricky said staring at the mysterious log. He motioned the back of his hand as though to dismiss them.
“Did you do that?” Ricky whispered to Neighbor.
“No-o-o,” she nickered in reply. Neighbor obviously also realized something was afoot.
He looked over his companions, who muttered as they resat by the fire about no more magic, and how at least Rick hadn’t sung thing time. Synne slipped into their midst and sat silently next to Rogerin. Her hand wavered like the log had and then became normal. Was it she who complained so much about magic actually a magician herself, who made the log vanish then reappear? It sure wasn’t Aldric.
“Say,” Bertran started, “if you make this log disappear, will we all fall on our butts?”
“Don’t even suggest it,” Jarvis said with a glance to Ricky.
Synne shivered. If she was a magician, she was awfully good at pretending not to be one. He looked over each of the others. One of them was something more than he or she appeared.
* * *
It took them four days to reach the Quits. Ricky halted at the fields west of town. From there, they would head towards the bridge over the Red River to take them south. Farmhouses were scattered through the area. Smoke floated from the chimneys, but no person was in sight. With Thram, it had taken them eight days to cover the same distance, and far longer to get his mother and sisters and Gwen from the Quits to City Brandt, but that was because he’d gotten them lost. The weather this time was his friend. Nearly cloudless skies kept them traveling true. He’d be laughing with his father and sister sooner than he hoped. Getting to them was half of the rescue operation. He’d imagined fights and bloodshed happening between his six companions, but so far, the only irritation was Synne taking Jarvis’ coin purse about every other day and returning it when he’d found it missing.
“These two towns on either side of the river are now Spike territory,” Ricky told them. “I suggest we divide in groups of two to move inconspicuously through them, and meet past the bridge and on the far side of South Quit.”
“I pick J,” Synne said. Jarvis smiled at her appreciatively until she held up his coin purse she’d obviously had taken from him again. He snatched it from her and silently pointed a warning finger at her. “Just practicing,” she said. “I have to keep my skills sharp. We were hired as thieves.”
“And adventurers,” Hobbie added.
“As rescuers,” Ricky corrected.
Gaufrid and Bertran paired up. Hobbie wanted to be with “the boss”, but Ricky had decided to slip through town camouflaged, hiding the unicorn, Flame, and himself. Spikonians here might recognize him, and certainly would a unicorn. Rogerin started off and Hobbie sulked after him. Ricky and Neighbor were the last to leave, watching as those two went down that street and another two went down another. Seeing so many Spikes around with their black beards and unibrows caused Flame beneath him to twitch in response to his rider. He hurried them through North Quit, over the bridge, and through South Quit. Although they’d departed last of the group, they were the first to reach the outskirts of South Quit.
Ricky dismounted and stared northeast. They were only a couple days’ ride from the Spikonian capital and the dungeon holding his king, the rest of his family, and the people of Farhner. But he needed to stick to the plan. He couldn’t rescue them alone. I’m coming, Father, he willed to him. He removed the camouflage spell and rubbed down the unicorn and horse with grass. Soon they were joined by four others.
“Where’s Jarvis and Synne?” Ricky asked.
“I thought I saw them go into an inn, Boss,” Hobbie said. “Might have, that is.”
Ricky slammed his forehead against Flame’s neck. The stallion’s rear legs hopped to the side. Ricky blew to the night sky. Fast moving wisps of clouds made the stars disappear and appear again. Part of him wished he and Neighbor would change into the Warrior-Unicorn-Man and fly down to Barabook, but another part figured he needed these six.
“They probably stopped for a drink,” Rogerin said, pulling his hair up into a knot at the back of his neck. “We should leave. They’re not dependable.”
Ricky was wondering if any of his band of thieves were dependable. But they were all he had.
“If we leave them,” Neighbor said, “they may have more than one drink. If they have more than one drink…”
“They may get loose lips and blab about our rescue plans,” Ricky finished.
“You must find them, Aldric,” Neighbor said.
“I know!” Ricky answered, louder than he’d intended. The horses startled at his voice. Neighbor hadn’t flinched.
“That was loud, Boss,” Hobbie said.
“You,” Ricky said, pointing to Hobbie. “You and I are going back to where you think they went in. You three,” he said to Gaufrid, Bertran and Rogerin, “stay here. Neighbor, you watch them.” By the looks on their faces, he immediately regretted saying that last bit, as if they were prisoners needed guarding. Neighbor dropped her head and pulled up some grass to chew. “Sorry,” Ricky added. “I mean, wait here for us. Please.”
Ricky jumped on Flame and started back to town. Hobbie rode next to him, quiet for once. They reached the inn in North Quit where Hobbie thought the two had gone in, but they didn’t find their horses tied up at the hitching post. Hobbie peeked in to confirm they weren’t there.
“We have to find them,” Ricky said.
“Are there other inns in town, Boss?”
“Of course, there are. And don’t call me you-know-what.” Ricky pulled his hood tighter around his bare face. If he were born Spikonian, he’d be sporting a bushy black beard long before now. He could cover his blonde hair, but it was harder to conceal his green eyes. There were a few light-skinned Quits left in the towns. He’d pass himself off as a Quit if caught.
He tried to reason the next place Synne and Jarvis would go, probably, hopefully, working their way south towards the meeting place. As they rounded a corner, they heard a commotion from a street over. It was probably just a bar fight, but Ricky wanted to make sure his two companions were not part of it. Coming around the corner the angry voices became clearer.
“Thief! You think that’s funny?” a bushy-bearded Spikonian asked another. “You took it!”
The accuser punched the accused who fell to the street. Neither was Jarvis nor Synne. A cheering crowd gathered around the fight. Quickly checking to see if he spotted their horses and not finding them, Ricky slowly backed Flame up. Hobbie turned his horse around and they rode southward.
“Thief?” Hobbie asked.
“Hush,” Ricky answered.
“Yes, Bo—bo—Buddy,” Hobbie said, then fell silent.
He didn’t know for sure who the thief might be, but he had his suspicions. They checked two more taverns without results, then crossed the bridge to South Quit. Outside a riverside tavern Ricky spotted Jarvis’ and Synne’s horses.
“Wait here,” Ricky said, dismounting and handing his reins to Hobbie.
“Yes…Buddy.” Hobbie grinned.
Ricky entered the tavern. It took his eyes a while to adjust to the smoke and dim light, and the distinct stink of Spikonians. He saw Jarvis talking to a soldier. Synne was on the other side of the man with her back to him. Ricky strode over and grabbed her wrist just as it was going into the pocket of the man behind her.
“Mama,” Ricky said, “you’re needed at home.” He figured being beardless made him look young to the Spikonians. Between Synne’s shocked look and her mouth opening to form a response, he whispered a spell. “Silentium.”
Synne choked and wrapped her other hand around her throat. Ricky made eye contact with Jarvis, who at first looked surprised, and then turned back to the soldier who was neatly robbed, laughing. Ricky pulled Synne towards the door. She broke free, one hand still on her throat. She bent over, choking. People started to notice.
“Are you all right, Miss?” a Spikonian asked.
“Mama’s sick from too much ale,” Ricky said to the man who’d asked. He himself was nearly gagging from the odor of too many Spikes in one room. “I need to get her ho—”
Synne punched Ricky in his gut and his hood fell back.
“Belligerent in this state, too,” he croaked, pulling up his hood.
The man frowned. “You’re not from around here, are you, boy?”
His first reaction was to respond that he wasn’t a boy. Instead he shrugged. “Used to be Quits, but now we’re all Spikonian now, aren’t we?” He kept his eyes to the floor, hoping it looked humble and submissive and young, and that Hobbie had Flame ready to gallop away.
“Well, I don’t like the way you treat your mama. Maybe she wants to come home with me instead.”
Synne could only breathe out, “Hu. Hu. Hu.”
“Dry heaves,” Ricky said quickly. “Need to get her to the street so she can puke.”
“Hu. Hu!” Synne said. The man stepped back. Ricky wrapped an arm around her and drew her through the tavern door. As soon as they were outside, Synne’s arms became a windmill, striking at Ricky as she said “Hu!” with each blow.
“Come now, Mama,” Ricky said, not successfully avoiding her swings. “It will fare worse for you in other ways if we don’t go home now.”
Synne stopped her hitting and squinted hard at Ricky. She swung up onto her horse, pointing to her throat.
“When we get home you’ll feel all better,” he assured her.
“Mama?” Hobbie asked. “Home?”
Synne glared at Hobbie and nudged her horse forward in a trot.
They were nearly out of town when Jarvis caught up with them and fell in next to Synne.
“That was so much fun,” Jarvis said, patting his pocket. “We make a great team.”
“Hu,” Synne said, scowling and pointing to her throat.
“What happened?”
“Dry heaves,” Ricky answered.
When they joined the others, Ricky was tempted to keep the silent spell on Synne, but was more worried about her reaction if he did. When Rick removed the spell all she did was stare at him.
Bertran grumbled that Synne and Jarvis ought to share the money they stole back in the Quits because they wouldn’t have had the opportunity if Rick hadn’t brought them all along as a team. Ricky stayed out of that discussion. They were hardly a team. They were barely connected except by the promised other half of their pay when they returned to City Brandt.
It was going to be another long and sleepless night.