The Horn of Moran - Forman Mark L. Страница 24

He wondered if he should mention Whalen’s letter to Bregnest, but decided not to. Bregnest knew that he was writing to Whalen regularly, but he hadn’t mentioned anything about it to the rest of the company.

Bregnest seemed to be in a better mood this morning, more relaxed than he had been for the past several days. Perhaps it was because they had spent so little time in Ollvi returning the lost bag, or perhaps he had overcome his own doubts. Alex didn’t ask why, but he was glad to see that Bregnest was back to his old self again.

As Alex and his friends rode out of Ollvi, they passed the Cain house, which Alex pointed out to the rest of the company. He was pleased to see a large number of workmen at the house, and he hoped that the Cain family would find joy in their newfound wealth.

“It appears you’ve done them a great kindness,” Halfdan commented to Alex.

“I believe that I have.”

“I suppose you know what this means?”

“What?”

“It means your legend will continue to grow,” Halfdan joked. “The kind and generous Master Taylor, who refuses to accept the rewards due him.”

“Well,” Alex snorted, “I know one dwarf who won’t be writing my life’s story.”

“There is some truth in what Halfdan says,” Bregnest commented from in front of Alex. “Your generosity increases your honor, though it does little to increase your wealth.”

“Generosity where it is needed,” Alex answered after a moment’s thought. “If they’d been rich and snobby, I might have asked for more than the heir offered.”

“Which also shows your wisdom,” Bregnest replied.

Alex didn’t say anything more. He was much too happy to worry about being too generous or about having stories told about him. He knew that most people would think what they wanted to think no matter what he said. It was like how everyone believed he was a wizard when he was still only a wizard in training. He had tried to explain the difference so many times that he’d finally just given up.

The road they were following led almost due north, though slightly to the east from time to time. Alex wondered how far it was to the Mountains of the Moon, and how long it would take them to get there. He’d studied several maps of Norsland, but none of them showed distances. If the distance from Oslansk to Ollvi was any indication, he thought it would take them at least a month to reach the mountains, maybe longer.

That night, as the company ate their evening meal, Bregnest shared his concerns with all of them. He told them about his fear of having to remain in Norsland over the winter, and about his doubts of finding the Horn of Moran quickly. Alex thought this was strange because Bregnest had always been confident in the past. He wondered if Bregnest might be worried because this quest was to help one of his relatives, but he didn’t think that was the real reason.

“The guardians of the road could be difficult to pass,” said Andy in a thoughtful tone once Bregnest had finished speaking. “I’ve never seen a griffin, but I’ve been told that they can look inside a person and see what’s there.”

“That is true,” said Sindar knowingly. “Griffins can read a man’s heart, and if you carry evil of any kind, they will bar your path. They can be deadly enemies, so it is best to stay on their good side.”

“And a sphinx as well? I don’t know . . . ” Halfdan mused, shaking his head and stroking his beard in thought.

“What about sphinxes?” Alex asked, knowing almost nothing about the creatures.

“They always speak in riddles,” Halfdan answered. “If we don’t answer its riddle correctly, it will attack us.”

“That is true,” said Sindar. “However, if you don’t answer the sphinx at all, it will let you withdraw.”

“Have you met a sphinx then?” Val questioned.

“I have,” Sindar answered. “And I am relieved to say that I did not have to fight it.”

“So you guessed its riddle correctly,” said Val, sounding impressed.

“No,” answered Sindar, shaking his head. “I couldn’t answer the riddle, so I departed without speaking.”

“If a sphinx can out-riddle an elf, we may be in for some serious trouble,” said Halfdan.

“We do not know how far along the road the prince went, so our worries may be groundless,” Val commented.

“We don’t know if the prince even stayed on the road,” Bregnest added grimly. “The road is just the starting point. Though if we meet the guardians of the road, they may be able to tell us where to look for the Horn of Moran.”

They all agreed that it was pointless to worry about the guardians, at least until they reached the Mountains of the Moon.

They continued to ride north, and the days passed by with little to tell them apart. The ride was enjoyable and the landscape was pleasant, now that summer was coming to Norsland. Three days out from Ollvi they left the open fields of the settled lands and continued through large pine forests, mixed with wide areas of rolling grasslands.

The company continued to keep watch at night, and Alex continued to read and practice his magic in the early morning hours. Sindar seemed to enjoy watching Alex practice his spells, and he would sometimes make comments on how well Alex was doing. Alex also continued to update Whalen about the adventure, and about how his studies were going.

After three weeks of traveling, they could see distant snowcapped mountains ahead of them. Alex guessed they were the Mountains of the Moon, and he also guessed that it would take at least another three weeks for the company to reach them.

Late one afternoon, the company came to a sudden halt. The pine forest they had been riding through had ended, and in front of them was a steep, rocky hillside that dropped into a wide valley below. The road leading into the valley was badly damaged and worn by the weather, and it was overgrown with bushes and small trees in several places.

“We’ll wait for morning before trying it,” said Bregnest thoughtfully. “We’ve traveled far today, and the horses are tired.”

“Best to rest,” said Sindar, looking down the hillside at the broken and overgrown road. “It will take some effort to get down this safely.”

They all agreed that it would be best to wait for better light, and they moved back into the trees a short distance to set up their camp. They didn’t talk much as they ate their evening meal, and everyone seemed to have their own thoughts. After dinner, they sat quietly around the campfire, not even sharing stories as they normally did.

Without warning, Sindar suddenly jumped up and moved away from the fire. The others got to their feet as well, their hands moving to their weapons as they looked into the darkness. Alex wondered what had alarmed Sindar, but he didn’t have long to worry before Sindar reappeared.

“Alex, put the fire out. Quickly,” whispered Sindar. “There are goblins moving down the valley.”

Alex magically put out the fire so that there would be no smoke, and looked around at his friends’ faces. They all gathered around Sindar to find out what he had seen and how much trouble they might be in.

“Goblins are rare in Norsland,” Bregnest whispered.

“Rare, but not unheard of,” Andy added.

“I count perhaps threescore of them in the valley,” said Sindar. “Though they will have scouts out as well.”

“Do you think they are aware of us?” questioned Val, looking in the direction of the valley.

“I don’t think so. Our fire was small and hidden in the trees. And we are downwind of them, so they can’t have smelled us.”

“Threescore may be few for goblins, but more than enough for the six of us,” said Halfdan, fingering the ax at his side.

“We have a choice to make then,” said Sindar, looking at Bregnest. “We can remain where we are and hope they don’t discover us, or we can move back the way we have come, which might be the wisest thing to do. There is also a third choice, though I doubt any of us would like it—we could stand and fight.”