The Innkeeper's Son Read online

  Chapter Four: Crimson Sails

  The next morning followed the same routine as any other. Sim woke at dawn to tend the animals in the stable. After breakfast he filled all of the washbasins and cut firewood for Bella’s ovens. Twice as he quartered the logs out by the stable, he had seen Enaya watching him from the window of her room on the second floor. He couldn’t be certain, but he didn’t think she had left her room all day. Throughout the morning Sim had made a point to look out for her or Givara, but neither had made an appearance around the common room, skipping breakfast all together. As was the case most days, Maehril had a way of always positioning herself in his line of sight, smiling sheepishly whenever they made eye contact. Normally, Sim would have been annoyed by Maehril's obvious crush, but Sarimus had told him to take care of her at all costs, and he meant to follow orders.

  By the afternoon, Sim found himself in the garden working amongst the rows of tall corn. His entire day up to this point had been a torturous effort to pass the time until Enaya or Sarimus came by. He wasn’t sure if either would try to contact him, but he was sure that something was coming soon. Looking up to the sun, Sim could clearly see the crimson ring that had brought him to his knees the day before, yet now, he felt no ill effects or nausea, just the dread of what the taint might mean. He wondered to himself if his new necklace had anything to do with his new found immunity to the effects of the vision.

  Working in the garden lacked its usual enjoyment, as Sim wallowed in a state of prolonged melancholy. His mind wandered over meaningless events from his childhood, further encouraging his acute depression. He thought about the day Raelin had left on the recruitment ship. He had walked Raelin to the docks that day, carrying a bag for his friend, and fought the urge to board the ship himself with every step toward the pier. “Your journey ends here my friend,” Raelin had said to him just before he left. “You are your own man, Siminus. A great man. One day the world will know your name. Stories will be written of your adventures and told by fathers to their sons as they put them to sleep.” Raelin had turned then and walked up the gangplank boarding the ship and leaving Sim alone on the dock. As the ship gently drifted away, setting out to the open seas, Raelin came to the railing one last time and called out to Sim, “One day the world will know your name Siminus Kelmor…just as soon as you get away from the Kelmor Inn!”

  Raelin had always teased him about his father’s overbearing nature, and Sim knew he was right. Raelin was probably off in some distant land fighting some glorious battle. It could have been me, Sim thought. It should have been me. He could have sneaked off in the night and boarded a merchant ship and bought his passage with labor until he reached Fandrall or Altrega, or some other exotic land. He could have been the one leading the charge against an army of rogue beasts saving a grateful village in the process. It was all Sevin’s fault. His father wanted him to be ordinary. He wanted him to be nothing better than the grumpy barkeep of a rundown inn in the middle of nowhere. He was holding him back….

  Sim suddenly realized that he was on his knees in the dirt, sobbing uncontrollably into his filthy hands. Something was happening to him, making him feel hopeless and isolated. He felt like everything was out of control, and the only way he could feel any happiness was if he took his own life. The very thought that he could have reached that point made him feel instantly ashamed of himself. He looked up at the sky, to the tainted crimson ring haunting the sun’s light, and wondered if that was what was causing his unmanageable emotions. He needed to get indoors, out of the daylight. The sun’s rays felt like a poison to him. He gathered his things and hurried back into the inn.

  Entering the kitchen felt like a breath of fresh air, for as soon as he crossed the threshold into Bella’s sweltering hot kitchen all of the emptiness and hurt he had felt outside, disappeared. Bella looked at him strangely as he stood in the doorway, holding a basket of fresh picked vegetables, panting as though he’d just run around the entire town. Sim forced a smile at his mother before dropping the basket onto the counter and hurrying out into the common room.

  Sevin was behind the bar talking to one of the serving maids as Sim entered, but he didn’t seem to notice his son. Sim hoped to go undetected. He walked quickly through the tavern trying to get to his room without being stopped. He made it to the outer doors, and pushed through them to the stairwell, glad not to hear his name being called. Just as he turned the corner for the hallway that led to the guestrooms, Sim crashed into Maehril, sending the stack of fresh linens she’d been carrying, tumbling to the floor.

  “Oh, Maehril. I’m so sorry,” he cried out in surprise. He knelt down to the floor to help gather her things. Since Maehril was a mute, she just smiled sheepishly as she gathered her linens together. As they both knelt, arranging the folds into a neat stack, Maehril unexpectedly reached out her hand and gently took hold of the gem that had fallen out from beneath Sim’s shirt. At first the realization that it was out in the open gave Sim a start, but for some strange reason, as Maehril rolled the stone slowly back and forth between her thumb and forefinger staring curiously at the odd thing, Sim felt reassured. All of the apprehension and nerves that had been brewing inside of him over the last twenty four hours drifted away and were replaced by confidence and peace. Slowly Sim began to feel as though there was nothing he had to fear, as though everything he couldn’t understand suddenly made sense. Maehril looked into Sim’s eyes with the same girlish adoration she always had, but Sim saw someone different. For the first time since she had come to live at the Kelmor Inn as a girl no older than six, Sim saw something other than the annoying little girl who couldn’t speak. He saw a light around her that shined as white and pure as anything he’d ever seen. The sheer force of the purity made him want to weep with joy, as though she were a symbol for all that was good in the world. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her. Why hadn’t he ever noticed this about her before? How had he overlooked the true essence of this girl who may as well have been his sister?

  Sim found himself humbled by the moment, and opened his mouth to speak words that his mind had yet to form, when the front door to the inn burst open and a guardsman dashed into the room. It was Tymus, a young man who had recently joined the guard. His face looked bleak, his eyes wide with fear. He looked fearfully at Sim and Maehril and stuttered for a moment on his announcement. “Cri…crim… crimson sails,” he sputtered, tripping over his words. “Crimson sails to port!” His voice suddenly found its courage and he nearly screamed it again. “Crimson sails to port!”

  Sevin came barreling into the room and grabbed Tymus by the shoulders. “Did I hear you right boy?” Sevin boomed, shaking Tymus like a rag doll with his thick hands. “Did you say Crimson sails to port?”

  “Aye, Sir,” Tymus squeaked. And no sooner had the words left his mouth than a titanic explosion sounded off in the distance rocking the very ground on which they stood.

  Sevin cast Tymus out the door with a great shove, shouting after him to evacuate the town. Bella came racing into the room with a frantic look of fear across her face. “Why now Sevin?” she pleaded to her husband. “Why after all this time?”

  Sevin leveled a stern look on his wife causing her to calm down in an instant. They both turned to look at Sim and Maehril who stood there confused and scared.

  “What’s going on, Father?” Sim found the courage to say.

  Sevin walked to the door, ignoring Sim’s question. He looked down the street outside where the screaming voices rang out against the continued blast of explosions in the distance.

  “We’re out of time, my love,” he said with surprising tenderness as he turned to his wife and brought her to him in a deep embrace. “They’ve come for the boy.”

  “What boy?” Sim screamed at his parents in frustration. “Are you talking about me?”

  “Aye,” his father answered, firmly. “The Blood Lord has come to Dell, and we believe he’s looking for you, my son.”

  Sim was scared and confused. He’d never see
n his parents act this way, never seen them show even a hint of fear before. It scared him to his core. “Who is he father, and what does he want with me?”

  Another explosion shook the ground dropping Sim to the floor. Against the shouts of fleeing villagers, the bellowing war howl of some unknown beast echoed across the whole town. Something was coming and it was going to destroy the whole city in its wake. Sim shot a quick glance out a nearby window and could see a crimson aura illuminating the whole sky. His vision was coming to bear.

  “There’s no time to explain, Siminus,” Sevin bellowed. He grabbed Sim by the arm and led him into the common room. “Go out to the barn, grab your swords and hide. Don’t come out of that barn for any reason.” He looked around suddenly, fear stretching the lines of his face. “Bella, where’s Maehril?”

  Bella’s eyes widened as she looked around for Maehril. Where had she gone, Sim thought? She’d been right here only a minute ago. The howls drew closer and closer. “Run Sim and do as you’re told. If you find Maehril, guard her with your life!” Sevin screamed.

  He shoved Sim toward the kitchen and the back entrance of the inn. Sim did as he was told. The sounds of screaming women and crying children filled the air outside as he raced down the gravel path to the barn. Several explosions sounded off in the distance, but Sim couldn’t tell if they were getting louder because he was outside or if they were just getting closer. Just as he reached the barn doors a blood curdling shriek rose across the city making Sim stop in his tracks, a feeling like cold death attacking his senses. Sim looked out toward the streets, his terror level rising as he began to notice the unearthly silence that followed the shriek. It was as if all of the destruction was halted and the city itself was awaiting the next move. Sim was just getting the courage back to move again when the silence was cut off as dozens of similar though less fearsome shrieks began to sound off across the city. It was as if a pack of wolves were hunting and answering the call of prey.

  Sim forced himself to ignore the shrieks and pushed his way into the barn. He closed both doors securely behind him, binding the door with an old two by four. Inside the barn Sim lost his concentration. Too much was going on and he didn’t understand any of it. The chaos continued outside so loudly it was impossible to think. Nothing he had experienced in his life had prepared him to deal with this.

  He took a deep breath, telling himself to calm down. If the city was under attack, he would need to be in control of himself. His own actions were about all he could control, he reasoned. He looked around the barn for anything he might be able to use. All the animals were in a frenzied state of panic. They could sense the imminent danger. Watching Valla pace about her small confines as agitated as he had ever seen her, Sim suddenly remembered his swords. Even Sevin who wasn’t supposed to know about the secret cache had reminded him to arm himself.

  Sim pushed aside the bales of hay that concealed his hiding spot in the back corner of the stable, and pulled up the loose board that covered the hole. Inside the cavity he removed his two old broad swords and the canvas satchel he had filled with survival gear. He had placed that satchel in this hiding spot the night of his eighteenth birthday. Sevin had squashed his hope of joining Raelin on the recruitment ship that day, so he had put together a few things he might need if ever he were to run away from home. Looking down at the dirt stained bag, he felt a small glimmer of relief as though this little treasure would come in very handy.

  Sim’s admiration of his survival bag was cut short when something crashed into the barn doors, testing the strength of the hinges. The suddenness of the assault on the barn door made his heart stop, and he waited with bated breath to see if they’d test the door again. After a few seconds he received his answer. Whatever was outside crashed into the door once more. He could hear the hinges creak and strain under the force of the impact. Never looking away from the door, Sim reached for his broad swords gripping each hilt until his knuckles turned white from the pressure. He listened closely, trying to separate any sounds just beyond the door from all of the ruckus ripping through the city. He couldn’t be sure, but he thought he could hear something sniffing at the small sliver of space between the ground and the bottom of the door.

  Apparently, whatever was trying to come in had decided against smashing the door down and took a different approach. It was now trying to dig under the door. From the small gap between the earth and the bottom of the door, Sim could make out what looked like long claws violently digging at the ground. He rose from his crouch, finding the courage to answer his attacker and crept quietly toward the door. The hole was growing quickly and now Sim could see two hands with long gnarled black fingers, capped by two inch claws, furiously working at the ground. This was almost going to be too easy Sim thought to himself. Whatever the beast was, it clearly wasn’t considering that Sim was armed. It only took a few more moments before the hole became large enough for the beast to get its head into the crack. Sim had his sword poised to strike above the hole, and when the head came into view, he plunged his sword down through the beasts grizzly skull. Sim could hear the body outside twitching violently in the dirt as the last vestiges of life slipped away from its cursed existence.

  The impaled head belonged to a gruesome beast unlike any Sim had ever seen or heard about. It looked like a wolf with an almost human air about its features. There was a snout though it didn’t protrude nearly as much as a wolf’s might. Its eyes were a sickly green and savage, the teeth were jagged and made for rending flesh, and its ears were hairless and human in shape. It was covered with a coarse black hair that seemed sparse and patchy. Sim was appalled by what he saw. While it was a hideous sight to behold, his senses told him that the creature was an abomination, for it contained an evil that pulsed even as its heart ceased to beat.

  Sim had bent down to one knee to closer examine the corpse caught under his barn door, when another beast came crashing through the window behind him. The creature waited for him in the center of the barn among the broken glass and splintered wood, its large green eyes fixed in a bloodthirsty stare. Spit and drool spilled from between its teeth, falling soundlessly to the floor. Its jaw was massive. Sim believed the beast could easily swallow him whole if it wanted to.

  Slowly, Sim began to rise from his crouch, eyes locked on his opponent, a sword in his right hand, the other left on the ground. One sword will be enough, he thought to himself.

  He circled cautiously to his left, mainly to test the beast, to gauge its response. The animal stayed put, following Sim’s movement with its eyes, but occasionally kicking its hind legs at the dirt. A smile formed on Sim’s lips as he realized that the rush of blood he felt wasn’t fear, but excitement. This creature had crashed through a window into his personal training space. For years as Sim had cultivated his talent with a weapon, it had been enclosed within this barn, dreaming of scenarios just like this. His shortsword had never felt so light and his hands and feet never so quick, when the beast leapt suddenly for his throat. Without hesitation Sim dove to the ground under the arc of the animal’s path, and thrust his weapon up into the creature’s chest. It fell roughly to the ground, life already leaving its body. Sim pulled the sword free and watched it twitch and shudder before giving in to death.

  There was a rag hanging over one of the stable doors that Sim used to wipe the black blood from his blade. Already the barn had begun to fill with the fetid stench of death. Could be the beast’s natural smell, Sim thought to himself as he looked upon the carcass in disgust.

  The world outside the barn seemed to scream out to the heavens in pain as the invading force moved through the city.

  Sevin had told him to stay in the barn, but Sim began to realize that he wouldn’t be safe there for long. He wondered what had become of Maehril, and why she had slipped away so quietly. Perhaps she had stolen away to her room. Sarimus and Sevin had both charged him with her safety. The time for hiding was over.

  It took a few moments to get the barn door open, but soon Sim was
carefully making his way up the gravel path to the inn. Plumes of smoke dotted the skyline over Dell causing a shroud of smoke to block his view of the sun. He couldn’t see the crimson corona through the cloud of smoke, but he knew it was there, and now he knew what it meant. Never again will I dismiss a vision Sim vowed, and his mind briefly wandered to the dream of his death. When that moment happens, I’ll know not to look away from my attacker. I’ll survive.

  He crept up the path, keeping mindful of the possibility that one of those beasts might happen along. As he neared the back door of the inn, he suddenly noticed that the city had become eerily silent. Only moments before it had been difficult to hear his own thoughts, but as he stood in front of the door, it seemed as if the assault had taken a break.

  Sevin had secured the door with a deadbolt because the door was locked from the inside. He moved around to the left side of the inn where there was a bay window just to the side of the bar. As he peered into the common room, the scene inside horrified him. Sevin and Bella were kneeling on the floor in the center of the common room surrounded by four of the revolting black beasts. There were tables and chairs overturned and thrown about as though a great fight had taken place. His spirits fell even lower when he noticed the body of Tymus, lying savagely torn apart on the floor by the bar.

  He was about to rear up and throw himself through the window when Enaya and Givara came around the corner at a crouch. Enaya seemed surprised to see Sim and conferred quickly with Givara before making the motion for Sim to stay down and remain quiet. Givara veered off, making her way quickly down the path toward the barn, but Enaya continued until she came to Sim’s side.

  “What’s happening here?” Sim demanded before Enaya could open her mouth.