Os couldn''t tell if his sweat was from the heat or from his
withdraws. Either way, he rode shirtless in the back of a wagon, pulled by two
horses and driven by Drav. The wagon was empty except for him, Ena, and Rwo.
After the high wore down from throwing the Greay into the fire, the four set
off to Constre.
"Need some water?" Ena handed him her flask.
"You look like you''re dying."
"I am," Os said as he chugged.
"We''re nearing the lake," Rwo remarked. "We
can cool you off there, and get you a bath." The trio of assassins had
watched him all night and into morning as he came off his high and began to
shiver, sweat, and shit himself.
"You were probably a week from Black Out," Ena said
as she took her flask back. "You should be grateful that we spotted you at
the tavern when we did."
Os turned his head and opened his eyes, but it was a mistake.
The light made his vision wavy, causing him to sit up and puke over the side of
the wagon. Drav turned his head, and sourly looked at the kid. If looks could
kill, that was it.
"I''ll be grateful when I''m dead," Os said through a
mouth of spit.
Rwo chuckled and muttered, "Don''t hold your
breath."
Up ahead, commotion could be heard through the sound of Os
puking. Another wagon, a bigger wagon with tapestries, fruits, swords, and
oddly colored viles clanged towards the opposite direction.
"Good day, m'' fellow trav''lers," a man on the
driver seat tipped his hat as he moved to the side of the road. The man''s hat,
which matched the horse''s hat, was green and orange. Perhaps it was the heat,
or maybe withdraws, but Os could swear the horse tipped its hat, too. The
harness on the horse looked slack. Through his brain fog, Os could tell that it
was because the singular hat-wearing horse was attached to a two-horse harness.
Os didn’t have the ability to even ponder why had this man attached one horse
to a two-horse harness, so he let it go. The man’s thick beard and olive skin were
a sign he was from the desert lands, south of the Heill Kingdom. When King Jept
took over the native lands, he tried to expand into the desert, establishing a
few trading routes and towns. However, King Phelch despised the heat and gave
up the entire area. He declared that the Gurks could occupy the desert without
any qualms from Heill.
“Odd seeing a
Gurk this far North,” Rwo said. He stood as Drav pulled the cart to a halt.
“Odd seeing you
this ugly,” the man retorted quickly. “Have you not slept?” Both men chuckled
and jumped off their carriages. Drav followed Rwo off the wagon and hugged the
man.
“Jedian, so good
to see you,” Rwo said through a smile. “How’ve you been?”
“Great,” said
Jedian. “Business is booming. Geruva has established trades with Teriova and
Klondak.”
At the heart of
the Gerk Kingdom’s desert was Geruva, the capital city. Os had never been
there, but his grandfather had. Os remembered stories from when he was young
that the golden arches of Geruva could be seen from miles away, much like the
Purple City’s towers. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.
“Teriova and
Klondak, huh? Kind of a stretch to establish trade routes that far out.”
Jedian threw up
his hands in an exasperated manner. “I am nowhere near the Gerk King to make
such decisions. No kingdom can rely on Heill anymore – the ships are anchored
in the ports.” It was true. Purple City had become its own self-governing,
self-relying kingdom. Imports were not needed and exports were of no concern.
Rwo and Ena hung
their heads. Drav suddenly took an interest in Os’ situation - he had his head hanging
over the side of the wagon the entire time trying not to throw up. He grabbed
Os by the feet and dragged him onto the muddy road. The movement made Os throw
up again. Through the puking, he could see by the look on their faces that they
were ashamed. Ashamed of what the Kingdom they had once called home had become.
“Things will
change soon,” Ena said. “King Phelch can’t rely on the Prurple City forever.”
“Well,” Jedian
said, casting a knowing glace at the three assassins, “I hope somebody can
knock him off his thrown. Got yourself a new recruit?”
Drav picked Os
up by the collar. Os, covered in mud and excrement, gave small wave.
“Heat getting to
you? Or is it the Greay?”
“Both,” Rwo,
Ena, and Os said in unison.
Jedian chuckled.
“Don’t worry kid. Lucky for you, my best customers are Greay addicts. That
nasty stuff has touched here all the way to parts unknown.” He turned, and went
to the back of his caravan. The sound of metal against wood, glass shattering,
and the ruckus made Os’ head throb. Through the covered wagon, Os heard him
exclaim, “Here it is!”
Jedian walked up
to Os and took his hand. He poured orange, red, and blue colored rocks into Os’
palm. They were no bigger than Os’ thumbnail, about twenty in total. Being this
close, Os could smell Jedian’s breath. It smelled like meat, but not like
cattle or lamb. It was something familiar, but Os didn’t have the brain power
to think about what it could be.
“These should
last you about a month,” Jedian said. “Go ahead, suck on one.”
Os chose an
orange one. He stuck it between his cheek and gum – sweetness coated his tongue
and the back of his throat. As his saliva coated the rock more, he could feel
his nausea subsiding. His head began to clear.
“Feel better?”
Os nodded and
attempted to speak. “Whash isch’ it?”
“Rock candies,”
Jedian said. “They’re simply sugar, fruit juices, and water. You can get them
all over Purple City at the markets. Different flavors, too.”
Ena looked
impressed, noticing the sudden change in Os’ demeanor. “What do they do?”
Jedian shrugged.
“You mean, how do they help Greay addicts? I have no idea. I just know the
effects last around two days. Remember to eat one until your cravings subsides.
But, be careful,” Jedian flashed Os his teeth. They were black and rotting out.
“Sugar’s also addictive.”
“Shanks,” Os
said.
“Where are you
off to now,” Rwo asked. “We’re heading back to Constre.”
“I just came
from there,” Jedian said. “Melic cleaned up the tavern pretty nice. Restored
the well, fed everybody that was left. Hard worker, that one. ”
“She takes after
her mother,” Ena said. “I’ll be eager to bathe when I get back.” She looked at
Os. “You should, too.”
“I thought
Constre fell?” Os said to the person on his left, thinking it was Rwo. It was
Drav. The mute man just shook his head.
“It was about to,”
Rwo responded. “Until we moved in a week ago. We’ve established a base there
and began gaining the trust of the ones who are still left. Thevs still had
some type of control due to the Onclers, so making a home in on their turf
would have been, well, dumb.” Os understood. The Onclers wouldn’t have liked
any plots against the Kingdom. The seeds for crops and the Greay came from
Purple City. Settling down there would have been tricky, if not deadly. The
three of them against a whole town of drunks, addicts, and hungry people didn’t
seem like the wise thing to do.
“I’m heading out
east, towards the river past Thevs. Probably take me a two or three days to get
there, maybe more if I don’t have to eat another horse.” Jedian eyed the horse
attached to his caravan. Os had to hold himself back from letting out an audible
“Oh!” because he then realized what the beef smell on his breath was, and why
there was a singular hat-wearing horse on a two-horse harness.