Rune Guard 06

This work of fiction is part of a series; if you did not already read the preceding chapters, please do that before starting this one.

~~~

Fireball, Mirra, and I rose with the sun, grabbed some cheese and a hard-boiled egg, and carried our saddlebags out to the hitching post. I rounded up Serenity and Spite and scratched Grizzle's forehead and assured him that we'd be back soon.

By the time we got the horses ready to head out, Fireball had already eaten his two eggs and emitted his fiery farts. Spite shot the imp a nasty look - but the little demon-child ignored him. I split an apple between the mounts - and the horse forgot all about the irksome imp.

We took off at a trot once more, turning right at the main road, crossing the bridge and heading towards the town where I had lost my virginity to Janna. Mirra noticed that I had gotten quiet as we passed the inn.

"Why so quiet?" she asked.

"My ... uh ... first time," I stammered, "was with a barmaid here."

"Was she cute?"

I blushed and nodded.

"What was her name?"

"Janna," I replied.

"I should probably thank her," my wife said.

My head spun her direction, and she snickered at me.

"Have you thought about her ... since then?" she asked, after we have left the town behind.

"Not since I met you," I replied.

She studied my face and I blushed again.

"Why are you blushing?" she asked, grinning.

"I thought that night was special," I said. "I mean ... it was ... but ..."

"... but what?"

"I can't imagine my life without you," I told her.

"I love you too, sweet man," she replied.

Her face grew serious, and her nose pointed down the road.

"Now I just have to survive your mother," she said firmly.

"You have nothing to worry about," I told her.

"I'm sure every boy thinks that," she replied.

I thought of the night that I'd spent - holding my future bride's disfigured body in my arms - as we waited for the healer to arrive. My wife claimed that I was her rock - her strong fortress. I knew beyond any doubt that she was strong before I had ever met her. Nothing my mother could say or do would change that fact.

In minutes, it seemed, we crossed the bridge where I had first met Lolla - and fought the troll. I laughed as I told my wife the story. She shook her head when I told her that I had called the blonde a "half-pint" and that had infuriated her to the point that she had stalked us all of the way to Emmit's house.

We reached the next bridge and we paused to let the horses get a quick drink from the river. I pointed to where Emmit and I had collected the frog and the locusts.

When the road to the serpent swamp came up on our right, I pointed down the lane and described the place for Mirra. At Emmit's house, I had shown her the serpents - and then quickly returned them to their jar. As yet, I had never seen Emmit do any curse-runes. He had told me that the venom or blood from the serpents was a powerful reagent in doing those types of runes.

We dug our travel food out of our bags and ate as we passed through the town where I had sold the knife and the arrows to earn my first silvers.

We climbed the hill where the archers had shot all of those arrows at me, and I told Mirra about how I had discovered the power of the runes that Emmit could make. She giggled as I described how crazy it had felt to me to be able to snatch arrows out of the air - all because I was tired of having to run and chase them down after they flew past.

We passed through the valley and came to the first stable that I had ever slept in. Mirra nodded when I told her that Emmit had gone into the inn and had come back out, shaking his head, to tell me that we were sleeping in the hayloft. She had seen the old man take a sense of people and decide that we'd be better off doing business somewhere else.

We passed through the other small towns and finally arrived at the fork in the road. The path to the left led somewhere I had never been. The one ahead led back to the fiefdom city where I grew up. Darkness was falling as we approached the main gate. They were just getting ready to close the gate when we slipped through.

I led my wife to the inn where I had met Emmit. I dismounted and the stable master came out.

"Derik?" he asked.

I grinned and extended my hand to him, he smiled and shook it.

"What brings you here?" he asked. "I thought you left with that trader."

"I did," I told him. "It feels like I've been halfway around the world since I left. The trader gave me a day or two off to bring my wife back to meet my mam."

The big man looked up at Mirra, still sitting on her horse. He nodded his head to her.

"Evening, ma'am," he said. "This fella doin' right by you?"

"He is," Mirra replied, smiling. "I thank you, though."

The stable master leaned closer to me and whispered conspiratorially - but loud enough for Mirra to hear him.

"She's way too pretty for you, Derik."

I laughed and patted his shoulder.

"Don't you know it?" I asked. "Any rooms?"

"Should be a few," he said.

"I'll be right back," I told him.

He held out his hand for the reins. It was then that he spotted Fireball.

"What in the seven hells, Derik?!" he gasped. "The innkeeper won't let you keep him in your room - no matter how well-behaved he seems."

"Can we sleep in the hayloft?" I asked.

The big man shot a look at the imp.

"Fireball, show the nice man the pendant that the priest gave you."

The imp stood up, tugged the pendant out of his shirt and displayed it proudly.

"Feesh!" he hissed.

"Holy shit, Derik!" the man exclaimed.

"We saved him from a pack of wild goblins. He's been with us for several weeks now," I said. "He farts or burps fire if you feed him hard-boiled eggs but - otherwise - he's never done anything aggressive - although I have a feeling that he would fight if anyone threatened Mirra or me."

"Tell the innkeeper that you're stabling two mounts and that there will be two adults and a child sleeping in the loft," the stable master advised me.

I nodded and headed inside.

A few minutes later, I returned - with chits for the stable-master - and cheese and bread for the three of us to eat. I handed the food to Mirra and picked Fireball up. I set him on the ground, peeled the shell from a hard-boiled egg, and handed it to him.

"Don't stand near him until he farts," I warned the stable master.

Fireball held the egg up.

"Eggsss," he hissed, showing off his pointy teeth.

He popped the treat into his mouth and swallowed it whole.

I was almost to the stable door when the imp farted.

"Gods below!" the stable master gasped - before laughing.

Fireball took to the air and flew over to land on Spite's saddle.

"Where do you want us?" I asked the man.

He took us to the end stall. I gave him a copper coin in trade for some oats for the feed buckets. He fed and watered the horses while Mirra and I brushed them.

Once the mounts were taken care of, Mirra and I grabbed our saddle bags and headed for the ladder. Fireball flew up through the hole ahead of us. I let Mirra go next.

"G'night, lad," the stable master said, shaking his head at me. "Sleep well."

We used our bags for pillows. After getting hugs, the imp snuggled in between the two of us - and was soon snoring.

I wasn't far behind him.

~~~

The next morning, I double-checked with the stable master that it would be okay to leave the horses where they were. He had me go into the inn, pay for chits for the coming night, and bring them out. I also brought food for the three of us to eat. I handed the chits to the big man and he grinned.

"Good on you, lad," he said. "Your poor mama may not recognize you - you're not the same boy that left here."

He turned to Mirra.

"Good luck to you, miss," he told her.

She gave him a sweet smile and said, "Thanks. Derik assures me that I'm worrying about nothing."

He laughed and said, "Boys ..."

She nodded and then gave me a look that suggested I was about to learn something new.

We sat in the grass by the stables and ate our breakfast. Fireball was disappointed that I hadn't returned with another egg.

As we set out for my childhood home, I picked Fireball up and set him on my shoulder. He was getting too large to sit there. We ended up having him wrap his legs around my neck and hang onto my hair - riding on the back of my head. That position would also let me move more freely, if somebody came after him. I used my staff for a walking stick, careful to check it often to make sure that we weren't heading into trouble.

It was about a half mile walk to my house. We were there before I even realized it. As I approached the door, I decided that I couldn't just barge in. I stepped up and knocked. I heard shuffling steps and then the door opened.

There my mother stood. It had been a little over two months since I had left.

"Hi, Mam," I said.

"Derik?" she asked, squinting a little.

She looked from me to Mirra - to the creature clinging to the back of my head.

"What?!" she gasped.

I reached into my pocket and pulled out the coin purse that she had given me when I left. I held it out to her.

"I came to return this and tell you thanks," I said. "I also wanted to introduce you to my wife."

"Wife?!" she gasped, looking at Mirra.

"Hello," Mirra said.

My mother's eyes returned to me - or the small creature behind me.

"What *IS* that?" she asked.

"A fire imp," I said. "We rescued him from some wild goblins and he pretty much refuses to be separated from us now."

I peeled the imp from my shoulders and held him in my arm.

"Fireball," I said. "This is my mother."

"Mah...," he hissed.

He looked at me and then hugged my neck. I looked at my mother.

"I helped him burn the bodies of his family," I told her. "The goblins killed them."

"Oh! The poor little devil ...," mom said softly.

"He loves to fish. When he saw the priest's pendant, he had to have one."

Fireball raised the pendant up for my mother to see.

"Feesh!" he told her.

"He's ... not ... evil?" she asked.

"He's pretty protective of me and Mirra," I told her.

At the mention of my wife, my mother turned to look at the redhead.

"How did you meet my son?" she asked.

"I was starving," Mirra said. "I tried to rob him and Emmit. Your son realized that I was weakened from lack of food and tried to give me some of his ... but I freaked out and tried to run. I fell. Lolla got me calmed down."

"Lolla?" mom asked.

"She lives with us," Mirra said. "She's a half-gnome lightning mage."

"And what are you?" my mother asked her.

"I'm an archer," my wife replied.

"You've killed ...?" mom asked her.

"The first man that I killed, I used a knife," Mirra said. "I used the same knife that he used to saw off my nipples and rip my sex to shreds. I tied him and his men to their beds as they slept - while I was still bleeding from what they had done to me. I carved each one of them up slowly, starting at their toes, ignoring their screams as I cut more and more parts of their bodies away until they died."

Mom swallowed hard but didn't say anything.

"When I met your son, he and Emmit hired me on to protect the wagon."

Mirra looked at me - and then took my hand.

"You know that Derik is a defender. He defends Emmit and our mounts and me and Lolla. While he does that, Lolla and I deal with the people that are attacking us."

Mom nodded. She looked at Mirra's chest.

"In the next fiefdom city - after I joined their group - Emmit, Derik and Lolla discovered my injuries. They paid a healer - a powerful healer. She restored my body."

Mirra wiped a tear from the corner of her eye.

"After the priest declared us husband and wife - when we got back to Emmit's - that was the first time your son and I made love. I wasn't even fully aware of everything the healer had repaired until that night. I am happy to tell you that I was able to give myself fully to your son. He is my strong fortress. He's a little simple sometimes but he has a heart of gold and I trust him with my life. Hell! I've trusted him with my life every day since that night that he held my tattered body in his arms as we waited for the healer to arrive."

My mother glided forward and opened her arms to my wife.

"Welcome, daughter," she said, as Mirra fell into her embrace. "You have turned my boy into a man."

"He was a man before I met him," Mirra replied. "You raised him well."

The pair separated - but mom still held Mirra's hands in hers.

"You will be able to bear grandchildren?" mom asked her.

"As far as I know," Mirra said. "Emmit gave me a pendant to prevent pregnancy. For now, I am enjoying my honeymoon."

It was funny to watch my mother blush.

"Good for you," mom told her. "Won't you come inside?"

"I would be delighted," Mirra said.

The two of them slipped through the door, hand-in-hand - leaving me and my ugly foster-child standing outside - forgotten.

"Are you coming or not?" my mother snarled at me.

I hot-footed it through the door, remembering to close it on my way inside.

Mom made some tea and - for the next couple hours - I listened as my bride told my mother everything that we had seen, done, and killed. Every so often, my mother would look over at me - wide-eyed. I just shrugged at her. She was captivated by every story that Mirra shared.

Mom fixed a light lunch for us. As we ate, I gave her back the coin purse. She opened it and her eyes widened.

"Where did you get ...?" she gasped.

"When we kill the thieves," I told her, "we sell their weapons and keep their coins."

"Oh my!"

Mirra shot me a look and added, "Those golds probably came from Emmit's trading."

I caught on to my wife's suggestion that my mother might not be happy about having dead men's money in her purse.

"Emmit's goods are in high demand," I told her. "He's in his workshop now, crafting items that we'll sell on our next trip. He just gave us a couple days off so we could come see you."

"... and your father," mom suggested.

"If I must ...," I sighed.

"He'll be happy to see you," mom countered.

"I doubt it," I said, "but I'll humor you."

"That's no way to talk to your mother," Mirra said.

"Just so ...," mom agreed.

I turned to my wife.

"You've told me about your brothers," she said, before I could complain, "but you can heed your mother's wishes without being surly about it."

"She's too good for you ...," mom said, snickering.

"I will have to agree to disagree with you on that," Mirra told her.

I thought the remark might fire mom up - but she just smiled, her eyes sparkling.

The afternoon slipped away and mom soon got busy making dinner. Mirra followed her to the kitchen to help her. I offered as well - but they both assured me that there was no space in there for me.

I contented myself with sitting in the front room and practicing with Fireball on his limited vocabulary. He was struggling with "Lolla" and "Emmit". I could figure out what he was trying to say but nobody else was going to be able to decipher it.

The front door flew open and my three brothers came in like a storm.

"Who the fuck ...?! Derik?" my oldest brother spat.

He spotted Fireball and drew a truncheon from his belt.

"Demon!" he snarled, lunging at the imp.

Fireball jumped into my arms. I stood and moved back to give my brothers and my father room. Mom and Mirra stuck their heads out of the kitchen.

"He's with me," I said. "Leave him be."

"I'll do no such thing," my brother snarled.

He swung the shortened club at Fireball. I reached up and snatched the weapon from his hand.

"Why you!" he snarled.

His meaty hands came for my throat.

Fireball leapt over his hands, landed on his arm, and bit his ear.

"Fuck!" he gasped.

I pressed my hand to his chest and stunned him - freezing him in place. I grabbed Fireball and moved back farther. Blood was streaming from the side of his head.

"You've killed him!" the next oldest brother yelled, advancing on me.

In a flash, Mirra appeared between him and me, holding a knife to his throat.

"Stop now," she ordered. "Derik, heal your brother."

I scrambled, mentally, trying to figure out how to accomplish what she had ordered.

"Mam," I asked, "do you have a scrap of parchment? It doesn't need to be very large."

She hurried to dig through her desk. I pulled my small rune-maker's kit from the inner breast pocket of my jacket and dropped onto the couch. Fireball clambered up my back and settled onto my shoulders, holding onto my hair. He hissed at the brother who stood frozen.

"He's evil," my second brother said.

"He's protecting Derik, you idiot," Mirra told him.

He glared at her, but he found a fire in her eyes that he couldn't counter and finally looked at what I was doing instead.

I took the scrap of parchment and laid it on the table. I looked through my vials of reagents.

"Which do you think?" I asked Mirra.

"What about your blood?" she asked. "It holds life."

"Yeah," I said. "You're right."

I pulled my belt knife and pressed the point to my wrist to make a small hole. I sheathed the blade. I set the nib of the quill to the blood that welled from the wound and the tiny reservoir filled with my blood.

I took the slip of parchment and began writing the runes that Emmit had used when he had created the healing spells - that time when we'd faced the ambush against the fake lawman.

I scribed the runes on the parchment, laid the quill down, stepped up beside my brother, pressed the parchment to his bleeding ear, and sent a pulse of magic into the small spell-scroll. The thing flared with bright green light and - when I pulled my hand away - his ear was whole again.

"Release him," my second brother ordered as I stepped back.

"That has to wear off on its own," I told him. "Shut your yap or I'll stun you as well - just to keep from hearing you flap your lips together."

He tried to turn towards me. Mirra sighed heavily, kicked his knee sideways, and dropped him to the floor.

"And here I thought Derik was the slow one," she spat down at him.

"If you boys are done playing around, Mirra and I almost have your dinner ready," mom snarled.

Mom looked at my wife. Mirra sheathed her dagger, slipped back across the room, and followed mom into the kitchen.

Not sure how to properly clean my quill, I simply sucked the blood from it. I packed up my rune-making gear and stowed it again. I moved to the far end of the couch and pulled Fireball onto my lap. A moment later, my oldest brother regained the ability to move once more. He picked his truncheon up from the couch, shot me a nasty look, and hooked the weapon back onto his belt.

He pointed for the younger brother to sit next to me. For himself, he took the other end of the couch. My second brother got up off of the floor and sat in one of the armchairs. Dad sat in the one that was closer to me.

"Mirra?" he asked.

"My wife," I said.

"She's ... spirited," he noted.

"Mom can tell you her story - or she can," I told him.

"I thought you were a road guard for some trader," dad said.

"He's been training me some," I replied.

Dad nodded and said, "It's good to learn new skills. What's the story on your little friend?"

"We saved him from a mob of wild goblins," I told him. "I helped him bury his family and we kind of adopted each other."

"Unusual pet," he said.

"Oh, he's not a pet," I replied. "More like a toddler with claws and teeth who farts fire when he eats hard-boiled eggs."

"No shit?!" dad laughed.

I couldn't help but laugh as well.

"He likes to fish," I told my father.

Fireball held up his pendant and said, "Feesh!"

"Is that ...? It looks like the pendant the priests wear," dad said.