When The Crow Calls

PART ONE

Chapter One

Maximus Elderberry stood admiring himself in front of his hallway mirror, underneath his large grey eyebrows lay sparkling mischievous green eyes, turning to the left then his right, he picked absentmindedly at small particles of fluff from his  new robe, "that Dodgeus Taylur certainly knows his way around with a pair of cloth scissors" he thought to himself "good choice of blue as well Maximus if I do say so my" KNOCK....KNOCK..... BANG........ CRACK CRASH... The oak door of Maximus's old stone house swung violently back on its rusted iron hinges knocking him head long into the wooden staircase, arms flailing wildly above his head he fell back into the hallway, family portrait's fell from their mountings in to splintered heaps on to the stone floor with a thud, large plumes of dust bellowed and swirled all around, choking the early evening air.
Standing in the open door way with both hands resting on the crook of his gnarled staff, dressed from head to foot in soft grey squirrel furs was Napoli Gallipoli, all one foot two inches of him.
"MAXIMUS MAXIMUS where are you, there's been a murder........MAXIMUS!"
Maximus lay flat on his back beneath an overturned, intricately carved wooden chair, his navel length, well kempt white beard had been thrown back over his face and pieces of broken picture frame stuck out of his hair like brown broken tombstones, a large dust cloud hovered around his head and his new robe looked more grey than the vibrant blue it was only moments earlier.
Maximus and Napoli had been the best of friends for many many years, they had met when Napoli had asked for Maximus's help when he had a particularly bad problem with wild boars eating his prize winning vegetables. After several attempts of building higher, stronger and ever more elaborate fences had failed, he had taken his wife's advice, grudgingly, and turned to the blue wizard for a protection spell. Maximus, for the princely sum of two gold coins duly obliged, but as with all of Maximus spells, there was the usual side effect, in this particular instance, for the whole of that season the vegetables had exchanged tastes. The peas tasted like carrots, the carrots tasted like sweet corn and worst of all, the potatoes tasted like cabbage. On the upside the wild boars left the vegetables alone, cabbage tasting potato was most definitely a required taste.
"Cough....... Cough........ murder you say, they'll be a blinking murder in here if you open my door like that again.........How in Maldwyn's name did you open my door like that any way dwarfling." Maximus struggled to his feet whilst tugging a piece of splintered wood free from his now, much greyer hair.
"I did not, he did." Replied Napoli pointing timidly over his left shoulder.
Standing behind Napoli was the tallest, strongest, most heavily tattooed man Maximus had ever seen. All the skin that was visible including his shaven dome of a head had been etched with elaborate black swirls and strange unusual markings.
"I apologise for your door, mighty blue wizard, my master will pay for your damages, but he requires the use of your services urgently."
Maximus tried to hold back his laughter, his whole body shook with the effort, he hadn't heard a voice that high pitched since his Aunt Mabeline had caught her ample bosom in his mother's rusty old mangle.
Without knowing it, this mysterious giant had used the key words to grab Maximus's full attention, mighty and wizard, everyone in the village knew him as "that useless bearded magician" and they only ever used his services as a very last resort, due to the well known side effects of his spells and potions.
"Come in, come in.", gestured Maximus "and don't mind the mess ...... Napoli, could you fetch the bottles from the cellar, let's have a drink COUGH...... COUGH, and then you can tell me all about this supposed murder and you sir" said Maximus pointing towards the tattooed stranger
"can tell me of how my services can be of help to your master."