RHIDAUNA, The Shadow of the Revenaunt, Book 1

CHAPTER 11 - LEUDRA CITY (Part One)

Two weeks later, the donkey died. Twenty miles before Leudra City the old bag of bones breathed its last and from that point, he had to walk all the bloody way. Three times a farmer or a merchant with a horse and cart had overtaken him, but Vasthul hadn't dared to ask for a ride. People like them would surely be missed; he couldn't risk killing them.

He yawned; he was so tired, like he hadn't slept for a week. His mouth tasted like the inside of an ash pan and every muscle hurt. He grunted as he walked toward the town gates.

'Hey, friend,' the gatekeeper said suspiciously. 'You're not sick, are you?'

The question jolted Vasthul. If they thought he was coming down with something contagious, they'd drag him off to the quacks in their White temple straight away. That was too risky, going to an enemy temple. If they happened to find out whom he served, his goose would be cooked, all right. He shook his head. 'No, I've been on the road for days and I'm done up. I'm looking for a place. Something cheap.'

The watchman scratched his unshaven chin. 'Cheap... try the Ossenkop tavern, a little further down the street. Good food, passably clean and they won't cheat you much. Tell them Megnus sent you, and they'll have room for you.'

Vasthul thanked the man. That's the last place to go to, he thought, as he entered Leudra City. He yawned again.

The rest of the day and the night he spent in the most obscure taverns the Princely capital possessed. He kept to himself and only once encountered a bit of trouble, when a pair of knife fighters thought to steal his purse. Without much ado, he sent them into oblivion, and left for the next tavern, searching for information. Nobody had seen Hardingraud or one of his cronies. For a moment, he felt satisfied he hadn't ridden that old donkey to death for nothing - the whoreson wasn't here yet.

The next morning at sunrise, Vasthul was at the gate. In the shadow of a mighty stone hero, he waited for his prey.

Fate was with him. After just a few hours he saw Hardingraud and his bootlickers enter town, looking fresh as daisies and smiling. He followed them from a distance, inconspicuous in the crowd, until they reached the temple of Fantus.

He looked around and spotted a beggar boy practicing his craft opposite the temple entrance. He liked to use street children for his little jobs. They were quick and eager, and no one would miss them when they were gone. 'Did you see those people going in just now?'

'I'm blind, noble sir,' the boy lamented. 'Do you have a copper for a blind child?'

'You're as blind as I'm the King of Opit,' Vasthul said. 'If you want to earn money on me you'd better be honest. Did you see them go in?'

The boy hesitated, but his greed won out over his caution. 'Yes, master.'

'And you would recognize them?'

'Everywhere,' the beggar boy said with confidence.

'Well, then, you stay on the lookout for me. I'll be in that porch over there, catching me some sleep. Wake me if they come out. Got it?'

'Yes, master,' the boy said, with a furtive glance at Vasthul's face.

The little man curled himself up on the porch and was asleep within seconds.

Leudra City, capital of the Princedom of Leudra, was one of the oldest and most attractive cities in Rhidauna. The houses, public buildings and temples radiated a certain elegance towns like Theridaun or Gromarthen lacked. Ghyll, however, had no eye for the town's beauty. His side itched, he was tired and his impatience soured his temper. He wanted only one thing: to reach Din-Werdzom without more delays.