“Yeah, well I have been all over the world,” said Baxter, “and in my experience there are two types of taverns in that world.”

  As usual Baxter sat at the end of the table. He said he liked the ends because they gave him elbow room, which was something of which he often found he didn’t have nearly enough. Baxter was well over six feet tall and clearly fit but unlike the man from the night before, Baxter looked like your stereotypical large human. He was proportionately wider and thicker than the average. That combined with a muscular physique made it look as if he had no neck. In fact, his body looked much like a larger version of the person sitting beside him, his best friend Wergen.

  Wergen was a dwarf. Short and stocky with a granite gray beard dominating his face. Though he was at least two feet shorter than Baxter, Wergen looked nearly as strong.

  Wergen and Baxter, like the rest of the people around the table, were all a part of the Lorenthian Army and more recently had been assigned to Dade’s squad.

  Seeing that he had the attention of at least half the people at the table, Baxter continued.

  “The first is that type of tavern you find all over the world. They have a long bar with stools, a smattering of not quite clean tables and some kind of cheap beer. You could pick one of these up from anywhere in the world and move it to anywhere else in the world and nobody at the new location would be surprised by what they found inside.

  “The second type of tavern is absolutely nothing like that. They are so different from the first type that you can hardly put them in the same category. But, and here’s the key, they are also completely different from each other.”

  “Is there a reason we care about this theory?” asked Wergen. “Not that we haven’t all heard it before.”

  “Care if you want to,” said Baxter. “I’m just making a point.”

  “And that point is . . .” said Wergen.

  “That there are two types of taverns. Weren’t you listening?”

  “And this bar?” asked Rori looking around the room.

  “The Laughing Green is definitely of the second variety.”

  “This tavern has a bar,” said Wergen pointing across the room at it. “And it has bar stools. And tables. Maybe a bit more than I’d like to call a smattering, but tables.”

  “You’re missing the point,” said Baxter grumpily.

  Rori scanned the room again and spoke up in defense of his friend.

  “I agree with Baxter. Sure, there are tables, but each one is different. There are chairs, but I don’t think there is a matched set in the room. Even the bar stools are all different. And there are not one but two bars and each is completely different from the other. The Laughing Green is in a category all by itself.”

  “Thanks, Rori,” said Baxter.

  “I agree this bar is unique,” said Wergen. “It’s just Baxter’s theory that I can’t get behind. His point is that this bar isn’t in a category by itself. It is in a category with all of the other bars that are in categories by themselves. Which just makes my head hurt thinking about it. How can something be in a category of things that aren’t in categories?”

  “They have an Elvish word for this. It is something like “Duyinia,” said Honoria joining in on the conversation. Like most elves, she was thin and lithe. She was taller than most elves, but still smaller than most humans. She also had long hair that was a deep black color that at times almost looked like it had a hint of blue in it. Though he hadn’t known it when he’d met her, Rori had since found out that this was also something not typical in elves.

  “What do you mean, it’s something like Doy-in-ee-ya? You’re an elf. I thought you spoke Elvish?” asked Ian clearly teasing her.

  Rori smiled at this second pair of friends. Honoria was an elf and Ian a human, but they were both archers and somehow that seemed to bind them more closely together than their racial differences kept them apart.

  “Do you know every word in the common tongue?” without waiting for Ian to answer Honoria continued. “I thought not. But even so, this is not a common word. It is from a dialect used by the elves in the jungles of the southern continent.”

  “What does it mean?” asked Rori.

  “It means something that belongs and does not belong at the same time.”

  “I like it,” said Baxter. “Duyinia. The Laughing Green is duyinia.”

  “Glad we got that settled,” said Sean returning from the bar with Delores, one of the tavern’s waitresses, following behind him with six mugs on a tray. Sean sat down beside Rori as Delores passed the mugs around, gave the table a quick wipe and headed back to the bar.

  It was common to feel like all soldiers looked alike, especially the rank and file in their matching uniforms and haircuts, but for Sean and Ian it went even further. They looked so similar that people often asked if they were twins and then were astonished when they found out they were not even related. And while their similarities continued into their temperaments and sense of humor, it did not extend to their skill sets. The most obvious difference was that Ian would shoot you full of arrows before you even got close to him. Sean would wait until you got closer to stab you with a sword.

  “What was settled?” asked Kedra, coming up to the table with Dade behind her.

  “That this bar is duyinia,” said Ian.

  “Don’t tell Nolan if this bar is dying. He’ll be crushed,” said Dade as he pulled out a chair for Kedra.

  “Not dying, duyinia,” said Rori.

  “Is that better or worse than dying?” asked Kedra.

  But then before anyone could answer, as Dade sat down, he said, “Never mind that, I’m sure I’ll hear all about it later. Though Nolan hasn’t arrived yet, let’s start to focus on the reasons we’re here.”

  “Is Nolan the only other one who is coming?” asked Rori trying to conceal the disappointment in his voice.

  “L’nova and Trill are out of the city, so they won’t be coming. But Brand should be along eventually. He’s currently on duty, but his shift ends soon,” answered Dade.

  “I thought he was assigned to you?”

  “Technically he still is, but as we aren’t doing anything right now and as he is still effectively a new recruit, he still gets put on crap duties,” answered Baxter.

  “Gate squad is not ‘crap duty’,” said Dade.

  “Gate squad is definitely crap duty,” said Brand coming up to the table.

  “Brand!” said Rori with a cheer as he stood up and embraced his friend. “You look well, much better than the rest of this motley crew.”

  “Hey, watch who you are calling motley,” said Wergen with a smile. “I’ll take scruffy bunch, but motley crew is pushing it. Good to see you Brand. It seems like military life may suit you after all.”

  Something unspoken passed between the two in the moment it took Brand to answer.

  “It’s actually okay once you embrace it for what it is, but I don’t think I’m going to be a lifer.”

  “Okay, I can guess that a lifer is someone who stays in the military their whole life, but what is gate duty and why is it so crappy?” asked Rori. “Is it the guards stationed at the roads coming into the city?”

  “No, that duty is called ‘city entry’, but it’s a crap duty too,” said Sean. “Gate duty is when you are stationed at one of the teleport traps or sinks. You stand around all day just in case someone might attack by teleporting in enemy troops. Only, nobody ever does that, because everyone who can teleport knows about the teleport sinks and traps. Instead, if anyone unexpected does show up, it’s some novice who just learned to teleport and the only danger you have to worry about is avoiding getting any on you when they wet themselves when they see the giant number of weapons poised to skewer them.”

  “Spoken like someone who’s served their share of time on gate duty,” said Ian with a smile as he lifted his mug in salute.

  “Oh, it isn’t that bad. I think you may be overstating it a bit,” said Dade.

  “Well Brand, is it really that bad?” Rori asked, “What happened today?”

  “In truth, while I do understand the need for it, it is that bad. Today there was only one unexpected arrival, and it was a novice sorcerer who didn’t expect their first jaunt was going to end with a squad of soldiers ready to end his life with one word from the commander in charge.”

  “And . . .” said Baxter.

  “Oh, he totally pissed himself,” admitted Brand with a shrug.

  “Conversations like this are why I don’t regularly hang out with you lot,” said Kedra.

  “It’s Rori’s fault,” said Ian. “He brought it up.”

  “What’s Rori’s fault?” said Nolan as he arrived at the table.

  “Never mind,” said Dade. “Please sit down and let’s get started.”

  “I need something to drink first,” said Nolan.

  “Me too,” said Brand. “Standing around all day is thirsty work.”

  “Spoken like a true soldier,” said Wergen.

  “Delores, be a love and bring everyone at the table another round,” said Baxter shouting across the room.

  “Can I expect payment for this or are you wanting this based on your good looks?” replied Delores with more than a little flirting and sass.

  “I would never shortchange you! If you’d only spend some time with me, you’d see that,” replied Baxter with an almost wistful sound in his voice.

  “Aye, you’ve never shortchanged me yet. But how soon after I relent to your charms do you start mooching on me?”

  “I would never mooch on you. Unless you wanted me to, of course,” said Baxter with a grin. “So, how ‘bout those beers?”

  “Sure, sure. Give me a moment.”

  “Also, don’t think I didn’t notice you said I was good looking and had charms. One day you’ll give in and then you’ll see,” said Baxter. Then turning back to the table he continued with, “I can tell she’s falling for me. Can’t you?”

  “If everyone is ready,” said Dade ignoring Baxter, “let me explain why I’ve called us all here. It is in part to get ready for the inquisition tomorrow but also it seemed like a good opportunity to pool our knowledge and see if we can figure out what needs to be done next. As always, all opinions are welcome and if something seems incorrect or overlooked, please speak up.”

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

  “Where shall we start?” asked Ian.

  “Nolan, Kedra and I have been discussing it and it seems to us that there are four or possibly just three different series of events going on,” said Dade. “The first is the plot by some Cunāe clans to wage war on or against Lorenthia. Rori’s old clan was certainly a part of that, and we have identified several other clans as well, but it is still unclear exactly what their true motivations and goals are.”

  “Why do you say that?” asked Baxter. “I thought the goal was to overthrow the government?”

  “Maybe,” answered Brand. “But it’s also possible it was just a ruse to legitimize their looting and pillaging of small towns.”

  “Exactly,” continued Dade. “More likely there is a disunity amongst the actors as to exactly what the ultimate goal is. I suspect we would find that some are a part of the “rebellion” only for whatever joy they get out of marauding. Others would say that they want to overthrow the oppressive government. Still others may have another motivation.”

  “What we need to find out is who is in charge of it all,” said Nolan. “Any sort of movement of this size doesn’t happen without some sort of coordination of the actors being done by someone.”

  “I never saw or heard Yoska getting orders from anyone,” said Rori. “Though that doesn’t mean anything. Especially as he would ride out on ‘patrols’ all the time and at other times would go off alone or with just one other person.”

  After a few moments when it seemed that no one had anything else to contribute, Dade spoke again.

  “The second narrative, or possibly still part of the first, is the fire at the Cunāe retreat in the mountains. Who did it and why? Was it someone trying to attack the Cunāe in retribution, to destroy them or to take something from them? Was the attacker the person in charge of the rebellion plot and this was punishment of some kind? Was it some other group acting against the Cunāe to stop their activities? Or was it something else altogether.”

  Everyone sat quiet for several moments staring at each other until finally Sean spoke.

  “It is odd that there was absolutely no evidence that we could draw any information from. There was no sign of who the aggressor was, other than a lot of fire. There were no victims we could talk to, and all of the physical evidence was destroyed as well.”

  “There was the dead guy who told us they were attacked by living fire,” said Ian, “And don’t forget about Manda.”

  “Yes, but she had nothing to add other than a lot of answers that didn’t make sense. At least to me,” said Rori.

  “Also, don’t forget someone left an exploding wagon behind as a trap,” said Nolan. “What was the point in that? Who was it designed to kill?”

  “I would guess more Cunāe.” said Honoria. “The valley was a secret meeting place. Eventually another group would arrive and find the wagon.”

  “Is there some way we could find out who was supposed to go there next?” asked Brand. “Or alternately, can we find out if the camp was only used by Cunāe clans involved in the plot.”

  “Could it have been intended for anyone else?” asked Dade.

  “I don’t see how,” said Sean. “Unless the attacker knew someone else was supposed to show up. But we never saw anyone else the entire time we were there.”

  After everyone fell silent again, Dade began speaking again.

  “Next there is the abduction of Kedra. Most of you know some of the facts, but to make sure we all have the same information, Kedra has agreed to talk about it as best she can.”

  Dade turned to his wife, and she began.

  “The problem is that I don’t remember much at all,” Kedra admitted. “I remember most everything up to the point Manda and I teleported away from you, but then everything becomes hazy. I was kept drugged the entire time I was captive.”

  “Which makes sense,” said Brand. “You can confirm this, but it is my understanding that while wizards and other magic users need their hands to cast most of their spells, there are several that can be cast with just words. So, just tying you up might not be enough.”

  “That is true,” said Kedra. “Teleportation, a spell that it is no secret I cast all of the time, only requires movement if you are bringing others with you. If it is just me, I only need say the words. Whatever drug they were using on me kept my brain sufficiently addled that I had a hard time thinking coherently, never mind casting a spell.

  “My first coherent memory is being kept in a small room. It could have been a jail cell I suppose, but I don’t remember any bars. There was no window. Just bare walls and a plain wooden door.”

  “Were you underground?” asked Wergen.

  “I can’t say for sure. The walls were solid stone, which would lead me to believe it was underground, but that isn’t conclusive. As I said, there was no window, and I never looked out the door. I was shackled to what was either a narrow bed or a long bench.”

  “What was the bench made of?” asked Sean.

  “Definitely made of wood. Seemed like pretty standard bench wood.”

  “What about the shackles?” asked Baxter. “Did they look like something the phren would make?”

  “They looked like standard shackles,” answered Kedra, “but I have to admit I haven’t done extensive research into different shackle types.”

  “Also don’t forget that Cinder Black had her before the phren. So, it is possible the shackles started out his,” said Nolan.

  “Good point,” said Honoria.

  “Did you feel like you were underground?” asked Wergen. “Most dwarves can just sense how far we are below ground.”

  “I get what you are saying, but as we all know, I’m not a dwarf. Also don’t forget I was heavily drugged. So, I can’t say whether it did or didn’t feel like anything.”

  “What happened when you finally left the room?”

  “They drugged me again. I was in the room and then my next memory is being tied to that column in the cave that Rori pulled me out of. Thanks again for that,” said Kedra with a smile.

  “You’re welcome again,” said Rori with a blush.

  “Maybe we can identify the drug they were using,” said Brand. “It’s my understanding that the effects can be very different.”

  “True,” said Nolan, “but we’ve struck out on that line of inquiry as well. Kedra’s best description is that it made her feel ‘woogy’ in her head.”

  “Sorry that I haven’t dabbled extensively in mind altering substances,” said Kedra. “Wizards tend to like to keep our wits about us.”

  “What about side effects,” asked Brand. “Any type of a hangover afterward? Any craving for more of it?”

  “I had a raging headache for about a day after,” admitted Kedra. “But other than that, no cravings or desires.”

  “Do you remember any bad tastes in your mouth?” asked Brand.

  “No, but my mouth was very dry. I couldn’t drink enough water.”

  “Dehydration could have also been the cause of your headache,” said Brand. “It’s not much, but I think it narrows things down a bit. I need to do a bit more research, but maybe it can lead somewhere.”

  “Brand, I’m impressed. When did you become such an expert on poisons?” asked Nolan.

  “It seemed like something that might be interesting,” Brand admitted with a shrug. Combine that with gate duty. You can either stand around and chat or you can read. Anything more than that and you get yelled at.”

  “We know that Cinder Black was responsible, or at least that he claims to be. Did you ever see him? Or anyone other than the phren?” Sean asked Kedra.

  “No, or at least I only remember seeing the phren,” admitted Kedra.

  “So, either he jumped you and immediately turned you over to the phren, or he had someone else do it. Either way the time between taking you captive and putting you in your ‘jail cell’ had to be short,” said Sean.

  “Or there was a long time in which she was kept unconscious from the drugs,” said Honoria.

  “Fair enough,” admitted Sean. “Though it wasn’t terribly long after you were taken that Nolan tried to contact you with the messaging spell. Do you even remember that?”

  “Not at all,” said Kedra after a moment’s thought. “When was this?”

  “Somewhere in the neighborhood of about half a day after you’d been taken. Your response to the spell was addled. As I recall you said something along the lines of, ‘Help me. It was a trap. He was she . . . It was him. Issicar was . . . Issicar is . . .’.” said Nolan.

  “I have no recollection of that at all. What does that even mean?” asked Kedra.

  “How should we know? You said it. It could mean nothing. We know you’d been heavily drugged by that point,” said Dade.

  “Right, you could have been watching imaginary animals dance on the ceiling,” added Ian.

  “We do know that Cinder Black was Issicar or was calling himself that. Don’t we?” asked Rori.

  “How do we know that?” asked Sean.

  “I don’t know. I guess I drew that conclusion from what Manda said combined with Nolan’s reaction to Jaelle saying Kali Amari.”

  “Not Kali Amari, the Kali Amari. Which means ‘the black god’. Beside the word black appearing in both names, Cinder Black sometimes referred to himself as the black god.”

  “You heard him call himself that?” said Ian in disbelief.

  “No, he never said that in public that I heard or know of, but I’d been keeping watch on him for a while. He referred to himself that way in a few letters I got to peek into.”

  “What I want to know is what happened to Manda?” asked Rori.

  “I was wondering when someone would bring that up,” said Dade. “We don’t know.”

  “I’m afraid I’m no help on that front either,” said Kedra. “I know we left together but I have nothing after that. I never saw her while I was held captive.”

  “Has anyone tried to find her since then?”

  “I did a little magical searching, and I asked around a little bit in Lycea, but I can find nothing about her. No bodies matching her description have been reported either.”

  “It’s a big city and a bigger world,” said Wergen. “Plenty of places to get rid of someone.”

  “So, are we assuming she is dead?” asked Baxter.

  “Not necessarily,” said Nolan. “She could be on the run. She could have been sold into slavery. They could still have her captive. She could have been in on it. They could have dumped her on the other side of the continent. Or on another continent. Or on another plane. Or she could be sitting two streets over from here right now. Of course, assuming she is a liability to Kedra’s abductors, the most likely answer is that she is, in fact, dead.”

  “How can we find out? Are there magics we could try?” asked Rori.

  “Definitely,” said Kedra.

  “Before we move into speculating what we should do on that front, let’s just make sure that there’s nothing else to add. Does anyone else see anything we’ve forgotten to mention?” asked Dade.

  “Just the last thread,” said Nolan.

  “And what is that?” asked Wergen.

  “It’s Rori,” said Dade.

  “Me?” said Rori sitting up with a start.

  “Remember, this is not a list of enemy plots or movements against us, but instead the threads of action that were woven through the events of the last several months,” explained Nolan. “And one of those was definitely Rori.”

  “Exactly,” said Dade. “Our meeting Rori, his eventually joining us, helping us with our investigations and his own actions that resulted in his taking over his clan. In a way that is the thread that links up the others. But as Nolan said, we believe that is incidental.”

  “Okay, I guess I can accept that,” said Rori.

  “Why?” asked Sean. “I mean, no offense Rori, but why does it have to be incidental? Assume for a moment that Rori isn’t our friend and someone we like. Look at it from an outsider’s perspective. Could there be more of a connection?”

  After several moments of silence, Honoria spoke first.

  “I do not believe there is anything to find. While it is possible some of the same factors influencing the first three also had an impact on Rori, I don’t think that was the goal.”

  “Especially when you add in the fact that Meredith clearly thinks he’s okay and I don’t believe she is prone to having followers that line up with the bad guys,” said Brand.

  “I agree,” said Nolan. “A lot of the events do involve Rori, but then a lot of the events involve his clan. And those that don’t involve the Cunāe are a direct result of the company he was keeping. In other words, us.”

  “Well, it’s nice to know you don’t think I’m an enemy,” said Rori.

  “Hey, anything is possible,” said Ian. “You did thrash Sean and me once.”

  “Ooh, don’t remind me,” said Sean rubbing his head and eye.

  “Okay, so where do we go from here?” asked Rori ignoring the two.

  “I’d like to spend a little time researching the poison,” said Brand. “It’s likely nothing will come of it, but you never know.”

  “I will put some real effort into finding out what I can about Manda and what might have happened to her. At least as far as this city is concerned,” said Nolan.

  “And I will increase my magical efforts to find out what happened to her,” said Kedra.

  “As we are likely going to be tied to this area for at least a little while, let’s all do that,” said Dade. “But then, assuming we don’t find anything, we are going to have to move out of the city to find our answers.”

  “Rori is there some way you can find out any of the answers to our Cunāe questions,” asked Nolan. “Who was due in the valley next? Did clans who were not a part of the conspiracy use the valley? Was there anyone ‘in charge’ of the conspiracy?”

  After a moment’s thought Rori replied, “There isn’t a central organization for the Cunāe. That’s sort of the point. Each clan is its own independent group. Rules and laws vary from clan to clan and can change at any time. If you don’t like it, then you leave that clan and move on to another.”

  “So, it’s hopeless?” asked Ian.

  “No, not hopeless. Just not at all easy.”

  “I don’t think I can sell the idea of us spending months or years roaming around hoping to bump into the Cunāe clan willing to give us the answers we want,” interrupted Dade. “Nor do I even want to try. What we need is a place where we can talk to a lot of different Cunāe at once.”

  “My point exactly,” said Rori.

  “Wait . . . what?” said Sean.

  “Well, it would have been my point if I’d finished explaining my thoughts. Every so often the Cunāe have a conclave. It’s a sort of combination festival and organizational meeting of the clans. There is no set schedule and there is no guarantee who will attend. Sometimes it may only be a few clans. Other times it can be dozens and dozens of clans.”

  “Please tell me that there is going to be one soon,” said Nolan.

  “I don’t know,” said Rori. “There have been some messages passed between the clans about people wanting to have one. So, it’s likely one will occur. But again, as there isn’t any central planning, they often tend to happen quite spontaneously and suddenly.”

  “Like next week suddenly?” asked Ian.

  “Unlikely. Usually, they occur in the summer. So, we have a few months to wait at a minimum. Could be late spring or early fall, but that’s about the limit. It’s no fun having a giant party when cold spring or fall rains are keeping everything sodden.”

  “Can you do anything as clan leader to encourage a conclave to happen?” asked Dade.

  “Maybe, I don’t know. But then again, I’m new at this. Jaelle would be able to tell us.”

  After a few moments of comments amongst themselves Dade brought everyone back to attention.

  “Okay, here’s the plan. For the next several days everyone work whatever resources and sources of information you have in Lycea or Willowsbrook for anything on Manda, Cinder Black, Kedra’s kidnapping, the drugs used to keep her subdued, the Cunāe or anything else you can think of.

  “Tomorrow we will go to the inquisition and hopefully after that we will have free reign to try and figure out what is going on. Assuming that is true, Rori will return to his clan and will see what he can find out about a conclave and if possible, any of the other Cunāe questions we have.

  “While he’s doing that, everyone else needs to expand their view and start working on any other sources of information that they might have outside of the city. If you do not have an angle to work, come talk to me or Nolan and we will give you one.

  “Any questions?”

  “Yeah,” asked Brand, “does this mean I’m off of gate duty?”