Chapter 14

Stepping next to the Captain as he guided his ship into the pier, Wahleia asked, “Why did you call me up on deck?”

Ignoring her while he gave orders for lines to be cast to the men waiting on the pier, Captain Oster nodded towards the dock, saying, “I thought you’d like to know, your companions are waiting for you though they look as if they have found a friend.”

Wahleia knew her companions were close as she could feel their presence. She didn’t bother to tell the Captain that she knew they were already on the dock waiting for her. The Captain’s statement they had found a friend had her looking towards the dock, between Shadow and Moon, even from their position, she recognized their friend as Ferrot, her grandfather’s spirit guide and companion sitting between her own. Seeing Ferrot waiting for her, she knew her grandfather and mentor had started his journey in the spirit realm. Before she could even think about holding the the tears back they came, knowing that not only her mentor had passed away, but her grandfather, who she loved very much, as well.

Standing beside her, Captain Oster was taken aback at Wahleia’s reaction. Seeing her tears, he assumed they had something to do with the one wolf sitting between the other two, prompting him to ask, “Is there a problem with the wolf sitting between your two?”

Nodding, she answered, “The wolf himself is not the problem as I have known him my entire life and his name is Ferrot. Sitting with my two, he is a messenger saying my grandfather my mentor has passed onto the spirit realm. I had hoped my journey would be swift enough for me to return before he passed, though both of us knew it wasn’t likely and now it will be many years before I can sit with him once again, when it is my turn to walk the spirit realm myself. I think I’ll miss his tales the most.”

“Can his tales be any greater than your own on this journey of yours, to meet a man who does not exist?”

“The man does exist but not here and not now. As for my grandfather, the greatness of the tales were not in the tales themselves but in his telling of them, sitting around the fire outside his door or when the weather permitted, in the central fire ring with the flames leaping up to provide him the actors for his stories,” Wahleia finished.

The Captain left Wahleia alone from then on saying he needed to finish docking his ship. She and the rest of the passengers, stayed out of the way of the crew as they finished their work. By the time the gangplank was put in place the rest of her party was ready to debark though Wahleia knew the Captain had business to deal with before anyone could leave as the tax agent was standing on the pier waiting to board.

Only he wasn’t the first one to board as her companions bolted for the gangplank followed by the third who moved at a slower pace behind the pups. Of the three of them only he was thought of as a wolf and all stayed clear of him with no one around to control him. For the five young people with Wahleia, the return of the wolves was greeted with much joy as they crowded around them after they greeted their master.

For the Captain and the crew who had been close enough to overhear the Captain and Wahleia talk about the old wolf, they watched covertly as the wolf sat before Wahleia allowing her to pet him and remove the leather collar he wore. Once the collar was removed, she bent forward placing her forehead on his head then pulling back she said something no one could hear with one final pat on the head and a scratch behind the ear, he turned to head down the gangplank past the tax man once he was on the pier. With business to conclude, the Captain turned his attention to the man who had boarded his ship after greeting the Customs agent he looked to see where the wolf had gone to. Asking his crew later what had happened to the wolf, to a man they stated he walked towards the city’s gates but lost lost sight of him before he ever passed through the gates.

For Wahleia and her companions, the next hour was spent sitting on deck, watching the activity of other ships that were moored to the various piers and docks while waiting for the revenue inspector to go through each of the ship’s holds checking the cargo against the manifest. Once he was satisfied the cargo matched the manifest the fees were settled on and paid, he turned to leave, pausing as his eyes fell on Esai and Tuda. His pause was only momentary as he changed directions heading to where the two slaves were standing. Addressing all of them, he asked, “Who is the owner of these two slaves?

“That would be me,” Wahleia stated, getting to her feet from the box she had been sitting on, her wolves joining her as she approached the revenue inspector.

Eyeing the dire wolves as Wahleia approached, the revenue inspector lost some of his confidence as he stated, “By order of the Overlord, there are to be no unattended slaves in the city. If a slave is found to be without their master in attendance they will be seized with proper disposition to follow if they are found to be perpetrator of any mischief, their owners will be compelled to pay for any damage they cause.

Softening his tone, he continued, “I do not believe in keeping another being captive even the lesser races, but I am not the Overlord. If I wish to keep my job I must do as he commands and I’ve now notified you as to the rules governing the public display of slaves, even as distasteful as it is.”

Wahleia answered, asking, “Would it be better for me to just remove their collars then?”

“The choice is yours of course but you are still responsible for any damage they cause if they are your slaves. Right now with war coming, the city is full of young men from the country arriving alone or with a friend looking to join the army, until they do a number of them have gotten into trouble fighting amongst each other looking to gain a reputation. Causing trouble in the city is never a good idea and the city watch has done much to keep the number of deaths down. Slaves on the other hand are not citizens or visitors so they don’t have any rights. Those seeking to join the army have taken to killing slaves to make their reputation.”

“The Overlord just allows the killing of slaves without consequence?” Conni asked.

“The Overlord does not have the time to deal with what is considered a minor matter as he is busy dealing with the wars to the south and west. In addition, there are rumors there is trouble now to the north. Thankfully, the Dearthwood Elves are honoring our alliance so they are watching what is happening in the north but regardless the Overlord has to keep some troops back in case the trouble gets across the river,” the inspector finished.

“So slaves can be murdered at will then?” Renn asked.

“Their only chance is in the arena. In the city, if a slave kills or maims a citizen or a visitor they will be put to death, only in the arena are the rules different. Anyone who steps onto the sand is fair game and the rules protecting them no longer apply to citizen or visitor.”

“What if the challenger is so much better than the slave?” Anni asked, getting into the conversation.

“An owner or their agent can step onto the sand but why would they do that for a slave. It would be easier and less risky for them to just buy a new slave. Though recently I have seen fewer slave ships docking here and I’d know if they did.”

“Well thank you for the information,” Wahleia said to the inspector. Turning to Esai and Tuda, she added, “I’ll leave the choice for you to make as to whether you wear the collar or not. From what he has said you will have a better chance as a visitor than as my slave.”

“Just remember if they cause damage you can still be held liable.”
“I am not concerned about that, both of them have behaved since I acquired them never once have given me cause to doubt them.”

“That is your business, not mine. I have said too much already, but what is done is done. I wish you the best while you stay here.”
Once they were alone, Anni offered, “Did anyone else find him strange?”

Tanka, Anni’s bodyguard, answered, saying, “I think he was giving us a warning.”

“A warning about what, we just got here and why did he have to make it sound as such a secret?” she added.

Renn offered, “The warning might not be just to us, he may be offering the warning to every ship that docks here. Wahleia has Esai and Tuda and they still wear collars. He just used them as an excuse in case he is being watched himself.”

Conni asked, “Should we just leave then? If they cannot maintain order they will be in no position to help father.”

Shaking his head, Renn stated, “We can’t do that. Father gave me this duty and whether or not they can help him, I must present his message to the Overlord.”
“Renn is right,” Tanka stated, continuing she added, “All of you have been given a task, not just Renn, though he claims it for himself. Besides I think the little man gave us a hint as to how we should do this as he said most of those arriving are alone or with a single friend which means if we travel together to deliver the message, we would do better as not too many people would be willing to cause trouble with a group as large as ours. This afternoon or evening, once people start drinking they might start to get stupid, but if we go now we might return before any silliness starts.”

Turning to the Captain who had joined them once the inspector had departed, Wahleia asked, “If we conclude our business today, how soon can you put back out to sea?”

“Normally it’s a day or two to get supplies, have them delivered and get them loaded.” Indicating the harbor with a sweep of his arm, he continued, “With this many ships in port now, trying to take on supplies and troops, I don’t know how long it’ll take me to get what we’ll be needing. It could be as many as four or five days.”

“I’ll say he wasn’t lying about how many people were here to join the army,” Esai stated, looking down the road they had been directed on to reach the castle.

Their entire party had stopped and looked in awe at the scene before them. The boulevard was more than twice the width of the largest street in Greenwater, leading straight to the fortress of the Overlord. Before the fortress was a large plaza kept clear of all buildings so parades and other ceremonies could be conducted out in public. The Overlord of the city staged large public events so the people could come and watch as their armies, with their victorious generals before them, would return to be venerated for their victories. For hundreds of years the rulers of this city-state kept the peace this way. The armies were celebrated while the people understood the power of the army making any insurrection by the people difficult because finding volunteers to stand against the army was nearly impossible.

The boulevard known as the “Walk of Champions” was only the beginning of the spectacle of the city-state, as the open area in front of the castle served two purposes first of course, was to demonstrate the power of the army, spread out before them with all looking to the Overlord sitting in his reviewing stand. Joining him there would be the families of soldiers who had distinguished themselves in the field, showing the people the folly of an insurrection. The second reason for the open space was, it made it difficult any possible siege as a attacker had to cross close to two hundred yards of open ground under the watchful eyes of archers on and in the walls themselves.