Chapter Twenty Six

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Leaving the crossroads behind, they take the northern road through the forest where they’re told Ironhold will be found. Dave and Miko are dead set against going but follow along as they have no choice since they’re unwilling to abandon James.

Following the road through the trees affords them some protection against the bite of the wind. The further north they travel the denser the trees lining the road become and the thicker the canopy of leaves above them.

Their horses’ hooves crunch with every step as they ride through the layers of dead leaves the coming of fall has deposited upon the road. A few lone travelers are encountered coming from the north but none are talkative and keep to themselves.

By the end of the day they’re still within the forest. When the light begins to fade they find a clearing alongside the road and make camp. At least this night the trees will keep the elements at bay and hopefully James won’t freeze again.

Once camp has been set up, James says, “Get a fire going, I’ll go find us some food.”

“Can I come?” Dave asks.

Nodding, James gives him a grin and says, “Sure.” Miko comes along as well. As he enters the forest, he bends over and picks up several stones which will do nicely. Putting all but one in his pocket, he keeps the other one available in his hand.

“Are you going to kill something?” Dave asks.

“Shhh!” James says to his friend. Then he nods and whispers, “Yeah.”

“I thought you wouldn’t ever kill anything?” he asks.

Shrugging, he replies, “Back home I never would. Here it’s a matter of survival. Now be quiet and keep your eyes open.”

They slowly creep their way further between the trees until Miko lays his hand on James’ shoulder to get his attention. Pointing off to the right, he directs his gaze to a small animal sitting upon a fallen tree.

“Right,” breathes James. Cocking his arm back, he lets loose the magic and throws the stone. It flies through the air and strikes the creature in the head knocking it off the tree.

“You got it!” exclaims Dave as he breaks into a run toward the fallen animal. James and Miko follow.

They find the animal with half its head blown away. “Gross,” Dave says as he bends over and picks it up by its tail. Blood drips from the opening.

“Take it back to camp,” James tells him. “I’ll try to get another before it gets too dark.”

“Alright,” he says and heads back to camp.

Shortly after Dave leaves, James bags another animal. He and Miko then return to camp where the animals are dressed for the fire.

The night passes quickly and in the morning they have a quick breakfast, finishing off the remnants of the roasted animals of the night before. Once done, they mount up and return to the road and continue north.

All day long, the forest alongside the road remains constant. An hour or so after noon, they begin to notice the odor of wood smoke in the air. Shortly after that a cluster of buildings appears along the road out of the forest ahead of them.

“Wish we could’ve stayed there last night,” complains Dave.

“Would have been nice,” replies James. The others just give Dave an annoyed glance.

The village ahead of them doesn’t have all that much going for it, a few main buildings such as an inn and a chandler’s shop and not much else. Scattered amidst the surrounding forest, houses can be seen here and there.

One man is leaving the inn and James rides near and asks, “How much further is Ironhold?”

The man pauses and glances up at him. “About a day and a half,” he replies. “When you reach the foothills you’ll know you’re close.”

“Thank you,” James says and then continues on through. Glancing back, he sees the man hasn’t moved from his spot, merely standing there and staring at them leaving. The way he’s acting gives him the creeps.

Jiron notices him as well and says, “Wonder what that’s all about?”

Shrugging, James says, “Maybe he just wants to remember the fools going to Ironhold.”

Laughing, Jiron nods his head. Jorry and Uther join in.

“What’s so funny?” Miko asks.

“Nothing,” replies James and breaks into a chuckle as well.

They pass through the village and return to the forest. The rest of the day is pretty much as it has been and they finally make camp as the light begins to fade.

James again takes Dave out into the forest and they manage to bag a large animal similar to a deer back home. It’s too encumbering for one to carry so together they bring it back to camp.

Along with the roasted meat from this kill, they also finish the rest of the bread and some of the cheese they had bought from the farmer earlier. Seeing their dwindling supply of food, James wishes he had thought to buy several more day’s worth in that small village they passed through earlier.

What can’t be helped must be endured. Through the night, they keep the fire going and the one on watch continues roasting the meat so they can take most of it with them when they leave.

Early the next morning they break camp and return to the road. “We should be there before night, I think,” James announces.

“I can hardly wait,” moans Dave.

“Cheer up,” his friend tells him. “Doubt if anything will give us trouble there.”

“You know,” Dave says as they ride along, “in the horror movies back home, the person who always says things like that is usually the first to die.”

“So?” asks James. “Those were just movies.”

“I just think you should approach this with a little more gravity than what you are,” he says.

“Don’t think that just because I am not visibly worried that I am carefree,” James tells him. “On the contrary, I’m not. The tales concern me and I intend to use extreme caution and vigilance while there.”

“I hope so,” says Dave.

They ride throughout the day and sometime after lunch the forest begins to thin out and the terrain turns into rolling hills. “Must be getting close,” says James.

Not long after the hills appear they come to a junction. Either they can continue straight or take the road to the left. James continues on straight and from the rear he hears Qyrll say, “We should take the road to the left.”

Coming to a stop just past the left hand road, he turns his head back and asks, “Why?”

“We’ve been gradually turning to the east,” he explains. Pointing to the road branching to the left he says, “That one leads almost due north.”

“Are you sure?” Dave asks.

“Absolutely,” the Parvati replies.

“I think he’s right,” adds Jorry. Uther nods agreement.

Taking a moment, James looks around and notices the way the shadows are falling and begins nodding his head. “I think you’re right,” he agrees. “This way it is.” Turning his horse around, he returns to the other road and they begin following it.

They’re soon to realize this is the right way to go, the trees continue to thin and they catch glimpses through the trees of the mountains ahead of them to the north. Nestled somewhere within them lies the old town of Ironhold.

As they continue through the hills, the trees thin but don’t disappear altogether. Steadily, the hills become steeper and the road meanders first one way then the other in an attempt to follow the gentlest way.

Two hours after they left the other road, the hills open into a sort of plateau before the road reenters the mountains further ahead. A caravan is camped off to one side, other travelers are scattered throughout the area.

“Wonder what this is all about?” asks Jiron.

“I don’t know,” James replies. Giving the area a better scrutiny, he notices many spots which are currently unoccupied which once had been used. Sites of old campfires are seen throughout the plateau area.

Moving along, they come to three men sitting next to a wagon having what looks like stew. They look up as James approaches. “Excuse me,” he says to them. “I was wondering why everyone is camped here? I mean it isn’t that late.”

“Don’t want to take the chance of being in Ironhold when night falls,” one of the men tells him. “Most travelers who come this way stop here and continue on through in the morning.”

“One time,” another man adds, “we were coming through Ironhold and our wagon wheel broke. It was just about sunset and by the time we got it repaired, the sun had dropped below the horizon.” One of the other men nods his head in affirmation to what he’s saying.

“Before we could get all the way through a white shape appeared atop one of the old buildings and began wailing.” His eyes widen at the memory as he continues, “The sound seemed as if it was going right through you. We whipped our horse and got out of there fast. We’ll never take the chance of being caught in Ironhold when the sun goes down again.”

“Thanks,” James says.

Nodding, the men return to their meal.

Glancing back to the others, he can see fear and doubt creep into their eyes, even Uther’s. “Better find a spot and we’ll enter Ironhold in the morning,” he says.

“Might not be a bad idea,” agrees Jiron.

“Think it was a banshee?” asks Dave as they head over to an unoccupied spot near an old campfire ring.

“Who knows?” responds James. “Just don’t let your imagination get the best of you.”

“I’ll try not to,” he says.

They get the horses settled in and set about gathering enough wood to last the night. “I think we should still maintain a watch here,” he tells them once the fire is going and they’re having their dinner. “Don’t necessarily trust everyone here.”

“I agree,” Miko says.

Several more groups of travelers appear from the road to the south and join with the others in waiting for the coming of dawn. Not one person enters the pass at the other end.

Sleep doesn’t come easy for any of them that night. Thoughts of what they may encounter the next day run through their mind. During their turn at watch, each tends to pace nervously in an attempt to work out their anxiety before returning to their blankets when their turn is over and trying to go to sleep.

Another crystal blue day dawns, cold and freezing. They gather around the fire to dispel the chill which has crept into their bones through the night. The plateau is a bustle of activity as the various groups of travelers get underway.

James is in no hurry to be the first, rather he just as soon wait and be the last to leave. They have breakfast while they wait for the last few to get underway. When at last everyone has either left or is in the process of heading for the pass, James decides it’s time to go.

Mounting, they ride at a leisurely pace as they allow those few still moving toward the pass a chance to enter it first. The wagons and caravan move slowly, causing James and the rest to proceed at a pace more sluggish than he would like. But if he wishes to be the last into Ironhold then he must endure it.

“What are you planning to do there?” Jiron asks him.

“Not sure,” he says. “There has to be a reason Ellinwyrd told me to come here.”

“Are you even positive this is the Ironhold he is mentioning?” Uther asks. “It’s possible there could be another.”

“He’s right!” perks up Miko. “Maybe we should go and find out.”

Shaking his head, James dashes his hopes by saying, “No. This is the right one. I know it.”

They finally crest a hill and below them they see Ironhold, or rather what’s left of it. It looks to have once been a sizable town with many buildings. All of which now stand in ill repair, some even having collapsed.

“Oh man,” he hears Miko say from beside him when he sees the dilapidated buildings.

“Looks like a ghost town,” Dave says.

“It does, doesn’t it?” comments James.

“A ghost town?” asks a shaky Miko.

Glancing over to him, James says, “It just means a town where no one is living. There are a lot of them where I come from and not one of them have actual ghosts. So relax.”

Coming down off the ridge, they follow the caravan as it approaches Ironhold. All the other travelers have already passed through and disappeared further into the mountains. A breeze blows through bringing the cold air down off the mountains. The peaks all have snow accumulations already and James is hoping it doesn’t drop any lower until they leave.

He brings them to a halt about a mile from the outskirts of Ironhold and waits until the caravan has passed through to the other side. When the last wagon rolls out of town, he nudges his horse forward and they make their way down.

It’s an eerie feeling riding into a deserted town in the middle of nowhere. He’s sure the feeling of unease they are all feeling is being magnified by the memory of what the man told them the night before. Every shadow holds a monster, every noise a creature bent on their destruction.

The first building they come to looks to have been an inn at one time and James brings them to a stop before it. Dismounting, he says, “We should split up in order to cover more ground quicker.”

“Split up?” questions Miko. The look on his face says he’s not liking this idea at all.

“We want to be out of here by night don’t we?” James asks him. When he sees him nod his head, he says, “Alright then. I’ll take Dave. Fifer, you go with Qyrll, and Miko, you stay with Jiron.” Jorry and Uther look to him questioningly but he returns a gaze telling them he shouldn’t have to tell them they’re paired. They always are.

The pairs form up as he takes out his medallion. Holding it up before them, he says, “We’re looking for anything with this symbol on it. Understand?” He shows it to everyone and receives a nod from each in reply.

Putting it back within his shirt, he says, “Meet back here by the horses in an hour.”

“You got it,” Jiron says as he grabs Miko and heads deeper into town.

Before Fifer and Qyrll leave, Fifer says, “We’re not going to be able to search the whole town before dark.”

“I know,” he replies. “This could take a couple days.”

“Days?” he asks.

“Don’t worry, we’ll leave town before it gets dark and then return in the morning,” James assures him.

“Okay,” he says. Then he and Qyrll leave for the center of town.

Turning to Dave, James says, “Shall we?”

“Let’s,” he replies. He appears more at ease now that it’s just him and James, the others always put him on edge.

They move along the outskirts and begin checking the buildings starting with the inn where their horses are tied. The front door has long since fallen off its hinges and lies on the floor within. Dust covers everything, including the fallen door. Other than small animal tracks, there’s no sign of anything or anyone having been inside for a long time.

“Check upstairs,” he says to Dave as he nods toward the stairs. “I’ll check around down here and meet you up there.”

“Alright,” he says as he heads to the stairs.

While Dave begins searching the rooms on the floor above, James looks through the rooms on the bottom floor. Room after room, he finds nothing out of the ordinary and no indication of Morcyth.

Aaaaaahhhh!

“Miko!” he cries when he hears his scream. He rushes out of the kitchen and enters the common room just as Dave comes to the top of the stairs.

“What was that?” he asks, his voice cracking due to his nervousness.

“I don’t know,” replies James as he rushes out the door. Turning down the street toward where he heard the cry, he takes out a stone and readies it. He turns the corner and sees Jiron standing there with Miko.

When Jiron sees him running, he rolls his eyes heavenward and nods to Miko.

“What happened?” cries Fifer as he and Qyrll come running from the opposite direction.

Miko turns toward them and holds up a rat’s skeleton. “Sorry.”

“When he opened the door it fell on him,” Jiron explains.

Sighing, James flashes Miko an amused look then turns to return to the inn. He meets Dave on the way back and he explains to him what happened, at which Dave grins.

Back at the inn, they take a quick moment to finish the search and then continue on to the next building. Hours go by and no one finds anything of note. They meet back by the horses periodically to check in, primarily making sure no one comes up missing.

Throughout the day people continue to pass through going either to the north or to the south. Though they take notice of James and the others wandering through Ironhold, they speak not a word to them, simply rush through as if they didn’t want to linger any longer there than necessary. Which they probably don’t.

During a search of an old tannery, Miko walks into its back room and a door begins to slowly open on its own. He stands there, fear rising as his feet stay frozen in place. Wanting to run but unable to, he’s only able to stand there and watch the door open. Suddenly from the other side, Jorry and Uther jump out and yell “Boo!”

Miko yells in fear as he jumps backward three feet, landing awkwardly. Losing his balance he falls to the floor.

Jorry and Uther laugh as they leave the room. Miko gets to his feet just as Jiron enters, the sound of the other’s laughter still can be heard from outside. “You okay?” he asks.

Miko glances to him, face red from being scared as he was. “Yeah,” he replies.

Jiron glances out a side window and sees the duo passing by. Jorry looks back and sees Jiron staring at him and gives him a grin. Face turning into a frown, he turns back to Miko and says, “How would you like to get them back?”

Brightening at the idea he replies, “Man, would I!”

“Alright then,” he says. “Come with me.” With Miko in tow he leaves the building through another exit and works his way to a point where he can keep an eye on the pair as they move along the street without being seen.

When they finally enter a building to begin searching, Jiron pauses and turns back to Miko, saying, “Okay, here’s what we do…”

“I don’t think there’s anything here to find,” Jorry complains to Uther. Other than the fun they had with Miko, so far Ironhold has just been a rather boring place.

“I know,” replies Uther. “Maybe we can get Miko again later.” Chuckling at the thought, he makes his way upstairs with Jorry right behind him. The building they find themselves in used to be an inn.

He and Jorry met shortly after the fall of the City of Light when they joined with Miller and his band. Both having gone through hardship and sorrow, they felt a bond between them almost from the beginning.

“It wouldn’t be so bad if there was something to find once in a while like coins or something,” he says. They have found some, but not nearly enough to satisfy his need for diversion.

Jorry stops at a door while Uther continues on to the next. Opening it, he walks into a room with several beds and over to the side is an upright wardrobe. He gives the room a casual once over and then moves to the wardrobe.

Just before his hand connects with the handle, the doors swing open and two figures leap out at him with a roar. Clothed in tattered remains with faces black as coal, they give him such a fright that he cries out and staggers backward. His leg hits one of the beds and he falls over, his back hitting the floor.

Getting to his feet quickly, he bolts for the door just as Uther comes running to see what the problem is. Bam! He runs right into Uther and they both collapse to the floor in a heap.

“What happened?” cries out Uther as he and Jorry quickly untangle themselves and get to their feet.

“Ghosts!” cries Jorry in fright.

Just then laughter can be heard coming from the room he just fled. “Ghosts huh?” Uther says as he draws his sword and approaches the room. Coming to the door, he glances through and there sitting on one of the beds are Jiron and Miko laughing hysterically. Turning back to his friend, he says, “It’s just Miko and Jiron.”

Jorry comes to stand in the doorway beside Uther and looks on them in anger. Miko sees his expression and doubles over in a more intense spasm of laughter.

“Payback huh?” Uther says, sheathing his sword.

Jiron grins at them with tears in his eyes. “You could say that,” he says.

From below the sound of feet running across the floor and then hitting the stairs comes to them. In a second, James appears at the top of the stairs, out of breath. He sees Jorry and Uther standing in the doorway and as he approaches sees Jiron and Miko sitting on the bed. He takes in the way Miko and Jiron are dressed, old tattered clothes and face blackened with what looks like soot. The fact that they’re just recovering from laughing tells him all he needs to know.

Putting the stone back into his pocket, he glares at them and says, “If you all are quite through, we have some serious searching to do.”

“Sorry James,” Jiron says from the room. Uther glances to him and sees he’s not sorry in the least.

To Jiron and Miko he says, “Get cleaned up. We still have a while before lunch and I would like to cover at least some of the city by then?”

“Okay,” replies Jiron as he gets off the bed.

“But they started it,” accuses Miko.

James glances from one pair to the other. Dave comes up the stairs behind him and stops as he takes in the situation. “I don’t care who started it,” he states. “I want it finished now. Understand?” Four heads nod affirmative. “Good.” Turning his back on them, he sees Dave there and rolls his eyes heavenward. With Dave beside him, he leaves the inn.

Once James and Dave are on the stairs and out of sight, Uther gives Miko and Jiron a look saying ‘This ain’t over yet’.

After another hour of searching, they meet back at the inn where they have lunch before setting out once more. The sun continues its path across the sky and begins to drop toward the mountain peaks to the west. When the sun is close to passing behind the peaks, they decide to go out once more before calling it a night.

“Maybe we should stop now?” suggests Miko. Eyeing the sun’s proximity to the top of the mountains he’s worried about being within Ironhold when the sun disappears.

“Just a quick search,” James tells everyone. “Check two more buildings and then return here. We’ll start in a different area tomorrow.”

“I don’t think you’re going to find anything here,” Dave grumbles.

Turning to his friend, James says, “There has to be something, Ellinwyrd wouldn’t have said to come here if there wasn’t.”

Fifer pauses on his way into town, turns back and says, “He could be mistaken. Everyone makes mistakes.”

“I’ve considered that,” he says and then stalks off. Dave has to hurry to keep from being left behind. Doubt has been creeping in ever since nothing was found right away. Maybe it’s just pride or stubbornness, but he feels to the core of his being that this is where he needs to be.

A half hour later after another fruitless search they reconvene by the horses. The sun by this time has dipped behind the peaks. Though the town is now in shadow, the peaks to the east still have the sun’s rays upon them.

Mounting, they move out and head to the edge of town. They follow the road for a mile or so before coming to a good spot where they can camp and still keep the town in sight. “Don’t you think we’re a bit close?” asks a nervous Miko.

Turning his gaze upon him, James puts his hands on his hips and vents the frustrations of the day. “I’m sick and tired of you whining about this and complaining about that! If you don’t want to stay here, then by all means you’re more than welcome to move further away. I am staying here.”

Miko’s eyes reveal the hurt he feels from the words his friend just spoke. “Didn’t mean that,” he says softly. He then turns away and moves across to the other side of the camp where he rolls out his bedroll and lies down.

“Kind of hard on him weren’t you?” Jiron asks.

Sighing, James says, “Probably. But there comes a time when a man has to grow up and stop being scared of everything. It was cute when he was younger, but now he needs to start facing his fears.”

“How can you say that after all we’ve been through?” accuses Jiron. James starts to turn away and Jiron takes him by the shoulder and pulls him back. Eyes locking, he says, “Miko has been your stalwart companion from the beginning and he deserves better. From what you both have told me, he’s saved your life on numerous occasions when he was scared. He’s cautious, yes. But don’t you ever confuse that with cowardice!”

Sighing, James nods his head and says, “You’re right.” He glances over Jiron’s shoulder and sees Miko stretched out on the ground turned to face out of camp. “I better go talk with him.”

“That would be a good idea,” agrees Jiron. “The rest of us will take care of the fire and dinner.”

“Thanks,” he says as he starts heading toward Miko. He doesn’t take two steps when from behind him he hears Jiron say to Dave, “Come on, we’re on wood duty.” Dave’s complaining accompanies him all the way to where Miko lays.

“Uh, Miko,” James says as he comes to stop next to him.

“What?” he says, face remaining turned away.

“I’m sorry for what I said.” He comes around to the other side. “You’re too good a friend for that.”

“It’s alright,” he says. “You’re right though, I do complain more than I aught.”

“No it’s not,” James tells him. Sitting down next to him, he glances at him and then says, “I’m just frustrated by not finding anything today. I took it out on you and I shouldn’t have.”

Giving James a crooked smile he says, “If you can’t blow up at your friends once in a while, then what good are they? I’m not mad. I know you have a lot on your mind.”

“Glad you feel that way,” James says sincerely. He gives him a smile and then glances over across the camp where Dave has just returned with an armful of wood. He’s standing there staring at them, emotions running through his face which James is unable to make head or tails of. The only thing he’s sure of is that they’re not good ones.

Sighing, he says, “I’m going to help the others.” Patting Miko on the shoulder, he gets to his feet and comes over to where Dave is standing.

“Need any help?” he asks.

Whatever emotions had been there before are gone now. Giving him a shake of the head, he says good naturedly, “Naw, we got it covered.” He puts his load of wood down near the fire and then returns to the trees for another.

He watches his friend for a second before going over to where Fifer is working to get the fire going. Sitting down, he glances around and then asks, “Where’s Qyrll?”

Jerking his head in the direction of Ironhold, he replies, “Over there. Said he wanted to see if there were any ghosts walking the streets.”

Looking in the direction indicated, he sees him leaning against a tree as he looks out over the town. “Hope he doesn’t find any.”

“Me too,” agrees Fifer.

They get the fire going to dispel the cold of the mountains. If they thought it was cold down on the plains, it’s downright frigid here at the base of the mountains. The wind whips the cold air down from the upper elevations and with the setting of the sun, the temperature drops rapidly.

Breaking out the rations, they have their meal while the light continues to fade. Qyrll takes his meal over to his position looking out over the town. The heat from the fire doesn’t reach that far but he doesn’t seem to mind. His people live in mountains so he most likely can take the cold better than most.

The others come to join him from time to time but the cold always drives them back to the fire. By the time they determine it’s time for sleep, no ghosts or spirits have yet to make their appearance.