Richard Tuttle - Sapphire of the Fairies

“If that is your truepurpose,” the bandit smiled, “you can leave now, satisfied that youhave accomplished your mission. I have not seen much in your townthat would interest a group of bandits.”

The bandit’s smile told Konic that theman had not bought his story, but surely he could not know whyKonic was here. Even Konic was not sure exactly why he was here. Hewanted the boys safe and he suspected that this man might beharmful to them, but why? What did the bandit want here? How couldhe find out? Finally he decided, as he did most other times, thatthe truth was usually the best course. “I lost my wife to banditsthree years ago,” Konic declared bitterly, “and all I have left ismy son. If you are here to harm him or his friend, I will killyou.”

When the bandit made no comment, Konicshakily continued. “I know you are a man of great skill and youthink my threat idle and boastful, but I assure you that I will notrest until your bones are scattered to the vultures.” Konic tookthe star weapon out of his pouch and slammed it on the table. Alleyes in the common room turned at the sound and the bandit sweptthe star up and out of sight before Konic could see the man’s handmove.

The bandit rose and gently touchedKonic’s sleeve. “Let us walk,” he simply whispered and strode outthe door of the inn. Konic rose unsteadily and followed. The mancould easily kill him outside and be out of town before anyone evennoticed, but Konic had a duty to his son that nobody would frightenhim out of. When Master Clava had gone through the door, he saw thebandit leaning lazily against a post as if he had not a care in theworld. He was holding the star weapon in his right hand.

“Was this given to you by yourson?” the bandit asked.

“His friend,” Konic responded.“The son of my friend. He says you almost killed him withit.”

The bandit just nodded and before Konicrealized it, the man in black had three of the stars in his hands.He turned casually and nodded at a sign across the street. Thebandit threw the three stars, one at a time, at the sign. All threeof them landed inside a letter O in the sign. “If I had wanted toharm the boy, rest assured that you would not now be talking to meabout him.”

Konic followed the bandit across thestreet to retrieve the stars with his mouth hanging open. “The boywas attempting to sneak into my campsite and thought no one couldhear him. I scared him away. That is all there is toit.”

Konic nodded as the bandit pried thethree stars out of the sign. He handed one of them to Konic.“Return this to Tedi, that it might remind him to neverunderestimate his opponent. It is called a Lanoirian Star and it isa potent weapon in experienced hands. Perhaps he will learn how touse it.”

Konic stared at the bandit. “How is itthat you know the boy’s name?” he demanded.

The bandit sat on the stoop of thebuilding, the other two stars already put back wherever theybelonged. “I overheard him and Arik, who I suppose is your son,talking in the woods about some witch in a blue dress. They were onan animal path just west of the coastal highway. Arik was trying tofind Tedi and finally succeeded. Do you know who this witchis?”

Konic was stunned with the amount ofinformation that the bandit possessed. The man would make anexcellent spy. He had been in town less than a day and already knewmore than most of the townspeople. Master Clava sat next to thebandit and shook his head. “No,” he replied, “but whoever she is,she has too much interest in the boys for my taste. How do I knowyou are not allied with her?”

“If I was,” the bandit smiled,“she would still be here instead of chasing your boys up Northsomewhere. She will return, you know. Whatever she is after, shewill know by tomorrow night that the boys did not gonorth.”

“How do you know so much?”Konic frustratingly asked. “Just who are you?”

The bandit stared at his feet as ifdebating with himself as to how much to say. “My name is GarthShado,” the bandit finally stated, “and I mean no harm to you oryour boys. As to the witch, I saw her pass last night. She travelsin the company of Dark Riders, about twenty of them. How old arethe boys?”

Konic’s head jerked upright. The boyshad told him about everyone wanting to know how old they were. Heturned and stared into the bandit’s icy blue eyes. “You willexplain your need to know their ages,” Konic demanded with a toneof challenge.

Garth raised his hands as if to fendoff an imaginary attack and smiled. That smile was beginning to geton Konic’s nerves. “There are the Prophecies of the Collapse,”Garth said softly. “The Prophecies foretell of the children whowill rise up to slay the Dark One. Although the Prophecies don’tspecify when the children will be born, many believe that thosechildren were born in the year of the Collapse. There are rumorsthat the Dark One has ordered the death of any child born thatyear. The boys are close enough in age to draw a lot of attention,even if they are not the children of the Prophecies. I am afraidthat people will be interested in their age as long as they live.Some people, like myself, will only be curious. Others will have amore serious agenda.”

Konic was not sure that Garth had puthimself in the right category, but at least he now knew whyeveryone wanted to know the boys’ ages. “How do you know that thewitch will be back?” Konic asked.

“Because the Dark Riders willfan out and check everyone heading north,” Garth replied. “She willsoon know that she has been duped. It is only logical for her toreturn to the last place she sighted them to try and pick up atrail.”

Konic stood and faced the bandit.“Thank you for sharing your knowledge with me, Master Shado,” Konicsaid formally. “I will digest what you have told me, but know thatI am sincere where the safety of the boys is concerned. If you haveduped me with your intentions towards them, it will not diminish myresolve to protect or avenge them.”

Garth only nodded as Konic strode downthe street towards the quay. Konic was shaking with fear and he wasdetermined that no one would notice. He barely held his body backfrom running all of the way to the campsite. Instead of returningdirectly to the campsite, Konic waved to Alan and continued down tothe shore to sit and think. After a few moments, when Alan realizedthat Konic was not coming back to the campsite, he walked down tojoin Konic. Konic was sitting on the sandy beach and didn’t evenappear to notice when Alan walked up and sat beside him.

“What is the matter, friend,”Alan asked cautiously. “Are you all right?”

When Konic looked over at his friend,Alan could see that he was shaking and his eyes were moist. “It isworse than we expected,” Konic replied with an unsteadyvoice.

Alan wondered what had happened to makehis friend afraid. Konic had always been the steadfast one, nevershaken, never fearful. He wondered if the bandit had harmed him insome way. Alan could not see any bruises, but he knew a man couldbe broken without any marks. “What did the bandit do?” demandedAlan.

Konic gazed at the rolling surf, heardthe waves crashing against the shore. Strange, he thought, how someviolent actions were so soothing, while others so unnerving. “Itisn’t what the bandit did that bothers me,” confided Konic. “It iswhat he said that upsets me.”

Konic relived the meeting with thebandit for his friend, leaving no detail unspoken. “Then, even ifthese rumors are untrue,” Konic concluded, “our boys will neverknow peace or safety in their lifetimes.”

“Surely, if we explain it allto the town council,” Alan offered, “the whole town would standbehind the boys and help protect them.”

“Would they?” queried Konic.“Would this town really stand against twenty Dark Riders and awitch? How about the next time when it was two hundred Dark Ridersand a dozen witches? What if one of the townspeople was a BlackDevil and nobody knew it? All it would take is one arrow, or oneknife, or some damn spell.”