044 – A Day On The Road

The train did not stop for lunch. Rather, Steven saw people climb into the domestic wagons and shortly sandwiches and fruit pies were passed around. Water barrels on each wagon were open for use at any time, and refilled as often as necessary.

By lunch time, Steven had walked forward and was walking with the family whose wagon Abey was riding on. Abey swung down as it rolled, and fell into step with Steven. She looked quite pleased.

Steven handed her a sandwich of shredded meat with a fruit and nut paste that reminded Steven of chicken salad, in a roll two fists long. Abey gratefully took it and began to plow through it as if it was a missed favorite. Steven munched through his own, before finally starting to ask what was on his mind.

“Abey, do you still feel that you owe me for picking you up and bringing you along?”

She finished chewing and swallowed. “Yes, I do. In your refusal of me, you essentially set the payment as service for a time, or some monetary equivalent. But I have noticed that you do not feel constrained by this, so lately I have not tried to specifically honor it. I do feel constrained to do something, but have not really felt the time right to ask you what.”

Steven thought about this as he chewed his own bite, savoring this sandwich’s flavors. A definite positive change from the game that he and Caspian had mostly been subsisting off of between the occasional village pub and market. He swallowed.

“How much is custom? Mind you that I do not fully know the value of things as measured here, but in general; say like a half years wage for a farm hand, or something similar?”

Steven had learned what Abey looked like when thinking seriously, and saw that look now as she finished the last bite of her sandwich. He went to the next item as she considered this one.

“It appears these people are trying to recruit you, or the other way around; either way, would you like to go with them?”

Abey did not have to think about this. “If they will have me and I am free to go with, yes. For one thing it means I would not have to go back to Beowa if I don’t want to. Thanks to my summers with my grandparents I could be a good farmer or rancher’s wife, but not up there. On the other hand the last weeks with you and the wizard have been fun, if hard work. I think I can handle traveling as a way of life.”

Steven glanced around at the people they walked among. “If they are the mercenaries you think they are, are you ready to join the infantry? I don’t have a clue how much or what kind of fighting they do. But are you ready to accept, even embrace that as part of their profession?”

Abey now took a turn to instruct Steven. “These are part of the Grey Wolf Company of the Marauding Wolves, in their peace-time occupation as The Mountain Wolf Trading Company. They field three mixed-sex platoons of infantry and one of archers. The last battlefield engagement they were in, they served as reserve troops to the front line army of the king who hired them. Their side won. Before that they had spent much time, besides trading up and down the kingdoms of this coast, training local militias and guards. The last five wars they have sided on, they won. Everybody fights, or is not fielded. I expect that should I join, I would be taught in their methods of battle. As I said, a quarter of this train’s fighting forces are archers. Besides this, I already have the scars of some battles; I know what it is like to fight against something that is trying to kill me.”

Steven finished his sandwich, and touched on the last point. “I did see them up close. Do you think you really need my permission to join them? The Wagon Master approached me this morning, and it almost seamed like he was asking me for your hand in marriage.”

“Well I do feel I need to clear the debt. Once that is done, I am my own woman.”

Though she did not stand up to his shoulder, Steven felt quite impressed at Abey’s pugnacious attitude as she said this.

“Let me know what you think is an honorable amount to clear it. I will decide how much is acceptable, on top of what all you have already done. One thing you can do is teach me how to make that bread you make in the dutch oven.” Steven pulled one of his bandanas out and used it as a napkin to wipe the last crumbs and residue from his hands and face. Abey did likewise with her own rag as they walked on.

They made camp that evening on the southern outskirts of the agricultural land that directly ringed the capitol city. They were beside the southwest foot hills of a short mountain range that ran north-to-south. This range was part of a line of such ranges that stretched along a set of valleys whose west boundary was the coastal range. Veradale was situated at the north end of this range. The valley stretched off to the east and south where they had come from. North of this range was a lake that stretched further north and west, and some east.

From this distance Steven could see that Veradale had some tall towers on the planes close to the mountains, and structures climbing the hills of the north end of these mountains.

As for the mountains, Steven compared them to the Sierra Nevada, and felt these were little more than tall hills.

Abey ate dinner elsewhere as Caspian and Steven sat alone and talked.

Caspian was annoyed. “I don’t think these mercenaries are going to warn anyone about that other caravan. I had hoped to convince someone to do so, as any of them would be taken more seriously than either of us.” Cyrril was nearby tearing apart a rodent half his size with gusto.

Steven turned from the small creatures and back to Caspian. “So, what do you propose to do about it?”

“I am going to march ahead of the caravan tomorrow and try to find somebody who will listen. Barring that I will consider whether to take any direct action myself. We know that the other caravan is coming from that other road. We simply need to find it and see what trouble they cause.”

“Easier said than done, Caspian. I am for warning of impending danger, but I am not yet sure that I want to get involved in a battle.”

“I am hoping to head off a battle, Steven. But I feel like no one wants to pay attention.”