2/21/23 Bridge Troll Chap 7 and headed to Disney World for research. · 5:28am Feb 22nd, 2023
What. It’s research. Honest. For Farmer Bruener's almost completed chapter. I promise next week while I’m in Magic Kingdom and Universal’s Islands of Adventure to take notes. Maybe buy a wand for an upcoming spot in Bridge Troll. Also going to see about touching base with other authors (No, I’m not buying any of you Disney tickets, but probably lunch...)
Admittedly for the last twenty years or so I’ve been trying to get the wife to Disney World, but I got stubborn recently and declared the trip on, and she got stubborn and said we’d save around a grand by her not going and she didn’t want to go and I’ve learned enough not to push when she digs in. So I’m going, but having butterflies and getting all angsty, so I thought I’d try to relax by publishing another chapter of The Knight, the Fey Maiden, and the Bridge Troll tonight.
Whew.
Anyway, this chapter is an exercise in both character and world development. There’s a balance between world info-dumping and stringing bits along like bread crumbs, so being able to mix it up with character development keeps the story smooth. (admittedly releasing it one chapter every few months doesn’t help, but this is practice for a real book eventually, so…) I get to lay out motives for characters, background for the wizard and his wife even though they have not been introduced, and give a bit of tension to the world. Here, take a look.
The Young Knight, the Fey Maiden, and the Bridge Troll
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Short Handed
Fetch had only been threatened with death by other people once in his life, and that was exactly the opposite of the current threat. He had escaped from King Seiki’s army only to be attacked by an enemy of King Seiki’s army. The irony cut through his fear so much that Fetch could only giggle briefly at the furious one-armed dwarf.
“You are so wrong,” he managed.
“Nay, I know my iron!” The dwarf practically lifted Fetch off his feet by his good arm, shaking the dull sword and attached human. “Let go, you two-faced lying pring! I’ll chop you to ribbons!”
Fetch got a second hand onto the fairly dull sword and hung on for his life, feeling a lot like a rat being shaken by a terrier. The dwarf was strong, and tried to kick him several times while they struggled. If Fetch had not spent many hours helping the smith shoe the mules used by the lumberjacks, he would have been crippled, although if the dwarf had more than one hand, the fight would have been very short and brutal.
“King Seiki destroyed my village,” managed Fetch between pummelings.
“Likely story,” grunted the dwarf, although he did pull the sword down to his chin level, making Fetch hunch over uncomfortably. “Yer just a sprout. What’r you doin’ in a good town like this? Wit this?” He shook the sword and attached human again.
“That’s a longer story.” Fetch did not relax his grip one bit, but he did nod in the direction of the inn. “All of the dwarves who visited Fir Junction insisted on a drink before business. And during business. And several after business.”
The dwarf’s dark eyes narrowed and Fetch finally had enough time to get a good look at him. Every dwarf he had seen in Fir Junction had been a relatively wealthy person with a tied-up beard and some mixture of chainmail and leather for protection. After all, merchants traveling through the tiny town on their way to bigger places had to maintain their appearances.
This dwarf did not. From his half-undone beard to his ragged clothes, he was quite unlike any dwarf Fetch had ever seen before. However, he did calm down with the suggestion.
“Din think yer gonna bribe me into not killing yew.” The dwarf gave him an additional shake.
“I don’t think you’re going to kill me,” said Fetch instinctively. “Even though you did not give me your name.” Faced with narrowed dark eyes as the dwarf pulled him back down to his level, Fetch quickly added, “I am called Fetch of Fir Junction, adopted son of Missus Triana and Ottao. I would have the honor of your clan and name in return.”
The dwarf’s scowl grew deeper until his face resembled a dry raisin. “Yer not gonna trick me that way.”
“No trick. I’d promise that in Dark if I could speak more than a few phrases. And I had a beard.”
That seemed to set the dwarf back a step and he glared at Fetch’s bare chin like it had done something unspeakable to him. Releasing the sword with his only remaining hand, the dwarf rubbed a rough thumb against Fetch’s cheek, then down along the soft fuzz that he had been growing for several weeks now.
“<Not enough hair to swear>,” he muttered in Dark, then continued by jerking his remaining thumb in the direction of the inn’s door. “Nay, yer a babe dressed in a tin toy and I’m a fool. Get back to yer drinking and let me rot in peace.”
It was a relief for Fetch, but right on the heels of the feeling came a wave of sympathy. He had escaped from King Seiki’s army intact and fallen into the best possible situation afterward. The dwarf’s condition was the opposite of his own, and common decency made him want to level the field somewhat. He settled down on the steps next to the dejected dwarf and remained silent while thinking.
“Told ya to go away,” muttered the dwarf after a while.
“I can’t,” said Fetch. “Not until I’ve thought this through. If I can’t help, I’ll leave. I know I can’t get your hand back or return you to the life you had before you met the ursurper. That’s what Queen Vivia called him,” he added quickly before pausing for a moment. “Why?”
“Usurper,” corrected the dwarf with a spark of ire in his voice. “Seiki was Master of Coin for a few years to King Bialystok. Perverted the coinage of the realm while buying the loyalty of certain members of the court, much like the advisor did nigh twenty years ago, but with a twist.”
The dwarf held up both arms like he was gesturing with his missing hand, then slumped back down onto the stone steps. “Nay, it doesn’t matter.”
“It matters to me,” countered Fetch. “My family is still out there somewhere. We were separated when the army came to the village, and I don’t think any of them were captured, so I’m trying to find anything that would lead me back to them. Maybe you know something that will help.”
“At least you have a clan,” muttered the dwarf. He glowered out into the night for a long while, then shook his head. “What’dya have in mind, lad?”
The inn had gotten quieter when he returned, most likely because the merchants had begun to work their way home long before he had gone to the stables to retrieve the sword, leaving only one or two at Quartz’s table. The princess gave him a wave when he first came into the common room, but stopped almost instantly when she spotted the ragged dwarf behind him and looked a little nervous as they drew nearer.
“Princess Tula, daughter of Queen Vivia. Quartz, son of Pier. This is—” Fetch paused.
“Nomor, son of nobody now.” The dwarf slumped down onto the bench where two merchants had just moved away, leaving Fetch to carry the conversation as well as he could, which is poorly.
“My guest is familiar with… No, that’s a bad phrase. He encountered King Seiki and… it didn’t go well.”
Tula’s violet eyes flickered to the dwarf’s empty sleeve and back to Fetch in a single motion that expressed a great deal of skepticism about who he brought back as a ‘guest.’
Fetch placed the sword down on the table, then shrugged out of the loose breastplate. “I took this from Seiki’s army when I fled. Nomor recognized the workmanship on it, in the dark, at first glance. I thought your father might want to speak with him and see if there’s anything he knows about King Seiki’s army. All I know is that swords are used for poking at people and the armor—” Fetch turned over the thin breastplate in both hands “—keeps people from poking you in important areas.”
“Now, wait a minute, lad.” Quartz put one huge hand up against Fetch’s chest and the crisp new cotton shirt he was wearing. There was undisputed power in those blunt fingers, and Fetch had no doubt that he could have crushed the thin metal of the breastplate just like the shirt fabric if he wanted. “Remember your place. You’re my employee. If’n there’s an exchange to be takin’ place, that’s my job, not yours.”
“Oh. I, um… Didn’t think.” Fetch was only acutely embarrassed for a moment because there was not a hint of anger on the troll’s broad face. Instead, he turned to Tula and bobbed his head.
“Princess, my boy seems to have found a person who might be helpful to your father’s concerns. Might I introduce Nomor of the Iron Mountain, because that accent is unmistakable,” added Quartz as Nomor seemed about to object. “Fetch seems to collect the ones who need his help most. You saw the scrawny horse he dragged along into my employ. Wouldn’t even make broth in the stewpot.”
“And you think this… person could be of assistance?” Her attitude irked Fetch, but Quartz stepped in first.
“The boy’s got good instincts. If’n he thinks this chap’s worth trusting—” one huge hand clapped down on the dwarf’s shoulder “—then I’ll trust him too.”
That seemed to bring a flicker of interest into the crags and wrinkles of the dejected dwarf’s face. He straightened up slightly, still slumped down on the bench but no longer looking at the dirty rushes strewn across the floor. Placing his remaining hand on the table, blunt fingers spread across the worn wood, Nomor let out a brief snort of limited amusement.
“Trust from a troll, and an offer of assistance from a human bearing the armor of my enemy. Then assisting an elf with spying, of all things. If my clan could see me now they would cast me out all over again and chop off my other hand.”
“We have worked together with dwarves before,” said Princess Tula cautiously. “Or at least my parents have. They will want a contract, but without a clan to swear against…”
“Some things surpass words on paper,” said Quartz, lifting an arm to gesture at the serving girl by the beer barrel. “I’ll admit to a bit of curiosity myself, so if’n you’d care to share beer and bread with a bridge troll before you accompany the young lass off to a warm room in the castle, I’d be in your debt.”
“Debt,” muttered the dwarf. “You do not know the weave of obligations that knit the clans together, blood and gold exchanged for loyalty and service. I’ve torn myself asunder from all connections by one foolish action, and do not deserve your pity.”
“No pity,” said Quartz. “Business. My Pa always said kicking somebody when they were down don’t earn a copper penny. Give ‘em a hand up and they might do the same for you some day. If not—” he shrugged “—you at least treated somebody the way you’d want’ta be treated. That is provided they don’t try sticking a knife in ya. Then you kick ‘em off the bridge.”
Watching the dwarf’s face slowly shift was like watching an earthen slope erode under a hard rain. The crushing despair was still there, but the gullies and crevices began to fill in with hope, giving Fetch a glimpse of the smile lines and creases of a person who lived a pleasant life with much laughter before…
The princess spoke up suddenly in the silence. “What did you say to the usurper that made him cut off your hand and yet not kill you?”
There was a very long and quiet pause in the common room. Even the serving lady who was bringing them fresh tankards stopped in her tracks, looked around the group, then placed the tankards on the table and backed away. The dwarf curved his remaining hand around one of the tankards and lifted it, not stopping until it was nearly empty.
“A fool spoke the truth to a fool,” said the dwarf bluntly. “For many years, I have shod the mules and burros used in our mines. When word came that the farrier of a distant town had departed with no warning, my clan leader sent me there to cover his absence. Merchants who travel those roads depend on them to set loose shoes and the like.”
Fetch nodded. “Our smith kept quite busy when a merchant caravan passed. I was never able to help since the inn was so busy at those times also.”
That made the hint of a smile emerge from the dwarf’s craggy face. “Fir Junction had quite a reputation for their beer. Never did get to visit, but heard many a tale. Did ‘jer people all get out afore the bas—”
“Yes,” said Fetch quickly. If the dwarf began using profanity, he was more than a little afraid he would not stop for quite some time. “They fled into the woods a full day before the soldiers came. If they had been captured, the soldiers would have bragged about it.”
Nomor nodded slowly, his face settling into grim lines. “Yer right about that, at least. The soldiers had already taken the town I was headed to by the time I arrived. Doin’ all the things soldiers do when they run wild, plus a bit more. Thought they’d respect my clan. Thought they’d have a bit more respect since their—” He bit off a word, glanced at the elven princess, and continued slower. “Seiki was there, just letting his men do as they wished. Ah may have told him my opinion of his moral character when he demanded that I start tending to their horses. Probably because he ordered his men to put me in irons. Ain’t no dwarf ever going to wear the steel of another.”
“No troll neither,” rumbled Quartz. “So, you threatened him?”
“Aye. No mere threat. I was angry as I’ve ever been, and stupider than a rock. I swore the clan oath of vengeance upon that rat bastard,” spat Nomor. “Then I found out he had a wizard.”
The dwarf picked up the second tankard, but did not drink. “Everything came apart right then. The wizard is bound by his oath to protect the king, and I bound my clan to my word, root and branch.”
Tula nodded. “So they cast you out so they would not have to—”
“Nay, Lady Tula,” snapped Nomor. He rested his arm stump on the table next to the full tankard. “I cut them off. My family. My clan. I cast them all away so the wizard would not destroy them. I expected him to kill me. He laughed instead. The king, he did not. Ordered his men to chop me to bits. Then the wizard stopped them.”
“Why?” asked Fetch despite himself. Thankfully, the dwarf did not take offense for the interruption.
“Had some time to think about it since then. Don’t think that wizard really likes working for the king. Really don’t like it none, and when a wizard don’t like something… Well, they get crafty. They’s bound by their word, you see. Their exact words. Seiki thinks he got himself a wizard on a leash, and as long as that holds, he’s safe. He’s a bigger fool than I, and that’s saying somethin’ large. Long as Seiki holds his end of the bargain, the wizard’ll protect him, but all weasels are weasels, and someday he’ll get what he deserves.”
The dwarf had relaxed enough to lift the fresh tankard and take a short drink, which gave Fetch enough time to look around their table and appreciate his own situation. Several of King Piast’s soldiers had edged closer to the table so they could listen, as well as keep an eye on the young princess, but most of the rest of the common room was treating the unkempt dwarf like he had some sort of contagious disease, and they kept their distance.
“Hm,” said Tula nearly under her breath. “Sounds like the wizard was trying to rile up King Seiki, get him all flustrated so he’d make a mistake like you did. Too bad it didn’t work.”
“Oh, it worked,” said Nomor. “I think I can recall most of the argument for your father, since it’s been rattling around inside my head for the last few weeks. If he can pick it apart and find the key for the wizard’s shackles… I’ll be grateful. Can’t promise nothing more since I ain’t got nothing.”
“King Piast would probably like to hear that from you directly,” said Fetch with a sideways glance at Tula. “So, do you think the Crown would be willing to help someone who helps them, maybe a few nights lodging and some clothes worthy of meeting royalty?”
“He would. I would swear my name to it.” Tula kept watching the dwarf’s stump as if she were afraid it was contagious, then asked, “So who took your hand, the wizard or the usurper?”
“The wizard, obviously,” said Nomor with a bit of snorted beer since he had been working his way down the tankard. “Seiki was raging by that point. He was gonna have one of his bullies chop me into dogmeat, but the wizard stopped them. Took my hand off in one stroke and said what he took was all of what was getting took, and any more would unbalance their agreement. That shut him up cold. The bastard turned white as a sheet and practically stabbed one of his own men who was a little close to me when I left, dripping a trail of blood and thinkin’ I was about to die.”
“Your arm healed well,” said Tula a little hesitantly.
“Aye, it did. I’ve got the wizard’s wife to thank for that.” Nomor perked up slightly and casually finished off the second tankard. “Thought she’d be mad as a wet sparrow that I’d threatened ‘em. Took me away while Seiki and the wizard was arguing some more. Patched me up so I didn’t bleed to death, then grabbed some poor sod in the army.”
The dwarf raised the pitch of his voice and scowled. “Take this dwarf to the edge of our kingdom and release him. Unharmed, or I will see that my husband takes your head just as he took this hand.”
“Sounds like my father’s cousin,” admitted Tula. “There’s a lot of fire on that side of the family. Thankfully, I take after my mother.”
“Aye, she’s a sharp one, that woman, an’ not just because she’s got a wizard as a husband. Heard good things about her mother and King Bialystok. Sad to think the usurper killed ‘em. My grandfather said Plock was a kingdom of crabs in a very small bucket. Only reliable position at court is the mortician. When Princess Lubomia showed back up a few years ago with a wizard, everybody in the Iron Mountain thought that’d be the end of the fuss. Plock has a large crossroads, so they’s got a lot of merchants travelin’ thru,” explained the dwarf to Fetch, who had begun to feel a little lost in the conversation and obviously was showing it.
Quartz nodded. “I was headed that way myself, if’n this bridge opportunity hadn’t paid out. Can’t imagine I’d be any more welcome there than here.”
“Most likely.” Nomor looked around the inn’s common room at the scattering of people who were left. They were mostly humans remaining, with the occasional elf or dwarf, although there was a rather odd couple of a dwarf and a gnome sitting at a distant table with a young lady who was obviously their daughter. Or son. It was rather difficult to tell from the back without looking at the way his or her beard was woven, but the long skirts were a good indication.
“If nothing else, my father will be pleased to hear whatever you know about his cousin,” said Princess Tula before taking a completely unexpected look at Fetch. It was as if he had just appeared out of nowhere, and she was trying to figure out what the awkward young man in the new clothing was doing in such mixed company. “Nomor,” she continued somewhat slower, “we should be off to the castle so you can be rested and prepared to meet with him tomorrow morning.”
The dwarf may have been lost in his own misery, but he caught the glance that Tula had given Fetch just as quickly as he had identified the sword’s maker out in the dark alley. “Been just over a moon now, and your young lad is the first person who showed me any kindness.”
“Third,” said Fetch quickly, trying his best not to blush at the thought of being seen as the princess’ anything.
“Aye, third,” admitted Nomor. “The wizard and his wife. Fourth now, I suppose, if’n your young lady is going to take me to her father, and hopefully he makes five.”
“Six,” said Tula just as quickly, seeming just as embarrassed as being thought of as Fetch’s young anything also. “My mother.”
“We’ll see.” The dwarf pushed the empty tankard to one side, but the serving woman had not brought any replacements, so his hand wandered over to the discarded breastplate instead. He gave it a twist, making the thin metal crinkle under his powerful grasp, then turned it back over to fix the dent, although his powerful scowl should have hammered it flat instead.
“It’s not much,” admitted Fetch. “I just grabbed it for some protection when I fled.”
“Protection,” growled the dwarf. “Not likely. Axe’d go right through it. Might slow up an arrow a bit. Meant to stop pitchforks and sticks mostly. Waste of good metal.”
“That’s all our village had,” said Fetch. “Hunting bows and slings. A few boar spears, but mostly the logging people dealt with the pigs in the forest.”
“An’ they were smart to run afore the army rolled over them like it did me.” The dwarf tucked the thin piece of metal under one arm as the princess picked up the sword, apparently unwilling to let Nomor have a weapon even as useless as this one. With one polite motion to bring all the empty tankards on the table into one location, Nomor began to plod toward the inn door. He stopped part-way there and turned, giving Fetch a long stern look.
“Lad, since you done gave me a hand up, let an old fool give you some advice. Don’t go thinking yer gonna go find your people in Seiki’s grasp. They’s either gonna find their own way out or hide where he can’t find ‘em. You dodged the weasel once. He ain’t gonna be dodged that way twice.”
To be honest, Fetch had briefly considered a trip into the fringes of the king’s growing territory under the excuse of procuring supplies for Quartz’s bridge. Nomor’s experience had dampened that urge immensely, which let Fetch nod and stroke his chin in response.
“You are not a fool, Nomor. I will take your words of wisdom to heart. If I had the beard and the words in Dark, I would swear to both.”
That brought a welcome smile to the dwarf’s face, admittedly small but it filled the creases and wrinkles in a pleasing fashion. He gestured with his remaining hand to allow Princess Tula ahead of him, then followed alongside one of the guards as the whole group departed. It gave Fetch a warm feeling in his chest, with perhaps a bit of a flutter with the way that Tula looked over her shoulder as she slipped out the door.
“Thinking, lad?” Quartz dropped one heavy hand on Fetch’s shoulder.
“Always. But not about her,” he added once he caught the way the troll was smiling.
“If you say so.” Quartz handed over a thick iron key. “The room’s for you upstairs. Ain’t much, just a cot and a solid door, but it’s a safer place for my box than out in the stable with me.”
“I thought—”
The troll was already moving, headed for the door without a backward glance. “I wouldn’t fit in no bed here anyway. Plenty of hay out there, an’ my box is safer with you since I sleep like a log. See you in the morn.”
“Um. Yes,” managed Fetch.
The box was very heavy, but thoughts of the dwarf’s smile made it light as air. The day had been full of changes and he had been able to help somebody who really needed it, which was about as good as it could get.
So, what'ya think. Shaping up to be usable YA fantasy?
Have fun in the sticky child infused woke coat tail riding hellscape
What's the significant other going to be up to while you're abroad?
As for your story.... Ive been on a more Berserk and Fear and Hunger vibe lately. You're story needs more body horror and gristle flecked nudity
All the best authors do research especially for locations one author I read regularly in his authors notes talks about visiting most of the locations he uses as settings
5714714
Oh, definitely. I'm really enjoying this story and always look forward to updates!
5714714
Verra nice, reminds me somewhat of Brian Jacques.
I've been enjoying these chapters, and this is no different.
Have fun with your research!
Update. I’m sick and will miss Disney darnit.
5716066
Probably for the best. It is, by all accounts, a silly place
Seriously though, I'm sorry you're sick. Planning it for the future? Also are you feeling better?
5716994
Yes. Did magic kingdom today. Going to try Hollywood tomorrow
5717039
Went to Disneyland twice as a younger less hairy soul. It was fun both times, whatever my grievances now are with the institution. Never been to Hollywood, I leave that to Jamey
Went to the zoo and Sea World the first time as well. Got sun burnt to a crisp during the whale show, but the manta rays were chill.
Dolphins are snubbing bastards. And psychos.
Any celebrities you're hoping to see?
What a fun story. I wonder if Fetch will find something back at the Wizard's house that will help him free the wizard.
Make it back from your sojourn? Have a good time?
5718430 Wonderful time. 80 and sunny all the time I was there including the time I spent locked in the motel room with covid which was bad but not too bad.
5718431
Glad to hear it. Did your wife decide to tag along?
5718465 No, but she gave me the gift of germ warfare before I left, so she was with me in....fection. Sigh.