Downfall

"Clothes. Good. You need some clothes," Rikali told Dhamon. "And you could do with some, too," she added to Maldred. "Of course, I can always…" She grimaced. The Ergothian missing an arm moaned louder. "Shut up!" She pounced on him, cracking him in the side of the head with the haft of her knife and knocking him out. He lay in a pool of spreading blood which seeped under the toes of Rikali's boots. Turning to the portly woman, who had broken out sobbing, she added, "If you don't want him to die, you better lose some of your skirt and tie off that stump. Put some pressure on it. Don't need to be wearin' so much in this heat anyway." She pivoted and returned to Dhamon, rubbing her soles on the ground in an effort to get the blood off. "Now, about some new clothes…"

A cacophony of high-pitched screams from the third wagon cut her off. "Watch them," she said to Dhamon and Maldred, pleased with herself that she gave an order for a change. "He's worthless, Fetch is." Then she was dashing toward the sound.

"Monster!" Rikali shrieked a moment later. "There's a horrible monster in here!"

Dhamon, holding his position, glanced among the merchants and the small caravan. He gestured with his head to the last wagon, and Maldred jogged toward it. The big man thrust his head in the flap and immediately pulled it back out. Rikali scrambled out behind him, holding only the haft of her knife. The blade was missing. Fetch was close behind her, thin cuts crisscrossing his small torso.

"Pigs!" Rikali fumed. "Pigs, but there's some odd-looking beastie tied up in that wagon." She glared at the merchants, waving her knife handle.

"It's not a monster," one of the men quickly offered. "It's just an animal. Leave it be. Please."

Dhamon singled out the wailing merchant and directed him to the wagon. Maldred pushed the man inside, while Dhamon tried on the boots of the dead Ergothian and pronounced them a reasonable fit.

A few moments later the merchant came out leading an unusual creature by a thick rope he had looped about its neck. The thing was as large as a fat calf, but looked like an insect for the most part, with six chitinous legs and feelers that twitched slowly in the air. It had saucerlike black eyes that swiveled back and forth to take everything in, and a small nose that quivered and was aimed toward Maldred. It began to sniff, its purple tongue darting out to lick bulbous lips.

"Bring it over here!" Dhamon called. "Mai, stay back from it. I heard about them when I was stationed in Neraka. The thing eats metal."

"So I discovered," Rikali complained. "That was my favorite knife. Filched it from a handsome noble in Sanction last year. Had lots of sentimental value."

The merchant led the creature like a dog, keeping it in line with the rest of the merchants and clucking softly to it and calling it Ruffels.

"You want it to live… you want to live… you start heading down the mountain," Dhamon demanded. "Now. All of you-and that beast. Keep going and don't look back. As I said, I'm not so generous as my large friend. I've truly no qualms about killing each and every one of you."

The youth grabbed his grandfather and started down the trail, the portly woman following, still sobbing hysterically, and two men bringing up the rear, carrying the injured Ergothian. The man with the insect-pet was last.

"Wait!" Rikali called, bounding after them. "Is that beastie valuable?"

The man kept walking and shook his head. "No."

Her eyes narrowed and she scratched her chin, deciding she was being slighted, that he hadn't at least properly answered her. She waited a moment, then ran to catch up. "Then if it's not worth anythin', you won't mind leavin' it behind."

He tugged the beast closer and clucked to it. "Please," he said. "You've taken everything of value. Don't take Ruffels. He's a pet."

She leaned forward and jerked the rope away, pushing the merchant with her free hand. "I'll have this, too. He's worth somethin', this beastie is. I'll just bet. Sell him somewhere for a good turn of coin." She shook her fist at the odd-looking creature. "And he owes me for my sentimental knife." Then she waved the merchant down the hill. "You'd best catch up with the rest before we decide to sell you, too. You're not so old and ugly. I could get me a few steel for you in an ogre town!"

It took some maneuvering to turn the wagons around in the pass and point them west. While Maldred, Dhamon, and Fetch handled that job, Rikali inspected the metal-eating creature. "Gonna sell you, I am," she told it. "Buy me some fine rings with the coin. Someone'll want a peculiar beastie like you. Rich people're always wantin' peculiar things. Ruffels. Gonna change your name first. Call you Fee-ohn-a, I think. Yeah, I like that. Fee-ohn-a the peculiar beastie."