Chapter 6: Izmit

The road to Izmit was clear of monster activity but Ragnar didn't let his guard up for an instant. If he had been attacked south of the river, where an imposing castle stood, it would have to be worse the further away he ventured. So, Ragnar forced Denuve to quicken his pace. The younger soldier was weary from his trials in the tunnel but kept up with Ragnar. As they made their way to the seaside town, Denuve explained to his captain what had happened.

He and the other soldiers had arrived at the tunnel late and decided to camp outside its entrance. Wary of the report of increased monster activity, they had felt it would be a safe idea to have no fire and keep double watch.

However, because of the double watches, the soldiers had overslept and, in their rush, were improperly prepared to venture into the tunnel. Denuve figured it was how the healers were able to so effectively ambush and scatter them.

Ragnar was disturbed by many of the things the younger soldier told him. Of course, the rudimentary things like oversleeping and a lack of discipline annoyed the captain but they paled in comparison to the trouble in the tunnel.

Even for soldiers as lax as the group had been, a force of slimes and healers such as the one Ragnar had seen could not have snuck by them. If what Denuve told him was true (and Ragnar saw no reason for him to be lying if he admitted to oversleeping) then the monsters must have been living in the tunnel for a while now.

It was a growing problem but once Ragnar and Denuve finally reached Izmit late in the evening, he found himself at the mercy of a new, more important problem: finding an inn to stay at.

For a town centered on business in the northern region of Burland, Izmit wasn't particularly large. It more or less had the essentials of the shops needed for a town: markets, armories, a Zenithian Temple; in all, a convenient marketplace for the many small villages that dotted the Burland coastline. A commercial town such as this, however, usually meant a large amount of inns for merchants to stay at while they peddled their wares.

The first one Ragnar found, an inn named The Seaside Breeze (a bit of an exaggeration since the ocean was a few miles away) wasn't a large one but there was enough vacancy for Ragnar and Denuve to bed down for the night. They went to their rooms and Ragnar fell asleep in a few minutes, dreaming of olden days when the royal soldiers commanded respect amongst others.

Ragnar woke up late the next morning. He cursed himself for not being responsible and bolted out of bed. He washed up, got dressed, and put on some casual clothes before going down to the eatery for some breakfast.

When he got there, he saw that Denuve was already up and eating. He was also sitting with two other men that Ragnar recognized instantly: Harald and Garn.

"Ragnar!" Harald called out to him. "Glad to see that you finally caught up with us."

Ragnar went over and sat with his fellow soldiers at the table. A serving girl came over and Ragnar ordered for some porridge.

"So," Harald asked, "how're you faring so far?"

"I've been better," Ragnar muttered, his thoughts still concerned about what the other soldiers did to Denuve.

"Is something wrong?" Garn asked between mouthfuls of bread.

"Have you heard what happened to Sir Denuve here?" Ragnar asked the two soldiers.

They nodded and Harald said, "It really is a terrible thing. I couldn't believe it when Denuve told us."

The serving girl brought Ragnar's food and he tipped her a couple of gold pieces. After he had taken a few mouthfuls, he asked, "Where are the others right now?"

Garn shrugged. "Harald and I were the first ones to arrive here. Sandor, Mandrake, and Darnell arrived shortly after but left. We haven't heard from Elric yet."

"Do you know where Sandor went?" Ragnar asked. He was anxious to have a little chat with him regarding his behavior in the tunnel.

"I'm not sure," Harald replied, "but I think they mentioned something about that old watch tower west of here."

"What tower?" Denuve asked.

"Didn't you see it when you came out of the tunnel?" Garn asked, a bit shocked.

"It was dark when we got through," Ragnar explained, "and we were weary and wanted to get to Izmit before the night monsters became more active."

"Hmm, well apparently there's a tower in the middle of a lake out west," Garn said. "Sandor thought it was a bit suspicious, so I guess he went to check it out."

"I see," Ragnar muttered, half-heartedly poking at his porridge now.

Harald sensed his friend's mind was elsewhere and asked, "What's on your mind, Ragnar?"

Without even looking up, Ragnar replied, "On my way to the tunnel, I was attacked by a pair of beetle-men."

"Beetle-men!" Garn and Harald exclaimed in unison.

"Then the reports are true," Denuve said. "They really are coming down the mountains."

"Are you all right?" Harald asked.

Ragnar nodded and muttered, "They weren't really that big of a deal. Just scouts, really." He looked up, a bit of fury in his eyes. "But it annoys me that here we are, the Royal Soldiers of Burland, sitting at an inn, worrying about lost children." He slammed his fist into the table, rattling spoons and forks. "There could be a damned army out there and our King isn't doing anything about it!"

His colleagues were silent for a moment. Ragnar spoke true. Searching for missing children was usually better left to parents and, as the protectors of the Burland Kingdom, the possibility of an invading army of beetle-men was more urgent.

"Ragnar," Harald said, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "I know how you feel. I'm sure we all do. But the King has given us an order."

Ragnar gave a defeated look to his friend.

"Besides," Garn said. "Harald and I have found out some things that may interest you."

"And what is that?" Ragnar asked, focusing more on his porridge again.

"These children have been vanishing under unusual circumstances," Garn replied. "That is, they have been simply vanishing from thin air."

"How's that?" Denuve asked, quite interested.

"Well, the first one was being tucked in by his mother. He asked for a glass of water and his mother went to get it. When the mother returned, the child was gone."

"That's odd," Denuve muttered. "No signs of break-in or anything?"

"None," Harald replied. "Just vanished into thin air."

"The other child, the son of the innkeeper here, disappeared even faster than that," Garn continued. "He was playing with a friend and his mother was keeping an eye on them. His mother claims she looked away for a second and when she turned back, he was gone."

"Gone?" Denuve asked, a bit surprised that a child could disappear that fast.

"Just like that," Garn said, snapping his fingers.

Denuve began to think for a moment, then asked, "Wouldn't this child's friend have seen something? I mean, he was there the whole time, wasn't he?"

Garn and Harald looked at each other for a moment. "You know," Harald said, "we never even bothered questioning the children. Maybe we should do that." He turned to Ragnar and asked, "What do you think?"

Ragnar scooped up the last of his porridge, dropped the spoon and a few gold coins into the bowl, and stood up. "I think that I should get Denuve a new sword," he replied and headed out of the inn.