Chapter 8
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Jihlem and Share kept moving westward. They hoped that Shakoan's friends didn't care enough to seek revenge. That they were only interested in whatever they could get from the Harpers. Killing their leader might have scared them off, but there might be others who were willing to take their chances. Every tribe they encountered, most were like kindly old Pantoran, giving them food and water to spite the Harpers. But every tribe had its bad apples, willing to sell them to the Harpers, or to slave traders. Share and Jihlem always had their new swords visible, they told the story to anyone who would listen about how they had killed the men who tried to steal their baby. After more than two weeks of traveling west, they finally reached the port city of Athkatla. From here they could get on a ship to head to the island of Glantri, the capitol of Mystera. According to legend, their sacred temple once housed their part of the Gorgostone, until the civil war at least. Rumor had it they could simply blend in, fish for food and have enough water, the Harpers wouldn't dare come this far, wouldn't risk war with Mystera by attacking Glantri. There was just one problem, first they had to book passage, and they had no money. Jihlem hoped that some captain might be able to take them if he worked for their passage. But they were new to Athkatla, they didn't know who here was an honest merchant, and who might be a pirate. The stories they'd heard said that, about a decade ago, the trogolodites and orks fought for control of Glantri. The orks won, and few trogolodites were allowed to live there. Most of the people here in Athkatla seemed to be trogolodites, it would probably be pirates who took them to Glantri. Jihlem and Share brought little Tifre into a tavern, hoping someone there could help them. The baby seemed to attract some sympathy, at least from the bartender Thess. She gave them some food and water, on the house. Others were playing a game, where they tried to steal the purse from a dummy, without ringing one of the bells. They found a captain, Selkath, who had a tavern wench on his lap. When it became clear that they wanted to discuss business, Selkath told the wench to go away. He also signaled one of his men to come over. The man had a helmet on, they weren't entirely sure he was human underneath. The man didn't speak, merely growled a little. He was clearly the captain's silent muscle, but hopefully he didn't want trouble.
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Selkath: I hear you want passage somewhere.
Jihlem: Yes, to Glantri.
Selkath: That could be difficult, but possible, for a price.
Jihlem: We have no money, but I could work for you along the way.
Selkath: Not enough.
Jihlem: But perhaps a wager.
Selkath: I am a gambling man, go on.
Jihlem: That game, where they try to steal the dummies' purse, without ringing the bells.
Selkath: Not an easy task, I know. I rarely get it myself.
Jihlem: Perhaps I am simply more motivated.
Selkath: Perhaps. So if you succeed, I take you and your family to Glantri. What do I get if you fail?
Jihlem: My labor.
Selkath: No. I doubt you could do it, even if you are motivated. I might be wrong, and I'm wiling to risk the space and provisions you would require to find out. But not if I get almost nothing should I win.
Share: What about me?
Selkath: I'm listening.
Share: If my husband loses, you get me for one hour.
Jihlem: Share, no.
Share: It's the only way we can get to safety.
Selkath: One hour, for me or whomever of my crew I want to reward.
Share: My husband gets ten tries.
Selkath: Five, no more.
Share: Agreed.
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Jihlem was nervous. If he failed, not only would his wife be their whore for one hour, but they might have lost their only chance to get to safety. The innkeeprer, Thess, was the arbitrator. She would settle this should there be any uncertainty about who won this bet. Jihlem had to assume she had been arbitrator on many of these bets in the past. It took the other patrons a few minutes to bet on whether he could really do it. After that, the tavern was noticeably silent. Jihlem worked up all of his courage, and then tried. The first time the bells went off, four attempts left. He tried a second time, and a third, the bells clamored. Jihlem feared he could not succeed, so he came up with a desperate plan. For the fourth attempt, the bells went off, for a while. Then Jihlem quickly went in for the fifth and final time, no bells went off. He then showed the purse to the crowd, he had apparently succeeded, but Selkath was skeptical.
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Selkath: You got it one the 4th attempt, you failed.
Jihlem: No, I did it the last time, I won.
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The crowd seemed divided, some claimed to have seen the purse just before the fifth attempt, others claimed they saw him pocket it. They looked to Thess to settle this dispute.
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Thess: I saw it there after the fourth attempt. He won, and beat the bells.
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Selkath believed that Thess was motivated by sympathy for the desperate refugees, she had gotten more sentimental in her old age. But there was nothing Selkath could do, he couldn't go against her judgement, not without losing the respect of his friends and partners.
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Selkath: Very well, we leave in three hours. And I expect you to labor for me on the voyage, and don't expect me to be a lenient captain.