Later that morning they hit a rutted cart road, and followed it south to the eastbound road. There they rode well strung out, as if they weren’t together; there seemed less chance they’d be remembered or reported that way. Only occasionally did they meet other travelers—farmers and other locals going about their business.
In late afternoon they reached the Great Muddy River, running wide and smooth, but powerful. Both Melody and Jeremid had coins in their purses, and when the next ferry crossed, the three of them were on it.
20: Four Become Seven
During the first three days east of the Great Muddy, they traveled in a kingdom named Miskmehr, land hillier than they were used to, with farms in every significant bottomland. It was a lovely season, the forest canopy washed pale green with opening buds. At a village they bought a cheese and hardtack for basic rations. Their breaks they took in moist roadside woods, eating the wild leeks that grew there till they reeked of them. Macurdy was healing rapidly; his mouth was enough better, he ate what the others ate, though he soaked his hardtack first.
Their road trended more south than east now, and this troubled Macurdy, for his understanding was that the Silver Mountain was east from Oz. But Blue Wing explained that it angled south to strike the Valley Highway, the great road that paralleled the Green River. The highway would take them up the valley all the way to the Great Eastern Mountains, and the dwarvish kingdom named for one of them. No, he had no idea how many days ride they had ahead of them; humans traveled so slowly, he didn’t see how they could stand it.
The valley and its margins were kingdoms instead of tribal territories, Blue Wing said, with far more people, towns and villages than the lands they’d seen so far. Its farms were famous for their fertility.
On the fourth day they rode out of the hills into the valley, to the Highway, which was better than any road Macurdy had seen in this world. But the land where the two roads met was nothing to brag about—brushy forest, with half its trees tipped over or broken off by some twister.
Blue Wing, who’d been foraging, was waiting there for them, perched in a swamp white-oak. “Macurdy,” he called, then spread his broad wings and hopped off, gliding down to the roadside. “There are men and dwarves just ahead beside the road. They’ve been fighting each other; there are bodies. It may be dangerous for you there.”
“How many men? And dwarves? Alive, that is.”
“Numerous. We have trouble with numbers. More men than dwarves though. The dwarves are surrounded.”
“How far from here? On which side of the road?”
“You know I don’t know your distances!” Blue Wing said, then paused. “If they were shouting, you could probably hear them from here. They’re on the south side of the road, but their horses are farther on, on the road itself, with a man guarding them. Another man watches the road in this direction.”
“We can bypass them through the woods on the north,” Jeremid said. “They’ll never know.”
Macurdy thought for a moment before answering. “Jeremid, you take the horses off the road and stay with them. Melody, your clothes are harder to notice in the woods. Sneak through the brush on the north side of the road until you see their horses, then stop and keep your eyes open. I’ll ride down the road and find out what the situation is. It’d be useful to have dwarves as allies.”
He thanked Blue Wing then, and started eastward down the rutted, hoof-packed highway, while Jeremid and Melody disappeared into the forest. He’d ridden perhaps a hundred and fifty yards when a man rose up from behind a fallen tree. His left hand held a bow, and his right a nocked arrow; at twenty yards he could hardly miss. “Stop right there,” he called. More loudly than need be, Macurdy thought, unless he wanted his own people to hear him.
Macurdy reined in. “I’ve been sent to talk to your leader,” he said, also loudly.
The man scowled uncertainly, peering at Macurdy’s face, still purple and green with bruises. Then a voice called from the woods nearby. “Send him in. I’ll listen to him.”