Jarryd: Chapter 17

Jarryd left the inn and went into the forest. As a child without many friends, he’d spent a lot of time in the forest alone. Though he wouldn’t call himself an expert tracker, he did have some skill in that area, and he was very knowledgeable about the local countryside. He checked out every game trail he knew, looking for tracks. It was a flying creature, but it had to come to earth sometimes.

He crisscrossed the forest for most of the morning but had no luck. While he was at it, he checked every possible lair he could think of. A large animal could hide out in one of the scattered piles of ancient, moss-covered boulders. There were also huge, fallen trees, their thick limbs providing heavy cover. He knew of one cave set in a low bluff, but the only tracks there were raccoons and skunks.

By midday, he had no place else to check, and he was getting frustrated. With no other ideas, he headed over to the temple.

It looked as quiet and desolate as ever. There was no sign of the Rector. He almost left, but then he decided to take a closer look.

He circled around the place, staying well back in the trees in case the Rector was looking out of a window. Jarryd had never seen the back of the temple. He’d always feared the place too much to go anywhere near it except for the services he was forced to attend. The temple was bigger than he realized, much of the rear hidden in the forest.

No attempt had been made to clear the forest behind the temple. Gnarled trees grew right up to the walls.

The rear of the temple was even more decrepit than the front. Wooden siding sagged off the walls, which were covered in moss. Vines and various creepers ran wild everywhere, some of them entering the building through the gaps in the walls.

He crept closer. The ground was soft underfoot, a thick layer of fallen leaves covering everything.

There was a narrow door in the back, a single window with a cracked pane beside it. Jarryd pushed aside the vines and peered inside.

It was very dim inside and so it was difficult to see much in the room the window opened into. There was a chair, one leg broken off, lying on its side. A dim shape that he thought was a desk shoved up against the wall. A painting hung on the wall, long destroyed by damp and rot. Some animal had built a nest in one corner.

On the far side of the room was a door standing partway open. He couldn’t see what was beyond it.

He moved over to the door and tried the handle. It turned. His heart rate picked up.

He was about to push it open when he heard a sound from inside, like the slamming of something heavy on the floor. Instantly, he jumped back, hiding in the trees once again.

Mosquitos whined around him as he waited, concealed under the hanging limbs of a huge beech tree. No more sound came from the house. He saw no sign of the Rector.

Should he try again? Part of him wanted to. But he knew as old and rundown as the place was, every door and floorboard would creak underfoot. Sneaking around would be next to impossible.

If the creature was holing up there, it wasn’t coming and going through the back door. The ground outside the rear door was undisturbed.

There was a steeple with a belfry that was missing its bell. He moved to where he could get a better look at it. Nearly all the paint had peeled away and sections of the siding hung crookedly. It could be entering through there.

He needed to come back when the Rector wasn’t there. Which wouldn’t be easy since the man didn’t leave the temple very often as far as Jarryd could tell.

Jarryd headed back into town. There was no one in the common room of the inn when he got there. Two women were working in the kitchen. They told him Kath had gone to the market to buy vegetables for that night’s dinner.

The market was in the town square. Farmers from all over the area came there during the summer and fall months to sell their produce to the townsfolk. Stands were set up selling all manner of fruits and vegetables. Corn, squash, tomatoes, beans, lettuce, strawberries, summer apples and much more were displayed. There were also stalls selling smoked meats, bacon, hams and the like.

He caught up to Kath as she was buying cabbage. She was pulling a small cart behind her, already brimming with produce.

She read his expression instantly. “No luck?”

“No. I couldn’t find so much as a track. I finally went to the temple.”

Her expression clouded. “You don’t really think the thing is there, do you?”

He put up his hands. “I don’t know where else to look.”

“Why would the Rector be involved in this? You know how he’s always preaching against demons. I can’t imagine him being in league with one.” She stopped as something occurred to her. “Maybe the thing is there, but it killed the Rector.”

“I don’t think so. I saw the Rector yesterday afternoon.”

“Did you see anything while you were there?”

He shook his head. “I went around to the back. I was thinking about going inside, but then I heard a loud bang. I couldn’t risk having the Rector find me.”

Swick came running up then. He bent over, hands on his knees, breathing hard. “There you are,” he said to Jarryd between gasps. “I went all the way out to your farm looking for you.”

“What is it?”

“Someone disappeared last night.”

Jarryd’s heart sank. “Who?”

Swick straightened, his breathing finally easing. “I don’t know his name. He was camping with his family down by the creek. They got up this morning, and he was gone.”

Jarryd turned to Kath. “I need to go talk to them. I’ll catch up with you later.”

He started off toward the camping area. There were footsteps behind him. Swick called out, “Hold up. I want to come with you.”

Grudgingly, Jarryd slowed down. He wanted to ignore Swick. He wanted to run.

Swick caught up. “Do you think the monster got him?”

“I don’t know. I hope not.”

“Are we all in danger?”

Jarryd glanced over at him without slowing. “Yeah. Probably.”

“It’s a good thing we have Knight Jarryd here to handle this thing. What would we do without you?”

Jarryd resisted the urge to tell him that probably the thing wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him. There was no sense in saying that out loud. Others would soon enough.

They soon reached the area. It was just downstream of Creekside, a wide, flat area below the bridge. Caravans used it when staying overnight, along with the occasional traveler without the coin to stay at the inn.

There was a lone wagon parked there, close to the water. A pair of horses were hobbled nearby. A curl of smoke rose from the fire ring. A woman was there, comforting two small children. All of them had been crying.

Jarryd strode up to her. She saw his armor and the sword hanging by his side and wiped away her tears.

“Can you tell me what happened?”

“I don’t know.” She wailed and fresh tears sprang forth. “He got up during the night because he said something was spooking the horses. The horses whinnied. I heard him shout something. When I got outside, he was nowhere to be seen.” She grabbed his arms. “Please find him. I’ll pay you. I’ll do anything.”

“I’ll find him.” Jarryd pulled away from her. “I need to look for tracks. Stay here. You too, Swick. I don’t want anyone trampling whatever signs there are.”

The tracks weren’t hard to find. They were large, with three toes. The creature was clearly heavy. The tracks were sunk deep even though the ground was hard packed. Near them were some scuffed footprints. It looked like the man had seen the thing and tried to run.

There was also some blood. Not a lot of it, but enough. The final tracks he found were a pair, set side by side and imprinted deep. That would be where the creature took flight.

Jarryd heard voices as he returned to the camp. Other men from town were approaching. Among them were Charl, the teamster, Nathen, the miller, and Ewert, another farmer. Everyone was carrying some kind of weapon.

“We heard someone is missing,” Charl said. He had a wood axe tied to his belt and was wearing a leather jerkin that was at least two sizes too small.

“The monster killed him, didn’t it?” Ewert asked. The thin-faced farmer sounded accusatory.

“We don’t know that,” another man said. “He could have fallen in the river and drowned.”

The wife overheard and burst out into fresh tears.

“What’s wrong with you?” Charl asked the two. “His wife is right there. Have some decency.”

“It ain’t the time for decency,” Ewert said. “It’s the time for action.” He was carrying an axe as well, and he looked like he wanted to use it.

“Was it the creature?” Charl asked.

Jarryd nodded, not wanting to talk about it in front of the wife. She looked back and forth between Jarryd and the three men.

“What’s going on? What are you talking about?”

“There’s something loose,” Jarryd said.

She frowned. “Like a bear? Wolves?”

The men all exchanged looks. “We don’t know what it is,” Jarryd answered. “But it’s not a bear or a wolf.”

At his words, she broke out into loud crying. She wrapped her arms around herself. “No,” she moaned. “We came north to get away from all that. During the war, we saw…terrible things. I saw my neighbor killed by an Imperial soldier that was not a man, but a thing with horns and red skin. Even after the Emperor fell, still these things were around. They preyed on us. We fled, hoping we could escape those things. But they’re here too.”

She looked up at Jarryd with tear-stained eyes. “He’s dead, isn’t he? I know he’s dead.”

“We don’t know that for sure.”

She went down to her knees, crying hard. Her children ran to her, joining her grief.

Several women from the town showed up then, Kath at the forefront. Kath went straight to the woman and wrapped her in a hug. The other women gathered around closely.

“Come with us,” Kath told her. “Let’s get you all to the inn.” She picked up one child while one of the other women picked up the other one. The two other women helped the wife to her feet, and they left.

“Are you sure it was the creature?” Charl asked.

“Come see for yourself.” Jarryd led him and the others over to the tracks. They gaped at the size of them.

“It is the monster,” Ewert exclaimed. “That poor bastard is dead for sure.”

“What do we do now?” Lenno asked.

Jarryd slumped. “I don’t know. I looked everywhere, every cave and deadfall. Anyplace the thing might be holed up. I didn’t see a single sign. I even went to the temple.”

Nathen and Ewert both scowled at his words. They were among the few still attending services at the temple.

“What makes you think the Rector is involved?” Nathen stepped forward and poked Jarryd in the chest. “He’s a holy man. He’d have no truck with demons. Are you accusing him?”

Jarryd mentally cursed himself for letting the words slip out.

“I--”

“Do you have any proof?”

“I…don’t.”

Nathen cast him a dark look. “The Rector is a holy man, beloved of Vidon. To even suggest that he would consort with demons is slander of the foulest sort. He has dedicated his life to fighting those abominations.”

Ewert chimed in. “The Rector’s gonna hear about this, mark my words.”

“Why are you trying so hard to blame the Rector?” Nathen asked. “Is this because of the bad blood between you two?”

“I’m not trying to blame the Rector.”

“It sure sounds like it.”

“I’m just checking everywhere, is all.”

“Maybe someone should check your home.”

Charl spoke up. “Hold on there, Nathen. You’re talking like a fool.”

Before Nathen could reply, Jarryd cut in. “Arguing won’t do us any good. We can do that tonight at the meeting. Right now, we need to focus on finding this thing. We need everyone to search.”

Ewert took a step back, holding up his hands. “Oh, no. Not me.”

“Why not?”

“What if I find that thing? It’ll be me with my guts everywhere. No, no, no. I go in a big group, or I go home and bar my door.”

“I wasn’t suggesting we split up.” Jarryd heard voices and saw there were more people coming. Among them were Verne and Hervin.

With the new arrivals, there were about fifteen of them. Jarryd showed them the tracks. Loud voices arose, along with several arguments, as everyone tried to speak their piece at the same time. Jarryd had to yell to get their attention.

“We don’t have time for this!” Slowly they gave off talking and turned to him. “We have to find this thing. I think we should split into groups of four or five and search for it.”

“That thing killed Vern’s bull and flew away with a full-grown man in its claws,” Ewert said. “Ain’t no way four of us with axes can kill it.”

“I don’t think whoever finds it should try to kill it,” Jarryd said. “They should tell the rest of us, and we can all go after it together.” Secretly, he planned to go on ahead by himself and kill the thing, but he didn’t want to say that to the others.

Ewert spat. “That will work. Wait right there, monster. Don’t go anywhere while I go get my friends and kill you.”

“Are you saying we do nothing?” Lenno asked. “Is that what you’re saying?”

“I’m not saying that.”

“It sounded like it.”

Vern spoke up. “I agree with Jarryd. We need to get every man in Creekside, and we need to find that thing and kill it. It’s the only way we’ll be safe.”

Others spoke up in agreement. Ewert grumbled, but kept his thoughts to himself.

“I’m going to talk to the Rector,” Nathen said. “I trust him. I don’t trust you.” This last he said to Jarryd.

“You’re a damn fool,” Hervin said. “I’ve always said it.”

More angry voices arose as people took sides. This time Jarryd actually had to shout to get their attention.

“Anyone who wants to help, join up with some others. There’s no time to waste. Night is coming.”

That made an impact on them. Four of them left, including Ewert and Nathen. The rest began breaking up into groups. Vern, Hervin and Lenno turned to Jarryd.

“How about it?” Hervin asked. “The four of us?”

“Me too,” Swick added quickly.

They spent a little time discussing what areas each group would search. It was decided the Charl would head back to town and gather others to help. He would make sure they searched different places.

They split up and began searching. Jarryd and his group planned to search a section of the woods south of town, between Kol’s Gap and a low ridge.

They spread out in a line. “Stay in sight,” Jarryd warned them. He was taking one end of the line.

“You don’t have to worry about that,” Swick reassured him. All he was carrying was a long knife it looked like he’d stolen from his mother’s kitchen. “I’m sticking as close to you as I can.” He moved over to take the spot by Jarryd.

They headed into the forest. The sunlight was dim under the thick canopy of oaks, beeches and walnut, with some pines mixed in. The leaf litter was thick, muffling the sounds of their footsteps. Swick took up a spot about an arm’s length from Jarryd.

“Not so close, Swick. Move over closer to Vern.” Vern was barely visible.

“That doesn’t seem like a good idea. He’s just a farmer. You’re a Knight.”

“I’ll be right here. Don’t worry. If you see the thing, I’ll be on it.”

“Okay.” Swick moved over a few steps.

“Further.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Reluctantly, Swick moved over further. The line moved forward.

Their pace was slow. No one wanted to move fast and stumble on the thing unaware. It began to eat at Jarryd. He could cover so much more ground on his own. He should never have agreed to join their search party.

But he also knew he needed to. There were already those who were suspicious of him. If he disappeared for the whole day, it would give them more to whisper about. And he was concerned that soon enough whispers would turn into shouts.

(Are you enjoying Jarryd's tale? Would you like to read his adventures before this, when he fought the Dragon Queen? Just click here to check it out!)

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