Sapphire of the Fairies

They were on an animal path just west of the coastal highway. Arik was trying to find Tedi and finally succeeded. Do you know who this witch is?"

Konic was stunned with the amount of information that the bandit possessed. The man would make an excellent spy. He had been in town less than a day and already knew more than most of the townspeople. Master Clava sat next to the bandit and shook his head. "No," he replied, "but whoever she is, she has too much interest in the boys for my taste. How do I know you are not allied with her?"

"If I was," the bandit smiled, "she would still be here instead of chasing your boys up North somewhere. She will return, you know. Whatever she is after, she will know by tomorrow night that the boys did not go north."

"How do you know so much?" Konic frustratingly asked. "Just who are you?"

The bandit stared at his feet as if debating with himself as to how much to say. "My name is Garth Shado," the bandit finally stated, "and I mean no harm to you or your boys. As to the witch, I saw her pass last night. She travels in the company of Dark Riders, about twenty of them. How old are the boys?"

Konic's head jerked upright. The boys had told him about everyone wanting to know how old they were. He turned and stared into the bandit's icy blue eyes. "You will explain your need to know their ages," Konic demanded with a tone of challenge.

Garth raised his hands as if to fend off an imaginary attack and smiled. That smile was beginning to get on Konic's nerves. "There are the Prophecies of the Collapse," Garth said softly. "The Prophecies foretell of the children who will rise up to slay the Dark One. Although the Prophecies don't specify when the children will be born, many believe that those children were born in the year of the Collapse. There are rumors that the Dark One has ordered the death of any child born that year. The boys are close enough in age to draw a lot of attention, even if they are not the children of the Prophecies. I am afraid that people will be interested in their age as long as they live. Some people, like myself, will only be curious. Others will have a more serious agenda."

Konic was not sure that Garth had put himself in the right category, but at least he now knew why everyone wanted to know the boys' ages. "How do you know that the witch will be back?" Konic asked.

"Because the Dark Riders will fan out and check everyone heading north," Garth replied. "She will soon know that she has been duped. It is only logical for her to return to the last place she sighted them to try and pick up a trail."

Konic stood and faced the bandit. "Thank you for sharing your knowledge with me, Master Shado," Konic said formally. "I will digest what you have told me, but know that I am sincere where the safety of the boys is concerned. If you have duped me with your intentions towards them, it will not diminish my resolve to protect or avenge them."

Garth only nodded as Konic strode down the street towards the quay. Konic was shaking with fear and he was determined that no one would notice. He barely held his body back from running all of the way to the campsite. Instead of returning directly to the campsite, Konic waved to Alan and continued down to the shore to sit and think.