Bailiwick eased his left eye open. The fading light of the twin suns made him wince. His temples throbbed mercilessly and the hard rock beneath him stiffened his back. Kobolds were laying all around him. The sorcerer painfully raised his head and scanned the area. The Gnomes, merchants, young Klarje, the steeds, and beasts of burden were gone. Both wagons remained. The wagon bound for Thynna still carried all its treasures, but the second wagon had been stripped of all its copper ore. The Man in Black and his fellow Fearsome Foursome comrades were missing. The Kobold Chieftain Beeyo snored loudly.
Bailiwick stood and scanned the skies and saw only a solitary Copper Dragon slowly circling in the distance. Smoke was no longer rising from Dry Creek. The hour of the day told him he had slept several hours. Last things he remembered were the appearance of the winged beasts and melodic voice on the air. He resisted the urge to sleep and mumbled Dispel Magick to no avail. The sorcerer muttered to no one, “****** Old Ones! Mayard Klarje remains my greatest enemy, but now my anger for the Old Ones and Hanging Gardens surpasses my ire with the Council of Thynna.”
Bailiwick let the sleeping Kobolds lie and scampered off the rock. He awakened his horse and whistled for his familiar Windy. The ferret had served him well. It detected the scents of Klarje’s entourage long before Beeyo’s Kobold scouts had seen them. Now Windy’s senses told the sorcerer the way was clear to his hidden abode. Bailiwick cursed his dependence on the Highwaymen and Kobolds. He took some choice gems from the wagon. They’d come in handy for his future plans.
Sagain’s skies blessed the forest with a rain shower sometime after the sorcerer’s departure. The rain awakened a few Kobolds, who in turn awakened their many comrades. Beeyo yowled from the pain of his headache. The early awakeners had first choice at the bounty from the mines on the wagon. Many fights ensued. Eventually Beeyo took charge and most of the best stones.
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