Legends Lost: Galdin

Legends Lost: Galdin (Book1, Chapter VIII)

Note: This is the 8th chapter in my fantasy novel, Legends Lost: Galdin. There are 52 chapters total and I will post 1 chapter every Friday. But if you wish to read the entire book now, it is available for purchase on Amazon, iBookstore, Kobo, B&N, and Smashwords.

Chapter VIII

Pursuit

Narúl sat at a table in an outdoor café sipping his drink as he watched the crowd. They disgusted him. The voice of the auctioneer selling new slaves to rich nobles droned in his ears.

"Sold!"

If he could get away with it, Narúl would burn the place to the ground, but he had a more important mission. At least two months had passed since he had set out to find Nylana; half of that time spent on a ship.

Narúl tapped his foot impatiently on the ground. Where is he? The man he had arranged to meet with was late. Narúl hated tardiness.

A group of giggling girls sauntered past. They pointed and stared at him with interest. No doubt they had never seen a man with such dark skin, or so heavily armed. He checked the placement of each of his weapons making certain that only his sword was visible, and even then not by much.

Something plopped on the table beside him. Instantly, Narúl snatched it up, tossed a coin on the counter for his drink, and left. Carefully, he opened the folded piece of paper. A symbol for the auctioneer was on it.

Narúl tossed the paper in a nearby fire before trotting over to where the sale of slaves took place. He feigned interest in the frightened woman standing on the plank.

"Nice day for a purchase," said a man.

Narúl glanced at him.

"Eyes forward," hissed the man. "I hear that you are looking for a particular slave."

"She isn't a slave."

"Here she is. Not that it matters. Foreign girl, beautiful, proud, dark hair. Does that meet your description?"

"Yes," whispered Narúl.

"200 coins," shouted a woman next to them in response to the auctioneer's babbling.

"There was someone matching that description about two months ago. Definitely not from around here," said the mysterious man.

"Name?"

"Don't have one. You have to realize that these slave auctions are always very crowded, frequented by almost the whole of Pras'quel. But I do know that the man who bought her paid 4,000 gold coins."

The thought of Nylana being bought like a common animal infuriated Narúl. He kept his temper in check. Losing it now would not aid his search for her.

"But at that amount, it means that only one of Pras'quel's richest and most influential could have bought her."

"Do you have a list of who those people are?"

"It numbers to nearly a hundred and no one knows who they all are."

Narúl clenched his fists. Everywhere he went either people had no idea what he referred to, or were too frightened to talk. He figured it was a bit of both. "Is there anything that you can give me?"

"It is rumored that the man who bought her lives on a manor just outside the city. But there are at least twenty of those and she may not be there anyway. Most of our nobles have four or five homes spread throughout the land. They travel to all of them throughout the year and take their servants with them; especially the more prized ones. Your lady falls into that category."