Dreams of the Oracle

Chapter 19

"I said what do you want?" said the young looking man again.

Abdiel leaned back in his chair and regarded him and his two cohorts. None of them were dressed in any special way. They could have been common laborers or dockworkers or a hundred other invisible occupations. The man with the young face was the only one without a beard.

"I wanted to talk to the Protector," said Abdiel with a slight frown.

The two men that had taken seats to either side of the young looking man chuckled. The man with the young face smiled,

"And what makes you think that I'm not?"

"The Modus of the Order," said Abdiel leaning forward, "the Protectors always send a front man unless they call the meeting," he paused, "and I happen to know who the real boss is."

The smiles left the faces of the three men. The leader leaned back in his chair and looked at the ceiling. After a moment he tossed Abdiel a copper coin that glittered in the firelight. He leaned forward firelight glistening off his brown eyes,

"Why don't you tell us where you got this from?"

Abdiel caught the coin and turned it over in his hand looking at the flaming sword and the hydra,

"All of us get one," he said with a smile tucking the coin away, "now where is the Protector?"

"We turn them back in when we get out," said the young faced man, "I watched you turn yours in ten years ago. Where did this one come from?"

Abdiel's grin was steady, "I think I remember you now. Camarik trained you didn't he?"

"Get that smirk off your face Abdiel," said the young faced man, placing his hands on the table. "Its impossible to strike one of our coins. The only way you could have gotten one is by stealing it from another agent."

"Rathens, your name is Rathens," said Abdiel.

Rathens leaned forward, "Listen old man–"

"No," interrupted Abdiel suddenly deadly serious. "I want to see the Protector, Rathens," seemingly in an instant he had slammed a dagger into the table directly between the first two fingers of Rathen's right hand.

"I want to see him, now," said Abdiel.

All the men in the tavern rose to their feet drawing swords and daggers. The bartender pulled a loaded crossbow from under the bar and pointed it straight at Abdiel's chest. The other men in the tavern dropped into fighting stances. Abdiel kept his eyes on the man in front of him.

Rathens looked from the dagger to Abdiel. He held up his hand and the men stood back, the bartender lowered his crossbow. Rathens leaned back in his seat keeping his eyes on Abdiel.

"He's through the door," he grunted.

Abdiel rose to his feet slowly and, leaving the dagger in the table, walked to the hidden door in the wall that was still open. One of Rathens' men slid it shut behind him.

He stood in a dark skinny hallway barely wide enough for his large frame. He walked confidently through the dark until he came to another door with light flickering underneath. With a sigh he pushed it open and walked inside.

"Abdiel," said a familiar.

The room was well lit by candles that lined the walls similar to the chambers of the Keepers of the Dead and empty save for a single table with two chairs. A gray haired man sat eating a simple meal of fish and rice. He gestured to the empty chair,

"Take a seat."

"Your security at the glass shop needs work," said Abdiel taking the chair.

"Same old Abdiel," said the Protector grimly. "Ten years and that's all you have to say to an old friend?"