William Jones
Stories
10
Chapters
3,868
Words
2.6 M
Comments
0
Reading
8 d, 21 h
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"Shut yer yaps an' gather round. I only want to have to say this a dozen times!" Rory was standing on the back of a cart and trying to get the clan's attention, a difficult job in the best of times, made harder by the fatigue of a long journey and the excitement of seeing unicorns. The Summer Lord's lands were infested with them, and by now, both Rory and the goats were getting tired of the horn ponies. They were playing silly games, running in to tag one goat after another. Rory had finally been forced to…-
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Rory Brindleberry had worked all night packing the carts, and as the sun came over the horizon, he looked over at his tired relatives sleeping on a bed that hadn't been dismantled and stowed yet. The lads and lasses had worked hard all through the night, and he smiled at the thought of what came next. Taking a pot of lukewarm coffee from near the hearth, he stood over them, and then dumped the contents onto the sleepers. They awoke with various complaints. "What da' hel?" "Who be play'n games?" "Wah! No…
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Near the ancient city of Gadobhra, just outside its walls, was a small cave that hid a newly created passage to the lands ruled by the Fae. To a human, it was well hidden. The ancient druidic magic that caused the rapid growth of the forests was still strong, and the woods here were a dense tangle of trees and heavy underbrush. The lumberjacks who harvested the trees could make no headway against the forest, and only the well-built road leading to the city was kept clear. Assuming you knew it existed, it…
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Sedgewick was used to odd things happening. One day, it might be an invading army of squirrels, and the next could be a drinking contest between six goblins and a guild of human adventurers. Today was calmer, simply a wagon train carrying barrels of gold guarded by Fae Warriors, Gnomish Strike groups, and a Sphynx. Banker Coppertwist led the way, opening the doors of his bank for business. His first customer was Prince Ragothorn, who brought with him forty-nine barrels of gold coins representing the ransom…
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Suzette crossed her arms and glared at Oberon. "This isn't my home. Sedgewick is home; we even wrote the definition of 'Home' into the contracts. This wasteland isn't it. Sedgewick is Home, and that's where I'm going." Then she looked around at rolling hills and meadows filled with thorn bushes, poisonous flowers, and tall, dark oaks. They seemed oddly...familiar. Why? "And explain what you mean by My Realm." Rolly laughed and petted Squirmie. "Wizard of Oz logic, girl. You killed the wicked witch, you…
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Ozzy looked at Suzette and winked. "Ladies first." "Fine, but I warn you, I may not leave them with much." She looked at the Goblin but pitched her voice louder. "I want to go home and not have to worry about some tricky Fae law or upset cousin showing up some night to complicate my life. I want this to be over. Really over. Whatever happened here is done. Anything between myself and the friends who came to my aid and the Duchess is between us and us alone. No vendetta from someone seeking to avenge her.…
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Ben watched with interest as the gnomes and the fae negotiated across the fence. First came a Fae herald and a hound, matched by the Prince and the Lawyer. These four took an hour to agree on the wording for a cease-fire and pre-agreement. Once copies of these were signed and sealed by both sides, the fence was removed and replaced with a large table that filled the gateway. The important people on both sides sat down, introduced themselves again, and began talking. At that point, the real bargaining…
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Helga took Tiberius by the hand, helped him to climb atop the fence, and whispered, "Give 'em hell!" Balanced on top of the picket fence was a difficult task when wearing your 'before breakfast' slippers, but that was the least of his troubles. The older bankers on his side of the fence were angry because of his interference and trampling over protocol as if there was any set protocol for this situation! The Fae were in an uproar, although what they were threatening to do was always the question. Tiberius…
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With the Fae King deep in thought, Elgebert pulled his clients and the strike teams back from the fence another fifty feet. In hushed tones, he gave them all of the information that his clients had told him in the brief time he had communicated with them before racing to the join the strike teams. They began discussing the facts of the case and the problems of getting their clients to safety unharmed and with their goods intact. It was a perilous situation, and no one wanted a war. Well, mostly no one. The…
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The King met the party of travelers at the border, where the Silverthorn Gates had been replaced by a simple white picket fence, notably without a gate, which, of course, was not simply a fence but the actual boundary between two Fae Realms. Oberon stood ten feet behind the fence. Five feet behind him were a row of his royal guard in enchanted plate armor with spear and shield. Four further rows of pikemen backed up these twenty soldiers, the entire formation forming a deadly kill pocket for anyone who…
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