Rethnaki slid into the booth and took a good look at the man sitting across from him: Goldfinch looked wan, and unwashed. There were deep circles under his eyes, and his face bore a slight grimace as if every movement caused him pain. He was preoccupied, and had not even realized that he was sharing a booth with someone. “Goldfinch, friend, what did ye want ta meet about?” Rethnaki asked quietly.
Goldfinch looked up and smiled warmly, but not even the twinkle in his eyes could offset his uncharacteristic unkemptness. “Starling! Always such a pleasure. I have some very important documents fer ye.”
Rethnaki’s interest was piqued. “Do ye, now?”
“Oh, aye. But firs’ I hear ye have some news fer me,” Goldfinch said with a sly grin.
Rethnaki was perplexed. “What’re ye talkin’ about? Ye called me here, not ta other way around!”
Goldfinch cocked his eyebrow and waited another beat before speaking. “Alright’. Fine, if ye dunna want to tell me ‘bout the prophecy, then I’ll just drop it.”
Rethnaki choked on his ale. “SHH! Good heavens above, ye’d t’ink a spy ‘twould be a touch more subtle wit’ such information. How de ye know about it?”
“My friend Griselda, she’s a bard, you know, lost a bet to Johannes. She thought yeh were the one it’s ‘bout, but turns out that it’s actually ‘bout a human. Is that true, Starling?”
Rethnaki, still recovering from his mishap with the ale, just nodded. After he felt bit better, Rethnaki said tersely, “I didn’ even t’ink satyrs had friends – much less human ones.”
Goldfinch chuckled. “Yeh’ve never given their lot a chance! Besides, they’re not mages.”
“Alrigh’! Alrigh’! Enough wit’ ta prophecy talk. Wha’ information do ye ha’e fer me?” Rethnaki said impatiently.
“Well, there’s good and bad news. It tried me damndest to keep ‘em off yer trail and to misdirect ‘em when an’ where I could, but I couldna stave ‘em off forever. They know yer battalion came through that gate, and they know some o’ yeh are in the city. They even know where yer camp is, and they’re plannin’ an ambush on it in a weeks’ time. That’s the bad news,” said Goldfinch.
“Aye, tha’ is soberin’,” agreed Rethnaki.
“Oh, as if anythin’ could ever sober yeh up, yeh daft elf,” Goldfinch joked. He reached inside his breast pocket and took out a small sheaf of papers and slid them across the table to Rethnaki. “This is the good news. What I’ve just given you are the confirmed attack plans we’re goin’ to be usin’ against yeh.”
Rethnaki gave Goldfinch a wide-eyed look of appreciation and tucked the papers into his vest pocket. “Ye’ve really outdone yerself this time Goldfinch, yer a godsend.”
Goldfinch waved off the compliments. “Nah, just usin’ what meager talents I have to help sort out this mess we’re in.”
Rethnaki nodded gratefully again and stood to leave, knowing that tarrying too long could arouse suspicions. But as he stood to leave, he paused and looked at the man in the booth, already distracted and sickly looking again. Rethnaki placed a hand on the man’s shoulder and stooped so that he was whispering softly in the man’s ear. “Caspio, friend, ye’ve done enough. Come wit’ us – jus’ sneak back to our camp and come run wit’ ta Rebels fer ta rest o’ yer days.”
Godlfinch sighed and patted Rethnaki’s hand wearily. “Yeh and I both know how much more valuable to yeh I am here than with the army,” he whispered back.
“Are ye sure? E’ery time I see ye yer closer ta death than ta last. Yeh can’ survive like this much longer, an’ ye’ll be no use ta us dead.”
“I’m sure…though I wish I were a weaker man who could accept yer offer, Naki. Now go – yeh crouchin’ over me like this is sure to draw attention, yeh daft elf,” Goldfinch said, gently brushing Rethnaki’s hand from his shoulder.
Rethnaki quickly walked back to the rented room, lost in his thoughts. He came in quietly, and nodded to Elcrona and Jarthen, who were loudly playing a game of cards on the floor to pass the time. Without taking his coat off, Rethnaki scooped up two of the mechanical birds he had received from camp and fumbled around for some strips of parchment. On one strip, in Athenorkos, he wrote:
Stork –
Your flock is coming home to roost in two days’ time.
- Starling
He rolled it up and placed it in a secret compartment in one of the birds’ bellies, and set the coordinates to the rebel’s camp. On the second piece of parchment, in Common Tongue, he wrote:
Safir,
I am very sorry to say that I have taken ill and cannot have dinner with you tomorrow night. I am leaving town to return home. I know it is quite rude of me – feel free to infringe on my hospitality at your leisure.
Regards,Rethnaki
He rolled this piece up and placed it in the second bird and set the coordinates to Safir and Nyabels’ lodging-house. He strode to the window and wound each of the birds in turn with the small clockwork key Moshel had given him before he left and tossed them out. He watched the whirring, flapping toys sail through the air for a moment and sighed. “Elcrona, Jarthen, we ha’e ta leave tonigh’. Pack up.”
“Tonight?” Elcrona asked. “On such short notice? ‘Tis almost dusk, Naki.”
“I know,” he replied flatly.
“Then, what’s ta rush?” Elcrona asked, becoming increasingly concerned.
“It’s not safe here. I’ll explain when we get out o’ ta city,” he replied quietly, packing his bag. At this, Jarthen and Elcrona looked at each other, slightly frightened, a bit confused, and very curious. They stood and packed their bags in silence. Rethnaki swept his eyes around the room one last time, checking for any incriminating evidence, patted the sheaf of papers in his vest pocket, and started the long, tense walk back to the camp.
"Do you two know where McNab is? I need to talk to him." Bertronius asked breathlessly, bursting through the door on Nelhoepher and Lem blearily eating some breakfast.
"Huh?" Nelhoepher responded dumbly, his mouth full of mush.
"I need to talk to McNab! Do you know where he is?"
"He was gone by the time we got up, like he always is. What's the matter, Bert? Yeh alrigh'?" Lem asked with concern.
"I can't explain now, but I've got to find him!" Bertronius responded, already halfway out the door. He remembered a few places that McNab had mentioned having business at before and headed there. He had to talk to McNab. He had to make sure he was on the right track, that he wasn’t just grasping at straws like Nelhoepher and Lem. And, he admitted to himself, he would feel terribly if he went over his mentor's head for a second time.
Bertronius trotted tirelessly between a series of lowly haunts and tenements. As he searched for McNab, he replayed the conversation with Mayhew in his head again and again. There was no doubt in his mind that the old criminal's information was worthwhile. These seemingly unrelated events couldn’t be coincidence – it couldn’t all just be random!
Soon, he had run out of places to look, and, judging by the sun's significant westward progress, Bertronius knew that evening would soon be upon him. Where could McNab be? Although he felt a strong pull of regret, Bertronius knew that he could tarry no longer -- Scrudton needed to be alerted to the rebels’ movements, with or without McNab's knowledge and consent.
Rethnaki marched into the camp with an uncharacteristically brooding look on his face with Elcrona and Jarthen in tow. He nodded at the others, who stood to greet him warmly, but did not tarry to enjoy their company for even a moment, walking on until he had reached Jellihondor. He whispered something into the old elf’s ear and Jellihondor nodded, exchanged pointed glances with Glothnafar, and then the three walked out of the camp together.
Sellior, still standing up as if to welcome the handsome elf back, raised his eyebrows. “Wha’ was tha’ about, Ellie?” he asked the elf girl.
“Naki’s got some sort o’ news from Goldfinch – urgent news from the looks o’ it,” she said, hugging her best friend tightly.
Sellior looked at her in surprise. “Ye don’ know? He didn’ tell ye?”
Elcrona shook her head. “No, he jus’ had us up an’ leave wit’ no warnin’ an’ we’ve been walkin’ here e’er since.”
Sellior frowned, worried about what the usually gregarious elf’s recent reticence might mean. “Hope e’eryt’in’s alrigh’.” He tried to put it out of his mind and turned back to Elcrona. “So, tell me all about Susselfen.”
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