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DragonlustChapter V: The Broken Mast Inn
Rosa hurt.
She had hurt many times before, but never like this. She could not move for the pain was so bad. Even the slightest shifting of her body caused lightning bolts of red hot fire to lance up and down her spine.
An ugly gargling crow issued from the roof of the farmer, a crow that sounded more like a blackbird with bronchitis than a rooster.
Dawn. Time to rekindle the fires. Time to sweep the floor. Time to feed the pigs. Time to get up.
But Rosa could not get up. The welts on her back commanded her to stay put. The cook, however, commanded something else.
“Get outta bed, ye lazy Shifty-Brick! Get this fire goin’ before I crack this pot over ye thick ‘ead! Hurry, ye megabloks, you!”
The cook’s threat was not to be taken lightly. When Rosa had ignored that same remark when she was ten, Cook had come up the ladder, thrown Rosa from the loft, and had beaten her until the handle of the pot had broken. Rosa had then been punished by the Master for breaking Cook’s favorite pot.
Grimacing at the remembrance of that memory and the pain still stabbing into her back, Rosa heaved herself off the straw pallet that served as her bed and struggled not to cry out. She climbed down the ladder as fast her back would allow and began to attempt to light the logs in the ash encrusted fireplace.
This is how days always began for Rosa.
So far the day had been very normal, which meant Rosa had been beaten only twice and shouted at five times. It was now evening, the worst part of the day. Sailors, fishermen, and other water rats all came in to the Broken Mast Inn from sailing all day and ate and drank and shouted and drank and smelled and drank and swore and drank and boasted and drank.
Rosa rubbed a mug with a rag, ignoring the chaos. A bottle was flung in her direction and smashed to her left, but she didn't flinch.
“Where's my mead, you Shifty-Brick?!? I'm thirsty!”
Rosa turned to the pirate who had shouted and snarled angrily “You’ll have it when it’s ready, you megabloks tyco!”
Ignoring the pirate’s uncomplimentary reply, the barmaid turned her back on him and continued scrubbing away at the dirty mug. A whiff of cool breeze touched her cheek and she turned; Rodurik the Blacksmith had entered the rowdy inn. He avoided the brawl in the corner and seating himself on one of the high, rotten barstools.
“Hello, Miss Rosa…” he murmured.
Rosa edged closer and nodded in greeting “Evenin’ to ya, Rod.”
“Protection holding up for ya, miss?”
Another nod. “The blade, too.”
Rodurik sipped his drink and glanced at the brawl. It was get was getting worse and Rosa was certain some bodies would have to be carried out and discreetly disposed of later that night.
“How...all ye holding up, Miss Rosa?”
Rosa paused. “I’ve stopped ten this month...but one managed to get me…”
Rodurik cracked his gigantic knuckles angrily. “That son of a shifty-brick! Megabloks him!”
Rosa said nothing. She was numb to it now.
The door opened again. Rosa and Rodurik look around, distracted. Three people had entered; two men and a child. All three of them took seats next to the blacksmith. One of the men, the one without the eyepatch, ordered drinks. Rosa fetched them and smiled one of her extremely rare smiles at the little boy, who was clearly frightened and hungry. The ruffians in the corner had now drawn swords and were stabbing each other willy-nilly.
“New to this place, are ya, gents?” she asked.
“I feel...like I’ve been here before...a while ago...perhaps…” said the man with the eyepatch slowly.
The boy sniffed. “Reno sir, I don’t like it here, may we leave?” he asked, tugging at the man with the eyepatch.
Reno.... Rosa thought, Have I heard that name before...?
Rodurik turned to the other man who had ordered the drinks. “And what business you ye have in this backwater hole, mate? I can tell by the looks of ye that ye ain't of the sea.” he said by way of conversation.
The man was about to reply when the other man known as Reno suddenly flung himself on the dirty floor and began to shout in agony. The men who had been brawling turned and stared drunkenly as Reno moaned and clawed at himself. The little boy and other man both shouted at once, which seem to bring Reno to his senses.
“Are ye all right?” asked Rodurik, looking extremely worried.
“Here, bring ‘im to my cot, quickly!” Rosa hissed. She did not like the way the brawlers were looking on.
Rodurik heaved the still shacking Reno onto his broad shoulders and followed Rosa, the other man and boy at his heels. Reno’s eyes were watering from the shock.
“Ugg…” he muttered.
Reno heard the door crash open, but did not have the strength to look up and see who it was.
“I’ll have one of your finest ales please.” a familiar voice told the bartender.
“Willem, Graygon!” Aros shouted. He ran over to them both and shook their hands.
“Where is Reno, Aros?” Graygon asked.
“I’m over here…” Reno muttered. He bared his teeth in a smile, as did Willem and Graygon.
The door smashed open once more. In came a group of six men, all dressed in bronze chain mail and they had heavy maces at there sides. The inn went quiet.
“Megablocks…” Rosa muttered under her breath, she knew these men.
One of the men leapt forward and grabbed Rosa, but in an instant Reno was out of the cot with his sword at the mans throat.
“Release her!” he ordered. Another man leapt at Reno, but was shot in the face by Luxus. All megabloks broke loose. Willem danced around throwing daggers at people and Graygon had his sword out slashing this way and that.
The brawl was short. The bodies were dragged out of the Broken Mast and dumped in the bay, where the sea creatures would find them. The other attendees of the Broken Mast were not alarmed. Such incidents happened almost daily.
Rosa watched as the two Wolfpack men, the man called Aros, and the sailor Marcus did away with the bodies.
These men are not pirates...they are trained warriors... she realized. The bodies disposed of, Willem, Graygon, Aros, Luxus, Marcus and Rodurik sat at the bar, talking. Rosa paid little attention. She was looking at the one-eyed man who had laid back down, wheezing. He seems wounded by a blow dealt by something stronger than a mere weapon....where have I seem him before??
It was getting late. The last of the sailors, pirates and other men had left the Broken Mast, save for the group of men who sat at the bar, catching up on what had happened to all of them. Rosa was about to tell them the inn was closing when the large oaken door banged open. All faces turned to see two men stumble in, one old and gray, the other young and tall, carrying and limb female figure between them.
An astonished shout came from Reno. “Bjarn!?”
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