The Ivory Ribbon

The horse galloped along the dirt path towards a stone house approaching in the distance. Dust kicked up as the animal skidded to a stop in front of the house. A young merchant hopped down from the horse and tied it to a post. As he walked towards the house, he could hear the clink of glasses and loud chatter coming from inside.

The door opened and a plump woman came out wearing a flour-dusted apron. She offered the merchant a canteen. Parched, the merchant drained the canteen in one gulp.

"Any open rooms here?" the merchant asked, wiping dust from his blonde hair. He reached into his satchel. Coins jangled for a few moments, then he emerged with a handful of silver. "I'll pay."

The woman's gaze was momentarily drawn to the silver coins, but then she looked up and shook her head. "We haven't got any space left. We've already got ten more than we can hold. But there's another inn that's a two day's ride away from here."

"Two days?" The merchant asked, dismayed.

The door swung open again and a gruff-looking man strode out. He nodded a hello to the merchant then turned to the woman. "Cook says he needs you," he said.

"Come," the woman said kindly to the merchant as she started back towards the house. "We can give you some food and water before you embark for the Havenford Inn."

"Havenford Inn?" the gruff man asked. "You gonna be able to ride another two days?"

"I have to," the merchant said. "No more rooms here."

"There's a place closer than the Havenford Inn," the man said.

The woman shook her head and glared at the man. "There is no such place--"

"Ay, there's a village 'bout an hour's ride away if you follow that path," the man interrupted, pointing to a narrow path winding through the woods behind the house.

"Just an hour's ride?" the merchant exclaimed. He turned to the woman. "Why didn't you mention it before?"

"There's something off about that place," the woman said, shuddering slightly. "Everyone who's been there has never come back. I think the path's overrun with thieves."

The man nodded and eyed the path warily. "I've heard that strange things happen o'er there, strange things," he said gravely. "But it's much closer than the Havenford Inn."

The young merchant grinned. "I'll be all right. I've dealt with pirates and thieves before." He patted the sword tucked in his boot. The woman frowned but didn't object.

The merchant drank another pouch of water then mounted his horse and urged it forwards. The woods were thick with trees and branches, casting long shadows along the dirt path.

To the young merchant's disappointment, he encountered no challenges. At the end of his ride, however, he came to a halt. In front of him was a wall of gnarled branches and overgrown bushes. The merchant eagerly tugged the sword from his boot. He slashed through the branches, the bark scraping his skin. At last, the merchant pushed past the thicket and emerged out of the woods.

"I'll be damned," he muttered, staring at the sight before him in disbelief.

A soaring, glittering glass castle stood perched on top of a hill, the tips of its towers shrouded in a shimmering mist. Tiered marble fountains and sapphire statues glimmered in the sunlight. Emerald-green grass bloomed, along with vibrant gardens of flowers that were as colorful as jewels. A sprawling kingdom lay below the castle, with beautiful houses in shades of peach and cream.

"This ain't a village," the merchant said with a laugh. "It's a bloody kingdom. They don't know what they're missing back there."

Footsteps sounded, and the merchant turned to see a guard approaching him, a silk ribbon tied around his neck.