The King with Six Friends

A Stone's Throw

Long, wooden countertops curved around the wall of the barn, littered with broken jars and bottles of spilled substances. At the far end of the barn, a massive stone forge sat cold and streaked with soot. The low rafters were heavy-laden with dried herbs and animal skins.

A detritus of confiscated swords, bows, axes and other weapons were piled up in a corner.

In the center of the craft shop, sitting awkwardly and out of place, was an ornately carved desk cabinet. It bore scuffs and dents from where it had been carelessly handled by the soldiers.

Ingrid strode over the creaky floors and pulled open the cabinet doors. Coiled ribbons of every color and pattern hung from hooks on the cabinet doors and compartments. There were no extra charms, so that meant she had to make new ones.

Ingrid cut a short length of lime-green ribbon and used a pair of small tweezers to select a smooth rivergem the same color. She tried to remember her mother's charm-making process.

She looped the ribbon through the narrow hole in the gem, careful not to touch the stone with her exposed fingers. While she worked, she could hear Edge moving tables in front of the barn door to form a barricade.

Ingrid held the gem over the candle's flame, letting it fuse to the ribbon and sever the ribbon in two.  She blew out the flaming ribbon and watched while the charred ends melted with an emerald green shine. The rivergem glowed with runes carving themselves into existence.

She set the new pendant and ribbon down to cool and began working on three more charms. She wasn't as neat with her work as her mother, but it would have to do.

She heard Edge walk up behind her to watch. She knew he would recognize the crimson ribbon from the charm she put on Zar.

"It's not pagan magic, if you're wondering," Ingrid muttered. "It's morph craft."

Edge didn't respond. He just watched her hands work. It was mildly difficult with missing fingers, but she managed.

"Hand me the quiver?" Edge passed her the quiver of crossbow bolts. She wrapped the ribbons around the shafts and tied them off.

"Now what?" Edge asked.

"Intimidation," Ingrid said as-a-matter-of-fact-ly, "And whatever you do, don't touch those stones."

She opened the forge door. It was big enough for a person to crawl inside- which is exactly what she did. Ingrid pushed the damper out of the way and pressed her back against the sides to climb up the chimney. The rocks embedded in the concrete made for effective climbing handholds.

"What should I do?" Edge asked into the forge. His voice echoed off the inside of the chimney.

"Tell Pétur to draw the soldiers back here," Ingrid called down. "I'll take it from there." While she shimmied up the shaft, she heard Edge walk across the floor to the doors.

The farther up she climbed, the smaller the space got. More than once she had to stop to wipe soot out of her eyes. Ingrid didn't want to be in the chimney any longer than she had to. She could feel the cold night air blowing across the top. The stars dimmed as the dawn broke.

Then her shoulders stuck. She went down a bit and adjusted, but got stopped again. She held her arm out the top to offset her shoulders but couldn't get any further than she did before.

She cursed under her breath and pushed the crossbow and quiver out first, hoping they wouldn't slide off the roof.

Her arms and legs trembled from holding her weight for so long. Reaching up, she felt the rim of the chimney with the edges of her fingertips. The only way her plan was going to work was if she had a high vantage point, and it was literally just out of reach.

Ingrid cursed again, louder. When she tried to go back down, her knee wedged against the chimney wall- stuck. She couldn't move at all.

Ingrid's heart rate quickened and her breathing became unsteady. Cold sweat beaded down her neck as she vainly pushed against the constricting walls. She thought she  could feel them moving closer together to crush her. She was going to die in here.

"You okay up there?" Edge's voice echoed from below. He hadn't left yet.

"I'm fine," Ingrid gasped. "I just need to get a little further, that's all. And why are you still here? You're supposed to be getting the soldiers!"

Ingrid felt a hand touch her foot and pulled it up. "What are you doing?" SShe snapped.

"Getting you up there," Edge grunted. "Why are all of you so paranoid?"

He pushed her foot up, allowing her to squeeze past the last tight spot. She pulled the rest of herself out of the sooty chimney and glanced back down.

"Thanks. For not leaving," she whispered, half hoping he wouldn't hear.

"Don't mind it," he replied. She heard the barn doors creak open and close.

She stared into the abyss of the chimney before shaking herself off. Let's get this over with.