The Stewards of Reed, Volume 1: The Rise of Fallon by RM Wark Page B

relatively flat plain nestled between two Rivers – the River Nye and the River White – and one might think that Bartow is therefore subject to frequent flooding. And perhaps it was in the time before a system of earthen levees was constructed around the main part of town. That was more than six hundred years ago, and ever since Bartow had remained dry. Even in the Great Flood of 1044, which destroyed nearly a third of the Village of Reed, nary a drop of water seeped through Bartow’s levees.
    The levees, which stand twenty feet high and thirty feet wide in most places, have the added advantage of restricting entry into Bartow. There are only a few gaps in the levees and each of these is manned by armed guards. People coming in and out of the town must frequently, though not always, explain their business to the guards.
    It was not until the guard station came into his sights that Gentry realized he did not have a proper answer should the guards inquire about his business in Bartow. He could not very well tell them about his quest to deliver a message Lady Dinah – they might become curious and demand to see it. As he approached the guards, he was desperately trying to dream up a plausible story while simultaneously scolding himself for not thinking of this before.
    The guards at the entrance gate seemed bored but stood a little straighter as Gentry approached. With the Main Bridge out of service, they had not seen many travelers come through the West Gate as of late and were immediately suspicious. “Stop,” the guard on the right ordered while the guard to the left stepped forward with his hand on the hilt of the small sword sticking out of his sheath. “What is your business in Bartow?”
    “I require additional supplies before starting my journey north,” answered Gentry.
    “And where might you be headed?” asked the guard.
    “The Taiga Forest,” replied Gentry.
    At this the guard’s eyebrows raised and he looked at Gentry curiously. “What for?”
    “To hunt white deer.”
    Both guards had a good laugh at those words. The guard at the right shook his head and said, “People have been trying to hunt those deer for hundreds of years. They always come back empty-handed…if they come back at all,” he added ominously.
    Gentry shrugged, “I shall make a point to come back this way with my hide.”
    This made the guards laugh even more, but they beckoned him inside the gate and that was all that mattered.

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    “The Easterners are invading. What do you make of this, my lord?” Cedric spoke casually, but his eyes intently studied the wizard.
    “Aye. I have seen as much for myself.” Lord Jameson stared out his window towards the towering Divisidero Mountains. “Their numbers are small, though. Less than a hundred souls – at least thus far.”
    “But why do they come? What do they want from us?” The casualness of Cedric’s voice could not belie the hint of fear in his questions. He was a family man now. His wife had recently borne him a daughter, and though he had hoped for a son, he could not imagine life without the child. She was everything to him – he must keep her safe.
    “That I do not know. To my knowledge the Eastern Wizards have always had certain protections in place to prevent such a thing; I can only surmise the invaders have their blessing.”
    “Then what shall be done?”
    The wizard frowned. “It is too early to say. I have alerted the queen that things are amiss in the borderlands. We must wait, for now, and see what the coming months bring. It would be ill-advised to react in haste to that which we do not yet understand.”

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    Gentry had been to Bartow more than a few times but it never ceased to amaze him. The town was easily twenty times the size of the Village Square in Reed. The buildings seemed to tower over everyone though they were probably only three or four stories high at most. The cobblestone streets were crowded with pedestrians and the