"They also received new information,” Dross said, stepping forward with a scroll in hand, “from a thief they caught connected to the theft of the Sword. He confessed as to where in the Empire it was being taken. He drew us a map.”
Dross rolled out the scroll before them, and they all gathered around and examined it.
"We know where they're going,” Durs said. “We've come to lead you there. And to help you make it back alive.”
"And why didn’t you volunteer to help us sooner?" Reece shot back, defensive.
"You come now,” Elden added, guarded. “Only when you are commanded to."
"We are doing just fine without your help," O’Connor said.
"Are you?" Drake asked, looking them up and down with contempt. “It looks to me as if you're lost, all washed up and bruised from battle.”
“You’ve even managed to pick up baggage along the way,” Dross added, looking contemptuously at the slave girl.
Thor, though guarded, appreciated their being here, and wanted to diffuse the argument.
"How did you find us?" Thor asked.
"A good tracker and plenty of King’s Gold," Dross answered. "We managed to follow your trail. Quite a calamitous one. Amazing that you escaped from Slave City the way you did. We circumvented it ourselves, but luckily the rapids lead but one way, and we had only to follow them to lead to you. Hard to miss: the seven of you sprawled out on the sand like a bunch of drunks. I’d say you are all hardly inconspicuous.”
The three brothers laughed derisively.
“Way to set up camp,” Durs added.
Thor reddened, and saw his Legion brothers seething.
"Like they said," Thor said, assuming authority. "We don't need your insults. Or your help. We made it this far on our own—and without a map, without a tracker, and without King’s Gold.”
The three brothers looked at him with something like surprise, and Thor was impressed by the authority in his own voice. His entire life he had been bullied by these three boys, and he wasn't about to be bullied by them now, to have them assume control of the mission. He knew their nature—and it was not kind. Whatever help they were offering, he was sure it was only because they were commanded to, or only for their own personal gain upon their return. He knew that, deep down, they didn’t truly care for him.
He expected their faces to harden, for them to argue with him, as they always did, to try to demean him. But to his surprise, Drake’s face softened and he stepped forward and lowered his voice.
"Thor, we understand you’re upset with us. In fact, it is warranted. We were not kind to you as brothers. For that, we apologize. We are not here to demean you, or to undermine your authority. We realize you have command of this mission. We sincerely wish to help you. Please. The fate of the entire Ring is at stake, and the map we hold is invaluable.”
Thor was caught off guard by Drake’s kind tone, at his deferring to his authority. He had never seen them like this. It was surreal, as if he were not looking at the same three people.
He thought of what he’d said, and it made sense. The fate of the Ring was what was most important, whatever personal differences they had. And despite the past, Thor was always willing to give someone another chance—especially if they seemed sincere.
Slowly, he nodded back to them.
"In that case,” he said, “we shall be pleased to have you.”
The three of them nodded back, pleased. Thor looked past them, at the fork in the river, and saw their longboat anchored at its shore; it looked like a long canoe, large enough to hold maybe a dozen.
"To reach the thieves’ destination,” Dross said, looking down at the map, “we must get back on the river and take it south. It will bring us to a great lake, and then to other channels. It is the most direct way to find them, cutting them off and gaining us time. If you agree, let us leave at once—we haven't any more time to waste.”
They all began to turn and head for the boat—when the slave girl stepped forward.
"You are wrong!" she yelled out.
They all stopped and turned and looked at her.
"The thieves would not have gone that way,” she said. “I don't care what your map says. I know my native land better than you. Do you see that forest?" she asked, turning and pointing to the grove of trees. "That is where they went.”
"And how would you know that?" Drake asked her.
“Because this river leads to death,” she said. “It is not a path they would take. To cross the great divide, there is no safe way but through this forest. It borders the desertlands.”
Thor looked at the trees, then back to the rapids, and wondered.
"And who is this woman who knows everything?" Durs sneered.
Elden stepped forward and draped an arm around her shoulder.
"She is a girl I freed from Slave City,” Elden said, “and I trust her. She led us out of there.”
"You don't even know her," Drake said.
"I know her enough," Elden said.
"And then what is her name?" Dross asked.
Elden blushed, and the three brothers laughed at him.
“In these lands we are forbidden to have a name,” she called out. “But I have taken a secret name upon myself. It is Indra.”
"Well, Indra, we are not interested in your tribal tales. We are men, and we fear no river. We go where the thieves lead us—and we will take this river where it leads,” Drake said firmly. “If you are afraid of water, you can stay on dry land. This is a mission of the Legion: no one is asking you to join us.”
The three brothers all turned and headed for the boat, and as the others looked to Thor, he stood there, wavering. His logic told him to go to the boat; yet something inside him was wavering.
He finally walked to Indra.
“Come with us to the boat," he said. "If we don't find what we need, we can always turn back and follow your trail.”
She slowly shook her head.
"That river leads to darkness and death," she said, throwing off Elden’s hand, and storming for the boat. She nonetheless joined the others as they entered the boat. Before she did, she looked back at Thor angrily.
“Just be prepared,” she said, as Thor and the others piled in. “You board a boat to hell.”