Ryan joined Max and Aleya at the tavern's dinner table. Max's face was skewed in disgust as he tried to force down the gruel. But Ryan had big news--a new bounty. And that meant money for the hapless heroes, who needed it badly. Quests don't come cheap.
    "A hit and run."
    "How does someone...?" Max started.
    "Do a hit and run in this Medieval land? Horse drawn carriage." Max nodded slightly and Ryan continued. "But he made a big mistake. He hit a bounty hunter. That's like going after a cop."
    "What's a cop?" Aleya asked.
    "It's a term from the other world. They're like knights."
    Max sat down his spoon, giving up on eating the "food." "Is he all right?"
    "Roadkill."
    "Oh...I'm sorry." Max looked down trying to avoid eye contact.
    "No. That's his name...Roadkill. He's fine...mostly."
    Aleya shallowed her mouthful of glop thankful for any kind of food at this point. "Do we want to know how he got that name?"
    Ryan thought for a moment. "Not really. But it has something to do with his eating habits."
    Well, that ended Aleya's appetite. "Ew."

***
    The trio's first stop was the scene of the crime. Ryan combed the area looking for clues, using his various bounty hunter gear, while Aleya and Max looked for witnesses.
    "Wooden and iron carriage with gold rims and a four horse engine?" said a citizen.
    "Yeah!" said Max and Aleya.
    "Two white, one brown, and one brown and black?"
    "Yeah!"
    "The left front one pulls a bit to the right indicating that it needs new shoes?"
    "Yeah! Yeah!"
    "Driven by a man in a red and black cloak with silver lining?"
    "Exactly!"
    "Has a scar on the right side of his face in the shape of a lighting bolt?"
    "That's the one!"
    "Never heard of him."
    Aleya and Max's expressions and body language fell flat with disappointment.
    Max mumbled, "I really hate that old gag."
    Phil, the magical wand, floated from his holster. "But it's still funny."
    Max huffed. "That's one stick's opinion."
    Phil grumbled as he returned to the holster and dug himself in deeper.

***
    Max, Aleya, and Ryan met back at the tavern. Max and Aleya had no luck, but Ryan was able to uncover that it was a '76 (1276, that is) Fjord carriage with a four mustang team and three inch all weather, white spoke wagon wheels. It was also leaking horse oats. He also knew from the angle of the leak and the indent pressure left by the wheels, it was heading north towards Ilhykbrim [Ill-hic-brim].
    "At the rate those oats were leaking," said Ryan, "he'll have to stop at Grayford's Hay and Shoe Shoppe; if he wants to make it to Ilhykbrim."

***
    It wasn't a long, relatively speaking, ride to Grayford's (just about three hours). Luckily, it was a full service station and they were able to hand off their horses to the attendants for hay and a flea and fly inspection. Ryan decided to pay a little extra for the deluxe horse wash.
    "There it is," whispered Ryan.
    The four horses of the Fjord carriage leisurely ate hay. There was no sign of the driver, but since they were still hooked up to the carriage, he must be close by and not sticking around for long. Ryan sent a bunch of hand gestures Aleya and Max's way. The two looked at each other and than at Ryan; they shrugged. Ryan facepalmed, sighed, and mumbled, "I really need to teach you bounty hunter code."
    "We can't stand around here all day waving our arms around." Max peaked around the corner of their cover and began formulating a plan. "He could leave at any moment. We need to sneak up on him. I'll take the carriage door while you guys take the front and back."
    Ryan once again smacked his face with his palm. "That's what I was saying!"
    Ryan and Aleya began sneaking through the bushes or hiding behind carriages or people.
    "You come here often?" said one person Aleya took cover near. He wore a light tunic with a nametag that read "Mac," and wore a cap with "Big Al's Trucking" in bold, red lettering.
    "Not interested," she hissed.
    Max made it to the door. He reached towards the handle but was stopped by the sound of a young woman screaming.
    "OMS [Oh My Saints, FYI]," she squealed. "It's Ryack. He's my favorite hunter!"
    Ryan felt a mixture of embarrassment and pride. He shrugged towards Max with an apologetic "eh, what can you do?" The young woman and her friends flocked around Ryan.
    "Can we, like, get a selfie with you?" asked the woman. But before Ryan could answer, she had ordered her friends to gather around and to strike a pose. A fairy zipped out from the teen's pocket and hovered in front of the group. It moved about for a moment getting the best angle. It then made a "move in closer" gesture. The group closed in on Ryan. It was kind of unsettling for him. They were a little too close. The fairy gave a thumbs up.
    "Say gruel," the teen smiled.
    The fairy tapped the air with its wand. There was a flash and soon a scroll appeared in the woman's hand. She inspected the picture as the fairy went to her side. Happy with the results, she handed the scroll to the fairy and told it to "post it on her wall." The fairy warned her that her bedroom wall was almost out of space and she would need to "delete" some photos. The teen ignored her for now; the fairy shot off in a blur of light and sparkles.
    Ryan gave Max another apologetic shrug as the group disbanded. Max turned back to the carriage door.
    "What's going on out there?!" The door opened and hit Max in the face. WHAM! He stumbled back holding his nose.
    "I should have seen that coming," he said nasally.
    The driver looked from Max to Ryan then back to Max and finally to Ryan as he realized what was going on. He pulled out his sword. "I am not going to jail."
    Ryan drew his sword. "You should have thought of that before you hit Roadkill." With his free hand, Ryan lifted his hood and transformed into the spooky Ryack. He pointed at the driver. "You're time has come," he whispered in that ghostly-demonic voice.
    "My only mistake," hissed the driver, "was to let him live. You hunters make it so a guy can't make a dishonest buck. I should have finished him and the rest of you hunters. A mistake I'll soon correct."
    Max pulled Phil out of the holster and pointed him towards the driver. "Time to go to work."
    Phil "turned his head" in mock anger. Which is quite a sight for a thing with no head, yet somehow Max knew that was what he had done. "I'm not speaking to you. Not until you apologize for the stick comment earlier."
    "We're doing this now? Seriously?"
    The driver charged at Ryack and their blades clashed. Sparks shot out as metal clanged against metal. As the two fighters continued to trust, parry, and slash, Max continued his pleas towards Phil.
    "I may be a magical item, but I still have feelings."
    Max sighed and rolled his eyes. "OK. Phil, I'm sorry for calling you a stick. You are more than that...especially to me. You've been a great friend and companion during this trying time. We wouldn't have gotten this far without you. And frankly, without you, I would be lost both physically and mentally."
    Phil began to glow with a purple light. "Apology accepted."
    Max waved Phil around as he spoke. It almost looked like he was writing in the air, but in big, exaggerated gestures. "The battle continued to rage on as the customers of Grayford's Hay and Shoe Shoppe watched helplessly. Neither fighter seemed to tire." Max took a moment to glance back at Aleya; she was still arguing with Mac the Trucker. Max spotted Mac's dish of french fries. They must not have been changed by the Wizard's spell...yet. "It looked like the battle would never end. Luckily, Aleya saw the available fires..."
    Aleya looked down at the greasy treats and got an idea.
    Max continued his spell-story. "Aleya 'borrowed' the fires. The man cried out a protest, but with a sharp look from Aleya, he quieted down. She attached the fattening fries to one of her arrows and carefully took aim..."
    Aleya let the arrow fly. The fries hit their target--namely the driver's face.
    "The driver stumbled back, not knowing that the Wheels of Justice were already spinning. Once in range, the horse, the same one that the driver had used to hit the bounty hunter known as Roadkill, became spooked and kicked..."
    The driver went soaring thanks to the supernaturally boosted kick to the rear. He landed face first into, what else, manure.
    Max's movements became slower as he finished his story. "The knights surrounded the driver. He was soon arrested. Ryack and friends quickly received their bounty."

***
    Max sat his tray of fries down, carefully avoiding the bird droppings and splinters. The young heroes decided to use some of the bounty on a small victory celebration. "I love happy endings," said Max. "It's been ages since I've had real food." Aleya and Ryan nodded as they munched on their fries and soda. Max rubbed his hands together in anticipation. But once he reached for them, he found that his fries had been transformed into tray of french flies. Max drummed the table slowly. "I should have seen it coming." He sighed and put his head on the table.

For more adventures with Max, check out The Wizard of New Town book(s) at Barnes & Noble
http://goo.gl/uBgLmB
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Until the next wormhole...
End of Transmission.