Far Horizons: Tales of Sci-Fi, Fantasy and Horror. Issue #14 May 2015 | Page 60

“Long enough for you to finish your tale?” the Ferryman asks in turn.

hunting wild hares. Phelan made sure that the meal
was tidied away, leaving some scraps for the small
beasts to clean up. He sighed, grabbed his staff, and
headed down the hill…

“There is a lot of it,” the man in red warns.
“Then you’d best hurry. I need to earn coin and cannot
paddle slower just to catch the end of the tale.”

***
The man in red pauses.

The man in red nods. “I understand.” He closes his
eyes and makes to continue.

“Are you Alun?” The boy asks wide-eyed.

***

The man in red laughs, long and hard; the boy looks
hurt.
“Oh dearie me no. Did I not say that he was handsome, with even white teeth?” Upon saying that the
man smiled to show his yellowing teeth that crowded
his mouth. The boy looks disappointed.
“I’ll tell you who I am and how I fit into the tale later.”
The boy still looks disappointed. “Promise,” the man
in red says. The boy nods. The man in red glances at
the Ferryman.

I open my eyes and echo the question. “How much
longer do we have?” The Ferryman shrugs. I turn and
glance at the castle which is larger, but not by much.
There is still time. Although I may have to skip bits. I
settle myself against the bench, rubbing some life back
into my legs, which had become cramped. “I’d best
continue or you won’t hear the end of the tale.” I say
closing my eyes.

“How long till we get to the other side?” he asks.

60

To be continued