by Guy Antibes
The man obviously didn’t believe her. “Where is the man who fought for you yesterday. He was stabbed in the shoulder,” the young man said.
The innkeeper joined them, letting them know that the injured man lay upstairs.
She had to thank him for his effort. “Can I thank him, too?”
“If he’s awake. The man’s badly injured.”
~
Unca opened his eyes as he heard the door open to the room. The man, who had done most of the fighting until Unca’s injury, asked for his name. He forgot his pain when he noticed Sallia standing behind him.
“My name is Anchor. Are you all right…” he nearly said ‘princess’ but changed it to “miss?” He couldn’t bring himself to tell her whom he was while on lying on his stomach, bleeding into the sheets of the bed. For the first time he felt embarrassed around her.
“I give thanks to our mutual savior, Lotto, a ranger in the service of the king of Valetan and a battle-wizard as well,” Sallia said and then looked into Lotto’s eyes. Unca knew that look. He’d been getting them since he transformed himself. A tendril of jealously crept into his mind and it took effort to dispel it. Lotto saved Sallia and she had every right to look that way at the man who saved both of their lives.
They talked for a bit and the man promised to take Sallia to Crackledown. That was where she belonged at present, so Unca had no grounds to protest.
There were about to leave, but perhaps this Lotto could serve Sallia in a different way. “Just take her away as far as you can. If Duke Histron has spies about, they will tell him that the woman has been taken deep into Gensler and that might protect her. Don’t take her to Happly. They are allied with the Red Kingdom and are preparing for war. I think with Valetan.”
“I will. Are you a soldier? I noticed you carry an old Zarronan officer’s blade. It’s similar to the one I have.” Lotto drew his sword. “This is Serytaran, but it’s a bit less conventional than yours.”
Unca nearly laughed. The Court Wizard, a soldier? How ridiculous! “I found it in a weapons shop on my recent visit to Happly. I’m a soldier of sorts. But as you could see, my weapons skills are but mediocre. I am more of a strategist, but my talents are not for the usurper. I am true to the Red Kingdom.” He looked to Sallia and she smiled at him and quickly squeezed his hand for a second and turned to go. He wished he could go with them.
“Stay here for awhile. I will talk to the Duke, uh, or his people, and see if I can get a post for you. I agree that Happly is at war or soon will be,” Lotto said.
Unca coughed and pain tore through his shoulder. He grit his teeth with the disappointment that had to stay behind. “Please get the message to Valetan. Happly is hiring mercenaries and wizards. I’m not going anywhere soon.” Unca could tell that the man would be good to his word. Perhaps having him escort Sallia to Crackledown would be better and safer than doing it himself.
How he had wanted to rescue Sallia. He had lost that opportunity to impress her. Why did he think that way? Why did he want to impress Sallia? He hadn’t really thought of that before, but now?
He coughed again and felt the pain overtake his emotions. He could feel his eyes fill with tears. He really hurt and to top it all off, the look Sallia gave their savior made him sad when he should have been wryly observing two young people noticing each other. How he wanted to be that other man.
The pain must be overcoming his good sense. That was it. He didn’t feel feverish, but he must be. The door opened and he hoped it would be Sallia.
“Anchor?” the innkeeper said. “The healer is here.”
~~~
CHAPTER ELEVEN
~
LOTTO MADE A WONDERFUL COMPANION, unlike any commoner the princess had ever met. Sallia couldn’t help smile and banter with the unassuming man. He bought her a horse and fresh clothes to wear. She had never had the opportunity to talk to such an open and charming young man while princess. Willow and Unca were nice, but they were so old, like an uncle and an aunt. She felt comfortable around them, especially Unca, but with Lotto, she felt excited. She hadn’t even minded when Lotto made her admit that she really was the lost princess. She didn’t think her story would hold up on any level of inquiry, anyway.
Crackledown would come too soon and he would have to depart for Valetan. He took Anchor’s words to heart since his purpose in Gensler was to gather information for the Valetan Court at Beckondale. They rode through the town and Sallia couldn’t help but look up at the fortress on the hill. The forbidding structure look liked it clung to the edge of a mountain. The Duke’s castle. She vaguely remembered seeing the keep on a visit when she was little. It still looked impregnable. Even its security had been discussed in Foxhome.
They ascended an endless road up to the castle. A rakish looking man stopped them midway.
“Lotto, I see you’ve brought a bright light to my father’s court.” She held back laughter. A popinjay and a friend of Lotto. She knew the type. These men were dashing and never to be trusted. Sallia had fought off their kind since she was twelve, when her father first demanded that she come to social events. Her demeanor had been so haughty that she might have even spurned him some time in the past.
Lotto had already decided to reveal her identity to Morio, the gallant son, and his father, the Duke. She would go along and agreed that it would be fun to see the look on their faces. They had laughed about it on their last day on the road and now the prospect of being Princess Sallia once again made her sad. She regarded her time with Unca and Willow as the best time of her life and now it was time to wear the royal mantle once again. It brought back memories of her father and mother and the pain of their loss.
The fortress lived up to her memory as they rode through the gates and passed through the massive doors to the black castle. The inside wasn’t nearly intimidating and looked much like any other noble’s home.
She didn’t remember meeting Duke Alon Jellas before, or Morio, of course. The time had come. She held back a smile as Morio led them to his father’s private quarters.
Lotto winked at her and said, “May I present Princess Sallia, the rightful heir to the throne of the Red Kingdom.”
Sallia raised her chin and tried to keep from laughing as she assumed a more regal pose. “Lotto Mistad saved me from being captured by Histron’s men and I ask for sanctuary. It is no longer safe to hide in the Red Kingdom. My protector, Unca, is missing and I fear he is dead. I’m now left to my own devices and it appears they were ineffective in saving me.” She went on to give them more detail.
The rest of the story, from Lotto’s standpoint was then told. Lotto referred to her as Sally and he blushed. He looked cute when embarrassed.
“The man who first tried to save her is still healing at the inn. He claimed to be a strategist, more than a fighter, in the Red Kingdom army. I believe him. He has an intelligence about him. If you have a post that can use an advisor, I’d recommend him as a reward for helping to save the princess. Who knows what would have happened to the princess if he hadn’t started the fighting,” Lotto said at the end.
“His name?” the duke said, holding up a quill.
“Anchor.”
“A prosaic name, to be sure, but I like it. I have a captain who commands the fort that guards the road to Learsea.” The duke looked at Morio. “You know Captain Travelwell?”
“Eberlo’s man.”
“Indeed. I’d like a more independent sort out there. Perhaps he can be useful. I’ll commission him and see if he’s good.”
Sallia knew enough about the court that these men Eberlo and Travelwell were not in the Dukes good graces. Even here, men worked to their own ends and those ends were not necessarily in concert with those they had pledged to serve.
“One of the women I stayed with laughed with derision at the empty border forts and remarked how easy it was that Duke Histron’s men could invade your kingdom. I stayed in one of those empty keeps and passed at least one other. I thought it important enough
to mention,” Sallia said. “The soldiers also spoke of someone in Crackledown who kept the keeps unmanned.”
Morio and Lotto looked at each other and then at Duke Jellas.
“It appears you two boys were right about the border forts. We’ll just keep this to ourselves for a bit, Princess?”
Sallia gave a curtsy to the Duke. How long had it been since she had done that? In a time and place far, far away.
The Duke turned the conversation to lighter subjects and Sallia learned that Lotto was noble born. It didn’t show. The son of a duke from Dakkor, but she later learned that he had been orphaned as a baby and spent his childhood in a village in Valetan’s north.
Later, Lotto found Sallia’s new quarters.
“I hope you are comfortable.”
“I don’t care as much about comfort as I do safety and I feel safe. You don’t know how much of a relief that is. The days spent under the eye of Histron’s guard were—” she shivered. “I would have refused to go south with them.” She wouldn’t let Lotto know any more. He knew too much as it was.
He laughed. “Well, things have a way of turning out for the best.”
Sallia thought of her parents. “Not always.”
“Perhaps. I have some unfortunate news.”
“You’re on your way to Beckondale.”
“Am I that transparent?”
Sallia giggled. “There’s no Beckondale that I see on the other side of you. No, you’re on a mission to find facts and I think you’ve found the facts you sought and need to take them to your ruler immediately.”
Lotto shrugged. “Mander Hart doesn’t rule Valetan, but he works for the king. I’ve already sent a bird, but Mander will want to squeeze every thought from my brain, such as it is.”
“Of course. If you come this way again, please spend some time with me.” She actually asked a man to see her. Sallia really had changed from the time Unca pulled her away from the cocoon that Foxhome had become. She shook her head at the thought.
He took her hand in his and kissed it. “Until we meet again.” He gave her a bow and left the room.
Just when Sallia had reached a safe place and found an intriguing man, Lotto left her. She wiped away a tear and clamped her lips shut to keep more from falling. Safety all by itself didn’t mean as much at the moment. Life had become a place where she felt thoroughly out of control and she realized that she must have to live with that prospect to the end of her days. At least she would sleep in a bed tonight.
~
Unca lifted the mug of ale to his lips with his wounded shoulder after two week’s of treatment. The healer seemed to be doing his job and was able to use what little Affinity he had to help Anchor’s shoulder along. Two uniformed men walked into the inn, officers by the look of their dress. Were they looking for him? They wore the green colors of Gensler.
He had just received a message from Lotto that the princess had safely arrived at Beckondale. The man didn’t have to do that and he appreciated the thought. Could he have sent these men as well?
They conferred with the innkeeper, who pointed in his direction. Unca wouldn’t have to wonder what they were about for much longer.
“Anchor? Is that your only name?”
“It is at the present, sir,” Unca, now Anchor, said.
“I have a commission for you, if you accept it. A large keep guards our southeastern boundary with Happly and the Red Kingdom. The keep commander has need of a strategist, an advisor, if you will. The Duke would have you fill that position.”
With Sallia safe, at last, Anchor didn’t have anything else to do. Willow would take care of his holding, as she always had. He would send her written word to the Traveler’s Rest where he had ended up. That should be enough to allow Willow to return to his holding. He would leave Sallia, in as secure a place as he could have hoped for, to gain intelligence and the keep would be well-situated to continue doing that, monitoring the status of the Red Kingdom.
He’d do it. Perhaps he could learn how to wield a sword in a more expert fashion at a military fort. He didn’t enjoy embarrassing himself in the fight for Sallia’s freedom.
Anchor said up a little straighter, trying not to wince. “I still recover from my injury, but I would be happy recover there than facing an ever-rising bill at this fine inn.” He winked at the innkeeper, with whom he had become friends.
“Right!” The innkeeper still stood at the table. “Anchor has been eating me out of my inn. Please take him away!” He laughed as he said it.
The two officials looked at each other and smiled. “We are prepared to escort you and have hired a wagon for supplies and for you as long as you need. We’re on an inspection tour of the southern border keeps along the Learsea road and will end our inspection at South Keep on the border with Happly. Be assured, we are amiable company.”
Anchor warmed to the two men. “When do we leave?”
~~~
CHAPTER TWELVE
~
THE DUKE HAD COBBLED PARTS OF THE ROAD to South Keep, as it was called by the two men, Colonels Hesting and Pillar. The buildup of mud and debris from winter hadn’t been cleared off yet and that actually made the ride somewhat smoother, or so they told Anchor. He didn’t know if he believed them or not.
He visited a healer with power at Pillar’s insistence in every village so that by the end of their first week on the road, he felt well enough to ride. Along with their supplies, Anchor had shared the back of the cart with a smelly crate of birds.
“I thank you for purchasing this fine horse,” Anchor said as they moved out of the village of Rallio’s Lake. “Another ten days, you say? As much as I love to see birds on the wing, this constant clucking, cooing and chirping nearly rivals the smell of these foul little things.”
Hesting laughed. “I know you love your little companions.”
The two men looked at Anchor and laughed at the same time.
“We’re close enough that it’s time to tell you. Run off, if you are of a mind,” Pillar said. “Duke Jellas told us not to stop you, if you did.”
“Not that we’d blame you, but there are some undercurrents in the dukedom.” Hesting rubbed the back of his neck. “The situation is complicated at the keep.”
“The commander isn’t Duke Jellas’s man, is he?” Anchor said. He suspected that Chancellor Eberlo to be ‘complicating’ things. He had never warmed to the man the times he had met him.
“Eberlo’s,” Pillars said. “The Duke’s Chancellor has his own circle of confidants. The duke doesn’t want Gensler to end up like the Red Kingdom. The birds are for you. We will house them in River Red, the village that serves South Keep. If you or one of our other key men run into anything suspicious, send a bird from the village. We can’t vouch for where the birds at the keep might end up. That assumes that you are a Duke’s man.”
“Whom else would I be for?” Anchor said and nodded at the pair. “Consider me squarely on the Duke’s side.” If nothing else than as a supporter of the man who provided Sallia with sanctuary. He wouldn’t mind the mental exercise. Life at King Billeas’s court wasn’t altogether smooth and Unca liked it that way. In fact, the king sought his counsel in war and peace, until the end. Anchor’s stomach soured as it always did when remembering his fatal mistake, allowing Histron to take over the castle. He wouldn’t let that happen to the Duke of Gensler.
~
The trio rounded a bend and on the other side of a vale stood the South Keep on a knob that stood higher than the surrounding land. Anchor noticed a number of guard towers with flat, crenelated tops rising above walls that might have been fifteen paces high.
“Even a moat?”
Hesting laughed. “That’s the Red River winding in a channel around most of the hill. The water is red from the red soil that lines its banks further north in Happly.”
Of course. The Red River ran right through the Red Kingdom. If one wanted to invade the heartland, a force could follow the river right the way through to Gri
anne Port, far to the south. At Foxhome, the Red River turned wide and lazy and only ran with a tinge of red in the late spring.
“And how do we cross such a formidable barrier…” Anchor said, “and keep our feet dry?
“A bridge spans both the river and the diverted channel that makes up the moat. How else do you think the villagers get to their jobs?” Pillar said with a chuckle. “Take away the bridges and the keep—”
“The keep would be even more defensible.” Anchor finished Pillar’s thought.
Hesting nodded. “Never been taken, Anchor, in the three hundred years it has sat there. We have business in the village before heading to the keep.”
Anchor had never heard of South Keep before, but then it didn’t exactly sit on the border with the Red Kingdom, but three or four leagues to the north, close to the Happly road, yet far enough from the actual boundary line not to generate any issues between Gensler and The Red Kingdom. “Did you know the Duke of Happly is stirring?”
“We heard,” Pillar said. “That’s why it’s a good idea for posting an independent party.”
Anchor smiled and nodded. “I must admit that I’m better thought of as independent. If anything, I’m on the side of the late King Billeas, being a true Red Kingdom man.”
“Precisely what Duke Jellas wants. We’ll spend the next week to ensure you are adequately welcomed and then we will be gone. The Duke wants the border forts manned again and that begins as soon as you are in place.”
“I’m glad he feels the need, now that Duke Histron has so casually violated your southern border at Five Mills and Everwet.”
Anchor’s comment put an end to their discussion as they made their way to River Red to drop off the birds before proceeding to the keep.
~
Gensler maintained the keep as a cornerstone in its southeastern defenses. In an earlier time, perhaps a baron or another duke might have held court in such a large keep, but as Anchor walked through the gray-stoned courtyard, the stark architecture and decorations spoke to him of armies and not of nobles. Uniformed stable boys helped them off of their horses and took the horses and wagon to a two-story stable. Anchor could see straw bales through large open doors. Yardarms above the doors brought straw stored on the upper story down to the horse stalls.
