“You need to be trained as a warrior ingenaire. But I would like for that to remain discreet. We will find a way to transfer you to the Healers House, and you will be known as a healer, but you should finish your training as a warrior. Ruby, this has been a secret, and I apologize, but now you know and I know you will help. Besides, if Alec becomes a healing ingenaire, while he is here we will have the vote of his house in the Council, and that will be a great benefit.”
“Alec,” Aristotle continued, ”What do you think is the greatest danger to the Duke right now?”
Alec thought about that question. “I heard that people believe that the Duke’s son, Airmed, was responsible for the last attack, but no one has real proof of that. The Duke must have believed it though, because he made me heir to one of Airmed’s estates upon his death. The army likes the Duke, and trader Natha likes the Duke, especially now that they are in business together. Many of the noble families are supposed to like the Duke because he is opening up new lands for estates. And the church likes the Duke. Honestly,” Alec said as he slowly worked his way through the list, “other than his son, I can’t think of anyone in Goldenfields who doesn’t like the Duke.”
“You are setting aside the question of enemies outside of Goldenfields, but you wouldn’t know about that yet,” Ari murmured. “So you think the church likes the Duke, too?” he asked.
“Bishop Theodore says they do,” Alec replied.
“So you’re consorting with high ecclesiastic officials in your bountiful spare time?” Ari asked.
“Well, I did happen to talk to the bishop and two cardinals one time, but that was just an accident,” Alec said, while Ari looked at him with another grin.
“What do you hear about the Duke’s other son, Elgin?” Ari asked.
“I know that he is away from the Duchy attending school, and I believe the Duke’s advisors trust him more than they trust Airmed,” Alec told him.
They had all nibbled on their meals while talking, and their plates were now empty. Aristotle looked at his. “I need to move on. Let’s meet again in a fortnight for lunch together again.”
After lunch Alec looked at Rubicon expectantly. “What do you want?” Rubicon asked.
“I want to know what you want me to work on next,” Alec replied.
“Nothing else for today. Why don’t you plan on generally training in the morning, and having the afternoons to yourself, as a daily schedule,” Rubicon advised, “Starting with today. Go ahead and find a practice sword, and then take this,” he wrote a quick note, “to the palace, and hand it to the highest ranking officer you can find in the Palace Guard. They’ll arrange something to suit your schedule. It tells them you are going to be in training to restart the Healers House, and doesn’t mention your role in the warrior ingenairii.”
“I’m sorry Air is so clever with his schemes sometimes,” Rubicon muttered. “I was looking forward to bringing you into the warriors house, but I can see the logic of his plan. As it is, we’ll not be introducing you around to the other warrior ingenairii after all.
“So run off and have fun. I’ll see you tomorrow. And from now on the only ones who will train you or know you are actively training with us will be Nathaniel, Moriah, and myself. For the rest of them, you’ll just be staying with us until the Healers House opens.”
Alec took his leave and returned to his room to get some coins for shopping for a sword. As he left his room he nearly bumped into Nathaniel in the hallway.
“Where are you off to in such a hurry?” his fellow apprentice asked.
“I was going to go to the pawnshops and try to buy a sword to use for practice,” he told him, starting towards the door.
“May I join you? I’d like to see what swords cost down there. How much are you going to pay?” Nathaniel asked.
“I don’t know,” Alec admitted. “How much do you think I should pay?”
“Why don’t you just open up your purse on the counter and tell the pawn man to take as much as he thinks is fair?! You’ll get robbed blind if you don’t even know to pretend to know what to pay,” Nathaniel said while shaking his head. “I’m going to go now, just to protect you from yourself.”
Alec felt his face grow as red as Moriah’s hair, but he liked the idea of having a friend to walk with. The two started walking casually, but a strong gust of wind blew suddenly into Alec, throwing him off-balance, so that he fell backwards and landed on his seat, as he heard faint muffled giggles from somewhere in the nearby landscaping.
“Wow, so they’ve started on you already,” Nathaniel observed.
“That’s the third one so far,” Alec told him as he stood up and dusted himself.
“You’re quite popular then,” Nathaniel told him. “You should be honored!”
“I’ll think about that,” Alec responded glumly, and they continued on their way.
Together they walked down the hill to the gate that led to the city, and followed the boulevard past the cathedral, then angled towards the docks near the palace. They found a street that had a number of shops. “Let’s start in the dirty one, and work our way up,” Nathaniel suggested.
They entered the doorway of a dimly lit shop that was long and narrow. Along one wall were a number of sailor’s belongings – clothing, tools, small entertainments and instruments. Along the opposite wall were the tools and clothes of soldiers. Nathaniel took one of the swords and looked at it closely. A shopkeeper came over. “Would you like to buy that one? I’ve got better if you’re looking for a strong blade,” he said, gesturing further into the shop.
“No, we’re shopping to buy his first blade so that he can try fencing lessons to see if he likes it. We need the cheapest blade in the shop so that we don’t waste more than necessary when he decides he doesn’t want to train everyday,” Nathaniel replied with a condescending tone.
“That one you have there will cost four silvers,” the shopkeeper said.
“That’s too much. I think we could probably do with wooden sticks for now,” Nathaniel said, and led Alec out of the shop.
“Alright, he said four silvers, so I think you can probably get one for two and a half or three silvers at a reputable place, and not risk buying something that was probably stolen anyway,” Nathaniel advised Alec. “Or you could pay a little bit more and get something a little nicer.”
“You mean you aren’t going to go ahead and buy it for me?” Alec asked with laughter.
“You wouldn’t want me to deprive you of the fun of dickering over the sale, would you?” Nathaniel asked.
“Any day of the week you want. I’m no good at that kind of thing,” Alec replied. “Go ahead and buy one, since you know what you’re doing.”
“It’s basically just the way my dad used to trade horses,” Nathaniel said as he walked down the street looking for an appealing shop. “I must have watched him dicker a dozen times every year. You do have some coins with you, don’t you?”
He turned and entered a storefront that met some unspoken criteria of his. They walked past a number of objects and found weapons in the back of the store, nearest the shopkeeper’s desk.
Nathaniel selected a blade, and let Alec try it for balance and weight. He rejected it, and tried two others before finding one he liked, as the shopkeeper watched. Nathaniel took the three blades they examined up to the shopkeeper, gave him his story of the brother about to try training, and the bargaining began.
When it was over, Alec had the blade he wanted, plus a scabbard, for four silvers. As they left the store, Alec thanked Nathaniel for his help.
“What are you going to do now?” Nathaniel asked.
“Rubicon gave me a pass to hopefully let me begin practicing my swordsmanship with the Palace Guard. I’m going to go there next and see if I can set up a practice schedule,” Alec said.
“May I join you for that as well? I’ve got nothing better to do this afternoon other than practice, and I would much rather try to take a tour of the palace if possible.”
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br /> Alec grinned. “Come on then,” he told him, and they headed to the palace. Alec listened to Nathaniel’s sardonic comments and observations as they passed people along the streets, amazed at the change in personality from the boy who had remained so quiet during training. Alec’s eyes remained in constant motion, scanning the faces of the people they passed, hoping against hope to find Natalie.
They arrived at a gate guarded by men in stiff yellow uniforms. Alec asked if their officer was available, and when a lieutenant showed up, Alec handed him the note, explaining his mission to the perplexed looking young officer.
“Come with me to the armory, and we’ll see what we can schedule for you,” the lieutenant told Alec and Nathaniel. “Is it training for just one of you or both?”
“Just me,” Alec replied.
“Both,” Nathaniel answered, as Alec looked at him in surprise. He winked at him. “I’ve not had much training, but enough to know how to handle a blade, and I’d like to learn more,” he told the lieutenant. “I’ll be at the basic level, while Alec will be the good one.”
They wandered through the grounds of the palace to some stables, then past those to the military barracks, which were flanked by the armory.
“Inside is the master arms man. Give him your note and work everything out. If I can ever cross swords with you in practice, please ask for Lieutenant Block. It will be my pleasure to serve you,” he said with a bow and then left them at the armory door.
Alec watched for a second as the lieutenant walked away. Then he and Nathaniel entered the armory. A small antechamber led them to a short hall, and then to a large training gymnasium, in which five pairs of men bandied about in sword practice. Walking among them was a stout man who Alec guessed was the master arms man.
The two apprentices approached the overseer. “Are you the master arms man?” Nathaniel asked him when he turned and saw them.
“I would be if that’s who you wanted me to be, and you owed me a debt,” he said.
“We’d like to practice our fencing skills, and thought that we might regularly spar with your guardsmen to improve our abilities. Here is a note from Master Rubicon of the warrior ingenaire house vouching for us,” Alec handed him the note, which the man unfolded and read.
He spoke after quickly perusing the written words. “I am Bannis, his majesty’s guards head arms man, responsible for this armory, its supplies and the training of the guards. Master Rubicon speaks of your training, Alec, and we should be able to work something out.
“You,” he said to Nathaniel, “however, are not mentioned in here. Take up a sword with me so that I can judge whether to accept riff-raff off the street.”
“You want to test me here and now?” he asked.
“That’s about it. Use your friend’s blade and we’ll just get some idea of what you can do. What’s your name, by the way?”
“Nathaniel,” he told him.
“Well Nathaniel, don’t go for injury or blood; I just want you to work through the training exercises with me,” Bannis responded, pulling his blade off his hip.
Nathaniel looked at Alec with momentary puzzlement, then accepted the sword he proffered, and stepped onto the training mat across from the arms man.
Alec observed that Nathaniel dropped into a fighting crouch with well-trained grace, and raised his sword in a way that promised aggressive action. He and Bannis began to move their swords in concert towards the appointed steps in the standard introductory exercises, and Alec watched Nathaniel smoothly bring the sword towards its expected contact with Bannis’s blade.
After a minute Bannis called halt. “You’ll do fine without embarrassing yourself. Alec, lets put you up here as well since we’ve got the metal warm, not that I doubt Rubicon’s vouching for you.”
Alec also assumed an automatic crouch, and prepared to clash his sword against Bannis’s blade at the usual coordinates. “Alright Alec, don’t draw blood, but try to be a little freer in your actions now,” Bannis directed.
Alec grew cautious at first, waiting to see what the arms man would do so that he could judge his skill, but Bannis did the same and they only feinted and engaged in a few desultory blade taps. Alec decided to go on the offensive and stepped in close, quickly moving his sword from high to low and back again, probing his opponent’s abilities to react.
“Enough,” Bannis called and stepped back. “So you’re a left-handed blade, and a good one at that,” he said. “My men are going to get a lesson and a challenge, probably more than some of them can handle,” he added with a smile.
“I look forward to seeing you. How often do you want to be here, and when?”
“I’m used to daily training, and I think that right after lunch hour would work best for me,” Alec replied.
“We’re coming up on the rainy season; are you sure you want to float down here every day?” Bannis asked, to which Alec only nodded. He didn’t view damp clothes as something to prevent him from the joy of relaxing, physical exertion. “My lads and gals tend to be sleepy or downright lazy right after lunch,” Bannis told him. “I love the idea! This’ll wake them up. And if fighting you isn’t punishment enough, we’ll bring on the master who put that scar on you, eh?”
Alec blushed, and knew that Nathaniel was watching him closely. “She taught me something,” he agreed discreetly.
The master raised an eyebrow but said nothing further. “Very well. Nathaniel, will you join Alec in coming after lunch?” Bannis asked.
“Yes, and I wonder if we could bring another apprentice as well?” he asked.
“If he’s up to your standards, that’s fine. Now go, and I’ll see you tomorrow,” Bannis dismissed them and turned to watch his other students.
“Let’s walk around a little,” Nathaniel suggested to Alec as they left the armory. “I’ve never been on the palace grounds, and I’ve always wanted to visit.”
Alec only wanted to purchase some brothersfoot leaves at the market so that he could proceed to prepare his fish gland treatment for the girl in the orphanage. “I want to go to the farmers market too. Do you promise that we’ll get out of here in time to shop the market?” he asked.
Nathaniel assured him that they’d just walk through the palace grounds. “Let’s go see the gardens. They are supposed to be the wonder of the Dominion, with fountains and waterfalls and flowers in all seasons.”
Without clear directions they wandered about for some time, until Alec noticed two men pushing wheelbarrows full of earth and plant clippings coming out of a path to their right. “They look like busy gardeners,” he pointed out. “Let’s go see where they came from.”
“Better yet, let’s go ask them where the gardens are,” Nathaniel said, smiling so nicely Alec knew he was being mocked. The gardeners pointed them in the direction to go, and advised of the turns to make. Five minutes later the two apprentices walked through a gate in a tall wall and stepped into the palace gardens.
They proved to be intricate, large, and as lovely as Nathaniel had hoped. Alec and Nathaniel saw several other groups of people walking through the grounds, and twice almost bumped into people when they came around the corners of tall hedges.
After viewing a waterfall and pool, on a path that wound behind the waterfall, Alec and Nathaniel were heading out when they heard someone approaching along a tall hedge they were facing. They stopped two steps from the corner and awaited the arrival of the others to avoid another collision.
The other couple was a fashionably dressed young man and woman, who appeared to be their own age, walking hand-in-hand, oblivious to anyone but each other in the secluded corner of the garden. Even as they turned the corner they didn’t realize Nathaniel and Alec were present until they’d taken another step towards them.
“Pardon us,” the boy, a tall, dark-haired youth trying to grow his first beard, said, blushing slightly at their indiscretion.
The girl however, stopped looking at the boy to glance at the others, then shook her head and stared at Alec
as her face grew pale. “Alec?” she asked in a trembling voice.
Alec looked at her and felt a shock of recognition. It rocked him back on his heels, and he felt lighted-headed from the emotional jolt he faced. The elegant woman was Noranda, the trader family girl from Stronghold he had known in the circus as Natalie the dancer.
Chapter 6 – A Garden Meeting
Alec and Noranda stared at one another for a full five seconds, neither of them saying anything as their eyes busily absorbed every detail they could find. Alec noted the longer hair Noranda wore, stylishly coiffed, and the slight make up that accented her eyes, as well as her changing figure and demur gown.
Alec let himself exhale, as he realized he was holding his breath. He remembered to breathe in again. “Natalie?” he replied.
The girl’s face had remained pale; she removed her hand from her escort’s, took a step forward and opened her arms, then glided up to him and placed her arms around her former companion, hugging him tightly, as he responded by hugging her too.
He had imagined for months that he would see this girl again. He had agonized for months about questing around the Dominion in search of her. The extraordinary adventures they had shared and persevered through after their caravan had perished made her seem like the only person his own age he could share his thoughts with; they had much in common with one another that they could share with no one else, from the lacertii they had killed to the morning they awoke with Ari unconscious to their kiss in the hayloft of Suellen’s stable. Now she stood here within his arms, after months of living a life he knew nothing about.
“I watched you float by on the boat that escaped from Walnut Creek,” he told her, his lips just above the top of her right ear.
“I thought you were dead, until Aristotle told me otherwise just days ago,” she replied. “Does Ari know you are here?”
At the Seat of Power: Goldenfields and the Dominion Page 6
