The Dunston Blade

by John Daines

  “I shall leave my Knight, Sir Tristan, here to take charge,” said John. “I expect obedience to him.”

  The Steward nodded and bowed and said he would serve the Knight. John left to go back to his camp making sure he had left enough of his own men to support Tristan. Gavin had been stripped of his armour and his wounds cleaned, John looked down at his friend and sorrow overcame him for a moment.

  “Bring a cart to take him home,” said John. “This is a sad day, let the men from Dunston escort him. Stephen, let’s go home.”

  As they marched back towards Norwich John thought of what he would say to his sister Joan. Fortunately they had a son so she would have a reminder of her husband.

  II

  Tania was devastated at the news of Gavin’s death and immediately made plans to go to Joan. John said he would accompany her but would have to return to Wymondham as soon as possible. There was also news from London that Sir Cedric was not well. Once Tania had comforted Joan and helped her to come to terms with Gavin’s death John went back to Wymondham to formalise the plans he had been thinking of on the way home. Who should replace Gavin in Dunston? Who would replace him in Wymondham eventually?

  Edmond was too young and inexperienced to control Dunston but Stephen would be the man to help and guide him, and he always had a soft spot for the home Castle. He would leave Tristan at Shipden who would soon organise the area the way he knew John would like it. John felt satisfied with his plan and turned his thoughts to his visit to London and to see Sir Cedric. They mourned Gavin and held a dinner in his memory, many of the Tennants came as Gavin had been well liked.

  Arriving in London John found Sir Cedric recovering from his illness but very angry at the King’s close friend, Gaveston, who had taken over the organisation of the King’s coronation. The man had been banished by the King’s father but Edward had reinstated him when his father died. Now he was the cause of much anger from the Barons. John listened patiently and tried to figure out the parts that would affect him and his estates. He told Sir Cedric of his plans and they sat and talked about them and John could see that the Earl missed his old home. He visited Westminster and kept out of the way of the builders as he paid his respect to Edward at his tomb in the Abbey. He was sitting quietly when two Barons approached him and asked him what he thought about the return of Gaveston.

  “I think the King needs him but the country does not,” said John. “It would have been better if he had stayed away.”

  The Barons looked at one another and then one of them said.

  “He is in favour now but many of us feel that he should be sent away again. Will you support us when the time comes?”

  John looked at them and said, “I am but a country man, I don’t think my word will carry much weight, I do not visit London or take my seat in Parliament.”

  “You, together with Sir Cedric, are a powerful force and many are interested in what you do and say. We are all noticing how well your estates thrive and your men are loyal. Many here would listen to your views,” said one of the Barons.

  John did not respond as he did not want to be drawn into the politics here in London. He politely excused himself saying he had to get back to Sir Cedric. Sitting in the boat on the way back he thought about what had been said, would he make a difference? That evening he discussed the subject with Sir Cedric as the Earl was used to the ways of things in London and at Court.

  “There is trouble brewing in that area. I no longer advise the King as I used to do for his father. The best advise I can give you is to return to Wymondham and continue with the plans you discussed with me earlier. I am sure there will a solution to the problems here soon.” John stayed a further two days and then returned to Wymondham to his family.

  Resting at home John mulled over what the Barons had said to him in Westminster Abbey. He did not want to be in London, he thought it was a dirty and dangerous place and he much preferred his country life.

  John felt he was powerful enough in his Shire, he had a good number of men under arms who constantly trained and had proved themselves in battle. He decided that the politics of London could reach whatever conclusion they did, he would stay out of it. The King and all the fawning courtiers were so insincere that it made John feel sick every time he met them.

  One winters evening John sat in the Wymondham library looking at the collection that Sir Cedric had left there. He came across some old parchments written in a language he could not understand. He made a mental note to ask Sir Cedric what they were. As he was leafing through them he found one page that had strange markings illustrated that could be figures or numbers and he recognised one of them, it was the same marking that was on his ring.

  II

  Over their first meal of the day John suggested to Tania that they ride over to Dunston, he needed to talk to Edmond and to be brought up to date on the how he was handling his lands. When they arrived at the Castle, Edmond was at first nervous of his father’s visit but after a talk with the Reeve, John relaxed and said he would ride over to the church as he had not been there for several years. “The new Priest has settled in,” said Edmond. “There was no one there for a while after Father Aldred’s replacement died but the Bishop has sent a new man.”

  John nodded and said it would be a good time to meet him. As he rode to the church he remembered the times he and Joan had made the journey and how Father Aldred had liked the barrels he brought. The church looked just the same, older and more weeds surrounding it, but the same peaceful air about it. The Priest came out to greet him and after John had told him who he was the man invited him into the church. After some polite conversation John said he would like to see anything of Father Aldred’s personal effects that had been left there, if they had not been destroyed.

  “Certainly Sir,”said the Priest. “I have disposed of his old clothes but all his other belongings are in a box in the Sanctuary.”

  John went to the small room off to the side of the altar with the priest trailing after him, there he found the box.

  “I will take this with me and see if it tells me anything of his family.”

  “Not that I have found Sir,” said the Priest. “but as you knew him you may find a clue.”

  John departed and went back to Dunston Castle. He searched the box and most of the contents were an odd collections of mementoes of the old man’s life. Among some old parchments John found one that had been pressed between two pieces of wood. John carefully parted them and looked down at a piece of very old parchment as he looked at it he could not recognise the language, it was not Latin or Greek but the writing was very regular. The next few days he spent in the library at Wymondham searching through books trying to identify the strange writing. Nowhere could he find the information and as he sat discussing it with Tania she said.

  “Why don’t you ask father, he may know something, he has travelled a lot?”

  John left the subject for a while but the puzzle kept coming into his mind so he decided he would visit the Earl. As he was making his mind up when to make the visit Sir Cedric arrived at the Castle. He said he was fed up with London and the way the King was acting so he had journeyed to the family he loved. One evening as he sat with John the conversation turned to the library and did the Earl want to move his books to London.

  “No, I took what I wanted and the rest can stay here,” he said.

  “I have been trying to find out what the inscription on my ring is,” said John. “I can find nothing in the books.”

  The Earl smiled and said that the book he needed was in London but he did not publicise the fact that he had it.

  “As you know,” continued Sir Cedric. “The Jews have been banished from these shores and the inscription on your ring is in Aramaic which is the basis for their ancient writings. It was widely used in the Arab lands and we came across it in our Crusades.”

  John showed him the ring but Sir Cedric said he could not recognise the figure but it looked similar to what he had seen when he
was on his Crusade. John remembered his father had been on a Crusade and wondered if that is how he came to have the sword and the ring. John thought to himself that he had now two tasks, one to search through his father’s box again and second to go to London and look at Sir Cedric’s book.

  When he was practicing with his sword after Sir Cedric had returned to London, John tried to feel a connection between the ring and his sword but there was nothing, he was still fast even though he was older but nothing exceptional. John wondered why he had not linked the ring and sword together before.

  Several months passed before John and Tania made their journey to London. John remarked that the outskirts were becoming as dirty as the centre and he would be pleased when they returned to the clean country air. Looking through Sir Cedric’s books he found an ancient volume that had an illustration of some of the Aramaic letters but the one on his ring was not among them. Perhaps it was not an Aramaic letter at all. John returned to Wymondham and put the puzzle to the back of his mind as there were many things in the county that needed his attention, it was time to visit Norwich again.

  John sent a messenger to Edgar at Norwich informing him of his intended visit and to gather together any petitioners so that they could be dealt with quickly. He would see any of the Barons on the second day.

  John again made a special effort to show off his position again and journeyed in full armour, without his helm, and with a large escort. Going through the villages people came to cheer him and on entering Norwich there were large crowds gathered. The Sheriff was at the Castle to meet him and after changing out of his armour he sat down to hear what had been going on in the city since his last visit. He learnt that there was still disquiet between the French quarter and the English, some of the leaders wanted to see him on the morrow.

  In the morning John sat and listened to the complaints of both sides. He made the point that Norwich was an English City and would abide by English laws as would all people in his fiefdom. His policy of all working together for the good of all and all reaping the benefit for all would continue. He said to them.

  “You are all citizens of this fine city, so work together and sort out your problems, if you cannot do this then I will make the decisions for you as I see fit. You may not like that. This evening we will sit down and eat together.”

  The banquet went well and when the evening came to an end there seemed to be less hostility between the groups.

  On the Journey back to Wymondham John thought whether it would be better to live in the Castle at Norwich and be at the centre of the Shire or stay at Wymondham where he felt comfortable and at home, he decided he would discuss it with Tania. His mind also thought about finding more information regarding his ring. As they neared their home a rider came from the Castle with news that Sir Cedric was seriously ill in London. John hurried back to the Castle and immediately prepared for Tania and himself to go with all speed to the City.

  When they arrived at the London house they were met with the news that the Earl was near death. The Lady Ann was with him and when Tania rushed to her father’s side she looked at John and shook her head. They stayed with Sir Cedric until he quietly passed away. Later Lady Ann said he had suddenly fallen ill and the apothecaries could do nothing for him. There were many falling sick in the City and if the Earl had not gone to a Parliament meeting he may not have caught the sickness. John made the necessary arrangements to fulfil the Earls wishes to be buried in Wymondham next to his wife. Lady Ann accompanied them on their sorrowful journey. When they arrived at Wymondham many Town’s people and a few Tenants were in the Castle Bailey, as John had sent a courier to inform the Castle of Sir Cedric’s death. There was a very sombre mood as the coffin was unloaded from the cart and taken in to the Great Hall. The Abbot was there to receive the Earl and then discussed the funeral arrangements to take place in four days, allowing time for all who wished to attend. Boorman and his new assistant made arrangements to accommodate as many senior Nobles as possible, the rest would find beds in the Town.

  The day of the funeral was overcast with showers of rain.

  “Supposed to be a good omen,” said John. “It is not good for me as I shall miss him.”

  A tearful Tania nodded her head. All the Nobles came and the Abbey was full, just the family and a few close friends attended the entombment, John had ordered that Sir Cedric’s wife should also be entombed with him and effigies of them both had been ordered to surmount the tomb which is situated in the North Transept. Later at the banquet, in his honour, many spoke of his kindness and fairness.

  II

  One day, after the Castle had retuned to normal, John sat relaxing in the Library, he pulled out an old book that had recorded some of the writings of Knights who had been on Crusades. Sir Cedric must have gleaned them from his friends. The Earl’s writings were interesting but one parchment, written by a Sir Gregory of Pulham, whom John had never heard of, mentioned meeting an Arab Sultan on his way through France. John thought this was strange to find such a man so far from his home. Gregory befriended him and accompanied him back to the Holy Land. The Arab had been searching for items that had been stolen from him and he had traced the robber to France. He had recovered most of his possessions except a ring that was very important to him. This ring had disappeared and the Arab had given up the search as being an obvious foreigner and an enemy to some he had decided to return home. The area where the Knight met the Arab was not far from Chateaux Vent. John considered that a trip there would be better than journeying to the Holy Land, but where would he start? Maybe it would be better to let things stay as they were, he did not know if the ring would have the same effect on Harold. Now was the time to find out.

  One evening after their meal, John asked Harold to come up to his room and he told him how he thought there might be some connection between the ring and the sword but only when fighting a genuine opponent, sparing had no effect at all. Harold listened and asked his father if he believed in magic.

  “No, I do not but somethings are not magic yet they are hard to explain,” said John. “You will own the sword and the ring someday and I wanted you to be aware of how it feels.”

  The young man looked at him.

  “I think it is your skill father not any outside influence.”

  John was pleased with his answer and made a decision to let him use his sword at the next opportunity.

  John suggested to Tania that now everywhere was settling down it would be pleasant to take a trip abroad perhaps they could visit Chateaux Vent and stay there for a few days, she agreed and said it would be good for Harold to see the property. John wondered if there would be any chance of some information about the Arab at the Chateaux. Preparations were made and came the day, John, with the whole family, ladies in waiting and a contingent of twenty men at arms journeyed to Lowestoft. They would sail from there to St Malo and then proceed to Chateaux Vent. They spent a couple of days in Lowestoft as guests of the Mayor and finally found a ship that could take them all to the Brittany coast. As they sailed from the port John stood with Tania looking at the disappearing landscape and drew her to him, would they find the answers he wanted in France?

  Published for Kindle

  © John Nelson Daines 2016

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, contact the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the authors' imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

 

 

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