by Jules Marks
And someone did just that.
“Enough!” cried a strong, clear voice from the darkened doorway on one of the far walls. “Stop this foolishness and save your strength for the Uplanders!”
A trim figure strode through the doorway. She was dressed in a simple black robe with a cowl that covered her hair. Still, her fine-boned face was visible, and her eyes flashed angrily, indeed, her very posture and stance revealed her ire. With hands on hips, she faced the two fighters, who had, as ordered, stopped to lean on their swords and try to catch their breath as she regaled them.
“What were you thinking? One or both of you could have been killed! Can we afford to lose you, Akimba?” She shook her finger at him. “Did you ever stop to think what that would do to me…and to our people…especially now?” She turned a flushed face to Ioan. “And you…we have not had the pleasure of meeting, Ioan, son of Lloried, and this is not the way I would have desired to do so…you have a gift for swordsmanship that should be reserved for the enemy, and instead you threaten to kill my brother!” She put her hands to her face, and then shook her head. “Men!” She turned, and scanned the arena until she spotted us. “Hugh, did you put them up to this?”
Hugh bowed low before responding. “That I did, Cousin. Can you find it in your heart to forgive me?”
Rebeccah shook her head, but she was smiling. “It may take me a day or two…perhaps longer.” She gestured for us to draw near. “Come you group of fools, and dine with me this midday. Akimba has told me much of this brotherhood of warriors, and I am eager to hear more of your journey.”
It wasn’t until we were entering the dining hall that I realized that I hadn’t seen Nordz since mid-way through the match. Then I knew where he had gone…and I was grateful that the wise little man had found someone with the clout to stop the overenthusiastic swordsmen.
<><><>
As we sat down to table, a man entered the room, spied Rebeccah, and advanced towards her. He was middle-aged and graying, and though he was dressed in mourning colours, his florid complexion and jovial expression gave me the immediate impression that he was a gregarious fellow. He placed a paternal hand on Rebeccah’s shoulder as he bent down to speak to her. It was obvious she was fond of the man, and that his quiet words of comfort and concern had a positive effect on her. She held his hand as she made introductions all ‘round. The man in question was her maternal uncle, Thomas of Culliman. He greeted us all, and seemed not at all surprised that Larkin and I were being included among the guests.
Akimba and Ioan joined us halfway through our meal. They sat next to one another; a new bond had been formed…one of mutual respect and admiration.
They’d managed to shed their wet clothes and clean up a bit, but both men wore the posture and demeanor of exhaustion; they’d obviously pushed their bodies to the limit of their abilities, and were going to pay the price for several hours…or possibly for days to come. They had little interest in food, but were more than willing to join in on the conversation.
Rebeccah was asking me about the Horbold wolves, and though I must admit that I was a bit distracted by her beauty and her poise, I’d been managing to converse with her without stuttering.
“I’ve heard that they are larger than normal…almost as big as a human. Is this so?” She took a sip of wine, and waited for my answer.
“Well, m’ Lady, my brain is a bit foggy about what happened, but I can tell you that they were the biggest wolves I’ve ever seen…especially when I got one at my throat. If some of our Llewellan wolves caught sight of them, I’ve no doubt they would turn tail and run away.”
Ioan leaned forward over his neglected plate. “I’ve heard tales about the Horbold wolves. Some say that they are so large because they’re a cross between wolves and humans. Legend has it that the souls of the humans lost in Horbold Forest inhabit the wolves at night; by day the wolves are subject to their human bodies.”
“Loup garou…” murmured Larkin in an accent I didn’t recognize.
Ioan nodded. “Yes, Larkin, it’s a bit like the werwulf.”
I wasn’t sure what they were talking about. “Well, I don’t know about your werwulf idea, but I believe that it’s a lucky thing we got out of there alive,” said I.
Hugh demurred. “I don’t know, Gael, we were doing pretty well holding them off. If you hadn’t had your head beaten in by that mad horse, I think between the two of us, we could have taken them.”
“Not if they were loup garou,” argued Larkin in a spectral voice. “If they were, you are fortunate to have your lives.” He swallowed, and then, looking at no one in particular, he went on with his thoughts: “One time we passed through an isolated hamlet that had been devastated by those monsters. It had happened piecemeal. Half of the people had been carried off during the previous month; the other half was nearly mad with fear. They begged Sir Kerrick to stay and fight the creatures, but he wouldn’t do it. He told me he suspected we would be murdered in our sleep for our arms and horses, but I am not sure that was truly his reason. I think that the people’s fear had infected him; I know that it infected me. We passed out of the hamlet, with those survivors following behind, crying out to us to stay and help. They were desperate people; it was an awful thing to see.” He sighed. “I never felt such a coward as I did that day.”
Akimba tried to reassure him. “But what were you to do, Larkin? You couldn’t go against your master, after all.”
Larkin’s chin quivered. “I could have tried harder to talk him into staying.”
I’d noticed Lady Rebeccah watching him as he spoke, and she took the opportunity to reassure him. “Someday, Larkin, when you are the knight and you have your own young squire, you will be faced with another fearsome situation. You will remember that hamlet and those frightened people, and you will show your squire that courage can be infectious.”
Larkin didn’t look convinced, but he nodded.
That seemed to settle the issue for Lady Rebecca.
“Now, enough about the werwulf; I don’t want to think of it anymore.” She said as she turned towards her adopted brother, “What are our plans for tomorrow, Akimba? How many troops are we taking…when do we leave?”
“We?” Akimba asked.
“We.” She answered as if she would brook no argument.
“You should remain here,” said Akimba matter-of-factly. “What if the castle is attacked?”
“What if it is?” She placed both hands on the table and leaned across to her brother. Her voice was low. “We have able commanders, and Uncle Thomas will remain behind to see that things are taken care of. The troops here can withstand an assault, and we won’t be gone for long.” She glowered. “I am going, but if you wish to stay, you may do so.”
“You know that I am going,” he rumbled as he slapped his palms against the tabletop.
“Children, children!” Hugh laughed, trying to make light of their argument. “However did Halwick put up with this? Cease and desist! You shall both go; the castle should be safe with Sir Thomas in charge; there is no need to argue.”
Rebeccah’s angry expression dissolved, and was replaced by a look of pain. She closed her eyes. “Hugh is right: I am sorry, Akimba. Father wouldn’t have tolerated this for long.”
Akimba reached across the table and cupped his sister’s cheek in his hand. “I’m sorry, as well. I don’t mean to be so stubborn, but I couldn’t bear the thought of something else happening…” He paused searching for words.
Rebeccah took his hand in hers, and lightly kissed his palm before releasing it. “Enough, Brother…I know.” She leaned back in her chair, and took another sip of wine. “Now, when do we depart?”
We’d finished our meal, and had risen to thank our hostess. She acknowledged our thanks, and regretted that she hadn’t better fare to feed us. As we were departing, she called out to Larkin.
“Hold, Larkin. Will you take a turn with me in the gardens?”
Larkin glanced first to me, with a look of com
plete bewilderment on his face. He didn’t say, ‘why me?’ but he may as well have done as a response to being singled out. I already knew that he found the lady fascinating, but it was also true that she was intimidating, and the thought of being one-on-one with her probably gave him pause.
“Go on,” I whispered.
He walked towards Lady Rebeccah as if he’d been called down in training.
Hugh nudged me, and gestured towards the receding pair. “We’ll see how long it takes for her to have him wrapped around her little finger.”
“No need to wait,” I replied. “She has already done so.
Chapter Nine
“Well, what happened…what did you talk about?”
I was eager to hear what Larkin had to say about his visit with Lady Rebeccah. He’d come back to the apartments looking pale and weary, as if he’d barely survived an ordeal of some kind. He flopped down on the first bed he encountered, and laid there as Ioan and I began to ply him with questions.
“We just talked,” was his vague response.
“You spent two hours with her, lad. Be more specific.” Ioan seemed even more curious than I to hear what had transpired. He walked over to the bed (Ioan’s bed, actually) and sat on its edge.
“We talked about lots of things.” Larkin rolled his eyes and sighed, and then he suddenly perked up, as if he’d thought of something pleasant. “She asked about you, Ioan.”
“Did she now?” Ioan beamed a satisfied smile at me before he thought the better of it. “Wait…what did she ask?”
Larkin made a face. “She asked girl things…”
“Girl things?” (That came from both of us at the same time.)
Larkin shrugged. “You know…how do you act when she’s not around…are you married…are you always a maniac with a sword…do you fart in your sleep…”
“She didn’t!” Ioan thumped Larkin’s head with a rap of his knuckles.
“All right…” Larkin grinned, obviously enjoying the moment. “She didn’t ask that last bit, but she seemed pretty interested in what I had to say about you.”
“So what did you tell her?”
Larkin shook his head. “I cannot say…”
Another thump.
“I will not say…”
This time Ioan groaned.
I decided to intervene on Ioan’s behalf. “Oh, come on, lad! Have some compassion for a curious man; you can see how he wants to know.”
“Well…” Larkin’s eyes narrowed. “It’ll cost him.”
Ioan’s eyes narrowed as well. “It may well end up costing you, boy. What is your price?”
“A lesson.”
“A lesson in what?”
“The sword.” Larkin gestured towards me. “I already had a lesson from the best marksman around. Now I am ready for one from the best swordsman.”
“But I didn’t win this morning,” protested Ioan, suddenly modest.
“You would have,” Larkin answered matter-of-factly. “It had become a contest of stamina, and that is one of your strengths. I am certain: you would have won in the end.”
“Well, I am flattered that you think so, though I doubt that Akimba would agree with you.”
“He needn’t know,” replied Larkin. “Come, Ioan. I need the help: I am wretchedly inexperienced with the sword, but I am willing to learn.” Larkin turned to me. “Gael will tell you; I pay attention…I’m a good student.”
I nodded. “He speaks the truth, Ioan.”
Ioan sighed. “Have you any idea how much that bout this morning sapped my strength?” He threw up his hands in dismay. “There’s no place to swim here; I cannot refresh myself. I doubt that I’ll do a good job of teaching you anything.”
Larkin sat up, and waved away Ioan’s disclaimer. “It’s not as if I want to fight you, after all. Heaven forefend that such would happen…we would be finished within a minute! What I ask is demonstration, some training pointers…that’s all.”
“Very well, I agree. Now…what else did you say to Lady Rebeccah?”
Larkin’s information actually was somewhat scanty. As Lady Rebeccah had missed most of the morning’s match, she had asked him to describe it in detail, and, according to Larkin, she had been suitably appreciative of Ioan’s abilities, though not his lack of good sense to stop the contest.
“But she has forgiven me?”
Larkin shrugged. “How should I know?” He frowned. “Why do you care?”
It was Ioan’s turn to shrug and act indifferent. “Oh, no reason, actually. She’s just so unusual, a bit intriguing…”
“That’s what she said about you!” exclaimed Larkin.
“Truly?” Ioan sounded wonderfully pleased.
“No…no. I just wanted to see your reaction if I told you that.” Larkin smiled broadly, and I gave him a thumbs up for effort.
Ioan, however did not find him quite so amusing. With lightening speed, he leaned forward and wrestled Larkin off the bed.
“Get off of my bed, you wretched boy!” On the face of it, they were unkind words, but Ioan was laughing as he spoke them…and after Larkin had landed in a heap upon the floor, he, too, was laughing.
“Now we know your soft spot,” said he. “You are attracted to Lady Rebeccah!”
“And what if I am?” asked Ioan.
I guffawed. “Well, you are almost 140 years older than she,” I answered. I had to admit, it was a curious thought: could a Hydorian and a regular woman…? I shook my head. It was too confusing to think on.
Ioan turned to look at me. “Ponder our situation as it now stands: trust me, Gael, the 140 years are not that much of an issue if you consider that we all could be dead by this time next week.” He reached down and tousled Larkin’s hair, as if what he’d said wasn’t serious. He directed his next comment to the boy.
“And you! You have an awfully brassy attitude for one so ‘wretchedly inexperienced’ with the sword, young Larkin. Indeed, that smart mouth of yours could get you in trouble. Perhaps it is time that we remedied that.” He offered Larkin a hand up, and Larkin accepted.
“Now?” Larkin asked with an eager smile.
Ioan nodded. “It’s as good a time as any. Let me get my sword.”
<><><>
They had their lesson, and I enjoyed watching. Larkin had exaggerated a bit when saying how wretched he was with a sword, but it was obvious that he was inexperienced and in need of tutoring. For his part, Ioan was patient; he performed slowly, repetitively, until Larkin could copy his movements. Larkin was in need of more than one session, but he had shown some improvement by the end of the afternoon.
More than ever, Ioan impressed me with his kindness to the boy. Though it was obvious to me that Ioan was quite literally ready to drop from fatigue, he persevered until they’d made progress. Hugh, Akimba, Rebeccah, and her Uncle Thomas came to find us at the end of the session, but Ioan and Larkin didn’t know they had come until we (the spectators) broke into applause after one particularly impressive go-round between teacher and student. Ioan and Larkin responded to our praise by bowing low. I know for a fact that Ioan was grateful for the interruption; he had long been ready to quit, but hadn’t wanted to disappoint Larkin.
After a few words of encouragement from the group to the pupil, we made our way in to supper.
It surprised me that Larkin and I continued to be included with the noblemen during their private mealtimes. I knew that other knights…those native to Beckman Castle and the guests who had come to its defense…ate in a central hall, and their squires and servants likely ate their meals wherever they could get them. It was one thing to treat servants well, another altogether to treat them as honored guests, and Larkin and I were certainly enjoying the novelty…but I knew that was likely coming to an end.
I walked alongside Sir Hugh as we left the practice arena, and as the others walked ahead, I managed to speak with him about Larkin.
“Sir Hugh, has Larkin said any more to you about trying to find a position with one of the
knights here?”
Hugh smiled and shook his head. “Nooo, he hasn’t said a word to me. Why? Is he chafing for a change?”
“No, I think not. He seems perfectly happy with our company…and we with him.”
“Then what is the problem?” Hugh had stopped near the archway, letting the others go on, and I stayed with him.
“There is no problem…not at the moment, anyway. But when we do meet the Uplanders in battle—and I believe from what you’ve told me that it will be soon—what happens to Larkin after?” I paused, not knowing how to put it.
“After I’m dead, you mean?” He looked at me intently.
I sighed, and couldn’t help but look away. I’d somehow been hoping that Sir Hugh would change his mind. Unlike me, he was young, and still had so much to live for. “I was thinking more along the lines of both of us being dead…but, yes, after we’re killed in battle. What happens to Larkin?”
“From what Akimba and Rebeccah tell me about the Uplanders’ numbers, your worries may be groundless…”
He paused, because he could see that I was shaking my head. He placed a hand on my shoulder, and proceeded to explain:
“It looks bad for us, Gael. Larkin may be killed as well…all of us may die. Akimba’s scouts tell us that the Uplanders are massing for another attack—probably sometime in the next week—and if we do go out to meet it, as I am certain we will, we all of us may die. Who can say?” He sighed, and closed his eyes for a moment before continuing. “I am yet resolved to go down fighting, and I assume that you are as well…?” He waited long enough for me to nod. “But others do not feel our gloom, and do not carry our death wish. Akimba and Rebeccah…Ioan, as well…any or all will be sure to keep watch over Larkin if they survive.”
“You feel certain of this? I don’t mean to belabour the point, but I’ve grown fond of the boy…I want what’s best for him.”
