Land of Madness

by B T Litell

  On the other side of the tree, Týr saw it. A rabbit. It sat in a small clearing between a few trees, as it nibbled on a plant. The stem stuck out from its mouth and slid up as it chewed. It had its back to him, its ears folded down against the back of its neck. It bent down and grabbed another plant, which it promptly pulled from the ground. Some of the roots left the dirt with the rest of the plant. The fur around the rabbit’s neck rippled as it ate, the movement of its jaw shaking the rest of its still body.

  Týr pulled his left hand back and let the knife fly; the blade rotated in the air and finally pointed toward the rabbit’s neck. Its ears flitted as the knife approached and the rabbit began to turn, but the blade planted before it could see the source of the noise it had detected. The rabbit’s body went limp and crumpled toward the ground. It’s back legs kicked a few times before they finally settled. Breakfast, Týr thought when he grabbed the rabbit’s still-warm corpse and removed his knife from the base of its skull. He wiped the blood across the brown and white fur that covered the rabbit’s whole body, and stood, then turned around to return to camp. Joshua and Michael would be happy to have something other than dried meat for a change. And it wouldn’t be so hard to eat as that peppered boar stew they had had in Erith. The innkeeper had used far too much pepper to season the boar, especially when the meat was actually good quality and would have been fine on its own, without any seasoning. Týr wondered how there was any pepper left in the whole city after that man cooked. Back at the camp, Joshua stirred and sat up as he wiped his eyes. He blinked repeatedly and looked questioningly at Týr who proudly held his trophy up by its back feet.

  “How did you—no, never mind,” Joshua began to ask, then dropped his question. Clearly the man was less upset about the hunting trip since it was successful.

  “Can you light the fire while I prepare the rabbit?” Týr asked, removing a knife from his belt and cutting the feet off the rabbit. Before he could get two feet removed, the fire roared to life. The feet came off the rabbit easily enough, then the rest of the skin had to come off. Tyr made a small incision in the rabbit’s pelt and began ripping the flesh as he removed it from the red meat underneath. His mouth already started to water as he finished skinning the rabbit. With the skin removed, he had to clean the entrails out, which he promptly tossed into the fire. There was little use for rabbit intestines, at least while they were at a camp about to head to a city. The pelt though, he would save. A trader in the city might give him a few coins for such a prize. He would have to wash the blood out of the fur, but that was a minor inconvenience. Michael stirred with the warmth of the fire and watched as Týr prepared the rabbit. The flayed carcass was set over the fire to cook, and the meat become crispy on the outside as the flames licked the surface of the meat.

  ***

  They left the camp and made their way to the city not long after Týr cooked the rabbit and everyone got some food in their bellies. There had still been some potatoes left over from the food he and Svenka had purchased in Erith, and the potatoes went quite well with the roasted rabbit. Rather than riding around the woods, Joshua had suggested traveling to the nearby road on foot while they guided the horses, then they would ride the rest of the way to the city. The trees were too densely packed to ride between them, but not so much that it made it difficult for the horses to navigate behind their humans. The walk through the woods was quick; the road was less than half a kilometer from the camp, and once they were on horseback, they were out of the woods in under an hour. The horses appeared happy to be running once again as their hooves rang out a quick cadence.

  Shemont loomed before them, a large, magnificent-looking city. The wall around the city was imposing, though not threatening. Anxiety built in each of the travelers as they approached the drawbridge. A new city to learn, and they would have to meet with someone important to discuss Michael’s premonitions. Joshua hoped that whoever they met with would be perceptive to their mission. The last thing they needed at this point was another obstacle. There had been enough of those in this quest.

  As they approached the drawbridge, the halves were being pulled together, and a line of wagons had formed on their side of the bridge. Once the drawbridge closed, the line that had formed crossed into the city quickly. Unlike with Dennison’s guards outside Erith, the Shemont guards neither searched wagons nor questioned visitors, something for which Týr was thankful. Joshua led the group through the city toward the castle, as each of them hoped they could find anyone who would listen to their quest.

  Inside the city, the market bustled with hundreds of people who swarmed the vendors for their wares. Shouting and mayhem governed the entire market. Merchants stood behind their stalls and listened to the cries of their customers. People shouted for fish, vegetables, grains, cloth, and anything else that could be imagined. Prices were negotiated just as loudly as goods were requested. From an outsider’s perspective, the market seemed to be pure chaos, no order in any of the madness. But within the disorder of the market there was a form of order.

  After they worked their way through the city, the group found a stable near the castle where they stabled the horses. Joshua talked to the stable hand about keeping the horses there temporarily, and they were able to avoid paying a fee for the time being. From the stable they walked to the castle, running into a military officer who directed them to speak with the Master General for a meeting with the King. They apparently would know the Master General when they saw him. Týr speculated that this was the man they saw through the orb. It was likely this Master General they were on their way to see was the man who was guarding the King and the Queen of Drendil.

  An expansive courtyard stretched out before the castle. Pairs of guards stood in various places throughout the courtyard and other pairs patrolled throughout. A column of soldiers, their pikes all shined and polished so they would reflect the sunlight, marched into the courtyard and blocked the path of the travelers for a few moments. An officer trailed behind the soldiers, a moderate crest rose from his helmet and he barked orders, and a cadence, to which the soldiers marched. Each of the soldiers in the formation wore leather boots with thick soles and metal plates. Their heavy shoes marked a heavy droning sound as the formation marched along. Once the column of soldiers was in the courtyard the officer called halt and the formation took one step then stopped moving as one unit.

  “We should be careful going into a castle as armed as we are,” Týr commented, watching the guards cautiously. “Especially if we are requesting an audience with the King.”

  “Just keep your knives sheathed and concealed and we should be fine, Týr,” Joshua replied.

  The travelers moved through the courtyard and toward the stairs which lead into the castle. Six guards stood at the sides of the stairs near the door at the front of the castle. The lances they held, with the points tilted inward toward the center of the wide staircase, created a tunnel of sorts. The guards ignored the travelers as they approached and amazingly none of the guards wavered on their feet. Michael would have thought they were statues except he saw some of them blink. Once inside the castle, a servant ran up to the group, and as he neared them, he bowed deeply.

  “Greetings Master priest. How may I be of service to you this morning?” the servant inquired as he rose from his bow.

  “We need to meet with the King at once,” Joshua replied.

  “Very well, Master priest. He should have some time before heading to the arena for today’s festivities,” the servant replied, turning around and guiding the group of travelers to the King’s lobby. “There is a tournament for the knights this week. The winner of the tournament will win a hunting trip in the Ardonne Forest with the King. It is quite an honor that someone should be fortunate enough to fight, let alone to win. Every combatant in the tournament is extremely skilled, and it has made for great entertainment.”

  The servant continued talking about the knightly tournament as they walked. The entry hall of the castle, where they currently walked
was roughly thirty meters from the gate to the stairs at the back of the hall, fifteen meters wide, and twelve meters high. The ceiling high above was vaulted like a cathedral with arches that rose to points in the ceiling. Windows of colored class marked the walls; the colored glass of the windows cast rays of colored light onto the floor of the hall. In the center of the floor, under the travelers’ feet, was a plush red carpet marked with golden griffons every few meters. Joshua stepped carefully to avoid treading on the griffons, while Michael and Týr simply walked and looked around the extravagant hall. Pillars rose from the floor to the ceiling at five-meter intervals. Between the pillars were plinths for statues, of which three held a statue. The men and women depicted in stone were regal, powerful people, judging by their depictions, their bodies shown in heroic poses. The men all held swords in various positions, while only one woman held a sword and shield, her face contorted as if she were currently at war.

  After they went up the stairs at the end of the hall, they turned left and walked down another hall, to another spiral staircase on the right-hand side. The servant walked quickly while he still maintained a comfortable gait. They walked up several flights of spiraling stairs before they arrived in another hallway. This hallway was more subdued than the castle’s main hall. The carpet, while still bearing golden griffons, every ten meters here, was a maroon color rather than a crimson. There also were not windows in this particular hall, the only light instead being provided by oil lamps. Several doors stood along the sides of the hall. Dark, heavy doors with brass handles and knockers hung on the fronts of the doors. The handles were in the left- or right-hand sides of the doors, while the knockers were hung in the middle top of the door. The doors were simple without being plain and simply existed as a barrier between whatever room laid beyond and the hallway.

  At the end of the hallway, the servant entered another spiral staircase and went up one more level before exiting into another hallway where he turned right instead of left. Michael had tried to keep track of where they had gone, from his view of the castle as they came through the courtyard but had no idea where they might be. As far as he was concerned, the group was lost. This hall was similar to the floor below it. Subdued coloring, light only from oil lamps, and carpet that was plusher than in the castle’s main hall. The only difference between the two levels was the extreme presence of guards. The previous level had guards standing to the side of a couple doors. This level had guards at most doors, standing to each side with their lances held upright. The guards also carried sabers, sheathed on their left hips. One guard wore his sword on his right hip, which Michael found odd, but not totally questionable.

  The servant guided them to the end of the hall and turned down another hallway to the left. The servant stopped outside a door halfway down the hallway where two guards waited as well as a third man, the same man that had been seen in the orb a couple days prior. The servant bowed and presented the guests to the officer. The servant introduced the Master General of Drendil to the guests and promptly left when waved away.

  “What business do you have with the King? He is about to leave to watch the knights’ tournament,” the Master General said. This came after he looked the guests up and down and scrutinized their appearance thoroughly.

  “We are on an urgent quest and we an immediate need to see the King to discuss a matter of grave importance,” Joshua explained.

  “I get dozens of people coming here every week who claim to have a quest the King must hear. Please tell me why…” the Master General started before the door to his right opened.

  “Alwin, are we ready to leave for the arena?” the King asked, stepping out of a grand office.

  “Your Highness, these men wish to speak with you about an urgent quest. I was just questioning the urgency of their quest. We are ready to leave for the tournament, unless you want to hear what these men have to say,” Master General Alwin replied to the King.

  “Who are these men and what is their quest, Master General?” the King asked.

  “I was in the middle of asking them, sire. I haven’t heard any of their story.”

  “Well, then let’s hear it and I shall determine what comes next,” the King said.

  Joshua very quickly explained everything that had happened to him and Michael in the past few weeks, making sure to give only the details necessary for the King so he could understand their urgency. When talking about the goblins attacking Erith, the King and the Master General both grew visibly concerned, sharing looks back and forth. The guards standing beside the King’s door blinked in concern, though they never reacted more than that.

  “This seems like a credible threat, don’t you agree, Master General?” the King responded.

  “It does, Highness. I just wonder why this is the first we are hearing of this. Do you have an idea of when this Shadow Knight might attack?” the Master General asked.

  “Honestly, we have no way of knowing when the attack will happen,” Joshua replied.

  “What do you need from us?” the King asked.

  “As Joshua mentioned before, the premonitions show us all being soldiers guarding the city. I know this may be unorthodox, but maybe we could join the guard to further the timeline of events. I don’t even know if that is how any of this works with the dreams,” Michael suggested.

  “I didn’t sign up for this journey the two of you dragged me on to join the army and guard a city,” Týr protested.

  “Destiny is often a weight and a series of tasks for which we do not want to partake. Please consider that,” the King responded, eyeing Týr. “If the premonition shows that you are soldiers wearing my livery, that may be the only solution for us to defeat this Shadow Knight. At least then it would be the entire army fighting at your side instead of a ragtag group of three fighters against such a powerful foe. I also assume this would be the best way to ensure you are all properly trained to use weapons.”

  “Your Highness, are you sure about this decision? We know so very little of these men. They have suddenly appeared claiming to have a quest of world destiny. There is no way for us to know that they aren’t agents of Madness here to topple the city’s progress toward rebuilding from the wars. We have come so far, and I would hate to see that progress thrown away on a hunch,” Master General Alwin protested.

  “Master General, please allow these men to join the army. I will give you until the end of the week to get them enrolled in the required training,” the King countered. “Now, if there is nothing else, there is a tournament that is waiting for my arrival.”

  “As you command, sire,” the Master General responded with his fist clapped to his chest as the King departed with the guards in tow.

  The Master General motioned for the group to follow him and they went into one of the rooms not far from where the King had exited. The room was a spacious office with shelves, a desk, and two chairs which sat before the desk. The General sat behind the desk and removed a large ledger from the shelf beside him and dipped his quill into a small vial of ink. In the ledger he recorded the names of his visitors.

  “If you truly wish to join the army, your training will begin tomorrow morning at the first bell after sunrise. We will meet in the courtyard here and I will start your training and evaluation process. After that, I will ensure that you get fitted for uniforms and settled into the barracks. The soldiers stay in the northwest quarter of the city, north of the market. Do you have any questions?” Alwin asked, sprinkling a very fine sand on the fresh ink to ensure it wouldn’t smear.

  “General, I have been told that your army employs Mages. Is there any way I can be included or evaluated for that unit?” Joshua asked.

  “It’s Master General, priest,” Alwin responded. “And yes, the army has a battalion of Battlemages. You are more than welcome to join their ranks if you qualify for such an undertaking. If there are no other questions, you are dismissed. I will see you bright and early tomorrow to start your training. I will have the Battlemages send a Captain
for your evaluation tomorrow, priest. I hope this is all to your satisfaction. The Kingdom of Drendil thanks you for your service.”

  The travelers left the castle, going down the same staircases they had gone up, and out the main hall. The formation of soldiers was no longer in the courtyard, having likely marched off somewhere or been sent on their patrols. After leaving the courtyard, the group found an inn near the stables, a couple blocks away, ate food and rested, as they waited for their training to start the next morning…

  Chapter Fourteen

  The next morning Master General Alwin walked into the courtyard early as he waited for the three newest recruits in his army. They weren’t late, he simply arrived early. He made it a point to be early to engagements he had to be present for. An added bonus for being in the courtyard was he could watch the officers who conducted their inspections and assignments for the day. As a General, especially as the Master General of the Drendil Army, he was rarely required or expected to interact with brigades of soldiers. A career soldier, Alwin had spent his life serving in the army. As a junior officer he had run divisions and platoons. There had not been a war in Drendil since the Second Mages’ War, and he was too young to have even been alive for that war. Life as a career soldier who had fought in no wars was difficult, but thankfully, no one in the army had fought in any wars, so there was no room for judgment from the rest of the army.

  It was rare for him to interact with a junior officer, as his role was more administrative as a leader. He was an overseer for the military, the highest-ranking officer in the Army. Only three men in the Kingdom held equal rank and they were the Master General of the Army, Supreme Warlock from the army’s Battlemage Legion, and Superior Admiral of the Navy. He really only had to deal with the Army’s cadre of Generals, and that was only when they needed something from him that they could not get themselves. And Generals were almost always able to get anything they wanted.