The Sage Knight

by Robert Ryan

  Ferla seemed like a queen as she spoke, and her words were quiet but hard as cold steel.

  “I am the seventh knight, and with my blade I shall cleanse Faladir of evil. I am justice, and I shall slay you and your brother knights. Nor even will the king be spared. He will topple into ruin and fire, and the void will have no mercy on his soul.”

  Lindercroft’s eyes widened in sudden surprise, and then his glance shifted toward his sword that lay on the floor. Even as he moved, so too did Ferla. With great speed she drove the blade forward, striking into his abdomen. She leaned all her bodyweight into the blow, and the sword of the long-dead Letharn queen, smithied at the birth of the Letharn empire and infused with all their skill and magic, burst through the cunningly-wrought links of his chainmail coat and slid up behind his ribs to reach and destroy Lindercroft’s heart.

  The knight staggered back, and Ferla pulled her blade free. Lindercroft made to speak, but blood frothed at his lips and he collapsed before her, first to his knees and then to the floor.

  “I’m sorry, Osahka,” he muttered, and then he died.

  Faran did not know if he called on Aranloth with his dying breath, or the Morleth Stone. But he was dead, and Ferla lived. Her words had stunned him, but they had the ring of truth to them. She was the seventh knight, and that felt right to him.

  Pride surged through him. And her eyes met his own, and there was such determination in them that nearly he stepped back.

  Kubodin began to laugh, softly at first, and then louder as Asana helped him to his feet.

  “A good fight, hey?” he asked.

  So it was, too. Somehow, they had all survived, though there were wounds among them that would take weeks to heal. It would take a long time to get used to Ferla as the seventh knight, as well.

  Epilogue

  Several days after the battle, the defenders were still healing. But they had cleaned the halls of debris and dead. Lindercroft’s soldiers they had buried and covered with stones on the northern slope of the mountain, facing toward Faladir. Lindercroft was buried nearby on the plateau, his sword marking his grave.

  No one spoke over his resting place, except Kareste. Once, he had been a noble man, she had said, and for that she remembered him.

  Faran and Ferla wandered in the gardens afterward, drawing in the beauty at the top of the mountain as a medicine for the horrors they had recently seen. Kubodin rested, laying down on the grass and idly fingering his axe. But Asana and Kareste stood near the entrance to Danath Elbar, talking quietly.

  “What happened to the elù-draks?” Asana asked.

  Kareste glanced skyward, but there was no sign of them. They had not been seen since the battle.

  “It might be that Lindercroft sent them away once we had been located. Or maybe at his death they returned to the king, seeking new instructions. But for now, they are gone.”

  They watched Ferla reach out and draw a flower blossom toward her to smell its scent, Faran close by her side.

  “She fought well,” Asana observed.

  “Very well. And she has not reached her peak yet.”

  Asana knew that was true. She was the most gifted student he had ever had, and the confidence gained from defeating a Kingshield Knight would spur her to train even harder.

  “When do you think she realized she was the seventh knight?” he asked.

  “I think she has known since close to the beginning. Aranloth always suspected it was her rather than Faran. Certainly, it was confirmed in the Tombs of the Letharn.”

  “And Faran? Do you think he knows his destiny yet?”

  Kareste looked at him shrewdly. “Just how much of the future do your visions show you?”

  “Enough,” he answered.

  She was silent a while. “Aranloth had a foretelling concerning him,” she said at length. “It may or may not come to pass. But if it does, it will be a greater surprise to him than Ferla’s destiny was to her.”

  Thus ends The Sage Knight. The Kingshield series continues in book four, The Sworn Knight, where Ferla begins her quest to overcome the evil in Faladir and Faran seeks his own fate, and what secrets it might hold…

  THE SWORN KNIGHT

  BOOK FOUR OF THE KINGSHIELD SERIES

  COMING SOON

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  Dedication

  There’s a growing movement in fantasy literature. Its name is noblebright, and it’s the opposite of grimdark.

  Noblebright celebrates the virtues of heroism. It’s an old-fashioned thing, as old as the first story ever told around a smoky campfire beneath ancient stars. It’s storytelling that highlights courage and loyalty and hope for the spirit of humanity. It recognizes the dark, the dark in us all, and the dark in the villains of its stories. It recognizes death, and treachery and betrayal. But it dwells on none of these things.

  I dedicate this book, such as it is, to that which is noblebright. And I thank the authors before me who held the torch high so that I could see the path: J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Terry Brooks, David Eddings, Susan Cooper, Roger Taylor and many others. I salute you.

  And, for a time, I too shall hold the torch high.

  Appendix: Encyclopedic Glossary

  Note: the glossary of each book in this series is individualized for that book alone. Additionally, there is often historical material provided in its entries for people, artifacts and events that are not included in the main text.

  Many races dwell in Alithoras. All have their own language, and though sometimes related to one another the changes sparked by migration, isolation and various influences often render these tongues unintelligible to each other.

  The ascendancy of Halathrin culture, combined with their widespread efforts to secure and maintain allies against elug incursions, has made their language the primary means of communication between diverse peoples.

  This glossary contains a range of names and terms. Many are of Halathrin origin, and their meaning is provided. The remainder derive from native tongues and are obscure, so meanings are only given intermittently.

  Often, names of Camar and Halathrin elements are combined. This is especially so for the aristocracy. Few other tribes had such long-term friendship with the immortal Halathrin as the Camar, and though in this relationship they lost some of their natural culture, they gained nobility and knowledge in return.

  List of abbreviations:

  Cam. Camar

  Comb. Combined

  Cor. Corrupted form

  Chg: Cheng

  Hal. Halathrin

  Leth. Letharn

  Prn. Pronounced

  Alithoras: Hal. “Silver land.” The Halathrin name for the continent they settled after leaving their own homeland. Refers to the extensive river and lake systems they found and their wonder at the beauty of the land.

  Angle (the): An area of land that formed the heart of the ancient Letharn empire. It begins at their tombs, is hemmed in by two rivers, and rises to a great hill where their capital city was constructed. The ruins of that city remain. Despite the passage of countless years, the streets remain mostly free of growth and the accumulation of dirt that buries other abandoned cities over time. Legend claims that at certain nights of the year the dead Letharn, bound to Alithoras in the tombs, walk in the flesh down the streets they once lived in and the tramping of millions of feet clears the city of dirt and vegetation.

  Aranloth: Hal. “Noble might.” A lòhren of ancient heritage. Travels Alithoras under different names and guises.

  Asana: Chg. “Gift of light.” Rumored to be the greatest sword master in the history of the Cheng people. His father was a Duthenor tribesman.

  Balan: Cam. “White sand – a beach.” A member o
f the Hundred.

  Boraleas: Cam. “The glint of green in sunlit seawater.” A great grandson of the first king of Faladir. Rumored to have been a gambler and to have emptied the city’s coffers. Died as a young man one night in a drunken duel with a stranger.

  Bouncing Stone (the): An ancient inn built at the same time as the Tower of the Stone. It is said a smithy occupied the land previously, and here of old attempts were made to destroy the Morleth Stone.

  Brand: Duth. A heroic figure in Alithoras. Both warrior and lòhren. Stories of his exploits have spread over the land, and they kindle hope wherever they are heard.

  Calm in the Storm: The state of mind a true warrior seeks in battle. Neither angry nor scared, neither hopeful nor worried. When emotion is banished from the mind, the body is free to express the skill acquired through long years of training.

  Camar: Cam. A race of interrelated tribes that migrated in two main stages. The first brought them to the vicinity of Halathar, homeland of the immortal Halathrin; in the second, they separated and established cities along a broad stretch of eastern Alithoras. Faladir is one such city.

  Caludreth: Cam. “Lord of the waves.” A poetic term in Camar literature for a ship.

  Cardoroth: Cor. Hal. Comb. Cam. A Camar city, often called Red Cardoroth. Some say this alludes to the red granite commonly used in the construction of its buildings, others that it refers to a prophecy of destruction. If so, Brand appears to have thwarted it.

  Careth Nien: Hal. “Great river.” The largest river in Alithoras.

  Cheng: Chg. “Warrior.” The overall name of the various related tribes that dwell in the northwest of Alithoras. It was a word for warrior in the dialect of a tribe that rose to supremacy and set an emperor above all the various clans to unite them.

  Cheng Fah: Chg. “Warrior arts.” Not just warrior arts, but also battle strategy, tactics, medicine, metallurgy and philosophy.

  Cheng-mah: Chg. “Warriors of perfection.” The greatest warriors of any generation. Masters of battlefield arts and philosophy. A sage who is a warrior and a warrior who is a sage.

  Danath Elbar: Hal. “Underground mansion.” Halls delved by the Halathrin into the stone of Nuril Faranar, the mountain used at times as a command post during the Shadowed Wars.

  Dhrokuhl: Hal. “Rock biter.” A creature of the shadow. Not common even during the elù-haraken, but said to lair in the southern mountain ranges of Alithoras amid rubble and fissures from whence it would launch sudden and unexpected attacks against unwary travelers.

  Discord: The name of Kubodin’s axe. It has two blades. One named Chaos and the other Spite.

  Dromdruin: Cam. “Valley of the ancient woods.” One of many valleys in the realm of Faladir. Home of Faran, and birthplace throughout the history of the realm of many Kingshield Knights.

  Druilgar: Hal. “Spear star – a comet.” King of Faladir, and First Knight of the Kingshield Knights. Descendent of King Conduil.

  Drummald Village: Cam. “Battle mound.” A village of outlaws and fugitives formed amid the ancient battlegrounds of the elù-haraken.

  Duthenor: Duth. “The people.” A tribe of people farther to the west of Camar lands. Related to the Camar, and sharing many common legends and experiences. But different also.

  Durnwah: A word of power. It means shield.

  Elves: See Halathrin.

  Elù-drak: Hal. “Shadow wings.” A creature of the dark. Deadly, and used by sorcerers to gather information and assassinate chosen victims. The female of the species is the most dangerous, having the power to inspire terror and bend victims to her will. Few can resist. Of old, even great warriors succumbed and willingly let the creature take their life. One of the more terrible creatures of the Old World.

  Elugs: Hal. “That which creeps in shadows.” A cruel and superstitious race of goblins that mostly inhabit the southern lands of Alithoras. Also found in the far north.

  Elùgai: Hal. Prn. Eloo-guy. “Shadowed force.” The sorcery of an elùgroth.

  Elù-haraken: Hal. “Shadowed wars.” Long ago battles in a time that is become myth to the scattered Camar tribes.

  Faladir: Cam. “Fortress of Light.” A Camar city founded out of the ruinous days of the elù-haraken.

  Faran: Cam. “Spear of the night – a star.” A name of good luck. Related to the name Dardenath, though of a later layer of linguistic change. A young hunter from Dromdruin valley. His grandfather was a Kingshield Knight, though not the first of their ancestors to be so.

  Ferla: Cam. “Unforeseen bounty.” A young hunter from Dromdruin valley.

  First Knight: The designated leader of the Kingshield Knights.

  Halath: Hal. Etymology unknown. A lord of the Halathrin who led his people into Alithoras.

  Halathar: Hal. “Dwelling place of the people of Halath.” The forest realm of the Halathrin.

  Halathrin: Hal. “People of Halath.” A race of elves named after an honored lord who led an exodus of his people to the land of Alithoras in pursuit of justice, having sworn to defeat a great evil. They are human, though of fairer form, greater skill and higher culture. They possess a unity of body, mind and spirit that enables insight and endurance beyond the native races of Alithoras. Said to be immortal, but killed in great numbers during their conflicts in ancient times with the evil they sought to destroy. Those conflicts are collectively known as the Shadowed Wars.

  Hundred (the): A resistance group established in Faladir to prepare the way for the coming of the seventh knight.

  Immortals: See Halathrin.

  Kareste: Hal. “Ice unlocking – the spring thaw.” A lòhren of mysterious origin. Friend to Aranloth, but usually more active farther north in Alithoras than Faladir.

  Kingshield Knights: An order of knights founded by King Conduil. Their sacred task is to guard the indestructible Morleth Stone from theft and use by the evil forces of the world. They are more than great warriors, being trained in philosophy and the arts also. In addition to their prime function as guards, they travel the land at whiles dispensing justice and offering of their wisdom and council.

  Kubodin: Chg. Etymology unknown. A wild hillman from the lands of the Cheng. Simple appearing, but far more than he seems. Asana’s manservant.

  Letharn: Hal. “Stone raisers. Builders.” A race of people that in antiquity conquered most of Alithoras. Now, only faint traces of their civilization endure.

  Lethrin: Hal. “Stone people.” Also called trolls. Creatures of the Shadow. Renowned for their size and strength.

  Lindercroft: Cam. “Rising mountain crashes – a wave rolling into the seashore.” A Kingshield Knight. Youngest of the order.

  Lòhren: Hal. Prn. Ler-ren. “Knowledge giver – a counselor.” Other terms used by various nations include wizard, druid and sage.

  Lòhren-fire: A defensive manifestation of lòhrengai. The color of the flame varies according to the skill and temperament of the lòhren.

  Magic: Mystic power. See lòhrengai and elùgai.

  Menendil: Hal. “Sign of hope.” Sometimes called Mender. His is an old family, and he can trace his lineage back to the days before the founding of Faladir to a liegeman of the then chieftain. Unusually, his name is not of Camar origin. Family history records that his forefather was a seer, and was greatly esteemed by his lord.

  Morleth Stone: Hal. “Round stone.” The name signifies that such a stone is not natural. It is formed by elùgai for sorcerous purposes. The stone is strengthened by arcane power to act as a receptacle of enormous force. Little is known of their making and uses except that they are rare and that elùgroths perish during their construction. The stone guarded by the Kingshield Knights in Faladir is said to be the most powerful of all that were created. And to be sentient.

  Nadrak: Etymology obscure, but not of Camar origin. A wool merchant in Faladir who supports the king.

  Norgril: Cam. “Leaping fish.” A member of the Hundred.

  Norla: Cam. “Fish hunter – fisherman.” Wife of Menendil.

 
Nuril Faranar: Hal. “Lonely watchman.” A single mountain rising above the flat lands that border Halathar. Used as a vantage point and command post for several great battles during the elù-haraken. Currently under the guardianship of Asana. For this, Aranloth interceded on his behalf.

  Osahka: Leth. “The guide – specifically a spiritual or moral guide.” A title of enormous reverence and respect. Applied to Aranloth for his role as spiritual leader of the Kingshield Knights.

  Path of Nature: A philosophy among the Cheng. A follower seeks to be one with the world, understanding the cycles of the universe and trying not to impose human will on the uncontrollable. This can only lead to unhappiness.

  Savanest: Cam. “Subtle skill.” A Kingshield Knight. All the knights think of each other as brothers. But Savanest and Sofanil are also brothers by blood.

  Shadow Fliers: See elù-drak.

  Shadowed Wars: See elù-haraken.

  Sofanil: Cam. “Sharp of wits.” A Kingshield Knight. All the knights think of each other as brothers. But Sofanil and Savanest are also brothers by blood.

  Sorcerer: See elùgroth.

  Sorcery: See elùgai.

  Tower of the Stone: The tower King Conduil caused to be built to serve as the guarding structure of the Morleth Stone. Some claim his sarcophagus rests upon its pinnacle, as it was the custom of some ancient Camar royalty to be interred on a high place where the lights of the sun, moon and stars still lit their long sleep.

  Way of the Sword: The martial aspect of the training of a Kingshield Knight.

  Were-beast: A creature of the shadow. Said to be able to shapeshift from animal to human form.

  Wizard: See lòhren.

  About the author

  I’m a man born in the wrong era. My heart yearns for faraway places and even further afield times. Tolkien had me at the beginning of The Hobbit when he said, “. . . one morning long ago in the quiet of the world . . .”