by A. J. Medina
“Do about what?”
“About your parents permission.”
Breaking out of the fog I was currently in, I thought about it. Would the king allow me to go even without their permission? Lucah didn’t think he would.
“Maybe I could send a letter with yours telling the king what happened. Surely he would make an exception for me. Wouldn’t he?”
“I’m not so sure. But if you want to send him a letter, we better do it now.”
After I had my fill of the grass, trees and the sunflowers, we returned to Lucah’s home.
“Lucah,” his father called stumbling in with a message. “Falcon came for you. It’s a letter from the castle.”
“What does it say?” Lucah asked.
“Here take it. It’s your message,” Tybus said, and then handed it to him.
“What does it say?” I asked, watching him intently as he read it to himself.
Lucah had sent his permission letter back to King Remi yesterday. I also sent a letter asking what I should do. I was hoping my answer was included with Lucah’s response.
“It says a carriage will be waiting for me at Caskars Bridge at dawn tomorrow, and it will take me directly to the castle.” I waited patiently. “It says to bring nothing, everything will be provided for.”
I couldn’t wait any longer. “What does it say about me?” I asked, eagerly awaiting his answer.
“Nothing. It doesn’t mention you.”
“What?” I ripped the message from his hands and read it out loud. He was right. I wasn’t mentioned at all.
Lucah’s family celebrated his final evening with them. Joselyn made a great feast consisting of baked pig, potatoes, carrots, broth, sweet bread and roasted squirrel brains.
Her sweet bread was fantastic, but I always had to be careful—too much and my stomach would ache for hours. Tybus told tales of Lucah’s childhood, including the times he would remove his clothing and run around, how did he put it, stark naked. Everyone was having a good time and all I could think about was what I should do.
“I’m going to go for a walk,” I whispered into Lucah’s ear.
“Want me to come with?”
“Nay, I need to think.”
I couldn’t believe I hadn’t received anything from the king. At the very least he could’ve turned me down instead of leaving me in limbo. If I couldn’t join the king’s army, then what would I do? Would Joselyn and Tybus let me stay with them? And for how long?
I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going and didn’t realize where I was until I lifted my head. A dark flood of ashes stood where my home used to be. Lucah’s family had helped me set the fire and make sure everything was incinerated. Tybus said the land was mine and I could rebuild if I chose to and that he would help. I thanked him and said I wasn’t going to rebuild at the moment since I was going away. That was of course when I thought I was still going away.
I decided to leave the stable intact. Biron had done a great job building it, pleased with himself saying that it could withstand the strongest of storms. And it had. Inside was Mata’s bridle and saddle. Whoever took her apparently didn’t need or want them. I missed her and I missed my family. I stared at the ground trying to figure things out when I heard a falcon’s cry. I lifted my head and saw a falcon circling overhead. It landed on the falcons perch just outside the stable and cried out. I untied the letter from its leg and read it.
Dearest Alora. I am sorry to hear what has happened to your family. Due to this unfortunate event, I realize they cannot give their permission. If you so choose, your position in my army will be waiting for you. There will be a carriage waiting at Caskars Bridge at dawn tomorrow. I have instructed the driver to wait for your arrival. If by some chance, you choose not to join my army, please return this falcon with your decision.
And it was signed by the king himself.
A smile ran across my face and I clutched the letter to my chest. While I was reading the letter, the falcon had taken off and it let out a cry overhead. I looked up at the sky and mouthed a thank you. The news was too exciting to wait. I ran towards Lucah’s house hard and fast, but I had to slow down. The shoes Joselyn lent me were slowing me down so I slowed even more and — hopping on one leg at a time — took them off.
Now barefoot, my stride improved. I was running so fast my feet barely grazed the ground. They only touched for a split second allowing the forest floor to be bearable underneath my soles. It felt like I was almost flying.
This time it was me who burst through the door. “My dear, what’s the matter,” Joselyn said after I had startled everyone. I couldn’t speak just yet. I needed to catch my breath so I held out the letter. Joselyn read it out loud and everyone except Lucah cheered. “Turns out we have two young ones to celebrate,” Tybus said.
“Lucah, what’s wrong?” I asked puzzled by his response to my good news.
“Nothing,” he answered, and then went to his room.
I followed him and shut the door behind us.
“Are you upset about something?”
“Nay. I think I ate too much sweet bread,” he answered, and then plopped down on his bed face down.
“Would you like me to rub your stomach? Mother always did that for me and it helps.”
“Nay. I’m going to bed. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Um... fine then. Good night.” I kissed him on the cheek and left him alone.
Chapter 7
The carriage was waiting for us and it was even smaller than the last one. It was a two seater and it was an open carriage, too. The driver had checked our names on a small piece of parchment before heading for the castle. The day was beautiful, the sun just coming up over the horizon.
Lucah’s family had wished us well and sent along some sweet bread for the journey, in case we got hungry. He had been silent most of the way and appeared to be choosing his words carefully and his lack of words even more so. We sat side by side facing the direction of travel and every now and again I would turn my head and sneak a peek at him. He barely seemed to notice.
The open carriage was a nice change. It allowed me to see all of the scenery without having to peek out of windows. The river flowed north, in the direction of the castle and the beautiful green grass begged to be walked upon. And the trees, standing tall with their green, leafed branches contrasting with their dark trunks, were relaxing to watch go by. Off in the distance I could hear falcons and song birds singing their songs, joyous of the day to come.
And then after traveling for almost half a day, I heard the low roar of the waterfall in the distance. It was faint since we were still quite a bit aways, but I could definitely make it out. We were almost there when I realized an open carriage didn’t seem like such a good idea. I wouldn’t be able to shut the curtain and imagine I was someplace else this time—I would have a full view of everything.
Up ahead, another carriage came into view and our driver didn’t seem to like the fact that it was there. He raised his arms high and then brought them down in a hard, swift motion—the reins let out a crack. The two white horses snorted and ramped up their pace.
We were gaining on them quickly and within moments we were on their tail. There was only one passenger in its open carriage. I recognized her immediately—it was Tessa. She turned to see what all the noise behind her was and when she noticed the two horses that were practically on top of her, she tried to reach out and pet them.
Our driver swung to the right and snapped his reigns again. Inch by inch we gained on Tessa’s carriage and seeing that it was me and Lucah, she smiled a smile so wide, I could see every tooth in her mouth.
I was surprised to find that I was actually waving at her. She answered mine with a two armed wave of her own. The carriages raced side by side, the roar of the falls reaching its crescendo. Our horses pulled into the lead, but not for long. Tessa’s driver cracked his whip and her carriage began to pull away. Tessa began cheering her driver on, yelling “Faster, fast
er” and not to be outdone I started rooting for mine. It went on like this until the road narrowed and we came upon the falls and the bridge that led to the castle city.
One driver had to yield, the question was which one. When the road narrowed, Tessa’s driver cracked his whip furiously and pulled ahead by a few inches. Intent on not killing us all, my driver pulled on his reigns, commanding his horses to slow. Of course that didn’t keep him from yelling obscenities at the other driver. Nothing like a little friendly competition to get the day started. Sore losers, well that’s another story.
We checked in at the gate and were allowed up the thin bridge leading to the castle. As we rode up the bridge, I was slowly reclined and found myself looking up towards the castle itself. I dared not look left or right. All there was to see on those sides was a deathly, steep drop. I closed my eyes and gripped Lucah’s hand. I was glad he didn’t protest. When the carriage hit a bump and I bounced in my seat I gripped his hand even tighter. Steeper and higher we climbed until the road leveled out and we came to a stop.
“End of the road,” the driver announced, and handed his parchment to a knight. Me and Lucah climbed down out of the carriage and Tessa was already there to greet us. She held me tight, so tight my air felt like it was being cut off. “I’m so happy to see you again,” she said with her head buried in the area just under my ribs.
“Um... me too,” I said. And I was.
She released her vise like grip, waved and said hello to Lucah while he walked ahead. “Still acting that way huh?” Tessa observed.
“Aye, but not really. We, um...”
“You what?” she asked, waiting for the news.
“Nothing.”
“You can’t cut off a sentence like that and then say nothing. Did you guys... you know?”
“He kissed me.”
“Dragon dung!”
“He did!” I answered, surprised that she didn’t believe me. Was I actually so heinous that no boy would want to kiss me?
“How was it?”
“It was pleasant. His lips were soft and gentle.”
“You hag! And you weren’t going to tell me? Is that why he’s walking up ahead? He doesn’t want me to know?”
“I’m not sure.”
A knight was waving us forward and asking us to follow him. We were led through the castle city’s entrance, past the stables, past the merchant square, past the pool of water that split the road in two directions and into the same courtyard where we auditioned for the king and the wizard.
The wizard paced back and forth on the stage with his hands clasped behind his back. The girl with the black hair was there, surrounded by two other girls. She appeared to be their leader. I counted how many of us there were and in total there were sixteen, everyone had arrived. The wizard raised both arms and waved us in closer.
“Come on,” Tessa said, grabbing my hand.
I tried to pull away from her, but it was no use. For someone so much smaller than me, she sure was strong. She finally came to a stop with us standing directly in front of the wizard. He threw me a smile and I felt my pale face, turn even paler. Why did Tessa need to always be at the front? I was definitely more comfortable at the back where no one could see me.
“Get into one single line. Stand shoulder to shoulder,” the wizard directed.
A boy to my right bumped me and when I turned to say hey, I couldn’t speak. It was Silas. He winked one of his violet eyes and then turned to face the wizard. I didn’t turn. Instead, I followed his black hair down to where it stopped on his neck. His dirty, white shirt meant he was either poor or didn’t wash it frequently. Or maybe he was a farmer like me? The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, revealing his defined forearms, and the hand that stood at the end beckoned me. I wanted to reach out and slide mine into his and I almost did except that Tessa had noticed. A gentle nudge to my abdomen brought me back to reality.
“What about Lucah?” she whispered.
“Um… who?” I let slip.
Tessa gasped, her eyes and mouth opened wide. “You hag...!”
“I mean... Lucah. Right.” I decided right there and then that Silas would have to be just a fantasy. I was with Lucah... wasn’t I? Ugh....
Lucah once mentioned that I could get killed as a knight, now I wondered if the whole boy-girl thing would kill me instead.
When everyone was lined up single file in front of the stage, the wizard explained. “You are now all knights in training. You are being trained to become knights of the king’s guard, but as far as the people are concerned, you’re knights. First lesson. When the king enters, you do not kneel. In a situation such as this you will come to attention. Do you understand?”
“Aye!” we yelled.
“When you are in the king’s personal guard,” he continued, “meaning you are with the king, escorting him somewhere, that won’t be the case. Your duty is to protect the king and therefore you do not snap to attention. You’ll surveil the area and watch everyone, keeping a close eye and making sure the king is safe at all times.”
Just then, the king emerged and entered the courtyard. We all snapped to attention and stood as tall and still as trees. He walked onto the stage followed by the ten knights that made up his personal guard, the guard we were being groomed for. They lined up behind him and stood at attention.
He began on the far end and scanned each and every one of us. I could’ve imagined it, but I swear he paused longer on me than on anyone else. After the king made eye contact with us all, he stood in the center of the stage and began his speech.
“Today will be a free day, my knights in training. You will enjoy your midday meal in the knight’s dining hall and then be shown to your living chambers. The females will have two chamber maidens and the males will have three squires to help and assist you.
“Tomorrow will be your official first day of training. Before we continue, I will need each of you to pledge your allegiance to me. I want you all to understand that this oath is taken with the utmost of seriousness. I will say the oath and ask each time if you swear. I want you all to answer, ‘I swear.’ If you don’t answer ‘I swear’ to each question or if you don’t wish to swear to each statement, then you are free to go and I will give this great honor to someone else. Do you understand?”
“Aye!” we all answered.
“Excellent,” the king said. “Do you swear allegiance to me and the kingdom?” He waved his hands, signaling us to respond.
“I swear!”
“Do you swear to show courage in the face of your worst fears?”
“I swear!”
“Do you swear to be honorable, to stay true to your word and to tell the truth no matter the cost?”
“I swear!”
“Do you swear to strive for excellence? Becoming the best at whatever you do.”
“I swear!”
“Do you swear to follow orders, to fight for your king, to defend the weak and to protect the kingdom and its citizens?”
“I swear!”
“Do you swear to share skills amongst each other? Helping those that need it.”
“I swear!”
“Do you swear to defend your king and queen unto death?”
“I swear!”
“And do you swear to always be at the ready?”
“I swear!”
“Then by taking this oath and pledging such, you are all now knights in training. From here on out, you will be held to the highest standards. Much is expected of you all.” The king turned and looked at his guard behind him. “Ser Hector...”
Ser Hector stepped forward. “Aye, my lord?”
“Please escort our new knights to the dining hall for their midday meal.”
“Aye, my lord,” he said, and then addressed us. “Stay single file and follow me to the dining hall.”
We weren’t the only ones in the dining hall this time. There were more tables and other knights seated in their armor, eating in silence. We sat in the order in which
we entered and were fed a smaller meal than last time. It was a simple dish, lamb stew. Since the king said it would be a free day, I didn’t see any harm in eating my fill. No one spoke, the only sounds were the smacking of lips from the stew and the clinking of mugs as they hit the table.
After our plates had been removed by the servants, we sat and waited as we were told. Three girls walked into the hall. I immediately recognized the first one as Princess Evelyn. Whenever the day of her birth was upon us, the king and queen would send out announcements with her image painted on them.
She wore a gown the color of roses, with a black rope tied around her waist. Her hair was dyed a bright blue color. She takes after her mother, I’ve heard, in that she likes to change the color of her hair often. It’s easy for them because their natural hair color is a shade just shy of white.
The other two girls were dressed in identical white gowns that, like the princess, hugged their bodies from their chest to their waists and then flowed freely down to their ankles. Their shoes were brown and slipped onto their feet and were held in place with a single strap across the top. They looked very comfortable. I wished I owned a pair.
Behind them were three squires dressed in brown pants with matching tunics. They waited at the head of the table looking at everyone’s place settings. Since all of the food and plates were gone, the princess waved her hand. One of the squires spoke. “Sers, we are here to take you to your chambers. If you are all done with your meals, please follow us.” The dining hall buzzed as the boys stood and left with them.
When they were gone, the princess spoke. “My ladies, we are here to take you to your chambers. I am Princess Evelyn and these are your chamber maidens. If you are all finished, please follow me.”
Chapter 8
The princess led us out of the dining hall, out through the maze that is the guard’s wing and up a winding staircase. We exited on the second level and walked across the outdoor passage to another set of stairs. Our chamber was high in the turret, only one more flight would have taken us to the outside air. I wasn’t happy about that. At the top of the next landing, the princess pushed open the wooden door and led us in.