"Then what is it?" the duke asked.
"I think that he is an emissary from Prester John, the Christian king of that most distant and fabulous empire."
Naturally, I was astounded by this. I'm not sure that I kept my jaw from sagging. Prester John!
"Remarkable," the duke said.
"Think about it, my lord. We have here a deadly knight who is distressed by the sight of blood. A master of the technic arts who didn't know how a smith makes iron. A man who treats warriors and children just the same. Where else could he have come from but the most civilized empire in the world?"
"Sir Stefan would say that he came from the Devil," the duke noted.
"There has been bad blood between them, my lord. I have explained"
"So you have. But why would Prester John send a man to us?"
"Perhaps because of the Mongols," Lambert said. "It is said that they have conquered half the world. Perhaps they press him and he is in need of aid."
"Then why didn't he send an emissary instead of an engineer?"
"Perhaps he did, my lord. Whatever Conrad's instructions were, well, I've explained the gist of his oath."
"So you have. Well, Sir Conrad. It grows late. We are hunting tomorrow. Will you join us?"
"I would be honored, my lord." I don't like blood sports, but hunting at least has the virtue of putting meat on the table. Anyway, when your boss's boss invites you, you go.
The duke and Lambert drifted away.
We were to hunt for wild boar and bison, the misnamed buffalo of my American friends. There were, of course, wild bison in thirteenth century Poland. They still exist in modern times on carefully tended game preserves.
I sent word to the Krakowski brothers to go home and take Piotr Kulczynski with them.
The next morning at dawn, I was on horseback with armor and spear, along with two dozen other knights. The duke sent me back to get my shield, since this was also part of the paraphernalia required.
As we rode out, young Henryk dropped back from the front column and rode at my side. "A remarkable coat of arms, Sir Conrad."
"Indeed, my lord?"
"A white eagle on a red field. That is very similar to the insignia of the dukes of Poland."
"Consider it a symbol of Poland, my lord."
"And the eagle wears a crown. Do you claim to be a king?"
"No, my lord. I'm saying that Poland needs a king."
"Hmm, 'Poland is not yet dead."' He read my motto. "Are you saying that Poland is dying?"
"It's lying in a dozen pieces, my lord. That's a fair start. "
"You know that my father and I are working to unite those pieces."
"I know, my lord. When you weld them back together, I will change my motto."
He laughed. "Done, Sir Conrad! In ten years I'll watch you paint out that motto yourself."
"Gladly, my lord. But do it in nine."
We stopped for an early dinner and then spread out at twohundred-yard intervals to sweep through the forest, driving the animals toward the mountains. Lambert was on the far right, and my station was next to him, with Sir Vladimir to my left. They had deliberately put me between two experienced hunters, which was fine by me.
After a few hours I found myself facing a large bull bison a hundred yards away. Anna immediately broke into a gallop. Anna was trained to pass to the right of a charging knight so that one's spear went over the horse's neck at the knight to the left, but it was easier to use a spear on the right if one had to strike downward. I signaled her to pass on the left. The bison charged at us, not to slightly miss, as a knight would, but directly at us, to ram!
I was bracing for a crash when Anna abruptly sidestepped at the last instant. Surprised, I managed to get a slashing cut into the animal's shoulder. It was bleeding, but it was not mortally wounded.
The bison had had enough and took off at a dead run, angling in front of Lambert. Anna, of course, raced behind it.
"After it, Sir Conrad!" Lambert shouted, and blew a signal on his horn, which I didn't understand. I'd been given a hunting horn, but I didn't know how to use it.
Anna was faster than the wounded bison, but he was built lower to the ground than we were, and he knew it; he charged through the thickets and under low branches. We lost sight of him.
I found tracks along a game trail and followed them for half an hour. By now we were into mountainous country and the trail seemed to lead between two cliffs, about two hundred yards apart, into a valley beyond. The valley contained about a square kilometer of flat land and was devoid of bison, wounded or otherwise. We worked our way up the sloping walls toward the bald mountains above, but it was soon obvious that I had lost the animal.
I was tired, and Anna probably needed rest, although she didn't show it. I dismounted, took a long drink of water from my canteen, and gave the rest to her. I sat down and fell another yard into a hole.
It was not actually a hole but a cave, and the floor sloped downward at a forty-five-degree angle. I was sliding on my back, headfirst into the darkness. My shoulder hit an obstruction. I yelled and flipped over and skidded on my armored belly, feet first, for about twenty yards and then hit water. Ile cave was narrow, only about a yard across, and had I still been going headfirst, I might have ended my story right here, by drowning.
As it was, I was able to wedge myself between the walls and work myself out before I ran out of air. Climbing up in slippery armor was a miserable job, but I managed it. I looked around. It was not a natural cave at all but an abandoned mine'
When I finally got out to greet my anxious horse, I threw myself on the ground, exhausted.
Shortly, I heard a horn blowing from the entrance of the valley. I got up, managed to get a squeak out of the horn slung on Anna's saddle, and then sat down again, carefully avoiding the hole.
Count Lambert rode up. "Sir Conrad, what are you doing up here?"
"Trying my hand at drowning, my lord."
"Drowning on a mountainside with no water in sight? By God, you are all wet! Another of your arcane arts?"
"No, my lord. I simply fell down a mine shaft."
"Ali, yes! I remember that shaft. It was dug in my grandfather's time. They used to dig coal out of it and burned limestone from that outcropping to make mortar."
"The coal seam ran out?"
"No, there's plenty of coal down there. But when you have two men mining and thirty more passing water buckets, there's not much profit in it. That mine is full of water."
"I noticed, my lord."
"Well, we got your bison two miles to the east. You followed a day-old trail up here. I gather that you don't know much about hunting."
"No, my lord. I've never hunted before in my life."
"There are a lot of things that you don't know much about. Since we're alone, it's time we discussed them. I'm talking about Krystyana."
"What about her?"
"Understand that playing a joke on my sister-in-law is one thing. Encouraging a peasant girl to take on the airs of the nobility is quite another. Aside from the offense this gives my other vassals-yes, and my liege lord! Do you realize that Henryk asked me why I had a noblewoman working like a servant? — aside from that, have you thought about what's to become of her? Is she going to be content to settle down as a peasant's wife?"
"No, my lord. She wouldn't be."
"Do you plan to marry her yourself?"
"No, my lord."
"Then why have you encouraged her to rise so far above her station?"
"Well, she's a good girl, an intelligent girl who wanted to better herself, and I didn't think-"
"That's just it! You didn't think! What's more, it's spreading. Three or four of the others are starting to imitate her. You started this, Sir Conrad. What do you plan to do about it?"
"I don't know, my lord." He was right, of course. I'd set the poor kid up for a nasty fall. I'm good with technical stuff, but I am not a wizard when it comes to people problems. Best to change the subject. "You kno
w, if there is still coal in this mine, I could build pumps to empty the water. We could make mortar here again."
"Ah! I see where you are leading. That would take you out of Okoitz, and you could take the girls with you. Well, why not? You've given my workmen projects that will take a year or two to complete, and it's time you had your own lands, anyway. What if I gave you this valley and the land for a mile around it?"
"A mile, my lord?" God! He was giving me some eighteen square kilometers of land!
"You are right, of course. This soil is rocky and poor. You'll need more. The top of that mountain is the boundary of my brother's land. We'll make that your southern boundary. We'll extend you to Sir Miesko's land on the east and to Baron Jaraslav's on the north and west. That will give you lands about six miles across. You should be able to eke out a decent living on it, in sheep if nothing else. In return, let's see. I'll want you to come to Okoitz for two days a month to oversee your improvements there. And if you get this mine working, I'll want a hundred mule loads of mortar a year. Agreed?"
"Yes, my lord. You are most generous!"
"Good, then it's settled. Leave tomorrow and take the girls with you. Now let's return to the hunting party."
"Will the duke approve your grant?"
"That is a very good question., I don't know."
I had taken first blood on the expedition, which was apparently some sort of honor even though Sir Vladimir had actually killed the bison. All told, the knights took four bison and six wild pigs.
The meal that night was braised pork-sort of a shish kebob-and bison stew.
Because of the first-blood thing, I was seated at the high table between Lambert and the duke. I was the only mere knight up there. All the rest were at least barons. Baron Jaraslav sat to the duke's left.
The high table was just that. It was a third of a yard higher than the rest of the collapsible trestle tables in the hall. We had a correspondingly higher bench to sit on.
Krystyana and company did the serving. Once the meal was well under way, Lambert announced that he was minded to grant me a fief but that it required the duke's consent to be binding. While Lambert spoke, Sir Stefan was in the crowd, talking angrily to the knights at either side. Apparently, he had again found a substitute for guard duty. Then Baron Jaraslav began muttering in the duke's ear.
Lambert outlined the proposed boundaries of the fief. As he finished, Stefan struck his stein on the table so hard that it shattered, spraying beer over a dozen knights.
"You'd grant that black warlock lands adjoining ours? Damn you!" he shouted.
The room was suddenly totally quiet.
Lambert turned and struck Stefan with an icy stare. I'd seen many facets to Lambert's personality, but never before that of a cold, deadly killer. "You would raise your voice to your father's liege lord?" Lambert asked in the silence. There were swords in his voice.
"I–I spoke rashly, my lord."
"Yes, you did."
"I… apologize, my lord." Stefan knew he was in trouble. He came from his bench and walked stiffly to the front of Lambert's table. He went to his knees and made a full Slavic bow, with forehead touching the rushes on the floor. "I regret my words and beg forgiveness, my lord."
"Sir Stefan, this is the second time your temper has offended me. A true knight knows his place and his duty at all times. He does not give way to fits of temper. You need some cooling down. Perhaps some additional meditation in the evening air will help. I extend your tour of guard duty by an additional three months, from now until Michaelmas. On the night shift!"
"Go now and stand your post."
Sir Stefan rose stiffly. "Yes, my lord." He left without a word. The room was silent after he left.
"Well," the duke said after a bit. "Returning to the matter of my consent of this grant, I must think on it. The thing is perhaps being pushed too quickly, but you will have my answer before morning. For now, Lambert, can you provide music?"
The peasant band had been waiting in the kitchen and was soon performing. The music didn't help me a bit. I've never been much good at waiting.
I couldn't help overhearing Baron Jaraslav's advice and comments to the duke.
"To allow evil into our own ranks… foreigners taking the lands of our fathers… worse than the Duke of Mazovia inviting in the Knights of the Cross…" The duke's replies were inaudible, but my stomach tightened and I wasn't able to eat much. I drank more than I should have, but I stayed on beer so as not to get too drunk,
When the meal ended and the tables were being taken down, Baron Jaraslav and the duke went to the duke's chambers.
"I think it doesn't look good," Lambert said to me. "Perchance I erred in punishing Sir Stefan, but, damn, a lord has to maintain discipline."
"I appreciate your aid, my lord. If this doesn't work out, perhaps we'll think of something else."
"I've thought on simply having you develop that mine on my own lands, just as you are building the mills. We could work out some informal arrangement. But it would border on my deliberately circumventing the wishes of my liege lord."
The knights who had been on guard duty at Okoitz had learned the waltz and polka and were demonstrating them, with the ladies' help, to our guests. They called me to join them, but I was too tight. It almost hurt to smile. During a lull in the music a page summoned me to the duke's chambers.
With a profoundly acid stomach and no Alka-Seltzer due for seven hundred years, I followed him up the steps.
On entering, I bowed low.
"Sit down, boy. I have things to ask you. First, I want to know more about this guise. Whom did you make this vow to and where can I find him?"
"He is Father Ignacy Sierpinski, at the Franciscan monastery in Cracow, my lord."
"I will talk to this Father Ignacy. My second question is, Why do you want this land? From what I've heard, you know as little of farming as you do of hunting."
"I want the land so I can build an industrial base."
"A what?"
"Hear me out, my lord. You have asked me why I wasn't building weapons. I intend to build them. I can make armor that no arrow can possibly penetrate. I can make swords as good as the one I carry. Have you seen what it can do?"
"I've heard stories. Go on."
"I can build weapons that roar like thunder, strike like lightning, and kill your enemies half a mile away."
"And I intend to make these arms and armor by the thousands. By the hundreds of thousands if I can."
"A hundred thousand suits of armor? Why, I doubt if there are fifty thousand knights in all of Poland."
"Not the knights, my lord, the peasants."
"And just how do you suppose that a peasant could afford armor?"
"Obviously they can't, my lord. The arms will have to be supplied to them."
"Do you expect me to pay for this?"
"Of course not, my lord. I will have to do that myself."
"I know that you are wealthy, Sir Conrad. But even your wealth could not equip a hundred men, much less a hundred thousand."
"I said I would make the weapons, not buy them. The money I have will get me started. After that, I will have to come up with salable products to meet expenses. Mortar and bricks, certainly. Perhaps pottery. Cookware, pots and pans. Maybe even glass. At this point I am not sure of specifics, but I know it can be done."
"Very well. If we assume that you really can build such arms and that the peasants will wear them, it is still useless. A mob of peasants, no matter how armed, is still a mob. Fighting men could cut them up regardless of weapons. Believe me. I've seen it too many times."
"Training is necessary, of course. But techniques exist that can turn a bunch of farmers into a fighting unit in four months' time. I've been through it myself, my lord."
"Indeed. What does all this have to do with my original question? Why do you want that land?"
"I need to have someplace to do these things. I can't do it in the cities. The guilds would never permit me the innova
tions that I will have to introduce."
"You did well enough with the guilds of Cieszyn. You abolished one and have another louting to you."
"My lord, that business with the whoremasters guild was simply stupidity on their part. I never wanted anything to do with them. As to the bell casters, they were only three brothers who were starving to death. I wouldn't have that kind of luck in Cracow."
"Why not?"
"I can't do it here. These people are primarily farmers. I need fulltime craftsmen."
"I see. You are dismissed, Sir Conrad."
Shaking slightly, I went back down to the party and drained two mugs of beer.
Shortly, I saw Lambert being escorted to the duke's chambers. A thorough man, the duke.
The party was breaking up. It must have been approaching midnight, because I saw Sir Vladimir stumble out to relieve Sir Stefan. He hadn't been at the feast, and from the looks of him he had slept in his armor.
The duke came down and looked at me. "There is more to gain than to lose. I'll be watching you, boy, but you can have it."
I came close to fainting.
Privately and somewhat curtly, the count informed five adolescent girls that they were leaving with me, the ones he thought were acting above their station in life. That night Krystyana was happy and excited about the coming adventure. She didn't realize that she was being thrown out.
I didn't regret my actions. I intended to raise a million bright kids "above their stations," and damn these Dark Age rules!
Yet personally, I was somewhat sad. I had been happy at Okoitz, but my job there was done. Good things must end, and perhaps the future would not be so bad.
For a penniless immigrant who had arrived only six months before, I had done fairly well. We now had the start of a decent school system, the beginnings of a textile industry, and the glimmerings of an industrial base.
If the seeds I'd brought worked out, we had the makings of an agricultural revolution.
We had steel, a fairly efficient brass works, and a profitable if embarrassing inn.
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