ominously in the sunlight. 'Try me,' he said in a tone
dreadful enough to make the very rocks shrink.
The young man's eyes bulged in horror, and he
scrambled back into his saddle with his satin-dressed
sycophants rushing along behind him.
'Was that more or less what you had in mind, My
Lord!' Kurik asked the noble.
"It was perfect, Sir Knight. I've wanted to do that
myself for years.' Then he sighed. 'Mine was an arranged
marriage, Sir Knight,' he said by way of explanation. 'My
wife's family had a noble title, but they were deeply in
debt. My family had money and land, but our title was
not impressive. Our parents felt that the arrangement
Was sound, but she and I scarcely speak to each other.
I've avoided her whenever possible. I've solaced myself
with other women, I'm ashamed to admit. There are
many accommodating young ladies - if one has the price.
My wife's solaced herself with that abomination you just
saw. She has few other enthusiasms - aside from making
my life as miserable as she possibly can. I've neglected
my duties, I'm afraid.'
"I have sons myself, My Lord,' Kurik told him as they
all rode on. 'Most of them are good boys, but one has
been a great disappointment to me.'
Talen rolled his eyes heavenward, but didn't say
anything.
'Do you travel far, Sir Knight?' the noble asked,
obviously wanting to change the subject.
"We go towards Venne,' Kurik replied.
'A journey of some distance. I have a summer house
near the west end of my estate. Might I offer you itS
comfort? We should reach it by evening, and the servants
there can see to your needs.' He made a wry face. "I'd
offer you the hospitality of the manor, but I'm afraid
tonight may be a bit noisy there. My wife has a
penetrating voice, and she's not going to take kindly to
certain decisions I've made this afternoon.'
'You're most kind, My Lord. We'll be happy to accept
your hospitality.'
"It's the least I can do in recompense for my son's
behaviour. I wish I could think of some appropriate form
of discipline to salvage him.'
"I've always got good results with a leather belt, My
Lord,' Kurik suggested.
The nobleman laughed wryly. 'That might not be a bad
idea, Sir Knight,' he agreed.
They rode on through a lovely afternoon, and as the
sun was just going down, they reached the 'summer
house' which appeared to be only slightly less opulent
than a mansion. The nobleman gave instructions to the
household servants and then remounted his horse. "I'd
gladly stay, Sir Knight,' he said to Kurik, 'but I think I'd
better get back home before my wife breaks every dish in
the house. I'll find a comfortable cloister for her, and live
out my life in peace.'
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"I quite understand, My Lord,' Kurik replied. 'Good
luck.'
'Godspeed, Sir Knight.' And the noble turned and
rode back the way they had come.
'Kurik,' Bevier said gravely as they entered the marble-floored
foyer of the house, 'you did honour to my armour
back there. I'd have had my sword through that young
fellow after his second remark.'
Kurik grinned at him. "It was much more fun this way,
Sir Bevier.'
The Pelosian noble's summer house was even more
splendid on the inside than it had appeared from the
exterior. Rare woods, exquisitely carved, panelled the
walls. The floors and fireplaces were all of marble, and
the furnishings were covered with the finest brocade.
The serving staff was efficient and unobtrusive, and they
saw to every need.
Sparhawk and his friends dined splendidly in a dining
room only slightly smaller than a grand ballroom. 'Now
this is what I call living,' Kalten sighed contentedly.
'Sparhawk, why is it that we can't have' a bit more luxury
in our lives?'
"We're Knights of the Church,' Sparhawk reminded
him. 'Poverty toughens us up.'
'But do we have to have so much of it?'
'How are you feeling,' SePhrenia asked Bevier.
'Much better, thanks,' the Arcian replied. "I haven't
coughed up any blood since this morning. I think I'll be
up to a canter tomorrow, Sparhawk. This leisurely stroll
is costing us time.'
'Let's go easy for one more day,' Sparhawk said.
'According to my map, the country beyond the city of
Venne is a little rugged and very underpopulated. It's
ideal for ambushes, and we're being followed. I want you
and Kalten and Tynian fit to defend yourselves.'
'Berit,' Kurik said.
"yes?'
"would you do me a favour before we leave here?'
'Of course.'
'First thing in the morning, take Talen out into the
courtyard and search him - thoroughly. The noble who
owns this place was very hospitable, and I don't want to
.offend him.'
"What makes you think I'd steal anything?' Talen
objected.
'What makes you think I wouldn't? It's just a precaution.
There are a great number of small, valuable
things in this house. Some of them might just accidentally
find their way into your pockets.'
The beds in the house were down-filled, and they were
deep and comfortable. They rose at dawn and ate a
splendid breakfast. Then they thanked the servants,
mounted their waiting horses and rode on out. The
new-risen sun was golden, and larks whirled and sang
overhead. Flute, sitting in the wagon, accompanied them
on her pipes. Sephrenia seemed stronger, but at
Sparhawk's insistence, she still rode in the wagon.
It was shortly before noon when a group of perhaps
fifty fierce-looking men came galloping over a nearby
hill. They were booted and dressed in leather, and their
heads were all shaved.
'Tribesmen from the eastern marches,' warned
Tynian, who had been in Pelosia before. 'Be very careful,
Sparhawk. These are reckless men.'
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The tribesmen swooped down the hill with superb
horsemanship. They had savage-looking sabres at their
belts, carried short lances and wore round shields on their
left arms. At a curt signal from their leader, most of them
reined in so sharply that their horses' rumps skidded on the
grass. With five cohorts, the leader, a lean man with
narrow eyes and a scarred scalp, came forward. With
ostentatious display, the advancing tribesmen moved their
horses sideways, the proud stallions prancing in perfect
unison. Then, plunging their lances into the earth, the
warriors drew their flashing sabres with a grand flourish.
'No!' Tynian said sharply as SParhawk and the others
instinctively went for their swords. 'This is a ceremony.
Stand fast.'
The shaven-head
ed men came forward at a stately
walk, and then at some hidden signal their horses all
went down on their front knees in a kind of genuflection
as the riders raised their sabres to their faces in salute.
'Lord!' Kalten breathed. "I've never seen a horse do
that before!'
Faran's ears flicked, and Sparhawk could feel him
twitching irritably.
'Hail, Knights of the Church,' the leather-garbed
leader intoned formally. 'We salute you, and stand at
your service. '
"can I handle this?' Tynian suggested to Sparhawk.
"I've had some experience.'
'Feel free, Tynian,' Sparhawk agreed, eyeing the pack
of savage men on the hill.
Tynian moved forward, holding his black horse in
tightly so that its pace was measured and slow. 'Gladly
we greet the Peloi,' the Deiran declaimed formally. 'Glad
also are we of this meeting, for brothers should always
greet each other with respect.'
"you know our ways, Sir Knight, ' the scar-headed man
approved. .
I have been in times past on the eastern marches,
Domi,' Tynian acknowledged.
'What's "Domi" mean?' Kalten whispered.
'An ancient Pelosian word,' Ulath supplied. "It means
"chief" - sort of.'
'Sort of?'
"It takes a long time to translate.'
"Will you take salt with me, Sir Knight?' the warrior
asked.
'Gladly, Domi,' Tynian replied, stepping slowly down
from his saddle. 'And might we season it with wellroasted
mutton?' he suggested.
'An excellent suggestion, Sir Knight.'
"Get it,' Sparhawk said to Talen. "It's in that green
pack. And don't argue.'
"I'd sooner bite out my tongue,' Talen agreed
nervously, digging into the pack.
'warm day, isn't it?' the Domi said conversationally,
sitting cross-legged on the lush turf.
'We were saying the same thing just a few minutes
ago,' Tynian agreed, also sitting.
"I am Kring,' the scarred man introduced himself,
'Domi of this band.'
"I am Tynian,' the Deiran replied, 'an Alcione Knight.'
"I surmised as much.'
Talen went a bit hesitantly to where the two men sat,
carrying a roast leg of lamb.
'Well-prepared meat,' Kring proclaimed, unhooking a
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leather bag of salt from his belt. 'The Knights of the
Church eat well.' He ripped the lamb-roast in two with
teeth and fingernails and handed half to Tynian. Then he
held out his leather bag. 'Salt, brother?' he offered.
Tynian dipped his fingers into the bag, took out a
generous pinch and sifted it over his lamb. Then he
shook his fingers in the direction of the four winds.
'You are well-versed in our ways, friend Tynian,' the
Domi approved, imitating the gesture. 'And is this
excellent young fellow perhaps your son?'
'Ah, no, Domi,' Tynian sighed. 'He's a good lad, but
he's addicted to thievery.'
'Ho-ho!' Kring laughed, fetching Talen a claP on the
shoulder that sent the boy rolling. 'Thievery is the second
most honourable profession in the world - next to
fighting. Are you any good, boy?'
Talen smiled thinly, and his eyes went narrow. 'Would
you care to try me, Domi?' he challenged, coming to his
feet. 'Protect what you can, and I'll steal the rest.'
The warrior rolled back his head, roaring with
laughter. Talen, Sparhawk noticed, was already close to
him, his hands moving fast.
'All right, my young thief,' the Domi chortled, holding
his wide-spread hands out in front of him, 'steal what
you can.'
Thank you all the same, Domi,' Talen said with a
polite bow, 'but I already have. I believe I've got just
about everything of value you own.'
Kring blinked and began to pat Nimself here and there,
his eyes filled with consternation.
Kurik groaned.
"It may turn out all right after all,' Sparhawk muttered
to him.
Two brooches,' Talen catalogued, handing them over,
'seven rings - the one on your left thumb is really tight,
you know. A gold bracelet -' have that checked. I think
there's brass mixed with it. A ruby pendant - I hope you
didn't pay too much for it. It's really an inferior stone,
you know. Then there's this jewelled dagger, and the
pommel-stone off your sword.' Talen brushed his hands
together professionally.
The Domi roared with laughter. 'I'll buy this boy,
friend Tynian,' he declared. "I'll give you a herd of the
finest horses for him and raise him as my own son. Such a
thief I've never seen before.'
'Ah - sorry, friend Kring,' Tynian apologized, but he's
not mine to sell.'
Kring sighed. 'Could you even steal horses, boy?' he
asked wistfully.
'A horse is a little hard to fit in your pocket, Domi,'
Talen replied. "I could probably work it out, though.'
'A lad of genius,' the warrior said reverently. 'His
father is a man of great fortune.'
"I hadn't noticed that very much,' Kurik muttered.
'Ah, young thief,' Kring said almost regretfully, "I
seem to be also missing a purse - a fairly heavy one.'
'Oh, did I forget that?' Talen said, slapping his
forehead. "It must have completely slipped my mind.' He
fished a bulging leather bag out from under his tunic and
handed it over.
'Count it, friend Kring,' Tynian warned.
'Since the boy and I are now friends, I will trust his
integrity.' Talen sighed and fished a large number of silver coins
out of various hiding places. "I wish people wouldn't do
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that,' he said, handing the coins over. "It takes all the fun
out of it.'
"TWO herds of horses?' the Domi offered.
'Sorry, my friend,' Tynian said regretfully. 'Let us take
salt and talk of affairs.'
The two sat eating their salted lamb as Talen wandered
back to the wagon. 'He should have taken the horses,' he
muttered to Sparhawk. "I could have slipped away just
after dark.'
'He'd have chained you to a tree,' Sparhawk told him.
"I can wriggle my way out of any chain in less than a
minute. Do you have any idea of how much horses like
he's got are worth, Sparhawk?'
'Training this boy may take longer than we'd expected,'
Kalten noted.
"WIll you require an escort, friend Tynian?' Kring was
asking. 'We are engaged in no more than a slight
diversion, and we wil gladly put it aside to assist our
holy mother Church and her revered Knights.'
'Thank you, friend Kring,' Tynian declined, but our
mission involves nothing we can't deal with.'
'Truly. The prowess of the Knights of the Church is
legendary. '
'What is this diversion you mentioned, Domi?' Tynian
asked curiously. 'Seldom have I seen the
Peloi this far
west.'
'We normally haunt the eastern marches,' Kring
admitted, ripping a large chunk of lamb off the bone with
his teeth, 'but from time to time over the past few
generations, Zemochs have been trying to slip across the
border into Pelosia. The king pays a gold half-crown for
their ears. It's an easy way to make money.'
'Does the king demand both ears?'
'No, just the right ones. We still have to be careful with
our sabres, though . You can lose the whole bounty with a
mis-aimed stroke. Anyway, my friends and I Rushed a
fair-sized group of Zemochs near the border. We took a
number of them, but the rest fled. They were coming this
way last we saw them, and some were wounded. Blood
leaves a good trail. We'll run them down and collect their
ears - and the gold. It's just a question of time.'
"I think I might be able to save you a bit of that, my
friend,' Tynian said with a broad smile. 'From time to
time in the last day or so, we've seen a fairly large party of
Zemochs riding to our rear. It might just be that they're
the ones you're seeking. In any case, though, an ear is an
ear, and the king's gold spends just as sweetly even if it
chances to be mistakenly dispensed.'
Kring laughed delightedly. "It does indeed, friend
Tynian,' he agreed. 'And who knows, it could just be that
there are two bags of gold available out here. How many
are they, would you say?'
"we've seen forty or so. They're coming up the road
from the south.'
They won't come much farther,' Kring promised,
grinning a wolf-like grin. 'This was indeed a fortunate
meeting, Sir Tynian - at least for me and my comrades.
But why didn't you and your companions turn around
and collect the bounty?'
'We weren't really aware of the bounty, Domi,' Tynian
confessed, 'and we're on Church business of some
urgency.' He made a wry face. 'Besides, even if we did
gain that bounty, our oaths would require that we hand it
over to the Church. Some fat abbot somewhere would
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profit from our labours. I don't propose to sweat that
much to enrich a man who's never done an honest day's
work in his life. I'd far rather point a friend in the
direction of honest gain.'
Impulsively, Kring embraced him. 'My brother,' he
said, 'you are a true friend. It's an honour to have met
you.'
'The honour is mine, Domi,' Tynian said gravely.
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