by Matt Heppe
The big roan was fast. Hadde took a breath. The knight might make it. In the yard below, the men who had ridden double stood ready to shove the gate closed.
Javelins arced after the last knight. The roan swerved and they flew wide. Hooves hammered on the bridge as he charged to safety. Angry shouts rose from outside as the knights pushed the gate closed.
The knight pulled off his helm and dismounted as soon as he cleared the gate. He looked up at Hadde. “Archer, where is the lord of the manor? Why did no men ride out to us?” he shouted, his face flushed red with exertion. The other two knights barred the gate behind him.
“I don’t know!” Hadde replied. “There was no one here when we arrived.”
“What do you mean?”
A sudden hammering drew her to the wall. The six pursuers attacked the gate with their axes and swords. Hadde couldn’t believe they were trying to hack through the heavy timbers. It was an impossible task.
“What’s going on?” the knight demanded. “Why aren’t you shooting at them? Where are the keep's defenders?”
“I’m alone,” she yelled back, “and have no more arrows.”
The knight gave her a hard look and glanced around the fort. He said something to one of the other knights, but Hadde couldn’t hear him. The third knight tried to open the tower door.
“Come down here and open the door!” the roan knight shouted. He took one of the odd Saladoran bows and a quiver of arrows from a saddle case. Outside, the silver-eyes furiously attacked the gate.
Hadde ran down and opened the iron-bound door. The knight barely looked at her as he pushed into the room and headed for the stairs. Hadde caught a glimpse of the other two knights standing ready at the gate before she turned to follow him. As she passed Lightfoot she grabbed her saddle quiver from where it rested with her piled gear.
When she emerged onto the roof, the knight was pulling his bowstring into place and sliding a short arrow into the groove carved on its wooden stock.
“Ambush us, will you? Cowardly bastards!” he swore. He lifted the bow to his shoulder and aimed it over the parapet. The string snapped forward and there was a cry of pain from below. “Bastards! Get you gone from Salador!”
He dodged backwards as a javelin skipped off of the parapet beside him. Hadde ran to the knight’s side and nocked an arrow. She took aim and put an arrow into one of the attackers. It hit him in the collarbone and drove downward into his chest. He grunted and fell.
Beside her the knight had loaded his bow. His arrow cracked into the stone pavement. Hadde shot another attacker, wounding him.
The attack made no sense to Hadde. Two attackers continued to hammer at the gate. The others fruitlessly cast their axes at Hadde and the knight.
“Why aren’t they running?” she asked as she drew another arrow.
“They’re creatures of Dromost!” he said.
Hadde shot down two more attackers as the knight wounded another. The fight was over. Three of the bear-men lay wounded by the gate. Four others, further down the road, dragged themselves toward the woods.
“They’re done, but for a few still wounded.” the knight shouted over the wall. "Go out and see if anything can be done for our men!”
“I will, Sir Nidon!” came the reply.
The knight turned to face her. “Who are you?”
“I’m just a traveler here. My companion and I found this place abandoned.”
“Your companion?” He was a large man, taller and broader than even Belor. His rugged face was crisscrossed with scars and a flat, crooked nose.
“I’m alone now. My companion was slain.”
“You speak the High Tongue, but you’re not Saladoran. What are you? Kiremi?” He looked her up and down with disapproval.
“I’m Landomeri.”
A thud and a strangled cry from below drew her attention. Hadde looked over the wall to see one of the knights removing his sword from the neck of a fallen foe.
“Stay here,” the knight said. “We’ll return as soon as our companions have been seen to.”
“I will come as well. I need to retrieve my arrows.”
“As you will.”
***
The three knights recovered the bodies of their fallen comrades and returned to the fort. Hadde stood aside as they took them to the center of the bailey and laid them to rest on the ground. The youngest knight led two horses toward the tower.
“Can I be of help?” Hadde asked him.
“No, it’s my task,” he replied as he walked by. One of the other knights, the one who had been thrown from his horse, turned at the sound of her voice.
“You! Woman!” he called out. “Get the archers and have them bring wood. We’ll build a funeral pyre.”
She was about to respond when the big knight named Nidon said, “There are no others, Earl Waltas. She’s alone.”
“What? Who was shooting from the walls?”
“She was, Earl.”
The earl looked at her and laughed. “What foolishness is this? She’s a woman. Where are the others?”
“I was in the tower and saw for myself, Earl Waltas. I saw her wield the bow with expertise. There are no others.”
Waltas strode purposefully toward Hadde. He was a young man with brown hair and brown eyes. His narrow features gave him a hawk-like appearance.
“Who are you? Where are you from?”
“My name is Hadde of Long Meadow. I’m Landomeri.”
“How is it you speak the High Tongue?” He stood a few strides from her.
“I don’t know what that is. I speak the language of my mother.”
He looked her up and down with distaste. “You’re no noblewoman.”
“I… I make no claim to be one.”
He laughed a curt laugh and looked back toward the other knight. “She speaks the High Tongue, but she’s just a simple savage from the woods.”
Hadde felt her face flush. “I don’t know—”
“Shut up! You’ll speak when spoken to. And when you speak you’ll give due respect.” Hadde’s jaw dropped, but he continued before she could respond. “You carry arms, dress in uncouth manner, and don’t know your place. Why are you in Salador? Are you a raider or a thief?”
“I’m neither! We were on a journey to see the king.”
“You’ll refer to me as ‘my lord’ or ‘Earl Waltas.’ And what business could the likes of you’ve with a king?”
“I’m an ambassador, Earl Waltas,” she replied, bewildered at his assault.
“Foolishness!” he took a threatening step toward her. “Be off! Put down that bow and cover yourself properly before I next see you.”
Hadde took a few steps backward. She didn’t know what to think. Pulling herself from the knight’s glare, she turned and strode toward the tower door. Her mind whirled. What had she done? The ungrateful wretch! Hadn’t she just saved him?
Only the fading light coming in the open door lighted the tower. The young knight was attending to the horses. He looked up in surprise as she entered the tower. For a moment she looked at him, not knowing what to say. Not wanting to be verbally assaulted by another Saladoran, she made her way to the stairs to the upper floor.
She had just reached the bottom step when he said, “We have lost much of our gear in the attack.”
Hadde paused and looked in his direction. He wrung his hands. “Would you permit me the use of some of your stable gear?”
“I… of course,” Hadde replied.
“We’re also without food… for our horses,” he added. He looked genuinely embarrassed at his need. “If you could spare some victuals, Sir Nidon would, I’m sure, reimburse you handsomely.”
Hadde wasn’t sure what was meant about reimbursement, but she understood the horses’ needs. “I have little of my own,” she replied, “but I’ll share what I have. It’s the Way of the Forest.”
It was his turn to look confused, but he thanked her profusely. Hadde opened her packs and helped him take w
hat he needed. As he returned to his horses, Hadde saw to her own mounts. For a time, they worked in silence.
Nidon appeared in the doorway. “Squire Melas, have you almost finished?” he asked.
“Yes, Sir Nidon,” the young knight replied.
“Come and join us as soon as you’re done. We must salvage more wood for the pyre. I don’t wish to wait until morning.”
“Sir Nidon,” Melas said as Nidon turned to leave. “This woman was good enough to offer food for our horses. I wish to give her some payment.”
“Go ahead. Now hurry and join us.”
“I—I’ve lost my purse,” the squire said and swallowed. “It was cut…”
Nidon frowned. “I’ve left my hauberk and sword outside for you to fetch. My purse is on my belt. You may take…” He paused and looked at Hadde. “How much do you want for two days food for our horses?”
She shook her head. “Nothing, Sir Nidon,” she said, hoping she had pronounced his name correctly. “It is freely given.”
“Don’t be foolish.” He turned to the squire and said, “Pay her a silver. It’s generous, but our need is great.” He walked out the door before she could make any reply.
***
Hadde put more wood on the embers of her neglected fire. She set a cook pot on the fire to heat water for another meal of split peas and, after a moment’s thought, added more water. As the water heated she moved her own blankets and gear to one side of the fireplace.
After pouring a large measure of peas into the pot, she mounted the ladder and climbed to the top of the tower. Night had fallen, but it wasn’t yet completely dark. Stars filled the sky. A chill wind blew across the top of the tower. Hadde looked into the bailey and saw that the knights had completed their work. They had constructed a six foot tall wooden platform and placed their dead companions upon it. The structure was crudely built with wood stacked all around it.
She frowned and then nodded in understanding. The Kiremi honored their dead in the same way, leaving them on a raised platform so they could return to Helna without ever touching the soil. They thought the earth to be evil, tainted by Dromost, but the Landomeri knew differently. Dromost’s followers may have lived in the dark places under the earth, but that didn’t make the soil evil.
She shook her head at the knights. The fort might be abandoned, but anybody who came this way would certainly stop here. At least the Kiremi placed their dead in out-of-the-way places. All three knights held torches and, although she couldn’t hear them, she realized they were holding some kind of ceremony for the dead. After a time they all walked closer to the pile and pushed their torches into the wood surrounding the platform.
Hadde stared at the scene in horror. She had to step away from the edge of the tower, repulsed at the thought of the bodies burning on the piled wood. It seemed a terrible affront to the Great Forest to burn wood to consume the dead. Not wanting to watch any more of the ritual, she returned to the tower room below.
***
“She will sleep with the horses,” she heard Waltas say as the knights stomped up the stairs. Hadde clenched her jaw at the words. All three Saladorans walked into the tower room together. Nidon and Waltas carried their mail and sword belts, while Melas brought up the rear with a double armload of saddle packs. They glanced around the room and chose places to set down their gear.
“Squire Melas, go to the roof and stand guard,” Earl Waltas ordered.
“Yes, my…”
“Earl Waltas,” Nidon cut off the squire’s reply. “If you would be so kind, but the squire is in my service.”
The earl’s face hardened. “Of course, Sir Nidon. My apologies. Would you have your squire stand guard?”
Nidon nodded at the squire, who laid the saddlebags on the floor before he climbed the ladder to the roof. He carried the bow Nidon had used earlier. Hadde hadn’t seen another amongst their gear and assumed it was the only one.
As the squire departed, the two knights grabbed their baggage from the pile and settled themselves near the fire. All three Saladorans had been armed and armored in the same manner, but Hadde noticed they wore different sleeveless tunics over their clothes. Earl Waltas wore one of white, much spattered with blood, with two black hammers crossed upon it. Nidon’s was red with a silver fringe and no symbol. The squire’s was the same as Nidon’s but displayed two crossed lightning bolts.
The knights proceeded to lay their weapons and harness out around them. Nidon drew his sword and set to work polishing it while Waltas cleaned his mail. Hadde watched for a moment and then moved to the fire to stir the porridge.
After a short time Nidon turned to her and asked, “How is it you’re in Salador? You say you’re an ambassador?” He used a smooth stone to get the nicks out of his sword’s blade.
Hadde stirred the bubbling pot in front of her for a moment before replying. “I came as an ambassador of my people. To seek help from the king.”
“Sir Nidon,” Waltas corrected her. “You’ll address him as Sir Nidon. And you’ll address me as Earl Waltas.”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “In my land we don’t use titles.” She turned to Nidon. “We came here to see the king, Sir Nidon.” She paused, hoping that they wouldn’t laugh at what she was going to say next. “Is it true he’s an elementar?”
Waltas snorted a derisive laugh. “You come seeking an elementar? You expect magic?”
Hadde hoped the darkness of the room hid her embarrassment. “I’m sorry. Our stories say that the kings of Salador were always elementars.”
“And he is,” Nidon said, casting a dark look at Waltas. “King Boradin is a great elementar, his brother less so,” Nidon said. “And the king’s son, Prince Handrin, shows great potential.”
“Handrin?” Hadde asked. “Like Handrin the Great?”
“The prince is named for his ancestor,” Nidon said. "They say he will be a great elementar."
Waltas snorted.
“Don’t mock what you don’t understand.” Nidon shot Waltas a dark look.
“I understand perfectly well. There is no magic. There are only tricks that keep the ignorant in line.”
“You’ll learn the truth of it soon enough, Earl Waltas” Nidon said. He turned to Hadde. “Why do you seek the king?”
“I seek council. In the old stories Landomere and Salador were great allies, and we hope the king will be able to aid us in our time of need.”
“You have two problems,” Waltas said. “First of all, the king cannot help you. He cannot even help Salador. Secondly, you’re a woman. Well, sort of.” He laughed. “They won’t let you in the front gate.”
Hadde frowned. She didn’t know how to respond.
“There is already an ambassador from Landomere in the king’s court,” Nidon said. “Orlos the Spiridus.”
Hadde looked at him, not understanding for a moment. “Orlos? A spiridus from Landomere? One still lives?”
“You didn’t know? He’s the last of the spiridus. Over six hundred years old, I think. Everyone knows of him. He escaped the destruction of Belavil and has lived in Salador ever since. He’s very old, though. I fear he won’t live much longer.”
“We didn’t know he was there,” Hadde said. She could hardly believe Nidon’s words. A spiridus still lived? Her heart lurched in her chest at the thought. She had never imagined it possible. “I don’t think even the elders know of him.”
“So you see,” Waltas said, “You can drag yourself back to the forest now. There’s no need of you.”
Hadde stared into the pot of bubbling porridge, her thoughts still on the spiridus. His presence in Sal-Oras had to mean something. Was there a connection between him and her golden chain?
“Serve us some of that soup,” Waltas demanded.
Hadde looked at him in surprise, appalled at his lack of manners. She had intended to feed them, but gifts were meant to be given, not demanded.
“Hurry up,” he said.
Hadde balled her fist. Even the youngest
child knew not to demand food. She was about to tell him so when Nidon said, “You could say please, Earl Waltas.” Nidon’s tone was cold. He didn’t look at the earl but continued working on his sword.
“What did you say, Sir Nidon?”
“Watch me, Earl Waltas,” the knight said. He turned toward Hadde. “Hadde of Landomere, would you be kind enough to share your food with us? Our recent battle left us without sufficient supplies.”
“You go too far, Nidon,” Waltas said.
Hadde took in the exchange but didn’t understand what was going on. “I’ve made enough for all of us,” Hadde said. She scooped a portion into a bowl and offered it to Nidon.
“Thank you,” he replied, but didn’t take it. “But as I’m a simple knight, and the earl outranks me, he should have the first bowl.”
Hadde turned toward Waltas and offered the bowl to him. “Would you like some, Earl Waltas?”
“Bring it here and put it next to me,” he said.
Hadde stood and walked behind Nidon to where Waltas sat at the opposite side of the fire. He glanced up at her as she set the bowl beside him. "Thank you," he said, but there was no kindness in it. The look he gave her sent a shiver up her spine.
She returned to the fire and spooned out two more bowls, one of which she gave to Nidon. He thanked her but didn’t look at her as he did so. Hadde picked up the other bowl and carried it toward the ladder to the roof. She was almost there when Waltas called out, “Where are you going?”
“I was going to give the other knight his portion, Earl Waltas.”
“He’s a squire, not a knight. And no, you’ll not. You cannot go up there with him alone.”
“What? Why not?”
“It would be improper for him to be alone with a woman.”
“Why?”
“You miserable savage, because it’s uncivilized. Because it’s inappropriate.”
She kept a hold of her anger and replied, “If that’s the case, you’re welcome to join us.” Turning her back on his scowl, she climbed the ladder.
“Peasant,” Waltas muttered behind her.