"Cheers!"
Wine and ale flowed well into the night and the minor cuts, wounds, aches and pains obtained during the fight were slowly, and easily, forgotten.
A dozen knights, squires and footmen gathered around the fire, telling stories as a way to keep them all amused.
Although some of the tales concerned the exploits of bawdy women, most of the tales featured Knights of Solamnia both real and imagined and ranged from humorous anecdotes illustrating the stupidity of ogres, to more somber tales illustrating the wisdom of Paladine, or the benevolence of Mishakal.
Currently the young squire Arnol Kraas was telling a tale, one he'd no doubt recently learned as part of his studies as an aspirant knight.
"A young Knight of the Sword ventured upon the road to visit his friends in Vingaard Keep," the squire began.
"Along the way he came upon a young woman lying by the side of the road, weeping. Quickly, the knight dismounted and went to her side. When he lifted her up he saw that she had been severely beaten."
All of the knights were familiar with the tale, having studied it as squires themselves. Nevertheless, none interrupted him. The telling of the tales, even the most familiar, reminded them all of the lessons to be remembered.
"When he asked the woman's name, she told him it was Stalen Lamplight.
The knight was shocked. He knew Stalen Lamplight, and truth be told, had loved her from afar for many years, had considered many times asking her to be his bride. Her beauty had been well-known throughout the land, but now it was gone, taken away by the weapons of the ogres who resented all beauty, whether it be in humans or their Irda brethren.
"The knight took the young woman in his arms and prayed to Mishakal to restore Stalen's beauty, promising to marry the woman and protect her for the rest of her days if she would only grant his wish. Mishakal answered the knight's prayers, appearing before him as a glowing ball of soft white light.
"I will restore her beauty,' Mishakal told the knight, 'but I will leave it up to you to decide whether you wish her beauty to return during the daylight hours when others might see her, or during the dark of night when you alone will be by her side."
"The knight was unsure which of Mishakal's offers he should accept.
Certainly he would want her to be beautiful as she lay by his side, but then again he couldn't force her to show her hideously scarred face as he presented her as his wife during daylight hours.
"In the end, he could not decide. In fact, he wasn't even sure if it was his decision to make. And that is what he told the Healing Hand.
'Mishakal,' he said. 'I can not decide the woman's fate for her. I leave the decision up to her, and will stand by my offer of marriage whatever she decides."
"The glowing light that was Mishakal shone brighter.
"You have chosen correctly,' she said. 'It is not up to you to decide another's fate, but to allow her to make her own choices in life. As a reward, she will have her beauty restored… both night and day."
His story finished, Kraas looked around. The knights, who were expecting a more polished ending to the tale were caught slightly off guard, but recovered by giving the young squire a polite smattering of applause.
Kraas seemed satisfied.
Soth took the opportunity to put another piece of wood on the fire. The familiarity of Kraas's tale had calmed the knights. Perhaps it was time to make their blood run faster. "How about a tale from you. Knight
Grimscribe?" asked Soth.
"Yes."
"How about it?" chimed the knights.
Derik Grimscribe was a Sword knight originally from one of the small villages surrounding Dargaard Keep. A knight of average skill on the battlefield, Grimscribe was a master of words, able to tell stories or negotiate between warring clans with equal amounts of tact and skill. A story from Grimscribe was a treat to be sure.
"Very well then," said Grimscribe, moving closer to the fire to give his face an eerie sort of otherworldly glow. "A new story… of terror." He looked around at the knights, his face a mask of twisted light and shadow.
"A long time ago, before your grandfather had finished suckling his mother's breast…" he began in a low voice.
The knights rolled forward to listen more closely.
"… a Rose knight of Solamnia had lost his way after a long and exhausting battle with an especially foul blue dragon."
"A battle he no doubt won," quipped a footman.
"Yesss," hissed Grimscribe, "but as the knight left the dragon for dead, the evil blue spoke words in an ancient tongue, placing a powerful curse on the knight."
The knights were silent. Although there were no longer such things as dragons, all of the knights respected the power they were credited with in the stories told of the great dragon wars.
"So, the knight entered the Darken Wood in search of his fellow Sons of
Paladine. But the forest was so dark, even in the middle of the day, that it wasn't long before the brave knight was utterly lost.
"Still he carried on through the darkness, hoping to come upon one of his fellows, but after a few hours he finally conceded that he was indeed hopelessly lost." Grimscribe paused after the word to let the thought sink in.
"But just then," snapped Grimscribe, making several squires jump in surprise, "he came upon what looked to be a mounted knight. At first he thought he'd found a fellow Knight of Solamnia, but as he got closer to the figure it was obvious that the stranger's manner of dress was unlike that of any knight he'd ever seen before, Solamnic or otherwise. He was dressed in a deep-blue, almost black, cloak that went from the top of his head and on down past his feet. His horse too, was blacker than any knight had ever dared to ride. The Rose knight was leery about asking such a stranger for help, but he was lost and any help was better than none at all."
The knights were silent, but judging by their faces some were obviously skeptical about this last bit of wisdom.
"Excuse me,' the Rose knight called out. But there was no answer from the stranger, who kept on riding as if he hadn't heard a word. The knight then brought his horse to a trot and quickly caught up to the dark traveler. 'I beg your pardon, sir,' he said, this time tapping on the stranger's shoulder to get his attention. Still, there was no response.
"Becoming somewhat frustrated, the knight reached over and grabbed the man's cloak in his hand and pulled on it. 'I'm talking to you!' he said forcefully. At that moment the cloak fell away from the traveler's head."
The knights were silent. Several held their breath.
"The traveler turned around and the knight suddenly saw that the traveler's face wasn't human, but that of the blue dragon."
Gasps all around.
"Well, even though the Rose knight and his mount had been tested countless times in battle, they were terrified by the unexpected sight and ran off into the darkest part of the woods, never to find their way out again."
Soth smiled and looked around at the somewhat apprehensive faces of the knights. "Well done, Grimscribe," he said. "An excellent tale for such a dark and frigid night."
"How about one from you. Lord Soth?" asked Grimscribe.
"Oh, I don't think-"
The knights quickly joined together in prodding Soth to tell a story and at last he agreed. "All right, all right, but I doubt my story will be told as skillfully as Knight Grimscribe's." "Whose are?" someone shouted, the words followed by soft laughter.
"Very well, then," Soth said. He knew few tales, but at last chose one he knew well enough to relate orally.
"Before Vinas Solamnus organized the Knights of Solamnia, he was employed by the Emperor of Ergoth as commander of the palace guard in the capital city of Daltigoth."
A soft murmur of hushed voices circulated around the fire. This was a story that deserved to be told over and over again. Especially in such select company.
"Vinas Solamnus was a pious man, a gallant warrior and a leader truly beloved by his men. He was also loyal to the emperor and provided him
with a palace guard which no single army could rival. Meanwhile, on the northeastern plains of Ergoth, the people there-proud, noble and independent folk-had grown tired of the emperor's iron-handed style of government and, joining forces, mounted a rebellion.
"Solamnus and his knights were dispatched to the region to quell the uprising. After several fierce battles, Solamnus grew to respect and admire the rebel fighters for their tenacity and courage. He also realized that there must be some truth to their claims in order for them to fight so fiercely for what they believed to be right and just.
And so, Solamnus agreed to meet with the rebel leaders so that they could tell their side of the story. The great knight listened patiently to the people detail their grievances.
Solamnus was moved by their plight and investigated their claims. To his surprise and dismay, he discovered that the rebels had been telling the truth. But worst of all for Solamnus was the realization that his loyalty to the emperor had left him blind to the injustices being done to the people. Solamnus immediately called his followers together, much in the same way you are gathered here, and presented the people's case to them.
"When he was done, he gave his knights a choice." He gave a nod to Amol
Kraas, connecting the lesson learned from his tale to the story he was telling now. "Those who believed in the rebels' cause were welcome to stay. Those who did not were given leave to return to Daltigoth.
"Most of the knights chose to remain loyal to Vinas Solamnus, even though it would mean certain exile from Ergoth for them, and quite possibly death. Those who returned to Daltigoth gave Solamnus's message to the emperor-correct the wrongs being done to the people, or prepare for war."
Soth paused to wet his throat. The knights remained silent, listening intently. Even though they knew this story well, it must have sounded different coming from a knight such as Soth.
"Of course, the emperor denounced Solamnus as a traitor, stripping him of his lands and title. The people of Daltigoth prepared for a war which would eventually come to be known as the War of Ice Tears because that winter was the most severe in Ergoth's recorded history.
But despite the cold, Solamnus was able, with the loyal and steadfast support of his knights"-Soth put extra emphasis on these last few words for obvious reasons- "to lay siege to the city, destroying its food supplies and spreading the news of the emperor's corruption. All the while the emperor himself remained hidden like a coward deep within the bowels of his palace."
Several knights let out mild harumphs of contempt.
"In two months the capital fell and the emperor was forced to sue for peace. As a result, the northeastern part of Ergoth gained its independence. The people named it Solamnia in honor of their new king,
Vinas Solamnus.
And although Solamnia never achieved its greatness and power until long after the death of Vinas Solamnus, it quickly came to be known as a land populated by people who possessed great amounts of honesty, integrity, and fierce determination."
The knights remained silent for several long moments and all that could be heard was the snap and crackle of the slightly greener wood on the fire.
And then a voice.
"May our loyalty to you, milord," said Colm Farold, "someday be compared to that of the knights who served Vinas Solamnus so well."
"Hear, hear!" the rest of the knights said in unison.
"I have no doubt that it will," said Soth, nodding graciously.
After the tales had ended, the fire burned through the night, providing some warmth against the cool nocturnal winds that blew across the plains.
There was little danger of reprisals from the ogres of Throtyl who would no doubt think twice in the future before attacking soil under the protection of the Knights of Solamnia. And, other than a few wild animals, there was little else to be wary of in this part of Knightlund.
So the knights had all drunk their fill and set about to get a peaceful night's sleep under the stars.
All except for Soth.
He did not look forward to the night. Considering the dreams he'd been having of late, sleep was something to be avoided or at least put off until absolutely necessary.
For that reason, he wandered around the perimeter of the camp under the pretense of keeping watch.
"Milord," said Meyer Seril. "It is my turn to keep watch.
And with all the squires here I don't think you are even scheduled to take a turn."
Soth turned and looked at the young Crown knight appreciatively. "I'm not very tired," he said. "} might as well keep watch if I'm going to be awake. You go to sleep, Knight Seril. You fought well, and you deserve to get some rest."
"Thank you, milord," the young knight said, proud to have been noticed by his lord.
"Go now," said Soth. He had no idea how Seril had fought because the battle had been so brief, but it didn't hurt to tell him he'd done well.
Nor did it hurt for him to take the watch when he wasn't required to.
Such a thing did wonders for the knights' morale and loyalty, not to mention their opinion of him as a leader.
With Seril gone, Soth walked around the encampment and looked north toward Dargaard Keep. The pinnacle of its rose-shaped silhouette was just discernible against the dark night sky. As he stared at the keep, he marveled at how black its form appeared even in the dead of night.
The sight chilled him.
And, as he wrapped his cloak around himself to stave off the chill shiver that ran through him, he suddenly looked forward to morning, and the coming of the sun.
Chapter 8
The knights broke camp early the next morning ano rode across the plains with the outline of Dargaard Keep constantly before them, rising up from the horizon like a rose-shaped beacon. By midday they were close enough to make out details in the keep's walls such as windows and battlements, and by late afternoon they had begun to discern the individual blocks of bloodstone.
Given that their approach would have been monitored throughout the day from one or more of the keep's towers, the knights fully expected that their return would be accompanied by a suitable amount of fanfare.
They were not disappointed.
Residents of the keep and those employed in and around it all came out to welcome the triumphant knights.
Men, women and children lined the path of their approach, all happy to see them returning so soon after their departure and in good health.
As the knights neared, the wooden drawbridge was lowered over the chasm that surrounded the keep and the heavy steel portcullis rose up like a welcoming hand being offered in greeting.
Gared Kentner, the keep's quartermaster, counted the number of knights on horseback and asked Soth with a grave voice, "Casualties?"
Soth slowed and looked down at the clerk. "None. I've left several knights in Halton as a precautionary measure." "Excellent," said
Kentner, who was probably thankful that he wouldn't have to process any personal belongings or make adjustments to the bunk allotments.
Soth continued on into the keep.
Heading up the welcoming party inside was Lady Korinne. As Soth rode toward her he noticed that she had donned her finest robes and jewels in order to greet him.
He held his breath a moment. She looked even more beautiful than he remembered.
Feeling his heart gathering up in his throat, Soth quickly dismounted and approached her. He took her hand in his.
She said, "Milord."
Soth removed his helm, leaned forward, took her in his arms and kissed her. There was passion in her kiss to be sure, but there was also something else to it, something that was keeping her from giving herself up to him completely.
For a moment Soth's mind raced back to the dream he'd had during his night on the plains. Had she been unfaithful?
He immediately broke off the kiss and pulled himself away from her. "Is there something you must tell me?" he said, his voice even and devoid of emotion.
She looked up. Tears b
egan to well in her eyes.
Soth feared the worst.
"I… I am not with child as we had hoped." When she finally said the words, they escaped her lips in a rush, like water gushing from a broken damn.
Soth was simultaneously hit by waves of relief and disappointment.
Korinne had not conceived, but his dream and subsequent fear over her infidelity had been little more than folly on his part.
As he looked at her, he made sure his face betrayed none of his emotions. He simply gazed into her pale green eyes and said, "Then we shall have to try again." He allowed a loving smile to creep onto his face. "And often."
Upon hearing the words, Lady Korinne let out a long sigh.
Obviously she had feared his reaction would be more severe. But what could he do? Draw his sword and threaten her with it until she produced an heir? It was a popular tactic with barbarians, but there was no proof that it actually worked. No, this was just as difficult for her because she wanted a child just as much-perhaps even more-than he did. Soth felt it best that they try to ease each other's pain rather than add to it.
"Perhaps we should even try… right away. Right now," said Soth.
A girlish sort of smile broke over Korinne's face.
He took her by the hand and led her up the stairs toward their bedchamber.
The passionate nights Soth spent by Lady Korinne's side continued throughout the winter, keeping them both warm and protecting them from the chill of the winter months-Frostkolt, Newkolt and Deepkolt.
But the winter's icy cold lingered despite the coming of spring when Dargaard Keep was rocked by the news of Lord Reynard Gladria's death at his home in Palanthas.
Although he had been ill for many months, his death still came as a shock to Lord Soth and Lady Korinne. indeed, all of Solamnia mourned the man's passing. But what made it doubly painful for Korinne was that she hadn't given her father a grandchild before his passing. For this reason, Korinne long considered herself to be a failure and no amount of words from Soth, family or friends-however kind-could bring her out of her state of despondency.
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