Sitting down near the fireplace, her thoughts returned to Gavin, and she began to discuss the pros and cons of marriage with her ladies in waiting. It was times like these when she really missed having her mother to talk with, but she was thankful for the company and advice that her ladies in waiting were always more than eager to give her. She lost track of time once again as the fire behind her flickered with excitement, just like her heart.
25
Traven arose early and ran through his exercises. He then washed up and headed down to breakfast. After eating, he went back up to his room, retrieved his materials, and headed to class. With only five days back into classes, he was already tired of studying. He did enjoy learning new things but didn’t enjoy his assignments and tests. The material was not really all that hard; it just seemed somewhat monotonous. His whole daily routine seemed monotonous.
Traven constantly found his mind drifting away during lectures. He supposed that all of the talk over the break about magic was to blame. He tried to forget about it, but it would always creep back into his thoughts when he was least expecting it. It had been the fulfillment of his dreams to come to Calyn and study at a merchant school, and now that he was here living his dream he was dreaming of something else.
He entered the classroom and slumped down into his desk next to the window. Soon after, the professor entered the classroom and began his lecture on bookkeeping. Traven was able to remain focused for about ten minutes before his mind once again began to drift off as his gaze drifted to the window and far beyond it.
Splack!
Traven shot up straight in his chair as something slammed into the back of his neck. Pulling the soggy wad from off of his neck, he turned around to find Rudy with a big grin on his face, staring straight forward intent on the lecturer. Traven threw the soggy wad of paper to the ground with disgust and tried to focus on the lecture once again. But as hard as he tried, he could not focus. This time, however, he was not being distracted by daydreams. He was being distracted by thoughts of Rudy and his three friends.
Ever since Traven’s first run in with the rich bullies, they had been harassing him. They wouldn’t do anything too big since Headmaster Brock had warned them of what would happen if they got caught again, but they took advantage of every chance they could to bother him. It was either a shove while passing through the halls, taunts, or a spit wad in the middle of class. Traven had kept his calm, knowing what would happen if he fought back again. He just didn’t know what to do. At first he had figured that if he ignored it, they would grow tired of it all and leave him alone. Instead, it had only caused them to continue and look for even more opportunities to harass him. Traven was not sure how much more of it he could take. Of course, if he did something about it, he knew what the consequences would be. The thought that he would be thrown out and all of his grandparents’ sacrifices would be for naught kept him from reacting.
Splunck!
Once again he reached up and pulled a disgusting wad off of his neck. Looking on the bright side, at least this was keeping him awake. Trying to ignore the snickers of Rudy and his friends, Traven concentrated on what the instructor was saying for the remainder of the class. He had learned quite a bit since he arrived at the academy. He really never had to pay much attention during the lectures as long as he studied before the exams. He had received some of the highest marks out of the first year students on the tests at the end of the first semester. That probably had Rudy and his friends upset also, that a commoner got better scores then they.
Thad walked over to Traven at the end of class as the rest of the students filed out of the classroom.
“Sorry about them,” he said shaking his head. “I know what you are feeling. Just ignore it.”
“That’s what I’m doing,” Traven replied with an irritated look on his face. Thad offered a shrug of helplessness.
“I was wondering if you could do me a favor. If you don’t want to, you do not have to.”
“Don’t worry about it Thad. I’ll do it. What do you need?”
“Well, this morning I received this package from my uncle,” Thad said, raising a large package wrapped in brown paper. “I don’t want to carry it around until lunch, but I need to get to next period early and don’t have time to take it up to my room. I was wondering if maybe you could . . .”
“No problem,” Traven said, taking the package from him. “I’ll leave it on your desk.”
“Thank you,” Thad replied gratefully, handing Traven the key to his room. “I will take your books to class for you.”
Traven let him take his books and watched as his friend trotted out of the room and down the hall. He decided that he better hurry up so he would have time to drop off the package and make it to class before the bell rang. He hefted the package onto his shoulder and hurried over to the stairs. Halfway up, he let out a groan. Rudy and his three friends were just about to descend.
“Well what do we have here,” said Rudy with a smirk. “The peasant is carrying up the package of Thaddy. At least he is beginning to learn his place in life.”
All four began to laugh as Traven reached the top of the stairs. He ignored them and continued past. At the last second, Rudy stuck out his leg, catching the tip of Traven’s foot. Traven fell forward and without thinking of the package, threw out his arms in time to break his fall. He landed gently without a problem, but the package unfortunately did not. He cringed as the package crashed into the ground with a shatter.
Traven slowly pushed himself back up off the ground filled with rage. It was one thing to trip him, but now whatever was in the package for Thad was broken. He had had enough. Something in the distance told him to walk away, but he just couldn’t do it. This time they had gone too far. He walked straight up to the laughing Rudy and backhanded him across the face. Rudy stared back in amazement at him. Silence filled the hall as the tension in the air became tangible. Rudy’s gang watched on as Traven and Rudy stared at each other.
“You are dead!” Rudy yelled, lunging at him.
Traven jumped to the side and stuck out his leg, letting Rudy trip and fall to the ground. Traven remembered what had happened the first time they had met and didn’t wait for Rudy’s friends to make a move. Before Rudy had hit the ground, Traven was in the middle of his friends, punching and ducking. Soon all three were on the ground. He then jumped back away and unleashing his pent up fury, slammed his foot into the stomach of Rudy who was charging towards him. Rudy let out a grunt as he crashed to the ground once again. This time he stayed there.
Traven spun around to face the others who were beginning to rise. Instead of attack, they ran down the stairs, leaving their leader out cold on the floor. Traven’s breathing began to slow as his eyes brimmed with tears. He hated Rudy. Why could he have not just left him alone? He walked over to Rudy and nudged him with his foot. The bully made no response, but Traven could see that he was still breathing. He would be okay. Traven’s ears perked up as he heard footfalls coming up the stairs. He let out a groan and turned around with dread, waiting for the oncoming consequence of his actions.
* * * * *
Kalista pushed herself up from the lunch table with a satisfied stomach. She walked back to her room and had her chamber maids dress her in warm outdoor clothing. She slid into her thick boots and donned a long, purple velvet cape lined with fur. She was excited for the afternoon. Gavin was going to go down to the docks and then do an inspection of the royal army barracks, and he had invited her to accompany him. She did not have the opportunity very often to be among her subjects and was grateful for the chance to get out of the palace.
Feeling snug and warm, the Princess descended the stairs from her chambers and made her way across the palace to the royal stables. The horses were saddled and her escort of guards was patiently waiting atop their mounts, but Gavin still had not arrived. She walked over to her white mare and stroked its nose lovingly. After she had been waiting for almost fifteen minutes, Gavin hurried into the s
table.
“Please forgive me, my Princess,” Gavin said apologetically. “The High King had several last minute instructions for me concerning the army. I hope you have not been waiting too long.”
“Do not worry about it,” Kalista stated with a wave of her hand. “As long as it will not happen again.” She tried hard to keep a stern look on her face but could not keep the smile back that crept onto her face.
“Never again,” Gavin said with a wink. “If you are ready, we will continue.”
Gavin climbed gracefully onto his tall, brown horse as Kalista nodded her acceptance. She was soon atop her mare, and the stablehands threw open the stable doors. She pulled her cloak close around her face as the cold, winter air rushed into the warm stable.
Four guards filed out of the stable two by two. Gavin and Kalista dropped into place behind them and were followed by four more guards. Kalista never understood why she had to ride with so many guards. The city was safe enough, and it was during the day. She did know, however, that it was important to keep up an appearance and to show strength. The people in the square parted and paused for a moment to offer respectful bows of their heads as the Princess passed. They were soon through the grand square and heading down the avenue towards the port. She had not been down to the port for over a year and was excited to see the ocean and all of the ships up close again.
They rode all the way to the very edge of the ocean. The sea was restless like it always was during the winter months. Kalista stared out over the choppy surface at the whitecaps that constantly crashed back and forth. Gavin reached out and took a hold of her hand as they sat atop their horses side by side, watching the majesty of the restless ocean. Her heart was much like the ocean. It was quite restless. Gavin did not hide his love for her anymore, and she did not hide her love for him. She wondered how long it would be before he asked her father for her hand in marriage. Kalista knew her father would happily give his permission since it had been his idea in the first place. She was restless for the engagement to be announced. There were already whispers everywhere in the palace, and she would rather have the truth put out in the open. They sat next to each other in silence, listening to the crashing waves. After enjoying the majesty of nature and one another’s presence, Gavin announced that it was time for them to continue on.
They left the ocean and headed back down the avenue. They then turned off of the avenue and headed towards the royal barracks. Kalista could soon see the large structure made of huge grey stones in the distance. The royal barracks made a sharp contrast against the white city wall of Calyn that rose up directly behind it. The main building was quite large, yet the open fields that extended out from the barracks were much larger. The expansive fields that kept the barracks isolated from the buildings of the city were used for the training of the royal troops.
Kalista marveled at how full of soldiers the fields were. She could not remember ever seeing them so full of activity. She knew her father was building up the army in preparation for the possibility of a war, but she had not realized just how much the enlistment in the royal army was being increased. Her father acted as though the threat from Balthus was nothing, but seeing such a large increase in troops made her realize that the High King was preparing for something larger than a small border skirmish.
“I have never seen so much activity down here,” she remarked to Gavin.
“Many troops are being trained right now, and many others are preparing to march with my father to Candus next week. It looks quite chaotic, does it not?”
Kalista nodded in the affirmative. As they began to cross the field, all of the activity suddenly stopped. All of the troops turned and dropped to a knee with their fists clenched over their hearts. Kalista was impressed at how fast all of the troops showed the proper respect and their sign of loyalty to the crown. There was no army that matched the discipline and loyalty of the royal army of Kalia. She could clearly see that such an increase in numbers had not changed that.
“At ease!” Gavin said in a loud, clear, and commanding voice. “Continue!”
As fast as they had stopped their activities, they took them up once again. Kalista looked at Gavin adoringly. He definitely was a natural born leader. As they finished making their way to the barracks, Kalista watched the troops performing their various routines. In the distance a large group of archers were practicing long range shooting, and closer to the road footmen were practicing formations. She could also see horsemen in the distance practicing maneuvers in the snow covered fields.
As they entered the courtyard of the barracks, they were stopped by the commandant of the barracks. He bowed quickly and motioned excitedly towards a large circle of soldiers. From atop their mounts, Kalista and her party could easily see over the heads of the soldiers and into the center of the circle. There was an incredible fight taking place. Four soldiers were all attacking one other soldier. Kalista wanted to ask why someone did not stop it, but then she realized they were only using practice swords.
She watched, amazed as the mountain of a man in the middle held the other four soldiers at bay. The swords in each of his hands swirled so quickly that Kalista could barely make them out. One of the attackers lost his sword and fell backwards as one of the large man’s swords slammed into his chest. The others picked up their attack but to no avail. The large man seemed untouchable. Soon two others were down and out of the fight. The only attacker left broke off and sized up the large man. The brief pause was soon over in a whirl of blades as the large man attacked. The lone attacker held off for quite a while before the large man ended the fight with an unexpected swipe to his opponent’s ankle.
The crowd of soldiers burst into cheers as the large man stood alone with clouds of fog rising from his mouth in the cold air. He then reached down to help his opponent up. The large man shook hands with his other opponents as they exchanged quick words. Several of the on looking soldiers started to slip away, hurrying back to their training. It was then that they noticed the presence of the Princess, and all in the courtyard quickly dropped to a knee and saluted. The commandant waved them to their feet with a snap of his fist. Soon there were only a handful of soldiers left in the courtyard, one of them being the large sword master.
“I am sorry for the wait, Princess and Commander General,” the commandant apologized. “I thought you would enjoy seeing that.”
“It was quite amazing,” Gavin answered. “I do not know if I have ever seen someone with skills to match his. Who is he?”
“His name is Blaize. He arrived here several months ago. I was instantly impressed by his fighting ability and even happier to find in him strong leadership qualities. He is a very interesting man. He came here as any other regular soldier. He mentioned when he enlisted that he had experience in warfare but said nothing else. When he began training, it was instantly obvious how good of a fighter he was. Those over him promoted him quickly to the most advanced group of soldiers. Even amongst them he continued to shine. He was respected by all in his group and took extra time to help them improve.
“I could see that all of the men looked up to him but was cautious of promoting a Balthan to a leadership position. After talking with him and getting to know him, however, I changed my mind and promoted him to an officer. He was incredibly respectful, and I felt that I could trust him with my life. As I got to know him better through tactical discussions and the such, I learned more of his background and of his keen intelligence on the battlefield. General Blaize served in the Balthan army for many years and helped to quell several rebellions in Balthus. He was also the captain guard for a wealthy merchant caravan for many years. Other than that I do not know what he has been doing for all his life. He is not married and has no family. I am not sure why he decided to join the royal army, being a Balthan and all, but I guess he just wants to fight for a good cause. After several weeks as an officer I asked him to be a general, and he humbly accepted. I will call him over so that you can meet him. He is one of the two gen
erals who will be marching with you in the spring.”
The commandant walked across the courtyard and returned with the large general. General Blaize saluted with hand over chest when he arrived in front of her and Gavin.
“That was a superb display of sword skill,” Gavin said, congratulating the soldier.
“Thank you, Commander,” General Blaize replied with a nod of his head.
“I am informed that you will be marching with me in the spring as one of my generals. From what I saw, I am pleased to have you on my side.” The large man smiled. “We will talk more later.”
The large man bowed and left as Gavin turned back to the commandant. Kalista watched as the man walked away. She had never seen such a large man. However, what fascinated the Princess the most was not his size, it was how light he was on his feet as he walked away. Watching him walk reminded her of the snow lion she had hunted with her father. She turned her attention back to the reason for the visit. At her side, Gavin was questioning the commandant about certain preparations for the upcoming march to Candus.
“Things are going as planned. Fifty thousand troops are ready to march with the baron, including two thousand horsemen. Another fifty thousand troops should be ready to march in the spring. Many of the troops are young and inexperienced, but the veterans are helping them. If this magician in Balthus thinks that he can step into Kalia with his army, he will be in for an unpleasant surprise.”
“That is good to hear,” Gavin said with a smile. “Let us proceed with the tour. We can talk more of these things later.”
Wielder's Awakening Page 27