The Tales of Asedith- Loyalty to the Crown

by Donald Davis

  The man looked as if he had lost hope. Before they dismissed him, Garron Trent spoke up. “Sir, I’m sure that we can spare a little coin. It may not be as much as last time, but I’m sure we can find something.” Some of the other members looked at Garron with wonder. “But my lord-,” one of them started. Garron cut him off and looked back at the man. “That’ll be all. We can spare fifty silvers.” The man’s face lit with joy. “Thank you, my lord.” Garron nodded. “We wish you good fortune and a prosperous turnout.” He looked up and noticed Joshua standing in the doorway. He then looked back towards the crowd. “Sorry everyone, that’ll be all for today. We will meet again in two days.” Some of the crowd muttered complaints about how they had been waiting for a long time and didn’t even get to appeal. The people scattered and left the room.

  When the crowd left, Garron approached Joshua. He was a fairly young man, only about fifteen years older than Joshua. He had short black hair and a well kept full beard. He struck Joshua as a friendly person. This could come in handy as a leader, considering that most people of Treadrock were still on edge from the war.

  “Ser Joshua Bracken, correct? I was told to expect you. Besides, I thought I recognized you from Keridion.” They shook hands, “Yes, it’s me. How do you fare Garron?” Garron spoke in a hushed tone, “I am well, thank you. Please, let’s proceed this conversation in my private workspace, shall we?” Joshua nodded, “Of course.” Joshua was glad that Garron was playing it safe. Not everyone from Treadrock would be glad to hear of a king’s knight that helped kill their previous leader had arrived in their city. Discretion was their best option at this point.

  Joshua followed Garron to his workroom. They entered and Garron had Joshua close the door behind them. The room was small and contained a few chairs and a couple of tables and a desk. The desk was lined in the corner of the room with tall stacks of paper on it. There were even stacks of paper that were on the floor all around the desk. It was clear that Garron was normally busy with appeals and the paperwork that followed everything. Those who couldn’t make it to court but lived within the boundaries of Treadrock would sometimes write letters to make requests to the leader of the city, which in this case, is now Garron.

  Garron immediately started moving stacks of paper and tried to clean up the room the best that he could. “Sorry ser, I should really keep the place cleaner than this. I’ve just been so busy ever since I’ve arrived from Keridion. So many things have changed.” Joshua nodded, thinking of his father and how his own situation had changed. “Certainly,” he agreed. The thought of Keridion and what happened to his father made Joshua think for a moment. Just in case, he kept his hand on the pommel of his sword at all times.

  Garron stopped moving things and motioned for Joshua to sit as he also sat down. “So, Joshua. The king has written about you and a mission that you’re on. How can I be of service?” Joshua was eager to get to business after the long ride, but he was also curious about other things. “Before we get started on that, I assume that you heard of my father’s death?” Garron nodded, “I have, ser. Such a tragedy. And if I may, I heard of the rumors that the men that attacked him were wearing Sulvaine armor, correct? I can surely understand any anger that you may have had built up against us, but I assure you that those men were not ordered. Not by me at least. Your father was a good man. If not for him and the mercy that he showed us, a lot more blood would have been spilled that night. And most of it would have been ours, most like.” Joshua nodded to his answer. Garron seemed like an honorable man. Joshua wasn’t always the best at discerning people, but in this case, he truly thought that Garron told the truth. “Apologies for the question, lord Garron. I meant no disrespect. My men had thought about things at the scene and they believed that perhaps Blaire had secretly ordered the small band to station there and wait on us to pass after the battle if we emerged victorious, giving them the perfect moment to strike father.” Garron seemed unsure. “That, I do not know of, ser. It’s possible that Blaire could’ve ordered such a thing in secret. He was a clever man, especially when it came to war.” Joshua couldn’t help but agree. “Yes. He truly had us fooled, thinking that he meant to assault Roseshire. Instead, he had half of his army waiting for us to come out. If we hadn’t managed to retreat to Keridion and turn the odds around, the Sulvaines may have been the ones that emerged victorious.”

  Garron nodded, “Again, he was a clever man. But at any rate, the war is over and we have a new king now. We are the ones that survived. Despite whatever side that we fought on in the war, we should focus on moving forward and uniting to make peace in the kingdom.” Joshua smiled. He couldn’t help but admire Garron a little. The world needed more men like him. Someone who seeks peace and unity for the sake of the kingdom and its people. “I couldn’t agree more,” he said. “Now, onto the task at hand.” Garron leaned forward in his chair, “Of course, ser.” Joshua continued, “So, the biggest task that I’ve been asked to do is to make sure that everything is running smoothly, with the transition in power and everything. Is everything going alright for you and the people of Treadrock?”

  Garron scratched his beard, thinking. “Actually, about that,” he started. “Everything seems to be going well… Except for one thing, ser. There is a group of rebels who remain here at Treadrock. It is a small group, but they could pose a threat. They are all veterans and survivors that fought in the rebellion. Once we returned from the war, they didn’t want to accept that the fight was over, that we should stand and hold our ground. Meanwhile, I tried to talk sense into them, as did the rest of the leadership council of the town. Last I heard of them, they said that they would be starting up the rebellion in the years to come. Saying that they would grow in numbers between now and then, getting stronger. I tried to leave them alone, thinking that over the past week that they would eventually calm down and return to their homes.” He shook his head. “I was foolish to think that they’d just stop. Yesterday, one of the leaders on the council went missing and we sent out men to look for him. We now have reason to suspect that it was the rebels who kidnapped him. One of the scouts was able to discover a small outpost area hidden in the mountains. From what they could see, they think that is where the rebels are camped. If they truly kidnapped the counselor, that’s probably where they would’ve taken him.”

  Joshua tried taking this all in. It was a lot to grasp. Even though it was only a small group of people who remained rebels, they still posed a threat. With new leadership and finally hope of restoring peace to the kingdom, the crown couldn’t afford for there to already be the talk of new rebellions. And if they did kidnap the counselor, they could not let this slide. Joshua also thought about his oaths that he swore. He swore that when need be, that he could carry out the king’s justice. As a sworn king’s knight, he knew deep down what he had to do. After thinking over the situation, he looked back to Garron. “How many men are with the rebels?” he asked. Garron answered, “I am unsure, ser. From the reports, I’d only guess about twenty? But they could have grown since then.” Joshua nodded. “Gather a hundred good men. You and I will ride out with them immediately and take care of them.”

  Three hours later, Garron had rounded up a hundred men just as Joshua asked. They all met up just outside of the leadership hall at the bottom of the stairs. Garron and Joshua worked together to explain the situation to the men, but most of them had already known the situation. Most of the men were eager to fight, considering the rebels had kidnapped one of their own. After the men had all gathered there, Joshua and Garron led the men up the trail to the mountains.

  As they climbed the winding road, Joshua couldn’t help but admire the view from above. When they reached the upper end of the trail, he could look out and see fields out in the distance. The territory of Treadrock itself was dry and didn’t usually have lush green grass as the fields of Roseshire did, but it was still a sight to see from high up. From the top, Joshua could see fields out in the distance, a few patches of green that marked the landscap
e with grass, and down below he could see the city of Treadrock itself. The people were like ants from above, running about their day. Once they climbed much more, they would no longer be visible.

  A few minutes later, it appeared that they were nearing the top. Garron and Joshua hadn’t talked much on the way up. They still didn’t want the men to know of Joshua’s role as a king’s knight from Roseshire. There would be a time to tell them, but not now, not so soon after the war. They let the men believe that he was a hired hand to help take down the remainder of the rebels. Most of the soldiers didn’t ponder on it. Joshua and Garron also knew what needed to be done. They took no pleasure in putting down men like this, but they knew that it had to be done. Since the previous war was still fresh in everyone’s mind, it was important to root out any hint of rebellion.

  After an hour of climbing the trail, they had finally reached the top. Garron motioned for the men to halt as the outpost had come into sight. It wasn’t very impressive, as it had only two small wooden walls that didn’t seem sturdy, and a singular gate that closed in the middle. There was only one archer tower with a man standing in it, and five men keeping watch outside of the walls. They appeared to be out of sight. It would be a great moment for a surprise attack, but they didn’t want to risk the counselor’s life if they did, in fact, capture him.

  Garron turned to the group, “Alright men, you know the drill. The sellsword and I will go forward and you will follow. Until either of us give the order, do not attack or provoke the enemy until we have the counselor safely returned. We want to save the man. In exchange for his safe return, we’ll offer the rebels time in a prison cell rather than face death. If at all possible, we want to resolve this without violence. But if they attack or become violent, we will respond accordingly. Now, does everyone understand?” The men all responded, “Yes, my lord.”

  “Very well then,” Garron said. “Let’s move.” Garron and Joshua led the men forward, slowly marching towards the gate. The archer spotted them and started shouting something to the men at the wall. One of them quickly ran into the outpost as the rest of them stayed there. The soldiers of Treadrock kept marching forward until they reached the walls. Garron stepped up and spoke to the archer. “Good evening. I am Garron Trent, leader of Treadrock. Do you have a leader amongst your group?” At that moment, a rough-looking man stepped up from behind the wall and stood on top of it. “Aye, that’d be me.” Garron turned to the other man.

  “Good evening. I am-,”

  “I know who you are,” the man interrupted. You’re the high and mighty new leader of Treadrock. Did you think that we would just be okay with you bending the knee to those fools from Roseshire? What gave you the right? You knew that there were some of us still at home, guarding the place. You made us look weak.”

  “I understand your frustration, I do. But the war was lost. Blaire had fallen and there was nothing we could do. I believe the most important thing to do now, is to work together and try to overcome our differences. I truly believe that we can finally arrange a long-lasting peace between all the major cities and territories of Asedith. Come, let us return to Treadrock. Come quietly and nobody has to die today.”

  The man grinned, “Ahh, I see.” He turned and said something to the men behind him. That was when one of the men walked up to the steps that led to the wall that the leader was on. He was grasping the missing counselor’s arm in his hand. He aggressively brought the counselor over to their leader and threw him at him. The counselor kneeled before the man, struggling. The rebel leader looked at Garron, “This is what you’re truly here for isn’t it? Well, you’ve certainly come to the right place.” Garron tried calmly approaching the gate. “Look, it doesn’t have to be this way. I apologize for any trickery, but what I said is still true. Nobody has to die today. If you come with us right now, peacefully, you have my word that the worst your people will receive is spending time in a cell for kidnapping.”

  The man’s face turned into a serious look as if he were contemplating. He then quickly turned aggressive. “Unlike you, we will never kneel. We don’t give up as easily. We will never surrender. We will never be your slaves.” He then took out a dagger and slowly cut the counselor’s throat. The counselor tried struggling and fighting back, but he was overpowered. He slowly stopped fighting back, then fell over dead.

  Garron looked on in shock, then quickly retreated to the soldiers as archers prepared arrows, one in the archer’s tower and five more that appeared behind the wall from above. The archers then loosed arrows, killing a few of the men that were in front. Joshua and Garron managed to retreat just in time. “Men, take them down!” Garron shouted. Treadrock’s archers made quick work of taking out the man in the tower. The rebel archers managed to take out a few more men before they were eventually taken out by the other archers.

  With the archers taken out, Garron, Joshua, and the other men ran towards the gate. The gate wasn’t sturdy, so they made quick work of it and started pouring into the outpost. Behind the walls, there was just a small camp with two small huts for beds and places for the men to sleep, a forge for weapons, and a stable for their horses, which only contained a few of them. When the men poured into the outpost, they found that they outnumbered them at least four to one. The men from Treadrock started slaughtering the men inside, who fought well enough, but were far too outnumbered to truly have a chance of victory. Joshua and Garron let the other men fight, as they looked for the rebel leader. They looked around and saw the man running up stairs that had been built into the side of the mountain. He reached a ledge and pulled some sort of lever. It was then when an avalanche of rocks and boulders started falling onto the men below. “Fall back!” Garron shouted. But it was too late. The boulders fell too quickly and crushed several soldiers. The rebel leader knew that they were outnumbered, so he had lured them into the outpost to take them out.

  Since Joshua and Garron had retreated towards the back of the soldiers earlier, they were further away from them and managed to not get hit. When the boulders eventually stopped falling, the two of them looked around the yard. A few rebels remained, while only about half of the Treadrocks soldiers were still alive. The avalanche had taken dozens of them out. Garron was usually a man to keep calm, but he filled with rage. “Finish them off!” he shouted. The men charged forth and killed the last remaining rebels as Joshua and Garron ran towards the steps and pursued the leader. The man started to run up even more, and the two of them followed.

  When they had reached the top, the leader ran towards the edge of a cliff and turned around. “You have nowhere to go,” Garron said. The man started laughing. “What makes you think that I intended to live through this? As soon as my men kidnapped that counselor, I knew that it meant the end of me.” The man seemed half-crazed, but he did seem clever in his own right. At least he could see that there was no way out. The man spoke up again. “I just wanted to make a point. I know that I can’t change your mind, but I had to at least try. If we don’t attempt our goals, they’ll never come to pass. My goal was to make everyone independent, to an extent. We shouldn’t have to bend the knee or obey someone who lives a three day’s ride away. They know nothing of us, Garron. Can’t you see? Bending the knee makes us look weak. And it shows that as long as we never stand up for ourselves, we will always be walked over.”

  “It’s different this time,” Garron said. He then pointed at Joshua. “You see this man? He is Joshua Bracken, son of the previous king, and a king’s knight for the new king. We’re working together to rebuild the bond between the cities and the crown. There’s truly a chance of peace here.” He held out his hand to the rebel. “Come, let us try. If we can all put our differences aside, we can make a better world. A better kingdom.” The man shook his head. He looked at Joshua, “Your father got what was coming to him.” Before Joshua could react, the man had already started speaking to Garron again. “I tried. But now, you’ve got to live with the monster that you’ve helped create.” These words took them bot
h by surprise. The rebel then turned around and let himself fall off the cliff. Joshua and Garron ran towards the edge, just in time to see the body hit the ground far below.

  Chapter 12: The Package

  Neither Joshua or Garron spoke much on the way back from the mountain. They were both in disbelief of what had just happened. Joshua was lost in thought. At what point does someone have to be to give up like that? He was also curious as to what the man meant by his last words. He couldn’t wrap his head around it. The monster he helped create? What does that mean?

  The trip didn’t seem to last as long as the ride up the mountain. Joshua, Garron, and the soldiers had returned to Treadrock. They all gathered at the bottom of the steps of the leadership hall. At this point it was already dark outside. It was either late at night or early morning, Joshua wasn’t sure. “Thank you for all your help tonight,” Garron spoke up. “It may not seem like it, but the sacrifices of the others were not in vain. If we had not taken down the rebels, it would have been far worse within the years to come. Now, the families of those who lost someone today will be well looked after. We will not forget them, nor the bravery that you all had today.” Garron was saying the words, but his thoughts seemed to be elsewhere. “I want to thank you all personally for this service. You may return home to your families for the night.”

  As the soldiers all spread out on their separate ways, Garron eased his horse over to the stables and dismounted his horse. Joshua then did the same, and they began their walk up the stairs together. They eventually made it to the top and reached Garron’s quarters. When the doors closed, there was still an uncomfortable silence for a short while. “Ser, I have to ask,” Garron said. “Did we truly have to march and kill those men?” There was doubt in his eyes. “Yes, lord. There was no other way. It is as you said, they would have grown over the years if not.” Garron was still not satisfied. “Yes, but perhaps there was some other way to handle the situation. Something. It sounds easy enough, but it’s not. I led dozens of men to their deaths today.” Joshua could tell that he was haunted. “My lord, I know your pain. I have also led men to death before. I realize that it seems your fault, but it’s not. When you’re a lord, death among your men is inevitable. There will always be some sort of conflict, and that’s something that we can’t control. But we have to try to keep the peace, whenever possible.”