by P. S. Power
The trouble there wasn’t in them knowing about it, of course.
As he finished his bowl, using a piece of bread as a scoop for it, Anders waved his hand.
“Ery and I will wash up. We need to get packed and ready to leave at first light, I bet. We should hurry.” He sounded a bit like he thought he might be in charge, so he looked at Sir Humphrey. “Is that right, I mean?”
The knight looked at him as if he might just catch a blow to the side of the head for his cheek and presumption, then nodded.
“Good call. Let’s get everything packed up and ready. We need riders out front. Sir Norman and Sir Rob, you’ll see to that today, please. A word, Page Andy?” His voice was a bit angry sounding, which wouldn’t be a good thing.
Anders, the boy inside, winced, but Farad simply moved toward the other man, ready to be yelled at, scolded or possibly struck. He’d made a mistake and didn’t doubt that it would be corrected.
The fellow rubbed his right temple, as if fighting a headache. Anders had a spell for pain, which could work for that, if he used it carefully. It was meant to deaden all pain though, in case someone was in dire pain, such as after losing a limb or being horribly burned. Practice wasn’t a poor idea though, and he could do a smaller version of it.
Before he could mention that, the other man turned to him.
“Do we have a report on what to expect ahead?”
“I have one, for this area. I was mainly looking for food earlier. Um... Last night, I found a man in the camp, Rofer Keen. He’s planning to rape one of the ladies traveling with us. The whores. He figures that they won’t tell anyone, because they won’t be believed if they do. He’s done it before, but that was over ten years ago.” He waited, in case the other man wanted him to do something, like check ahead of them. It was common sense, but he hadn’t thought of that, in particular, that day.
The lack of it stung a bit, since it was actually part of his task on the trip. Yes, his self-assigned one, but forgetting that portion was a poor plan.
Sir Humphrey simply nodded.
“That happens. I’ll look into the man and give him a hint or two that anyone doing that kind of thing here will end up dead on the side of the road. Profer Keen, you said?”
Looking at the man, Anders tightened his face.
“Rofer Keen, I think. I’ll do that check now... I’m rather failing at keeping things quiet, about what I can do. Sir Norman pointed that out, earlier. I can get food in and do things... But not from hiding. I really thought I could, yesterday, but...” He felt horrible, admitting he wasn’t up to the task he’d been assigned.
Anders felt himself tearing up, which surprised him. The muscular man in front of him patted him on his mail covered shoulder.
“Then do it another way. If we need magic and have it, pretending we don’t, aids no one.”
He closed his eyes then, and looked ahead of them. There were several places along the road ahead where they could get water, but the Caravan Master knew them all, already. There were animals along the way, which he muttered about, and, in a small camp, six brigands who had come to try their guards.
They were off to the left, about seven miles ahead.
Keeping his eyes closed, he spoke.
“They have swords, bows, no real skill with either, but they can and will kill, if need be. The plan is to follow us and sneak in at night, letting us pass them.” He found something else, so nodded. “They’re near a herd of wild cattle. I can take some of those, later in the day.” One of them at least. Though, he could freeze things, after butchering, if he didn’t have to hide who and what, he was any longer.
When he opened his eyes, he saw that Sir Humphrey had a map out and Sir Rob was with him, pointing at something. When they noticed him joining them, Prince Robarts pointed at the map in his hands.
“Do you have a location we can mark, Master Brolly?” The words sounded strange, but no one there reacted to it.
Not even him. He simply moved in and pointed at the right area.
“They’re just about here, right now. Near the river on the left side of the road, near the bend. Six. They have horses and a medium cart, to carry away goods.”
There was a nod then from Sir Humphrey, who pointed at the map, then took out a grease pencil and marked where the attackers were. After a moment, he shrugged. It made the bronze colored armor glint slightly in the early light.
“I need to let the Caravan Master know what’s going on. Be ready to ride. Brolly, keep us apprised of what movements you can track while we travel.”
The man turned then, and moved away at a quick walk, leaving the rest of them to pack things away, or in his case, wash up. Prince Erold did try to help with that chore. Poorly. Then, it wasn’t amazing to find out the boy had never washed a dish before. Even while camping out, or in his own training. There were always people to do that kind of thing for him.
The Prince hissed a bit, while washing bowls, the large pot and the pan in the stream. Anders dried them, using magic, since it worked better than using a cloth would. Anders snapped his gaze to the boy, since the sound was unusual.
“I should go and fight these men. Instead, I’m going to be left back here, peeling fruit and protecting the wagon, I wager.” There was a sense of misery from the blonde young man.
Anders rolled his eyes. Then recalled what Depak Sona had told him. That it was important not to protect people too much. Even if his first thought honestly was to try and do just that for the royalty in their midst. After all, he’d just had to teach Erold how to wash a dish. That didn’t inspire confidence.
Except that the other boy had been trained to fight, had good armor and even weapons. What he lacked in homely tasks such as washing up, he actually made up for in what was being planned that day. Of course, sending in Erold, alone, or with a half dozen full knights just meant he’d be there at the ambush, while doing little to nothing real. If that was what would happen, he might as well stay back with the wagons.
They got the work done and everything loaded, oxen and horses ready, well before the call came to move out. After that, with almost a mile behind them already, Sir Humphrey rode over to him, having made a line back to him nearly directly.
“Any news?”
He nodded at the man, who was riding near enough to talk, if not secretly. He was off to the left, his large charger prancing a little proudly. Brownie eyed the tan horse with a bit of suspicion, even if they probably knew each other, from the stables. Anders didn’t have much, but he had checked, twice.
“They’re awake for the day, but haven’t moved at all yet. Not even to get ready. I don’t think they know that we’re coming today. Just that a caravan of goods will be past soon.” Really, he was certain on that point, but didn’t want to be too firm that way. “You know, you should send the squires for this. These men aren’t great fighters, and...” Taking a shuddering breath, he went on. “And the truth is, they need a taste of battle, of the reality of it, before we get to the front and they have to face an army. I know, that might not happen. This time. It will eventually. If they aren’t ready... Well, then they aren’t.”
He waited then, half expecting the man to tell him how foolish and wrong he was. He felt that way, now that the words were out. Sending boys to murder men like that was a horrible thing to do.
The knight took a deep breath, then smiled.
“Good thinking. I’d planned to have them hold back to guard the caravan, while half of the knights rode out. Five to six... That’s not even odds. Are you going with them?”
He shook his head.
“That... I could sneak in and kill them all, but that’s not the point. We’ll send Ery with them. Faine can lead?” He didn’t know that at all, but he was the Squire of the lead Knight.
The other man grumped at him then, hiding a bit of a smile.
“He could, but I think... Squire Howard should do that part. He’s solid, is good at strategy and the oldest. Here, let me...” He looked ar
ound then simply yelled. Loud. “Squires to Brolly’s wagon!”
That got echoed and called out in both directions, forward and back. It went on for a while, with the riders in tan and mail coming at them at good speed, over the next few minutes. When they were all there, the head Knight held his right hand up. Nothing else was needed to gain their attention.
“We have a threat. Thieves planning to trail after us and steal in the night. Six of them. They’re off to the left side of the road, ahead. Here, come look at the map.”
They did that from the saddle, which took more skill that way than Anders had yet. Even Erold managed it easily enough to look like the others. When they all had the needed information, Humphrey spoke again.
“You six will ride ahead and remove them from the world. They should have horses and a cart. Bring those back, if possible. Squire Howard is in charge. The rest of us will be back here, so if you get into trouble...” He smiled then and laughed. It sounded a bit dark. “Then get yourselves out of it. Work together and use your training. We have lances in the other wagon. Any questions?” The man looked at Howard for that.
That squire looked affably odd, having bucked teeth and red hair. His ears were too large for his head and his face wasn’t the same on both sides. He was sturdy looking though, and seemed nearly like a full knight already, not seeming nervous about the task at all. He did have questions, good ones, which were answered by Anders going into a trance, openly. Then, armed that way, the six rode off.
Sir Humphrey watched them leave, moving to the front, where the other wagon was.
“Now they either return men or dead. This is going to make for a tense morning, Master Brolly. Are you going out hunting?”
That made sense, given the others were going to face possible death. It made it sound like he was playing and having fun, while they did it.
“I think that the early portion will be spent gathering plants, if I can. Then getting some wild cattle, later this afternoon. I might be able to turn the hides into tough, warm clothing, for the children and their mothers. Possibly not. I’ve never done that before, but it should work. We can only carry so much food with us, at once, of course.”
The knight seemed to think for a bit, and didn’t answer, for nearly an hour. He actually rode away, and came back, later. From the back of the line.
“They have some room, in their wagons. We can part the food out to everyone and spread the load that way. At least the food for the day. Get that in. Keep an eye on the boys? If they get into trouble... Can you do anything from here?”
Anders had to think then, and shook his head.
“Not at all. I can watch, but they’re on their own.”
The man nodded, then rode off again. Next to him, Sir Daniel shook his head.
“Well. Let’s just hope none of them die. If we lose a Prince, we might as well kill ourselves at first opportunity, you know that, don’t you?”
The thing there was that he honestly did know that. It made for a nerve wracking several hours. Even as he watched everything unfold.
Chapter eight
It was fascinating, watching the battle unfold at a distance, in a trance state like Anders was using. His mind focused on the happenings, but no emotional background came from inside himself. He felt the fear of the squires as they rode into the camp, surround it and scattering the men inside of it as they sat, or in one case, went to look for more firewood.
Then he felt the panic of the bandits, as they were chased down and died. Two of them managed to swing their swords around, but the lances of the riders ended them in a quick fashion. The one man that was run through, yet still lived, was hacked to death by Squire Howard. The funny looking man was cold about it, simply ending the suffering of the thief, much as he would have a wounded animal. After that, they all stood around, waiting for what seemed like several moments. Counting the six dead men, several times to make certain they had them all.
Anders smiled then, and spoke softly. Loud enough that Daniel, Robarts and Humphrey could hear him as he bounced along in the wagon.
“They have them all. Squire Howard ordered a search of the area, to make certain they didn’t miss anyone, even if the count is correct. There were no real injuries, on our side. A few minor bruises. Mainly from hitting themselves with their own weapons as they moved.”
There was a very soft voice from the side. Anders couldn’t tell who was speaking however, his attention on that spot, some three miles ahead of them.
“I always do that as well, outside of plate.”
Some while later, still watching them, he was able to go on.
“They’re laying the dead out, and collecting what they had with them. Then the plan is to wait for us to reach them, instead of coming back this way, carrying everything.”
He opened his eyes then, still deep enough that his affect was flat and probably seemed slow or a little like he was gone in the head. Anders looked over at the others, with all of them smiling a bit. No one spoke as to why that was, but it was mainly relief that no one had died, on their side. At the same time, they’d removed six problems from the future of their land.
Blinking a bit, he waited, then noted that the others had simply ridden away. After saying something to Sir Daniel and himself. He hadn’t noticed what that was at all. Stopping for a moment, he shook himself, trying to come upward, toward the surface of his mind. Finally, after a minute, he nodded.
“I need to get to collecting up some plants. I’m just going to use magic for it. Um... Let me...” He waited for the man next to him to glance over, and then nod.
Sir Daniel sighed.
“Be careful. Oh, also, have you checked in with the castle? I don’t know if there’s a plan for that.”
There wasn’t, specifically. Master Tolan had learned to use the message spell well enough for most of the King’s communications to the front. Anders knew the man wasn’t as quick as he was that way, in writing the spell out each time and he made some minor mistakes, on occasion, so words came out wrong, but he was getting better and could make himself understood clearly enough that no one had felt that Anders needed to do more than check in, occasionally.
Doing it right then, he was able to check in with a few people, inside a very short period of time. Master Depak was worried over a report he’d gotten from home, as well as the state of his room servant Daren, who seemed upset that day, and Princess Aisla was working on practicing her magic, in secret. She noticed him watching, but didn’t attempt to communicate. Master Tolan worked out that he was watching him, and did the same in return.
That meant they were able to simply talk, after a fashion. He took a moment, reported the successful attack, the nature of it and who was involved on both sides, then realized that Master Tolan also wanted a more specific breakdown, when the men involved could report. After all, Prince Erold had been involved directly. It made the rather minor event a good bit more important, to his parents.
He nodded then.
“I’ll need to work up a real report later, but Master Tolan has the basics. For now... I need to see to some roots. That and mushrooms. I’ll meet you up ahead.”
He climbed straight back into the wagon, pulled three empty large canvas sacks, which left him with only one that wasn’t in use, and carefully hopped down, his light weight not hurting too much when he hit the dirt. From there he walked to the woods, on the right side of the road, where it was a bit damper. That would be good for mushrooms, he thought. Growing things in general, in fact.
The collection process was a lot more manual in nature, since he had to find items that were growing under other things, instead of simply denuding a single tree or bush. It actually took less energy to do it by hand. He used the skills of the wizard to find where the roots where, which helped a lot. He also found another bee hive, that he would have simply missed totally, if he hadn’t used magic for it and bothered to look for it specifically. Actually, he found six of the things, but only one was in easy walking
distance. Not wanting to lose the time, he simply got the closer one, using magic and a bit of fast walking to escape the bees that were upset over the loss of their hard work. He also collected a lot of bitters and herbs, for flavoring. In all it was a varied and rather nice collection of food stuffs. No grains, of course. They didn’t grow in the forest, after all.
This time he didn’t need to use magic to carry the sacks with him, even though the one with the roots was weighty enough to give a serving to about half the people in the caravan. Stretched with travel bread and meat, with a bit of fruit on the side and it would be enough for the late meal. His forearms ached by the time he loaded everything in the back of the wagon, wedging the food in place between some barrels and a box or two. Then he hopped up into the wagon and put his hands out for the reins.
“Sorry. You aren’t here to be a driver, just show me what to do. I feel lazy. I’ve barely been driving at all.” Not a bit, that day.
The Knight snorted.
“I wouldn’t put it that way. There is a point there. It’s your wagon, after all. What did you get?”
He listed it all off, the man going wide eyed when the sack of honeycomb was mentioned. Anders had tucked it all into one sticky bag, which was about a quarter full. Most of it would be wax, of course.
Sir Daniel grinned.
“That’s a good find. People on the road don’t get sweet things too often, and can’t afford to bring them. Some might be willing to trade for some honey, I wager. Then, they would for the other food as well, if they can.”
That wasn’t his plan, but he got the basic idea, or at least an idea, that the other man might, or may not, have been getting at.
“You mean to use that to collect up some items that could help the poor in the back of the line? That’s a good thought. I don’t know how to do things like that. I... Really, I’ve never been taught what to do with coin or goods like that.”
The man next to him nodded then.
“I really haven’t, either. No knight has. We have enough, and more for the most part, but the managing of gold is generally in the hands of others. You know, I bet... Um, Rob, would have that kind of thing down better than we would. Barring that, maybe someone in the line could do it for us?” The fellow shrugged and looked forward, at the other wagons there.