When they entered the castle, Rockwood pushed his way through one of the side doors, revealing a stairwell Will had never seen. With a nod, he vanished down the steps, moving carefully with the tunnel boy still in his arms.
The three made their way through another door, on the left, that led up a broad flight of stairs to the infirmary. All the while, Colin grumbled that he had just left the place while Rowan complained that Rockwood would take forever to get them fed. “I know Rockwood, and he’s going to feed that boy that just tried to off the King, then he’s going to send us food and then he’s going to tell me ‘Rowan, that’s a lesson in humility’ or some other rubbish. Real piece of work, that knight.”
Will silently agreed; Rowan had a point. It seemed very much like something that Rockwood would do.
Once in the healing chamber, the head healer, a squat man with a round nose that matched his build, ordered them to wash behind a set of heavy curtains, handed them clean sleeping tunics, then barked at them to lie down.
They had just finished having packs of snow from outside pressed against their burns, salves put on their cuts, and forced to drink a strong-tasting liquid that Will decided he hated when the door flew open. Novin, clean but still battered, was followed by Leaf and Loper. More welcome than the sight of their friends was the sight of the food they had clearly smuggled up from downstairs.
“We bear gifts!” Loper announced dramatically and bowed, holding out a loaf of bread like an offering to a King.
“Brilliant, I am starved!” Rowan shimmied himself upright in the bed, his stomach loudly echoing his sentiment.
The three visitors perched on the edge of each bed, passing food around, joking and retelling the accounts of the fight in mild exaggeration. Loper and Leaf were most fascinated, having not been told that the rescue was happening, let alone invited.
“So, what happened to that lad you brought up?” Novin asked finally.
“Rockwood took him to the dungeons,” Colin said.
Novin nodded slowly. “So, since no one will answer our questions about the tunnels…you think he would? I mean, from what talk I caught on to when Rockwood got back to the hall, he and Ross want to evaluate if he’d be a fit for the squires.”
“He tried to kill the King!” Rowan argued.
“He tried to complete whatever was told to the entire troop to do, and he was the closest, and he’s a kid. Plus, the King is super lenient on giving people the chance to swear to the throne. So long as they stay with the throne. He doesn’t do do-overs from what I’ve heard,” said Novin.
Rowan shrugged noncommittally.
After a while, the healer reappeared, ushering Loper, Novin, and Leaf out of the door. He then wheeled on the other three squires, ordering them to go to sleep.
But, lying in the dark, listening to the breathing of his two friends become rhythmic as they fell asleep, Will couldn’t shake the visions from the tunnel. He had injured people by flailing the sword, but he knew he had had to for them to escape. He had seen the knights kill people, people he didn’t even know existed, to save their lives. Even though he had made sure not to focus on the bodies, he knew they were down there, below the castle. But why? Who are they, he thought, rolling onto his side, and why are they against Alamore? How did they get below the castle? He wondered if the boy would talk to them and, as he finally started to fall asleep, if the King would actually show mercy on his would-be killer.
***
It was three days before the squires were released from the sick room. In that time, Novin had reported that the boy who had tried to kill the King had been moved to the squire chamber, but that there was no word yet if he would be training with them. The older squires, such as Haru and Novin, had been tasked with keeping an eye on him.
Rowan seemed the most reserved about the idea, announcing that he would hold his opinion until he was around him longer. So far it sounded, to Will, like the boy was polite though shy. They still didn’t know what his name was so continued to refer to him as ‘the boy.’
When the three entered the squires’ chambers, Rowan juggling the six peaches they had snatched from the nearly empty breakfast table, they found themselves alone with the boy. He was sitting on the edge of a bed further down the row from their own beds and seemed transfixed with Rowan’s juggling.
“Rowan, toss me one of those, I’m starving,” said Will, catching the fruit as Rowan obliged. He took a bite, juice dripping down his chin, and propped himself on the foot of his own bed to continue watching Rowan’s antics.
Rowan seemed to finally notice that there was more than Will and Colin in his audience and a grudging smile turned one corner of his mouth. “Heads up, Col,” He said, passing another fruit from his hands to Colin. Colin caught it, one-handed, and laughed as he shook his head.
Rowan caught the four peaches and, two in each hand unexpectedly walked toward the boy. The boy seemed to recognize Rowan and visibly tensed, eyes flitting around the room for an escape.
“You want to try? I’d teach you,” Rowan said, his voice much softer than Will had ever heard it. It was as though he was trying to calm a wild animal.
Will watched the boy nod hesitantly before Rowan sat down beside him, passed him the fruit, and began teaching. At first, he dropped them but, as Rowan went through the movement again, Will could see the boy focusing intensely on Rowan.
Quiet he might be, a fool he is not, thought Will as the boy tried again, managing a few rotations before dropping one of the peaches. He continued, clearly determined, with the ones he still had in the air as Rowan picked up the fourth and bit into it. “That’s enough for now, go ahead and have some breakfast with us,” Rowan said through a mouth full of juice. “You know, you’re a fast learner.”
The boy nodded again and set aside the extra peaches before looking over the one in his hand. He seemed skeptical.
“Haven’t you ever had a peach?” Will asked, pressing the corner of his tunic sleeve to his mouth to wipe off the last of the juice.
The boy shook his head.
“You’ll enjoy that then,” said Colin.
The boy took a tentatively small bite, stared at the peach, then took a larger bite, which made the three squires laugh. “Great, right?” Rowan asked.
The boy nodded; his mouth full.
“What is your name?” asked Will, still surprised how the boy had not uttered a single word.
He didn’t answer for a long moment. “You’re Will, right?” his voice made all three boys start. It was clear and strong, not the quiet whisper Will had expected at all.
“Yeah, that’s me,” Will replied somewhat surprised by the statement.
“I’m not too fast a learner, you’re just a good teacher,” the boy said looking at Rowan. “You exaggerated those movements the second time, it made it easy to pick up.”
Rowan blinked several times then shook his head, taken aback. “Well, thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Before they could question him further, the door to the squire’s hall swung open and Sir Ross entered. Colin, in his normal style, sat up straighter and fidgeted nervously with the peach pit in his hand. Rowan shot Will a look that said he was clearly not in the mood to get to work right after getting back from the healer, and the boy watched the knight with a steady and measuring look.
“Please tell me we won’t have any more delays,” he growled, dangerously. “because I am sure you are the only three squires in this castle now, who have not tried their new horses.”
Rowan’s look changed to one of excitement. Ross saw it and raised his eyebrows. “These aren’t finished warhorses, Rowan. They have had a start on their training but you are going to get thrown more than once from them. There will be days you are going to miss the ponies. Speaking of the ponies,” his eyes shifted to the boy. “There’s a grey pony tied at the rail with the three horses for these boys. It was Will’s, he can point it out. For now, you’ll be on that animal. What we do with you migh
t be up in the air, but I can’t stand idle boredom so I had to find something to make you do.”
The boy straightened at being addressed by the knight. “Thank you…Sir?” the last part came out as almost a question and he glanced nervously at Colin, who nodded in approval.
“Good,” Ross crossed his arms. “I assume that, with the time you’ve had since leaving the sick rooms, you’ve had a chance to eat. So, I will see you shortly,” With that he turned and left, missing Rowan’s obvious eye-roll.
“He knows we didn’t eat; he just doesn’t like when I have fun,” Rowan complained.
“Perhaps so, but I am not going to be the one to make him angry,” said Colin. The others agreed and followed Colin out, passed the tables that were being cleared by pages, through the entry hall, and into the courtyard.
Cold air pressed against their faces as they stepped onto the frozen dirt. Someone had pushed the thin layer of snow away from the main entry, as well as the majority of the courtyard. Their breath rose in clouds before them as the four stared at the hitching rails in front of the barn. The familiar red horse from the night they had spent in the barn, blocked the majority of their sight of the other two horses. The grey pony, at the far end, was clearly visible as he had stubbornly stood as far back as his tie would permit.
“You’ll have fun with that one,” Will warned the boy, rubbing his hands together to warm them.
As they approached the horses, they saw that one was jet black with a wide blaze of white down his face and the other was a deep blood bay. Gaps between the horses showed where other squires had untied their animals already, as well as name plaques. The plate in front of the red horse had “Colin” and he let out a gasp of excitement. The sorrel horse politely lifted his nose toward the squire’s face, inquisitive.
The black horse’s own tag had Rowan’s name and he stared at his horse, open-mouthed. “This is awesome,” He stated, stepping around the rail to stroke the course black winter coat.
Will and the blood bay stared at one another for some time before he noticed that it was his own name in front of the horse. He swallowed nervously. He was excited for a real horse but he had just started with the pony not that long ago and something about this horse made him uneasy. It was as though there was a fire in the depths of the brown eyes, daring him to challenge the massive animal. “Looks like you’re stuck with me, horse,” He said, inching closer.
“Now you four need to get saddled.”
Will jumped. He had been so focused on the bay that he hadn’t seen Rockwood approach them. “But two things first. A knight without fingers is useless, so put these gloves on,” he handed them each a pair and Will slid his on eagerly. The insides were lined with some sort of soft pelt and he felt the warmth returning to his numb hands. “And the second thing is that no self-respecting knight will ride a nameless horse,” He raised his eyebrows. “So, I want to hear names. Colin? Have you got one?”
Colin nodded firmly; his eyes fixed on the sorrel. “Strider. That was the name of my brother’s horse,” His face softened for a moment and he busied himself making the sorrel’s forelock lay flat.
“Excellent choice, I like your reasoning too,” Rockwood told him, gripping his shoulder. “Rowan, any ideas? And I hope it isn’t a name like those you have been calling your unfortunate pony.”
Reddening, Rowan looked at his horse. “I think I’ll name him Naja.”
Rockwood laughed at his squire, shaking his head. “I like it, though it’s a little strange to name a horse Dark in a language you were bent on not learning as a page.”
Rowan shrugged, grinning. “I figure there has to be a reason I remembered just that word.”
“Will, how about yourself?”
Will hesitated, staring at the dark eyes of the horse. He felt like he could not put a word on the power that the horse seemed to emanate. “I-I don’t know, Sir. He reminds me of fire, but I don’t care for that as a name.”
“Visra,” Will turned. The boy from the tunnel was untangling the pony’s mane and had said the word as if he hadn’t even realized he was speaking.
“What was that?”
The boy turned red. “Sorry, your description just made me think of that word. In the tunnels, we have a bit of a language of our own. Visra would roughly translate to the power of fire, or the damage fire can cause. Not like something that’s burned, but like, what fire could do? The chaos it causes, I guess,” he looked guiltily at Rockwood as if concerned he’d be reprimanded.
Rockwood just snorted. “Typical, the one who has just started to be trained would be bilingual. Rowan, you could learn a thing or two from him.”
Will looked at the horse. “Visra,” he muttered. He liked the way it seemed to roll off his tongue. As he said it, the horse perked his ears forward, as if to attention. “I think you’ve found him the name.”
He turned to the boy but the boy was already focused again on the grey pony.
Rockwood nodded approvingly. “I believe it fits that horse. Will, that animal will teach you a lot but he’s going to be well worth it by the time you are both ready to fight,” The knight turned to the boy from the tunnel. “How about yourself? Not many of the squires name their ponies but you’re welcome to.”
The boy beamed. “I would love to. I’d like to name him Stag.”
“Stag?” Rockwood laughed. “He looks nothing like a stag!”
“He might not but it’s on the Alamore banner, and I like it,” the boy said, shrugging.
“Good enough. Right, boys, there are saddles and bridles in the tack room. Will, point out where Stag’s tack is and then I need all of you to get saddled and lead your horses around the castle to the jousting field. It’s about time these horses got worked.”
The boys agreed and Rockwood left them to find their tack.
As the knight had said, the saddle racks were labeled with each of their names. After showing the boy where the pony’s tack was stored, Will reached for his new saddle, heart racing with excitement. The bridle was laid across the seat, assembled and ready for his new horse. He carried his tack to the horse and watched Colin’s slow movements with his own new mount. Colin was letting the red horse investigate each piece of tack before even trying to put it on.
Turning to his horse, Will lifted the blanket slowly to the big blood bay’s nose. He sniffed it suspiciously, eyes locked with Will’s as if daring him to try to attack. Once the horse had relaxed, Will placed the blanket before repeating the process with the saddle and bridle.
When his horse was saddled, he turned to see if the boy from the tunnel needed help but he was already swinging onto the pony, running his hand over the short neck and muttering to it softly. Impressed, Will focused his attention back on Visra. He lifted himself carefully onto the saddle, being sure not to drop his full weight onto the horse’s back unexpectedly. Once his right foot was in its stirrup, his lower back relaxed to the fit of the saddle and he let out the air he hadn’t even realized he was holding.
After Rowan had mounted, they walked the horses and pony around the castle to the jousting field, where Novin, Loper, Delvin, and Saget were working their horses already. Rockwood waved them through the gate and they joined.
The large strides of the bay were so unfamiliar to Will. He could sense that Visra was equally uncomfortable with his rider, as his ears flicked back to listen for any sound from Will.
“Easy boy, we are going to take it easy,” Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the boy from the tunnel already long trotting the pony along the railing, rising and falling with the movement. He couldn’t remember a time when the pony had looked so controlled at that gait.
The bay started sideways slightly as Novin cantered past on his light chestnut and made Will jump and pull up on the reins. Visra stopped abruptly and Will nearly slid off the front of the horse.
“Keep your movements slower, Will,” Rockwood called.
Red in the face with embarrassment, Will moved the horse into a
walk again. Once he felt that Visra had relaxed, he pushed the horse for a trot. After a few large circles at that gait, he felt comfortable enough to ask the horse into a canter.
The movement felt like flying to Will. It was long and smooth, nothing comparable to the short and choppy pony. He relaxed to ride in rhythm and gave the horse enough rein to move from their circle to the rail that surrounding the jousting arena. Though he noticed the other riders, his attention was fixed on his horse.
Novin’s horse passed on their inside leg and, in a flash, Will felt himself lose control of the bay. The red and black ears pressed back against the thick neck and Visra bolted to pass Novin.
“Easy, easy,” Will tried to keep his voice calm as Colin always instructed on the ponies but terror was creeping into it as the horse quickly approached the curve in the rail. His hands were fumbling the reins and he gripped the mane instinctively as he prepared to crash through the thin fencing. Instead, they left the world behind as Visra flew into the air and landed on the far side.
Ranger of Kings (William of Alamore Series Book 1) Page 8