Honour Thy Lady

Javis had finally caught his breath and my muscles started to relax, but my eyes were as active as ever. “Keep in mind boy, when it rains, it pours. Same with monsters, where there’s some, there’s a lot more. The trick is staying ahead of them. Now do you have any questions?”

“Sir, if I may, I would like to know about wielding two swords.”

“Hah! You need to be able to use your shield properly before you use a sword in your off hand. Having two swords means you can attack twice as often, that is true, but it also leaves you more exposed. Had they attacked more than just one or two at a time, or had they been out for blood, I would have preferred the shield.” I let my apprentice think this over as the ride continued. The eagerness stayed in his eyes however, so I was left to believe that he wasn’t thinking of my lesson, but rather how he would fight with two swords. Next he will chop his leg off and wish for me to replace it with another blade!

Soon after that conversation the peak of the castle broke he horizon, pulling our eyes momentarily away from the surrounding forest. As we continue our approach, the castle just keeps growing. When we get close enough to see the entrance with the entirety of the castle before us, Javis can only stare with his mouth completely agape. I lean down to the driver and inquire about the owner of this magnificent sight.

“Sir Marcus, this is the castle of Duke Frederick of Salisbury. He owns the entirety of the forest that we have been traveling through, as well as several towns.”

“Has he informed the pixies of his rule of their homes and of his guests? Because if so, I should inform him of our difficulties so he may tend to them properly.”

“Sir, I do hope you jest. The pixies will not be ruled over by any human hand, you should know this!”

“Well then how does he own their land? Seems like bollocks to me.”

“Sir Marcus I do hope you will watch your mouth in their estate! The Lords have much riding on this marriage!”

“Driver, you worry about your job, and I’ll worry about mine.” The driver huffed at me one last time before returning to his task. The boy looked at me quizzically, not truly understanding how the forests worked. “You have yet to learn this, but each of the animals out in these forests have their own ruling parties. Much like our King and Queen and all the nobility. So to say one owns the forest in which these creatures live is also saying that they own these creatures. None of these creatures would bow down to a human ruler. At least none of the ones I have met.”

“You’ve met the beasts Sir?” his eyes seemed to twinkle, probably imagining me nearly killing these beasts just to have a word with them.

“A few near the walls of our castle. A few nice pixies, as well as a few mean ones. Even some elven folk, and couple of decent lions also. However, we had to earn each other’s trust. I had to drop my sword, and they would do something in return. But that’s not the point right now. This man seems to claim to have more power and influence than it seems he should. If he claims ownership of the forest, he hasn’t told the wildlife, so I don’t feel he truly owns it. Now remember how I said some of the land around our castle was for firewood? Our Lord negotiated with the creatures that lived there and he purchased their land. He owns that piece of the forest, and the creatures agreed to it. However if Duke Frederick attempted to seize this land for firewood, he would find quite a lot of resistance.”

The boy’s eyes had glazed over, this lecture apparently boring him. Now that I have finished speaking, he turned his head back to the looming castle. We approach the gate and I jump off the carriage and tell my apprentice to wait at the carriage. I walk over to the guard, who shouts as I approach, “Sir! It is the driver’s job to inform us of the arrival, not the knight! You are still surrounded by the untamed forest!”

I turn back and look at the carriage. The driver was older than me, and I had overheard him complaining about pains recently. Also, I trusted that my boy could handle anything thrown at him for the few seconds it would take me to run back should anything happen. “Well here I am instead. Lady Cecile has arrived. Now that wasn’t so hard was it?” The guard looks at me with an expression that says “Do you care about your job at all?” as he calls out to have the gate opened.

I walk back to the carriage, and upon my arrival the driver asks, “Usually I have to do that, did they give you any trouble?”

“Well the gate is open, so I guess they didn’t. Let us continue then?” We go through a massive courtyard, with trees and several plots of land with flowers of all colors blooming. I silently climb on top of the carriage and poke my head down to peek in through the window. With no surprise at all, I find myself staring at Lady Cecile, who had been staring at the flowers, but then jumped back when my head obstructed her view. It was a game we had played when we were younger, I would try to frighten her by sneaking up on her or popping up where she least expected. She always was frightened at first, but laughed about it soon after.

She regained herself and gave me a sharp knock on the forehead. Her usual punishment for playing a trick on her, but a genuine smile was on her face, and I knew she wasn’t mad. I retook my place next to my apprentice, who seemed to not notice my presence. We were headed up to the front doors of the castle, up a set of stairs so attackers would have a disadvantage from the moment they stepped through the gate. The carriage stopped in front of the door and I jumped off again, this time with my apprentice, to open the door for Lady Cecile. As she stepped out she stumbled, but I caught her before she fell. Dirtying her dress would make her seem like a commoner, as would bruises she would get from the impact. Her father would have me hung if anything had happened to her. But none of these things matter to me. I was doing my duty, protecting Lady Cecile.

We followed Lady Cecile up the stairs (with no more accidents), and into a large room, possibly a dining hall. There were guards at every entrance and on the second floor, stationed in ledges that overlooked the room. An elderly butler greeted us as soon as we entered the building. “Lady Cecile, your father and Duke Frederick are hunting in the back, please wait in your temporary room while I inform them you are here. This way.” The butler led us through a doorway and down a hall, stopping in front of two sets of doors. “Lady Cecile, you’re room is through here. Sir Knight, you may train with your apprentice through here” motioning to each of the doors in turn. There were guards posted around her room, but I didn’t trust them enough to wish to leave Lady Cecile with them.

As if she read my thoughts, Lady Cecile said “Sir Marcus, I will be fine. Do not worry about me. These guards will keep me safe, and should I need you, you shall only be a stone’s throw away.” I bowed in response, allowing her to enter the room before taking my leave back out to the courtyard.

“Let’s practice that shield boy.” I said, and he eagerly grabbed his shield.

“You said after I master this I get to learn two swords?”

“Maybe, if I should deem you worthy of that knowledge. Until then, you have work to do.” I lunged at him, stabbing forward. “This is the simplest attack to block. It goes right at your shield, unless you have it somewhere else. So someone with two swords could take advantage of you blocking one strike and stab you with the other. However, you should never face an opponent other than me who uses two blades. It is highly frowned upon in circles where they wish to live. Now a slashing attack like this” I arc my sword from right to left, my apprentice blocking out of intuition or sheer dumb luck, “is tougher because you have to move the shield. And coming from this side” arcing from left to right, my apprentice barely able to move the shield fast enough to catch my slow swing, “is a more difficult strike to make during combat, as it leaves your entire back exposed, but you will encounter it eventually.” Training him seemed to be the only way I could take my mind off of Lady Cecile…