“Jest? No, I’m sorry. I was just thinking of Aidan. We were sparring this afternoon, and I, uh, accidentally gave him a bloody nose.”
Aelic smiled. “Then you are very much like Gwenne in more than appearance.”
The two stood quietly staring at each other as if in a trance.
“Hullo, m’dears? Do you not have someplace to go?” Elspeth interrupted.
“Oh, yes. Kaliam awaits!” Aelic said.
Aelic led Antoinette through a half-dozen passages, and eventually past a pair of tall arched doors. “These are the doors to King Eliam’s Throne Room,” Aelic said.
“Will I . . . may I meet him?” Antoinette asked.
Aelic looked at her strangely. His eyes glinted bright blue, and he said, “You have already met him. You believed in the story of Alleble. You trusted him on the narrow path. You heard, and chose to follow his voice. You know him better than you think, and he knows you better than you know yourself.”
“But I mean, may I see him?”
“King Eliam may reveal himself to you in time,” Aelic replied. “But I am told that his countenance is painful to endure for those not of Glimpse-kind. Come, the Sentinel awaits upon the balcony.”
At last they came to the end of a long hall. There was a stair there, and a door subtly set into the wall. Aelic opened the door. Sunlight blazed in.
“I shall take my leave of you for now, Antoinette,” Aelic said. “But we shall meet again.”
Antoinette stepped through the door out onto a vast balcony. She was drawn to the parapet and beheld the Kingdom of Alleble. Towers, keeps, and cottages; courtyards, fields, and bustling markets—sprawled from left to right as far as her eyes could see. But in the center of it all were the fountains.
At last! she thought. And for a moment she was overwhelmed with emotion.
“The most wondrous city in all The Realm,” a deep voice said behind her. She turned to see a tall, dark-haired knight. As he bowed low he said, “I am Kaliam, the fourth Sentinel of Alleble.”
“I’m Antoinette,” she managed to say. She felt slightly intimidated by this knight’s size—he stood more than a foot taller than she. But at the same time, his smile and bearing radiated warmth, and Antoinette saw welcome in his eyes.
“Well-met,” Kaliam said, and he laughed. “Though it seems strange to say we have just met. Gwenne’s armor fits you well.”
Antoinette blushed, surprising herself. He looked like a hero who had stepped out of a grand painting.
“You are a friend of Sir Aidan’s?” he asked.
Antoinette nodded. “Yes, we met recently. And he helped me to understand that King Eliam was calling me here.”
“Sir Aidan is a hero of this realm, a Knight of the Dawn. His Glimpse-kind, Sir Aelic, has carried Aidan’s mantle well—just as, I am sure, you will carry Gwenne’s.”
“I’ll do my best,” Antoinette replied. It was quiet for a few moments, and then Antoinette said, “Aidan told me all about you and the others—Mallik, Nock, Tal, Farix. It’s amazing to finally meet you. Will I meet the others?”
“In time,” Kaliam answered.
“Oh, and Aidan told me to tell you not to say anything about the lantern spider incident. What’s that all about?”
Kaliam’s eyes flickered blue and he let out a howl of laughter. “M’lady,” he said, clutching his sides, “with your pardon, I will, . . . honor Sir Aidan’s request!”
Kaliam finally mastered his fit of laughter. “There are two reasons I required you to meet me here,” he said. “But let us take one moment to admire the view. Aside from the Library Tower, this is the best view of the kingdom. I wanted you to see the kingdom—as it always should be—at peace. I fear Alleble will not remain at peace for much longer.”
Antoinette knew why, and she looked to the west and stared.
“Yes, our enemy lies there,” said Kaliam, and a shadow seemed to pass over his face. “Paragor has not been idle since Aidan left The Realm. Something has changed in his designs, and we do not yet know what it is. But it seems his influence in The Realm is waxing, for city after city has allied itself with Paragory. If our estimates be correct, Paragor now commands an immense army nearly equal to our forces here.”
“What about Mithegard and the other allies?” Antoinette asked.
Kaliam looked at her gravely. “That is our greatest concern, Antoinette. Mithegard remains loyal, and with the help of Mallik’s folk from the Blue Mountains, the Seven Towers are nearly rebuilt. But there have been troubling reports from many of Alleble’s allies. Acacia, Clarion, and most recently Yewland have sent word that they may renounce our alliance.”
“Why?” Antoinette asked.
“They claim that our new taxes are too severe,” answered Kaliam. “They say that the Alleb Creed we impose is too strict. They threaten even to depose the governors we have sent.” Kaliam gripped the balcony wall so tightly that his knuckles cracked. “But, Antoinette, we have sent no governors to our allies, we have levied no taxes, and there is no such thing as an Alleb Creed!”
“Is Paragor behind it?” Antoinette asked.
“He must be,” said Kaliam. “We do not know how he could cause these things, but we intend to find out. We leave for Yewland in three days. I have determined to meet with one of these so-called governors!”
“You said we. Does that mean I’m coming on this mission?”
“Yes, Antoinette,” Kaliam answered. He cocked an eyebrow and grinned. “You will become the Twelfth Knight on this journey—if you pass our tests.”
“Tests?” Antoinette swallowed.
Kaliam nodded. “This mission is pressing, and there is no time to train you properly. Among reasons known only to him, King Eliam chose you because you already have some skills. You have held a sword before?”
“I can do more than hold it,” Antoinette said bluntly. She grinned.
“And you can ride?”
“I ride horses very well,” she said. “But Aidan told me you ride unicorns.”
Kaliam laughed. “They are nearly the same, only unicorns are smarter and faster. I suppose then, you should pass your first two tests quite easily. But, ah, the third—well, now, that might be another matter. We shall see.”
Antoinette waited for Kaliam to explain. But he did not. He turned and walked to the center of the balcony. There, something lay hidden under a beautiful silk tapestry.
“I told you there were two reasons I wanted you to meet me here. The first was to discuss the objective of your mission. The other is to show you . . . this!” With an effortless tug, he removed the tapestry, revealing a rectangular block of white marble. It was chest high, but its length and width were like that of a tomb.
Antoinette approached. She ran a hand along the length, and Kaliam watched her carefully. “I know this,” she said. “It is the altar where Paragor killed the King.”
“You have read the account of the Great Betrayal?” Kaliam asked.
“Yes.”
“Is there anything more you recall when you look upon it?” Kaliam’s eyes narrowed. He seemed hesitant, searching for but hoping not to find something to confirm what he suspected.
“Wait,” Antoinette said slowly. “I remember something.”
Kaliam closed his eyes and turned away. “What do you remember?”
“I saw this,” she replied, gesturing to the altar, “in a vision when I walked between my world and The Realm. But at first it was somewhere else. It was in a cell or a crypt. I think it was underground.”
“You saw visions between our worlds?” he asked, his deep voice reduced to a hoarse whisper.
“Yes,” she replied. “Aidan told me I would. He saw visions too. Some of them came true when he was here.”
“They are foretellings,” Kaliam said. “Sights of what may come to pass. Captain Valithor was very aware of Aidan’s visions. They troubled him greatly near the end, for not all who travel between realms see such visions. I too am troubled, but I will not
speak now of what I fear. I must first visit the Library of Light. And then I will go to the King himself, for his wisdom has no end.”
Antoinette swallowed. “Sir Kaliam, there’s something else. In the vision, this altar faded from the tomb and reappeared on this balcony, I think. It was at night, so it was hard to tell. But suddenly, a dark stone that fell from the sky smashed the altar. Then many stones began to fall. I saw one of them close up, and there was something written on it, written in red.”
Kaliam glanced to the west. “There is meaning in that also,” he said, almost to himself. “Please, promise that you will not speak of these visions to anyone besides Aelic and me. There are many in Alleble who would make more of it than they ought.”
Antoinette nodded. “I . . . I won’t,” she replied, suddenly feeling very nervous.
“Come, then, your first test awaits—that is, if you are ready.”
“Lead on, Sir Kaliam. I am ready.”
Kaliam’s demeanor brightened, and he laughed. “Such like a younger Gwenne you are!”
12
OF SWORD
AND STEED
This is the Training Urchin,” Kaliam said. He walked in a slow circle around the device in the center of the castle’s southern courtyard. The urchin was a tall post with three segments that turned independently of the others. Wooden arms, each equipped with its own weapon or shield, protruded from the segments. Kaliam walked behind it and smiled.
“We use it to train knights in combat, or to test their skill,” he explained with a wink. “I will control the limbs of the urchin. Your task is to attack—put a notch from your sword on each of the three segments without being thrown off balance, struck by one of its weapons, or knocked to the ground. You will have three strikes to succeed, and that is all. Do you have any questions?”
“Where is my sword?” she asked.
Kaliam gestured. Dozens of sword hilts jutted up from a barrel by the palisade. As she walked to the barrel to choose a weapon, Antoinette noticed a small crowd had gathered. There were even a few curious eyes glimmering out from the cracks and knotholes of the fence. Well, I’ll give them a show, she thought.
Antoinette sifted through the blades. Most of them were dull and notched from much use, but she found two swords that she liked. One was a two-fisted broadsword with a long, wide blade. The other was light with a narrow, tapered blade that looked much sharper than the others. She chose the sharp sword and turned back to the urchin.
“Ready?” Kaliam asked. He grasped the handles of the top and middle segments and stood, knees bent, feet at shoulder’s width—combat stance.
Antoinette slashed the air in front of her. The sword felt good—not unlike her favorite shinai at home. “Ready.”
Antoinette held her sword vertically out in front of her. Her back and neck were upright, perfectly straight, just as she had learned from years of spada-kendo training. She flexed at the knees, one foot a pace in front of the other. She stood very, very still.
Kaliam shifted in place behind the urchin. He turned the top segment so that its gray sword pointed at Antoinette. All the while, Antoinette remained motionless, watching intently. Finally, she thought she saw Kaliam’s weight shift just slightly onto his back foot. It was the opening she had been waiting for.
Antoinette unleashed a kakari-geiko attack, rushing toward the urchin and raining down blows like a sudden storm. But Kaliam was not overwhelmed as she had hoped. With one hand, he maneuvered the top segment so that its sword parried away each of Antoinette’s high attacks. With his other hand, he turned the middle segment so that its buckler shield swooshed toward Antoinette’s midsection. She had to stay her attack for just a moment to bat away the shield.
And when she did so, Kaliam used his foot to jerk the bottom section of the urchin. It brought a mace with a long chain swinging so suddenly that Antoinette could not leap in time. The ball and chain wrapped around one of her boots, and Kaliam forced the segment back the other direction. Antoinette’s leg was yanked out from under her, and she crashed to the ground flat on her back. Her sword flew out of her hands and clanged noisily across the cobblestone.
“Your speed is most impressive,” Kaliam said.
“You’re mocking me!” Antoinette said, leaping to her feet.
“I am most certainly not mocking you, Antoinette,” Kaliam said sternly. “Your speed is absolutely impressive, as is your technique. But you made a grave mistake. You forgot your objective.”
Antoinette winced as she bent over to pick up her sword. She thought she heard giggles from behind the fence. She went red with anger and turned back to Kaliam.
“What do you mean, I ‘forgot my objective’?”
“You were simply caught up in the effectiveness of your own attack. Your slashes came at the blade and at the shield, but your goal is to put a notch in each segment of the urchin. You have only two strikes left. Make yourself ready.”
Antoinette, sword out in front, approached the urchin. Her eyes darted from segment to segment. There was a sword and a blunt axe on the top segment, a sword and buckler on the middle, and only the mace on the bottom. Kaliam seemed able to move all three segments at once. Antoinette had to be wary.
Focus, she thought. Remember the objective.
She looked at the segments. One notch in each. Two strikes left. That meant she would need to get two notches in one turn. Antoinette moved side to side slowly, looking for an angle. She decided to attack the lowest segment first. Kaliam may swing the mace, but there was nothing there that could really block her attack.
Her mind made up, Antoinette lunged at the urchin. Her first swipe was a crushing high-to-low chop at the sword on the top segment. The urchin’s wooden arm groaned as it absorbed Antoinette’s fierce attack. Kaliam swiftly rotated the top segment. The blunt axe swung around. Antoinette ducked and raked her blade at the bottom segment, carving a notch into the base. But before she could swing again, Kaliam brought the middle section around hard. The buckler shield slammed into Antoinette’s midsection and she sprawled backward, landing once again on her back.
“That was much better,” Kaliam said.
Antoinette stood up, seething. “That’s not fair!” she said. “No enemy can attack with three weapons at once.”
Kaliam shook his head. “Do you think the knights of Paragory will fight fair? You are too used to rules of combat designed to keep opponents safe from serious injury. There are no such rules in war. Those rats from Paragor will hide daggers in their belts, throw sand in your eyes, or force you into a hidden fall—anything to gain the advantage. Anything to take your life. Now, you have one turn remaining, and two notches left. Be creative. It can be done.”
Antoinette held her sword up and positioned herself just out of reach of the urchin’s many arms. I have only one sword, she thought dejectedly. How can I compete with so many weapons?
Then she had an idea. She thought of a way to even the odds.
Antoinette stepped slowly to the left of the urchin. For this to work, she needed to swing hard from the outside.
Antoinette took her sword in both hands and battered the urchin’s top sword hard to the right. Kaliam absorbed the blow and shifted to bring the buckler on the middle section through again. But Antoinette stayed far to the outside. And then she evened the odds.
Antoinette grabbed the buckler with her right hand and brought her sword down with a savage one-handed chop onto the wooden arm of the shield. The wood of that arm was old and battered, and it split in the center.
The urchin’s buckler shield and half of its wooden arm clattered to the ground. But Antoinette was not finished. The mace came around hard, seeking her ankles, but she leaped and brought her sword down on the wooden arm that held the mace. It splintered, cracked, and fell away.
To Kaliam’s astonishment, she did the same to the urchin’s remaining two weapons. Then, she walked casually over and cut a notch into the top and middle sections. The crowd cheered. And Antoinette notice
d that it was a much larger crowd than when she began the test. She stared, thinking for a moment that she saw Aelic, but she couldn’t be sure.
“You, you have broken the urchin!” Kaliam bellowed. Antoinette’s smile disappeared and she went red, wondering if she had gone a little too far. Then Kaliam laughed out loud and said, “Marvelous effort, Antoinette! Well done! Yes indeed, well done.”
Antoinette grinned. “You said be creative.”
Kaliam picked up one of the severed arms and said, “And it was creative! I am just glad that you were dueling a piece of wood and not me!”
Antoinette smiled and asked, “What’s next?”
The crowd had grown yet again. They followed Kaliam and Antoinette to the fairgrounds behind the castle and filled the stands of the jousting arena. Antoinette sat atop a handsome white unicorn mare at one end of the arena. “She’s beautiful,” Antoinette said.
“Her name is Rael,” Kaliam explained. “And she comes from a proud lineage. She is both surefooted and swift. Should you pass this test—and the test to come—Rael will bear you on our journey to Yewland.”
Antoinette brushed Rael’s silky white mane with her hand and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “You hear that? Help me win, and I’ll take good care of you.”
The unicorn bobbed its head and snorted.
“Look down the rail that runs the length of the arena,” Kaliam said. “Do you see the three posts about midway?”
Antoinette nodded.
“They are spaced fifteen arms apart. Suspended from each one is a gold ring. You must ride your unicorn swiftly at the rings and steer her so that she spears all three rings with her horn.”
“Sounds easy enough,” Antoinette replied.
Kaliam grinned. “But you must do so before Sir Tal does.”
Antoinette suddenly realized that at the far end of the arena was another mounted knight.
“Heralds, mark your place!” Kaliam yelled. Two Glimpses wearing dark blue tunics walked to the edge of the track in the center of the arena. Each of them had a green flag and a red one.
“Sir Tal has his own set of rings to spear on his side of the rail,” Kaliam explained. “It would not do to have your unicorns knock heads at a full gallop.”