Disclaimer: This is not the final version as it will be available from the usual e-book sellers and eventually, bookstores. Rather, it should be seen as an (almost) final draft. If you are interested in becoming a beta reader, or you have any comments, suggestions or thoughts that you feel I should consider before publishing please drop me a line using the contact form.
Spar
They went back out to the practice yard where the afternoon’s matches were still in full swing. Myrthe was chatting merrily with Caerel, laughing infectiously even though Caerel was clearly still recovering from his exertions. Caerel glared at Ala when he noticed her approach. To his credit he was obviously trying not to, swiftly turning his attention back to Myrthe. Ala wondered if she had used Guanshiyin’s magic to heal him as an excuse to touch his private parts. She shook the thought off. What was wrong with her today? She needed to concentrate on swordplay, she was about to spar with the Weapon Master of Taladaria, it was going to require her undivided attention. Ala was learning that Myrthe was rather more devious and clever behind those happy brown eyes than anyone gave her credit for. She had gotten to know Myrthe pretty well during the trip. There was an immense depth, warmth and intelligence below the bubbly, happy veneer, compared to that warmth, the devious cunning underlying it was all the more lovable.
All the men practising in the courtyard were very deferential to Gladiuth. Gladiuth stopped by an unused practice circle and they were almost immediately attended by the big bearded man.
“Brugor, may we have two wasters and bucklers, please?”
“Right away, Master.”
Brugor glared at a young guardsman without saying a word, who rushed off to get them. She left her sword and scabbard, cloak and bag with Myrthe again, and stepped into the ring. Brugor stood ready to call points. Once the word got round that Gladiuth was sparring, all the other activity in the yard tapered off and they all came to watch. That probably meant that no one here could best him, Ala realised. She was pretty sure there was some betting going on as well. Without much ceremony, the bout started with a small salute. It was the first time she had fought someone who was better than her in a very long time. She scored points as well, but Gladiuth scored more, and won more bouts. She managed to win one bout out of five, but she scored points in all four others, being only one point from a win in two. They were both exhausted and sweating profusely by the end of it. Quite a crowd had gathered to watch them.
“Thank you, Master Gladiuth,” she said in between gasps.
“He-he, that was the best workout I’ve had in years,” he said, panting.
They talked more about their shared practice and Gladiuth showed her a few technical points she could work on by herself.
“I wonder if I will still win the next time we spar,” he said.
“I don’t understand? It’s almost impossible to surpass a master who keeps practising, Bernard told me.”
Gladiuth looked at her with a thoughtful expression.
“It is clear to me that you were born for this. I shouldn’t be surprised. It’s in all the old stories about Fire Elves. They are the elven warriors, unmatched masters of the blade. It’s in their bones, in their souls even and you are still very young, by elven standards.”
“I feel I will need to read these stories.”
“I do recommend you do, there may even be clues to your heritage in them. The reason I wonder if I will be able to win spars with you goes further however. Bernard was a good swordsman. Very good, but not nearly as good as me and that was before I ever left to study with the elves.”
“You’ve studied with elven sword masters? I envy you. I hope I will one day be able to do the same.”
“I am sure you will. You are already much better than Bernard ever was and unless there is some other teacher you haven’t told me about, that means you must have improved your techniques yourself, even developed new applications of principle, things that I never knew Bernard to do. Things that I have never seen done in two centuries. Things that surprised me. That is truly rare.”
“I did study the Liechtenauer Fechtbuch.”
“I know, obviously. So did I. Bernard got it from me. You have surpassed that too. Let me point out that you were only two points from beating me – and that without the benefit of all the practice that the Duke’s regiment, visiting warriors and elven sword masters can offer. I am at the end of my journey of learning, you are at the beginning. It is a little humbling, to be honest. Good though, we all need reminding that there is more to learn, from time to time.”
“I don’t know what to say. I’m flattered.”
“Just don’t stop learning. I dare say you owe it to those of us who are afflicted with such a fascination for swordplay. I already yearn to see what you will be able to achieve with more study. Perhaps then, I will even be able to learn something from you.”
“I have every intention of continuing to learn, Master Gladiuth. As you said, I was just feeling like I was beginning. Maybe you’re right, it is a kind of affliction.”
“We will spar again soon.”
Gladiuth called an end to the Fifth afternoon sparring. The muster was called and the troops not on guard duty were dismissed. Most of them went in to town to amuse themselves. Fifth was payday and it would be busy in Duilhac that night. Myrthe was chatting heartily with a group of guardsmen, lavishing her attention on Caerel who was the centre of the group. She wasn’t the prettiest girl Ala had ever seen, but she more than made up for it with charisma and the warmth of her personality. Ala waited for her to finish which required a substantial amount of patience which Ala knew was not her best quality. Myrthe skipped over afterwards, looking a little smug, Ala thought.
“What?” asked Ala, doing her best to suppress her annoyance that things had taken so long.
“Oh… I have a date tonight…”
“With Caerel?” asked Ala, suddenly interested.
“Yes, of course. I think he needs some compassion. Someone kicked him rather hard you know. Most thoughtless.”
Ala wasn’t sure what to make of all this.
“What shall I do? If I go with you, I’ll make us all a target…”
“I’ll be fine. Guanshiyin will take care of you while I’m gone. Caerel will be surrounded by his little court of admirers and guardsmen. While they might not be a match for you, I think they’ll manage between them.”
“You’re a very strange priestess.”
“Is that so?”
“Sorry. I guess you’re just… different that I expect from priestesses.”
“Thetwick has a temple to Ceres doesn’t it? They’re very boring, like the cattle they tend. Of course you don’t expect much excitement from those docile cows. Guanshiyin is a little more interesting.”
“So I’m learning.”
Ala pulled her hood up, to hide her pointed ears and red-golden hair. They started back down into the city to the temple.
“One thing to organise,” said Myrthe, “we need to make a stop.”
They walked down into Duilhac and Myrthe found what she was looking for near the Green Duck guest house. It was a dress shop, a tailor really. They were there for almost two hours before Myrthe had what she had in mind, which included a long, form fitting dress which showed enough cleavage to create a major scandal in Thetwick. The loose priestess robes Myrthe normally wore hid just how voluptuous she was. A pair of boots with higher heels and a red cloak were purchased. The shop boy was sent out to a nearby shoemaker to fetch an assortment of boots several times before a pair to Myrthe’s liking arrived. To top it all off, Myrthe purchased a bottle of a perfume which smelt a little of vanilla. It was all paid for with a letter of credit that the proprietress could apparently exchange for coin at the Easthall’s factor in the city. Ala watched the proceedings with interest and wondered if Baron Easthall wouldn’t mind that one of his daughters had just spent several months wages for a day-worker in a single sitting. Myrthe seemed oblivious to the cost. Ala just shook her head and watched everything being put together. The dress and accessories were bundled up in a nice package for them, secured with a gaudy pink cloth ribbon. The proprietress then asked if nothing should be done about Ala’s clothes. Myrthe looked surprised for a moment, then smiled evilly. Before she knew it Ala was being helped out of her mail and was having a dress fitted too. She protested to Myrthe that she couldn’t afford to spend so much on a dress.
“Don’t worry, the Baron is paying. He’s had an easy time of it since I joined the priesthood anyway, these habits cost nothing. Me and my sisters used to visit a tailor every week in Easthall, I’ve saved him a fortune already by being ordained.”
It had never really been brought into focus for Ala just how large the difference in wealth between nobles and commoners was. Several sisters doing this every week… it might be an exaggeration, but even then, they were spending what day workers made in a year between them every few weeks. The casual display of wealth was shocking.
Ala’s dress was more difficult. Quite a lot of things had to be changed, and some new bits made. They agreed to pick it up on First afternoon, after the Duke’s Court.
Myrthe suddenly realised that it was approaching time for the evening meal, and switched from behaving as if she hadn’t a care in the world to being in a terrible hurry for her date. She wanted to rush out the shop’s front door.
“Maybe we should go out the back, Myr?” Ala cautioned.
“Hmm… yes… I suppose you’re right, may we, mistress?”
The mistress of the establishment evidently couldn’t fathom why they would want to go out the back, but as far as she was concerned, they were excellent customers and if they wanted to leave out the back, that was just fine with her.
Ala looked carefully out the back door. There were some small curtained windows across from them, not all completely drawn. She didn’t see any movement, but then she wouldn’t if there was a smart crossbowman hiding in there. She stepped outside with Myrthe behind her. She wasn’t sure what she reacted to, but she pushed Myrthe roughly to the side of the door, using the momentum to push herself to the other side. The crossbow bolt passed between them and buried itself most of the way through the door they had just come out of. Ala rushed across the doorway, grabbing Myrthe’s hand and running on to the next corner. Myrthe wanted to start towards the main thoroughfare, but Ala pulled her the other way.
“If they were watching the back, they’re watching the front too!”
Myrthe nodded and they ran the other way into a maze of back alleys. That wasn’t good either. There were dirty children, chickens, pigs and goats all over the place as well as unidentifiable muck on the mud tracks in between the buildings. Myrthe stopped Ala for a moment, and walked up to one of the larger dirty children. “Can you show us the quickest way to the Royal Square?”
The boy eyed her suspiciously.
“Look, I’ll pay you a full silver coin, as soon as you show us the way, alright?”
That lit the boy’s eyes up.
“This wa’ay thun Priesess,” and he ran off. Keeping up was tricky, the route led through several courtyards, over and under some fences and walls, through a few vegetable gardens and over roofs. The boy had to wait for them a few times while they caught up. It got them to the Royal Square though, without effective pursuit, or at least they hadn’t seen anyone following. Myrthe gave the boy his silver piece, which was obviously a lot of money for him. Ala hoped he was smart enough not to brag about it.
They made their way from the Royal Square to the Temple of Guanshiyin, which wasn’t far. They kept a careful eye on the road behind them, but couldn’t spot anyone who they could really call suspicious. Not that that was all that much help, a priestess and an elf-girl in mail drew attention all the time. There was no way of knowing if any of the many people watching them had more than just idle curiosity motivating them. Inside the temple, Myrthe made Ala help her bathe. Then she made Ala bathe as well, which was wonderful and refreshing. She also hadn’t had a proper bath since one of her nightly swims in the lake in Thetwick quite a long time ago. She did spot Myrthe running an appraising glance over her body.
“Well, everything they say about elven beauty is true,” Myrthe said, mostly to herself.
Ala didn’t know what to say. She was more or less aware of what she looked like and the attention it drew. Ala couldn’t really blame Myrthe for looking, she had done the same and wondered what it might be like to be curved so magnificently. Ala wasn’t completely certain Myrthe’s interest wasn’t just a little more than purely aesthetic. The girl radiated a sort of all encompassing sensuality, or was it just her imagination? She assumed it must be her elven ancestry that she wasn’t shocked by the thought. Certainly no one in Thetwick would have approved of anything other than a traditional relationship between a man and a woman. She decided to try and think nothing more of it. Ala was then instructed how to help Myrthe dress, tightening her corset and straightening her dress. Eventually she was ready and Myrthe was suddenly a dashing noble lady rather than a priestess in a grey robe. She even sported the tiny dagger that all noble women wore to denote their rank. Common women weren’t allowed to be armed, after all.
“You’ll be alright out there, on your own?”
“They’re trying to kill you, not me. Though I suppose they may change their mind once they realise how annoying I can be.”
Ala laughed. “Unimaginable. Be safe,” she said, and kissed her goodbye for some reason. They had been more or less joined at the hip for several weeks. Myrthe smiled and bounced off into the evening, calling a horse carriage to take her to the Green Duck. She had kept up that part of the deception, telling Caerel that that was where they were staying.
Myrthe didn’t come back until several hours after sunrise the following day. Ala had a hell of a time getting into her meditative state. She spent most of the night nervously practising sword forms. Myrthe looked a little dishevelled, with locks of hair having escaped and smelled a bit of wine, but was none the worse for wear. She looked tired but happy.
“Where have you been?” Ala almost yelled when Myrthe came in. She looked at Ala coyly.
“A Lady doesn’t tell…”
“With Caerel? Oh my…”
Myrthe smiled.
“He’s as good as he looks.”
It occurred to Ala that there was still a lot to Myrthe she hadn’t yet understood.
“I was worried. You might have told me it could take all night.”
“Well, it wasn’t completely planned. It just sort of happened.”
“Aren’t you worried about getting pregnant?”
“I’m a priestess Ala. We are free to decide if we want to have children. It’s a gift from Guanshiyin.”
“Really? Why?”
“Because sometimes the necessary compassion is physical. Guanshiyin does not then afflict her priestesses with random children in return.”
“I see.” Ala thought about it for a moment before continuing. “How incredibly practical… and compassionate I guess. That makes an astounding amount of sense. Guanshiyin is pretty cool. I take it Caerel was in need of a lot of physical compassion?”
“More than you might think. Not that I didn’t enjoy giving it to him,” Myrthe said with a sultry look, “but you were pretty brutal on him in front of his peers. I think he may be a better man with that wound properly salved.”
“You keep surprising me Myrthe.”
“Good. I did something else useful too. I’ll tell you about it after I get some sleep.”
Ala sighed and decided to rest herself for a few more hours after she had had some breakfast. She had had a restless night too, if not quite so enjoyable. Myrthe was still asleep when she had had enough. Not being able to think of what else to do, she went out and did more sword work, repeating and repeating, integrating Gladiuth’s advice into what she already knew. A still dishevelled Myrthe made her appearance around midday, in priestesses’ robes again. They went together for another meal, which they took into the garden so they could speak quietly.
“Will you please tell me what else you did?”
“Oh yes. I think I’ve made contact with someone from the thieves’ guild.”
“Really? Isn’t that dangerous?”
“I don’t know. I said I wanted to have someone assassinated.”
“I see. The idea being that that will put us in contact with whoever is in charge of the contract to assassinate me?”
“Yeah, pretty much. Or at least someone who knows what goes on in the city when it comes to the business of contracted killing.”
“You think they’ll tell us where the person who put out the contract is?”
“Hmm… maybe. I suppose it depends on the money and how likely it is to damage their reputation for reliability, or their operation. It’s always a matter of figuring out how to sweeten the deal.”
“I don’t have much money. I can afford to travel around like this for a while, but I probably can’t afford an assassination. I’m not sure I can afford to ‘sweeten the deal’ even. That leaves their reputation for reliability, which they have no reason to endanger, since I can’t afford to overbid and make it worth damaging their operations.”
“You are such a negative Nellie sometimes, Ala.”
“I suppose I could run around the city running through suspected thieves until they come begging for mercy. Somehow I think that might not be as effective as I’d like to think it would be. Also, the guard probably won’t approve.”
“You’re really being very negative. Let me play this angle for a bit. We’ll see what comes out. You never know how a cow catches a hare. I made a bit of a killing yesterday when they were all wagering on you, so perhaps I have enough coin for a contract.”
“You bet on me?” Ala asked, a little coldly.
“Of course. Seemed like a good investment after what happened at Hightower.”
Ala shook her head. “I’m sorry. You’re right. Thank you for all this, it’s a lot more than I’ve managed here.”
If you wish to receive the weekly installment to this story in your inbox, please subscribe to the newsletter below.
