Stargate Hastings

Chapter Four: The woman

After they had returned to the mansion and everything was put back into its proper place. Richard rang the bell twice and a minute later a large man dressed in the same way as his uncle entered "You rang my Lord?".

"Yes Jacob, could you please show Mr Elden, to the room that as been assigned to him please?" he then turned to Jim and said, "There is a gymnasium on the grounds that was designed with fencing in mind, there is usually someone in there if you require someone to spar with. My uncle will give you the full tour tomorrow, I am growing weary so you will probably not see me again today. If you require anything either seek out a member of staff or ring one of the bells, they are everywhere. See you in the morning old friend".

When James and the butler who was really his nephew left, Richard rang the bell again. When Clarissa entered he said "Have someone keep an eye on the gymnasium, if Mr Elden makes use of it, send a message to my cousin Rachael and inform her immediately".

"Yes My lord".

He sat there alone and wondered why he had been concerned about his friend saying yes to the mission, he would have preferred not to have manipulated him the way he had but the truth was. If James had declined the position, the man who would have replaced him as commander of the mission, would have been Donald McCain anyway. The man was a younger version of his father, not in looks the men could not look any different but in character they were the mirror image of each other. Richard had only served a year or so with the man, before he was discharged from the army after he was wounded but even then he showed real promise. Always willing to learn and not one to do stupid things when under pressure.

All he needed now was to convince him that the team he had chosen, was the best one to complete the task. He could just explain why he had chosen them but even if he convinced him they were necessary, he would not show them the proper respect they deserve and as a result, would not use them in the way he would proven soldiers, he knew he could rely on. Even if his cousin was not required for the mission, he would want her to be a part of it. She was as skilled with weapons as any man he had met, bar one and if he was to underestimate her, Richard was sure she could best him.

His uncle, he was sure would not be a problem. He was a skilled soldier who had served for ten years before his wife died and he cut his military career short to raise his daughter and even since then had trained many of the young Hastings men and not as many but also some of the young Hastings women as well. No it was Tom he would object to and he couldn't blame him, it was important that Tom went for many reasons, although if Donald informed them that he had still not found the symbols required to send them home, he would not let the boy go and the decision would then have to be made whether the mission continued or not. He was sure James would go in the hope of finding a way home eventually or spending the rest of his life with his son. He was certain he wouldn't just leave him there alone.

Tom however was too important to send on a one way mission, he was his chosen heir and would one day take his place as the leader of the family and that day would not be as far away as he hoped. He should have enough time to prepare him but the rule that only a Hastings man, who had known military service can lead the family, was a rule he would not change. The way that a man is forged in combat, can not be replicated by any means of teaching or training, only through experiencing it, can a man learn from it and also to live with it.

Once he had changed his clothes into something more suitable for a workout, he decided to pay the gymnasium his friend had offered him the use of, a visit. He hoped some one was there to give him a challenge but he would be content with building up a sweat if not. Due to the new found purpose he found himself feeling, he was eager to a feel a sword in his hand again.

When he reached the door to the room that Jacob, who had turned out to be the son of Richard's elder sister, had informed him was the gymnasium. A girl who looked similar to the one who had served them their meal earlier that day, only younger was pottering about dusting. When she saw him she said "Are you looking for the gymnasium sir?".

"Yes, I was told it was in this direction". He replied.

"Yes sir it is this room here sir". She then scurried off in the direction he had just came from.

Strange he thought to himself, then entered the room she had indicated. The room was fairly big, with a stand in the corner with basic training foils. On one wall their were rapiers of varying designs and on the wall opposite were Sabres. The rapier was more his style, the Sabres while being a better weapon to overpower an opponent, the rapier required a more skilful approach. He tried a few in turn and found one that he felt the most comfortable with, then went through the stretching exercises his instructors had taught him.

He had never even held a sword until he joined the army and had not taken to it with ease but that had only spurred him on to master the weapon. Once he was sufficiently warmed up, he began going through the sequences to check how his form was looking. It had been so long since he had properly trained but for the most part his form had not suffered too much from lack of practice. The three weeks or so he had left should bring him back up to scratch, that is if he can find a decent sparring partner. Just as that thought went through his head, a woman entered who was dressed like a man but the figure that the clothes were covering. Was definitely not, that of a man.

"Who told you that you could use my gymnasium?".

He was completely taken by surprise by her words but the accent told him, that there was a good chance he was meeting Tom's mother, for the first time. "Lord Hastings told me I had free use of it while I am here, if you would prefer I trained elsewhere, that would not be a problem?".

"I say my gymnasium but in truth, like all things around here it really belongs to my cousin but I failed to see why he needed it anymore, so I claimed it for myself. No you can stay, it's been a while since I've had fresh meat for dinner". As she said this she began doing some stretching exercises of her own. "I see you have chosen a Rapier, are you not man enough to wield a Sabre?".

Jim had been flirted with by enough women, to know when it was happening. The fact she had her back to him while performing her exercises, made it quite clear she wanted him to see the curves of her athletic body. "We can spar with Sabres but I could also go find a club and use that, if you wish?" The picture of a cave man hitting a woman over the head with a club and dragging her to his cave, appeared in his mind. Whoo he thought to himself, get a grip man.

"Rapiers will be fine and do not worry about me hurting you, the blades are blunt you won't get hurt too bad". Was she really flirting with him, she hadn't looked at any man but her husband since the first day he declared his love to her and not even considered being with another man since he had abandoned her. Her cousin had told her, no ordered her to make him forget she was a woman and here she was flirting with him and making sure he was getting a proper view, of her very womanly figure.

"You are right about one thing at least". He told her.

"Oh and what would that be?" She asked still flirting.

"You will not hurt me". The sparring had not even started yet and he was already having fun. He was not expecting much of a challenge from her, she may have some skill with the blade. Even be able to give him some small test but in time her female body will tire. Jim had no problem with women learning to defend themselves but against a man of comparable skills, a woman would always lose.

"Alright, a wager it is then". She said brazenly, with a smile on her face.

"And what would this wager entail?". He said with a smile of his own spread across his face.

She pointed her blade at him and declared "If you win, I will Invite you to my home and cook you dinner! Like a good little woman".

"And if you win?". He asked in return.

"And if I win, you will owe me a favour".

"A favour?". He asked.

"Yes a favour and I know a favour could mean many things but I am just a pore woman, who has no chance against a big strong bloke like yourself". She was certain now, she was flirting with him and she was enjoying herself, another thing she had not done since, he left her alone.

"Very well, then shall we begin?".

They both bowed and then she was on him. Her first strike he parried easily but the power behind the blow was far heavier than he had expected and the two that followed that were equally vicious. He gave ground and then went forward with an attack of his own, he held back on his strikes and immediately regretted the decision. The first blow she parried but on feeling the lack of conviction in the it, she waited for his next strike. When he came in again, this time instead of meeting his blade, she took a half step to the side and twisted her wrist around, so that her blade impacted his on the opposite side he was expecting and sent him off balance.

Her blade went instantly to his throat as she announced "Best two out of three?"

He was impressed, he would not underestimate her again. Her skill was equal to his own but it was her technique that was flawless. Anyone could practice long enough with a sword, until they can swing it with perfection but putting all of the different skills together in combat, that was another thing all together.

"I can do this all day, first one to five?". He replied.

"Try not to insult me this time, my cousin told me you would be a challenge. I like to be challenged... but you probably will be just like all the rest".

"And that would be?" He asked.

"Disappointing."

Jim did not make the mistake of underestimating her again but after eight engagements they were level and he was surprised to realise it was he who was tired and not the woman who stood before him. He had never met a woman like her, she was not matching him in power but she more than made up for that with small tricks and her speed.

She raised her sword to the on guard position and said "Next point wins". She closed the distance between them, which would have been a mistake usually. Only her intention was not to play fair but to win. She manoeuvred her sword so that as she advanced they locked together, with the X that the blades created being the only thing separating their bodies.

I've got her he thought to himself, from here it was a test of actual strength and that was the only real advantage he had over the woman. She was incredible, very few men had given him this trouble in a duel and this was most definitely a duel. He set his feet ready to transfer his wait forward, with a good shove he would have her. Only before he could execute his winning plan, she leaned in and kissed him fiercely on the lips and before he realised what had happened she used his forward momentum to push herself backwards. She then deftly flicked his Rapier aside and placed the point of her own weapon to his heart.

"I win". She declared as she made a mocking bow.

"You cheated!" He replied, with more annoyance in his voice than he actually felt. He realised quickly that he was annoyed with himself, rather than the woman stood before him. The feelings he had regarding her were of respect and fascination. He was annoyed with himself because what she was going to do was obvious. Since the woman had first entered the room, she had been using her body to distract him.

"I did not realise dead men were in any position, to call foul?". She said teasingly.

"No, they are not. I am just soar because I was looking forward to tasting your cooking but I'm sure I will beat you next time". He said, trying to mask his frustration with himself.

She returned her Rapier and began doing her warm down stretches. "I wouldn't beat up a man, then not feed him".

"You did not, beat me up. My pride, maybe a little". He made a gesture using his thumb and fore finger.

She laughed at that and headed towards the door but before she left, she turned and said "Supper will be served at nineteen hundred hours, that should give you enough time to freshen up and just ring a bell, someone will point you in the right direction.

As she headed towards the cottage, that her great grandfather had given to her grandmother, she could not believe what she had just done. She had been ordered to convince him of her worth and also make him forget she was a woman. She was pretty sure she had made a good start with the first part but no matter what she did from now, there was no way he would ever see as her as anything but a woman. The thing that scared her was the fact that she had not wanted to beat him like that, she had kissed him because she had wanted to and not as a tactic to win their little contest. She had let him believe otherwise but she knew the truth and it scared her.

She was never a beauty growing up and didn't care about it, until she came to live on the estate and met Sebastian Hawthorne. He was very handsome but kind, not like a typical highborn boy who was all about themselves. Growing up he was the better fencer than either her or Richard and would beat him in almost every contest they had but when he faced her he would let her win every time. It infuriated her and made the feelings she felt growing for him even stronger, than they already were. When they had first met, she had treated him very harshly.

She could never believe a handsome young man like him, would want to be with a ugly little common girl like her but he did and she didn't know how to handle it. When she did grow into her looks, the boys who had sniggered and called her names behind her back. All of a sudden were constantly hanging around the estate and she was flattered. Sebastian had walked around with a face like thunder but said nothing.

When one of the boys started showing a real interest in her and she began returning his affection. He marched up to her, in front of a room full of people and declared his love for her. Any feelings she had started to feel for the other boy, vanished in an instant and within two months they were married. Little Thomas came along nine months or so after that and then, he ruined everything!

She shook off the anger she felt towards her dead husband and spent the rest of the not short journey to her home, trying to think of a way to tell her cousin, that she had only half succeeded or was that half failed, in her mission. Maybe she would have to try other tactics, different to her cousins ever more devious ones, to ensure he accepted her participation in the mission.