Yay! A new chapter!! *pant, pant* Sorry it's so late... between the offline weeks in Puerto Rico and catching up at work, I've hardly had any time to write. (Gah!)
To those who keep leaving such enticing and lovely feedback--thank you!! You're the fuel that keeps me going--especially since reading 'Squire.' To Lady Kithandra: the romance is coming, it's just a little slow 'cause I'm not sure exactly where I'm gonna go yet. (it'll be here soon, I promise!)
Tortall and all of its inhabitants belong to Tamora Pierce, and are used with her (indirect) permission.
// - denotes italics
The Squire Years
Chapter 6: A Whiff of War
The next day, Kel's troop rode out at four in the morning. It was a fairly difficult trek, following the path of the river rather than the road, and several times Kel had to nudge Merric awake before he fell off of his mount. Kel found it odd to be leading the caravan instead of falling back to keep the other horses safe from Peachblossom's bite; but the large, ornery gelding cared little whether he was in the front or the rear, so long as no one gave him trouble.
The knights were good company. Unlike the other squires, they were quite used to waking at all hours of the night in order to deal with an emergency spidren hunt or a centaur uprising. Sir Geoffrey was quick to share trail mix, and Sir Sacherell's mount was among the few who actually got along with Peachblossom. Crown and her flock were comfortable with the friendly knight as well, and a dusting of feathers were often seen on his shoulders and on his horse. Conal, of course, was always a handful; but he was remarkably well behaved under Kel's direction. She decided that a prankster like him would best be placed covering the traces of the party's passing.
After an hour's ride they built their camp and set about protecting it. Kel assigned sentry duties as Roald traced steps around the area, clockwise and counter-, murmuring under his breath whilst dropping herbs and branches. Kel knew that with his protection spell, no one outside the circle would be able to clearly see the camp.
Kel had placed Faleron on the first sentry duty, but quickly began to regret it. Faleron had asked to be placed in charge of the messenger pigeons as well as the horn used to sound for danger or attack. But what if he was the spy? Wouldn't that be a prime position for someone who wanted them to fail? Her uneasiness went away as quickly as it had come. She was just being overly sensitive; chances were best that she would never discover her spy, so it was useless to waste time thinking about it when there was work to be done.
After camp was set up, they spent the morning reviewing strategies and preparing equipment. The arrowheads were blunt and covered with chalk, to mark an opponent with a splash of color when struck. Each person wore practice pads according to their positions in the battle plans. As a potential staff fighter, Kel padded her shoulders and torso, knowing that any opponent would go for her ribs or collarbone.
The morning was quiet. Their only concern about an attack came from Cleon's group, but Roald assured them that everyone would know without a doubt if someone came into their camp, and Merric and Yancen had set up numerous twig-and-rock traps outside of Roald's ring. Around noon, after eating a lunch of bread, dried meat, nuts, and fruit, Kel decided to set her plan into action. She sent a messenger bird to Cleon's group, agreeing on an earlier--proposed battle plan. Then she gathered a small party--herself, Yancen, Sacherell, and Conal--and rode toward the palace.
They were on patrol, she told them, to see what kind of action--or inaction--was going on in the other two sectors. Vague boundary lines had been established the evening before, when Lord Wyldon had given them post-dinner instructions.
"These boundaries have been placed by your advisors and myself upon reviewing your battle plans," he had stated. "If you are retreating from an ill-planned invasion, consider yourself in your own friendly lands again. And if you venture beyond the lines, consider it a justifiable cause for war if you're on enemy ground."
Now Kel intended to use that lecture to her advantage. Raoul had clear orders--she just had to make sure her group was close enough to be mistaken for having crossed the line without ever doing so.
It was over fifteen minutes before the forest ended and the palace wall came into view; the entrance from which her clan left that morning wasn't even visible from her current angle, they had traveled so far within the Royal Forest. But with the spyglass Sacherell was carrying, she could see two sentries on the parapets of the fortified wall. She made her way to the forest's edge, motioning for the others to follow her lead.
"Kel," Yancen hissed. "If we go ten yards out of these woods, we start the war."
"I want a better view," she answered calmly, urging Peachblossom forward.
Sir Sacherell gave Yancen a warning look. "You're lucky that Squire Keladry values the input of her troops; I can name several captains who would punish you for such doubt." His severe tone caused Yancen to flush and his head bowed slightly.
Kel thought it was a little harsh--especially since Yancen already had a knight master and was a seasoned squire who was following her own instructions-but she said nothing. She was distracted by the movement on the wall.
When the party had stepped no more than five feet into the field, an arrow whizzed by Kel's head, grazing her cheek and imbedding itself into the tree at her back.
Yancen sputtered angrily but no words formed. Conal, instead, took up the tall boy's argument. "Kel, are you mad? You just got us into a war without any allies!"
She wiped the blood off of her face with the back of her hand and turned to him. Grinning wryly and gesturing to the area around them, she spoke with a calm but commanding voice. "We're hardly two yards from the woods. The palace sentry's mistake is ground for my declaration of war--and gives us room to plead to Cleon on the terms of the alliance." Her gaze went back to the palace wall, over a hundred yards away. Soldiers were gathering, looking at her group.
Dismounting, Kel unsheathed her sword and suck it into the ground, marking their spot for precision.
"Take this, too," Conal said, pulling a piece of cloth from one of his packs. It was a blue and cream banner with the Mindelan crest--the banner he used during tournaments. Kel draped it over her sword, amused by her brother's flair for the dramatic.
"Back to the camp," Kel said with a small smile. "We have to send messages to the other factions." She mounted and led the group back toward their base.
Conal and Sacherell fell back as they rode, leaving Yancen the privacy to apologize to Kel. "So this was planned all along? I'm sorry I doubted you, but why didn't you tell us the plan? And just who is the spy in Joren's group that shot at you?"
"I was worried about spies," she explained. "That's why I didn't tell everyone the plan. I figured that with as few people in on it as possible, the chances of it leaking back to Joren or Cleon were lessened. Only Sir Sacherell and I knew-and Lord Raoul. He's our spy."
Yancen paused, contemplating for a moment. "So this was all just your trick to get us into the war with the best advantage?"
Kel nodded.
"But what will happen to your spy? Id he plays innocent, he'll get in loads of trouble with Joren; if he reveals himself, it becomes clear that the war was an act of /our/ aggression."
Kel nodded again. The thought had occurred to her. "Lord Raoul is a seasoned warrior. Even if he makes a mistake, Joren will trust him more than the squires in his group. He is more than capable of taking care of himself. If we can utilize him again, that would be wonderful. But we can't count on him any longer."
"So are we at war now?" Merric asked when they explained the situation to everyone back at the camp.
"Not formally," Kel answered. "I need to meet with Cleon, then Joren. War challenges and declarations have to go through before the battle; that's why Lord Wyldon told us to prepare enough for three days." She scribbled notes onto scrolls and put them in the miniature canisters, ready to be tied to the pigeons' feet and flown to both parties once Roald gave the spell. Normally magic wasn't needed for messenger birds, but her group's were only trained to go to the palace--not to the king's hunting lodge, where Cleon's group was based.
"So now we wait," Yancen scowled.
"War isn't something that's over and done with in a moment," Sir Geoffrey said calmly. "There are weeks and weeks of waiting in camps, wondering when the king will give you the go-ahead. Armies have to have time to plan battles. Even minor skirmishes can involve days of waiting for the other army to cross your path--and the closer you are to the beginning of a war, the worse the wait will be."
Kel enjoyed hearing the knight's cool wisdom. Working with Geoffrey and Sacherell--and even Conal--was really a treat for her. She and the others took time to polish their weapons and shields while the three large knights shared tales of various scuffles in their own experiences--everything from fighting Scanrans in the Immortals War to preparing weapons as squires during the Tusaine War. Kel loved the stories--especially when there was a lesson to be learned.
Early in the evening, while they were eating their makeshift dinner, two messenger pigeons arrived in the camp. One, from the palace, was Joren's agreement for a parlay the next morning. The other was from Cleon, and announced that he would come to their camp at dusk with a small group of soldiers in order to investigate the matter personally.
Kel was pleased with both results; clearly both of her opponents were not going to jump headlong into battle without first asking the necessary questions.
To be continued...
To those who keep leaving such enticing and lovely feedback--thank you!! You're the fuel that keeps me going--especially since reading 'Squire.' To Lady Kithandra: the romance is coming, it's just a little slow 'cause I'm not sure exactly where I'm gonna go yet. (it'll be here soon, I promise!)
Tortall and all of its inhabitants belong to Tamora Pierce, and are used with her (indirect) permission.
// - denotes italics
The Squire Years
Chapter 6: A Whiff of War
The next day, Kel's troop rode out at four in the morning. It was a fairly difficult trek, following the path of the river rather than the road, and several times Kel had to nudge Merric awake before he fell off of his mount. Kel found it odd to be leading the caravan instead of falling back to keep the other horses safe from Peachblossom's bite; but the large, ornery gelding cared little whether he was in the front or the rear, so long as no one gave him trouble.
The knights were good company. Unlike the other squires, they were quite used to waking at all hours of the night in order to deal with an emergency spidren hunt or a centaur uprising. Sir Geoffrey was quick to share trail mix, and Sir Sacherell's mount was among the few who actually got along with Peachblossom. Crown and her flock were comfortable with the friendly knight as well, and a dusting of feathers were often seen on his shoulders and on his horse. Conal, of course, was always a handful; but he was remarkably well behaved under Kel's direction. She decided that a prankster like him would best be placed covering the traces of the party's passing.
After an hour's ride they built their camp and set about protecting it. Kel assigned sentry duties as Roald traced steps around the area, clockwise and counter-, murmuring under his breath whilst dropping herbs and branches. Kel knew that with his protection spell, no one outside the circle would be able to clearly see the camp.
Kel had placed Faleron on the first sentry duty, but quickly began to regret it. Faleron had asked to be placed in charge of the messenger pigeons as well as the horn used to sound for danger or attack. But what if he was the spy? Wouldn't that be a prime position for someone who wanted them to fail? Her uneasiness went away as quickly as it had come. She was just being overly sensitive; chances were best that she would never discover her spy, so it was useless to waste time thinking about it when there was work to be done.
After camp was set up, they spent the morning reviewing strategies and preparing equipment. The arrowheads were blunt and covered with chalk, to mark an opponent with a splash of color when struck. Each person wore practice pads according to their positions in the battle plans. As a potential staff fighter, Kel padded her shoulders and torso, knowing that any opponent would go for her ribs or collarbone.
The morning was quiet. Their only concern about an attack came from Cleon's group, but Roald assured them that everyone would know without a doubt if someone came into their camp, and Merric and Yancen had set up numerous twig-and-rock traps outside of Roald's ring. Around noon, after eating a lunch of bread, dried meat, nuts, and fruit, Kel decided to set her plan into action. She sent a messenger bird to Cleon's group, agreeing on an earlier--proposed battle plan. Then she gathered a small party--herself, Yancen, Sacherell, and Conal--and rode toward the palace.
They were on patrol, she told them, to see what kind of action--or inaction--was going on in the other two sectors. Vague boundary lines had been established the evening before, when Lord Wyldon had given them post-dinner instructions.
"These boundaries have been placed by your advisors and myself upon reviewing your battle plans," he had stated. "If you are retreating from an ill-planned invasion, consider yourself in your own friendly lands again. And if you venture beyond the lines, consider it a justifiable cause for war if you're on enemy ground."
Now Kel intended to use that lecture to her advantage. Raoul had clear orders--she just had to make sure her group was close enough to be mistaken for having crossed the line without ever doing so.
It was over fifteen minutes before the forest ended and the palace wall came into view; the entrance from which her clan left that morning wasn't even visible from her current angle, they had traveled so far within the Royal Forest. But with the spyglass Sacherell was carrying, she could see two sentries on the parapets of the fortified wall. She made her way to the forest's edge, motioning for the others to follow her lead.
"Kel," Yancen hissed. "If we go ten yards out of these woods, we start the war."
"I want a better view," she answered calmly, urging Peachblossom forward.
Sir Sacherell gave Yancen a warning look. "You're lucky that Squire Keladry values the input of her troops; I can name several captains who would punish you for such doubt." His severe tone caused Yancen to flush and his head bowed slightly.
Kel thought it was a little harsh--especially since Yancen already had a knight master and was a seasoned squire who was following her own instructions-but she said nothing. She was distracted by the movement on the wall.
When the party had stepped no more than five feet into the field, an arrow whizzed by Kel's head, grazing her cheek and imbedding itself into the tree at her back.
Yancen sputtered angrily but no words formed. Conal, instead, took up the tall boy's argument. "Kel, are you mad? You just got us into a war without any allies!"
She wiped the blood off of her face with the back of her hand and turned to him. Grinning wryly and gesturing to the area around them, she spoke with a calm but commanding voice. "We're hardly two yards from the woods. The palace sentry's mistake is ground for my declaration of war--and gives us room to plead to Cleon on the terms of the alliance." Her gaze went back to the palace wall, over a hundred yards away. Soldiers were gathering, looking at her group.
Dismounting, Kel unsheathed her sword and suck it into the ground, marking their spot for precision.
"Take this, too," Conal said, pulling a piece of cloth from one of his packs. It was a blue and cream banner with the Mindelan crest--the banner he used during tournaments. Kel draped it over her sword, amused by her brother's flair for the dramatic.
"Back to the camp," Kel said with a small smile. "We have to send messages to the other factions." She mounted and led the group back toward their base.
Conal and Sacherell fell back as they rode, leaving Yancen the privacy to apologize to Kel. "So this was planned all along? I'm sorry I doubted you, but why didn't you tell us the plan? And just who is the spy in Joren's group that shot at you?"
"I was worried about spies," she explained. "That's why I didn't tell everyone the plan. I figured that with as few people in on it as possible, the chances of it leaking back to Joren or Cleon were lessened. Only Sir Sacherell and I knew-and Lord Raoul. He's our spy."
Yancen paused, contemplating for a moment. "So this was all just your trick to get us into the war with the best advantage?"
Kel nodded.
"But what will happen to your spy? Id he plays innocent, he'll get in loads of trouble with Joren; if he reveals himself, it becomes clear that the war was an act of /our/ aggression."
Kel nodded again. The thought had occurred to her. "Lord Raoul is a seasoned warrior. Even if he makes a mistake, Joren will trust him more than the squires in his group. He is more than capable of taking care of himself. If we can utilize him again, that would be wonderful. But we can't count on him any longer."
"So are we at war now?" Merric asked when they explained the situation to everyone back at the camp.
"Not formally," Kel answered. "I need to meet with Cleon, then Joren. War challenges and declarations have to go through before the battle; that's why Lord Wyldon told us to prepare enough for three days." She scribbled notes onto scrolls and put them in the miniature canisters, ready to be tied to the pigeons' feet and flown to both parties once Roald gave the spell. Normally magic wasn't needed for messenger birds, but her group's were only trained to go to the palace--not to the king's hunting lodge, where Cleon's group was based.
"So now we wait," Yancen scowled.
"War isn't something that's over and done with in a moment," Sir Geoffrey said calmly. "There are weeks and weeks of waiting in camps, wondering when the king will give you the go-ahead. Armies have to have time to plan battles. Even minor skirmishes can involve days of waiting for the other army to cross your path--and the closer you are to the beginning of a war, the worse the wait will be."
Kel enjoyed hearing the knight's cool wisdom. Working with Geoffrey and Sacherell--and even Conal--was really a treat for her. She and the others took time to polish their weapons and shields while the three large knights shared tales of various scuffles in their own experiences--everything from fighting Scanrans in the Immortals War to preparing weapons as squires during the Tusaine War. Kel loved the stories--especially when there was a lesson to be learned.
Early in the evening, while they were eating their makeshift dinner, two messenger pigeons arrived in the camp. One, from the palace, was Joren's agreement for a parlay the next morning. The other was from Cleon, and announced that he would come to their camp at dusk with a small group of soldiers in order to investigate the matter personally.
Kel was pleased with both results; clearly both of her opponents were not going to jump headlong into battle without first asking the necessary questions.
To be continued...
