Angie was not sure what she had been expecting when Will had told her that they were leaving on a mission. But one thing was certain; she had not been expecting a week long journey on horseback. Or sailing the Stormwhite on a Wolfship.
Not that it was boring. The seawolves were a very rowdy bunch, yelling and cursing all day and most of the night. They toned down the cursing after Will, Horace and Maddie reprimanded them about the fact that ladies were onboard, as well as children, but only a little.
The skirl was a man by the name of Borak, he was twice as tall as Angie and had a head full of coarse black hair, beard included, that stuck out in every direction. He shouted everything, and took great joy in shouting at the Rangers. He was also particularly fond of commanding Johnny Pritchard about, making him take a turn on the oars at least once a day.
An old friend of Will and Horace joined them at Castle Araluen. He was a mountain of a man ran at them screaming about a general and waving a battle axe over his head. He had given bear hugs that should have broken backs, including to Angie and Johnny who had never met the man before, and saddled up on a shaggy little pony he dwarfed to join them cross country to the coast.
"Nils just gets a bit excited," Will explained while they camped that night.
"He seems like an idiot," Johnny had commented, Angie was fairly certain that was the reason Borak had Johnny hard at work while they crossed the Stormwhite. When she mentioned it to Nils, he had given her a very conspicuous wink.
She liked to stand at the bow of the ship, behind the hideous figure head to watch the water stretching out before them. Angie was fascinated by the sea. Most of the crew left her alone while she was up there, sometimes they joined her, telling tales of the sea. For once in her life Angie felt she was actually focused on something, the Skandians were amazing.
She was standing at the bow when the Skandian coast appeared on the horizon. She grinned leaning over the figure head to see the pine filled coast. Skandia was the first country she was going to visit.
"Skandia," she breathed.
"Beautiful," Angie jumped hearing Horace behind her; for a blundering knight, he was capable of being as silent as Will when he wanted to be. "First time I've seen her shore sailing inbound."
"I thought you fought in the Battle of Hallasholm," she instantly regretted speaking. She often confused her facts, placing people in the wrong battles, battles in the wrong countries under false generals. Sometimes she completely made up battles and generals, but she knew that was not the case this time.
"I did," the King smiled kindly at her. "But I rode into Skandia out of Gallica with Will's mentor Halt. I sailed from Skandia with the Oberjarl at the time."
"Erak Starfollower," Angie supplied. She remembered at least that much. "His ship was Wolfwind, wasn't it?"
Horace smiled nodding.
"Can I ask you a question?"
"You already have," Horace laughed at the confused look on Angie's face. "But you can ask another one."
"Will said you were the king," she started trying to form her question.
"That's not a question."
"I was leading up to it. How come you're still doing this Task Force stuff?"
Horace chuckled, "I like doing Task Force stuff."
"But don't you have to run the country? What's going to happen while we're gone? Who's going to make sure some fief doesn't revolt?"
"I would say the Queen can handle it."
"But you're the King," Angie looked up at him, like that should have made her argument.
"I married a Princess, I was never groomed to rule."
"You're still the King."
"Have you ever heard of a figure head?"
"There's one on the bow of the ship."
"Yes, but it's also kind of what I am. I have the title of King, but Cassandra is the ruling force on the throne. She makes decisions, creates laws, manages the ruling of the kingdom."
"So you can do Task Force stuff?"
"Some yes," Horace answered. "Now, why don't we join the others at the tiller. We have to talk about our plans once we reach Hallasholm."
Angie forced a wan smile. Discussions, discussions, and more discussions, it felt like all she had done this entire voyage was talk. Angie had no patience for talk, something Will had pointed out to her often enough. Horace must have caught the force behind the smile, he tried an encouraging smile.
"I had no patience when I was an apprentice either."
"But I'm an apprentice Ranger," she nearly whined her shoulders slumping. "I'm supposed to be able to sit for hours and hours focusing on my breathing, thinking up brilliant complex strategies, mastering skills like this sling, and the bow and throwing knives and hiding from Will in plain sight." Her voice rose in pitch as she listed off the impossible tasks Will was expecting of her.
"Does it work," Horace asked feeling sympathy for the girl.
"Hiding in plain sight," Horace nodded. "When I fall asleep," she looked down at the ground ashamed.
Horace laughed; a deep bellowing laugh that startled the rowing crew. "That is one I haven't heard before," he chuckled laying his hand on Angie's shoulder to lead her to the tiller where Will, Maddie and Johnny were waiting with Nils Ropehander and the Skirl.
"You won't tell Will, will you?"
"I think he already knows," Angie's face paled. "But your secret's safe with me."
At the tiller, Will was eyeing the battle school apprentice carefully. So far there had been no arguing between the apprentices, largely due to the fact that Borak had put the self-entitled youth to work rowing the ship. The boy was exhausted standing there, he swayed opposite the natural movement of the ship, his eyes drooping.
It had been Horace's idea to set the boy up with work, in theory it would knock the arrogance right out of him. Will believed it was working, but he could also see reason for him to be more vindictive to Angie, who had done little work while aboard the wolfship. Granted Angie had been practicing in one of the holds below deck with Horace and Maddie most days, but Johnny had not seen that.
Now that Skandia had come into view Will knew they would have to lay some ground rules to end any of the bickering before it could get started. Maddie had agreed and forced Horace into agreeing. Horace had believed that they would just work their problems out, after all he and Will had solved their problems without assistance. Will liked to think it would work out that way, but his instincts told him otherwise.
Once Angie and Horace had joined them Will looked to Borak to begin.
"We should reach the coast in a few hours, we're going to sail up the coast to reach Hallasholm. We should dock at Hallasholm by sunset tomorrow." Will nodded.
"Once we reach Hallasholm there a few things you should know."
"Like what," as tired as he was, Johnny was still managing to have an attitude. "That we shouldn't look cross-eyed at them?"
"Like, 'don't insult them', more like," Nils glared down at the boy.
"The Skandians are our friends, but they do not take well to insults of courage," Nils and Borak nodded, "strength," again the Skandians nodded, "or their ships. They love a challenge and will take any odds, but they do not appreciate being mocked relentlessly about their loses."
"They also have a sore spot about their ships and deities," Horace added, Nils nodded enthusiastically.
"Right," Will looked at the two apprentices. "We are here on a diplomatic mission, guests of the Senior Jarls while they elect a new Oberjarl. Yes Johnny," the battle school apprentice had his hand raised.
"Why is a pair of Ranger's, an old knight and a pair of apprentices on a diplomatic mission? As guests of a bunch of jarls?"
"Because they know and trust Horace and Will," Maddie answered. "They helped defend Hallasholm from the Temujai."
"Yea, I know all of that," Johnny snapped at the Ranger. "But shouldn't this be a mission for the Couriers or the part of the Royal Party?"
Angie snorted.
"Got something to say," Johnny turned on her. He would have attacked her if she had not been standing between Will and Nils.
"Gone a bit daft haven't you," Angie shook her head, a small smile pulling at her lips.
"What's that supposed to mean," Johnny narrowed his eyes. Will had the feeling he was about to lunge at the apprentice Ranger.
"I thought I was bad at history," Angie rolled her eyes; an action Will had never seen her use before. "Princess Cassandra married the battle school apprentice who fought along-side her in Hallasholm."
Will could see Johnny's mind working, processing what Angie had said. He was slow on the uptake, and Angie was enjoying holding something over the boy's head. She rolled her eyes again and sighed.
"The 'daft ole knight' you keep complaining about is the battle school apprentice who fought against the Temujai." It still was not registering in Johnny's mind. Angie sighed and motioned with an open hand at Horace, "King Horace of Araluen." Johnny's face lost color so quickly Will thought he was going to be sick, which probably was not too far from the truth. Angie smirked happily, "and the 'annoying woman' is crowned Princess Madelyn."
Johnny's mouth opened and closed several times before he could finally manage to speak. Even then his first attempt was a waterfall of gibberish. "You're the—and the—I thought—why would," he stopped dropping to his knee and bowing his head. "I apologize for my rude behavior. Had I but known," Angie snorted again.
"You would have been a little angel," Maddie laughed at the comment, covering her mouth hastily with her hand. Will and Horace both glared at her, then at Angie.
"I believe that's enough," Will spoke with a dry tone, ending the banter between the apprentices.
Angie raised her brow in mock surprise, once more attempting to copy Will's brow raising expression, making an innocent gesture with her hands, "I was just saying."
Will determined Angie had spent too much time with the Skandians and Maddie. But there was nothing he could do about that, they were sailing for the Skandian capital. But at least she was not being cowed by Johnny, unless she was just being brave because she was surrounded by people who would support her. That was unimportant at the moment as well.
"As I was saying," Will tried to bring the conversation back to the reason they had gathered. "Once we land in Hallasholm we will be staying the Oberjarl's Palace, curtsey of the senior jarls, and we have to set a few ground rules."
"Rule one, leave the jarls alone," Borak grunted. "Most importantly their possessions."
Will nodded. "The senior jarls have storage in the palace, you do not touch any of it. You need to leave the jarls alone while they discuss the next Oberjarl, I don't expect you'll see them during the discussion but you need to leave them alone anyway.
"The second rule is no fighting. We are here peacefully, I will not take your weapons away but I expect you to conduct yourself in a responsible manner." Will eyed the two apprentices separately. Angie and Johnny both knew he was talking about them, Maddie would know better and the apprentices were still butting heads.
"Third," Will continued, "I hope both of you will learn something on this trip. Staying in Hallasholm when I was an apprentice was a very eye-opening experience. This is a good chance to learn about another culture, experience new things and expose the new members of the Task Force to the types of responsibilities they will have."
"So there are only three rules," Johnny asked.
He had expected a lot of rules and a schedule they would be following, filled with meetings they would have to sit through, people he would have to meet and training time with Horace and the Rangers. The Ranger was practically giving him run of the capital of Skandia, and all he would have to do is not argue with Angie, a person he would spend as little time with as possible. It was too good to be true.
"Those are just the ground rules," Horace smiled. "There are other things, we'll have training sessions in the green, I imagine some of the jarls and skirls will want to meet you both, teach you a thing or two about the wolfships."
"And fighting," Nils added with a grin. "Can't visit Hallasholm and not learn about fighting."
"Naturally," Horace beamed.
It was going to be as bad as Johnny had originally thought.