Stronger than Bone (15 page)

(Present Day: 237 Cycles into the Light)

“Sir, there is a man outside who says you’ll want to see him. He said a “William Hayes” sent him.” The page stood outside Kelly’s chambers waiting for a response.

The door cracked open. “He’s alone? What does he look like?”

“Well, I can’t really say sir. I am passing the message the gate guard sent. Shall I go find out more?”

“No. No, I’ll come out. Please have him shown in through the servant’s entrance, and have him wait near the stables. I’ll be down shortly.”

The page acknowledged and hurried off to make it so. Kelly looked in the mirror and raised one eyebrow. “He’s here…this is going to be interesting.”

Kelly walked down the steps toward the stables in a fog. He had no idea how he was going to handle this situation. One thing was for certain, the man couldn’t stay in the city. In fact, just where to put him was going to be a problem now that the balance had been upset by the King’s death. No one could be sure which alliances would hold, and which would end in betrayal. His sister’s latest message informed him that her husband was secretly building an army, and may even be dealing directly with the rebels.

Kelly walked into the stables and stopped. He stared open mouthed at Lynn, who was a little unsure how to respond.
“Dear God, this man must get out of the castle immediately!”

“Good morning sir. My name is Lynn Hayes, and I came here looking for a swordsman named Kelly Turner. I’m told he’s the Master of Swords, actually. Is that you?”

Pulling it together, Kelly clamped his jaw shut and snapped his heels together. He straightened and bowed slightly, “Kelly Turner, Master of Swords, at your service.”

“Fantastic. Look, sir, I have a lot of questions…” Lynn began.

“Mr….Hayes, I’m sure you have many, many questions, and I can help, but you’ll have to take my word for it when I say that it’s not safe for you here. We have to get you to safety and then you and I can have a very long conversation,” said Kelly. “Now, I’ll have a carriage and a few guards that I trust take you to a small estate I keep for…private meetings,” he said with a wink and a smirk.

“Look, I don’t think any of that is necessary…”

Raising his hand to squash the argument, Kelly said, “Mr. Hayes, there are things that you don’t know yet. I assure you that when you hear them, you will change your mind. Now wait here while I make arrangements, and for God’s sake, don’t let anyone see your face.”

Lynn watched him turn and walk out of the stables. He stroked his face with one hand, wondering what the mystery could be. He stood there at the mercy of a man he didn’t know or trust, but had seemed to have the answers Lynn needed.

A few hours later, Lynn stepped down from a private carriage and looked at the house and surrounding grounds. He shook his head. Kelly’s “small estate” was big enough to house several families. There was a marble fountain in the front of the house with a rather busty and completely nude mermaid holding onto the leg of a warrior that Lynn could only assume was Kelly.
“This guy…”
Lynn thought.
“What an ego.”

When he followed the footman into the house, he realized that his first impression was not strong enough. Ego didn’t quite cover it. The twelve foot tall portrait over the fireplace, and the busts in the foyer and study were grossly embellished likenesses of the old man Lynn had met at the castle. He almost laughed out loud at the exaggerated codpiece in the portrait.

The footman saw Lynn’s expression and simply shrugged and smiled. Narcissistic or not, he seemed to be well liked by the people who served him. Lynn decided to keep that in mind as he formulated an opinion of the man.

After a few minutes, the rest of the serving staff gathered and were introduced to Lynn. He took note that the guards stayed outside, and wondered if they were there as protection or as keepers. He was a little unsure how to take all of this, but he did his best to simply endure it graciously until Kelly could join him and explain what was going on.

Lynn accepted an offer from the footman to take a tour of the house and grounds before supper. He put his pack in the large and luxurious room he was assigned, and met the man down in the foyer for the tour. He kept his sword buckled about his waist. There was no reason to get complacent.

The house was no surprise. It was big, decorated with gaudy items to impress the materialistic or the simple minded, but clean and efficiently maintained. There were many “themed” bedrooms that Lynn surmised served one purpose.

The grounds were not as Lynn expected. There were training rings, obstacle courses, strength training stations, and a full livery and stables. Most notable was an impressive garden hidden from view by a row of decorative shrubs atop a small hill. It was beautiful by any standard, complete with a babbling brook and exotic trees. Among the budding flowers, trimmed hedges, and brook-side benches, were small statues of woodland creatures, beautiful figures dancing and singing, and children playing innocently. Lynn immediately thought of Joszette when he saw the statues. He wondered if any of them were made by her, and he pictured her hands forming the amazing figures in front of him. He thought of her smile and her soft lips.

“Eh hmm. Uh Sir?” said Gerard, his footman. “Supper will be served soon. We should go back to the house.”

Lynn snapped back from the distraction and nodded. He followed Gerard back to the house, taking a closer look at the training areas as they passed.

(Present Day: 237 Cycles into the Light)

Captain Martin and Lieutenant Brente rode at the head of the column. Their horses kicked up dust and clods of dirt as they galloped down the country road toward the capital. They rode on a hunch that Sergeant Hayes was also on his way there to find Kelly Turner.

As they rode they stopped at each village to inquire about recent trouble, and to Corvis’ chagrin, blood magic and giants. But even he had to admit there was something to all of this. There were several sightings in the woods of a pale and gaunt looking giant, racing in the general direction of the capital. All of the sightings were at night, and each of the witnesses seemed genuinely frightened by the experience. More disturbing was that every eye witness also described the giant as wearing something hideous or disgusting on his head.

After two days of hard travel, they were within sight of the city walls, and the column slowed to a trot. Chase took a deep breath and leaned back in his saddle. He was exhausted. They all were. He turned and looked at the column. All of the men looked grim. They were dirty and road weary and they needed rest. He turned back to the front and focused on getting inside the city gates.

Corvis’ back was aching. He leaned forward and twisted for the hundredth time to try and relieve the pain. No luck. He sighed and rode on. They were almost to the city gates, and relief waited inside. He knew his men felt the same.

Complaining and irritability had increased recently, and focus was slipping. They needed to rest and regroup. He hoped they would get a chance to do that here in the capital. He leaned forward again and patted his horse on the neck before sitting back up straighter than before. “We’re entering the capital, men. Look sharp!” he called back.

As tired and worn out as they were, each man straightened his back and raised his head. The Captain, riding in front did the same. “Thank you for that Corvis,” Chase called back, just loud enough for him to hear. As they approached the gate, he slowed them to a walk. With his head held high and eyes focused straight ahead, he led the troop into the capital city.

They made straight for the stables of the King’s Royal Guard, at the castle in the center of the city. The streets cleared to the sounds of armor and weapons clanking, and so many horse hooves striking the cobbles as the troop passed through.

“Captain Chase Martin, I’ll need quarters for my men and stables for our horses,” he said to the Sergeant of the Guard when they passed through the castle gate. “And send word that the Lieutenant and I have urgent need to speak with the Master of Swords.”

“Yes sir,” the Sergeant said. “You and your men can leave your horses in the stable, and there are open bunks in the barracks. I’ll send word at once that you need to speak with the Master of Swords.”

Chase nodded to the Sergeant and they headed to the stables. From there they split up. The next hour was spent speaking with castle stuff and castle guards to glean any helpful information.

“Kelly’s gone. We missed him,” said Chase. “He left in a hurry yesterday, and no one is quite sure where he was off to.”

“Perfect. Well, a guard told me that a man matching Sergeant Hayes’ description was looking for him the day before. No one saw him leave though.”

“Somebody has to know where Kelly was going, and you can bet Lynn is headed to the same place. I’ll keep asking around with the guards. You check the servants, and be careful what you say Corvis. I’ve heard from several of the guards that our new King is as crooked as the last, and he has spies everywhere.”

“Got it,” said Corvis. He slapped Chase on the shoulder and headed off to ask some questions.

Three hours later, they met at the stables with the rest of their troop.

“Kelly has a private estate just west of here. The general consensus is that he and Sergeant Hayes are there, so that’s where we are going,” Chase informed the group.

“Gather your gear and be ready to ride in fifteen minutes,” ordered Corvis. “Talk to no one.”

The men hurried off to prepare for movement, and Chase and Corvis walked into the stables. They secured their gear to their mounts in silence. Neither of them was looking forward to traveling again so soon, but they were on a mission. Rest and recovery would have to wait.

Soon they were on the road again, moving at a trot. Chase led one column up the left side of the road while Corvis led a column up the right. The dirty and tired troop of mounted soldiers rode somberly toward the estate of the King’s Master of Swords.

That morning, Lynn was outside in the ring sparring with the guards. The guards were taking turns, as Lynn pushed himself harder and harder. The guard on standby, shouted encouragement at his mate as Lynn delivered another sound thrashing with the wooden practice swords Kelly kept for such training. He was sweating profusely and felt more in control and sharper than he had in many weeks.

Lynn laughed with the men and helped his opponent up. “What do you boys say we try out some of the strength training stations?” he asked as the other man caught his breath and nursed his bruised arms.

“Seriously?” the other guard laughed. “How come it feels like we are the old men here?” he asked. The two guards were no more than twenty five, and they were struggling to keep up.

“Yes, seriously,” Lynn chuckled. “Hard work is the only sure way to good fortune,” he said as he tossed his practice sword to the man and jogged toward the first station.

The guards looked at each other and shrugged. This was a hell of a lot better than standing guard duty. Patting his buddy on the back and making him wince, the second guard trotted off to join Lynn.

Soon all three of them were taking turns dragging the huge log across the uneven ground by a large rope that was wrapped around one end. It was a hell of a work out, and fun to watch. Many of the servants had come out to cheer them on, or laugh when they fell.

The next station was a tree with a rope attached to a stout limb about thirty feet in the air. There was another rope attached to a limb on the other side of the tree. This time it was a speed competition as well as strength. Gasps escaped from several of the servants as Lynn and the first guard raced to the top of their ropes. They were both tired from the morning of exercise, and a fall could be dangerous if not fatal from the height they were climbing. Never the less, they gave it everything they had and pulled hand over hand, letting the rope swing free below them rather than locking it in with their feet. Cheers erupted as Lynn reached up and tapped the limb above his head before descending. The guard laughed and continued up anyway, slapping the branch above his own head before descending.

Lynn nodded at the other guard and gestured at the other rope. He stood ready to climb again, chest heaving and a huge smile across his face.

“Are you sure you don’t want to rest old man?” the guard called as he stepped up to the rope.

In answer, Lynn jumped and caught his rope and began another ascent. He grunted and pulled, and fought his way up even faster than the last time.

The younger man cursed and leapt up, grabbing his own rope. He pulled and grabbed as he struggled to catch up and pass Lynn.

The servants laughed and shouted encouragement to both.

Lynn’s muscles bulged, and his veins stood out as he worked. Seconds later he reached up and slapped the branch to the cheers of the servants. He laughed as he heard the guard on the other side of the tree curse again.

The next station was two sets of poles with a bar between each. The bars were a few inches higher than the reach of a tall man so that one had to jump to grab hold. Lynn jumped up and grabbed hold of the bar with both hands. He walked his hands apart until they were a little wider than his shoulders. Then he pulled himself up so that his chin was above the bar. He lowered himself down and did it again. He repeated it over and over, at least twenty times before dropping down to rest.

The second guard jumped up and grabbed the bar. He nearly lost his grip, but managed to hang on. The servants held their breath. He set his hands shoulder width apart, and began pulling himself up. His arms quivered and shook and his upward momentum stopped. His face was deep red and the veins in his forehead looked ready to burst. He struggled on for a few more seconds, not making any further movement upward. He suddenly let go and dropped. “What are you made of?” he asked Lynn and laughed at his own failure. The servants laughed and cheered his effort anyway.

The first guard took his turn and got to five before he couldn’t do any more.

Lynn jumped back up and knocked out another fifteen before dropping. The servants and both guards clapped and cheered him on and then congratulated him when he was finished.

“I’m impressed sir,” said the first guard. “Remind me never to underestimate an opponent because of his age.”

“Or his origins,” called Kelly as he approached the training area. “Guards, please retrieve your clothing and weapons and resume your duties. Mr. Hayes and I have some business to attend to.”

Lynn pulled his shirt down over his head and took a drink of water from the water bucket a servant brought out. “I’m glad you’re here. I don’t think your boys could take much more,” he chuckled.

Kelly smiled and swept his hand toward the house in invitation. Lynn nodded and the men walked inside together.

When they entered the study Kelly closed the doors behind them. He turned to Lynn and pointed at a comfortable chair. “Have a seat Mr. Hayes,” he said. “I have a story to tell you, and you’ll want to be seated when you hear it.”