Chapter 7

The following new characters appear in the next two chapters:

Eamon O'Flaherty III

Castellan, 5'-8" tall, 150 pounds, 50 years old, brown hair going gray, hazel eyes

'Red' Hugh O'Dochartaigh

Guard Captain, 6'-0" tall, 195 pounds, 35 years old, flaming red hair, gray eyes, and a bad temper

We hurried up the stairs past the second floor without looking in, and continued on to the third floor. Sunshine had said that this was the Master's private floor. I quickly cast a ward across the entrance to the guest chamber there so that no one could use it to reach us in the main chamber.

I was preparing to cast another one on the entrance to the Master's chamber, but as soon as we stepped onto the third floor, it was obvious that we were in a hallway. It ran from the stairwell all the way across the building and was about four feet wide and twenty-some feet long. The stone wall on one side was the wall that had the guest room on the other side of it. The opposite wall of the hallway was paneled in oak and ran from floor to ceiling. There was a pair of doors in the middle that opened into the main chamber.

"The Garderobe (Lavatory) is at the end of the passage," Sunshine informed me. "It is a very fancy one and only the Master and his guests are supposed to use it, but Rose and I, as children, would sneak up here at night sometimes and use it. There is even an arrow slit window at the end of the passage for light during the daytime," she added.

I placed my wards in the partition or screen wall instead of the stairwell entrance. It would be less likely to be discovered there, and could appear to be the Master's work. On entering the Master's chamber, I could see that this area was a lot more refined and comfortable than the spartan ground floor and the stone stairwell had been.

The walls were lined with fine wood paneling. There were curtains hung at the windows here and rugs on the floor. A number of spaces were lit by separate small Magic-powered lamps and there was a large chandelier with six Magic-powered lights on it, but it was not lit at present. There was a large fireplace with a finely carved mantel over it and weapons displayed on the wall above it.

When I checked the large window, I discovered that it was a three-panel mullioned window with actual glass in it. There were iron shutters on the outside that could be closed over the window. The recess where the window pierced the outer wall was deep and fitted out like a seat and the curtains on either side of it could be drawn to cover it for privacy.

The space was divided into several sections. There was a small private dining area, an area directly under the chandelier held several chairs for relaxing and talking to guests, and a work area with various jars of herbs and other things above a work table. Finally there was a large four poster bed with curtains to close it off in the winter. There were several chests which we discovered contained clothing. Most amazing of all was the copper tub sitting on clawed marble feet in the corner near the fireplace.

"Well, I would say that Master Eogham has an appreciation for the finer things in life," I said after examining everything.

"The Master will be expected to appear for dinner when it is served," Sunshine reminded me, bringing me back from my reverie at finding such a pleasant chamber to the hard facts of the present.

"What are you going to do?" she asked, worried.

"I would say that we are going to dinner when it is announced," I told her, as I opened one of the chests containing clothing. There were a number of Master Wizards' robes folded neatly in there. I picked out the most ostentatious one there. It was a dark blue with heavy gold braiding on the sleeves, down the front and around the hem. There were several pairs of dyed and embossed leather sandals near the chest, and I selected a pair of them also.

"We need something more than an Apprentice's robe for you," I told Sunshine. "Look in the other chests for something more appropriate to wear," I added. Sunshine soon came upon a forest green dress in one of the other chests. It matched her eyes very well. There were a gold bracelet, earrings and a necklace in with it also.

"This is a dress for a high-born lady," she said very softly. "I couldn't wear it."

"You most certainly can!" I told her. "But after you have had a bath."

"But how?" she asked.

"In the copper tub," I answered, and cast a spell to fill the tub with water from the well that I had seen in the bawn. I than heated the water with another spell.

"Your bath awaits you," I told her leading her over to the tub. She was shocked by the fact that not only was there water in the tub, and that it was hot, but not too hot.

"You are truly a Great Wizard to be able to do this, Master Ken," she whispered, as I removed her robe and helped her into the tub. Her back and other areas were totally healed by now. I reached into my backpack, which I still had, and removed the soap and a wash cloth for her. The grime soon disappeared, and she was as clean as a freshly washed baby.

I washed my face and hands while she dried off with a piece of cloth that hung near the tub. The water went to irrigate the fields when I finished. Sunshine was shocked by this also.

"Where did the water go?" she asked on seeing the tub empty.

"I sent it to the fields," I told her, as I used the same piece of cloth to dry my face and hands.

"Shall we dress for dinner?" I asked after that. Both the Wizard's robe and the dress were too large and I used a shrinkage spell on them as well as our footwear. We had only been finished for a few minutes and were admiring each other when there was a knock on the chamber door.

"Dinner is ready, my Lord," a voice informed us.

"I'll be up shortly," I answered, trying to sound at least somewhat like the Wizard.

"Yes, my Lord!" the voice answered, as I looked over at Sunshine again.

She is a short girl being only just over five feet tall. She was rather thin at present, but I was sure that after a few good meals she would start to fill out very nicely. She already had very nice breasts and her hair matched, top and bottom. The green dress showed off her green eyes and contrasted well with her short red hair. The gold jewelry added sparkling highlights to the outfit.

"Tell me about the hall where they are having dinner," I asked her.

"It is much like this floor, except there is no guest chamber or screen wall. It is open all of the way from the stairwell termination to the end wall with another large window, similar to the one here, but the alcove for the window is not so deep. There are several other smaller windows also. There is a fireplace almost directly above the one here, and there is a raised dais with the head table on it at the window end of the chamber. There are two lower tables extending down the hall from the head table." she told me. "Many people can sit at those tables to eat, but they are normally less than half full."

"What about the hall on the east side of the bawn where the kitchen is?" I asked.

"The guards, plus the Carpenter's and the Mason's families eat there in addition to the other servants like the stablemen and apprentice carpenters and masons. The kitchen also houses the creamery and the pantry," she told me.

"Is there anything else that I need to know?" I asked.

"It could be very dangerous to go up there," she told me. "Could you not bring the food down here to us?" she asked fearfully.

"Yes, I could, but that is not what we are going to do," I told her. "We are also not going to walk up to the hall and past those there on the way to the head table," I added, as I took her hand. With her description, I had sent my senses up through the vaulted ceiling and the flag-stoned floor of the great hall above to make sure of the layout of the dais. We transferred to the area near the head table, but clear of the two large throne like chairs there. Our sudden appearance caused quite a bit of excitement.

The chamber appeared just as Sunshine had described it. The head table on the dais ran across the width of the chamber, and the two other tables ran down the length of the room below it. The large fireplace with another carved mantel was on our right. This chamber too was paneled and appeared very elegant. It was obviously meant to impress visitors.

What she had failed to mention, and what made the space seem so large was the roof. It spanned the width of the room and was of the arch-braced type with four principals. On each collar-beam stood a king-post supporting a purling and cross pieces below the ridge. The rafters were laid flat, rather than on edge as in modern roofs, and the framework was covered with split laths which were covered with the outer roofing material.

Hanging from the roof beams was a huge chandelier on a chain with eight large Magic-powered lights. They were set on medium power but were not lighting the room well because of its size. I increased the power to high for more light. The whole chamber was an awe inspiring sight, and I was glad for the architectural lessons that I had received at both the Grand Master's court and at Mother Gretchen's clan so that I could appreciate it.

My musings on the grandeur of the chamber and the roof were interrupted by a shout from a large man who had drawn a sword.

"Where is Master Eogham?" he demanded in a deep gruff voice.

"That's the Guard Captain," Sunshine whispered to me.

"Master Eogham is presently contemplating his failings. I am Kennard Curren O'Connell, Senior Master Sorcerer, and I have assumed temporary command of this castle, " I informed him and the others gathered at the tables.

"When will Master Eogham return?" the large man demanded still in an unhappy voice.

"That has yet to be determined. It will depend on several factors," I told him. "In the meantime, all of you are to carry out your duties as you have in the past."

"In the morning, I wish to see the Castellan, and I will speak with the rest of you as time permits. You may serve the evening meal," I told the Cook and her assistants who were at the far end of the two tables.

"The first dish was a celery soup, my Lord, but it is cold now," the Cook said in fear. I reached out with my senses and found the kettle containing the soup and heated it with a spell.

"I have heated the soup, and it is no longer cold," I informed her. "You may serve it. I will reheat any of the other dishes that require it," I also told her to her shock. The Cook looked up at me with a doubtful expression before touching the kettle. She quickly withdrew her hand.

"It's hot!?" she said in disbelief.

"Certainly!" I said as I helped Sunshine to her chair and took my own. The rest of those present were looking at us in shock. Apparently Master Eogham had never reheated the soup.

The Guard Captain was still unhappy and still standing. As the Cook approached our table with a tray of soup bowls for Sunshine and me, he and one of his Lieutenants charged our table on the dais with drawn swords. It did them little good, for I had created a small defensive shell around Sunshine and myself at our table. They both ran into the invisible outer wall of the shell at full speed. The impact knocked both of them out cold and caused quite a bit of additional commotion. I tinted the shell a light gray before speaking.

"Let that be a lesson to you, and do not try anything like that again. I won't be so understanding the next time.

"You other men that work for him, move them down to the end of the tables until they recover. Let us continue with dinner," I finished and removed the tint from the shell before canceling it. The Cook looked very apprehensive as she approached our table.

"You won't run into it," I assured her, as she cautiously approached the table and deposited the soup bowls before beating a hasty retreat. The remainder of the meal was consumed mostly in silence. I reheated various dishes as they required it.

The Guard Captain and his Lieutenant regained consciousness about five minutes after being knocked out.

"What happened?" the Captain mumbled, as he sat up.

"You ran head long into some kind of spell and were knocked out," one of his other men told him. "I don't believe it is wise to argue with the new Wizard. He seems very powerful," the man continued.