Chapter 18

“We’ve been using the carriage to gather supplies from different homes around town,” Sir Givens announced as darkness closed on the town. They were having a meeting around the map table. “It served a dual purpose – gathering the things we needed and letting the enemy get used to seeing it around. A few more trips shouldn’t garner any suspicion.”

“So, we just board the carriage and hope the Red Guard doesn’t see us?” Princess Ataya asked uncertainly.

“The carriage pulls under the large awning over the front door,” Gillen explained. “No one from outside the hall will see you get in. When you get to the smithy, we pull the carriage close. No one should see you get out and we’ll make a bit of a show about gathering more supplies to cover our reason for being there.”

“I see two problems right away,” Givens frowned. “The first is the size of the carriage; it’s too small to fit everyone who needs to go – so we’re going to have to take two or three trips ... and we’ll have to spread them out over some time. I think the Red Guard might get suspicious if we have two trips to the smithy one after another.”

“Second, we’re going to have to limit the weight. I’m not certain how much longer the patched wheel is going to hold out.”

“How many can fit in the carriage at a time?” Ardt asked.

“Comfortably?” Sir Givens asked. He bit his lip, his eyes distant. “It’s going to depend. Knights in full armor? Two, possibly three but it will be a tight fit and the weight is a concern. Women? Perhaps five or six.”

“I don’t think we want the Knights in full armor anyway,” Gillen suggested slowly. “If the Red Guard happens to see anyone in armor, they’re going to know something is up.”

Sir Givens frowned. “You might be right.” He thought for a few moments. “I may have a solution; it won’t solve the weight problem because we’re still going to have to transport the armor but it will solve the space issue somewhat. Okay, the Knights will have to remove their armor. It will be good for them to have a comfortable night before tomorrow, anyway. We have some large chests or trunks down in the cellar; we can empty them – they’re just holding some cloth and knick knacks at the moment – and use them to transport the armor.”

“How much does the armor weigh?” Bena asked, interrupting the discussion.

“It’s about sixty pounds,” Yren offered. “At least, the armor I made is about sixty pounds – and it’s based on drawings and plans of actual armor.”

“Be thankful you only needed to make a fighting set,” the First of the Third chuckled. “A full jousting set can weigh more than a hundred pounds – of course, you can’t really fight in a full jousting set. You can barely move in a full jousting set.”

“There’s more than one set of armor?” Bena questioned, confused.

“Most knights actually have at least three sets of armor,” Honor Hawksley continued. “Many have four or more. The truth is, we need more than one set for our different activities. I have a set for jousting, one for dress occasions, a fighting set and a set of chain mail. The jousting set is the biggest and heaviest but it has to be to ward off the lance. It’s not very useful off a horse, unfortunately, as your movement is pretty restricted.”

“On the other end of the spectrum is the dress armor,” she continued. “It tends to look like a highly stylized version of our jousting armor but it is very impractical – the plates are uselessly thin; they wouldn’t stand up to one decent hit. Our working armor is in between; sturdy but not as thick as the jousting armor – and it allows us to move fairly freely. The chain mail is our everyday armor; it’s what we wear when we’re not planning on being in battle or when we’re in battle and need the added mobility.”

“So you carry around four sets of armor?” Bena questioned.

“Not this trip,” Hawksley smiled. “We were told to go for speed and stealth – so we only packed our working set.” She turned back to Sir Givens, who’d been discussing the logistics of the move with Ardt. “I say we do it in three trips. We put one or two chests with armor on the floor of the carriage each trip and have the passengers rest their feet on them.”

Sir Givens pursed his lips and frowned. “It seems reasonable. It will probably work as well as anything else.”

“Bena, Issa and I can go in the first trip,” Elva offered. “We can get things ready.”

“Not alone,” Ardt spoke up. “I’ll go with you.”

Sir Givens frowned for a moment before nodding his assent. “We can send Yren with Caprice and Mulet on the second run and Syl and Uud with the Princess after.”

“What about Teran?” Yren spoke up.

“I’m staying here.”

“What? Why? You’ll be safer at the smithy,” Yren objected.

“Safer, maybe,” Teran replied softly, pulling Yren away a few feet. “But I’m needed here. When the attack comes, I’ll need to be where I and my bow can be of the most use – which is here.”

“You’ll be in danger...,” Yren started but Teran interrupted him.

“We’ll all be in danger,” Teran said sternly, arching one eyebrow. “And we all have our jobs.”

“I can’t protect you here,” Yren explained.

“I don’t need your protection, Yren,” Teran replied firmly, her face set. “Nor do I need your permission.”

“I just want you to be safe.”

“And I want you to be safe,” Teran replied softly, raising her hand and resting it on Yren’s chest. “I’ll be careful – and you be careful. We’ll get through this, love.”

“What is Teran doing?” Issa demanded of her mother, her face stormy.

“What you wouldn’t,” Elva said, glancing over at her oldest daughter. She smiled, watching her eldest daughter with her hand on Yren’s chest. It was obvious Teran had fallen for the young man – but she’d known that for seasons. She had just always wondered when Teran was going to realize it. “She was willing to step aside when she thought you were pining for him but once you passed, she wanted to make sure he didn’t get away.”

“I never passed, mother,” Issa fumed. “I was just getting my own education – just like he had.”

“And you expected him to wait for you?” Elva said sharply, eyebrows raised. “You thought you could grind his face in it and he’d not move on? You’re a silly little girl! I tried to tell you but you wouldn’t listen. Even a mediocre smith commands a comfortable living and Yren is far from mediocre. He’s also tall and strong and handsome but also sweet and kind. I warned you he’d have options – and it looks like he’s exercising them. While you found importance in dragging his face through your ‘education’ all you really accomplished was pushing yourself out of his heart.”

“He didn’t seem to care while he was dragging my face through his education,” Issa retorted.

“Really?” Elva asked, one eyebrow arched. “He never even realized what reaching his majority entailed; I was the one who brought Vana to our house with the express purpose of teaching him the finer points of sex. In deference to your feelings, he never once mentioned when he was going to see Vana. In deference to your feelings, Teran and he always met outside of our home. Don’t you think he would be much more comfortable in his own bed?”

“Maybe,” her daughter replied sullenly. “But he sure didn’t need to continue for the past two seasons.”

Elva shook her head, turning her attention back towards Teran and Yren who were kissing softly. “You don’t understand – and I’m not sure you ever will. It doesn’t matter anyway. You’ve cast your lot and it’s come back to bite you. You’ve lost him, Issa – tossed him away like a false copper. Teran was happy to step in in your stead.”

“But-but-but,” Issa stuttered. “That’s not fair. He’s mine!”

“He’s his own,” Elva said sadly, shaking her head at her daughter’s antics. “You had the opportunity and squandered it. Don’t you dare begrudge your sister her own chance at happiness.”

“I can get him back anytime I want,” Issa snarled. “Teran doesn’t stand a chance.”

Elva knew better but didn’t think it worth the time to argue with her middle daughter.

When Yren returned to the table, most of the logistics had been decided.

“Three trips over the next two hours,” Sir Givens responded to Yren’s question. “Your family first, as soon as the carriage returns. We’ll have the carriage make a few odd trips and then it will be your turn with Caprice and Mulet. The same again and then we’ll send her Highness with Uud and Syl.”

Yren nodded his understanding and Sir Givens continued. “If everything works out as we hope, the lot of you may be hiding in the smithy for a week or so. We’ll need to be cautious. Ardt said there’s a well in the back of the smithy?”

“We use it for quenching the metal,” Yren confirmed.

Sir Givens nodded. “We’ll need a few barrels of water in the cellar as well as a latrine of some kind. We can’t chance anyone being seen going outdoors to do their business.”

Yren thought quickly. “We have some lye. I can dig a hole and dump lye into the bottom. Then we can rig some cloth or a curtain around it. It won’t be pretty, but it will do.”

Sir Givens considered the young man in front of him. He looked around to ensure no one was within earshot before moving close and lowering his voice. “Listen, Yren. If things go wrong and you have to engage the Red Guard, don’t hold back. They won’t. Fighting a person with your life on the line is nothing like what we’ve done in practice. In practice, if you get hit, you need to clean a red mark off your clothes or skin and you can get right back to it. The fight that’s coming will be real – any mistake could be your last. I have faith in you; I know you can handle what’s being asked of you. However, you’re not blooded – and those who you’ll face likely have been. Give quarter when you can but take no chances; err on the side of survival.”

Yren nodded grimly. “I will.”

Sir Givens smiled. “I know you will, son.” His smile faded and his face looked troubled. “Try to stay close to Ardt. Ardt has little training. He’s strong and quick, so we’ve given him a long hammer in place of your sword; better if he keeps the Guard at bay as much as possible. You may need to watch his back as well as your own.”

“I’ll do my best, sir,” Yren promised, frowning. It bothered him that Ardt wouldn’t be using the sword he made but he couldn’t argue with Sir Givens’ advice. He looked around, spotting Teran talking with Bena, Bremer and Goodman Rooft. “Sir, if you can – please watch out for Teran. I know she can take care of herself and I know of her skill with a bow but...”

“Teran will be fine,” Sir Givens clapped a hand on Yren’s shoulder. “She’s deadly with that bow and Ranger Ellsworth has been teaching her the finer points of combat. She’d never make a warrior but she can hold her own with a staff.”

Yren nodded. “I know she’s been training hard but... “ He sighed. “I think I’m more worried for her than I am for myself.”

“The downside to loving someone, I’m afraid,” Sir Givens sighed. “We know they’re out of our control so we worry ourselves over what might happen to them. I feel a similar worry for Bremer and Andwynn. And, of course, for my son, Arclad. I’m proud of him, but there are times I wish he’d have apprenticed with someone like Ardt instead of choosing my old profession. I suppose I would have worried even then; you’ll understand when you become a father.”

The subject of their discussion was in a discussion of her own. “I’ve taken some jerky up into the tower. We’ll likely need to be up there all day and I doubt we’ll get much of a break, if any.”

“I’ve taken a blanket and bucket up,” Bremer spoke up. She shrugged. “Some jugs of water, too. Like you said, there won’t be time for us to come down.”

“I’ve seen those metal arrows,” Goodman Rooft spoke up. “Did Yren make those?”

“He did,” Teran chuckled proudly.

“That boy is too clever by half.” Rooft shook his head. “How do they fly?”

“Far and true,” Teran smiled simply. “Better than wooden ones. They spin in the air – make a bit of a high-pitched whistling – which keeps them on target. They also go further and faster than wood.”

“How do they hit?”

“Hard,” Teran said. “They bury themselves more than half again as deep as a wooden arrow.”

“How many do we have?” Bremer asked.

“Only a hundred and six,” Teran sighed. “Without knowing how many we face, we’ll have to use them sparingly; use them when we’re sure of our targets.”

“I brought two score arrows with me,” Rooft said. “I’ll take them up. I saw a few barrels of arrows stored in the cellar. They’re old but well made; they should fly true.”

“We should leave those down there, for now,” Teran suggested. “We can resupply as needed.”

“You can help me carry the ones I grabbed,” Bremer suggested. “I pulled all of the ones I could find in the domen. Some of them are metal, like the ones you brought, Teran. They’re heavier, though, and they don’t travel as far.”

“Those must be Yren’s earlier versions,” Teran said in realization. “I wondered how he’d designed them; I’m sure he’s good with a sword, but the most dangerous place to be when Yren uses a bow is anywhere besides where he’s aiming.”