The first view of ThrushCastle was impressive. The massive Sathmore
mountains loomed up in front ofthem. Towering over everything. It’s tall peaks
casting long shadows across theground below. Partway up the side of one
particularly tall mountain were thewalls and towers of a castle. They were at
least five hundred feet up andsurrounded on three sides by steep cliffs. The
road leading to it wound its wayup the side of the mountain switching back and
forth in a dozen turns beforecoming to the castle gates.
“From here we walk,” TheKnightmaster commented.
It was a long, slow climb upthe road. The horses pulling the wagons worked
hardest of all. A half dozenknights and lay brothers had to help push each one.
Working the wagons aroundeach turn was a major effort as the turns were sharp
and the wagons long.Everyone was relieved when the massive, iron bound gates of
the outer gatehousecame into view.
Standing in the gateway was a smallgroup of people. All were wearing the
blue of a Protector. Some were wearingarmor and were obviously Knightbrothers.
The rest were either lay brothers orservants. All were standing on either side
leaving the middle open. Standing inthe middle of the gateway was a single
knightbrother in full armor and tabard. Thetabard was the standard dark blue
with a gold cross in the center but the edgeshad a gold strip. There was the
gold symbol of a tower on the front on theright shoulder. That marked him as
the Castellan or castle commander.
“Good afternoon GrandmasterKenward, Brother Harrick,” the castellan said and
bowed. “Welcome back toThrush castle.”
*********************
The causeway was indifferentlymaintained. It seemed to be constantly wet
with moisture and large parts weregreen with moss, fungus and all sorts of
plant life. So in addition to beingslick with water and plant life they had to
watch for rotted or missing planksor beams. They spent three long hours cutting
trees and reinforcing a sectionbefore the rotted wooden causeway was strong
enough to hold up under the weightof the wagons. Even so they made their way
past that point one at a time.
For all their worries the tripthrough the marsh went slowly but quietly.
Stealth was amazed by the sheerabundance of life around them. Fish, otters,
crabs, lizards, racoons, opossumand an astounding array of birds. Less welcome
were the insects. There alwaysseemed to be something buzzing around his head or
trying to crawl up his leg.
Stealth peered down at themarsh beneath him. “Are there any alligators in
there?”
“I don’t think so,” Emileanswered. “It’s too cold in the winter for them.”
Edmund walked up to the twoscouts. “It’s late afternoon. I’d like a place to
laager for the evening.”
“There is a large enough islandup ahead,” Emile replied and pointed to the
south.
****************
The fortress was built on a spurthat stuck outwards from the mountain. It
was separated from the rest of therange by a deep, wide moat. The inner ward of
the castle occupied the top ofthe hill with the lower ward around and below
that. Being on a mountain meant that there was nonaturally level ground. So it
seemed that no matter where a person was headedit always seemed to be uphill.
A curtain wall encircled thebottom of the spur on three sides. Tucked
against the wall along most of itslength was a wide range of buildings.
Workshops, storage, granaries, severalcisterns, armories, living quarters,
stables and even a small chapel.
Towering over all of that fromthe top of the ridge was a long line of stone
buildings at the end of which wasa tall, massive tower.
The only level ground had beenlaboriously carved out of the rock. The
largest was an area around one hundredyards long and half that wide. It doubled
as a cavalry training area, infantrytraining area and a landing area for the
order’s various flying creatures.
The fortress was alive withactivity. Sentries walked the battlemented walls
and guarded the few gates. Thegroup passed a small level area where a score of
men were going through closequarter sword and shield training. Learning to
moving and fight as a group.Further along and upslope a dozen men were
practicing on an archery range thatwas really long but very narrow.
“Are all Knightbrotherstrained here?” the legate asked. The group had gone
through the outer gate andwere slowly making their way through the outer ward
and uphill to the innergate.
“Yes. They might be initiallyrecruited elsewhere and will take different
training in other locations but allwill take their final vows here,” the
Knightmaster said.
“How long is their training?”The legate asked.
“Four years,” the knightanswered. “From first arrival to taking the final
vows and adding the goldcross to their tabards. For paladins there are another
two years before theytake their vows.”
“That’s a long time to becomea knightbrother,” the legate commented.
“We prefer it as it gives the KnightInitiate time to consider in detail the
new life they have decided on,” theknight explained. “And also to sample what
that life will be like.”
“Do many change their mind?”He asked.
“A few,” the Knightmaster.“But we do not want to force our lifestyle upon
anyone.”
The legate looked up at thelarge Keep and the massive hall attached to it.
“The order built all of this?”the legate asked.
“Not all of it,” theKnightbrother answered. “We got it from the Order of the
Mountain Protectors. Whenthe Protectors was created the older order was
absorbed into ours. But theirrecords speak of ruins up here when they first
arrived.”
The legate nodded. “That makessense. This is an easily defended place.”
“Brother Heddwyn who is theorder’s historian says the ruins are post
Suielman but it has some Suielmanelements,” the knight commented.
The legate stopped. “What doesthat mean exactly? How can it have Suielman
elements if it’s post empire?”
“There was a good-sized empiresettlement in the valley before the invasion
in 150,” the Brother explained andpointed downhill. “When the castle was first
built they scavenged the ruins forgood stone.”
“What’s wrong with that?” Thelegate asked. “Good stone is expensive.”
“Nothing wrong with it. Savedus a lot of time and effort. But he was most
upset about it,” the knightlaughed. “He says it confused his timeline of the
castle’s history.”
The legate gave the knight aquizzical expression. “Your order continues to
surprise me.”
The knight smiled. “You’re notthe first to say that. We do tend to attract
the unusual. But consider this.How are we to deal with the future if we do not
understand the past.”
“Good point,” the legateagreed.
Kenworth stepped closer to thelegate. “To understand us. To understand our
order you need to understand theMidlands and the people in it. I have four
thousand knight brothers and Laybrothers to help maintain the peace in a third
of the continent and home to asmany as half a million people. We could not
maintain the peace by sword and boweven if we wanted to. We must think in
different ways. Use our finest gift andweapon – the minds The Great One gave
us. Our problems are unusual and requireunusual answers.”
“Nine years ago a town nearGwaron in Delavia was plagued by an outbreak of
strange creatures,” the knightexplained. “They seemed to just erupt out of the
ground at random intervals.”He gestured with his hands.
“They had disturbed a burialground?” The legate asked.
The knight shook his head. “No.A gate was opening and the creatures were
coming through.”
“Is not Delavia mostlyLightbringer?”
“It is,” the Knightbrotheranswered and gave a wry smile. “The Lightbringers
were able to contain theproblem but not stop it. There was a Follower village
nearby and they sent wordto us. Thankfully Brother Heddwyn was part of the
group sent to help.”
“He had an old Suielman mapthat had the word ‘ruins’ on a spot some one
hundred yards from where the gatewas opening,” the knight explained. “So
Heddwyn took a large group of peoplethere and they dug up the ground. They
carefully stripped away the earth and uncoveredthe remains of a very old
structure. It included a summoning circle. A mage wascalled in and the circle
was carefully taken apart. That closed the gatepermanently.”
“We are not supposed to takepleasure in other people’s difficulties.” The
knight said. “But it was a goodday for the order.”
The legate gave a nod of thehead and a smile.
“A lot of what the order doesis similar to that,” the knight explained.
“Small issues. Bandits, raiders,feuding nobles, guilds and families. Issues
that require only a fewKnightbrothers to deal with. A large part of the order
are Wandering Brothersfor that reason.”
“Does the order fight fullopen battles?” The legate asked.
“You mean a major battle withhundreds or thousands of combatants?” The
knight asked. “The last was back in623 CR at the battle of Aizkraukle. There
was over two thousand in the Sathmoreforce alone. The order defeated a major
Sathmore raid. It was the orders firstreal battlefield victory.”
“The only place of seeingactual major battle is along the border with
Sathmore. The Lightbringers usedto stage major raids into the Northern Midlands
but the order put an end to thatat Aizkraukle. Now it is limited to smaller
raids and harassment. Usually ascore or less seeking to steal or rustle cattle.
We do have the occasionalraiders from the Flatlands but that is more of an
annoyance. We are seeingvarious things coming out Elderwood. Those are a
growing threat. The lastcreature was the size of a large wagon and took almost
fifty Brothers to defeatit. We still don’t know what it was.”
The legate nodded his head.“What of Aelfwood?”
“The elves?” The knight asked.Surprised. He was silent a moment. “To be
honest we haven’t had any contactwith them in a long time. The have always been
reclusive to one degree oranother.”
“Elderwood is a threat to beconsidered and brought to the Patriarch’s
attention,” the legate commented. “What happens next?”
“After we unload the wagons wecare for the animals and the people,” the
Knightmaster responded.
“And the Bishop?” The legateasked.
“Then we go to Kelewair,”Kenward answered. “Things must be settled in the
order before we travel away.”
The legate was about to speakwhen a small bird landed on the pommel of his
saddle. The little animal wasbarely seven inches tall with brown wings, head
and back and a gray underbelly.The bird flapped his wings and twittered loudly
at the legate.
The knight laughed. “I’d liketo introduce one of the local residents. This
is a Mountain thrush for whom thecastle is named.”
“He seems to be upset,” thelegate commented, unnerved by the animal’s
unusual actions.
“You’re new,” the knightresponded. “The birds know who is supposed to be
here. You are probably alittle too close to his nest and he’s letting you know
he’s not happy with it.”
“A lot of people are unhappywith my presence,” the legate answered.
“I wouldn’t worry,” the knightanswered. “They’ll get used to you. It’s
supposed to be good luck to have one getthis close to you when you first come
here. Usually it takes several weeks forthe birds to grow accustomed to a new
arrival.”
The thrush, evidently havingmade his point took off and flew a short
distance. It landed on a battlementwhere a dozen thrushes were perched.
“You should be here in May andJune during the nesting season,” the knight
commented. “Then they areeverywhere. They have nests in every nook and cranny
imaginable.”
“Seriously? How many?”
The knight shrugged. “We’renot sure. But ten to twelve thousand would be a
safe guess.”
“Ten thousand?” The legateasked in surprise. “That must cause a disruption.”
“It does. We had an expert onbirds come from Kelewair a few years ago. To
see about how to get them to nestelsewhere. He says that this hill has been
their nesting grounds for thousandsof years. Then the order came along and
build a castle on their homes. Itseemed only fair we share it with them. And
the fact is that all attempts toremove them have failed,” the knight added with
a smile. “It seems the Great Onewants them here.”
The legate looked at a groupof birds who were busily swooping and flying
overhead. Then they landed andstarted to forage amidst the stones and grass
alongside the path. A mere fivefeet from them. “They don’t seem to mind all the
people around.”
“No, they don’t,” the knightanswered. “The birds have thrived here.”
The legate looked at a thrushwho was perched on a battlement and was
ignoring the Sword brother who waswalking back and forth past her on sentry
duty. Within arm’s reach. “Theycertainly have the safest place. No predator
will come anywhere near here.”
“They were here long before the Protectors arrived and they’ll be herelong
after we’re gone,” the Knight said solemnly. “That fact keeps a personhumble.”
****************
Calling the small hummock ofsand, mud, marsh grass and trees an island was
an exaggeration. It was barelyabove water level and only just large enough to
fit everyone. They placed thethree wagons on either side of the trail in a
rough circle. Sentries wereplaced outside them keeping the campsite safe.
Stealth and Dasan wen went up theroad to see what awaited them. Mairsil and
Adelyte went back the way they hadcome. To see if anyone was following them.
The rest settled in to eat, relaxand find enough space to lay down and sleep.
It was still early eveningwhen Stealth and Dasan made their way into camp.
They were not alone. “Edmund.We have a visitor.”
With the cheetah scout was atall, gangly looking young man dressed all in
green and brown. On his back wasa bow and in his hands was a long spear. Edmund
noticed that he had a complexswirled pattern tattooed onto both cheeks and a
pair of dark blue lines archedover each eyebrow.
“My name is Deryk Glendower,”the man said in way of introduction. “I want to
know why you are in ourterritory. Been a long time since anyone tried invading.”
“Invading? We are just passingthrough,” Edmund said and gave a chirp of
laughter. “As clichéd as that maysound it’s the truth.”
“Where are you headed?” Derykasked.
“Fulgar,” the paladinresponded. “A few miles north of Komley.”
“You are a long way from Komley,”the new arrival responded.
Edmund pondered his answer. “Weare taking a circuitous route to avoid
unwanted trouble,” the Knightbrotheranswered.
“Trouble?” Deryk asked. “Whoare you running from? Who? Lord Thomas?”
“We’re from Metamor but we arenot of Metamor,” the paladin answered. “And we
are on good terms with theDuke.”
The man scowled. “It’s kind ofeasy to tell you were from the valley. But
what do you mean you are not OF thevalley.”
Edmund pointed to the fire.“Come. Sit down with us. We’ve already eaten but
you are welcome to enjoy somerefreshments and we can talk. I will explain
everything.”
Cautiously the man made hisway over to the small space surrounding the fire.
Edmund handed the visitor awooden mug filled with a brown liquid. “This is
coffee. A drink imported fromthe south. I was recently introduced to it at the
Keep.”
The man took a sip of theliquid. “Strong.”
“So,” he said and took a drinkof the coffee. “Why are you here? Who are you
avoiding?”
“Let me introduce myself.” Thepaladin bowed to the man. “I am Sir Edmund
Delacot, Knight Brother of the orderof Protectors.”
“I’ve heard of your people.”Deryk commented. “What brings you this far
north?”
“You don’t care what we looklike?” Edmund asked avoiding the question.
The man laughed. “No. We’veheard all about the curse. That is your problem.
Not ours. We don’t care whatyou look like. What we are worried about is why you
are moving through ourland.”
“The order was recently gifteda castle in the town of Fulgar and we are
headed there to take possession.”
Deryk leaned forward. “Is thatthe only reason? Why are you traveling through
our marsh?”
Edmund shook his head. “TheLutin invasion during the Yule brought to our
attention just how badly we haveneglected the Northern Midlands. Not just the
threats to the north but alsopolitical issues and threats to the peace.”
“You mean Lord Donel inMidtown,” Deryk responded.
“Yes,” the paladin responded.“Among other things.”
”Deryk smiled and laughed. “You’re up here to keep watch on Donel.”
“Has Midtown pressured you andyour people?” Terrant asked.
The man shrugged. “They havetried to make us pay taxes and tribute.”
“Have they succeeded?” Sheasked.
He shook his head. “No.”
“And they’ve accepted that?”
The man smiled and laughed. “Nobut what can he do to make us pay? If they
come here we’ll rip up the causewayand let them wade through the mud and water
for a while. Eventually they’ll gettired and give up. Like all the others.”
Edmund gave a chirp oflaughter. “It’s an old tactic but it works.”
“Stealth,” Adelyte said softly.“Those markings on his face. They’re Lutin
markings.” The two were standingnearby. Close but far enough out they that
could talk without being overheard.
“A lot of cultures use tattoosand ritual scaring,” Stealth commented.
“No,” she countered. “They donot look like Lutin markings. They ARE Lutin.
The markings on his cheeksrepresent the Day Traveler and the Night Lady. The
sun and moon.”
“Really?” Emile asked. Thesurprise plain to see on his face and in his voice.
Adelyte nodded her head. “I’veseen them often enough.”
Stealth looked closely at theman. “He doesn’t look Lutin. Could he be part
Lutin?”
“I’d heard rumors that a tribeof Lutins lives deep in the marsh,” Emile
said. “But I never believed it.”
“If they have Centli andSuielman hiding in here,” Stealth said. “Why not
Lutins as well.”
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