Knight of the Lance

Avalon 1.5 Little Packages part 4 of 4

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

Godus came running back and shouted, even as the sounds of barking and growling reached their ears. “Hurry,” Godus yelled. “The dogs are into the sheep.” He turned and ran back toward the stream.

“Everybody! Come and help,” Dallah yelled, and followed her husband. The travelers followed Reneus, except for Alexis who thought to stay and keep an eye on Doctor Procter. Guns came out, and Roland got out his bow. The people all came, and so did the imps who were generally faster than the people. The elves were fastest, and Roland had one shot before anyone else arrived.

The imps dove into the herd howling, rolling their eyes, waving their big hands, using glamours to make themselves appear big and frightening. They just about scared the boys and sheep to death. The dogs looked like they wanted no part of it either. When Stonecrusher arrived, the dogs ran, but by then the travelers were near enough.

Lockhart got one with the shotgun. Captain Decker and Lieutenant Harper were a little slower, but both brought a dog to the ground. Three escaped, but they looked like they could not run fast enough, and like they might not stop until they were out of that region altogether.

Dallah was one of the last to arrive. “She is not strong,” Reneus explained.

“She won’t eat,” Mya added.

“Mother,” Andor tugged on her dress and Korah stood beside her little brother, her mouth open.

“Stonecrusher, stand still and keep your mouth closed and your hands to yourself.” Dallah practically whispered the words, but Stonecrusher stopped where he was. “Imps, here, now.” Dallah said, and people gasped as the imps appeared a few feet away. This time the imps all doffed their hats. “Thank you.”

“Our pleasure,” Crusty said, and Dwizzle nodded.

“It was?” Itchy turned to the others before he had something like a revelation. “It was. It really was our pleasure.”

“Were you scared?” Andor asked.

“Well, it’s like this young master—” Itchy started to speak but Crusty interrupted.

“Dwizzle wet himself,” Crusty said and Dwizzle nodded.

“But now what are we going to do with them?” Godus asked when they heard the sound of wailing among the sheep.

Korah recognized the sound and ran toward the cry. The sheep parted to let her through, and her future husband ran right behind her. The young boys in the field stood over their mother but did not know what to do. She cried over a dead sheep, and there was no comforting her.

The dogs only killed one, but the woman’s herd had gotten down to six. Herds that once sported forty or fifty sheep were in a death spiral in that harsh and inhospitable environment.

“Godus, dear.” Dallah turned again to her husband. “Give her one of ours. Make it a good one.”

“But then we will have just six.”

“As she will. Give it to Korah for her new family,” Dallah decided. Godus raised an eyebrow. That was not really playing fair.

“Pardon, lady.” Itchy stepped forward. “Might Stonecrusher have the dead one? That would certainly be a relief for everyone.”

“No,” Dallah said. “Roland, you take the dead sheep for tomorrow and the next day if necessary since you likely won’t find anything between here and the gate. Stonecrusher.” She waited until she had the ogre’s complete attention before she spoke. “You can have the dogs.”

“Mother!” Reneus objected. They had a lot of good meat on those animals, and that would sustain them for some time. But Dallah had not finished speaking.

“Take only the dead dogs and be content. Share one with your impy cousins and go with them to Lord Varuna. He may have new work for you. You are released from your obligation to Dayus.”

“Yes, Lady. Thank you, Lady.” The ogre picked up the dogs one by one and carried all four back into the wilderness without any strain at all.

“Strong sucker,” Captain Decker noted.

“And you imps.” They looked up at Dallah with big eyes. She smiled. “Skat,” she said. “Shoo.” They ran off, happy.

Godus sidled up to his wife and spoke softly. “Any more surprises?”

“A few, but mostly you are looking at them.” She took his hand introduced the travelers. She remembered to say, “Her name is Mary Riley, but everyone calls her Boston.” Then they all went to a wedding.

Dallah cried. Boston cried with her. Alexis only got teary eyed, so Lincoln cried for her. Captain Decker said, “Women.” Captain or not, Katie Harper slapped him in the arm.

The third family in the camp performed the actual ceremony. They also stood as witnesses to the union. It was a lovely ceremony, and surprisingly like modern ceremonies in most parts. But then there came the sacrifice of a sheep. And several moderns looked away when the old man who performed the sacrifice soaked his hands in the sheep’s blood and sprinkled it liberally all over the couple.

Boston kept her mouth shut, but she thought “Ewww,” really loud.

After the wedding, the couple had a place not far from the camp. They had their own fire and sweets and got the prime portion of the sacrificed sheep for their supper. The families, meanwhile, settled in for a party of their own. Korah’s new mother sat beside Dallah for a time, though it made Dallah uncomfortable. Dallah only had one word of advice for the woman.

“Korah has a big, sensitive heart full of love. If you treat her gently and with kindness and encourage her in what she does she will love you forever.” The woman responded in a way which should not have been too surprising given the events of the day.

“Yes, Lady. I will do that very thing.”

By evening, Doctor Procter appeared to be much better. He sat up and ate but thought it best not to go join the celebration. He claimed to be too tired.

Later, when the sun set and most of the camp slept, Alexis stayed up a bit to watch the Doctor. She looked out beneath a moon that appeared just shy of being full, when her eye caught something glisten in the moonlight. She had no idea what it might be until she heard the sound of a horse snort a big gust of breath. The knight came close to the camp, but it did not come into the camp. Alexis stood. Doctor Procter appeared to be asleep, but he began to shiver. Alexis held her breath while the knight reared up, turned, and galloped off into the dark. She immediately woke her father and told him.

“It was a Knight of the Lance. I am sure. It had to be.”

Mingus shook his head. “There haven’t been any Knights of the Lance around for centuries.”

“No,” Alexis argued. “I heard of one a few years ago when Ashtoreth came up into the castle of the Kairos and the Kairos got so sick.”

Mingus nodded. “I heard that too, but never any proof… Just a rumor…”

“But father—”

“Go to bed and sleep. We will be leaving in the morning.”

Alexis looked down and nodded. Maybe she had not seen it. Maybe it had been like a waking dream. Maybe, but she was not sure.

Later in the night, Doctor Procter woke when a lizard crawled across his belly. His hand reached out and grabbed the creature. A harmless little thing, and the Doctor held it and bent it backwards until there came a snap! The Doctor Procter had no reason for doing that. He felt the urge to kill and wanted the pleasure of watching the beast die.

More tears came in the morning as everyone said good-bye. The witness family, the first to leave, took their sheep and headed off to the southeast. Then it came time for Korah and her mother to be parted. “Always respect your husband,” Dallah whispered between the hugs and tears. “And he will love you without ceasing.”

Korah nodded, and shortly they headed off into the north. They said they were going to go as far as the mountains to escape the dead lands. Dallah truly wished them well.

Last of all the travelers headed into the west, and Andor waved until they were out of sight. After they were gone, Andor pointed his fingers at Mya and said, “Bang! Bang!” She just had to chase him. They would be staying where they were for the present. They had the stream and some grass worth eating for their few sheep, but how long they might hold out was anyone’s guess.

Boston was the last to say anything under that blazing sun. “Doesn’t the Kairos ever get born anywhere off the equator? I mean, a little rain might be nice, at least.” Naturally, as they stepped through the gate, they found themselves in a torrent.

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Monday

Avalon 1.6 Freedom is another 4-part / 4-post episode, so don’t forget the Thursday post. The travelers get into the middle of a forced migration. The people are fleeing from some in their own village. There is a story there. Until Monday, Happy Reading.

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Golden Door Chapter 7 Explanations, part 2 of 2

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

With that, the picture began to pull back, and they saw that Alice and Cronos and the door were all on a very small island, indeed. Outside of the bare rock and dirt on which they stood the rest of that place looked like little more than a swirl of colors. Even the sky above their head appeared as a swirl.

“Primordial soup.” Inaros spoke almost as softly as James.

“That’s the way of the second heavens in many places,” Deathwalker explained. “And it may be the way for this place again if we don’t do something about it.”

“But that is not what we found out there,” Chris said.

“But that is because the Lady Alice is holding things together for the present, but with her sick and all, there is no telling how long she may be able to keep it together.” Mrs. Aster sounded very concerned.

“That is Avalon?” Beth asked, but the picture began to change.

“All there was at the beginning of time,” Deathwalker nodded.

“I always preferred the name Shamballa.” Inaros spoke up. “My grandfather brought the family from that region of the world and into the Roman Empire around the time of the first Caesar, Augustus, if I remember. Of course, that was before my time.”

“Hey!” Inaros’ recollection got interrupted by several voices of protest. Mrs. Copperpot reached out with her cooking spoon and tapped the wall, so the picture froze in place. They saw a woman with stringy, light brown hair who stood beside an old stone wall. She wore something like a Roman style toga, but her back was turned so they could not see her face.

“The children got to be prepared before they see more,” she said.

Deathwalker and Mrs. Aster exchanged a glance, but it was Deathwalker who spoke. “You will see the demons,” he said flatly. “Poor Lydia. Her mother suffered from demon oppression, but her mother got set free, by—by the one who was and is…” His voice trailed off.

“Jesus?” Chris asked.

The goblin squinted as if struck by a blow but nodded. “Lydia went to the crucifixion, but then her mother got killed on the road to the coast and the girl got stolen and carried off to slave in a brothel. She escaped. She married a fine Roman, a centurion. She had some adventures, but one day, they found her and dragged her back to the brothel. Many demons came into her in that place, but with her knowledge of the future, she became a prophetess and made money for her owners.”

Mrs. Aster took up the story. “But you understand that while Lydia’s body got saved from the degradation of the brothel, her spirit fell into eternal danger.”

“The spirit of the Kairos. The whole future of the human race stood in danger,” Inaros added.

“If it weren’t for the apostle.” Mister Deathwalker shook his head and the picture started again. The woman turned around. Beth let out a shriek, Chris gasped, James closed his eyes for a second, and David looked away altogether.

Lydia’s hair writhed without reason, her eyes looked blood red apart from the great black rings around them, like she had two black eyes. She had a cut on one cheek, and several cuts on her forearms where she had clearly tried to hurt herself. A bit of drool came from her mouth on a face that appeared so distorted it hardly looked human. Most of all, she showed hatred, fear, pure evil in those eyes and in that expression, which looked willing to destroy the whole world if it could only figure out how. Then she started to yell, and the voice gave chills down the spine as nothing else can.

“Listen to these men! They are telling you the way to salvation! Listen to them!” The picture got paused again by the cooking spoon.

“Demons are stupid,” Inaros said, and Mrs. Copperpot nodded but spoke differently.

“But do not be fooled to think the one in the castle is stupid,” and she started the picture again.

They heard the apostle speak in the name of Jesus and command the demons come out of her.

“No!” Lydia was not willing. “No!” The scene changed, suddenly. Lydia fell on the grass in the meadow that stood before the castle, but the voice came, relentless.

“Come out of her!”

It carried all the way into the second heavens. It reverberated from the rocks like a storm and came across the sea like a tidal wave. It shook the earth and the walls of the castle on the hill shook until it became difficult to see how the walls stayed up. Lydia tore her clothes, and things came out of her. They were identified by the little black dots, though at first, they came so thick together they looked like a pall of smoke. The picture paused again. Mrs. Aster did it this time with her wand. She circled one of the dots which appeared gray in color.

“Ashtoreth,” she announced, and the picture faded. “And she hid while the Knights of the Lance rooted out all the demons and drove them from Avalon and the Isles,” she finished the story.

“Actually.” Inaros put up his finger like he was testing the wind. “The isle of Avalon, the one by name, King Arthur’s Avalon which is the isle of the apples, is over that way.” He pointed.

“Knight?” Beth asked, as she remembered seeing one not many hours ago.

“Knights of the Lance?” Chris asked. He ignored the old man. Mrs. Aster nodded and the picture changed again.

They looked through a door in a darkened room and were hardly aware of the people in that room because of the vision through that door. It did not look like the golden door, but it was a door between the earth and Avalon. They could see the castle in the background beyond the green field. It looked like late afternoon, and an honest-to-goodness knight covered head to toe in brilliant, shining armor rode across the grass on a tremendous horse in full charge. The lance he carried, no toy for sport or jousting, was a real, wicked looking weapon intended to do great damage to an enemy. Chris understood in that moment why the knights of old sometimes got referred to as medieval tanks. This knight chased after one of those same creatures that had chased the children earlier that evening. He caught it by the door. The lance pinned the creature to the far earthly wall, while a very fairy-like fairy, with bumblebee wings, and a young woman with very light blond hair and light brown eyes and freckles, screamed. None of the children blamed them for screaming, and then the picture went away altogether until nothing remained but big, empty white wall.

“Hey!” Deathwalker objected. “The story of Greta is one of my favorites.”

“Greta?” David asked.

“The Kairos,” three people answered.

“My father,” Beth said softly, trying to grasp the image of her father living over and over and sometimes as a woman.

James yawned. Inaros leaned his head on his walking stick and nearly slipped as he almost fell asleep.  David wondered how anyone could sleep after what they just saw. He knew it had gotten well past time for bed. They knew of nothing they could do until morning, and the overhead light had dimmed a great deal, enough to show that there was a ceiling up there after all.

“But who is this Angel?” James heard Beth ask, and he wanted to hear. He thought that might help him get the picture of Lydia out of his mind.

“She is one of the first and greatest of all of the spiritual creatures,” the fairy answered.

“He,” Inaros objected.

“It,” Deathwalker said, and added, “Now go to bed.”

“No wings,” James whispered, and Mrs. Copperpot hushed him, pulled up a chair, sat down beside his bed, and brushed back his hair as he curled up under the covers.

“Come on, boy. You go to bed, and I’ll stand guard,” Inaros intoned. David crawled into bed, but he did not feel too certain about the arrangement. Sure enough, the minute Inaros sat in his chair he started to snore, and David found himself staring at the ceiling and trying not to remember Lydia’s face. Then he remembered that Angel said do not be afraid, and with that thought held firmly in his heart, he slept, despite all the snoring around him.

Golden Door Chapter 5 Finding the Way

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“My dad is connected, somehow, to women and men in the past?” Beth seemed to have a hard time grasping that idea, and less concerned with the sudden darkness.

“And future lives, too,” David said.

“That doesn’t sound right.” Chris got skeptical.

“What light?” James asked the practical question. They all looked around and saw no light to speak of.

“Anyway,” Beth spoke quickly. “Now that we are together, let’s stick together and try not to get separated this time.”

“But which way?” Chris asked for a change. “Maybe we should make a campfire and stay here until morning,” he suggested.

“I’ve heard that earthquakes usually have aftershocks,” Beth said.

“Oh thanks.” David did not want to hear that.

“Got any matches?” James asked. “Gonna rub two sticks together?”

Chris did not answer, but he realized that his had not been a very good suggestion.

“This way,” Beth said, and if she was not going to head toward the giants, bees, or banshees, she knew only one other direction on the compass. She started to walk. Since Alice called this an island, she wondered if they could find their way to a beach. She imagined sleeping at the edge of the forest where the trees touched the sand might not be so bad as long as the moon stayed up and the stars stayed bright. Then again, the thought crossed her mind to wonder what sort of monsters might be down by the water. She tried not to think too hard about that.

After about an hour of carefully picking their way through the woods as quietly as they could, and hearing very little signs of life around them, they came to a small open area and paused to look at the sky.

“Orion.” David pointed, and then he had to explain about the three stars in the belt.

“But we’re not on Earth,” Beth objected.

“I guess Lady Alice made this place as Earth-like as she could,” Chris suggested. James was going to suggest much the same thing, but as it was, he merely nodded in agreement, which no one noticed in the dark.

“Why don’t we stay here?” David suggested. “Like in the middle of the clearing where we can watch the trees.”

“Like we could hear and see anything before it came out on to the clearing and run the opposite way if necessary.” Chris agreed.

“No, no.” Beth already set her mind on sleeping on the beach. She started to walk again, because she could not think of an immediate reason not to agree with David and Chris.

“Hey!” James raised his voice and that gained everyone’s attention. He walked to the side of the others, more in the center of the clearing, and he stepped inside what turned out to be a rather large circle of plain stones. He shouted immediately after he passed the border of that circle. In his eyes, the whole area lit up like morning. He could even see the green grass and tree leaves and the blue in the sky, though the stars were also still present.

The others joined him, but only David echoed his brother. “Hey!”

“Is this the light?” James immediately wondered out loud. Chris and Beth looked at each other and shook their heads.

“I don’t think so,” Beth said.

“But we could sleep here,” David suggested, hopefully. He did prefer to sleep with the light on, after all.

“Mmm.” Beth nodded. She would not be against the idea, and James did not seem to mind the suggestion either.

“But what is that?” Chris pointed. Everyone saw a whole series of little lights close together, flying just inside the shadow edge of the trees. They flowed slowly up and down which made them appear like a school of fish out for a swim. “The moon sparkling off dragon armor?”  Chris suggested. That was not what any of the others were thinking, but it felt a little unnerving because they all admitted it might be true.

“And there.” James pointed off in the direction from which the sparkling lights had come. A light, terrifically bright, appeared in that place. It looked like a narrow beam search light, but it stayed partially hidden behind many trees and it did not appear to be moving.

“And there.” Beth pointed in a direction just at the edge of the trees which meant that they were surrounded by a triangle of lights.

“Hey!” David protested. “How come I didn’t find one?”

“Let’s check it out,” Beth said. She referred to her own find. No one had an interest in checking out what Chris had called a dragon’s glittering neck, and the other light seemed very far away.

“Lady Alice must have meant one of these lights,” Chris said. And Beth’s light did seem the most inviting and earth-like. It had started out dim, but it looked to be slowly warming and growing stronger.

They all felt a bit of a shock when they stepped back into the night, but they had a purpose in going, so it did not shock them so badly. The light strengthened, but slowly. “Hey!” David yelled for the third time as he rushed ahead when he recognized something. He could see his own living room. It looked fuzzy, but grew clearer every moment, and David remembered turning on the light when the house got cast in the late afternoon shadows. “It’s home,” he shouted with undisguised glee.

The others jogged up, happy for a second. They had forgotten about the beasts, and suddenly one appeared in the glimmering circle of light that appeared to be slowly forming into an opening between the worlds. This time they all saw it. The creature, not a great cat and not an overgrown dog, looked more like part hyena and part bear with odd rectangle ears. It looked fast, mean, and it began to drool altogether too much from a mouth that sported the sharpest, longest looking teeth any of them had ever seen.

The children stood in shock for a moment while three other beasts came up behind the first. It looked like they were waiting for the portal to open so they could pass through and get their prey. No one had to say run. Only David, for a change, directed their course.

“To the other light!” he yelled, and they all followed. They crashed back into the woods even as they heard the snarls and howls of the pursuit begin.

“Ahhh!” Beth tripped, but she did not waste her breath cursing. James had a bit of trouble pushing through a bush. David started in front for once, but Chris caught up as they neared that other, blazing light. They heard the pursuit, but then they all saw the source of the light ahead. The golden door stood wide open, and the light, sunlight strong, streamed out from the inside. It seemed as bright and as pure white as a never-ending camera flash. Surely their eyes should have been burned, and Beth would not have been surprised if they all ended up blind. But Chris did not hesitate, and David ran right on his heels. James went across the portal a moment later, and then, like before, Beth dove and whirled around to see; except this time the door did not close.

Beth felt a presence beside her and made herself as small as she could. She saw the beasts and took a deep breath as they stopped at the edge of the light. They snarled, growled, and began to pace. Their eyes never wavered from the door and the children inside that brightness.

Then Beth saw something else. It looked for all the world like a knight in shining armor riding to her rescue. She thought of the castle on the hill and wondered about who might live there. The knight’s armor glistened in moonlight that looked more like sunlight. The valiant, glowing white horse, snorted as it charged through the trees. The lance, held tight beneath the knight’s arm, looked certain to pierce one of the beasts, if not two with one blow. Beth had to blink. The light around the knight began to grow brighter and brighter until Beth had to look away. It felt like Beth might be trying to look directly into the sun, itself.

“Begone.” The presence beside Beth spoke, and the light that shone off that glorious knight reached out and grabbed all four beasts at once. Suddenly, their angry, hungry sounds turned to baleful moans, and the creatures literally melted in the light until at last, four mere wisps of dark smoke rose up to be scattered away on the wind. When Beth looked up again, the knight had gone.

The presence moved back from the door and Beth turned slowly. She saw Chris, David, and James all on their knees, trembling, and she knew why. Somehow, in that light, she felt utterly naked, not unclothed, but in her soul. It felt like every dark corner of her mind and heart filled with that light, and she could not lie, not even to herself. Every wicked thought, every bare mistake, every intention, blessed or cruel stood wide open to examination. Even innocent nine-year-old James trembled in that presence, and David, who never imagined hurting a flea, had his eyes shut tight. At last, the words of the presence helped a little.

“Do not be afraid.”

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MONDAY

Do not be afraid seems a good motto, especially in a strange land full of monsters. Making friends is not a bad idea either. Until Next Time, Happy Reading

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R6 Gerraint: The Lady of the Lake, part 3 of 3

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

The horse looked bigger than any horse they had ever seen, its nostrils flared, and its breath came in great puffs like mist in the dawn of early spring.  The horse looked covered in a blanket that sported great crosses embroidered in the fabric.  The rider appeared covered head to toe in plate armor so that no part of his flesh could be seen.  He sat on a saddle with a high front and back, and stirrups for his armored feet. And he sported the biggest, longest lance they could imagine, with a simple flag tied to the lance that showed a figure eight on its side, the symbol for infinity.

“About eight hundred years ahead of yourself, wouldn’t you say?”  Gerraint was the first to speak.  The Knight lowered his lance and touched the ground in Gerraint’s direction.

“Who is this magnificent looking warrior?” Lancelot seemed enthralled.

“One of the knights of the lance from Avalon, the same place Excalibur came from,” Gerraint answered.

“Good sir knight,” Arthur started but Gerraint interrupted.

“No.  They don’t talk.  A vow of silence.”  He added that for Lancelot and took a step forward.  “And the answer is no.  No way. Tell Yin Mo no way.”

“No way what?” Lancelot asked.

“Is he volunteering to help?” Arthur, who had been around Gerraint for some time and knew better how to read his shorthand speech, guessed.”

“Yes,” Gerraint answered roughly.  “And a thousand more just like him if I let him.”

“But that would be perfect.”

“No.  It was bad enough endangering the kobold, brownies and fee under Lord Birch, but they were just scouts and kept their bows in the background.  They didn’t attack the enemy directly.”

“But.”

“No.”  Gerraint hesitated.  “Tell Yin Mo I will think about it.  Now please, if you don’t mind.”  He waved off the Knight who raised his lance, turned his horse, and in a few paces disappeared into the trees and the mist.  Even the sound of the horse crunching through the leaves vanished.

###

When Percival and his crew returned in the afternoon, there were six riders instead of five.  Bohort and Lionel went straight to Lancelot.  They had a lot to catch up on.  Gawain and Uwaine still talked about something.  Gerraint did not pry.  The sixth horse took his attention.  It was Meryddin, but he looked old and drained.  Gerraint greeted him normally, and he returned the greeting, but Meryddin made no indication that he thought Gerraint might be anything other than the fourteen-year-old boy he first met outside of Londugnum.  Arthur would barely talk to the man, and when he did it came out in cold, short words.

Percival, not really knowing why Arthur would not be overjoyed to see the old man, sought to reassure Meryddin.  “Be patient,” he said.  “Arthur will come around.”

Meryddin sighed and said he had an appointment. He took the big staff he sometimes carried and stepped into the woods of the lake.

“I wonder how the Lady of the Lake will find him,” Arthur whispered.

“Maybe she will keep him out of our hair for a while,” Gerraint whispered back and said no more about it.

Two days later, the horsemen of Claudus and his advance troops arrived.  It took all that day and all the next for the rest of the legions to catch up.  They immediately took up a defensive position across the open fields, dug trenches and built fortifications around their camp and auxiliaries, but left the field free so the legions could form up and move freely in phalanx formation.  Looking at the way they camped, it became clear they would form up in a kind of upside-down “V” shape, one legion to either side, like the open jaws of a great lion, one man called it.

“More like the paws of a great bear,” Hoel said, when they went into conference.  “The weak point is at the top of the formation where the majority of their troops angle away from each other.  That is the temptation, to attack the center only to have the paws of the great bear close and crush us.”  Hoel had two old men with him, Lord Feswich and Lord Grummon.  Both were in their late forties, Hoel early fifties, and they spoke like they were old and wise and well-seasoned warriors.  Arthur, by contrast, had not yet turned thirty. Gerraint, a year younger, and Percival three years younger at just twenty-five.

“This time, when we hit the enemy from the side and rear we will only drive them to cut deeper into our own men,” Lord Grummon added.

“Excuse me,” Gerraint said.  “But as I understand it, last time you abandoned the plan and went chasing after pockets of Roman Cavalry.”

“That was important,” Lord Grummon defended himself. “We had to make sure the Romans did not regroup,” he said, but then fell silent.

“Maybe we could have the men attack only one legion head on,” Feswich tried thinking.

“And leave the other legion at our backs?” Hoel rejected that idea.

“Well, at least this time we have the advantage in horses,” Feswich said with a nod to Arthur.  “We should be able to deal with the Roman cavalry well enough.”

“That is not what the horsemen must do,” Arthur finally spoke.  “And the foot soldiers need to do something different as well.”

“What?” Feswich shook his head.  “Footmen fight footmen and horse men fight horse men. You are young, but I tell you that is the way it is done.  The stronger arm gains the victory.”

Arthur ignored him and looked at Hoel who looked willing to listen.  “Chieftain, you invited me to your company to take advantage of my experience.  You know we have fought Saxons, Angles, Picts, Scots and the Irish, and we have never lost a battle.  That is because we have not followed the old way of doing things. Listen, and I will tell you how we must fight this battle.”  Arthur paused.  Hoel nodded and kept his men quiet.  Arthur returned the nod and turned to Gerraint.  They had discussed it, but Gerraint could best explain it.  Besides, it would be his knights of the lance out front, and Arthur could step in if needed to negotiate any objections.

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MONDAY

Claudus:  Arthur and Gerraint order the battle formation.  The Knights of the Lance are ready.  Claudus and his revived Romans await the attack.  The fighting will be fierce.

Until then, Happy Reading

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R5 Greta: Usgard Above Midgard, part 2 of 3

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Berry became enchanted by the softest lawn, the brightest stars and most glorious moon she ever knew.  The trauma of the last few minutes went completely from her mind.  Greta turned to the knight who was in truth a knight, like something out of the latter Middle Ages, in full plate armor so that no flesh or anything else showed.  She knew immediately that the knights of the lance never spoke, so she voiced her thought. “Thank you.”  And then she realized that she knew a lot of things that Greta never knew.

Greta looked up toward the castle on the hill.  It was her tradition to enter the castle across the lawn and through the main gate to give the little ones inside time to prepare.  “Huh!”  She said to herself, but it felt like a comfortable word, not a curious one.  She felt more herself than she ever felt before, and she decided that in Usgard, she became more the Kairos, her true self that lived again and again, than any individual, given life, even though she remained the Traveler Greta more than any other Traveler.  “Huh!”  She said again, and she called for Branworth.

Branworth appeared nearby as she began to walk toward the castle, Berry in her train, and escorted by the remounted knight.

“Lady Kairos.” Branworth bowed.  “The knights of the lance have made wonderful progress in guarding the borders, but as you see, even they have not been entirely successful.”

“I would not call the front lawn before the Castle successful at all,” Greta said.

“No, my lady. You are right,” Branworth admitted. “But the knights are not nearly as numerous as the ways in and out of the land and the isles.  Since the cracks developed in the days of young Lydia’s difficulties, at the time of dissolution of the gods, even their sleepless vigil is not enough to guard all ways at all times.”

“So I see,” she said.  And she did see.  She did not condemn the effort being made.  Rather, Greta sounded grateful, and felt rather inadequate to guard even her small charge; to give the little ones a safe haven from the world.  “We will work on it, Master Branworth,” she said. “We will figure something out.”

Greta stepped up to the castle gate and felt overawed by the enormous size and complexity of the structure, even if she knew it as a small thing compared to the Great Hall of Valhallah, the Hall of Odin, or the home of her mother, the goddess Vrya. That is to say, Nameless’ mother.

“Lady Kairos.” Thimbelin arrived and she curtsied slightly.  Greta greeted her friend with a hug and a yawn.  She passed pleasantries with the Queen of the Fairies before she excused herself for the night.  She apologized to the fire sprites, Madwick and Burns, and said their concerns would have to wait until morning.  Then she led Berry to her own rooms where the mistress elves had already made up two scrumptious beds.  They had fairy cloth laid out, and Greta slipped into hers, grew it with a thought to a full-length nightgown and colored it pink before changing it to blue.

Berry spent a great deal of time in front of the full-length mirror, stretching and shaping her own clothes.  She changed the colors and tried dozens of patterns before she ended up very much where she began.  “It’s just no good,” she complained.  “I don’t have any shape.  No matter what I do, I still look like a stick.”

“You’ll have shape soon enough.”  Greta laughed as she curled up in bed, while Berry curled up on the window sill. “Don’t stay up,” she said. “Tomorrow will be a busy day.”

“But I want to have as much of the land of wonder as I can before we go home.”  Berry said.

“Don’t worry.” Greta yawned once again.  “There is time enough.  There is time.”  And she fell fast asleep.

Time under the second heavens, like everything else, is a relative matter.  They stayed two days and three nights in Usgard and Greta insisted that when they went home it would be the very next morning of the night they left, as she more or less promised Darius.  From the first morning, however, Greta felt rested and refreshed, like she came home at last.  She imagined no other word for it.

At some point in the night, Berry curled her small self up on the pillow next to Greta’s pillow and completely ignored the bed which had been made up just for her. Presently, she was lying on her face with her knees pulled up and her little butt sticking straight up.  Greta could not resist taking her finger and knocking her over.  Berry sat up. Her wings fluttered while she rubbed her eyes.

“I’m not awake yet,” she protested.  “Do I have to get up?”

“Yes, sweet,” Greta said.  “It’s time for school.”

“School?” Berry’s eyes got big for a second before she snuggled down deep into the pillow.  “I can’t go to school today,” she said.  “I feel sicky.”  She pretended to sleep some more, while Greta got up and looked in the mirror.  She needed that bath and the time to wash and dry her hair; but then she did not want to keep Mrs. Kettleblack and all of the others waiting, especially on the first morning.  The sun had already gotten up and that seemed late enough.

Greta went to the mirror and shaped her fairy cloth into a plain brown dress such as she might have worn at home.  Then she decided that she was only seventeen, so she shortened the dress to knee length, then shorter, and got it as short as pixie length, and almost as tight.

“Too muchy,” Berry said, and made a face.  Greta sighed. She made plain shorts and a simple T, with sandals for her feet.

“Ready for breakfast?”  She asked quickly before Berry made her wear something ultra-boring.

“Breakfast?” Berry fluttered up and hovered about two feet above the pillow.  “I thought we were going back.”

“Not just yet,” Greta said.  “I think we will stay a while.”

Berry zipped around the room in excitement and then followed Greta out the door.

R5 Greta: Usgard Above Midgard, part 1 of 3

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

Greta went to the city that evening, escorted by Sergeant Gaius and an honor guard of Romans and Dacians.  They had a feast in the banquet hall of the Roman fort.  Fae stayed with her people at the outpost, but Hans went with his sister. He felt well recovered, being young, and since he went, naturally Berry went too.  Greta did not even have to insist.

Greta thought she ate less than Berry, and considering the size of Berry’s true stomach was smaller than a thimble, that said something.  Hans, on the other hand, got his old appetite back.  He ate with both hands, and Berry had a wonderful time feeding him.

The men argued about what to do.  In a way, it felt like being back in the village of the Bear Clan.  Greta’s headache did not feel improved by it at all.

Marcus looked up at her, concerned a little by her silence.  “Tell me, wise woman, what is your opinion on these matters?”

Greta just looked at him.  She suddenly felt very tired, and she yawned to prove it.

“Come now,” Marcus said.  “You came all this way and risked your life to cross the forest.  Surely you had a reason.  You must have something to contribute.”

“Sleep,” Greta said.  “There won’t be anything decided tonight that you won’t still be arguing about in the morning.  I intend to get a good night’s rest and take a fresh look at it all in the morning. Berry.”  She stood.

“Oh, please,” Berry said.  “One more potato.”

Hans pushed back from the table.  “No, I could not eat another bite,” he said, and Berry put down her potato, only a little disappointed.

“Hans, you need to get to bed, too,” Greta said.

Hans paused to look around the room, and then with an annoying tongue he said, “Yes, mother.” The men laughed.  Greta frowned, but Hans got up and followed without further protest.

There were rooms prepared for them in the fort.  Berry would be staying with Greta.  Hans would stay with Darius.  Berry had spent her own time in tears earlier in the afternoon, because four years was forever.  Perhaps because she had been worn so thin, when they reached their room, Berry curled up and went right to sleep.  Greta cleaned up, and then sat and thought and thought.  As tired as she felt, her mind would not let her rest.

It may have been as late as ten or eleven o’clock when she woke Berry.  Berry sat up, rubbed the sleepies from her eyes, and waited patiently for Greta to speak.

“Berry,” she asked.  “How do we get to Usgard?”

“My Lady knows the road to Avalon, certainly,” Berry said.  “I tried to find my way once, but all I did was get lost.”

Greta knew of Usgard, of course.  She knew all about it if she cared to think about it, but in some ways, it seemed like encyclopedic knowledge, lacking any real substance, and that being the case, it felt almost equally true to say she knew nothing about Avalon.  She knew she had to go there, but she felt reluctant to go alone, uncertain of what they would find once they arrived.  “Will you go with me?”  She asked.

“Yes.” Berry spoke with evident excitement. She grabbed Greta’s hand and said, “Let’s go.”

It would not be that easy, Greta thought.  Then again, maybe it would.  Greta and Berry stood and Greta simply raised her hand.  A doorway slowly formed at the back of the room by the window.  It took a moment to come into focus and solidify. Greta looked once at Berry before she reached out and opened the door.

Berry screamed. Greta screamed.  Two creatures attacked.  It took a few moments for them to cross the open lawn which appeared on the other side of the doorway.  They could see them clearly in the moonlight, and did not doubt their intentions. These were not like guard dogs. They were not Greta’s creatures. They did not belong there.  In retrospect, Greta should have closed the door, but at the time she stayed too busy screaming.  Another panic situation.  Even so, she saw the horseman in the distance, but feared he might be too far away to do anything.

The first creature leapt and Berry and Greta separated so it landed between them.  It turned immediately on Berry, but that became a mistake.  For the second time, Greta felt a power beyond reckoning surge through her.  She felt a bit like she had when, as Salacia, she stood in the eye of the hurricane.  She discharged.  The first creature collapsed and gave off the distinct smell of ozone and burnt fur.

The second creature hesitated.  It looked at Greta as if trying to remember something, or trying to figure something out. It took too long.  It had to turn because the horseman came upon it.  It growled an unearthly growl and leapt, but the horseman had a lance and knew his weapon well.  He caught the creature dead center, pushed through the door by his momentum and pinned the creature to the far wall, even as the bedroom door crashed open.  Hans ducked. Darius said something, but Greta could not hear.  He had a sword in his hand as did the dismounted horseman.  They made sure of both the creature on the floor and the one against the wall, then the knight went to one knee before his mistress. Greta looked away for most of the time. Berry, cradled in her arms, still screamed.  Then Greta moved suddenly, before she changed her mind.  She grabbed the knight by the arm and dragged Berry behind and through the door.

She turned to look at Darius.  “If you need me before morning, you can come fetch me, but only you.  No, Hans.  You must not come.”  She closed the door and left the facsimile of an actual door on the other side.