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THIRTY-NINE
RENNY, RIDING the Prince’s brown pony, jogged along the well-used track leading to Askelon. He sat erect in the saddle, pretending to be a knight returning to the realm from quests and adventures in faraway lands. He fancied himself returning to the King’s service after a long absence to find, his name on the lips of his countrymen and peers, his deeds sung in halls great and small throughout the kingdom.
Yes, to be such a knight, he thought, would be any man’s greatest dream. He would give his life for it-for one hour in the armor of a knight in the saddle of a genuine warhorse. Tarky trotted easily along, Askelon Castle showing misty in the distance over green fields. The world seemed calm and lazy in the warmth of the day, and Re
Then, as horse and rider reached the bottom of a hill and started up the opposite side, they met another rider galloping fast the other way. The stranger passed by them in a flurry of hooves, his short cloak blowing out behind him, the charger’s tail streaming. He did not so much as glance in the boy’s direction, but thundered by, eyes ahead and hard.
“That’d be a nobleman most like,” said Re
At once his young head was filled with images of a fierce conflict with a band of ruthless robbers in which he, Sir Re
Enticed by such impossible heroics, Re
It was about this time that Lord Ameronis and his friends heard the young rescuer approaching. Re
Here it was that the lords prevailed upon their leader to spare the tinker and to make clean their retreat with the King’s sword. They all turned at once and galloped toward Re
At the precise moment of collision, Re
Pym’s eyelids fluttered open weakly. “Ohh…” he moaned.
“Good sir, are ‘ee alive?” asked Re
“Ohh… me head. Ow! They’ve kilt me good,” he said, struggling to get up.
“Easy there,” said Re
Pym, eyes watering from the throbbing in his head, squinted at his young savior. “Who are ye?”
“Re
“Eh?” Pym turned his head and saw that his attackers were indeed vanished. “Ye saved my life! They meant to carve me to a treat. Yes, sir. Ye saved me, young master! Thankee, oh thankee!”
Re
“Oh, a bad lot, young master. A bad lot they were-all of them evil. They were going to put me head on a spike, they were. Yes. I stood a dead man ‘til ye came a ru
“Did they steal anything?”
At this the tinker began to tremble. “Ohh! They took the sword!”
“‘Er sword?”
“Not mine. No, nivver mine! Oh, no. The King’s sword! They took it-one called Ameronis; he’s the very one as did it. He wanted to carve me up and put me poor head on a spike.”
“Ameronis? Lord Ameronis? I have heard tell of him.”
“A bad one. Oh, yes. Very bad.”
Re
“None other.” Pym nodded solemnly. “We ‘uns found it in the road a few days ago. Didn’t know it was the Shining One then and hid it yet, hid it in a tree. We ‘uns went back fer to fetch it early this morn and were bringing it back fer the King. He needs it something powerful.”
Re
“I agree.” Pym rose unsteadily to his feet, placing a hand on the boy’s shoulder.
“Can ‘ee ride? The pony is sturdy, and we’re not terrible far from the castle.”
“I think so,” nodded Pym, and then squeezed his eyes shut with pain. “Oww! He caught me a good ‘un then, he did. That ‘un I'd like to repay.”
With Re
The shadows of the high curtain battlements stretched across the i
“This is war,” said Ronsard to Hagin, when the warder protested the plundering of his stores. “If we fail, the Dragon King falls. I see no reason to hold back a reserve-we would only be inviting our own defeat”
“Do not speak of defeat,” replied Theido, overhearing. “It will be difficult enough as it is. War you said? Worse than war-our foe is time, and time wins all in the end.”
“Not this battle,” replied Ronsard grimly. “I mean to win this one.”
Just then a gateman came ru
“What do they want?”
“They will not say, sir.”
“Then send them packing,” ordered Hagin, “with the edge of your sword, man.”
Theido and Ronsard, about to turn away, heard the gateman say, “There’s two of them on one brown pony, and-”
Ronsard spun around. “A brown pony?” His senses prickled.
“What is it, my lord?” asked Hagin.
“Bring them,” ordered Ronsard. “And the pony. At once.”
The gateman dipped his head and ran off to fetch the visitors as instructed. “You have a reason for this, I’ll warrant?” said Theido. Hagin looked on quizzically.