Bloodless Knights (20 page)

Chef
Elias handed soup to Jadorion, who immediately -but carefully - returned to the
tent.

Elena
approached me again and spoke softly through her delicate lips, “Is Jadorion
thy brother?”

I
looked directly at Elena. She was, almost, one of the loveliest women I had
gazed upon. Paired with that, and the way she looked at me, I knew I would have
to keep her at a distance. I shook my head and replied, “No, Elena, he is my
squire. The evil dragon carried away my dead brother. This trek is revenge for
him.”

Elena’s
eyes widened, “Oh, I’m so sorry. I can’t imagine life without Elex. She’s a
wonderful sister.”

“I
imagine she is. I’ve never had a sister, so I knowest not. But I do love a
beautiful woman.” The words came out of my mouth before I thought them through.
Elena’s face lit up like I had given her flowers. Ah, well, I turned and walked
away.

Valen
sauntered toward me. “Sir Tristen, I will be staying in yourn tent tonight. I
don’t trust to leave ye there with just yourn squire. So far everything seems
to be alright, but since the king has asked me to watch over ye, that is what
I’ll do.” His huge hand patted my back. I had to press the balls of my feet
down to keep me from flying forward; the man was strong!

“The
more the merrier, Valen! Join me in my tent and we shall have a restless sleep
together.” I tried to laugh, but it didn’t work out.

Valen
stared at me without a hint of a grin. “Tristen, what happened at the camp that
burned? Knowest thou? Was it burning when ye passed?”

I
thought back to what we had seen and what Felicia told Asher. Then, based on
Patrious’ trust in him, I gave all my information to Valen. He didn’t say a
word the entire time I spoke, just listened and nodded at times. He was a tough
character to read and I had no idea what the man was thinking. When I finished
talking, he thanked me and went into Patrious’ tent.

Elena
and Elizabeth huddled together on a large boulder. Large fur blankets had been
given to them, and they didn’t waste an inch. Elena continually gazed at me. I
realized I was gazing back or I wouldn’t notice she was staring. I decided to
bid the ladies good night and go to my tent, which I did.

I
pulled out Vivian’s cloak from my pack and wrapped it around my head. I
breathed deeply and although her scent was fading, I was happy it was not
totally gone.

I
found furs and other nice blankets laid out near my pack. Jad had done well,
yet again. Lying on the pile, I submerged myself in thoughts of a happy future.
I fell asleep dreaming of the gorgeous woman, who if I ever found, I would
never let go again.

Sounds
of wailing and sobbing ripped me from a nightmare-filled sleep. I stayed in my
tent and listened. It sounded like grown men crying. I decided perhaps everyone
had been in a horrible fit of sleep as I had. The tent was slightly lighted;
dawn approached.

Valen
had entered the tent at some point. He snored quietly. Jadorion was lying at
the foot of my bedroll. His eyes were wide open and he stared oddly at me.

“Now,
Jad, I’m no princess. What makes ye stare at me so?” I inquired of my squire.

Jadorion
continued to stare at me for a moment, “This is all my fault, sir. I just wanna
say sorry for not finding yourn lady before. Then ya wouldn’t be out here all
sad an’ wrappin’ yerself in her clothes. Also, I wonder if ye believe in
witches an’ magic ‘cause it seems to me like that shite is real!”

I
chuckled a bit at his pot mouth then sat up to see him better. “Jad, as I told
ye before, I do not hold any grudge to ye for what has happened here. And no, I
don’t believe in magic and witches. Never in my life have I seen such craziness
as what’s going on here. I knoweth there is evil at work but there has to be a
logical explanation for it. Ye cannot believe this is yourn fault; we would
have found problems anyway.”

Valen
looked at us through sleepy eyes, “What’s the explanation for the bloodless
knights then, Tristen? I talked to the king last night and he said he’s not heard
of that before. It has to be some kind of sorcery; blood doesn’t just fly out
of the body and throw itself on the ground. That is just not possible.”

“Thou
art correct! It’s not possible, but there has to be an explanation for it. I
won’t accept that it was magic or anything of the sort. However, I admit it is
terrifying not being able to explain it but hopefully in time we will have
answers. And hopefully it doesn’t find our camp.” I snuggled up in Vivian’s
cloak. The tent was cold and I put-off leaving my bedding, as I could only
imagine the air outside the tent being unpleasant little daggers cutting
through my skin.

“How’s
Elex?” I asked. Jadorion immediately piped up.

“She’s
not doing too great but that un’s a fighter.” He smiled, but when he noticed me
smirking at him, he turned his head.

I
couldn’t help myself, “Aw! Jad has a fancy for the king’s baby!”

“Sir!
If ye weren’t who ye are, I would throw something at ye!” Jadorion didn’t look
at me and sounded embarrassed so I let him be and addressed Valen.

“What
else did the king say last night?” I scratched my prickly beard.

Valen
pulled his hat further around his head. The big man was covered from head to
foot in fur; he appeared warm. “He said he’s seen a tiger before but that it
saved him. He couldn’t be seein’ why a man and a tiger would have any gains on
killin’ off an army. He doesn’t believe the story. I follow my king, so I don’t
believe it neither.”

“But
how would the men knoweth of the tiger? They described it as a large cat, not a
tiger. I’m not sure I agree with him. We should be wary.” Although I knew I
would freeze my bum, I needed to get moving for the day. I stood up and
immediately fastened Vivian’s warm cloak around me. Jadorion and Valen started
packing up as well.

I
left the tent and was greeted by a large glowing fire. As much as I wanted to
stay near it; nature called. I wandered to the forest to take care of some
personal business.

After
I finished, I turned to return to camp. Upwind of camp, I heard breaking
branches and rustling in the trees. I carefully and silently walked toward the
sound, reminding myself that the forest was tricky and not to believe my eyes.

About
a dozen yards from where I was, something caught my eye. I stopped behind the
cover of a large tree. Moving away from me, rather quickly, was a large animal
that I only caught a glimpse of. There was a long black and white striped tail
following a big orange, white, and black striped behind that was carried by
massive legs. From what I could see, the animal was probably close to Flash’s
size. It seemed odd to me to see an animal in the forest since we had not seen
any thus far. I decided to return to camp quickly. There was no telling where
the beast was headed, and although I had my sword, I didn’t want to meet it
alone.

I
tore into camp and went directly to the fire pit. There were four men there,
including Jadorion. I asked them to split up and awaken everyone in the camp,
as it was important for us to be on our way. The men seemed concerned but none
of them spoke; just did what I asked.

Within
a few moments the camp came to life. Men rushed out of tents with bed rolls and
bags. The tents came down much quicker than they went up. Meanwhile, the chef
continued stirring a pottage he had prepared for breakfast.

Patrious
left his lavish tent and walked toward me wearing a stern look. “Sir Tristen,
why do we have to hurry out of here? My daughter is in no condition to go
anywhere. This better be quite important!”

“King,
I promise there is a reason we must go. I was in the forest and saw a tiger in
the area. I believe it didn’t sniff out our camp because it was upwind of it,
however, I believe it’s only a matter of time before we are being stalked like
prey.” I warmed my hands over the fire.

Patrious’
face changed from anger to surprise. “Ye saw the tiger? Here? But that tiger
isn’t dangerous. It saved my life!”

I
shook my head and stared at Patrious, “Not to rain on the tourney, but methinks
not the tiger knew it was saving ye, sire. It is an animal that attacked an
animal. Furthermore, I have reports that the tiger was involved with the spooky
death of an army, and I want to take no chances that it will get this army
too.”

As
much as I admired the king, I didn’t understand why he couldn’t see that a
large foreign kitty was dangerous to our survival.

“Sir
Tristen, my daughter is gravely ill. Methinks not she can make a journey but I
knowest we can’t stay here.” Patrious was going to say more but Valen
approached.

“Your
majesty, we are missing eight of our night watchmen. Their bedrolls, belongings
and horses are still here, but they are nowhere to be found. It is thought they
may have wandered off in the night. How shall we proceed?” Valen was dressed in
a long deerskin cloak and a beaver fur hat. He seemed ready to ride away.

Patrious
closed his eyes and sighed, “We have to leave, Valen. If they return before we
are gone, they may continue to travel with us. If they don’t, keep their items;
perchance we will find them on our way.”

I
saw Elena emerge from the royal tent with her mother. She immediately spotted
me and her lips turned up to expose her gleaming teeth. The pretty smile lit up
her face and almost put me on my knees; she was a lovely girl. But she was just
a girl, and I had a woman in my mind that would not be put to rest until her
own lips told me there was no hope.

I
nodded at the ladies and turned my attention to Jadorion who had peeked out of
my tent, “My Lord, would ye like me to organize yourn stuff?”

“No,
no, Jadorion. I will be right there.” I bowed to the king and excused myself
from the group. I hurried into the tent to gather my belongings.

#
# #

Whilst
taking down camp, it was noticed that Odo was one of the missing men. It seemed
many of the soldiers knew him and admired him as well. There was a heavy spirit
in the camp. Elizabeth and Elena tried to liven up the cleaning with songs.
Laughter and merriment lasted for a moment but the men felt the despair of the
forest and knew there was a dangerous dragon ahead of us.

The
men had taken to the ladies, and welcomed them without hesitation. Many worried
for Elex and kept watch over her like she was their own kin. A few fellows
crafted a comfortable bed for her to ride in. It was clear the young girl was
not well; but everyone prayed over her and tried their best to help her.

After
the camp was cleaned up, items loaded into the carts, and everyone had their
fill of lumpy breakfast, we were on our way. I hoped there wasn’t much further
through the forest, but we had no way of knowing. The only indicator we had was
that the king’s family said they had been wandering for days. I sighed.

Elex’s
make-shift bed rested across the top of a sturdy supply cart. The horses went
slowly to keep her from being jarred too much over bumps. Elena and Elizabeth
sat in the cart to watch over the small member of their family. Jadorion sat
proudly on Bolt, while he hovered over Elex. Patrious kept pace behind the
cart. Valen and I led the pack.

Everyone
in the party was dressed in armor. Although cloaks and warm clothing were worn,
the chill in the air was unbearable. I had long since forgotten how my face
felt. My hands and toes were frozen to the point that I could feel nothing but
numb spots when I moved. The best fairing person was probably Elex, who was
snuggly bundled between many colored furs.

As
we continued to follow the mellowed river, we came upon an unwelcome sight.
Amidst the thick trees and bushes, I spotted slightly concealed tents. The day
was much too developed for tents to still be up in the horrid forest. I knew
from personal feelings that one night in the forest was all one would spend,
and that would only be if necessity required it.

Valen
spotted the tents the same time I did, holding up his gauntleted hand to stop
the troops. I looked back in time to see Patrious approach.

“What’s
happening?” He whispered. The man’s eyes were weary; he probably had a
sleepless night.

Valen
merely nodded toward the tents. Patrious searched my face, “What is it?”

“Your
majesty, there are tents there. At this time of day I would suspect tents would
be down and people would be moving forward. This is a sign of something evil.”

Patrious
stared at the tents. “I presume thou art correct. Who shall go forward to
search the camp?”

I
felt it was only proper that I go. I raised my hand causing at least a dozen
others to rise in the air, including Valen’s.

Patrious
moved forward, “I shall lead the pack!”

“No
your majesty, stay with yourn family.” Valen reached out to pull Patrious back,
but the valiant king was already approaching the camp. All riders followed him,
as the others kept in a tight formation around the king’s wife and daughters.

We
were all used to the cold air that continually burned our faces and any other
part that became exposed. I desperately wanted a warm fire and a down comforter
wrapped over my head. As hard as it was to stay focused on the task, our small
brigade reached the camp.

Roughly
sixteen tents were in the area. The snake decorated crest of St. Anthony army
was displayed freely. Knowing what I did of their warriors; they were not a
crew to be trifled with. If something could overcome them, I had no idea what
exactly we were facing in the days ahead. I tried to push away the terror in my
mind, but admittedly, it was getting the best of me.

Valen
looked at me with a stone-cold glare. Apparently the same thoughts were
torturing his mind. He put on a scowl and charged toward a tent, sword in hand.
I had no idea what he was doing, so I stopped to watch.

Valen’s
sword tore through a tent, not once, but three times. Inside the tent
was…absolutely nothing.

Confusion
colored the faces of everyone in our party. Patrious seemed most confused. I
knew he had expected what I had; another batch of bloodless knights. Once I
realized what was happening, I knew something was missing; that horrible smell
of tin and iron. There was no blood, no disruption, but most important; there
were no weapons. The camp had never prepared a fire and there were no supplies
anywhere. I had a sinking feeling we were in some kind of trap.

“Let’s
move out of here quickly!” I yelled at the men. Concerned faces gazed at me.
Patrious approached me.

“Ye
think it’s a trap?” The man always seemed to read my mind.

“Aya,
I do. Now let’s go, before anyone decides to show up. This is clearly a bunch
of tents with no owners.” I quickly turned Flash and started back for our
battalion.

“Hold
up a moment, Sir!” I heard from behind. I turned to look back at a soldier
named Helyas. He was staring into a clearing a few yards away. His grey mare
was slowly trotting toward the opening. “Methinks this is a way out of the
forest!”

Our
horses galloped quickly to the clearing. A familiar, pungent smell poked my
nose. It got stronger as I closed in on the snow-covered field. I realized the
gross, thick smell of blood was strong in the air. We were greeted by a sight
so gruesome I wanted to scream.

Silence
overcame us as we overlooked a terrible battlefield. Blood-red horses and
knights covered the snowy landscape. Armor and banners all bearing the
striking-snake crest of St. Anthony littered the ghastly clearing. There must
have been hundreds of slaughtered men before us. An odd thing struck me. There
was no telling what happened to the soldiers. Every crest and every soldier was
that of St. Anthony. Either the men had fought each other, which I doubted, or
the victors escaped unscathed.