The New Guard (Crossroads Book 1) (11 page)

The journey
to Council Rock was nearly complete when David called the group to a halt. He
said a light lunch should be eaten, and instructed the children to put it
together. Meanwhile, he gathered the others around him.

“From
this point on we will be moving deeper into perilous territory. We should
expect attack from many different quarters and enemies.” David paused and
looked at the Coterie brothers. “I can’t ask you to go any further with us. I’m
certain it won’t be long before my children are revealed for who they are to
be. I’ve been away for many years and I don’t know the political situation.
Then again, I know how transitions of power have gone before, both here and in
the other worlds. The ruling class won’t just surrender, nor will they
willingly bow down when set aside. I appreciate your help in getting us this
far this fast . . .”

“Are you
finished?” First Thunder’s voice boomed as he asked the question. “We are not
leaving you now. It took my ancestors thousands of years to figure out that it
was easier to fight for God than against Him. He has called you forth, and we
will stand with you.”

Rock
looked at David gravely. “You are about to enter a nest of vipers. You will
need as many allies as you can find.”

Fleet of
Foot nodded, agreeing with his brothers’ words. “I was willing to travel the
long road with you when I only suspected what your family might represent. I
would be honored for you to consider my weapons your weapons, and my life yours
to command.”

As Fleet of
Foot finished these words, all the brothers placed their fists to their heads
and closed their eyes. David was taken aback by what he knew was a long
standing pledge of loyalty for the Coterie.

“It is
settled then,” the Beagle stated. It looked at all the brothers in turn and
then said, “Your loyalty honors God, and your ancient pledge of fealty will be
accepted.”

The
Beagle then turned to David. “David, I know that you have fears. However, God
has granted you support, and you have the truth of God’s loyalty, foresight,
and care strapped to your side. The hardest part of parenting lies in learning
to trust God and your children when it comes time to let them make their own
choices. Your older children will soon be well caught up in the turbulence of
transitioning the Way World into a new dynasty. You must remember your younger
children, though. They possibly have years ahead of them before they ascend to
their thrones. Continue to teach them, guide them, and prepare them for the
task you now know is ahead of them. Now, speaking of your children, they are
finished with the lunch preparations; we should join them.”

Without
waiting for the others to concur, the Beagle lopped off to join the children.
Each of the Coterie brothers in turn clasped one of David’s shoulders and his
forearm, a typical Coterie gesture of acceptance of a contract. David returned
their gesture in kind. Once they had all left, David turned his face skyward,
closed his eyes, and grasped the Sword of Truth before whispering, “Strengthen
me, O Lord.”

The group
ate and remounted. Fifteen minutes later they were met by a company of soldiers
mounted and dressed in resplendent armor. The soldiers were lean and tall, and
the helmets they wore framed their angular faces. The parties halted close
enough to each other that the children could see the soldiers’ almond shaped
eyes. The five eldest children quickly realized from the distinct features and
the information the Coterie brothers had shared with them that they were in the
presence of another alien race.

Two of
the soldiers detached themselves from their group and moved closer still. David
and First Thunder did likewise.

“Greetings,
travelers,” said the shorter of the two. “What brings you into the realm of the
throne at this time?”

First Thunder
answered first, “My brothers and I come to fulfill an order of riding horses.”
He indicated the line of horses the children and the extra supplies were on.

David
then spoke up. “These brothers were kind enough to offer my family and me a
ride as our paths converged.”

“These
are to be Lord Avrant’s horses,” the taller of the two soldiers whispered to
the other. “He will not appreciate them being treated as pack animals.”

“The last
I remember,” David responded to the overheard comment, “good deeds were not
looked down upon by any of the races.”

For a
moment, silence ruled the ground between the two parties. Then the taller
soldier spoke up. “I did not mean my comment as a slight toward you or the
Coterie men’s good deed. I was merely pointing out to my fellow officer my
cousin’s disposition toward his property.”

David
inclined his head in a slight bow. “I am David Koen, Truth Blade. Should Lord
Avrant have a problem with his purchase, I will be more than willing to discuss
it with him.”

The
smaller of the two soldiers began to chuckle. “It’s been a long time since a
Truth Blade rode the Here Between roads. I doubt Lord Avrant would know the
full extent such a conversation could entail.” The soldier then bowed slightly
to David. “I am Yero, captain of the Far Guard for Lord Avrant. My lieutenant
is Hogan, fifteenth of the line.”

Hogan
shifted in his saddle and shot Yero a cross look. Yero caught the movement in
his peripheral vision and smiled broadly before adding, “Nevertheless, I’d
rather have him at my side than any of the rest.”

Hogan
sighed, “That, Yero, is why you’re stuck as captain of the Far Guard.”

“Must I
keep telling you, Hogan, that I’m not stuck here? Here I’m free of politics and
court intrigues.”

First
Thunder cleared his throat, hoping to bring the conversation back around to the
matter at hand. When he had everyone’s attention, he spoke up. “My brothers and
I would like to make delivery as soon as possible.”

Yero once
again bowed slightly in his saddle. “Hogan, take them to the royal stables, but
take the back way so as to avoid the council meeting and any disapproving eyes.
This should also save Lord Avrant the embarrassment of disgracing himself by
objecting to a good deed. I’ll take the men to check behind the travelers and
the main path.”

Hogan
shook his head at Yero’s comment, but signaled to the Coterie brothers to
follow him. He moved the group off the road to a barely noticeable trail
between the thickets lining the road. After a few moments the trail broadened,
allowing for easy two-by-two travel. Here Hogan pulled back to ride alongside
David.

“I would
like to apologize again if you took my comments as a slight. I’ve been working
with Yero for nearly two years now, and his openly critical attitude is rubbing
off. Neither of us should be speaking so brazenly of Lord Avrant.”

“I am a
man accustomed to the wilds myself, and speak openly where I shouldn’t always,”
David remarked before changing the subject. “Things have changed since I last
traveled these roads. I must admit I wasn’t fluent in the royal line, but
Avrant is not a name I remember.”

“He was
third in line until his brothers died during a tour of the kingdom’s holdings.
Lord Avrant took the throne of the Seventh Kingdom ten years ago when his
father succumbed to a lung disease.” Hogan shifted in his saddle as if
something was annoying him. His next question changed the course of the
conversation. “How long have you been gone?”

David
turned in his saddle to look at Deborah riding on the horse just behind his.
“Nearly twenty-three years,” he answered and then stopped his horse. He halted
the rest of the horses, too. He continued looking at Deborah in a puzzled
fashion that quickly turned to shock.

“Deborah,”
he breathed, “your birthday was. . .”

Deborah
blushed and bowed her head. “It was yesterday. I didn’t remember myself until
last night during watch.”

“Oh,
honey, I’m. . .”

“No, Dad,
don’t. There’s been so much going on. Like I said, it wasn’t till last night
when I had time to think that I remembered.” Deborah looked down, took a quick
breath then made eye contact again. “Look, I’ll admit I was upset. Eighteen is
a big deal, but what would
fussing
about it do? We’re
all. . .” She paused once more and looked back at her brothers and sisters.
“We’re all. . . adjusting. How much has complaining or throwing a fit gotten
any of us? We could argue about how the situation is unfair, but we’d be no
better off than we are now. I’m not saying I’m at peace about this; I’ve just
come to accept it.”

David
shook his head and sorrow clouded his face. “I’m sorry, anyway. I’m sorry you
and your siblings are going to be asked to make a great many more sacrifices to
live a life you never dreamed of.”

Deborah
reached over and laid a hand on her father’s. “Just as you’ve told us hundreds
of times, as we get older we get access to more of the world. However, that
access comes at the cost of more responsibility. You can’t have more
privileges, more freedom of choice, and more options without more
responsibility.”

David
placed his other hand over his daughter’s. Leaning forward, he kissed her
forehead, then pressed his forehead to hers. “I love you. May God bless you
with some happiness and joy this year and those still to come.”

After a
moment, he broke contact with her and returned to his spot next to Hogan. Hogan
had taken in the entire conversation and was still staring at Deborah when
David rejoined him.

“You have
a remarkable daughter, sir.”

Quietly
David replied, “I’ve been blessed with many remarkable sons and daughters.”

They
brought the horses back to a slow walk before Hogan asked, “I take it that you
just crossed over from your world?”

David
looked at Hogan, and his eyes seemed to be taking the measure of the younger
man. Finally satisfied, he nodded and said, “We crossed over several days ago.
We’ve had a time of it; nevertheless, my children seem to be taking it fairly
well.”

Feeling
that David was not altogether comfortable about the subject, Hogan sought to
change topics. “I’ve only heard legends of Truth Blades. Is it true that you are
robbed of your freewill by the touch of your sword?”

“No; God
granted us free will, and He doesn’t intend to strip it away. Though I have the
blade, I can still choose to follow or not. However, refusing to see, to hear,
or understand the truth when it is wholly in front of you, vibrating through
your soul, is nearly impossible. I can at any time choose to surrender the
blade. I’ve been exposed to a great deal of true knowledge throughout the
years, and surrendering the sword would not erase it. There is also the fact
that at this point surrendering the blade would put me and my family at great
risk. No, no creature touched by the Sword of Truth is robbed of free will, not
even the demons. The Fallen Ones and other creatures of the Void have the truth
of their lives thrust upon them when the sword touches or cuts them. Most times
this truth is so unbearable that a mere cut becomes fatal.”

Hogan
took a moment to absorb this and then asked, “You mentioned using the blade to
talk with my cousin; what meant you?”

“I
implied I would use the Sword of Truth in a discussion with Lord Avrant. The
greatest use of the Sword of Truth is not as a weapon in physical battle, but
as a tool to correct the assumptions of others. Though we are children of God,
we surround ourselves with the trappings of the Lord of Lies. The Sword of
Truth can hew through the veils of deceit to help people see the truth of life
and come to agreement. I suspect, from Captain Yero’s response, that your
cousin is surrounded by many falsehoods.”

Hogan
looked around, uncomfortable with the track David’s speech had taken. Then he
lowered his head and whispered, “I fear a great deal of my family has.” Hogan
then spurred his horse forward a few more feet and kept ahead of David for the
rest of the trip to the stables.

The group
arrived at the stables a short time later. Fleet of Foot, Rock, and the
children tended the horse with the stable staff. First Thunder finalized the
delivery with the head steward. As David left the stables, he overheard the steward
talking about tardiness and overworking the merchandise. David continued on his
way, fully confident that First Thunder would get his due. Outside, Hogan had
regrouped with Captain Yero and the other members of the patrol.

“Sword
Bearer,” Yero called to David. “I was just telling Lieutenant Hogan about our
trip past the council meeting tent. They have apparently spent today arguing
about whether to hold meetings tomorrow or to honor the Day of Rest.”

Hogan
spoke up quickly, “Captain Yero was of the opinion that your services could be
used. I had not got around to reminding him that neither of us has authority to
intervene in council matters.”

David put
up his hands to stop both men. “I’ve been told to come here instead of the
Central Kingdom. I was told specifically to go to Council Rock. So whether it
is your place or not, I’d very much appreciate an escort into the council
meeting, and I appreciate you two volunteering.”

Yero
stood smiling while Hogan looked a little baffled. David enlightened Hogan. “The
Sword of Truth is an angelic blade, and thus the wielder falls under direct
service to the Lord of the Host. He issues orders, and I follow.”