Fates Choice Page 10

  “Rusty, but I can get by” responded Carodin.

  When they eventually got to the officers’ billet, the man from the mercenary group had gone. However, new arrivals were also starting to come in from the groups of men raised or levied by the merchants of Paegas Bay, although it was a very eclectic group, with some archers, spearmen, a few horsemen and swordsmen all mixed together.

  The only groups now missing were the Oak Keep contingent and Raeknor’s five magistrate’s militia. However, The Dog Pack themselves were not to be seen, save of course for the earlier sighting of, what appeared to be, Ahred Ulher’s second in command.

  “So where are they then do you think?” Torr asked Carodin as the afternoon wore on and they set about re-acquainting themselves with the parts of the castle they knew about and explored the bits they did not.

  “I dunno, but, from what I gathered before I set off, it is their plan to be away from us when we set off anyway, so perhaps they want to start as they mean to go on”. Torr thought that sounded reasonable. If so, it was quite impressive to hide fifty men and a hundred dogs.

  The two men were given the opportunity to catch up with each others exploit’s since they had finished their studies, for the rest of the afternoon, as Garel did not find them to assign any tasks to his two newest officers. Although Torr said he had seen some dryads (which he gained the impression Carodin was not convinced of anyway) he left out the full details.

  Carodin had apparently seen some action against the bandits already as he had been busy helping his father’s merchant caravan’s although it transpired there were only two gaestnips and ten guards with the Tantes wagon. Carodin was his father’s only son, although he had some sisters Torr recalled, so Carodin would be expected to follow in his father’s shoes.

  A castle runner found them in the officer’s mess later on after they had eaten, together with Ahred Ulher’s second in command, who had returned. Carodin did indeed know a few words in Suthrasian but barely enough to establish from the man, who gave his name as Balahak, that the main force of The Dog Pack was not in the castle and camped outside, somewhere.

  “Sirs”, said the runner, “Commander Garel wishes to start your briefing now. I am instructed to escort you”. The three men followed their new guide into the keep and to a larger room away from Garel’s own office on the next floor of the keep.

  At the far end of the room was Garel together with an older man dressed in fine clothing and cloak and also Ahred Ulher, who was also out of his armour and dressed in loose black robes.

  Torr and Carodin looked at each other. Although not fully armoured, they were still just dressed in their padding and riding clothes. Neither had thought, or been told, that they did not need to run around in their under armour all week. This was a problem for Torr, who was the world’s biggest slob (as Raeknor had described him). He would happily go around in his dirty riding clothes as he had no interest in fancy or dandy items that seemed to be the latest fashion one week and then cast off by the time of the next social function. Frankly, he could not abide that nonsense.

  Garel clearly had more important things on his mind than what his two new officers were wearing. He directed them to sit at the large oak table, in the nearest vacant matching, chairs, of which there were twelve in total.

  The map that Torr had seen in Garel’s office earlier was now above the large fireplace, which was not yet lit, given they were just at the end of quite a warm Highsun season. Still, the room was full of candle’s, some on ornate and large candelabras as tall as a man with a dozen candles in each on all corners of the room. There were also a number of smaller candle holders on the table, making their seating arrangements reasonably warm and quite bright.

  Garel turned to the older man and said “These are our newest officers, Lieutenant Culos of Tantes and Captain Skarsdale of Paega, who will command the Tantes squad and cavalry respectively. Gentleman, this is Captain Braetol”. The older man had no need to stand as, by the time he had been introduced to Torr and Carodin, they were sitting down and moving their chairs in to the table. Captain Braetol merely nodded at the two new recruits.

  “I believe you have both been introduced to Ahred Ulher, leader of The Dog Pack”. Carodin had not, but easily guessed who this was when Balahak, who they had just shared the officers mess with, went and spoke to Ahred in Suthrasian and sat next to him. “And this is your second in command I believe”. Garel paused hoping that Ahred would remind him of the man’s name. “Balahak” responded Ahred dutifully. Balahak nodded in acknowledgment.

  “Well gentlemen” proceeded Garel, “all are present who will be. The remaining contingent is just the Oak Keep guard who, obviously for logistical reasons, will not be joining us. There’s no point bringing them up here to train. By the time they get here, it will just be time for them to march back, more or less. It is not ideal but I am assured by Bernhart Rowe that they are training rigorously as we speak. Also, if it has not been made clear up to this point, Bernhart will be coming along which, I’m sure you will agree, will do our prospects of success no harm at all”.

  Torr saw that Ahred was whispering to Balahak, which initially sparked his indignation at such rudeness but he quickly realised Ahred must be offering his impromptu services as an interpreter.

  “Also” Garel continued, “Bereofs Town have just made some positive overtures about their garrison joining the fray, another twenty perhaps”. Torr feigned pleasant surprise, having already learnt as much.

  “If they join, then we will have one hundred and ninety five men for this venture plus a hundred dogs - more than I had hoped for”. Garel paused, seemingly hopeful for comments of congratulations. When none materialised from the men sitting around him, he carried on undeterred. “So gentleman, I will draw your attention to the map before you now”. Garel did not point to the map hanging above the fire place but a similar one, that must have been scribed from the original as some of the annotations were different. The copy on the table also had lines and arrows which Torr instantly recognised as troop positions and types.

  He looked eagerly to see where he would be as Garel went into detail about the tactics for the attack itself.

  The briefing lasted some time as the officers raised questions as Garel went along. Torr saw the cavalry, which was to be fifteen in number, was set to the side. “Your job Captain Skarsdale will be to flank any enemy attack you safely can and lend support to any of the infantry structures that look like they are in difficulty. I suspect you will have a vital role to play so don’t be afraid to rely on your own experienced sergeant”, emphasised Garel.

  The role of the infantry had been divided into five other units. The largest, in the centre, comprising of fifty men, mainly spear, to fix what was hoped to be the main thrust of any enemy attack. This was to be led by Captain Braetol whom, it transpired, had served with Gaerulf previously.

  The two groups on the side comprised of twenty men each, mainly sword, to ward of any flanking attacks or even launch their own attack if an enemy’s flank looked exposed enough. One of these was the Tantes irregulars to be led by Carodin and the other would be troops from Valheimer’s own garrison which would be led by Garel himself. “You didn’t think I would let you have all the glory now did you?” smiled Garel to his two newest officers.

  There were two other groups noted, which Garel confirmed would also be twenty strong each. These would be mixed groups of spears to plug any gaps and what archers they had as well. These would be led by Oaks Keep garrison commander and the troops that Garel was now hoping would come from Bereofs Town.

  “Meanwhile, whilst we are dancing with the enemy, Ahred here will hopefully put in a timely appearance right up the enemy’s rear”. Garel glanced at Ahred who nodded.

  “Sir, may I enquire where The Dog Pack are currently?” Carodin confidently addressed the question to Garel but it was Ahred who responded.

  “My men and the hounds are...ahh. how you say... becoming used to your earth, so we may
best stay hidden from the bandits. You will not see them, young one, in this coming week although they are surprisingly close”.

  Ahred’s answer made Torr suspect there would be a world of difference between most of their hastily assembled forces and the battle hardened men and dogs of this mercenary company. God’s, Torr hadn’t even noticed that Balahak was in the officer’s billet to begin with. Plenty of time for the quiet Suthrasian to have slipped a blade in his back. He took comfort in the fact that they were on the same side.

  Torr was looking at the map as he was thinking but suddenly asked a question of Garel as he spotted something else. “Sir, what are these here, they are marked as caravans?”

  “Ah yes, well spotted Captain”. Torr was still getting a rush of blood every time he was addressed by his new rank. “Those are our mock siege engines”.

  Carodin and Torr looked at Garel blankly. “If we go marching up in force all ready for battle and just knock on the gaestnips door to see if they will come out to play, then I think they will simply wait it out until we have gone home for tea gentlemen. I have been reliably informed by Bernhart that they have plenty of food and supplies. After all, where do you think all the caravan supplies they have pillaged and the corpses have ended up?”

  Torr considered the implication of this, his mind trying to race to keep up with Garel’s tactical appraisal.

  “But if they think we are going to actually make camp, build some siege engines and such, then they are unlikely to sit on their hairy backsides until we have, or so they think, assembled some catapults to flatten them with”.

  Torr wondered how much of the plan Garel had come up with and how much was Bernhart’s idea. It would be a sorry day for the Valheimer garrison commander to admit that a mage had come up with a better order of battle than he could manage.

  “In truth”, Garel continued, “the contents of the caravans are little more than spare parts, designed to look like they can be assembled into a catapult. We do not have the engineers or capacity to assemble real ones I am afraid. The caravans and the mock show of assembling them will be handled by the men of Paegas magistrate militia instead”. So that was to be Raeknor’s role then, thought Torr. He still did not like the thought of Raeknor exposed to a danger from which he may not be able to defend himself, but at least he would not be in the front line or, in fact, anywhere near the enemy. If the plan held together.

  After a few more details, Garel dismissed his officers but, as they were leaving added, “Oh, gentlemen, I almost forgot to say. There will be an officer’s ball in our court mid week. Enlisted men will be given their own festivities the same night”. The older three men who left with Torr and Carodin seemed particularly disinterested in the idea of a party but, to Torr and Carodin, it was an excellent idea, almost enough to make them forget about the task at hand. Perhaps, thought Torr, as they discussed the ball on their way back to the officer’s billet, that was the point.

  CHAPTER SIX

  T raining started reasonably early the next day and Torr had even gone to the trouble of polishing his armour the night before. Balahak was staying with them for a day or two apparently which helped Carodin with his rusty understanding of Suthrasian. It also gave Torr and Carodin the opportunity to teach Balahak some choice swear words and inappropriate phrases for young ladies at the ball (although they weren’t sure if Balahak would be coming but, nonetheless, just in case he did).

  Captain Braetol seemed less than impressed with being stuck with two young pups that had not really seen action before, although he did enquire after Gaerulf’s welfare.

  Torr’s thirteen horse had all arrived, a few from each merchant’s house. There small number was dwarfed by the massive stable complex that was designed to house probably ten times as many animals.

  This also meant they looked quite lonely in the tourney field as well. Even whilst training through the church school, there were more people on horseback than there were in Torr’s unit now. It comprised of men who obviously owned, or had family access to, their own horses and by presumption therefore, some ability to ride. Fortunately, this proved to be the case. All thirteen men, from various backgrounds, seemed very competent on horseback with one or two citing some form of battle experience as well.

  Caenet seemed happy with their ability which enabled them to move onto target practice quite quickly. They had gleaned there would be no lances but Caenet suggested, from Torr’s description of the battle plan, that they would not be much use over short distances. “Only much good against other cavalry or formations of larger creatures, not designed for relatively confined areas sir, best we stick with the maces”.

  So practise with the maces they did, against the plentiful straw targets which, as the harvest was being taken in, could be spared. The target dummies at Valheimer’s tourney field were also set into metal runners which could move in four different directions from their resting points. Two were even set on small circular roundabouts. By a system of simple, but long, pulleys the targets could be moved by the stable-hands just as the horse and rider approached, to try and simulate a live enemy who actually had the ability to dive out of the way, in an unpredictable direction.

  The dummies on the roundabouts could also swing on their own axis, thumping a rider in the back as they went past with a knotted rope flail, which could unseat any inept horseman as well.

  All in all, the cavalry tourney at Valheimer’s Castle was a typical example of the training facilities throughout the wealds, which helped to cement their reputation as the best cavalry in the known world.

  All the maces had also been fitted with metal shafts, replacing those that had older wooden ones, to avoid being broken against any large creature they may encounter.

  Most of Torr’s footmen had been folded into Captain Braetol’s unit. Sergeant Bourne would be Garel’s second in command.

  The two men from Torr’s shipyard who had some skill with a bow would be in the back ranks so they were put to work on their marksmanship with the dummies in the archery ground as well. These were also on a system of pulleys that could move from side to side, so shots could be taken against moving targets although the pulley systems for these sometimes broke as the rope had to be very long in order to ensure that none of the pulley operators were hit by anyone with a very poor aim.

  Still, Torr had bought his hunting bow and took the opportunity of casually trotting over on Raelf and taking shots whilst still on horseback, so he could fire over the heads of the enlisted men. His former teaching marshalls had discouraged that sort of behaviour when he was at study here, but he still enjoyed it on an intrinsic level that he could not really explain. Fortunately, there were no signs of his former instructors to tell him now that that was not how weald cavalry officers conducted themselves on the battlefield. The only sign of disapproval came from Sergeant Bourne’s looks as he tried to drill the men whilst Torr did his level best to interfere.

  Torr even took the opportunity on the third day of training to ask the master bowyer if he could commission a full heavy longbow for him, if he had time of course. Torr hoped that at the end of all this, whatever happened, he would therefore end up with something to take back with him to Home Manor.

  By this time, much of his fear and apprehension’s was replaced by the confidence that he and his men were showing on the training ground at least. Even Caenet seemed relatively satisfied with the progress made.

  “Well at least we haven’t had to train them from scratch on the horses and most of them have been used to heavy lifting in one guise or another anyway so their arm strength is there for the swing o’ the mace. It’s just drilling the technique into them really sir”, said Caenet as the two men watched from the edge of the tourney while the men took turns to go through the maze of shifting targets.

  “Good, sergeant, very good” responded Torr. It was late afternoon now and Torr could not be more removed from the reality of his purpose here now. It was almost time for him to excuse himself, get changed a
nd head over to Valheimer’s Court for the officers evening.

  He had sent a rider out with a message to Home Manor asking for a set of clothes suitable for the function. He was actually glad that Aelfsige would, by now, be at least a couple of days into his voyage. If his older brother had picked up the message, Torr had no doubt that Aelfsige would have wrapped up one of Freda’s dresses for him to wear. As it was, the messenger had come back earlier during the day with suitable apparel for him, together with his mother’s best (but worried) wishes.

  As Torr dismissed himself from Caenet, his only concern was that he had not seen Raeknor again, after their meeting outside the grain store.

  ************************************

  Torr and Carodin got ready and agreed to walk over to the house in unison, which was on the east side of the castle. Once again, the evening weather was holding up nicely into the start of Stormsen. They could hear the sounds of a quartet coming from the main hall, but also the sound of a larger band that appeared to be coming from a marquee erected in one of the, numerous, gardens situated to the rear. The grounds of Valheimer Court could swallow the entirety of Home Manor and all its shipyards with ease. The sounds of the different music competed with each other for Torr’s and Carodin’s attention as they approached the circular and paved track way, where numerous carriage’s were dropping off their guests and then making for the stable house around the far side. From what Torr and Carodin could see as they approached, it would be a well attended gathering, both young men trying to pick out people or families they may recognise. Carodin had told Torr as they passed the concierge and through the two sets of large double doors into the hall, that his father was already trying to set him up with a frumpy maid from another of the trading costers who had connections to markets in the Weald of Coombe to the south.