Tomas got back up. Anger in his eyes
Most of the squires cheered for Tomas. I thought them fools. It should have been clear to anyone with the slightest knowledge of swordplay that Nywulf was a master. Rather than cheering on Tomas they should be watching Nywulf work and learning from him.
Tomas lunged again. This time he tried to dummy Nywulf into coming in close. It seemed to work. When the squiremaster was within range, Tomas thrust forward with his stabsword, a rage-filled grimace of triumph on his face. But Nywulf simply dropped his stabsword and used stiffened fingers to hit Tomas’s wrist, making the boy’s hand convulse and the short blade fall to the ground. Then, as Tomas was bringing his longsword back to strike, Nywulf hit him in the chest with the palm of his hand, sending the squire sprawling into the dirt with a crash of armour.
If I give the impression Tomas was without skill, then that is only a mark of how good Nywulf was: he made Tomas look like a child with his first blade
“Get up,” said Nywulf. He kicked the stabsword across to Tomas but did not bother picking up his own wooden blade. “We are not finished yet.”
I do not know how long they fought for. It seemed like hours though it was probably only minutes, and by the end there was not a handspan of armour on Tomas without a dent or bit of missing enamel, or a place on his flesh that did not show a bruise. Tomas could barely walk back to his place in the line when Nywulf finally let him go. Once he was there, Nywulf brought forward the twins and gave them the option of real blades, which they turned down, and then made them fight him. He did not punish them the way he had Tomas. He told them both to fight him at once and then casually knocked them on their behinds.
Celot stepped forward with an aimless smile on his face but Nywulf shook his head.
“Not you, Celot,” he said gently, leaving the boy looking disappointed. “We are done for today.” Despite his exertions Nywulf was not even breathing heavily. “The petty squabbles of this place—” he hit the ground with his wooden blade bringing up little puffs of dust “—are nothing, you understand? You do not need to like each other. I do not ask that. But you must know each other’s strengths and be able to trust one another in battle.” He paced up and down the line. “That is how a Rider works. We are heavy cavalry. We charge together. You are all the cavalry this castle has at the moment, and if any organised force attacked and you were called on to defend us they would cut you apart. Ask yourselves if boyish pride is worth death at the hands of the living and the thankful you deride. If it is, then carry on as you are, but know this: if there is another beating then whoever—” he stopped at Aydor, and glanced either side of him at Borniya and Hallin “—whoever arranges it will duel me and then I will use real blades.” He walked away and sat on a bench by the wall, removing his gloves and throwing them at the ground. “Now go,” he said without looking at us. “Go before you make me sick.”
Chapter 16
I waited outside the squireyard for Rufra, but when he appeared he was with Nywulf. My greeting died in my mouth.
“Rufra has his studies to attend to, Girton,” said Nywulf. “You will have to find another playmate for today.” Nywulf placed his hand on the back of Rufra’s neck and walked him away from me, not letting him look back. There was clearly more going on there than the relationship between master and student. Could Rufra be involved in the plot to kill Aydor? He hated him but did not strike me as the type to skulk about, neither did Nywulf.
This suspicion of my friend felt wrong, like a betrayal, and I put it aside. My master’s note was in my pocket so I decided to attend to her list of items sooner rather than later. Rope should be easy to find at Festival but the drovers were bringing herds of goats into the circles, and their hooves filled the air with choking dust and cloying stink. There must have been every goat for twenty miles around streaming through the townyard gate and into Festival. I found they made a surprisingly effective wall.
“You won’t get in to Festival today, boy. Better come back at night.” I turned to find a drover swathed in rags with only her eyes showing. “Be worse tomorrow when the cows come in. The guards’ll be jumpy too, lot of money in a cow. Someone always tries to steal a few.”
I nodded, watching the animals. “I didn’t know there were this many beasts in the Tired Lands.”
The drover nodded as she chewed on a stick of miyl.
“Goats, sheep, pigs—plenty of ’em as they’ll eat anything. Cows, less of ’em so they cost more money. Still, you boys will be looking forward to a jaunt tomorrow, I imagine.”
“Sorry?”
“You’re a squire ain’tn’t you?” She spat.
“Yes.”
“Well tomorrow’s cow day. Usually the Riders’d be out protecting the cows, but as there’s few Riders here, I reckon you boys’ll be out.”
“Yes,” I said, “of course. I should check over my mount then.”
“Be wise.” The drover nodded then spotted something among her herds and walked away shouting, “Vinor! Vinor! Yon goats are running all away!”
I made my way to the stables, my stomach fizzing at the thought of meeting Drusl. If I was to ride Xus tomorrow he would need to be exercised, after being cooped up he was always skittish and slow to obey the rein. In the stables the comfortable warm smell of mounts filled my nostrils and I found Drusl cleaning out the stalls, throwing the muck and hay into a barrow to be taken to the presses or the orchards.
“Girton!” Her smile was as warm as the air in the building. “I am so glad you are here.” She ran over to me and took my hand. “Leiss has gone to fetch another barrow. Come with me,” she whispered, pulling me into Xus’s stall. The huge animal whuffled gently when he sensed me and I scratched his velvety nose. He snorted loudly and lowered his head so I could scratch between his antlers.
“You care a lot for him, don’t you?” It was part statement, part question.
“Yes, that is one reason why I came, Tomorrow we—”
“Ride out. I know.” Xus moved and forced her against me. She looked up into my eyes, smiling. “Xus will be exercised, do not worry, but I need to talk to you about something else.”
“What?” My voice sounded heavy and I was overly aware of my body and the warmth of Drusl against me. She stood on her tiptoes so she could whisper to me.
“I need you to get a message to Rufra.”
I stepped back and the stables suddenly seemed a chill place full of unwelcome stink.
“Rufra?”
“Yes, it’s about Leiss.”
“Leiss?”
“Aye.” She moved to the entrance to the stall and looked out into the stables.