Reign of Madness (Revised Edition) (47 page)

As he walked, Rezkin decided he was going to have to come up
with a better way of evading the strikers. Spending an hour each night simply
attempting to lose them would be too burdensome. He pondered his options until
he reached the inn. Some of his disguise materials were stowed in the bottom of
the trunk in Pride’s stall in the stables. The battle charger was better than
any guard dog. The beast would allow no one but Rezkin to enter his stall.

The warrior ran the horse in the small corral next to the
stables and then tended to his feeding and grooming. It would normally be
considered unseemly for a lord to be mucking his horse’s stall, but
practicality won out where battle chargers were concerned. Unless a rider had
someone on retainer who was experienced with the beasts, like the general’s
stable master, the rider had to tend to his own mount. It was simply an
accepted fact. There was a price for everything, and the privilege of owning
one of the finest warhorses in all of the kingdoms was no exception.

With his black tunic bundled beneath his arm for washing,
Rezkin entered the inn through the back door. He skipped quickly up the stairs,
washed, and changed into more appropriate “noble” attire. It was well past the
dinner hour when Rezkin finally made it to the common room. Frisha was sitting
with Tam, Reaylin and Jimson at a table near the hearth. The young lady smiled
happily at his arrival and said, “Oh, Rezkin, you missed dinner. We have
already eaten, but feel free to do so, now, if you have not already.”

Rezkin bowed slightly in greeting and thanked his friends
for allowing him to join them. Almost before he could sit down, two women were
hovering over the young man asking if he wanted a meal or drink. The famished
warrior took them up on the offer and pretty soon had a heaping plate of pan
fried fish, glazed pork, roasted potatoes and steamed vegetables.

Tam furrowed his brow and mumbled, “That isn’t what they
served
me
.”

Reaylin took a swig of ale before remarking, “That is one of
the privileges of being the finest man at the inn, probably the whole island.”
The tiny woman’s eyes popped wide as she covered her mouth and feigned
surprise, “Oh,
my
, did I say that out loud?” Frisha scowled at the young
woman, Jimson shifted uncomfortably and found sudden interest in the wood grain
of the table, and Rezkin simply ignored the comment.

“Reaylin, when are you competing?” the warrior asked.

The young woman shrugged and said, “The actual matchups will
not be posted until tomorrow. First and Second Tiers will be competing in the
second arena, the smaller one. There are so many competitors that, for the
first matches, both tiers are competing at the same time at different ends of
the arena, with two matches each. I’m in the First Tier, of course. They gave
us each a pre-trial score between one and five, five being the highest. I got a
three, so I’m about midway through.”

“And you, Jimson?” Rezkin inquired.

“The Third Tier begins on the second day in the first arena.
Thanks to your tutelage, I scored a four in the Third Tier pre-trials, so I
will not be competing until later in the afternoon,” Jimson explained.

“That’s excellent!” Frisha exclaimed happily. “That means we
will have the opportunity to watch both of you. Does anyone know when the
others are competing?”

“I think you can ask them, yourself. Here they come, now,”
Tam replied.

Malcius, Palis, Brandt and Tieran, followed by their guards,
had just entered the inn and were heading in their direction. Shiela followed
behind with her nose in the air. The woman was decked out in even more lace and
frills than usual. Rezkin was not sure any of the material of her gown was
not
made of lace.

It was late enough, now, that few tables were occupied. Most
patrons had either retired to the lounge for more comfort or headed out to a
more lively tavern scene. The four nobles took seats at an adjacent table and
began talking excitedly. Shiela looked around at the group and the plain wooden
tables and chairs and sniffed haughtily.

“I do not know why we have to come
here
. We could
have stayed at
our
inn,” Shiela complained.

Malcius frowned and replied, “What are you complaining about
now
? The two inns are nearly identical, Shiela.”

“At least
our
inn has chairs with padded seats,” she
whined.

“What difference does it make?” the eldest Jebai exclaimed
in exasperation. “Your dress is about twenty layers thick! You come with your
own
padding. Besides, is your derriere so sensitive that you can no longer sit in a
normal chair?”

“Malcius Jebai! I would not have you speak of my…Gah!” she
gasped in indignation. “
I
am going to the lounge where civilized people
congregate. At least they should be serving decent wine,” the young woman
remarked as she strode away.

“Maybe she will drink enough wine to become tolerable,”
Malcius mumbled under his breath. “If you thought she was bad on the ship, you
should see her since we arrived here. You would think she was suddenly taking
tea with the queen for all her self-importance.”

The others chuckled as they ordered wine and ale from one of
the serving women.

“He showed up!” announced Palis.

“Of course he showed up,” Malcius said. “He said he would.
It would be embarrassing to make such a promise and not show.”

“Who?” Frisha asked with wide eyes.

“
Dark Tidings
, of course,” Palis replied. “He
returned to make good on his promise to sponsor Fifth Tier commoners. Can you
believe that, with only
two days
notice, there were actually
four
of them?”

Reaylin scowled and muttered, “It’s not like commoners are
all incompetent, you know.” Malcius’s brow rose as he looked at the young
woman. “
My lord
,” she added belatedly.

The young noble replied, “It is not about competence, at
least not completely. Skutton is a large city, for sure, but it is amazing to
find four unknown potential Swordmasters in one city, regardless of class. You
might be interested to hear that one of them is a woman.”

The young woman perked up. “Really? What is she like?”

Palis smiled wide. “She is absolutely stunning! She is the
most beautiful woman I have ever seen.”

Frisha was overcome with the irony of the circumstance as
she started giggling hysterically. “The absolute…most beautiful woman…
you
have ever seen…is a
commoner
from Skutton…who carries a sword?”

Palis flushed and Malcius smiled as he said, “Yes, my little
brother is completely besotted with the woman. I think that if marriages were
arranged on looks alone, I would be calling her sister.”

The young man’s flush deepened, but he said, “Can you blame
me? She is gorgeous. With her red hair and green eyes, she is like the sun
setting over the ocean.” Palis’s eyes were distant as he mumbled, “Green silk.
She would be stunning in a green silk gown to match her eyes.”

Brandt snorted and said, “My friend, I did not know you to
be a poet. I doubt that woman has worn many a gown. She looks more comfortable
in her armor than
a soldier.”

“I must meet her,” Palis declared. “I must do so before she
competes or I will never have a chance against all her admirers.”

“A chance at what?” Malcius queried. “Will you court her?
Marry her? A
commoner
?”

Palis lifted his chin and said, “So what if I do? I will not
inherit, and once father sees her, he will not begrudge the match. Besides, she
is a Fifth Tier competitor. She will earn fame and renown in her own right,
commoner or not. Nobles have taken commoner brides in the past, especially if
the woman is particularly impressive.”

Malcius furrowed his brow. “I am not certain that father
would be so accommodating,” he said as his eyes darted to Tieran uncomfortably,
“especially with the ill regard our sister is sure to bring upon the house.”

“Wait, I thought you nobles looked down on women carrying
swords,” Reaylin challenged.

Brandt chuckled and said, “You know Palis is obsessed over
all things sword related. It is no surprise he would want a woman who comes
with one as well.”

Palis’s face flamed as he said, “I…ah…actually find it to be
rather enticing.”

Captain Jimson nodded and said, “I agree.”

Reaylin fluttered her lashes at Rezkin and asked, “What do
you
think, Rezkin?”

Rezkin shrugged and replied, “I think everyone, man or
woman, should know how to defend him- or herself with at least one weapon. If
it is a sword, so be it.”

“Do you not find it enticing, then?” the young woman
pressed.

“It is practical,” the warrior responded.

Reaylin’s lip protruded in a pout, and then she asked, “So
what
do
you find enticing?”

Rezkin looked up thoughtfully, and then his eyes fell on
Frisha. He remembered the odd feeling he got when he watched the sway of her
hips. Frisha’s face blushed furiously under Rezkin’s absent gaze. It was
obvious he was thinking of her. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, Frisha
covered it with her hand. Rezkin was surprised that he felt only the slightest
inclination to flinch away or defend himself.

“You should not ask him such questions,” Frisha scolded. “He
is sometimes too honest for his own good. He will feel inclined to answer.”
Frisha was remembering their slightly inappropriate conversation about women’s
dresses and the attributes they emphasized.

Rezkin took Frisha’s hand from his mouth and held it in his.
“I do not think it so inappropriate to say that I find
you
enticing,
Frisha,” the warrior replied. Frisha smiled coyly, and everyone but Reaylin was
happy to witness the sincere moment.

Jimson envied Rezkin’s way with words –
and
his
way with women. No matter how many times the captain tried to woo Reaylin, the
woman still only had eyes for his friend. Jimson had not been completely
forward about his interest, since he knew Reaylin would not yet be receptive to
his attentions. He resolved to continue to wait patiently for her infatuation
to pass.

It turned out that Malcius and Brandt both scored highly in
the second tier pre-trials and were assigned matches in the afternoon of the
first day. Palis was competing in the same round as Jimson in the Third Tier,
but luckily they were not pitted against each other in the first matches. In
the initial matches, competitors rotated against opponents, so they had the
opportunity to fight three duels before the first scoring. Only half of the competitors,
the half with the lowest scores at the scoring, continued on to the second
round where the process would be repeated.

Organizers had arranged the schedule so that no other duels
were occurring during the final matches of any of the tiers so everyone could
play witness. Additionally, no matches were scheduled during the Melee
competition, which began on the afternoon of the third day, since many of the
competitors were also competing in the tiers. Most felt the Melee competition
would grow in popularity as news of its existence spread. It was likely to
attract many competitors who had no interest in dueling.

The First and Second Tier finals were to be held on the
afternoon of the fourth day, the Rapier finals were on the morning of the fifth
day, and Third Tier finals were on the afternoon of the sixth. Fifth Tier did
not begin until the sixth day, since most spectators and the other competitors
desired to watch the Swordmaster duels. The Melee and Fourth and Fifth Tier
finals were to be held on the seventh, and last, day of the tournament.

For Rezkin, winning the tournament was of no consequence. It
was only a means to an end. For his companions, though, this was the spectacle
for which they had worked tirelessly to prepare; and for some of them, it could
be their only chance at competing. Reaylin, for example, had to pay ten gold
just to enter the First Tier, and that did not take into account the cost of
travel, lodging, food and other expenses. The woman had lucked out in being
able to share a room with Frisha at the general’s expense. Rezkin did not know
what the young woman did for money, but he wondered if she might be sleeping in
the streets, otherwise. Now that she was bound to him by oath of fealty, he
felt responsible for her wellbeing.

While many lords felt that a promise of providing response
in the event of foreign invasion was sufficient to satisfy their liege oaths of
protection and sanctuary, Rezkin believed the sentiment to extend to all manner
of basic necessities. So long as his vassals continued to serve in whatever
manner he required, he was responsible for ensuring they were fed, clothed, and
housed. In Reaylin’s case, what he desired of her was something she had clearly
stated numerous times was something she did not wish to give. While he had
little need of her as a warrior, he felt obliged to see to her martial training
and preparation in exchange for her continued training as a healer. As her
liege, it was not something
required
of him. He
could
simply
order her to abandon her dreams of becoming a warrior and become a healer
instead, but that was not his way.

The following morning, the competitors regrouped in the
stable yard for practice. Rezkin paid particular attention to Reaylin, Malcius
and Brandt since they would be competing on the first day, which was scheduled
to begin the following morning. A couple of other competitors who were staying
at the Coral Cove saw the group practicing and asked to join. One of the
competitors was competing in the Second Tier with Malcius and Brandt, while the
other was in the Fourth Tier. Practicing against new opponents was excellent
preparation for the tournament duels.

Around noon, the group broke for the midday meal. Rezkin and
his companions were just finishing a succulent feast of glazed fish with rice
and vegetables when Hilith Gadderand sauntered into the inn. The woman’s dress
was resplendent, as usual, although it was odd for an inn, even one as nice as
theirs. She looked liked she should have been pandering to the fops at court.
Frisha scowled as her eyes landed on the woman.