Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience. (Continued from Ch 73, Rath Road) The Chronicles of Rapina Chapter 74, Trial By Enok After the men of Avengene left the area of the front gate, the knights of Daelrath put the keep back into order and convened a council to sort out the situation. It took several hours' worth of interviews before the council of knights determined exactly what had happened. Celena was one of the first to be interviewed since she had been the first to contact the knights in the tower house and had witnessed a great deal of the story. Early in the morning after the Avengenes had left, Lady Daelrath and Sir Stallart attempted to send a message to Lord Bristol via carrier pigeon. The bird was taken out of the sky by a falcon before it was finished crossing the farm fields that surrounded the keep. The same fate befell two more pigeons. Celena knew this because Sir Stallart sent Bledsoe to tell her and to caution her to cage her raven if he somehow managed to make it to the keep alive. Thankfully, Cindus made it to the keep unscathed, unless one counted being famished and bitterly complaining about it. Apparently the falcons were targeting pigeons leaving the keep, not ravens arriving. This stood to reason since killing all of the wild ravens that might fly through the area would surely distract the falcons from killing homing pigeons. Celena found Bledsoe and asked him to let Sir Stallart know that her raven was fine because the falcons seemed to be specifically targeting homing pigeons. It seemed likely that Avengene falconers could be responsible for the dead pigeons, and that meant that the Avengenes had not withdrawn as completely as it might have seemed. Instead of leaving for Avengene, there was a good chance that they had holed up in the forest somewhere beyond the plowed fields around the keep. Since Vicar Fryske was tied up sitting as an adviser to the council of knights concerning the case of Sir Bronenkam, Celena spent her time in the library of the temple of Virtusar reading books she was not technically supposed to have access to. It was a simple matter for her to open any of the bookshelf locks with her telekinesis, and since most of the men stayed away from the library she had a great deal of privacy. She perused books on the priestly magic of the priests of Virtusar, not only to see what a spell-casting priestess of the god of war might be able to do, but also to see how she might go about working her magic in order to imitate a priestess of Virtusar. The magic of the priests of Virtusar centered on the magical art of channeling, just as did the priestly magic of Mortaebius or any other god. Channeling was something that neither Thane, nor Baladus had taught a great deal about. Since Thane had at least briefly covered all areas of magical theory, Celena already possessed basic familiarity with the concepts behind channeling even before she had started studying the priestly magic of Mortaebius under Guardian Bristol. Her studies with Guardian Bristol had increased her knowledge of priestly magic. She was not sure why she had never tried a priestly spell, but she guessed it was largely a matter of priorities. She had been working so hard on her magical spells that she had not had time to spare. In principle, priestly magic was simple enough. A priestess forged a relationship with her deity through worship, reading, teaching, action and meditation. She furthered the cause of the god and took on some aspects of the god or in some way began to resonate with the god. When casting a spell she attempted to draw nearer the god, and if the god were willing, he or she would impart magical power to the priestess who would then bestow it on herself or another person or object. Just like other forms of magic, channeling was taxing. Opening the channel took a certain amount of energy and finesse, and allowing the divine energy to flow through the priestess' body and mind often put stress on the priestess. As she thought about divine magic, Celena realized that two gods were practically part of her - Mortaebius through her ghost hand and her ability to sense life force and Amorra through the powers of the lust spirit. Ironically she was trying to act as a priestess of Virtusar, a god who had wielded subtle influence over her life since the incident with Reverend Evangeline, but with whom she had no more palpable connection than her skills at arms. She doubted whether she could actually be a full priestess of Virtusar, but if she were able to be a priestess of Mortaebius and or Ammora, and a magician, she might be able to simulate it. Actually, since the concubines were a gift to Virtusar from Ammora, Celena did not necessarily have to be a priestess of Virtusar at all, but she felt she should know as much as she could about his priests if she was going to be working with them. Celena looked through the invocations to create a succinct list of spells available to Virtusar's priests. She had to admit that most of them seemed quite practical for use in war, but it was obvious from the small number of spells that the god of war was not the god of magic. She was looking for the easiest spell possible - something she might try like the clerical equivalent of a cantrip. Preferably, she wanted it to relate to healing since healing spells were always of paramount importance in a battle zone. She looked until she spotted the perfect thing. It was the clerical equivalent of her Bestow Vitality cantrip and it was entitled, The Blessing of the Vitality of Virtusar. She encoded the invocation into her spell book in a blank area at the end of the final page of the casting notes for her Bestow Vitality cantrip. She then began to work on the spell as if it were a magician's spell. She knew she would have to get the channeling part right if it was ever to actually work. She hoped she could accomplish that, but failing that, she felt familiarity with the way the priests of Virtusar cast the invocation would prove useful as a mask for casting her Bestow Vitality cantrip. If she had no luck with Virtusar's magic, she could create versions of her magical spells that used Virtusar's invocations along with bits of prayer and somatic components that would seem religious. It was ironic that she had studied the magic of Mortaebius, only to use the principals she had learned to attempt a spell with Virtusar, but such were the fortunes of her current situation. She needed to play the part of a concubine of Virtusar because that was the role that would best satisfy her needs at Rath Keep. She wanted to avoid anyone labeling her as a total fraud if she could avoid it. Even if Virtusar was the general leading the other two gods in the battle against the Vindicator, it was highly unlikely for anyone to channel more than one god, and she already had a stronger association with two others. Perhaps she would claim to be more of a gift to Virtusar from Ammora like the legendary concubines if she was unable to channel spells from the god of war. She also needed to try a spell from Mortaebius. Celena noted that the invocation for the Vitality of Virtusar was magically sound, but somehow abbreviated as if the spell energy bestowed by the god was partially shaped to make casting easier. She tried to make an educated guess as to what the energy would have to be like in order to cast the spell using the invocation. She cast her First Sight and Life Vision spells to see the flow of energy in case she was able to channel Virtusar. Just in case Carla needed to speak with her, she also cast Ghostly Whispers. She then started a practice session to get the casting of the Vitality of Virtusar straight. ------- Celena had grabbed a snack from the leftovers from the previous evening's banquet for breakfast, but the lion's share of what she had gleaned went to feed Cindus. As lunchtime neared, her stomach reminded her that she had not eaten a good breakfast by growling savagely. She distracted herself by wondering if the council of knights had come to any conclusions after interviewing people for the entire morning, but her mind soon returned to the subject of food. According to the baron, she was supposed to eat meals as if she were a lieutenant, but now that she had arrived at Rath Keep she realized that there was only one lieutenant, Lieutenant York. She put the books she had been reading back where she had found them and headed over to the Bristol Barracks. The guard smiled at her as she approached. "Good day soldier, do you know if Lieutenant York is in? I need to ask him a question." "Good day, Champion Medea. Yes he is in." "I would like to avoid being known by everyone, but knowing no one. What is your name, soldier?" "It shouldn't surprise that I know ye. Women are scarcer than gold 'ere at Rath Keep. Me name is Private Maio, Champion," the soldier said as he opened the door. "Check with Sergeant Strong in the office. He will be able to fetch th' lieutenant for ye." "Thank you, Private Maio, it was nice meeting you," Celena said as she looked carefully at the young man and committed his face to memory before going inside. The barracks looked a bit different in the light of day, but not so different that the rooms seemed unfamiliar. Celena remembered Sergeant Strong from the archery practice before the banquet she had attended. "Good morning Sergeant Strong, is the lieutenant in?" Celena asked. "He is, Champion. Let me see if he can see you." Strong went into the lieutenant's office and both he and the lieutenant came out together. "Champion Medea, I can't tell you how grateful we all are that you caught on to Sir Bronenkam's plan in time for us to exclude Lord Avengene's men from the keep!" "It was my pleasure, Lieutenant. I shudder to think what might have happened had they been allowed in." "It would not have gone well for us, I'll wager. What brings you over here?" "The knights are tied up with interviews, but I was told that my package included being fed like a lieutenant. Since you are the only lieutenant, I thought perhaps you would know what that meant." "A lot of times I eat with the knights because I command the Bristol garrison and they like to keep me informed of things. Sometimes they invite others to eat with the knights as well, particularly when there are no secret issues on their agenda. On the occasion they are embroiled in private business such as they are now, Guardian Argyle and I eat what the knights are eating, but we eat in the parlor with Sir Bronenkam's wife and daughter. Certain chief artisans like Nick Stonewright our master builder, Jedadiah Blake our master smith and Ted Savanna our master carpenter also eat like lieutenants. On occasion, other chief artisans are invited, but only Nick, Jed and Ted have it as part of their arrangement with the baron. "If I am particularly busy, I send someone to fill a covered platter in the tower house kitchen and bring it back to my office. I can also choose to eat with the men in the soldiers' mess hall, but that would not be politically correct for an officer to do unless he had a reason. Guardian Argyle and Vicar Fryske take lunch with the men on a regular basis. As priests it is important for them to understand and empathize with the men on a personal basis much more so than it is for an officer who is set apart in a leadership role." "Is Sir Bronenkam's wife as uh ..." "As Avengene-ish as her husband?" York finished the sentence for her. "Yes," Celena confirmed. "You bet she is, if not more so. If she was not such a good cook and administrator of our kitchens I might take offense at her views, but I'm inclined to make an exception in her case due to my stomach. If Baron Daelrath and Sir Bronenkam did not go back so far, I am sure the Baron might have found a reason to send Sir Bronenkam packing by now," Lieutenant York observed. "The word is that Sir Bronenkam was the baron's most trusted knight right up until he and the baron had a falling out over Brianna Barter, and changing patrons from Avengene to Bristol. After that time, the Baron seemed to forgive the other knights their quirks to a greater degree than formerly, and he began to work with all of the knights more even-handedly. That transition became even more noticeable once he hired Nick Stonewright and Rath Keep started to expand. He really needed the knights to help him with the work around here. "Then previously the baron hired people with quirks because they were cheap, but he did not quite see eye to eye with them." "That is about the size of it from what I hear." "He was still displaying that kind of attitude when he hired me," Celena observed. "He did not have a problem with me healing his men, but I was afraid he would never see me as much more than a loose woman with some useful skills." "I'll wager that looking at you as a loose woman with some useful skills is like looking at a mythril blade with a ruby set in the pommel as a piece of jewelry that occasionally comes in handy as a weapon." Celena smiled. "I appreciate the sentiment, Lieutenant York, but I doubt Lady Bronenkam will share it. Perhaps she will want me to eat at the infirmary - publicly in order to have a medic on duty at all times - but privately because she does not want her daughter exposed to a concubine of Virtusar," Celena conjectured. "That would not surprise me, but it really isn't necessary. There is a field medic on every shift with the men of Bristol patrolling the wall and most of our men are young. We have the occasional work or training injury, but most of our injuries come from battle. During the season when the Dealrath farms are bearing, sometimes Guardian Argyle will cook in the kitchen at the temple of Virtusar. He likes it better than the old kitchen in the tower house, and he and Vicar Fryske have a good working relationship. Argyle's quite a good cook too. "Poet, cook and archer - somehow I am not surprised." Celena smiled. These days, they often put on banquets in honor of valorous men or special occasions at the temple of Virtusar. The kitchen is more modern and the tower room seats far more people than the great hall in the tower house. Vicar Fryske is kind enough to loan us the use of his temple during Mortaebius' important holidays if a banquet is called for. Today I suspect you and I will be eating in the parlor of the tower house." "I am sure Lady Bronenkam will be utterly thrilled to see me," Celena said with a note of sarcasm. "Yes, especially if she knows it was you that discovered Sir Bronenkam's plot to let the Avengenes into the keep just early enough that we were able to defeat it. We should probably roust Guardian Argyle and head over to the platform to see what the council of knights has decided about Sir Bronenkam before we decide where we are having lunch today." Since it was the time that shifts changed, most of both platoons had been allowed to watch the proceedings with only a few patrolling the walls. A crowd gathered on the west side of the gate courtyard. An orderly rectangular stack of quarried stone about six feet tall, forty feet wide and thirty feet deep had been stockpiled for use in construction, but the men of Daelrath had evened it up and it was currently being pressed into service as a stage. "The council of knights is hereby convened. I, Sir Gehrheart, have been elected to officiate. Sir Bronenkam stands accused of grossly overstepping his authority by attempting to allow an armed foreign force into the keep without consulting the council of knights and of going to elaborate lengths including locking Lieutenant York and the Bristol B garrison in their quarters to hide his misconduct until it was too late to reverse his decision. At best, this act was a serious lapse of judgment; at worst it was an act of treason. Each knight shall have his say. Sir Bronenkam, how do you vote? "I am Innocent of wrongdoing!" Bronenkam contended vehemently. "Trolls were sighted and I made the decision to give shelter to the Avegene troops. The only reason I locked the Bristol garrison up was because I knew they would make trouble about my decision and I did not have a lot of time if I was going to save men's lives!" A cheer went up from roughly half of the men. "Sir Coshus, how do you vote? "With all the drinking I do, I be an expert at knowin' the difference between bein' drunk and bein' drugged! I was supposed to be on duty while Sir Bronenkam was. Sir Bronenkam drugged my ale at the strategy meeting. It takes a hell of a lot more than one or two ales to floor me! That proves this was no spur of the moment decision to be a humanitarian! Sir Bronenkam knew he was going to let the Avengenes in before there was any sign of trolls! It should be obvious from the way he locked Lieutenant York and his men up that he was up to no good! That being the case, he is working for Lord Avengene and is guilty of treason against the barony, plain and simple!" Sir Coshus snarled. "Sir Stallart, how do you vote? "I have known Sir Coshus for a long time. We all know he drinks, and we all know he has lied about how much on a few occasions, but up until now he had a great deal of respect for Sir Bronenkam and I know he would not lie about his drinking at the expense of Sir Bronenkam's life! If there were any doubt in my mind, which there isn't, all I would have to do is think about the planning. Bronenkam stole keys and so on in order to lock Lieutenant York and his men up and I have no doubts that Sir Bronenkam knew he was going to let the Avengenes in before anyone sighted any trolls. I suspect the troll sighting was a ruse anyway! It was after four in the morning and that is awfully late for a troll attack, but it is the perfect time for skullduggery! I regret that Sir Bronenkam would sell this barony out because Baron Daelrath is in dire shape, but he has! Sir Bronenkam is guilty of treason against the barony! "Sir Mongrail, how do you vote? "Sir Bronenkam is guilty of some extremely poor judgment in my opinion, but he has been a friend for a very long time! I have seen him think on his feet during battle after battle, and I think he could have locked Lieutenant York and his men up on the spur of the moment! Sir Coshus says Sir Bronenkam drugged him. Maybe he did, but maybe Sir Coshus is just covering himself for some drinking that got out of hand. It would help if he hadn't lied about drinking in the past. Since I cannot be sure, I am not going to condemn an old friend to death for treason. I say he is innocent!" "I, Sir Gehrheart, believe that Sir Bronenkam's action was a blatant overstepping of his authority! He knew letting the Avengenes into the keep was a decision he should not make alone, yet he made every effort to keep us in the dark! He would say he did not have time, but it would have been a simple matter to send us a runner while he was taking the time to lock Lieutenant York and his people in their barracks! The fact is Sir Bronenkam knew exactly what he was doing when he did it! The question is did he know what he was going to do before trolls were sighted? Only Sir Bronenkam, Sir Coshus and Virtusar know the true answer to that question! Since I would expect Sir Bronenkam to save his own hide and Sir Coshus has lied about his drinking in the past, the only one we can trust to give us the truth is Virtusar! That is why my vote is guilty unless exonerated by a trial by combat!" "What say you, Knights? Will any of you change your vote and second my motion for trial by combat?" Sir Gehrheart asked? "I, Sir Mongrail, shall revise my vote to proof of innocence through trial by combat, rather than letting a guilty verdict pass!" "As long as you are willing to abide by the bylaws of the council of knights and Virtusar's sacred rules for trial by combat, then I, Sir Bronenkam would be glad to change my vote to proof of innocence through trial by combat!" "Then the motion is carried by a majority vote. Sir Bronenkam shall have the opportunity to prove his innocence in a trial by combat!" "Who shall I face?" Sir Bronenkam called out. "I believe I will have that honor," Sir Gehrheart answered decisively. "It would be my pleasure to engage you on the field of honor, Sir Gehrheart, but that would be a violation of the bylaws of the knights' council. If two knights were to fight, we would unduly endanger the council. After all, one or both of us could die." Celena saw the slightest wince cross Sir Gehrheart's face. No doubt, the council of knights would not have the authority to punish Sir Bronenkam against his will until the Baron woke up or some sort of regency council took over for him. By using the trial by combat, Sir Gehrheart would have been able to execute Sir Bronenkam with Sir Bronenkam's consent as long as he could best Sir Bronenkam in combat. Apparently, Sir Gehrheart, being the arms master of the infantry, felt he could do that. Unfortunately, Sir Bronenkam defeated Sir Gehrheart's strategy through a technicality in the bylaws of the knights' council, one that was likely designed to prevent the knights from killing one another until only one leader remained. "I will accept your interpretation of the knights' bylaws on condition that I be given time to select and train a suitable stand-in for myself to face you in battle," Sir Gehrheart ceded. "The bylaws are clear that we shall not encumber one another so as to cripple our ability to do our jobs, yet we all know that my job does not really start until dusk tonight. We will still need to set aside perhaps an hour for the trial. Therefore I submit that in accordance with our bylaws, you have until approximately one hour before dusk to find and train your replacement!" Celena could tell that Sir Gehrheart was not happy. She also suspected that Sir Bronenkam had read the bylaws for the council of knights with an eye towards slipping the noose should his plot fail. "Agreed, I motion that Sir Bronenkam be confined to his quarters until the trial commences an hour before sunset!" "Yay!" Sir Coshus and Sir Stallart said without hesitation. "The motion carries! I will see to it that most of you men get to watch the bout. However if anyone misbehaves so as to benefit one of the contenders or if there is any sign of poison or other cheating in the bout itself, then we will follow Virtusar's rules to the letter and revisit the bout at a later time with a stiff penalty decided on by the Vicar!" ------- "Where shall we eat?" Celena asked the lieutenant after the knights had adjourned their public meeting. "I'll wager we better have lunch at the tower house." Lieutenant York said as he led the way south, while he continued to speak to Celena. "It's not that I want to face Emma Bronenkam," Lieutenant York admitted. "That will be awkward, but if we are not there she might impress her opinion on the master artisans. Sir Bronenkam already has a lot of support among the men because he is the battle master. We cannot afford for him to get more. If we are there, I suspect that it will be a quiet meal with little conversation. If we fail to show up, there may be talk we would not endorse." "I cannot argue with your reasoning, Lieutenant York. I am ready to face Emma Bronenkam. If she seems happy, that may mean that Sir Bronenkam believes there is not a warrior in the keep who can beat him in combat aside from the other knights." York nodded. "She will be happy. I know all of the men in the garrison except that new orc you brought in. I'll wager that any warrior in Rath Keep, other than the knights, would last no more than five minutes in a fight with Sir Bronenkam - including me." Celena frowned. "That is not good news for us." "No it isn't, but even if Sir Bronenkam wins, as I'll wager he will, many of the other knights no longer trust him. They believe he may be working for Lord Avengene and that may work in our favor. Had you not discovered his treason, we would be in much worse shape, and the other knights would be in the dark about his true intentions." "I suppose you are right. In any case, I have no Idea if Emma Bronenkam is working for Lord Avengene. She is in the position to cause trouble if she is." "That she is. She is our chief cook. She seldom actually does the cooking for the men, but she oversees the kitchen. She and her staff actually cook for the baron and the knights." "Oh goodness, then she could easily poison us, all of the Knights and the chief tradesmen, and she could almost as easily walk over to the mess hall and poison the men under the guise of inspecting the work of her staff." "Yes she could, and I am well aware of that fact, as are the knights. It would not surprise me if an assistant has been assigned to look over her shoulder." A few minutes later York, Argyle, and Celena walked through a gate into the area of the keep known as "Old Town." The inhabitants of Rath Keep built the district sometime after the original tower house and its courtyard. It was still the home to the entire civilian population of the keep. It looked disorganized and disheveled compared to the newly constructed northerly area of the keep. "It seems like there are some notable voids in this area," Celena observed. "Yes there are, and there are likely to be more of them as time goes on. We are phasing out buildings made of wood. Nick Stonewright does not believe that flammable buildings have a place anywhere in a keep, even if Rath keep is more of a small walled town. We removed the old temple of Virtusar and several old barns that used to house the farm livestock. This area is still the hub of crafts, however. The smithy is over there to the east. Thankfully, it was largely stone to begin with. I'll wager one of the greatest things Nick has done as master builder was to replace the wooden portions of the smithy and provide it with taller, more substantial chimneys. Previously when the wind was in the wrong direction the smoke from the smithy could make you gag." After passing through Old Town, the trio went through the gates into the courtyard of the tower house. It looked considerably more spacious than it had at one time now that the counting house and mead hall were no longer there. "There used to be a number of buildings cluttering the tower house courtyard. Some of them were wood. Nick had them razed as soon as he replaced them with buildings elsewhere. One of the buildings that used to be here was a tavern. It functioned in both an official and unofficial capacity. They used to call it the Mead Hall of Rath. It is now strictly a privately owned tavern called the Holy Flagon. It is in the stone building that used to be a temple of the Vindicator." "How ironic!" Celena laughed. "I'll wager the Avengene builders never saw that coming when they built it!" York chuckled. The lieutenant led the way up a steep wooden staircase that hugged the curved surface of the cylindrical tower house and led to its front door. Celena recalled the stairs used to go straight out from the house. No doubt, Nick had suggested that such an arrangement would make it easy for an enemy to approach the door straight on with a battering ram. The door was obviously on the second level to make it difficult to reach with a ram, but that assumed one built the outdoor staircase appropriately. It was lucky for the men of Daelrath that trolls were not prone to using battering rams. Once they went through the door, they entered a large parlor with a long dining table in it. There were two doors out of the room on the east side, one on the south side and two more on the west side in addition to the door through which they had entered on the north side of the room. Celena covered her mouth and stifled a sneeze. "Oh excuse me I have just the slightest allergy - there must be some pollen or dust that I am unused to." Celena attempted to cover for the results of the onslaught on her lust sense. The last person she had expected to feel a surge of lust from was a slightly plump but pretty brunette in her early thirties. The lady had reined it in quite abruptly, but the knee-jerk reaction had been unmistakable. Several others had added force to the tickle in her nose and not all of them were men. Celena suddenly realized what one of the quirks Baron Daelrath tolerated to obtain qualified people cheaply must be. "Good afternoon, Lieutenant York and Guardian Argyle. Goodness, who have we here?" the woman asked. "Lady Bronenkam, I would like to introduce Champion Medea, Vicar Fryske's new assistant healer, and a priestess-concubine of Virtusar in training," Lieutenant York said. "It's nice to meet you, Champion! No wonder the men have been gossiping about you! You are every bit as beautiful as they say - and so young! Goodness I thought the vicar was young. How old are you, sixteen?" "You are too kind Lady Bronenkam. I am young, but not quite that young. Thank you," Celena said graciously. "You're very welcome, Champion. Is it also true you have exactly two dresses to your name?" Lady Bronenkam asked. "Yes, just two black riding dresses," Celena confirmed. "Good then let me introduce you to our lunch guests today. I took the liberty of inviting a few of the people you are going to want to patronize to remedy your wardrobe issues. Let me introduce our regulars first. You already know Lieutenant York and Guardian Argyle. This is Nick Stonewright, our master builder, Jededia Blake, our master smith, and Ted Savannah, our master carpenter. This afternoon I have also invited Mia Sparrow our seamstress, Barry Grizwald, our furrier, and Valerie Bosk, one of our cobblers. She and her husband, Ned, also create leather goods besides shoes including armor, saddles, archery accessories and the like." Celena greeted and shook hands with the various guests and noted that Lady Bronenkam's daughter was not present. "What sort of clothing do you prefer Champion Media?" Lady Bronenkam asked. "I must be able to run, ride and fight in most anything I wear, but that doesn't mean it cannot be stylish and alluring in a warrior sort of way. Actually, it should be both of those. A concubine of Virtusar encourages and rewards skill at arms and valor in battle. My clothing needs to inspire the men while still providing a free range of motion and protection if it is armor." "Is that possible?" Lady Bronenkam asked. "I think we may be breaking some new ground here," Celena admitted. "Some concubines of Virtusar put their emphasis on allure and shirk their fighting skills, but Baron Daelrath clearly encouraged warrior-priestess over the sultrier, but less practical forms a concubine of Virtusar can take. I cannot argue that a priestess of Virtusar needs to be a warrior, especially here in troll country. We have to find a way to cut and modify military garb to make it alluring without sacrificing too much functionality. I was thinking one of the traditional symbols of Virtusar might make a good collar motif. "Do ye mean the large 'V' overlaid with a smaller upside-down 'V'?" Mia Sparrow asked. "Yes, that's the one. I like the stylized version, but it was originally a 'V' created with two swords. Their hilt guards formed the inverted 'V'. "Aye, Vicar Fryske said the same thing. I make 'is clothing too. The actual neck opening would come out more like a 'W, but that isn't practical. Instead I use a neck that starts out like a 'V,' but gets cut off square before coming to a point. I create the appearance of the 'W' and the stylized crossed sword motif using bands of colored fabric. I am sure I could show off a bit of your cleavage with a squared off 'V' neck," Mia smiled. "That sounds like a good start," Celena observed. The rest of the luncheon passed quickly. If Lady Bronenkam was a spy then at least she was committed to the appearance that she was a worshipper of Virtusar. She also played the part of a lady well and did her utmost to welcome a new member of the clergy to the keep. The absence of her child sent another message, but Celena said nothing about it. She preferred to keep things on an amiable level, particularly when it was obvious to her that Lady Bronenkam was attracted to women. It was a shame she would be leaving if she or her husband was found to be working for Lord Avengene.m Celena wondered if the lady had volunteered for duty as a spy in preference to the punishment of life in an Avengene convent for "unnatural" acts. Near the end of the meal, Sir Gehrheart came into the parlor through the door to the south. "Champion, could you join Vicar Fryske and the council of knights for a moment?" "Of course, Sir Gehrheart, It would be my pleasure," Celena said getting up and following the knight through the south door into to the next room. It was a large rectangular room with a long table. All of the knights, but her escort, Sir Gehrheart, and Sir Bronenkam sat at the table. Vicar Friske nodded to her as she came in, and she smiled at him and had a seat where Sir Gehrheart bid her. "As you saw when we presented the verdict this noon, Sir Bronenkam has put us in a difficult position because he knew the rules for the knights' council better than I did," Sir Gehrheart admitted. "Yes, I saw the way he outflanked you with his reasoning," Celena confirmed. "We have all worked with Sir Bronenkam for a long time," Sir Stallart said. "That is why several of us are sure he knew what he was doing. Sir Bronenkam is our battle master, he thinks strategically. He was well aware of the threat represented by the Avengenes, yet he conspired to let them into the keep. It's a miracle he did not succeed." "Thank goodness I don't usually need a lot of sleep." Celena sighed. "The entire keep is indebted to you, Lieutenant York and Guardian Argyle for preventing the entry of the Avengenes. Now we need your opinion. Do you think there is a chance that Enok can out-fight Sir Bronenkam?" Sir Stallart asked. "You saw him fight the Avengene scouts. He is skilled and extremely strong, but I do not know how good Sir Bronenkam is." "Sir Bronenkam is an excellent warrior. He is not a young man anymore, but don't let that fool you. He keeps up with his workouts," Sir Gehrheart warned. "I think I can beat him, but if he were a younger man that might not be the case. If you think Enok would have a shot at beating Sir Bronenkam, we would like you to talk with him. Since the soldier that was on watch with Enok once worked as a mercenary for Lord Avengene, we would prefer to rely on your translation rather than his to be certain our translator is working for us. "I would be glad to translate, as long as I can explain the situation and tell him the truth. The bout will be difficult for Enok. He could die." "We have no problem with the truth. We would prefer not to risk Enok. His night vision could prove to be a very potent weapon against the trolls, but he may be the only one with a chance to best Sir Bronenkam," Sir Gehrheart observed. "Unfortunately a knight like Sir Bronenkam is in the position to do grave damage to us every minute that he holds a position of power," Sir Stallart said. "The men trust him and are used to looking up to him. They would do anything for him, and that makes him doubly dangerous if he is no longer looking out for Baron Daelrath's best interests. He turned our strategy to remove him without having to wait for the Baron into a way to exonerate himself and return to full power. Now it appears that the only warrior with a chance to take him down also holds the last piece of evidence concerning the orcs being hired rather than chased into the Barony of Daelrath. Strategically Sir Bronenkam has caught us flat-footed." Celena nodded. "Indeed, we might as well go wake Enok up. If he decides to fight, I assume Sir Gehrheart will want to train him?" "Yes I will, but I would like to test him first. If he is not good enough to have a reasonable chance of winning, it would be foolish of us to risk him," Sir Gehrheart observed. "That makes sense, I'm done with lunch. Would you like to get him now? I am sure he is probably sleeping, but if he is going to be fighting, training may be more important than sleep." ------ They found Enok sleeping in the Daelrath Barracks near the gate. Celena noticed that his hair had been shaved. No doubt the vicar was treating him for lice. "Tunt, tunt - up, up," Celena whispered. Enok awakened and she motioned for him to get his gear and come with them. Once he was up and out of the barracks, Celena filled him in on the events of the early morning and the council meeting after lunch as well as what a trial by combat was. Celena explained that Sir Gehrheart had challenged Sir Bronenkam, but Sir Bronenkam had pointed out a rule about not weakening the council of knights to avoid facing Gehrheart in a trial by combat. Thus they were having trouble finding someone good enough to have a chance against Sir Bronenkam. She told him Sir Gehrheart would like to test him to see if he had enough skill. "Me test," Enok agreed. Sir Gehrheart gave Enok a practice sword and the two of them sparred for about twenty minutes. Celena was impressed at how well the orc did against the arms master, but it was obvious that Sir Gehrheart was the more skilled of the two. "What do you think, Sir Gehrheart?" Celena asked. "He is not a conventional fighter by human standards, but I think he has the best shot of anyone allowed to fight Sir Bronenkam. Ask him if he will do it. It is going to be dangerous. He could die, but he could also win." "Enok Culach Sir Bronenkam?" Celena asked. "Mal b'talen?" Celena grinned. "Like any good mercenary, Enok wants to know what he gets if he wins." Sir Gehrheart smiled. "That's fair enough. The knights are willing to wager one hundred gold pieces on him. If he wins, we will take the original hundred back, but he can have all of the rest of the winnings the wager brings in. I suspect Sir Bronenkam will bet heavily on himself. He will expect to win, and if he loses he will not be alive to enjoy the money. His wife and daughter may wind up paupers, but I doubt he will even consider what would happen if he lost. Depending on what the odds wind up being, Enok could win anywhere from a hundred gold to five hundred gold. Also if he has any money, he can bet on himself. Celena translated. "Nnn Enok l'bot Hchil?" "Enok wants to be promoted to sergeant if he wins as well." Sir Gehrheart thought a moment. "Tell him that in order to be a sergeant, any warrior of Daelrath has to know how to speak common fairly fluently, do basic arithmetic, and read at a basic level. I would be willing to spend an hour per day, two or three days a week trying to teach him those skills until he learns them, and if he does he will have my recommendation for the first sergeant spot that opens up. Obviously if he beats a knight, I will have no reservations about his combat ability. I am reasonably sure I can get Sir Coshus and Sir Stallart to agree to add their recommendations for sergeant as well, and maybe one or both of them will throw in some training time for him too. I can check with them if he would like." Celena translated. She emphasized that if Enok mastered the required skills, he would be a real sergeant who would command a squad, not a sergeant in name and pay only. She added that she would help Sir Gehrheart teach him when she had time, especially at first when he was learning more of the basics of the common tongue. "Enok l'bot Sergeant," Enok countered. "He wants to be paid as a sergeant if he wins," Celena said. Sir Gehrheart shook his head. "Soldiers are paid by the barony, and the barony will not pay him as a sergeant until he is one, but I'll tell you what we can do. I will hit the knights up for an additional ten gold added to our bet on Enok's behalf. We will take a hundred ten back, but the extra winnings should make up for what he would have made had we paid him as a sergeant, assuming he doesn't take too long to learn the skills." Celena told Enok the new deal, but he countered asking that a hundred and twenty-five be bet on him. "If he will go for a hundred twenty, he has a deal, even if I have to cough up the extra ten myself." Enok shook his head. "I'll put up the final five," Celena said. Enok nodded. "Chantral Celena make good. Enok get four day no two in seven learning and me kill Sir Bronenkam, me learn, me sergeant?" Enok asked. "Gehrheart raised an eyebrow. Okay we bet a hundred and twenty on you and take back the original. Celena throws in five and takes the original back. That we can do. Training you four days a week could be tough. I can manage two. I will just have to talk one or two of the other knights or the vicar into helping, but Yes I will make that happen even if I have to do all four days myself some weeks," Sir Gehrheart affirmed. "Enok Culach Sir Bronenkam! Enok fight!" Sir Gehrheart smiled. "Good. Celena, will you come with me to the blacksmith. I want to see what the smith can do in the few hours we have to enhance the protection of Enok's chain mail. I am sure Sir Bronenkam will be wearing his best suit of plate armor." Celena nodded. After they stopped at the smithy, and Enok and Sir Gehrheart put their heads together to request various amendments to Enok's armor, Celena spent most of the day watching Sir Gehrheart train Enok for the trial against Bronenkam. While she watched she alternated between working on her Vitality of Virtusar spell, reading her physiology book, checking sums for Sir Stallart and translating for Sir Gehrheart while he trained Enok. They quit about an hour and a half before the bout so that Enok could take a nap. Celena gave Sir Gehrheart five gold pieces for Enok's bet and bet an additional five gold on Enok as well. The orc himself gave the knight considerably more. She realized that Enok's wealth must have been due to his taking the orc chief's money just after the road battle. He probably had most of his tribe's treasury on him. Celena promised to watch Enok for the knights, and she did not let the orc out of her sight while he was sleeping. A quarter hour before Sir Gehrheart was due to arrive to wake the orc, Celena was preparing to attempt to cast her first clerical spell, The Vitality of Virtusar, on Enok as he slept, over and over if necessary. Yet she was reluctant. In some ways she felt she was betraying Mortaebius who, for all his creepiness, was an excellent patron. There was also Amorra to consider. She and Mortaebius had apparently conspired to give Celena the powers of a lust spirt. Both gods were part of her in a very real sense. Yet she had to admit she was enjoying masquerading as a lay priestess of Virtusar and it was strategically imperative that she not be exposed as a fraud. Celena closed her eyes and placed her left hand on her forehead and cupped her right hand over her right breast as she concentrated on the energies of Mortaebius and Ammora and began to pray. "Beloved Patron and Patroness, Mortaebius and Amorra, you are both part of me, and I feel that Virtusar stands with you. I do not know if it is possible, but if I can serve all of you in your quest to vanquish the Vindicator, then I would like to do so. Mortaebius and Amorra, I do not wish to seem ungrateful for your gifts or your help, because I am grateful every day, but I realize from the study of magic that a channel is usually a very personal thing, and for one person to have a strong connection to more than one god or goddess is nearly impossible. Yet I already have a strong connection to both of you, Lord of Death, and Lady of Life and love. My connection to Virtusar is much more delicate. If channeling all three of my patrons can be done, then perhaps the first I should try to channel is Virtusar, for his connection to me is currently the least substantial. As the first to be channeled, he too would forge a concrete connection. I know that my knowledge of the gods is limited, but I ask that if you wish me to serve all of you as one in your opposition to the Vindicator, then please guide me to the best course of thought and action." Celena was silent a moment, but felt only a sense of esteem from her patrons. She decided to go ahead and attempt the spell from Virtusar for real rather than just doing the verbal and somatic components in order to imitate a priestess of Virtusar. The first few castings were laughable, but on the third casting she raised an eyebrow because she thought that she had actually felt some shred of the presence of the god of war. The next time she attempted to cast the spell she was sure she could feel a masculine presence, but it seemed just out of reach. She couldn't resist trying to tug at the masculine presence with the power of her lust. Suddenly she gasped, she felt a powerful presence, but it was not the god of war. It was unmistakably Mortaebius. She completed the spell more because of all of the repetitious practice than for any reason that made sense. Because Mortaebius did not use the same invocations as Virtusar, she was sure the spell could not have amounted to anything, but she had felt the slightest flow of magical power and knew that must mean she had achieved something. She just had no idea what. In addition to the flow of power through her, she saw that Enok's eyes started to jerk back and forth beneath their lids. She was worried that she might have drained a bit of vitality rather than bestowing it, and she felt a little guilty. Thus she quickly followed up by casting her Bestow Vitality Cantrip on Enok no less than four times. As she released the final casting his eyes opened up. "Mal chont - what magic?" he asked with astonishment. "Chontahaha," Celena whispered. "Virtusar culahleeaha Enok." Celena told Enok it was secret magic and that Virtusar was temporarily his secret ally. "Me dream Virtusar!" Enok exclaimed as he stood. At that moment Sir Gehrheart arrived and strode into the infirmary room where Celena had bid Enok sleep. "If you dreamed of the god of war that is an excellent sign, and timely, because you need to armor up for the trial!" Sir Gehrheart exclaimed before turning his attention to Celena. "Champion Medea, if I am correct that you had something to do with Enok's dream then I commend you. Unlike other magic, a vision of Virtusar is clearly in accordance with the rules. Any ally, including a god, is allowed to give strategic advice to a combatant before a trial." "You have deduced my strategy correctly, Sir Gehrheart," Celena affirmed. "Excellent!" Sir Gehrheart exclaimed before turning his attention back to the orc. "Enok, the betting odds on you are five to one. Sir Bronenkam bet as heavily as I had suspected. I am guessing he wants to fleece the men of Bristol who he believes put up the lion's share of the bets against him. If you are victorious, you will win a considerable sum!" "Good luck Enok, and remember, kung nbar su'unt!" Celena reminded the orc that stupidity would get him killed. "Me know. Sir Bronenkam dunt glukn snikikik!" "You got it; he will try to trick you into getting yourself killed!" Celena affirmed. "That is right; he can be tricky, but he is also a powerful warrior who is simply good at swinging a sword. He is also used to fighting trolls - creatures both stronger and heavier than he is. Be careful of his swinging patterns. He can launch a blow and come back with another sooner than you think. Watch your head. He routinely decapitates trolls. He is also light on his feet. He is skilled at dodging and parrying troll attacks, and trolls wear little or no armor and strike quickly. Also, be careful not to let him ensnare you with feints and openings that are too good to be true. If he can, Sir Bronenkam will make you look like a fool in front of the crowd." Celena translated, adding that it was not important how he looked to the crowd as long as he stayed alive. She then followed Enok and Sir Gehrheart to the smith's where Sir Gehrheart very carefully inspected all of the work the armorer had done. The armorer had constructed a face and eye guard for Enok's helmet and had reinforced the nasal and forehead protection to help prevent bleeding wounds that might otherwise blind the orc. He had also added a neck plate, some plates atop the shoulders and an upper chest plate in an attempt to make the ifliction of the most telling of wounds that much more difficult for the knight Enok would face. In addition, Sir Gehrheart had donated a heavy pair of gauntlets as Enok had requested for extra protection for his hands and forearms. While the knight spoke with the armorer, Celena excused herself to use the chamber pot. She spent most of her time in the privy casting Life Vision, First Sight, Transient Shield, Ghostly Whispers and her Floating Dagger telekinesis spell. She could barely hear the smith speaking to Sir Gehrheart as she worked her magic. "I did just what you told me and did the kind of work I would do if I were workin' for Virtusar because this has got to be a fair trial by combat or it won't mean nothin'!" After a rather exhaustive inspection during which Celena returned to his side, Sir Gehrheart nodded. "Good work Jededia. I don't want Sir Bronenkam to take this battle lightly or to make a joke out of a process sacred to Virtusar. You did this work right and that's all I can ask for." "It sure don't hurt that you have an armor collection, Sir Gehrheart. I've seen plenty o' things I might'nt 'ave otherwise. I had ta wing it a little on reinforcin' the boots like th' orc wanted. The toe is heavy enough to be a weapon and I put flattened U-shaped bars on up the foot and camouflaged it with some bands o' metal over the leather and bars. Sir Bronenkam can jump up and down on Enok's feet and it won't hurt him. The boots are heavy, though, how do they feel?" "Boots good. Me like heavy," Enok said. After a few adjustments, both Enok and Sir Gehrheart were satisfied with Enok's armor. Celena noted that Enok seemed to have stuffed something into the top of his helmet before putting it on. Perhaps he was making up for a lack of pockets. "There, that's got it, Jed. I appreciate your work. I hope you will be there to see the verdict of Virtusar." "I wouldn't miss it! Whoever wins, it's bound to be a great bout! Sir Bronenkam has years o' skill and a wily mind, but Enok's got orc strength, plus youth, and endurance on his side. I expect Sir Bronenkam will be wearing plate armor, otherwise I'd recommend kicking with those reinforced boots and punching with those heavy gauntlets! Anyhow you can bet I'll be there!" ------- Celena followed Enok and Sir Gehrheart to an area behind the stone stage at the western edge of the gate courtyard. Sir Gehrheart told Celena to tell Enok what the vicar said to the crowd and to send Enok up when the vicar called for him. At that time Celena was to sit down in the chair next to Sir Gehrheart behind the ropes. The knight then walked up onto the stage. The other knights sat at three of the four corners past the ropes that had been added, but still on stage. Between the knights on each of the two shorter sides of the rectangle were chairs reserved for the judge: Vicar Fryske, and Celena, who served as the medic in case one of the combatants should yield. Sir Bronenkam stood in the middle of the north side of the rectangular stage, just across the ropes from where Sir Coshus and Sir Stallart sat. Sir Gehrheart stood before the crowd. "Shortly we shall begin Sir Bronenkam's trial by combat! The crowd cheered. "In case anyone does not know the rules let me refresh your memory. If either combatant falls from the stage, you will move away from that person. If I see a new wound on either combatant, inflicted by a member of the crowd, the bout is null, and the culprit will receive some very serious and long-winded punishment! We have fenced the stage with ropes to help prevent falls into the crowd, but nothing is guaranteed in a real battle! No poisons, spells, hidden weapons or other forms of cheating shall be tolerated during this trial! If anyone so much as touches the stage, I have this little smooth-balled flail and I am going to make you wish you hadn't touched it! If you get out of hand, and come up on stage, one of the knights will see that you will regret it if you live to tell about it! This is a serious rite! Mind your manners! "Our first order of business is to select a weapon and shield. Any off-hand weapon can be substituted for a shield and the use of any weapon is optional. Each combatant gets one selection, but if the first selects a main weapon, the other must select a shield or offhand weapon. Both combatants will be outfitted with the complete set including their own and their opponent's selection! In the event someone is disarmed, neither combatant is to throw a weapon into the crowd! We have lined the edge of the stage beyond the ropes with stone blocks so that a kicked weapon will not be likely to leave the stage. If one does fall off the stage, bring it back and hand it to me! "I will now toss this shield into the air with a good bit of spin. Sir Bronenkam, call strap or heraldry!" "Strap!" Bronenkam called out Strap it is! Sir Gehrheart confirmed as the shield landed with its straps upwards. The crowd applauded. "Name your weapon!" "I choose the hand and a half sword!" Sir Bronenkam bellowed to the applause of the crowd. Sir Gehrheart glanced behind the stage and saw that Enok had raised his flail. "Our challenger chooses horseman's flail! I now yield the floor to Vicar Fryske," Sir Gehrheart announced. "Thank you, Sir Gehrheart," Vicar Fryske said in a loud voice. "Let us pray to our god. Mighty Virtusar, Sir Bronenkam stands before you, ready to test his mettle in your mighty forge, ready so that you may shed light upon his innocence or his guilt. We ask only that you show us with whom your favor lies!" The crowd applauded heartily. Celena stood by while Lieutenant York gave Enok a hand and a half sword that looked like Sir Stallart's and took Enok's broadsword. Sir Stallart collected a horseman's flail handed to him by one of the sergeants and gave it to Sir Bronenkam who slipped it into his belt. Since each combatant made two weapon choices long before the trial, the smith had modified the flail to include the same customizations as Enok's. It had a hilt guard near the top of the handle and a point at the bottom end of the handle. A length of iron chain connected the single, spiked iron ball to the handle. "I now call our challenger who has graciously volunteered to test Sir Bronenkam's mettle! From the mountain fastness north of Avengene, I bring you Enok, orc mercenary and recent hire to our night shift!" Men in the crowd booed while Enok walked up the stairway behind the stage and climbed between the ropes. At the same time Celena skirted around the perimeter of the stage on the outside of the ropes until she got to her seat and sat down. *********************** "The bout begins when this red handkerchief strikes the stone! Vicar Fryske shouted as he threw the balled handkerchief up as high as he could before hastening to his seat. "An orc? I thought this was supposed to be a challenge!" Sir Bronenkam laughed. Much of the crowd laughed with the knight. Enok was wielding Sir Stallart's hand and a half sword in his meaty right hand as if it were a broadsword. In his left hand, he clutched the handle of his flail. He had already started the single flail ball spinning on its chain. Sir Bronenkam was using his hand and a half sword two-handed much as he might have against trolls. He was keeping his flail as a backup weapon. Just as Sir Gehrheart had suspected, Sir Bronenkam was wearing full plate armor. His helmet was lighter than a jousting helm and it had a visor and offered a better field of vision. By the time the handkerchief hit the ground, the two combatants had already closed on one another. Celena grimaced as she saw Enok growl and launch a forceful frontal assault. Sir Bronenkam held his sword at the ready and took a step forward. Suddenly Enok changed his tactic and begun to circle. "What's the matter? Afraid of a real man!?" Sir Bronenkam taunted. The crowd laughed. Celena did not yet have a good feel for what the orc's strategy might be, but she noted the sudden change from an aggressive stance to a wary one just as she also noticed that the sun was low in the western sky and she could see Enok was quite obviously squinting when he looked in that direction. Sensitive night vision could be a liability in bright light. Sir Bronenkam circled until the position of the sun forced Enok to squint, and then he feinted left. While Enok attempted to block the blow that never came, Sir Bronenkam brought his blade up above his head where the sun rendered it invisible to Enok and then swung it downwards with both hands. Enok brought his sword up to parry the unseen attack at the last second. The power of the blow brought him to his knees and forced his own sword to crease his helmet when his sword arm was not quite able to stay its force. Celena inhaled involuntarily. Before the start of the bout, she had been feeling a little guilty about cheating by filling Enok with vitality in an effort to compensate for Sir Bronenkam's superior skill. Now she felt that what she had done might have given Enok a fighting chance. While watching Sir Bronenkam's mighty blow drive Enok to his knees, Celena nearly missed the response of Enok's off hand. As the blow drove him downward, the orc sent the flail ball up in an arc that started from behind him and swung up high beside him. He then followed through with a rapid yet powerful whip of his arm and wrist. He swung the flail down so hard that she could see the mail over the muscles of his left arm bulge with the effort. The flail ball struck Sir Bronenkam's right boot, just above and partly behind the reinforcing plate that protected his toes. Since there was a border one stone block high around the stage, many in the crowd were probably unsure if Enok had hit anything with the flail. Yet Celena noted that Enok's mighty blow had collapsed the reinforcing plate of Bronenkam's boot and put a spike right through it into the base of one of the knight's first three toes where its impact had been centered. She could see blood oozing from a hole where the spike of the heavy flail ball had actually pierced the plate armor, but she estimated that the damage from the blunt impact was actually more serious than the damage from the short spike. There was no doubt in her mind that several toes on Bronenkam's right foot were broken at their first joints. After the blow that nearly floored him, Enok got his feet under him with the aid of his flail handle and pushed up from the pave. He threw Sir Bronenkam's sword off with a heave of his own sword and jumped backwards. Unfortunately, the orc's own flail ball smacked him in the faceplate as he did so. The blow could not have hurt him since there was no swing behind it, but it was embarrassing and gave the crowd a good laugh as the combatants broke off. "Careful there or you might win the bout for me!" Sir Bronenkam taunted. Enok staggered backwards and reeled a bit, certainly not from the comical flail strike, but from the force of Sir Bronenkam's half-parried blow that had transferred through the orc's parrying sword to his helmet. The force had compromised the orc's balance and wits. Celena realized that the orc had paid a price for his attack on Bronenkam's right foot. Whether it had been a planned sacrifice or a spontaneous swing, she could not tell. Enok was just bringing his sword up and still reeling when Sir Bronenkam jumped in with a swift swing of his blade, followed by another and another in an all-out attack that might have signified pure anger fueled by the toe wound were the blows not delivered with such skill and precision. Enok parried and staggered backwards as each blow threatened to decapitate him. Selena could see the orc's mighty muscles flexing beneath his mail to counter the knight's blows, but the orc's considerable strength was not always enough. He sustained a minor crease to the plate reinforcing the chainmail over his left shoulder, and a few damaged chain mail links on the outside of his upper right arm before he recovered his wits and his staggering modulated into jumping and dodging. Celena could see that Sir Bronenkam found it increasingly difficult to dance the same dance as the orc. She guessed it was because the foot injury caused more pain with every step. The knight's pain showed in the way he moved. He favored his damaged toes by keeping his weight on his left foot and right heel. Nevertheless, the orc sometimes only barely managed to parry the knight's powerful two-handed blows with his sword or flail, but his two-weapon strategy allowed him to block blows that came after a successful feint or from the use of a novel swing pattern far more effectively than would have been possible if Enok were using a single weapon. A man with lesser strength would surely have buckled under the force of the knight's blows, but Enok managed to hold his own in spite of his initial bout with dizziness. Sir Bronenkam drove forward and even tried a few low kicks interspersed with his swings, but Enok kept his knees bent and his legs moving. Those kicks that he was unable to dodge outright glanced off or stopped dead as the orc's legs seemed to have the strength of tree trunks. When Sir Bronenkam tried to sweep Enok's legs out from under him, he staggered the orc, but Bronenkam's wounded foot made it difficult for the knight to produce enough strength and leverage to upset the orc's balance. Celena noted that the knight always stood on his left foot and kicked with the edge of the wounded right foot despite the pain on impact. When he aimed higher and attempted to disable Enok's knee, the orc parried the knight's simultaneous sword blow with his sword and dropped into a crouch catching Bronenkam's foot on his knee for just a second while he slammed the pointed butt of his flail into the knee of Sir Bronenkam's kicking right leg. The deep dent he sustained to the plate armor covering his knee taught the knight such attempts would come at a cost to his already compromised right leg. As the bout continued, Enok managed to stay alive by constantly giving ground. At times, he half spun from the force of parrying the knight's blows. As the bout continued, he shifted his strategy towards more dodging and parries that redirected rather than stopped the knight's brutal sword. The increased movement aggravated Sir Bronenkam's wounded foot while giving the orc a better sense of the knight's fighting style. Enok was doing his best not to overextend himself or fall into any traps posed by feints and openings the knight offered that looked too tempting to be real. Nevertheless, Celena easily counted five instances where Enok avoided a severe wound by the shear speed of his reflexes and his use of two weapons. The worst of these blows left a trail of broken chain links and a long, light flesh wound down the left side of Enok's back. Sir Bronenkam was obviously the better swordsman. He used feints and clever swing patterns to out-maneuver the orc in spite of his ailing foot, but he was an older man and the orc was giving him quite a workout. Sir Bronenkam's blows came one after another, so fast that Enok had no time to keep his flail ball spinning as the handle was in constant use to parry or help parry blow after powerful blow. Celena noted that Sir Bronenkam aimed nearly all of his blows at the orc's head or neck, no doubt the result of the knight's years of fighting trolls with the intent to behead. Were it not for the flail wound that hobbled the knight, Enok might have lost the fight in the first few minutes. Instead, he made retreat into an art form. "Cowardly orc, come back here and fight like a man!" Sir Bronenkam bellowed in frustration. The knight charged, feinted and abruptly changed the direction of his swing. Enok caught the blade on the hilt guard of his flail less than a foot away from his neck. The orc's muscles bulged with the effort of slowing the blow. In spite of his last-second parry, the blade pushed his arm back and rang against the plate the armorer had added to protect his neck. When he had spent the momentum his blow, the knight tried to draw the sword towards his body in a sawing motion to make the most of the small slot he had cut in the orc's neck armor, but Enok pushed out with his flail and jumped backwards before more than a few drops of his blood were spilt. "You think cowardice is going to win this bout for you? Think again!" Sir Bronenkam bellowed. Celena suspected the knight was trying to incite the orc to anger, the better to lure him into a trap, but all he got was the jeering sympathy of the crowd and more pain from his foot as the orc backpedaled and jumped one way and then another. Even though less skilled than the knight, the orc was far more agile due to his lighter armor and unwounded feet. His quick reflexes, abundant strength and iron endurance were not making him easy to catch. Sir Bronenkam pushed Enok nearly all the way to the ropes near Sir Stallart. "One of us will have an orc in his lap shortly. I suggest we stand up," Sir Coshus warned. "Nay, I trust Enok will veer off before he gets caught against the ropes. Look, he is already doing it," Sir Stallart observed. "Sir Bronenkam is obviously the finer swordsman, but Enok's no idiot orc." As the orc changed his direction from north to west, the knight attempted a powerful blow aimed at the orc's belly rather than the now customary head or neck. Enok only prevented what would have been a disemboweling swing by half jumping, half falling backwards and kicking Sir Bronenkam's sword upwards as he did. He lost quite a few links from the chainmail covering his stomach, but the sundered armor hardly slowed Sir Bronenkam's powerful blow. The knight redirected his swing and came back in for another blow, but the orc rolled head over heels and then back up onto his feet and the knight was only able to score a glancing blow that threw sparks off the reinforcing steel supporting Enok's boot before his roll took it out of the knight's reach. Once the orc regained his feet, he had just enough time to backpedal from an angry swing meant to make use of the opening in his mail to slice open his belly. Celena grimaced, but relaxed when Enok proved to be just a little better at backpedaling than the knight had hoped and the swing missed by a fraction of an inch. Once Sir Bronenkam's blade had passed his belly, Enok made good use of his own sword. He had been holding it high due to the former necessity of having to protect his head and neck, thus it was in the perfect position for an attack. Before Sir Bronenkam could recover from the momentum of his angry swing, Enok launched a savage blow at the only target near enough - the back of Sir Bronenkam's upper right arm. The end of the orc's sword struck solidly, opened the plate armor and sunk into the knight's muscle before he was able to spin away. After spinning, the knight took only a single step backwards before his sword was up and ready for a counterstrike. This time Celena knew what was coming. Sir Bronenkam used his pain to generate anger and began to launch a formidable onslaught, just as he had after Enok had pounded his foot. Once again, Enok gave ground and made the knight work his bad foot for a chance to hit. Each time Sir Bronenkam struck, the orc parried strongly, deflecting or even pushing the knight's sword back at him, thus jarring Sir Bronenkam's wounded arm. For a moment, Celena thought Enok had been holding back during the first part of the battle, but then she flexed her upper arm and felt the back of it. Enok had fought defensively, but not because he was frightened or cowardly. He had been waiting for an opening, and when the knight acted out of frustration and swung too hard at Enok's belly, the cunning orc had used it against him. The knight had exposed the muscle he needed most to put power into his blows, and Enok had wounded it. Sir Bronenkam's renewed onslaught now lacked its former speed and might. The orc was playing the long game. Rather than trying to decapitate Sir Bronenkam in an instant, he was taking the knight apart piece by piece. The orc had managed to score only two hits, but one limited the knight's agility and the other limited his power. Since Enok was now backpedaling towards the south, Sir Bronenkam gutted through the pain and moved rapidly south along the western edge of the platform opposite the crowd in order to force the shiftless orc to look into the sun once again. When he had attained the right angle, the knight charged forward and attempted another overhead blow against the blinded orc. This time Enok squinted and looked downwards at the knight's feet as he raised and crossed his weapons and sprinted towards the knight while Bronenkam was still in mid-swing. Celena could not help laughing as the two combatants collided and Sir Bronenkam bounced off the orc's chest, flew nearly a dozen feet and landed flat on his back like a silver turtle. The orc was no fool to fall for the same move twice. The knight tried to roll to his feet rapidly in spite of his fall, but he could not roll head over heels in full plate armor. Instead he had to turn over on his belly and try to get to his feet before the orc reached him, but Enok was already in motion and heading in the same direction as Bronenkam had been flying. Enok stuck his flail in his belt as he moved and wielded his sword two-handed. Bronenkam had one knee under him when the orc struck at the only target available to him. Enok's blade hit with such force that he opened Sir Bronenkam's left greave and did devastating damage to the Bronenkam's right ankle joint before the knight could get both feet under him. Now no matter where he put his weight, walking on his right foot would be excruciating. "Ankle-biter!" Sir Bronenkam roared as he regained his footing. Why can't you strike like a man?" The crowd jeered, but Celena could tell that they all knew the score. It was likely that Sir Bronenkam's anklebone was shattered and the only thing keeping his leg together was the skin, muscle and armor not severed by the orc's blow. The wound bled profusely and forced the knight to put nearly all of his weight on his unwounded left foot. Enok let the knight limp forward armed with his anger, but this time it was not enough. Even without being able to see the knight's face, Celena could tell that every step sent excruciating agony up the knight's spine while blood streamed from his ruined ankle. After just three steps, the knight stopped moving and held his sword at the ready. Enok circled the knight just out of reach of his opponent's blade, his flail ball orbiting its handle as the orc set it spinning with increasing velocity. Suddenly the knight took a single step and lunged at Enok's belly, but Enok parried the blow downwards with his sword while swinging his flail ball down at the knight's head. The mighty iron ball hit so hard it might have crushed Bronnenkam's skull in spite of his helmet, but he bobbed his head backwards converting a blow that might have brained him into one that hammered the knight's visor right off his helmet. It bounced off the stone stage and out into the crowd where one of the spectators caught it. Celena glanced at Sir Gehrheart. He was smiling grimly and he gave her a single subtle nod. "Ankle biting swine!" Sir Bronenkam snarled." "Virtusar no dumb! He know you try steal Daelrath for da Vindicator! He know da strategy you fall for, stupid knight!" Steel rang on steel as Sir Bronenkam attempted to score a hit while the orc spoke, but Enok had seen enough of the knight's temper to know what was coming. In spite of the knight's pain-fueled anger, the orc temporarily shut the knight down by coming forward with a two-fisted parry that stopped the knight's blade over their heads and sent his flail ball over Sir Bronenkam's shoulder while the orc continued speaking right into Sir Bronnenkam's face. "Enok make mistake, he help Avengene! Now orc gods hate nnn hate Enok! Virtusar put Enok on trial too! Enok must fight smart, nnn show Sir Bronenkam is knight of da Bindicator!" Sir Bronenkam's anger overwhelmed his pain. He swung his sword back and away from Enok's crossed weapons. Obviously he planned to score a sword blow on the orc, and he surely might have split the orc's skull or severed his neck had Enok not reacted instantly as Sir Bronenkam began to extricate his blade. The orc pulled his left fist back and slammed it forward into Sir Bronnenkam's face with the force of a hammer. The knight reeled. Whatever blow he had planned evaporated as he struggled just to collect his wits, keep his footing and occupy the orc's blade with some sort of blow. Enok parried the knight's brainless half-blow with his sword. Simultaneously, he pulled his left arm back, flicking his flail ball behind him and then launching it forward with a single staccato flick of his thick wrist. The ball brutally bounced off the knight's exposed face striking him on the forehead just above the bridge of the nose. Stunned and reeling, another blow from the witless knight's sword glanced off Enok's pauldron as the orc bobbed his head away while simultaneously pounding his flail ball back into the knight's face with a second more powerful snap of his mighty wrist and forearm. Celena saw the bones of the front of Bronenkam's skull give way to the second blow. The knight might have raised his blade again had Enok's flail ball not utterly brained him. His precarious one-legged balance began to falter. Enok dropped his flail, jumped to the knight's left flank and swung his sword with the full strength of both arms. Sir Bronenkam's gorget rang as the orc's heavy sword slammed into the knight's neck and sent his head flying. The crowd gasped, their open-mouthed faces moving as they traced the arc of Sir Bronenkam's head through the evening air. Vicar Fryske stood with amazement. The knight's head struck the stone stage and rolled to a stop at the Vicar's feet. He bent over, picked up the head, turned it and then presented it with its flail-crushed nose and forehead to the crowd. The Bristol garrison and a few others cheered mightily while the balance of the crowd stared and fought to regain their lost breath. "The faceless warrior has no honor!" Vicar Fryske shouted as he showed the head to the crowd. Virtusar has rendered his judgment! Sir Bronenkam was guilty of selling out to Lord Avengene and the Vindicator! We have reason to believe that Lord Avengene clandestinely hired orc mercenaries to kill Baron Daelrath as he drew close to the keep on his journey home from Bristol. Avengene soldiers were poised to sweep in and 'rescue' Lady Daelrath after her father's death. This was likely in order to force her to marry an Avengene. Thus, Lord Avengene planned to steal the barony of Daelrath in one treacherous stroke! "The Dealraths were able to slip past the would-be rescuers with the added help of Champion Medea and Enok the orc. Enok agreed to help because he was appalled that his mercenary tribe had been unwittingly working for Lord Avengene, the archenemy of the orcs. Our Baron now hangs onto life by a thread. If Bronenkam had succeeded in letting the Avengene soldiers into the keep, Lady Daelrath would be in their clutches and this barony would be forfeit. I trust Mortaebius will judge Sir Bronenkam's lack of honor with an equal lack of mercy!" "You can count on that!" Guardian Argyle shouted from the crowd. ------- This ends, Trial by Enok, chapter 74 of The Chronicles of Rapina. The story continues in chapter 75 Trolling.