the Leathermines

Back to Chapter 60

Laun was being led around the keep, lighting all the lamps and candles from her candle.  The night was coming and it was time to chase the darkness away.  She knew the phrase that she had heard Lady Hellon and Lord Vami say for years and said it for each flame she made.

“May the light bring you through the dark.”

Simple, but after saying it over one hundred times, and the response mumbled at her each time, it got old very easily.  Laun blessed the memory of her Lord and Lady as she said the blessing again and heard most of the response, again.

“The darkness will not overcome.”

Laun was draped in a loose set of tunics, a wool cloak over it when she was outside.  She knew that she was going to be dressed for the actual feast in something else.  She wanted to have freedom of movement while walking around the keep.  The red dress was heavy and would have been warm, but restrictive.

The last stop was the Great Hall as two bundles were presented to her and she lit both with the same candle. They were taken to the cold but set fireplaces by passing from hand to hand from the center.  The bundles were placed under the logs and the flames spread, lighting and heating the room.

Laun smiled and nodded at people around her.  There was going to be a little time before the food was to be served.  She saw that Orgia was trying to catch her eye.

Orgia had several of her staff behind her, each carrying something.  Laun tried to look bland and knew she was supposed to look surprised next.  The chatelaine said, a little loudly, “Lady Laun, may I help you dress for the feast?”

As if part of a skit, Laun said, also a little loudly, “Why yes, Orgia, thank you.  You know I was going to wear the red dress.”

Orgia smiled and even to Laun, it felt a little forced as she said, “Why, yes, Lady, I did know that.  I also know that it is not just First Feast.”

Laun felt a tingle in her belly, a true anticipation.  “Oh, please.  It’s just First Feast.”

Orgia motioned forward the staff around her and Laun felt a blush start as each of them pulled back the cloth covering what they were carrying.  “Lady, we are happy that you have made it to your eighteenth birthday and wish to present to you these tokens of our appreciation.”

Laun had been preparing something to say when she had first heard of their efforts.  She had hoped that she would get something, a token as Orgia had called it.  She was overwhelmed with what was being presented, and she could tell that the people around her that had not known about it were as amazed as she was.

Lady Laun was able to get out a small, “Thank you.”  There were people clapping and she had hands on her shoulders to congratulate her.

Orgia held up a hand and said over the noise, “We shall bring our Lady back down for feast.”  She took Laun’s arm and they walked out of the Great Hall.

“For someone who doesn’t like clothing, I seem to be collecting quite a bit.”

“We saw a need that you had, and the trade you did for the bale of sable and fox was perfect.”

Laun shook her head.  “I was hoping that it would be used for the household.  Not that I don’t like it...”  Laun glanced over her shoulder to the several furred items she saw in the hands of Orgia’s staff members.

“Don’t worry.  There was enough to remake several of the deep winter cloaks, and mittens.”  Orgia was still proud that Laun tried to put he household before herself for most matters.  She had a set of good examples in Lord Vami and Lady Hellon.

The red dress and accouterments were being set on the bed as Laun and her escort came into the tower room.  The door was left open as the layers she had on were taken from her, stripped to nothing.  The air was cold and Laun felt a little shiver start, but the floor was warm and she reveled in the little chill as the people moved the air around her.  And then, the layers started to go back on.

There was a silk shift that went on first.  Laun was amazed that Orgia had it in stock.  Then a remake of the long armored undertunic with the plates of metal weighing it down.  And the boiled leather corset with changes, including an easier way for Laun to get into it herself.  And then another layer over that which was light, but trimmed in some of the fur along the edges of the sleeves and cleavage.

The red velvet dress with the warnetting sewn into it was lowered down onto her, adding another stones’ worth of weight, but feeling comfortable as it was belted in and was supported by the boiled leather underneath.  Laun sat on the edge of the bed as her boots were put on her and then some of the new items she saw were strapped to her shins.

There was banded metal encased in the fur trimmed greaves that stiffened them as they wrapped warmth around her knees.  And then there were the arm braces, metal and boiled leather under the broadcloth and fur that supported her wrists and covered the backs of her hands.  The red fur covered gorget at her neck was not like the full armor pieces she had seen on the protectors as they practiced in full armor, but it went down over the cleavage exposed by the red dress and up to where the red fox tickled her chin.

Laun sat on the edge of the bed, looking at and feeling the fur around her hands and neck.  It was warm and soft and she felt loved.  She adjusted the strap around her middle finger for the fur cover on the brace and saw that there was a gold fleck through the black fur.  She looked closer and saw gold tracing through the fur, a subtle flame design like the design on the dress.

Orgia had one last piece in her hand.  It was a half-helm with fur draping from it’s crown.  And when Laun thought crown, she saw the small points along the front and was confused.  Orgia would not say anything when Laun asked about those.

Laun came back into the Great Hall dressed and coifed and feeling very good about everything.  The helmet was propped against one hip as she walked, her other hand on her Lord’s sword on the other.  She was a sight in the red velvet and fox and sable.  Her hair was braided and finished with red and gold ribbons through her brown hair.  There was no need for cosmetics as her face glowed and was bright as she smiled at everyone.

Others had also dressed for the First Feast.  There were bright colors and jewelry and glints of finery that were usually put away.  The mass of people moved around, tankards already in their hands, smiles on their faces and music was in the air.  Lanterns and candles and torches lit the Great Hall as if it were midsummer day on the Hill.  The smell from the kitchens was a bit maddening.

Dreng came in with his own entourage, Bett on his arm and dressed as a King’s consort should.  Her eyes were on him and his eyes were on Laun as they came in, a slight rise in the noise as a small applause washed through the room.

Laun and Dreng approached each other and held hands.  They then gave each other a full warriors grip, palm to elbow and pulled each other in to wrap the other arm around each other’s back.  They pulled away, but neither of them wished to release, yet.

“Granddaughter, I hear it is not just First Feast.”

Laun blushed and said, “Not you, too.”

He smiled.  He motioned with his head and Geralk came forward and handed the King a parchment.  It was held by Dreng by the top and bottom for a moment and then he nodded.  He handed it back to Geralk who read it for all to hear.

“Be it known that I, King Dreng Hawkwell, rightful king of arms of the Midlands, recognize Laun Dresden, Lady of Salam-Dir, as a Princess of the Realm.  By this writ, it shall be known that, from this day forth, the Lady Laun shall have the rights and responsibilities of the Three Point Crown as given to her by the King…”

Laun knew that Geralk was still talking.  And then there was a cheer around her.

She was looking at how Dreng beamed at her.  He was a driven man, but right then, despite being three times her age, he was youthful and the power he held raised him above everyone.

Laun motioned for the half-helm and she looked at it.  It had the three points imbedded into the fur over the boiled leather.  She smiled as she saw that the metal from the messenger bird capsules had been used.  Laun went down to one knee and handed the helm to Dreng.

He turned the helm around and smiled at the three points.  One hand went to the top of her head and the King said, “By all who see and hear me, Lady Laun Dresden is now a Princess of the Realm.”

The helm went on her head and there was another small cheer.  Laun was helped up and she found that her arms were constantly in a warrior’s grip with man after man.  She had kisses on the cheek from woman after woman.  She had hand kisses from a few people.  And it was all through a glaze in Laun’s mind.

The feast started in earnest and the food flowed from the kitchen.  There wasn’t a series of removes but a line of platters, every ten minutes another came out.  Piled high with a little of everything from the pantries and animal sheds, there was far more than enough for everyone.  Laun knew that in preparation for First Feast, Orgia had used the last of a few things.  It was needed for the mood of the household, but Laun was worried for later.

There were songs sung and stories told and dances performed.  It called out to the darkness and told it that it would not win, could not win.  Hours passed and there were still songs and stories and ale.

And then the gong.

It could be barely heard above the revelry.  And then someone caught it.  They became quiet and listened.  And then the person next to them quieted.  And then there was a breath in the Great Hall where no one said anything.  The warning gong was being hit at the top of the tower.  And the answering drum from the gate was being thumped, also warning.

It was not chaos.  Everyone had been thinking of the possibility.  Everyone had been hoping that it would never come.  Food was dropped, tankards set down and everyone went to their positions.

Laun led the way as she ran through the corridor and up the steps of the tower.  The weight of the dress made her pant by the top, but she was happy for the insulation when she opened the door to the walkway.  The cold hit her and the ale she had imbibed seemed to disappear as she stepped out into the winter.

The team up there stopped hitting the gong and Laun could see what they had sounded the alarm for.  Mounted and on foot, there were about fifty men coming up the road.  They had to have been delayed by the log, but there were so many of them.  They had pulled everyone back to the keep for First Feast, so Laun was happy that no one had been left to defend themselves against that number of people.

Archers moved past and lined the walkway.  Laun could see the protectors in the first and second courtyards readying themselves.  She saw those who were not supposed to fight set supplies out and start moving animals into the warmth of the keep.

It was a calm night.  Laun did not have the voice for it, but Silar next to her did.

“Halt!  Who are you?” Boomed through the darkness.

The man on the first horse looked around and then up.  His horse moved to the side and was nervous in the snow.  He talked to someone standing next to him and then called out an answer.  “We are here to take the keep for the King.”

Silar nodded to Laun’s words and again boomed out to the invaders, “What king’s banner do you fly?”

There was a call and several of the archers turned and aimed past the garden wall.  There was a small group that had trudged through the snow and the protectors on the walkway saw them.

“The right and proper King, Falmir.”

“We do not acknowledge him as the King of the Midlands.  Turn around now and live.”

There were words between those in the Dark colors and then the call, “We took this keep before, we will do it again.”

Laun thought it had been his voice.  Harcem, the leader of the one bandit mob.

“Harcem, you left one person alive in this keep.  A slave.  She broke your nose at the Festival.”

There were jeers from within the keep’s walls and Laun could hear swearing from below.

“I owe that bitch.”

Laun said under her breath, “That’s Princess bitch to you.”  To Silar, she had something much more diplomatic for him to say.

“Our leader would like to discuss the terms of your surrender.”

The bandit laughed and the men around him also laughed, though perhaps not as loudly.  “I think that is the other way around.”

“You will not discuss surrender?  You have this one chance.”

“You surrender to-”  A call from the walkway and the archers shot.  Seven of the men trying to sneak up behind and over twenty of the men on the main road had arrows in them.  Most were dead before their blood hit the snow.

“Will you surrender?”

Harcem looked around at the bodies, hearing the screams of those not dead.  The rest of his men started to back away, but he called to them, tried to rally them to his side.

“Our leader wishes to meet you face to face.”

“Under what truce?”  Fright was in every syllable.

“You and three of your men are offered passage in and out of the Salam-Dir keep.”

Laun could barely see Harcem, but his voice and the voices of those around him sounded frantic.  She could not hear the words, but a thrill went over her at their fright.

They were taking too long.  “Archers!”

“No!  Wait!  I will come in.”

“You will be escorted to the Great Hall to meet our leader.”

Laun turned and went back inside.  She rested and warmed slightly inside, many of the rest of the people also coming in.  Laun looked towards the birds and thought that it would be more appropriate to have doves.

The outer gate was opened.  It closed behind the four men.  They were motioned to the next gate that opened and then closed right behind them.  The bandits looked around and counted the people in armor and who had weapons.  There should not have been that many warriors.

The Great Hall doors opened and Harcem and his three strode in.  There was a brashness about them that faded.  They saw even more people.  Most of them were moving the tables to the sides of the room, not paying any attention to the four bandits.

And then the Lady in red strode into the room.  There was a hush from those in there and Harcem couldn’t but want to kneel to her.  It looked like she was wearing flame and as she walked, the hem of the dress heavily flowed around her step.  Harcem saw the three glints of metal on the front of the furred hat she wore.

Then he saw the sword on her hip.  The swordbelt was slung across her hips over a brass belt.  The sheath looked new, the sword old.  The look in her eye was cold.

She was followed by warriors and women who spread out behind her.  Harcem looked and his way out had been blocked.

“Who are you?”

The lady kept walking until she was within a sword’s length of him.  Then just looked at him.  It was as though she was looking right through him.

His voice faltered slightly as he said, “You will take me to the leader of Salam-Dir.”

Her head tilted, but she kept looking at him. He could hear the nervous shuffling of the men he had brought to back him.

“I demand-”

“You are in no position to demand anything, Harcem.”  Her voice was calm and soft.  Her head went upright again.  “Why should you meet with the leader of this household?”

He saw her as before.  He started to laugh.  “You bitch.  You did this to me!”

Laun had already taken in the nose that had no bridge and the eye that was not quite right in it’s socket.  She smiled.

One of Harcem’s men put a hand on his arm as he started to step forward.  He stopped and pulled away from the man.  “I will have fun with you when the King gives you to me.”

“Not from what Flora tells me...”  Laun’s eye snapped down to his crotch and back up to his eye.  There was a sad, a sorry look on her face.

Again, a restraining hand was on the bandit leader.  He backed up a step and fumed.

The Lady held her hands palm up to him and said, “Please leave now so no one else will get killed tonight.”

“We were sent to take this keep and we will.”

She put her hands to her chest and sighed.  “Very well.  I have given you many chances...”

“You are their leader?”  Harcem laughed.  He did not hear more than a chuckle from the men at his back.

Laun stepped back and started to unbuckle the swordbelt.  “I will make a wager with you.”

“What?”

The belt was off and being held by one of the men at her back.  “If you truly wish to try to take this keep, you will have to go through me.”

Harcem laughed again.  “A painted whore like you?  Too easy.”

She stood and just waited until he stopped laughing.  The nervousness of the trailing laugh faded into the eerie quiet of the people in the room.  She was staring at him, a calm look on her face, but a sharp look to her eye.  “If you win, you get to do anything you wish to me.”  He sneered.  “If I win, you and your men leave.”

He started to take his cape off and threw it at one of his men.  “I know I will win, bitch.”

“Swear to your side and I will swear to mine.”  There was a slight surge towards her from the people behind her until she raised her hand.

“That is very one sided, but I always like sure bets.”

She smiled.  Harcem saw a stupid courtly woman with an attitude.  The men behind him saw some of the deadliness in that smile.

“At your convenience.”

Harcem had warmed up since coming into the Great Hall.  He felt a need to silence this bitch in front of him and his anger was great enough that he did not see the dangers plain in his face.

He drew his sword and approached her.  She reached to her side and Vami’s sword was in her hand.  He sized her up and went for her arm.

Laun stepped to the side and turned, her skirts flowing around her and hitting him in the shins.  He stumbled and almost dropped the sword.

“Bitch.”  He flipped the sword around in his hand and rushed at her again.  His sword went towards what he thought would be a soft spot and he put as much into the swing as possible.

She ducked and moved and her sword deflected his sword.  She pulled herself upright and waited.

He turned and spread his hands apart, sword in one hand, a small dagger in the other.  Laun went to first position in the dance, her sword loose in her hand.

Harcem could not get through her defense as she paced out the dance.  The crowd moved and flowed around them as he charged towards her, she would spin and deflect and move away.  He was frustrated and getting tired.  Laun could see that his sword was getting lower each time he tried to hit her.

Her own hands and wrists were screaming at her.  But with the support of the braces, she had not dropped the sword.  She was breathing heavily, but said, “One last chance to surrender.”

“Never, bitch.”  He had a flash of anger and he left his side wide open as he raised his arm above his head.

The impact of her sword into him was not as much as she thought it was going to be.  It was sharp.  She felt it go into and through his clothing, slicing through his belly.

There was a scream as he fell to the side.  His blood splashed on the stone floor, his hand dropping the dagger to hold his innards in.  He went to one knee and looked up at her, still screaming.

Laun stepped to him and took the last swing.  Through his throat, silencing him.  The sword stuck in his spine, but the momentum threw his body back and he was dead on the floor.

His body twitched, blood spurted. She knelt and put her hand over his eyes until he stopped moving.  She pulled out the sword and held it so that it dripped off to the side on the floor.

The three that were there to be his back were in various stages of cowering fear.  Laun looked at them and one went to his knees.  The other two followed suit and stayed there until Laun motioned for them to stand.

“What was the wager I had with this man?”

“If you won, we leave.”

Laun smiled.  “Good.  Who won?”

There was a squeak in the man’s voice as he said, “You?”

Laun nodded.  “You will leave.  You will take this bandit’s head as a message to my f-  To Falmir.  Salam-Dir will not be taken.”

As she stood there, the head was severed from the body and placed in a sack.  None of them wanted to hold the head, but finally, one of the Dark clad men took it.

Laun turned and caught Orgia’s eye.  “It is a long way to Falmir.  Give these men bread for their journey.”

There was a “Yes, Lady,” before the staff started bustling about.  Another sack was handed over, this time willingly taken.  They were still scared, but felt the grace in which the Lady before them treated them.

“Leave your dead.  They are mine.  Do not leave anyone to spy, for they will be dead at my own hand before they know it.  And-”  Laun stepped sightly away from them.  “If you know what is good for you, you will never come here again.”

They nodded to her and backed out of the Great Hall.

There was a small cheer from the Great Hall that was echoed in the courtyards and on the walkway as the men went past and out of the keep.  The cheer lasted for a good ten minutes until the living had taken their wounded away with them.

The body was dragged out and put in the road to be dealt with the next day.  The blood was covered with old canvas and no one wanted to walk on it.  The First Feast was now a celebration, not just a push against the dark.

Dreng came from the back of the crowd and held out his arms to Laun.  “Well done.”

Laun took the gesture, the companionship, and hugged him back.  She pulled away and there was a single tear going down her cheek.

“We are safe for now.  But it will not last.”

They smiled wearily at each other for they both knew the truth to that.

End Book one.