Date: Fri, 3 Jan 2014 15:46:19 -0800 (PST) From: Robert Subject: Squires of Telisan Keep - 22 Attention Readers - Please donate to Nifty.org to help support and maintain this free service. I have personally donated as I enjoy having access to all the great fantasy material (not just talking about the genre) and also having a place to share the stories that bounce around inside my head without having to censer them for a general audience. I encourage you to donate to Nifty today! Go to http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html Author's Note: Comments and feedback are appreciated and encouraged! I would like to thank Mark for helping me by editing these chapters. - Robert robertx5sf@yahoo.com This is a work of fiction. All characters portrayed in this story are fictional and not representative of anyone living or dead. (c) 2014 by robertx5sf@yahoo.com, all rights reserved, may not be reproduced in any form without the author's consent, with exception of the license granted to Nifty.org per Nifty's terms of use. MIKEL Mikel paced around the main room of the Tower. He ran out of other things to do to keep himself occupied while waiting for Sir Valen to escort him to the tournament field. The first thing he did this morning was dress in his suit of hardened leather armor. He already used his magic to make sure it was polished and looking like new for the tournament. Mikel had worn it constantly since Sir Valen had given it to him a month ago, only taking it off before Rynil was due to visit for their training sessions. He felt a little awkward wearing it, as if he was playing dress up, so he had kept it hidden from Rynil. He feared that Rynil would think he looked funny in it. Once he was dressed, he went upstairs. He found a breakfast of bacon, hard-boiled eggs, fruit, and bread laid out on the table for him. He alternated between taking a bite to eat and practicing his fighting footwork. He knew he did not have a chance to beat Squire Johan, his opponent for the first pairing, but he was hopeful that he could at least make a decent showing in the fight. Rynil was sure that if Mikel just showed he had put effort into learning how to fight like the rest of the Squires, it would earn him some respect with them. There was little to occupy him once he was finished eating. He practiced his footwork and paced around the room to pass the time. Finally, Mikel heard footsteps on the stairs. "Apprentice, I will assume you are ready to depart for the tournament," said Sir Valen as he entered the room. "Yes, Master," responded Mikel. He picked his helm up off the table, and bounded to the door. The walk down to the tournament field did not take very long, but Mikel still wished that Sir Valen would have just teleported them there instead. They parted ways when they reached the pavilion. Sir Valen wished him good fortune before going to take his seat. Mikel looked around for Rynil, but did not see the Squire's blonde head anywhere, so he went to check on the pairings. When he saw he was matched up against Mekrin, he frowned. Mekrin hated Mikel since they first met, and Mikel was sure that Mekrin taking a crossbow bolt to the knee when the two of them had rushed the demon's henchman while Mikel escaped unhurt had not improved the boy's opinion of him. Mikel's thoughts ran wild, perhaps Sir Galreth had changed the rankings so that Mekrin could get revenge on Mikel, maybe Mekrin was going to try to hurt him during their match. Mikel heard someone calling his name and turned around to see Rynil standing behind him. He immediately smiled when he saw his friend. Mikel was nervous about the upcoming tournament, but Rynil explained why Sir Galreth had changed the rankings. Then he gave Mikel some advice on how to beat Mekrin. Finally, Rynil distracted him for a bit, even making up some formal code for him to worry about. The next thing he knew, Sir Galreth, the Lord's Champion, was summoning them to the field to begin the tournament. Mikel put on his helm and followed Rynil out onto the field, picking up a sword and shield along with the other first year Squires. Mikel lined up opposite Mekrin, while Sir Ulmar stood off to the side to act as the Judge for their duel. Rynil and Johan were to Mikel's left. Sir Galreth asked if anyone was injured and needed to withdraw. Mikel glanced across at Mekrin, who scowled briefly but said nothing. Mikel turned and caught Rynil giving him an `I told you so' smirk. All too soon, Sir Galreth was done explaining the rules. Mikel turned back to face Mekrin and extended his sword in a salute. Nearby, one of the Knights acting as a Judge called out "Begin" and most of the young Squires rushed to attack. Caught off guard, Mikel was barely able to get his shield up in time to block Mekrin's attack. "Begin," called out Sir Ulmar. Mikel struggled as he tried to remember everything that Rynil tried to teach him in the last few weeks. Mekrin had him on the defensive, and it was not long before Mekrin's sword slipped past his shield and struck him in the shoulder. "Touch," called out Sir Ulmar. He held up two fingers, "Two points Mekrin." The boys saluted each other then Sir Ulmar motioned with his hand and said, "Continue." Mikel gave up on trying to remember everything Rynil had told him and instead just watched Mekrin and reacted. Mekrin again immediately went on the attack. Mikel noticed that, rather than using a sideways stance, with his shield side in the front, Mekrin was using an open stance with his shoulders square. Mekrin's attacks seemed quicker, but less powerful, than he remembered Rynil's being. After blocking a couple of attacks, Mikel figured out the reason the attacks were less powerful. Mekrin could not push off from his right leg, because of his wounded knee. Normally, a Squire would have his left shoulder forward so his shield would provide maximum cover with less of his body exposed to attack. Then, when he would attack, he would extend forward off his back right leg and lunge forward with the sword. But, Mekrin's right leg could not support his full weight in a lunge, so he was only taking a small step when he attacked, which limited his reach. The next time Mekrin attacked, instead of blocking the blow, Mikel stepped back out of his reach. Mekrin stumbled a bit as he had been expecting his attack to be blocked, which would have also stopped his momentum. Mikel took advantage of the stumble and was able to land a blow on Mekrin's sword arm. Sir Ulmar called out the hit and awarded a point to Mikel. Mekrin glared at Mikel as the two boys reset themselves to the starting position and saluted. "Continue," barked Sir Ulmar. Mikel remembered all the time Rynil spent drilling him on his footwork. The young fighter had always been shoving him with his shield and knocking him off balance whenever Mikel would forget his footwork. When Mekrin attacked, Mikel stepped into the attack and parried with his sword while banging his shield against Mekrin's shield. This knocked Mekrin backward and his right leg buckled. Mikel's sword sliced across quickly and struck Mekrin's helmet. "Touch, three points. Mikel has four points, Mekrin two," called out Sir Ulmar. Mekrin fell to the ground and grabbed his right knee. Mikel stepped back, unsure of what to do. Sir Ulmar stepped over to Mekrin, "Are you alright Squire?" "Yes Sir, I will be fine," said Mekrin. He grimaced as he got back up to his feet. He reached down and picked up his sword and shield. He hobbled back to his starting position, supporting almost all of his weight on his left leg. The boys saluted each other and Sir Ulmar gave the signal to resume. Mekrin did not go on the attack this time. Instead, he stood in a guard position and just waited. Mikel made a couple feints, and then lunged forward, his sword slicing low towards Mekrin's left leg which could not be quickly moved out of the way. Mekrin whipped his sword across aiming for Mikel's head, but Mikel's lunge was a little deeper than Mekrin had expected and his wooden sword just nicked the top of Mikel's helmet. Meanwhile, Mikel's sword struck Mekrin's leg. "Touch, one point Mikel. Squire Mikel wins five points to two," declared Sir Ulmar. "I hit him in the head, it should be a draw," whined Mekrin. "Your strike did not score, it was not a solid hit," explained Sir Ulmar, his tone indicating the issue was not open to further debate. Mikel stood there in shock for a moment, not believing he had actually won. Mekrin limped off the field, not bothering to salute or congratulate his opponent. Mikel heard the clash of wooden swords, realized Rynil was still fighting, and waited out on the field watching as Rynil and Johan fought. Eventually Rynil managed to prevail. "Huzzah!" cheered Mikel. Rynil and Johan exchanged a final salute and complemented each other. Rynil took off his helm, turned towards Mikel and asked, "Did you win?" Mikel stood there for a second speechless, just staring at the sight of the beautiful blonde boy, his sweaty hair clinging to his brow. "Yes! You still going to honor our bet?" asked Mikel. Rynil blushed. Mikel thought the blonde boy looked even cuter when his cheeks turned red. "I will if you will," said Rynil. "Well, since we both won our first match, who will get to go first?" asked Mikel. "How about whoever advances the furthest in the tournament," suggested Rynil. "So you mean you get to go first," responded Mikel smirking. Rynil smiled, "Well, yeah, unless you got a better idea." "No. Considering until a couple minutes ago I didn't figure I'd get a turn at any time soon, that's fine," said Mikel. Rynil smiled slyly, "I was always going to let you try it too. The bet is really just an excuse." "Well, if you weren't going to let me have a turn, I was going to use a spell to enchant you so that I could have my way with you. I already learned one that will make you do whatever I want," said Mikel. "Yeah, I know. I think you already cast that on me though," smiled Rynil. Mikel almost reached out to pull Rynil into a hug and kiss the beautiful boy right there, but he remembered they were standing in the middle of the tournament field. That fact was brought home when Sir Galreth called out for the victors of the first round pairings to come to the center of the field for their second round pairings. There had been twelve boys fighting in six pairings during the first round, so there were six boys left for the second round. The Lord's Champion started calling off their names and pairing them together. He looked over at Mikel and Rynil, and smirked, "Squire Mikel will fight Squire Rynil." The two boys looked at each other. Rynil gave Mikel an apologetic look, while Mikel gave a resigned nod then smiled back. They could not even fault Sir Galreth for pairing them against each other, since he was supposed to pair the best and the worst in each round, so that barring any upsets, the best half of the fighters would advance each round. They put their helm on and took their places on the field. Sir Ulmar was serving as their Judge. They saluted, and then Sir Ulmar signaled for them to begin. Mikel held his guard position, while Rynil advanced slowly. They exchanged a couple basic attacks that were easily blocked. It reminded Mikel of their training sessions in that Mikel was pushing his skills to their limit while Rynil was barely trying. "Stop going easy on me or our bet is off," said Mikel. "You sure you are ready? I do not want to hurt you," said Rynil. "Yes, I'm ready. You aren't going to break me; I can handle a bit of pain," replied Mikel, not quite sure if they were talking about the duel, the bet, or both. "Squires, stop talking and start fighting. We do not have all day," growled Sir Ulmar. Rynil leapt forward and Mikel realized how much his friend had been holding back during their training sessions. Rynil's sword was a blur as it quickly knocked his own sword out of position then slapped against his rib cage. Mikel tried his best, but the duel was quickly over as Rynil slapped Mikel again in the torso, then in his arm to get the five points need for victory. Rynil gave Mikel a guilty look as they saluted each other after the fight. Rynil accompanied Mikel over to where the wooden swords and shields were piled, waiting to be used by the next set of Squires after the first year Squires were done. "Sorry" he said to Mikel. Mikel reached over and put his hand on Rynil's shoulder, "Don't worry about it Rynil, I don't need to be as good a fighter as you. I have other ways to protect myself." He then gathered a bit of magical energy and used it to send an electrical spark from his hand into Rynil's shoulder. "Ouch," exclaimed Rynil as the electric jolt surprised him, making him jump and drop his sword. "That hurt," he said as he frowned at Mikel. "Good, I'd rather have you mad at me then feeling sorry for me," said Mikel. "Don't worry, I'll kiss it and make it all better after you win the tournament," promised Mikel. Rynil gave Mikel a sly smile, "Well the jolt went straight to my dick and it hurts too." It was a couple minutes before the other two duels were finished. Sir Galreth told Rynil that he was getting a pass on this round since he deemed him the best fighter of the three remaining Squires. Mikel had to leave the tournament field while Rynil waited the outcome of the fight between Squires Tresen and Marton. The two boys were evenly matched and their fight was close, with Squire Tresen eventually prevailing five points to four. The tournament rules allowed Squire Tresen a moment to rest before he and Rynil faced off in the final. Sir Kendrik stepped forward to serve as judge for their duel. The fight did not last that long; it was anti-climatic compared to the close duel between Rynil and Johan. Squire Tresen was taller than Rynil, with a longer reach, but Rynil was stronger and more skilled. After a long exchange, Rynil finally landed a blow on Tresen's arm. In the next exchange, Tresen was able to respond and get a shot in on Rynil's leg. Mikel noticed Rynil smile as he resumed his starting position. The two Squires exchanged a couple quick attacks and counters, their swords were moving too fast for Mikel to track when Rynil scored a hit to Tresen's ribs as Tresen's sword struck Rynil's arm. Sir Kendrik ruled both hits valid, so Rynil led four to two. It only took another minute before Rynil was able to land a blow on Tresen's leg to win the fight. The pair saluted each other and then Sir Galreth declared Rynil the victor of the tournament. Rynil and Tresen dropped off their swords and shields then Rynil approached the Lord's pavilion. He pulled off his helm and bowed to Lord Velarik. The Lord stood and smiled at Rynil, "Congratulations on your victory, Squire Rynil. You have been blessed by the Warrior this day and brought honor to yourself and your family. I salute you and all your brothers." He thrust his fist out in salute. He picked up a laurel wreath that was resting next to him. He walked down, crowned Rynil with it, and handed him a small coin pouch. "Thank you My Lord," said Rynil. He returned the salute then bowed again. Lord Velarik returned to his seat while Rynil headed over to where Mikel and his fellow Squires were waiting. Mikel wanted to reach out and hug him, but he held back in front of the other boys. They showed no such hesitation as they congratulated Rynil, giving him hugs and slaps on the back. The group of first year Squires formed a small mob that moved off the field and down towards the fair with Rynil in the center. Mikel felt someone's arm on his shoulder. "Come on, you are expected to join us," said Mekrin. He gave Mikel a little push and the pair followed the other Squires. Mekrin supported some of his weight on Mikel as his knee was obviously still hurting from their duel. "Congratulations on beating me today. I hope you realize, that if I had been at full strength, you would not have stood a chance," said Mekrin. "Yeah, I know," answered Mikel wary of the boy that had shown him nothing but loathing and contempt. "Where is everyone going?", he asked. "It is tradition that the winner of each Squire's Tournament buys a round for all his fellow Squires. You may have learned a little bit about fighting, but you still have a lot to learn about being a Squire," answered Mekrin. The first year Squires destination was one of the makeshift taverns, where they were obviously expected, since there was a table waiting for them and as soon as a Squire sat down a serving wench placed a mug of ale down in front him. It seemed as if there was a predetermined seating arraignment. The boys that won their first round fight sitting on one side with Rynil at the far end, and next to him Tresen, and then Marton next to Tresen. Johan sat across from Rynil and Mikel saw that all the Squires were taking seats opposite their first round opponent. "Unfortunately we are at the far end of the table as its pretty obvious we were the worst of the field today, but at least you get to sit on the winner's side of the table," said Mekrin. Once everyone was seated and had a mug of ale, Rynil stood up and lifted his mug, "We started the day as foes, but now that our tournament is over let us end the day as friends once again. I may have won today, but you all fought bravely and with honor, so, my brothers, let us all share in the prize. Huzzah!" Mikel saw the other boys raising the mugs and he followed their lead. "Huzzah!", they called out in near unison and took a drink. Mikel looked across at Mekrin, who was taking a long drink from his mug. He had a pained expression on his face when he finally looked over at Mikel. "I was wrong about you Mikel. You may be a peasant and you may end up being a wizard, but you deserve to be a Squire. I am sorry for how I behaved towards you when you first became a Squire," said Mekrin. He gestured to the other boys at the table, "Most of these boys here would have panicked and shit themselves, when confronted by that demon and his men, but Rynil, you, and I did what needed to be done. You and Rynil are not half bad for a couple of peasants." Mekrin winked at Mikel and raised his mug to him. "Uh, thanks I guess," answered Mikel as he raised his mug. They clinked their mugs together then took a drink. The two boys looked awkwardly at each other across the table for a second. Mikel glanced over towards Rynil and saw him looking at him and Mekrin with a quizzical expression. Mikel smiled at Rynil and raised his mug toward his friend. Rynil returned the smile and the toast. The two locked eyes with each other as they took a drink. "You do know that once he becomes a Knight, his father is going to arrange for Rynil to marry some noble girl, and once you are done with your apprenticeship to Sir Valen, you will be sent to the capital to serve there with the other War Mages?", asked Mekrin. "Huh?" responded Mikel turning back to Mekrin. "Like I said, you still have a lot to learn about being a Squire. Our lives are not our own. We serve the King and our families. It is common for Squires to fool around with each other and have some fun before we become Knights, but we know better than to fall in love or think about spending our lives together. Rynil certainly knows better. He is very popular and is in demand as a bedmate by a lot of the other Squires. He even fooled around with Sir Alek after the feast celebrating King's Day. You are lucky, you get to have sex with him a couple times a week. Take advantage of your time with him and enjoy it while it lasts, because in a few years you two will be lucky to see each other again. Maybe once every couple years Rynil will visit the capital for a tournament or something. He will become a Knight and have a Squire of his own to take care of his needs," explained Mekrin. "Yeah, Rynil's got a nice cock and gives a great blowjob," said Squire Grener, who sat next to Mikel and had overheard their conversation. "Did he make a bet with you before your match? Do you have to let him fuck you now?" he asked Mikel. Mikel was shocked, "What? How did you know about that?" Mekrin laughed. "It is a bit of a tradition. Many of the Squires do it, makes the tournament a bit more fun. I did not make the offer to you because, well given our history, I figured you would not be receptive to it, heh pardon the pun." "Yeah, I cannot wait to fuck Rodrik," said Squire Grener, nodding to the boy sitting across the table from him. Mikel looked over to Rynil and saw him and Tresen leaning in close to each other, they each had an arm draped over the others shoulder, and they were whispering to each other. Mekrin was right, Rynil was just using him for sex and would leave him to get married. Tears started to form in Mikel's eyes. He knew it was too good to be true that a boy like Rynil could actually care about someone like him. "You okay Mikel?" asked Mekrin as he reached across the table and put his hand on top of Mikel's. Mikel looked up at him, struggling to contain the emotions that were on the verge of overtaking him. "By the Gods, did you actually think Rynil loved you? I am so sorry Mikel." Mikel couldn't let the others see him cry. He pulled his hand away from Mekrin then got up from the table and rushed out of the tavern.