CHAPTER FOURTEEN - NEW BLOOD
Raedrick walked into the taproom a bit before noon. Spotting Julian almost immediately, Raedrick strode quickly over to where he was chatting with the new recruits near the bar.
Breakfast had helped settle Julian’s stomach, but Horace’s hangover cure was as miraculous as he claimed. His headache reduced to a barely noticeable throb, he smiled cheerfully as his friend arrived. Raedrick’s opening comment removed his smile quickly, however.
“Good to see you’re up and about. I’ve just been at the Mayor’s office.”
That could not have been fun. “Was it bad?”
“You could say that. I thought sure he was going to pull his hair out. He’s terrified, convinced that we’ve brought more harm than good already.”
“Does he want us to leave then?”
Raedrick shook his head. “I offered, but he practically begged us to stay.” He sighed. “I’m not sure he knows what he really wants, except for this whole episode to be over. So we still have a job.”
“That’s good, I suppose.”
Raedrick shrugged, then looked past Julian to the fishing men. “Who are these guys?”
Julian grinned broadly. “My dear friend,” he made a sweeping gesture as though he were a herald introducing an arriving dignitary, “may I introduce our army?”
Julian had thought the morning could not get any better. The confused expression on Raedrick’s face proved him wrong. “What are you talking about?”
Julian laughed. “These fine fellows have pledged to help us against the brigands.” Wagging a finger at his friend, he went on. “I keep telling you, staying up late and drinking with the locals always reaps benefits.”
Raedrick’s eyebrows rose high onto his forehead. He turned to regard the fishing men for a long moment, his veteran eyes taking their individual measures in a silent appraisal. Finally, he cleared his throat and said, “Have any of you ever used a sword?”
One hand went up, from a swarthy fellow in his middle years near the back of the group.
“A bow?”
Three more hands went up.
Raedrick rolled his eyes and gestured for Julian to follow him. The two friends moved several paces away. Raedrick spoke softly, even though it was all but certain they were out of earshot.
“What the hell good does it do us to have amateurs backing us up?”
Julian knew this was coming. “I’ve thought of that, Rae. All these fellows are strong and know how to work hard. They can learn.”
A soft snort was Raedrick’s initial response. “It takes months to learn the sword to the point where you won’t accidentally stab yourself in combat. We have days. Maybe a week or two.”
“But the brigands don’t know they can’t fight, do they? They look impressive enough to help with any negotiations we may do.”
“And when Farzal calls our bluff, then what?”
Julian shrugged. “The bow’s a lot easier to learn than the sword. Long as they stay out of reach…” He spread his hands. What did Raedrick want? This was far from an ideal situation, and beggars couldn’t be choosers.
He could tell Raedrick did not like the idea at all, but he also recognized the necessity of increasing their numbers. After a brief pause, he nodded acquiescence. As Raedrick moved back toward the group of fishing men, Julian heard him mumble, “Lambs to the slaughter,” under his breath. He hoped his friend’s assessment was wrong, even though he secretly shared it.
More loudly, Raedrick said, “Alright gentlemen, it’s time to learn a new trade. Meet us at the Constable’s office in a half hour. If you have anything that can pass for armor - a leather apron, gloves, boots - or any actual armor maybe passed down through the family, bring it. Same goes for weapons. Questions?”
Several of the men shook their heads, but all remained silent.
Raedrick nodded. “Alright. A half hour.”
With that, the men quickly dispersed, exiting the inn alone or in groups of two or three. All moved with a sense of purpose, and a serious demeanor. It was hard not to be impressed by their attitude, at least.
* * *
Constable Malory appeared surprised when Julian asked him for the use of his bows and swords.
“How many?”
“All of them.”
His jaw dropped. “Why?”
Raedrick grinned at him. “We’ve got some new recruits. I don’t suppose you have a place to shoot around here?”
Malory nodded. “Down this street, just past the edge of town. Fendig and I set up a few targets for practice away from where most people travel. Who are these recruits?”
Just then the swarthy man who had claimed knowledge of the sword walked into the office. Though Julian still had his doubts about him, the man had on a leather breastplate that looked at least passable and wore a curved sword with a hand-and-a-half hilt on his hip. He looked the part, at least.
“We’re here,” he reported, then he turned to go.
“Wait,” Julian said. “What’s your name?”
“Selam.”
“Have the others come in and grab a bow and a sword, Selam.”
The swordsman nodded and exited the building. Constable Malory shook his head in surprise.
“I didn’t know he had a sword. Hell, I didn’t know he knew anything besides knots, currents, and tides. He spends more time on the boats than anyone.” Malory smirked slightly, then looked at the two friends and shook his head. “How on earth did you convince the Covington brothers to let their men off work?”
“I take it they own the fishing company?" Julian asked.
Malory nodded.
Julian grinned at him. “Don’t need an in with the owners if you drink with the workers.”
The fishing men began trouping in and collecting weapons. Grinning a bit more at Malory’s renewed expression of confusion, Julian clapped him on the shoulder and followed the first pair of recruits out onto the street. It was time to figure out what he and Raedrick had to work with.
* * *
Three hours later, Julian’s spirits were quite a bit lower.
Despite experience having taught him to expect poor performance from beginners, Horace’s pledge of support combined with the fishing men’s eager attitude conspired to make him forget that lesson. Julian thought sure they would be, if not skilled, at least passable.
It was a struggle to claim even that much.
Not that the entire group was a loss from the start. The men who earlier claimed experience with the bow all managed to get arrows downrange without difficulty, and even hit the targets a time or two. Everyone else, though… Julian winced just thinking about it. Most of the men had bandages on their forearms from their bowstrings. Almost all were quite a bit less enthusiastic than they had been at the beginning.
“They did make progress,” Raedrick whispered into his ear.
“A little.” More loudly, Julian said, “Alright, gentlemen. That was a good start. Obviously, we’ve got a fair bit of ground to cover before you’ll be ready for combat. We’ll meet here at sunrise every day to work on it, and we won’t quit until sundown, except for lunch. Before you know it, you’ll be hitting bulls-eyes with ease.” He managed not to sound ironic as he said that last. He seriously doubted many of them would progress beyond merely competent. But that was all he needed them to be.
“Are we going to work the sword too?" asked one of the younger fishing men. Julian would have called him slender except for his bulging stomach; everything else about him was thin as a rail. He had been the closest to promising of any of the men who had no previous experience.
Julian shook his head. “Yes, but one thing at a time. Once you can get arrows downrange with some accuracy, we’ll teach you how not to stab yourselves. But your default should be the bow. A sword is a lot more difficult, and we frankly won’t have time to make you proficient with it.”
The young man nodded, disappointment clear in his eyes.
Raedrick spoke up. “You’re dismissed for the evening, gentlemen.” The men nodded and began to disperse when Raedrick added, “Selam, Hiram, Rolf, and Gilroy, please remain for a moment.”
The swordsman and the three practiced bowmen lingered as their fellows departed. Julian waited until the others were out of sight before addressing them.
“Since you have more practice than the others, we’re going to lean heavily on you when the time comes. Are you up for it?”
Selam looked uncertain. “I’m no good with a bow.” That was an understatement, from what Julian had seen this afternoon. However, Raedrick spent some time with him and walked away impressed with his swordsmanship. No mean trick, that.
“That’s why you’re going to teach these three the basics of the sword while Rae and I focus on the others.”
Selam blinked in surprise, then grinned broadly and nodded. The look he gave the other three was almost predatory. Julian made a mental note to keep an eye on him.
“In that case, we’ll…”
“Raedrick! Julian!” Fendig’s voice sounded as though he was in a near-panic. What was he doing here?
Julian turned around just as the Deputy came to a halt and bent over, placing his hand on his knees and panting heavily. He was sweating as though he had just sprinted the entire distance from town.
“What’s wrong, Fendig?" Raedrick asked.
Fendig coughed and took a deep breath, then forced himself to stand up straight. “Farzal,” he managed between breaths. “He just rode into town with a bunch of his men. He’s going to the Town Hall for the Mayor!”
“Bugger me,” Julian breathed. “We’re not ready for a showdown.”
Raedrick nodded in agreement. “Let’s hope it doesn’t come down to that.” Looking at the four remaining fishing men, he said, “You guys spread out on the street and be ready to cover us if it comes down to a fight.”
The four newcomers swallowed hard and nodded. Only Selam looked truly calm; the others looked ready to jump out of their skin. Julian couldn’t blame them. It was far too early in the game for this sort of confrontation. And him all but crippled, too! It was enough to put the notion of flight intohishead for a moment.
Then he met Raedrick’s eyes and saw the same dread that he felt, but it was suppressed beneath a steely resolve. If he didn’t know Raedrick as well as he did, he would not have known he was anxious at all. But then, he always had been good at projecting calm.
The two friends exchanged nods, and Raedrick smiled thinly. “Let’s get it done.”
Loosening his sword in its scabbard, Julian set off at a trot toward Town Hall, trying his best to jog through the twinges from his thigh.
Glimmer Vale is the first book of the Glimmer Vale Chronicles, an ongoing heroic fantasy series set in a world of valor and magic. It will be published here, one chapter per week, on Tuesday.
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