5

Basic Training

I hardly know how to explain it,” Elendar said.

He was sitting in the shade of a yew with Josh, Reb, and Sarah. The others had gone off to explore the castle again.

Elendar leaned back against the tree, his pale blue eyes half shut. He stroked his beard, while from the jousting field came the sound of crashing metal as a knight wasknocked from his saddle.

Josh broke into Elendar's reverie. “Well, I don't understand why you don't just tell the king about Melchior.”

Elendar had been telling how the forces of a knight named Melchior, who lived on the outer verge of the kingdom, had been swayed by the powers of the Sanhedrin. He also informed them that the king seemed unable to comprehend that Melchior was not to be trusted.

“I think sometimes,” Elendar said quietly, “that Elmas has been able to cloud the mind of the king. I can no longer speak to him as freely as I once could.”

“Why, that's just what happened in Atlantis!” Josh exclaimed. “It wasn't the king but one of his followers who got sort of hypnotized there.” He went on to explain.

Elendar's eyes narrowed even more. “That's the work of the Dark Lord right enough. I've been on many long journeys, and everywhere I go the darkness seems to be creeping over the earth. Only Goel offers any hope.”

“Does everyone here believe in Goel?” Sarah asked.

“Unfortunately not. The king does—and the queen—but as I say, the king's judgment is clouded. Perhaps he's just getting old, as I am.”

Reb considered Elendar, then shook his head. “I don't understand much about this. I'm just a good old country boy from Arkansas, but what is it Melchior does that is so bad?”

“It's not what he does so much as it is his influence, ”Elendar said grimly. “He's made himself very popular with many of the knights and the noblemen. They trust him—many of them—and he promises them great things.” Angrily he shook his head, and a butterfly that had lighted on his white hair flew off. He watched it for a moment. “The time will come when the king will be sorry he's trusted Melchior—but I'm unable to get that across to him.”

“Well—” Reb sighed “—I don't know anything about politics. My uncle was a county judge. He was a good man before he got that job, but it sure ruined him!”

Elendar smiled slightly, but there was a grimness in his face. “It was once said, ‘Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.’”

“But that isn't always true, is it?” Sarah asked. “I mean, Goel has power—and he's good. You have power, Elendar—and you're good.”

“Some have not the ability to refuse what power brings with it. Melchior is one of those. He wants power for his own sake, whereas Goel uses his for the good of others—and I also, I trust.” He shook himself and stood to his feet. “I'll leave you here now, but I hope you'll understand our ways a little better through these sessions we have.” He turned quickly and left them.

Sarah said, “He's so wonderful! I never thought seers would be like that. I thought…”

Josh looked into the distance. “He's got power too, but I think he's afraid it's not enough.”

* * *

“Boy, this is tough.” Dave dropped with exhaustion to the ground. He had been fencing with Josh, and the two of them were puffing from the exercise.

Sir Nolen had stood near them, giving either who lagged the flat of his sword on the bottom.

Josh felt that his arms were going to fall off and was relieved when the knight said, “That'll do for now, but I'll be back in twenty minutes for more practice.”

The young men had been practicing for days now. They had struggled with every kind of hand-held medieval weapon imaginable—knife, broadsword, foil, rapier, pike, halberd, and always, of course, the lance on horseback.

Dave and Josh were able to sit on a horse after a fashion but never had shown any talent for jousting. It was Reb who still excelled at this, growing more skilled each day. Wash and Jake floundered around with smaller weapons, never doing any damage to anyone—except that Jake once put a dagger through his own leg.

As the two boys rested, Dave said, “This looks kind of silly, doesn't it, Josh? I mean, how are we kids going to become warriors who can match the skill of grown men? We can't hope to beat experienced adult enemies.”

Josh wiped the sweat from his forehead and lay back, shading his eyes with his hand. “I don't know, Dave, but you remember the high place where the Sanhedrin had us trapped? We did pretty well then.”

“Yes, I remember that, ” Dave nodded, “but I just don't know what to expect this time.”

“None of us do, ” Josh said. He looked up to see Sir Gwin coming and got to his feet.

Dave got up also. “I hope you've come to give us some book lessons. My arm's about to fall out of its socket.”

Sir Gwin was wearing hose and a green doublet with slashes and a small black cap. “As you see, ” he said, grinning, “I'm not wearing armor. It's time for another kind of lesson. Come along. I've told Sir Nolen.”

He took them first to their own quarters where they washed as well as they could. Then they were furnished some clothes of the same type that Sir Gwin wore.

When they were dressed, Gwin said, “The others are already waiting for us. We'll go now.”

As he led them down the hall and up a flight of stairs, Josh asked, “What sort of thing will we be learning now? Which fork to use?”

Sir Gwin stared at him. “What's a fork?”

Josh blinked. “Why … uh … it's what you use to eat your food with!”

“Oh, we call that a knife here.”

Dave laughed aloud and winked at Josh. “That's what we call it too, and we've been making out fine without forks since we got here.” As they walked, he explained the nature of a fork, but when they got to the door of a large hall, Sir Gwin said, “Sounds like foolishness to me. If you've got a knife, you cut off the meat, stab it with the end, stick it in your mouth. That's all there is to it.”

Josh winked at Dave. “You may be right.”

They entered and found their friends waiting for them.

Abigail leaped up at once. “Oh, you finally got here. Now we can begin.”

“Begin what?” Josh asked.

“Why, to learn to dance, ” Abigail said in surprise.“ Didn't Sir Gwin tell you?”

“No, I was explaining to them that a knife is all one needs to eat with, ” Sir Gwin said. Then turning to Dave and Josh, he said, “This lesson will be in the more civilized things. For example, every nobleman of breeding mustknow how to dance.”

Josh had sudden memories of falling over his feet back in Oldworld, and his heart sank. “Can't I skip that one, Sir Gwin? I'm not very good at it.”

“No, you cannot, ” Gwin insisted. “You will learn to dance just as you have learned to fence. Musicians—”

Soft music filled the room as the three musicians at one end of the hall began to pluck harps and a lyre.

Sarah came up to Josh. “I'll show you how, Josh. It's easy. I've already been practicing.”

Josh groaned. Ten minutes later, after stepping all over Sarah's feet, he said, “I'd rather be bashing some-body with a sword.”

“You're doing fine, ” Sarah said firmly. “Now, put your right foot here …”

The dancing lesson seemed to go on forever, and after it was over, Sir Gwin sat them down and began to explain the other niceties of knighthood.

They all listened carefully, but Jake interrupted several times to protest that it sounded like foolishness to him. His small, round face looked disgusted. “I don't see how this is going to save Camelot, dancing around. Why don't we get on with the real thing?”

Sir Gwin smiled and answered, “This is the real thing, Jake. Being a knight involves many things. It's more than a matter of physical strength and skill with the lance, although that's part of it. For example, it is a knight's boun-den duty to help those who are weaker.”

“I like that, ” Sarah said. “That's a noble thing.”

“It is also required of all knights that they treat women with gentleness and courtesy.”

“I like that, ” Abigail said. She put an elbow into Dave's side, making him grunt. “You listen to this carefully—it's important.”

He glared at her, but she smiled sweetly.

They listened as Sir Gwin explained the code of chivalry, which involved a complicated ritual.

At one point Reb broke out in astonishment. “What's that you say? It's all right for a knight to fall in love with a woman even if she's married?”

“Oh, yes.” Sir Gwin shrugged. “According to our knightly code, a man may carry a woman's favor—that is, a silk scarf—on his lance in battle, even if she's married. All it's saying is that he admires her grace and beauty.”

“Does it ever go—well—farther than that?” Sarah demanded.

Sir Gwin stared at her sternly. “I can't say that it never does. But true knights would never take advantage of a woman in any way.”

The lesson went on for a considerable time, and when it was over Josh was ready to quit. He threw up his hands and cried out, “Stop! I'm going to have to learn how to behave all over again!”

“Well, it wouldn't hurt you, ” Abigail snapped. “You could stand a little more politeness.”

Jake laughed aloud. “That's right, you pay attention to Sir Gwin. I'm expecting great things from you.”

When they went back to their room, Josh slumped down in a chair and stared glumly at the other three boys. “I never heard of such! Goel sends us here to do a dangerous job, and we learn to go around kissing a girl's hand. Disgusting!”

“Oh, I don't know, ” Dave said with a smirk. “I didn't think it was so bad.”

Jake picked up a pillow and threw it at him. It struck Dave in the face, and he yelped. “You wouldn't, ” Jake said. “You always were a ladies' man, Dave.”

Dave threw the pillow back. “Looks like that's the thing to be around here.” He looked over at Reb and asked, “Are you getting tired of all this business, Reb?”

Reb had a rather serious look on his face. “You know, ”he said, “I'm not. I guess I didn't know how much I'd missed a good horse. Of course, it goes with the territory, trying to knock somebody off with a stick, but I love that horse!”

He'd been given his own horse now and spent hours grooming him.

“You're our hope, Reb, ” Josh said. “All the rest of us can barely stay on one of those things.”

Reb leaned back in his chair, laced his fingers behind his head, and said quietly, “I'll—I'll do the best I can—and that's all a bluenosed mule can do!”