B3 Chapter 2

“Sirs,” Lucan said, eying the three knights seated around his food-laden long table. “My thanks for your timely arrival.”

The knights nodded, their faces severe, and Lucan didn’t blame them. These were uncertain times, and they promised to be bloody times soon too. Everyone anticipated what would come next with anxiousness.

“You must have received word and even demands from the two factions now vying for the crown,” Lucan began. “I am certain that has birthed plenty of concern for your estates.”

Another smattering of nods. Lucan eyed Sir Ryder first. He and Sir Upton were not as close to their family as Sir Wolfe, who was a good friend to his father. “What would you have of this, Sir?”

“It is difficult to say,” Sir Ryder said. As was his wont, he had shaved his beard clean, with only the roughness of the years showing how its shape would have been had it been there. Its absence only made his square jaw more prominent. When it came to how one appeared, Sir Ryder was the most knightly out of all of them, looking rightfully heroic most of the time. It did him no harm that he dressed in ways that enhanced that appearance, with his garments often squared at the shoulders to give him a more imposing look. “With the kingdom sliding towards such turmoil, one has to be cautious of what allegiance they choose.”

“Indeed!” Lucan latched onto that. “One wrong decision now can be the undoing of even the most ancient of houses.” Sir Ryder nodded at his proclamation, and Lucan turned to the other two knights. Sir Upton was thoughtful, while Sir Wolfe was rigid in his response, only acknowledging that he’d heard the words.

“Sir Upton?” Lucan asked the quiet man next. He was the smallest in stature among the knights, and his demeanor matched it, being the calmest and most thoughtful among them. “What is your mind on this matter?”

“It is worth contemplating carefully,” the knight said. “The–”

“What is there to contemplate?” Sir Wolfe’s throaty voice interrupted them. “We have a duty to the crown.” He turned towards Lucan. “A duty I would have expected your father to remind you of.”

Lucan pressed his lips. “I am the lord of this estate, Sir. I know what my duties are. I need not be reminded of them. Perhaps you need to be reminded you are at my hearth, in my hall, partaking in my hospitality, though of course you are always welcome in this estate.”

“Mouthing your title will not deter me from telling you what ought to have been said before, boy,” Sir Wolfe spat out. “We must aid the rightful heir to–”

“And who might that be?” Lucan said, feeling the words come out through ground teeth and forcing himself to ease his jaw. It would not do to turn this into a quarrel. He didn’t stop speaking, however, continuing before the knight could answer. “Do you perhaps know what no one else in the realm does? Do you know which of the two princes poisoned the king?”

Sir Wolfe could only respond with silence, though it was not without its strain on him, with his face puffing up in a reddish hue from what must have felt like a stifled tongue.

“What if we were to choose a side, only to discover later that we have helped a kin-slayer, and a kingslayer at that, ascend the throne?” Lucan didn’t slow down his assault. “Who could we then blame but ourselves?”

There was a sigh and Sir Upton spoke again. “He is right, Osmond. This is a precarious affair. It is not so clear as to be a simple matter of duty. We would not have been so torn and anxious if it were, and we are not the only ones.”

Sir Wolfe only let out an explosive breath that might as well have been a growl, then he shot Lucan a glare before leaning back in his chair. “Why did you summon us here then, Lord Lucan? Is it to make certain we know how clueless we are?”

“No, Good Sir,” Lucan said. “I have invited you to my hall to make certain that whichever decision we make, we make together. It will only bring us more strength to stand united. I intend to ride to Lord Arden’s estate sooner rather than later to ascertain his stance on this as well.”

A hum came out of the noble-looking Sir Ryder before he spoke his question. “Lord Zesh,” he addressed him in a less familiar manner than Sir Wolfe, though Lucan would have preferred it if the knight had erred on the side of familiarity, considering that he wished to bring them all into his camp. “What do you suggest we do? I imagine you have not brought us here without your own thoughts on the matter.”

“Indeed, Sir Emerson.” He chose to address him with more familiarity, hoping to thin that ice. “While we may forget them, we do have other duties to the realm. We must protect its borders against enemies that abound from south and east. The Wildermen have only proven more and more wily as of late, and the warlords in the Shattered Kingdom are known to pounce on any perceived weaknesses.”

Sir Wolfe snorted. “You would have us hide in our estates and twiddle our thumbs then?”

“I would have us protect this realm from those who would tear it apart from without, even as it does its best to tear itself apart from within,” Lucan snapped. “Who do you reckon will protect us from Wildermen if our troops are dragged into a war with no end in sight? Who will protect us against the greed of outlaws in the east? Who would you have protect us against the madness of the Vincemare in the north? Do you believe that because the northern lords have pledged themselves to what they must claim is a rightful cause, the Vincemare would honorably wait for our conflicts to be settled before they march down onto us like a storm?”

Sir Wolfe huffed, again silenced by the reason behind his words. So Lucan continued, “I intend for all the southern lords to join our ranks, beginning with Lord Arden, who is a good ally of ours.”

Sir Upton leaned back in his seat, thoughtful, then he nodded. “If the support of the southern lords is forthcoming, then my estate would take part in this alliance as well.” Sir Wolfe snapped a glare at his peer, seemingly betrayed. Sir Upton responded to it with soft words. “It is the right thing to do, Osmond. There is no harm in waiting, and if the truth should surface one day, then we shall know who we ought to rightfully champion.”

Sir Wolfe huffed through his nose, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. Lucan saw the thoughtful look on his face, which was as much as he could wish for. He let the knight sit with his thoughts, turning instead towards Sir Ryder. “And what say you, Sir Emerson?”

The knight only let out a long hum that strained Lucan’s patience–and Sir Upton’s too by the looks of it–then slowly, ever so slowly, he leaned forward on the table and said, “This is a matter that one should think of slowly and carefully, as you have wisely proposed. For the time being, my estate will wait.”

“Wait?” Lucan asked.

“Wait.” The knight nodded.

Lucan was boggled for a moment before he asked, “Then you will not answer the call of either of the princes?”

The knight shook his head. “I see no good reason to do such a thing.”

“But you do not wish to join this alliance yet?”

Sir Ryder nodded sagely. “I am not against it, but I must see if it is as you promise before I tie my estate to your alliance.”

Lucan nodded back and turned to Sir Wolfe, the knight having come out of his thoughts moments ago. His eyes fell on Sir Upton, moving to Lucan, then he grudgingly spoke. “I am amenable to it, as long as it is done with the mind of aiding the rightful heir when he is known.”

“Of course,” Lucan said, knowing full well that neither of the princes would admit to assassinating the king even with a blade to their neck. Lucan imagined that whoever had been hired to do the deed was either already dead or sent to the farthest ends of the Elder Lands, perhaps even sent beyond the seas. “Should we discover whoever is behind the poisoning, we will make our stance known.”

The knight gave a firm nod. If he doubted Lucan’s intentions, he did not show it. Lucan had always had faith that Sir Wolfe would fall in behind them, considering the history he had with their estate and his father. He was the closest to his father, and if the latter hadn’t been against Lucan’s plans, he would have already had him talk to the knight. He was glad that Sir Wolfe had eventually acquiesced with such a simple condition.

Of course, Lucan had no intention of getting dragged into this war. The royals had done him no favors over the years, with the saving grace of the king having elevated them to lords, and even that wasn’t without its cost. Lucan still remembered begging Prince Dane to aid his father. He remembered that no one had stood by them except their few allies and friends. Sir Wolfe, Sir Upton, Lord Arden, and Winton along with his father, Lord Harold Zesh. These were the people he would remember. And if they were someday threatened, he would raise his arms for them as they had for him.

Lucan sealed their gathering with a simple pronouncement. “Then, Good Sirs, I thank you for heeding my call. On the morrow, I will ride to Lord Arden’s estate so that we may give this alliance even more weight. Word ought to reach you soon of my success.”