History of Mardon Castle - 9C
Saturday, November 21, 2009 (12:20:19)

Posted by TerishD

History of Mardon Castle
Chapter Nine
Part 3

Ellish moved into the castle slightly uncertain about what he should do. The building reflected what he considered the change in his life. He had spent his career working in and around this fortress, but only now could he consider himself a part of this edifice. As a soldier he had slept out in the barracks, and that had been his home away from home all his life. Rising in rank he had moved to better and better rooms on the castle grounds, but only now as a knight did he actually have his berth in the castle proper. It actually felt slightly improper for him to consider this building as somewhere he could relax, and even pausing to consider what he should do he felt uneasy with a worry that someone might reprimand him for goofing off.

“My knight, Ellish, I am so glad to see you.”

He had not jumped at the voice, but his body did twitch with a strength that he considered the lady did notice. Looking at Nalisha, he only saw a polite smile on her face. Ellish however spoke quickly to assure that she did not see any fault in him.


Ellish finishes saying his 'Good-byes.'


History of Mardon Castle
Chapter Nine
Part 3

Ellish moved into the castle slightly uncertain about what he should do. The building reflected what he considered the change in his life. He had spent his career working in and around this fortress, but only now could he consider himself a part of this edifice. As a soldier he had slept out in the barracks, and that had been his home away from home all his life. Rising in rank he had moved to better and better rooms on the castle grounds, but only now as a knight did he actually have his berth in the castle proper. It actually felt slightly improper for him to consider this building as somewhere he could relax, and even pausing to consider what he should do he felt uneasy with a worry that someone might reprimand him for goofing off.

“My knight, Ellish, I am so glad to see you.”

He had not jumped at the voice, but his body did twitch with a strength that he considered the lady did notice. Looking at Nalisha, he only saw a polite smile on her face. Ellish however spoke quickly to assure that she did not see any fault in him.

“Your husband did tell me to speak to you, Viscountess.”

“Now, Ellish, haven’t I told you to call me by my name?”

He bowed, then approached as he said, “I am glad that you appreciate my friendship, but I don’t want you to ever doubt my commitment to my duty. Still, Nalisha, what I want to ask you I do want to ask as a friend.”

A puzzled expression came to her features as she asked, “Oh, and what question do you have?”

“Nalisha, I remember you telling my wife that you knew about me worshipping her. Well, I am going to take my family to Ganfurg, which is a county unto the goddess Thaenir.”

“I know about Ganfurg, Ellish. While it is north of Mardon, it is west of my homeland. As a woman, I have always wanted to visit.”

Ellish waited for the lady to say more, but realizing that she had gone silent he went back to speaking. “Yes, well, I believe that I should visit and find out what type of atonement will be required. With you being pregnant, Tasbirn felt that you might have some offering or matter to present unto the goddess.”

“I guess… such would be… proper – Ellish, how difficult was your travel to the castle?”

He checked his appearance. He really had not rode hard that morning. He however noticed that his attire was disheveled and dirtier than he felt it should be. He did not so much state an excuse, but simply related to the lady with what he had been busy.

“Your husband showed me the net of troll hair. After that I went out to speak to Terniff about possibly having some concern for Thaenir. In moving to Terniff, I had what could be called a ‘meeting’ with Renwyn.”

The lady giggled, then said, “Yes, I believe that Terniff gained more of a man than she expected. Still, he is very devoted to her.” Nalisha looked at the man before her in silence for a moment, then said, “Okay, Ellish, I will release you so you can make yourself presentable. I then want you to come back to me. The evening meal is not that far away, and I would like to spend the time speaking to a friend.”

Ellish bowed again as he said, “Thank you, and I promise that I will not be too long. I also enjoy spending time with friends, and ladies, and you happen to be both.”

He moved away from the viscountess glad that things had gone well, but something about the encounter bothered him. He looked back to see Nalisha walking alone. Most ladies had somebody to associate with during most of their day. Those that did not presently have any circle of friends, generally due to the homes of nobles being spread over the land they protected, still had attendants to keep them company. One thing that his wife liked about her home was that it was near his parents, so there was a daily assurance of company. On occasions when she did find herself alone, Derelly would move about with a number of the higher ranking female servants. Nalisha did not even have those.

Ellish saw one of the elder soldiers holding a position in the hallway. He had the same number of years as Ellish, but did not have the attitude or luck to have advanced. The guard wanted nothing more from his life than assurance of some basic commodities. Ellish however knew the man to have a strong pride in his kingdom, so moved over not fearing speaking to him.

“Korvick, how goes things?”

“Nothing to complain about, Sir Ellish.”

A thought to chide the man for using his title came to mind. The guard had joined the military about the same time that Ellish had. He then thought of Nalisha fussing at him for using her title. Rank did have its purpose, even though friendship had its place as well. Ellish decided to ignore any use of his rank even as he spoke to the man as a friend.

“Listen, Korvick, does the viscountess usually move about her castle alone?”

“Yes. She stops to speak to people however, just like she did to you. Our viscount has always tried to say that he had an open and friendly castle, but the wife he brought back from the war is trying to actually make it a reality.”

Ellish could not ever fault the lady for being ungracious. Her father had welcomed the soldiers from Mardon. Even through the tough times of the conflict, the viscountess’ homeland had been kind to their visiting soldiers. Most thus were not surprised when the princess of the castle showed special favors towards the leader of the foreign troops.

The man however knew of the resentment some felt when Tasbirn chose Nalisha as his bride. Those that had taken ladies of their own simply to have something warm in their beds could not accept that the lady their leader had in his tent had any value. Others had some loyalty to Lady Terniff, and grumbled their feelings that they had been betrayed. Ellish well knew that the unacceptance of Nalisha had resulted in some rather covert actions, so asked a question to ferret out just how strong certain hidden feelings continued to flow.

“Korvick, you are not watching the viscountess to hopefully claim any bonuses or ‘carrots’ that some might be offering?”

“No, Sir Ellish, as what ones I heard about really aren’t that much. I mean, those returning from the war came back rather wealthy, but the crime of killing a noble, especially a noble lady, will result in a rather strong penalty. What ‘bonuses’ or ‘carrots’ I hear about would not even cover the costs of establishing a home in another kingdom, much less pay off any bounty hunters that managed to track me down.”

Hearing such an easy reply caused Ellish to ask a more specific question. “How about any promises from Sekurd?”

“Oh, Baron Zuzolt would rather fight with Tasbirn than go to war with him. Lady Terniff associates with the viscountess. They don’t chatter away like I see happening between other ladies, but I know better than to think that those offers that claim to be from Sekurd are actually supported by the nobles of Sekurd.”

“What do you hear about Kaervel?”

A strange expression crossed the features of the elder soldier before he asked, “Is it true, Sir Ellish, that Kaervel killed his wife?”

“I don’t believe that she was his wife, but, yes, he killed the lady that he had sharing his bed. It hurt him rather badly, but he came back from the war saying that it had been necessary.”

“Well, I was on duty one evening when Kaervel came in and met the viscountess. The two spoke, just like you and her just did, but then he hugged her while promising her that she would one day walk through a dry meadow of flowers.”

Ellish was quiet for a moment as he thought about the promise. The swamp that made up most of Mardon did have its beauty, but the war had him travel through lands that he and the other soldiers considered extremely lovely. He came from his thoughts realizing that the soldier had not said anything while watching him for a response. Ellish allowed himself to smile as he spoke.

“That would be something, wouldn’t it?”

“Yes, Sir, it would.”

“Listen, I am going to be gone for about a month. When I return, I will need to catch myself back up, as Kaervel and Tasbirn will probably be quite along in their projects.” Ellish took a few coins from a purse as he said, “I could take you off duty and have a few beers with you.”

“Would be honored, Sir Ellish.” Seeing the coins in his own hand, the soldier added, “You and I have served together for a long time.”

“I don’t regret any of it. I however would like for my children to grow up with better memories of their lives.”

“I figure all lands have their problems, but I agree that we could have better problems than what we have. I promise to be here keeping things secure, Sir Ellish. Whatever I see or hear while you are gone, I will not mind sharing with you.”

“Thank you, Korvick. Remember that our land has little, so we need to fight for what it has, and that includes the viscountess.”

Hearing the man state his agreement gave Ellish relief. Seeing that the viscountess had moved on without him noticing anyone shadowing her had him also believe that those he considered important would be safe. Feeling that he could leave Mardon without any fear that things could get worse, he moved to his apartment.


I like the next installment. Terniff goes out to fight.