Age of the Gods: The Complete, twelve novel, fantasy series (The Blood and Brotherhood Saga) (40 page)

Three weeks had passed since The Choosing ceremony and for Garret and Zorbin those first three weeks were grueling. The first couple of days had not been too terrible as they were filled with prayer and reading. They had read everything from the histories of the kingdom and of the gods, to war strategies and tomes about surviving in the wild. They read and read nearly twenty hours a day until both Garret thought their heads would explode from all the information.

That was the easy part, however, and after their reading list was finished they started what Sirus had called stamina training. Sirus promised them that by the time he was done with them, they would be able to fight for days without sleep upon a battlefield. Garret couldn’t help but wonder if his new leader and mentor was exaggerating, but it wasn’t long until he realized the man was serious.

They started stamina training the very next morning by running around the perimeter of the castle walls with a cart full of logs strapped across their chests, like a mule at harvest, trailing the cart behind them. Not wanting him to get lazy or complacent, Zorbin decided Xanth should join in on the fun and so the wolf got a cart of his own. They pulled the carts until they could no longer walk. When they fell to their knees Sirus told them that it would be a good time to pray.

Having said their prayers, they would arise again and continue. When the carts became bearable Sirus presented them with armor. At first they both thanked him for the glorious gift, until they learned that now they would be running and pulling the carts dressed in full armor. This, Sirus explained, was not only to break their armor in, but get them used to its weight and feel as well.

It was not long before both Garret and Zorbin hated their armor. Xanth was already accustomed to running in his and so made it look effortless, much to the annoyance of his two-legged companions. When the carts and the armor no longer slowed them down and they could run for hours and hours with them, Sirus told them they were ready for their next task. It of course was less enjoyable than the previous one, consisting of strapping a wooden barrel filled partially with water to their backs and having them run up and down the dozen flights of steep stone steps of the castle wall. They climbed up and down day and night until they could go no longer. As they grew accustomed to the weight, Sirus simply added more water to the barrels. It made for a very long, very painful three weeks. Each night ended with a visit from a young healer named Daniella. She was a pretty young woman with flowing brown curls and green eyes. She would greet them both each night and then, with the blessing of her goddess, would heal their sore muscles and blistered and battered feet. . Garret was growing stronger with each day, and although he was always tired, he felt amazing. Unstoppable.

For twenty-eight hours straight Garret, Zorbin and Xanth had been running the stairs, this time, each with a full barrel of water on their backs. They were still running when Sirus stopped them at the bottom of the wall, a giant grin on his face.

“Having fun yet?” Sirus asked sarcastically.

Barely able to breathe, neither Garret nor Zorbin answered, however, Xanth bobbed his head up and down showing his razor sharp fangs as he grinned.

“Good to see at least one of you enjoys being a knight,” Sirus said, still smiling. “Seriously, however, drop the barrels, guys. The hard part of your stamina training is over. Get some rest, tomorrow we start weapons training.” This Sirus stated without the sarcasm, and stood by as both of his newest recruits unstrapped themselves from the barrels.

After Zorbin removed Xanth’s barrel, the four of them walked across the courtyard toward the knights' small keep within the castle wall. Daniella sat just inside the main entrance at one of the large tables and smiled as they entered. She tended them both quickly while Sirus looked on. Having finished her job, Daniella rose from the table and headed for the door.

“Tomorrow we start weapons, Daniella. Please tell Karishtala we will be requiring your services from sun up until sunset for a while,” Sirus told the young woman as he opened the door for her.

“Yes m’lord,” Daniella replied.

Garret watched as the young woman slipped out the door and Sirus closed the door behind her before seating himself across the table from Garret and Zorbin. Xanth lay upon the floor, his head on his paws and his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth. They sat quietly a few moments until their food was brought to them. Garret now was easily able to eat ten times the amount of food at one sitting than he had only a few weeks before. His body required a massive amount of nourishment to sustain him through the vigorous training Sirus was imposing on them. He couldn’t help but wonder what Seth would say if he were to see how much he ate these days. He also wondered how his twin fared. He’d not seen his brother since The Choosing.

As they were finishing their food, the large entry door swung open and Garret and Zorbin both turned to see who it was that was arriving to the garrison at this late hour. A young man stepped through the door closing it quickly behind him. Garret watched as the man approached the table nodding once toward Sirus. He was a tall, lean man with long, sandy-blonde hair cut to his shoulders and tied in a single braid down his neck. His face was free of anything remarkable. Though he was thin, every line of every exposed muscle of his body was etched deeply, revealing a very lean but very capable man. He took long, fast strides, rounding the table in mere steps and came to stand beside Sirus. Sirus rose to greet the newcomer, and turning to face both Garret and Zorbin he looked at them with yet another grin on his face.

“Gentlemen, I would like to introduce you to Philip, your fellow Knight of Valdadore, Sirus announced, watching them to witness their reactions.

Garret rose from the table and, extending his hand, introduced himself, watching as his dwarf companion did the same. After exchanging their names, Zorbin introduced Xanth who padded up to see the newcomer. Uninterested, Xanth quickly returned to the end of the table and curled up below it once again.

“Let us sit and talk for a while,” Sirus invited.

Sirus, Garret and Zorbin quickly took their seats and Philip sat himself beside Sirus, as Garret watched his mentor’s expression chang to one of concern.

“So what news from the south Philip? It seems you must have been delayed,” Sirus asked, taking note of the younger man’s expression.

“The dark army grows by the day, Sirus, but they have yet to make a move towards our forces. I know not what keeps them waiting as they easily outnumber us by at least two-fold. Some humans and ogres fight with them though the force is mostly made of goblins, ogres and orcs. I was not delayed so much as curious. I traced their supply lines deep into enemy territory, and discovering nothing very useful, I decided to hold up their caravans for a few weeks.” As Philip made the last statement, Garret saw the corners of his mouth rise slightly.

“Tell us of your deeds, Philip. I know you are dying to give us the details and I am quite sure our new friends here are just as anxious to hear them as you are to tell them,” Sirus stated grinning once again.

“Well, first I happened across a long line of wagons. Some were filled with grain and others with some sort of ale, and let me tell you someone should explain to the orcs just how flammable that combination can be!” Philip paused to let his three companions stop laughing before continuing.

“Wait though, that’s not the best part. I decided that by day I would keep my distance but I remained close enough that I could keep an eye on their progress. Each night for a full week I would run up and down the supply line for over a hundred miles and untie all the pack animals and any animal pulling a cart. Then the poor bastards would spend half the next day tracking down the beasts before starting the line moving again. It got so bad at the end of the week that every cow and mule for a hundred miles had its own personal guard. Then when the animals were too heavily guarded for me to continue without risk of injury, I decided to change tactics. I waited until the middle of the night then I raced to the nearest camp. I darted from one tent to another, snatching small items of value from each tent and placed each item in a different tent. After I finished with one camp, I moved onto the next. It might not sound too devious but you should have seen the results the following morning. Imagine if you will an entire encampment of militant goblins and orcs waking up to find they have been robbed. It didn’t take long for them to begin accusing one another and searching one another’s tents. Once that began, it was utter chaos. Within an hour of daylight every camp for nearly a hundred miles was up in arms and the slimy bastards were slaughtering one another for offences none of them committed. Needless to say, I don’t think that the enemy’s supply lines will be moving again for several days, if not weeks.” Philip’s grin stretched from one ear to the other.

“I hate to be the one to encourage you, but that was good thinking and good work, Philip. If you have even bought us a few extra days, it was worth the trouble and the delay to yourself,” Sirus said. “Now, how are the rest of the men?”

“The men are good. They do not look forward to the coming battle, but they are ready and waiting. I spent a day with them before venturing further south and they seem to have everything in order for you when you return. Enough with that though, we can discuss the details tomorrow. What about you? How comes your training?” Philip asked with a look of genuine curiosity upon his face.

“These two, or should I say three including Xanth, have just finished up their stamina training,” Sirus stated.

“You mean the wolf did the training as well?” Philip asked, this time looking to Zorbin for an answer.

“Indeed he did, Master Philip,” Zorbin stated simply. “It is a rare occasion for one of us to be without the other. Even in training.”

“I see,” Philip replied. “Also Zorbin, and you as well Garret, please just call me Philip,” Philip stated. “So has either of you received a blessing yet?” He added with a hopeful look.

Both Garret and Zorbin shook their heads, obviously disappointed.

“Let us not rush too much, Philip. They have already had to complete stamina training twice as fast as you had to do it, and if you remember correctly, you weren’t blessed until after weapons training,” Sirus reassured them in his deep calm voice.

“Oh, I remember all right. One second I’m charging you across the sparring field, the next second I’m getting peeled off the stones of the castle wall having run straight into it at an uncontrollable speed.” Philip smiled ruefully as he remembered the first day of his blessing. “I hope for your sake that neither of you gets the blessing I have. Don’t get me wrong, it would be great to have someone who can keep up, but man, training gets a little out of control when not even you can see what you are doing, you move so fast.” He added with a chuckle.

“You certainly kept us all on our toes for a while,” Sirus said as both of them grinned knowingly. “Well, we should let these guys go and get some rest and tomorrow you can help us with weapons training, Philip.”

Bidding his mentor and Philip a good night, Garret followed Zorbin down the hall with the giant wolf trailing behind them. He went straight to his room, undressed, and fell into his bed exhausted. Before any thoughts of what the following day might bring even entered his head, he was deeply asleep. Though he never stirred during the night, his mind was busy creating dreams of fantastical abilities that could one day be bestowed upon him. It was no surprise when the dreams turned from possible blessings to dreams of the god Gorandor himself. But it was no coincidence that even Zorbin shared an identical dream of the god in which they were asked to swear their souls to him once again. Upon repeating their oaths, both Garret and Zorbin dreamed of the god holding them within the palm of his hand as if weighting their worth literally. Seemingly satisfied the god disappeared and the fantasies of special powers returned.

Xanth squirmed at the end of Zorbin’s bed. He too dreamed of the god, only the beast recognized the presence much more acutely than had the men. Images flashed through the wolf’s intuitive mind and Xanth’s feelings for each image were noted by the presence there. When shown an image of Zorbin bleeding upon his back and an ogre standing before the lifeless body of the dwarf, Xanth growled loudly in his sleep. It seemed to be the answer the presence wanted, and it quickly departed the wolf’s mind. As the presence passed through the mind of the beast, however, it changed something. The change was subtle yet noticeable, and though Xanth slept, he knew that something was unlike it had been before the visit.

Garret slept peacefully through the entire night until late morning. Sirus always awoke early but must have decided that his new charges needed a good night’s rest to revive their bodies, and allowed them to sleep in. When Garret did finally awake, breakfast was waiting for him in the dining hall, as were Sirus and Philip. Garret was the first to arrive, but Zorbin and Xanth were only a few minutes behind him. They each greeted one another and made quick work of their food.

“Weapons training is going to go a bit different than it usually would, but as we are short on time, I think it best to make these changes,” Sirus stated, and continued after a slight pause. “Generally we would teach you to wield each and every weapon in the armory. Due to our lack of time, however, I should ask each of you to choose a single weapon that is of your liking and we shall concentrate on whatever weapon you might choose.” Sirus concluded.

Finished with their breakfast, Philip headed out to the knight’s sparring ground and Sirus led Garret and Zorbin to the armory. Swinging the large wooden door open, Sirus stepped aside to allow his charges entrance before him. Zorbin was first to enter and muttered something about the high quality of the weapons in his deep guttural voice. Garret on the other hand said nothing, instead he looked around the room in astonishment. The room’s walls were each entirely covered in large wooden racks, and each rack was filled to capacity with the largest assortment of weapons Garret had ever seen amassed in one place. Maces and mauls, as well as swords, daggers and bows lined one wall. Spears and staves shared another with scythes and lances. Garret was uncertain of the names of many of the weapons, though he was well aware they all served the same purpose. Killing.

Garret already knew the weapon he was looking for, and located several of them to choose from almost immediately. Walking to the stand filled with large, dual-edged swords, Garret sized them to find one of similar dimensions to that which he already owned. Choosing one, Garret hefted the weapon easily in one hand and then tested its weight with both hands. The sword was indeed equal in size to the one he had received as a gift from his friends in Vineleaf what felt like a lifetime ago, yet this blade felt unbelievably light. Garret decided to use this sword despite its unusual lightness and reached back into the rack to retrieve the sheath too. Sheathing the large sword, Garret turned to watch as Zorbin too chose a weapon.