The Temporal Knights (12 page)

Sir Elid, now a little wiser and more cautious, bent and stood ready, this time he would not attack.

‘Let the quick one attack through my defenses,’
he thought, as Sadao stood relaxed, bobbing slightly on the balls of his feet. Sadao smiled when no attack came, then with blinding speed he erupted, wading quickly in on his opponent. Seconds later Sir Elid was again disarmed and on his back. Once more hoots and cheers filled the hall, and again Sadao helped up his opponent, who, though certainly without polish was not completely lacking in skill. Sadao thought Sir Elid showed much promise, and with a little time and a good teacher, he could become formidable indeed. Again they got set, and again in mere seconds Sir Elid was on his back.

“This is no sport,” Jefferies said and launched himself over the table. “Stop playing with the poor man, Sadao. You always were an insufferable show off.”

Jefferies pulled Sir Elid to his feet, who understood all too well just how badly he’d been beaten. Not only had he not even been able to touch his opponent, but he had been bested three times with hardly a mark on him, no lumps, and only a few bruises on the back of his legs and hands. It was unbelievable. The stranger was indeed his superior, and he moved humbly back to his seat as Jefferies now took up his staff. He made a decision then and there to learn everything he could from this Sergeant Sadao.

“Come on man. Let’s show them what you can really do,” Jefferies whispered as he passed his friend, who nodded, and then suddenly they were a blur of attacking moves, blocks, and counter moves. Back and forth they raced across the floor, jumping and spinning with dizzying speed. They whirled about with such grace and precision that if not for the constant crack of wood on wood, you’d think the two men were dancing. But they were not dancing and the Ealdorman, Elid and the rest of the knights in the room could only look on with wonder. The match finally ended with Jefferies on his back, breathing hard and laughing at his small friend’s skill. Sir Elid, to his credit, cheered the victory loudest of all, truly impressed; as was the Ealdorman.

“Can ye fight?” Lady Ellyn asked Matt, just a little breathless. She was looking at him in awe, even though he hadn’t left his seat.

Matt chuckled. “Well, I am a soldier,” he answered but compared to most of the men around him, only a fair one at hand to hand. “But my main job is a pilot.”

“Pylot?” she asked rolling the strange word off of her tongue.

“Yeah, pilot. I fly airplanes,” he said very aware of the good female smell of the girl as she leaned close to him. It was in great contrast to the pungent human odors that filled the rest of the hall. It was making him giddy, and so he almost missed the look of fright in her eyes.

“What’s wrong?”

“Ye
be a man?” she asked, suddenly very concerned she was consorting with a demon. Earlier in the evening, she was very worried about the other, more exotic looking specimens among the strangers. She fearfully wondered if they were true men or not. She never even considered that this seemingly normal, though very nice looking stranger next to her, might in fact be of some magical make-up.

Matt laughed at her fears. “Yes I am a man.”

“Ha then,” she said and her face blushed with anger, “ye be a teasin’ me. For how can a man fly?” She asked clearly vexed.

Matt could tell that she was upset with him, which was the last thing on Earth that he wanted right now but instead of reacting to her anger, he took a deep calming breath. He glanced quickly around before answering and discovered that he now also had the attention of Father Gillian and several others around him.

“I don’t fly myself, personally,” Matt answered, lightly tapping his chest, “but I fly an airplane. It’s like a boat that flies through the air. If you would like to go up with me I could ask the General. I don’t see any reason why he’d object.”

“Forsooth?”
She asked, real fear now in her eyes, but also something else, a desire Matt found to be very appealing.

“Forsooth,” Matt answered with a grin.

“Ye be teasing me...na flying boat. Na ayreplain,” she dismissed his claim.

“Forsooth,” Matt said again. “You must have seen it. Gardner flew the plane over the grounds just the day before yesterday.”

The Lady Ellyn stared at him blankly for a long moment and then her eyes got very wide, but she said nothing.

“Thee dragon!”
Father Gillian exclaimed, loud enough to attract even more attention to Matt’s way.

Matt frowned, thinking about it. Yes, these people who knew nothing of
flight, might just take a Bot for a dragon, though it was clearly ridiculous. He paused a moment to consider the possibility. Yes, it might be possible, and he did remember the Ealdorman say something about dragons the other day.

“Yes, maybe the dragon,” Matt answered. “But it was no dragon. It was an airplane.”

“I can fly in thee dragon?” Ellyn asked.

“Ye have caught and tamed a dragon?” Father Gillian asked at the same time.

“No, we haven’t caught a dragon, and yes you may fly in the airplane,” he said answering both questions with a sigh.

“A dragon!”
Lady Ellyn said excitedly and then she jumped up and rushed off to tell Sir Oldalf, her father.

The news spread quickly and created such excitement that there was little General Peebles could have done if he had wanted to call off the girl’s ride. But as it turned out, he thought it would be another good way to show off their abilities without hurting a soul, which was their main goal at the moment. The feast suddenly took on an air of expectation and celebration. The rest of the night passed so quickly that it wasn’t until well after midnight that
the General was able to round up his men and bid the Ealdorman and his Lady goodnight. On the way back to the camp everyone was thrilled that their first true meeting with the locals had gone so successfully, but the Ealdorman was not quite as comfortable.

“Tis a worrisome thing,” the Ealdorman was saying up in their private rooms as he slowly changed into his nightclothes.

“Yah,” Merwinna answered, “but methinks the strangers be good and honest men. Ye saw how they fought…with gallantry. Ye saw how they obey the Genaral,” she added, slightly surprised that she found herself coming to the newcomer’s defense. “They be well mannered gentlemen. Clearly they be na rabble come to rape and pillage the countryside...” she continued, feeling her face blush at the thought.

The Ealdorman had to concede the point. The strangers were clearly of gentle blood, but he still had not given up the thought that they might be some sort of dragonkind, or some other mystical race come to seduce his people.

“I h’ve heard of an Elfking that haunts the Visigoths. Tis said he hast some magical knowledge over the sky and wind that allows him to fly...but this had more the look of a dragon. Ye saw the beast,” he added, watching his wife comb her hair. He was tired of thinking and wished she would come to bed.

“
Yah, methinks it may na be a beast,” she said simply. “Wot of the moving wagons...think they are still beast?”

“Na,” the Ealdorman said, disgusted with her. He grew tired of waiting and climbed into bed, carefully arranging the bed curtains though he knew she would just disturb them again when she retired.

“Master Leoforic has sent word to his father in Mercia. Mayhap Lord Æthelred will know whether these men be magical or flesh,” he said and then rolled over ending the conversation.

“Mayhap we will see about the dragon in the morn then,” she replied finally finishing up. She came to bed all smiles and the Ealdorman was surprised to find her frisky and verily willing after the long night.

Chapter Four

G
eneral Peebles was up early the next morning sitting on the hood of a hummer and watching as a dozen women worked the nearby fields in the growing light. After a bit of a hunt, Colonel Lemay spotted his superior and joined him.

“This airplane ride’s a bit of a risk,” Lemay commented as he leaned against the grill of the large vehicle. His back was to his commander as he too gazed at the women not fifty yards away. They were pulling weeds, tending plants and tossing rocks from the furrows. Both men were entranced by the vision and rediscovered the powerful love they felt for the female form. They’d missed it terribly over the last five years.

Peebles remained silent for a time, but Lemay didn’t press him. He was enjoying the view, though the women’s bodies were mostly hidden beneath thick wool skirts. The workers ranged in age from a girl who didn’t look old enough to be in her teens, to a gray haired, haggard old woman, who worked with far more energy than any of her companions. Lemay found he loved the look of each and every one of them. He liked the color of their hair, the slim set of their shoulders, the flair of their hips and the way their breasts pushed against their soiled tops.

“They are a sight,” Peebles whispered softly…happy and content. “The risk is worth it,” he finally answered. “The chances of a crash are very, very slim.”

Lemay nodded, not taking his eyes from the women. A middle-aged looker was moving their way, throwing rocks about with abandon. The Colonel figured five years ago he wouldn’t have given someone like her a second glance, but now she was a great beauty and he had a powerful desire to be with her…though to be fair he had a powerful desire to be with them all.

He sighed. It was a pity he couldn’t live long enough to know them all, hold them all and love them all. The Colonel smiled, wondering what his men would make of such thoughts, not that anyone would ever know. He had the reputation of being a hard ass and the toughest man left alive. Over the years he had to knock a few heads and bust in a few teeth, but hard times called for hard men and if his men couldn’t handle him, they sure as hell couldn’t handle the Skawps.

“Well let’s pray we roll a lucky seven then,” the Colonel replied.

“Yes, let’s…” the General answered then gasped as a buxom young brunette bent at the waist and gave them both a clear shot down her loose bodice.

“You all right?” The Colonel asked, feigning concern.

“Hell yes…just damned happy to be here,” Peebles answered, unaware that a slight smile was stuck to his face and had been all morning.

An hour later the entire countryside was buzzing about the airplane flight, and though he still thought the trip was a good idea, Peebles still warned Major Thane to take it very easy. A crash at this junction would not be a good P.R. move. He agreed with Dr. Rice that the flight should be held later in the day. At dinner the night before, Rice was placed next to Master Leoforic, son of Æthelred, King of Mercia, and husband to Æthelf
læ
d, Alfred’s eldest daughter. Leoforic told Rice that word of their arrival was spreading like wildfire throughout the lower kingdom.

“Sir Æthelnoth has sent word to me Da at Langport,” Leoforic confided openly. “He hath sent messengers all about, even to Sir Eadwulf of Rochester, who’s said to be on his way to scout the Lizard.”

“Messengers?” Rice asked suddenly feeling uncomfortable.

“Yah, mayhap the Earl of Kent
be stoppin’. I know me Da will come soon, being only at Langport, and mayhap other notables from the west be comin’ to meet with ye.”

  It took Rice some doing but he finally got the young man to reveal that Sir Eadwulf, the Earl of Kent, was one of King Alfred’s top advisors, and overseer of much of the eastern lands. He was also the strongest warlord in lower England other than the King himself, even rivaling the strength of Leoforic’s father, Sir Æthelred of Mercia. So Rice convinced his General to delay the flight in the off chance that Leoforic’s father might make an appearance. He thought it would be well worth the wait if as many influential people as possible witnessed the flight. He also suggested that the Major fly to the south and west, and perhaps do a bit of scouting for Sir Eadwulf and his party.

General Peebles agreed, though he was growing concerned at the arrival of all the nobility. The General was finding it nearly impossible to keep all the bizarre names straight.

“I’ll never be able to remember all the Æthelwhoever’s names and titles,” he confided, but Rice just laughed.

“It will be easier when you can put a face to the name.

Late in the morning Rice was waiting for Leoforic, who was a delightful youth of fifteen. The boy was eager to learn, and simply captivated by the little small things the good doctor had on his person the previous night. Leoforic was especially intrigued by his wrist watch and a ball point pen. He played with the pen nearly the entire meal, first clicking the point out and in and then making fine gothic letters on the back of a scrap of paper Gordon had given him. He only stopped his doodling when Sir Elid and Sadao had battled, and during the exhibition put on later by the Sergeant and Jefferies. The fighting simply mesmerized the lad and quickly raised the strangers to near god status in his eyes.

The boy was supposed to meet Gordon at the edge of the tent camp near midday, but as yet Rice had not spotted him. In fact, there were very few local men up at this hour, though many peasant women and children were milling about both in and out of the camp. Apparently the night before, the festivities on the outside of the Manor were just as lively as those taking place within the Manor Hall. The celebration went a long way in easing the suspicions of the local population, and as he waited, Rice was happy to see several soldiers interacting with some of the locals. Corporal Bayless and Private Starling were talking with a group of peasant women and Stuart Greybon was playing with Eve and a crowd of local youngsters. The children, who were more accepting and would take a smile and a kind word at face value, were running everywhere about the tents and machinery, but they were told not to touch, and for the most part they did not. Eve was leading a group of kids and Stuart all about the camp, and Rice was happily aware of her high pitched giggle all during his wait. The local children were good for both her and the men. They were a constant reminder of the immediate future, something that was severely lacking in the past years for any of them. Nearly all the soldiers were up and about early, mostly due to habit, but partly out of excitement. There were a few, those who had the night watch, and at least three who’d succumbed to the powerfully brewed mead, that remained in bed this morning. Undoubtedly some would come crawling to him for aspirin later, but the rest were up and eager to get to know more about the people of this land. Overall though, the General should be proud. The men conducted themselves like gentlemen, and were up and about their duties, just as normal. Several soldiers were already working on the disabled hummers, attracting small crowds of locals, men and women, who watched on curiously.

Rice was pulled from his thoughts as Matt Thane walked up to him.

“Have you seen the Lady Ellyn this morning?”

Gordon smiled at the younger man.
“No, not yet. I’m waiting for Leoforic of Mercia. Would you like to wait with me?”

“No, that’s all right. I just wanted to get the girl as familiar with the Bot as possible before the flight. But I still need to work on the ship. Blish and Turnbull should already be there.”

        “What do you think? Will they get it back online soon?”

Matt rubbed his forehead in disgust. “I don’t know. From what they tell me, the ship should already be online. All the necessary contacts and circuit boards have been replaced, the ship’s diagnostic computers give the all clear, but the engines will not come up. It’s as frustrating for them as it is for me, and I think they’re running out of ideas.

“That’s not good,” Rice replied with a frown, but then he finally spotted Leoforic, and waved to the boy. “It makes our job here that much more delicate and important.”

Matt agreed as he watched the boy run up to meet them.

“Morn,” the lad greeted both men.

“Good morning,” Rice and Thane answered in unison.

“Well, I have to run now,” Matt said and walked away.

“Then ye
na wantin’ to know wot thee womenfolk be saying of ye?” Leoforic said in teasing fashion. Matt stopped dead in his tracks as Leoforic winked at Rice, who smiled back.

Matt turned around to face the boy again.

“Ye be the talk of all the ladies, especially one call Ellyn.”

“Is that so?”

“Yah, and though I only be fifteen, and not yet a man, I’d wager the Lady is a bit smitten with ye,” he added and Gordon laughed at Matt’s reaction. His emotions played out so evidently over his face it was as if he were the boy and Leoforic the experience man. Finally Matt laughed with Gordon, then and turned with a wave and headed to his ship.

“Yah, and I durst say yonder man be smitten w’th the Lady Ellyn as well,” Leoforic said with a smile.

Gordon looked down at his new friend. “You are wise beyond your years, and know entirely too much of such things. Come; let me show you that map of England.”

He led the boy to his tent. Leoforic entered cautiously at first but was soon moving from place to place excitedly, and very common objects took on a new wonder for Rice through the boy’s eyes. Rice looked on with a smile as Leoforic rummaged through the desk asking about absolutely everything; pencils, scissors, staplers, staple remover, pencil sharpeners, erasers...they all fascinated the boy. He was especially excited by the electric light on the desk and at first paid no special mind to the computer next to it. Gordon patiently explained the purpose of all these things, then flipped on the computer and called up the map of England. The boy was immediately captivated.

“I am not sure the names are all the same, but here’s Somerset, and over here is Shaftesbury, where you said Lord Eadwulf was traveling. Can you tell me where we are?”

Leoforic bent and studied the map for a long time. Maps were his passion, and he was always hunting up the charts of the day from his father and redrawing them himself, but this map was larger and far more detailed than any map he had ever seen before. All the shoreline and islands off England, Scotland, and Ireland were outlined very precisely. He spent a few minutes locating familiar towns then pointed northwest of Bridport, along the Exe River, in the middle of nowhere.

“I think we are here,” he said proudly, sure that he was correct. “Tis finely drawn, but tis it a good map? It shows us nothing of the Ealdorman’s lands.”

“For its time it is very accurate...see here’s London,” Rice explained pointing out the famous city. Leoforic frowned for a moment and then exclaimed.

“Ah Lundenwic…ya,” the boy corrected, clearly excited.

“Lundenwic,” Rice repeated. “Now where would King Alfred be?” The question, asked of anyone else, would have raised much suspicion, but the boy did not even hesitate and again studied the map. He struggled at first because some of the names of towns were new, some were absent, and all the words were strangely spelled.

“He be here in his new burh at Winchester,” he said after only a moment. “Tis a fine map,” he added.

Gordon hit a button and printed it out for the boy, who stepped back a bit confused. He moved over to the printer and studied the paper suspiciously, wondering if the map had always been there. Rice understood what was in his mind, smiled and showed Leoforic that the very top piece of the printer was now blank and then he slipped it back in place, called up the map of Scotland and printed it up. When it was finished he showed the boy that the map was now on the paper. Leoforic eagerly took both maps, and Gordon let him print up Ireland on his own. The boy was hooked.

“Ye have a map of the Frankish?”

Gordon smiled. “Well yes, we have maps of the entire world.” Leoforic gasped and made the sign of the cross, and Rice frowned worried perhaps that he had gone too far. These people were so superstitious it was hard to know what they would accept and what they would not.

“Thee entire world...tis na possible,” Leoforic argued but he was clearly excited. Rice decided to take a chance on the boy; after all it was the youth of each generation who usually embraced change first.

He called up the world map. Leoforic went wild, wanting to know the names of every land mass. Gordon showed him where he was from, and explained that this map was not exactly to scale, since it was flat and the Earth itself is round.”

“Round...surely not,” Leoforic chided, and suddenly everything this man had told him came into question. Everyone knew that the Earth was flat, not round. It was ridiculous. Then Gordon called up a picture of Earth from a satellite, and the boy had his first shaky moments of doubt. Slowly he reached out and touched the computer screen as if to make sure the image he saw was real. Then Rice showed him a picture of Earth rise from the moon, but had to explain exactly what the boy was seeing. When Leoforic finally did understand what was being said, Rice was afraid he might faint. He showed him several other pictures of Earth from space, but still the boy was unconvinced.

“Tis
impossible, or do we all live on the very top?” He asked, a note of hysteria in his voice. “Those on the bottom would surely fall and die.”