Tom Liberman - The Staff of Sakatha

“You’ve been saying that for near on a month now Jon,” said Sorus. “Maybe the First Rider isn’t here because he wants to see if you really are someone to talk to.”

Jon gave off a long sigh, looked at the pan of biscuits with a bit of a forlorn cast to his eyes, and then stood up with a great yawn. “Maybe I’ll go talk to that crazy old coot that’s trying to get himself killed. There might be something interesting there.”

“Sir Germanius isn’t an old coot,” said Sorus. “He’s a highly decorated knight of the realm but he’s gotten old and hasn’t managed to get himself killed in battle yet. It’s a stain on his reputation. The older he gets the more he wants to go out in a blaze of glory.”

“I’ll never really understand you people,” said Jon. “He should be laying back and enjoying retirement supported by all the people he’s helped over the years.”

“That’s not the way it is here in Elekargul Jon,” said Sorus. “But, you’ve been told that many times so I don’t see the point in repeating a lesson that won’t be learned. You should talk to him; see if you can find something to do with him. He’s a good old egg if you’d give him a chance.”

Jon stood up and grabbed a leather jerkin casually tossed over the back of a chair and noted a large yellow stain prominent on the front. He tried to brush this off, and managed to remove some of the crusty material, but what was left behind wasn’t any more appealing. Finally he gave up the attempt and threw the thing over his shoulder and left the house. He was pretty familiar with the town by now and walked directly to the tanner where Germanius lived and worked.

In the back yard four or five boys busied themselves with various tasks while the real operator of the shop, Titus Tanner, barked out orders and kept the young apprentices in line. He was a short man with some child of dragon blood in his veins as his neck had a few scaly spots as did his arms. “Hey Titus,” said Jon with a wave and several of the young boys looked at Jon their eyes alight with excitement. “Have you seen Germanius?”

Titus pointed with his head towards the grizzled old veteran whose gray hair was just visible from around the side of a shed. Jon ambled over in that direction and found the old man as he hobbled along with the help of a cane and tried to drag a deer hide to the back of the yard. “Let me grab that,” said Jon and took the thing easily in one hand and threw it over his shoulder. “Here, put your arm around me and I’ll get you back to your chair,” said Jon to Germanius.

“There’s going to be a fair?” said Germanius and looked at Jon suspiciously and then to the sky. “It’s a little too early in the year for the summer fair,” he said a bit too loudly and Jon smiled.

“Chair,” he said and pointed to the big rocking chair the old knight usually occupied. “I’ll take you to the chair,” he said in a loud voice that enunciated each word.

“No need to yell,” said Germanius with a smile and patted Jon on the back. He put his arm around the big gray knight and let himself be helped back to the chair which he sank into with a sigh. “Damn knee,” he said. “It’s never been the same since them Grelm orcs attacked in the year of Stanus Brokenhand’s second tour as First Rider.”

“You’ve told me that one, old fella,” said Jon with a smile. “Listen, I was thinking we might take a trip up the river to that old cairn I spotted when I was coming out of the hills. It had a symbol on it I’ve been thinking about.”

“Eh, what’s that?” said Germanius who leaned over and cupped his ear with his palm.

“Up in the Mountains of the Orc, a symbol,” said Jon loudly into the ear of the old warrior.

“I’ve been there many a time,” said Germanius sitting back in his rocker with a smile. “Me and old Mikus Brokenhand went up there. When was it, about forty years ago the year of… who was the First Rider that year? I remember that young Buffalorider fellow tried but it was a Coinkeeper. Magnus or his brother Quintus I think. But, no Quintus was a Wingedhorseman, one of the last before the Hoof Rot wiped out the stock. In any case we found a cave with one of those ruins from the Old Empire but it was still pretty much working because we accidently summoned something from the demon world. A fire creature as I recall, a real beauty she was, tried to kill us of course, but Mikus charmed the socks off the poor thing and had his way with her right then and there. He was always a bit of a ladies man but that’s messing with fire if you catch my drift. I remember once when we were boys; that was in the year Cincattus took First Rider for the sixth or seventh time. That boy Cincattus, now there was a real knight.”

Jon Gray sat quietly and let the old man tell his stories for a while and soaked up the mid-morning sun until one of the boys in the yard came over and gave him a cup of ale which he drank with large and practiced quaffs. Normally on a day like this several of the young apprentice tanners might come over to him and ask him about the excitement of his long journey to Elekargul or about life in Tanelorn but they didn’t seem to be as interested in the last week or so. “So, Germanius,” said Jon, leaning back in his chair, and stretching mightily as his long arms reached for the sky. What do you say, into the mountains for glory?”

“Glory?” said Germanius his ears suddenly perked up.

Jon nodded his head. “Glory it will be!”

“Is it dangerous?” said Germanius his body suddenly alert and his eyes gleamed.

“Very,” said Jon loudly and nodded his head in exaggerated movements.

“When do we go?” said the elderly warrior, flexing his knee and looking Jon steadily in the eye.

“Tomorrow morning?” said Jon as he pursed his lips.

The gray haired old warrior nodded his head. “I’ll be at the north gate at dawn.” Then he got up and limped slowly out of the yard while Jon watched with a shake of his head.

“That old coot will forget by morning,” he said aloud and smiled. “Still, I’ll see if Sorus wants to join me and I might get in good with young Mikus by inviting him.” With that the young son of the Gray Lord stood up and decided to head to the Smooth Stride first to talk with Sorus and then over to the manor house and talk with the son of the mayor.

An hour later, Sir Thorius sat in his usual place behind the wooden desk while his son eagerly explained the events a few moments before. “He wants me to come with him up to the Mountains of the Orc!” said the boy his eyes wide in excitement. “He’s taking old Germanius, so it must be dangerous. I’ll get a chance to do something heroic, gain my knighthood!”

“Germanius agreed to go,” said Thorius as his hand gently rubbed his chin. “He might just be grasping at straws for his last charge,” mused the mayor, “he doesn’t think particularly clearly these days and we haven’t had an invasion in five years.”

“It would give me a chance to spy on Jon too,” said Mikus putting his hands on his father’s desk as his eyes glowed with eagerness.

Thorius looked up at his son lazily and smiled, “Don’t try and con your father, Mikus. You want to go for the glory of it. But, you make a point. If the son of the Gray Lord does something cowardly you could tell everyone about it. Who else is going with you, anyone of importance, that damned Odellius?”

“I think Sorus Brewer is coming. Jon lives at his house but I don’t think any of the other knights are coming. Everyone is kind of bored with Jon now. He just sits around doing nothing,” said Mikus his shoulders drooping a little. “But maybe this will shake him out of it!”

“Possibly,” said Thorius with a sly smile as he sat back in his chair. “I’m beginning to think that boy is not nearly as brave as he wants people to believe. He is strong, there is no doubt of that, but he’s probably led a life of luxury, the son of a ruler, everything has gone his way. Now, he faces real adversity and he responds by lazing around drinking, eating, and whoring with what’s her name that little tramp.”