Child of Flame (Crown of Stars 4)

The cleric raised her arms. “Let the trial begin.”

Sapientia poured ale into the two cups. Three noble witnesses from each army examined them and proclaimed themselves satisfied that they held an equal amount. Carefully, the cups were handed up, one to Bayan and one to Sanglant.

All this time, Blessing clung to Heribert’s shoulders and did not speak one word, only stared, wide-eyed.

o;It does seem odd to me,” said Zacharias to Heribert, glancing around to make sure no one was paying attention to them, “that Prince Bayan commands her army in all but name.” They stood behind the chair, placed to the left of Sapientia’s, set aside for Blessing.

“Does it? That’s not what puzzles me. King Henry must have guessed that whatever man married Sapientia would be likely to rule as her equal, not her consort. Bayan’s a good man, but he isn’t Wendish and he’s scarcely a Daisanite. How can Henry think the Wendish nobles, much less a duke as proud as Conrad, would accept a foreign king reigning over them?”

Behind them, Blessing shrieked. She was crouching on the edge of the stream, half lost in the rushes that crowded the shore, tossing stones into the water while Anna, Matto, and Lord Thiemo hovered next to her to make sure she didn’t fall in.

Zacharias smiled derisively. “Do not ask me, Brother. I am only a common-born frater.”

“So you are,” agreed Heribert amiably. “But much cleaner than you were when we first met you. As outside, so inside. I still value your insight.”

“I have nothing insightful to say on this subject. Of the king’s progress and its intrigues I remain ignorant, as befits my station.”

A shout rose from the assembled armies. Blessing leaped up, tottered unbalanced on the edge of the stream, and was caught by Thiemo, who escorted her back to the pavilion. She climbed up to stand on the seat of her chair.

“Here, now, Your Highness,” Heribert said reprovingly as she clung to his shoulders, trying to get a good look out along the meadow. “Remember your dignity.”

“Look!” Lord Thiemo’s words were echoed by those nobles clustered under the shade of the pavilion. “Here they come.” He pointed toward the two riders approaching the pavilion through the grass, one from the north and one from the south. Both horses were being led, giving their approach a dignified pace suitable to the gravity of the occasion.

“Why Wolfhere?” Zacharias demanded, feeling the familiar gnaw of envy at his gut as he watched the old Eagle leading Prince Sanglant’s horse.

Heribert’s answering smile was bittersweet. “This isn’t easy for him, you know. Best to remind everyone from the outset how far outside the king’s approval he stands.”

It took Zacharias a moment to realize that Heribert was not speaking of Wolfhere.

Bayan and Sanglant were both outfitted in their armor, although they weren’t wearing their helmets. Sanglant wore his sword slung over his back, in the manner of a traveler, while Bayan’s swore was belted at his hip. Bayan wore a tabard of snow-white linen with a two-headed eagle embroidered in red, the sigil of Ungria, and dagged ends in alternating red and white that flowed past his knees. Sanglant wore a plain gold tabard, without any identifying sigil, his only ornament the magnificent dragon helm, which he carried under one arm. Sapientia moved forward with a trio of ladies, one holding a tray set with two silver cups and a second carrying a pitcher. The third, a cleric, stood slightly to one side.

“She doesn’t look pregnant,” muttered Lord Thiemo.

“Hush, my lord,” said Anna sharply, the way one would to a wayward brother. “A woman may be waxing without being full. It’s said she hasn’t burned holy rags for three months. If a woman isn’t bleeding, then she must be pregnant. That’s what they always said in Gent.”

“I’ve seen cases where women weren’t bleeding but nevertheless were not—” began Zacharias, but Thiemo cut him off.

“Nay, Anna is right. I was wrong to speak so.” He looked at her, and she at him; an odd alliance, when you thought of it: the young lordling and the nut-brown common girl, almost a woman. Zacharias could not shake the feeling that there was something more to it than their devotion to Blessing. Even Matto, standing behind them, had been drawn in although he had at first been jealous of Thiemo. They formed a tight circle that ringed the little girl.

The two combatants came to a halt about ten paces apart. Sanglant took the reins from Wolfhere and handed the Eagle his helm. Bayan exchanged helm for reins with his Ungrian groom. Then the riders moved around so they sat side by side as though poised for a race. They did not look at each other.

The cleric raised her arms. “Let the trial begin.”

Sapientia poured ale into the two cups. Three noble witnesses from each army examined them and proclaimed themselves satisfied that they held an equal amount. Carefully, the cups were handed up, one to Bayan and one to Sanglant.

All this time, Blessing clung to Heribert’s shoulders and did not speak one word, only stared, wide-eyed.

Those on foot stepped back, to leave the field clear for the duelists. Captain Thiadbold of the Lions stepped forward and raised a horn to his lips.

He blew.

The two armies erupted in cheers and whistles as the two riders urged their horses forward, each man holding the reins in one hand and the full cup in the other. Neck and neck, they raced across the meadow, reached the woodland fringe, turned their horses neatly and rode back at a canter. They passed the cleric side by side, neck and neck, and pulled up. The crowd fell silent as they handed their cups to the cleric and she compared the level of ale remaining.

She raised a cup. “Prince Bayan, the winner!”

Shouting and laughter drowned out everything else as Bayan, laughing, demanded a full cup of ale. Sanglant, too, took a freshly poured cup; he downed it in one gulp and asked for a second. Although he had a smile on his face, his expression was grim.

Blessing began to cry. “He lost,” she said, and then, in a lower and more furious voice, “he lost on purpose.”