Lord Soth

BOOK TWO
Knight's Fall
Chapter 11

By the time Soth reached Dargaard Keep, dozens of people had gathered just inside the gate to receive him. There was a buzz traveling through the crowd and speculation ran rampant with theories ranging from an ambush and slaughter on the trail, to the discovery of a lost lone traveler brought back to the keep for her own safety.

When Soth and Isolde entered the keep, something of a stunned silence came over those gathered as they recognized the maiden's beauty to be quite extraordinary.

Soth stopped his horse and dismounted. "Where is Istvan?" he shouted, his voice tinged with just a hint of urgency.

"Here I am, milord!" said the elderly healer. In his prime Istvan had been a short man of stocky build with a full head of thick brown hair.

Now, after more than twenty years of service as healer, first for all of Knightlund and now within Dargaard Keep, his dark brown mane had turned white and flowed down over his shoulders like tattered white threads. He was also thinner and scraggier- some might even say emaciated-than he'd been in his youth, yet despite his lack of bulk, he was still quite nimble, especially considering his age.

But nimblest of all was his mind, not only in areas of healing, in which he had no rival, but also in areas of keep politics. No one understood the internal machinations of the keep and the knighthood better than he.

For that reason he had managed to offend no one in all his years of service and had maintained his position for decades despite changes in rule and shifts in allegiance.

Soth helped Isolde down from her pillion. When her feet touched the ground, much of her weight was placed on her injured ankle causing her to stumble. Soth made an overly dramatic gesture to help steady her and turned to Istvan with a look of grave concern.

"She was injured in an ogre raid on her traveling party.

She's in desperate need of your attention."

Isolde grimaced at the pain in her ankle.

Istvan looked the elf-maid over, quickly inspecting her wounds and using what he saw to make a general assessment of the injuries he could not see.

From the look on his face it was obvious to Soth that the healer thought her injuries to be minor, nothing that a few days rest wouldn't cure.

He glanced up at the lord of the keep with a look that asked, "Why are you wasting my time with such superficial cuts and bruises?"

Soth merely stared at him, knowing his steel-gray eyes could be as piercing as daggers when he needed them to be.

In a moment, without a word being spoken, Istvan understood.

"Quickly," shouted Istvan to his assistants. "Take her to my chambers.

Prepare the comfrey and yarrow." He clapped his hands together twice and his assistants swung into action, carefully escorting the elf-maid away.

Then Istvan turned to face Soth. "She will recover, milord," he said, his head bowed. "I give you my word."

Soth nodded to the healer. "Well done."

"Thank you, milord," Istvan answered, turning in haste to follow the elf-maid as she was carried to his chambers.

Soth glanced around, noticing that all eyes were on Isolde.

Including those of Lady Korinne.

Lady Korinne watched the elf-maid being taken away to the healer's chambers then turned to look at her husband.

She was surprised to find his gaze lingering on the doorway the elf-maid had just been taken through, but dismissed it as his simply being concerned with the woman's well-being.

She walked over to him. "Milord," she said when there was still some distance between them. Then as she came closer, "Loren," she whispered.

Soth turned, smiled upon seeing his wife then greeted her with an embrace and a kiss. The kiss was less passionate than Korinne would have liked, but he had been traveling for some time and was probably weary from the journey.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

"Yes," he answered plainly.

"What happened?"

Soth took a deep breath and began explaining how the knights came upon the encampment, rescued the elfmaids and routed the offending ogres. As they walked through the keep, several other people including many knights followed, all keen on hearing the details of his foreshortened journey.

"And her?" Korinne asked when Soth was done with his story, nodding her head in the direction of the healer's chambers.

"Who? Isolde?" said Soth.

Korinne inhaled a slight gasp at her husband's mention of the elf-maid's name. There was something too familiar, too personal about it. "Yes," she said. "Isolde."

"I found her face down on the ground. She'd been savaged by an ogre, or at least the attempt had been made.

According to her account of what happened, she put up a respectable fight. And her wounds bear her out."

Korinne suddenly felt foolish for doubting her husband's intentions.

Although the elf-maid was quite beautiful and she was instinctively jealous of her youthful appearance-what human woman wouldn't be?-

Korinne concluded that her husband had acted as any Knight of Solamnia would have in accordance to the rules of conduct set forth within the

Oath and the Measure. It was in his power to help the elf, so he did so.

There was nothing more to it than that. "The poor creature," she said at last, her voice edged with pity.

"Indeed," answered Soth.

For some reason, the word sent a chill down Korinne's spine.

"Lord Soth," said the healer. "You may see him now."

Soth rose up off the bench, his legs made stiff from the hours he'd sat there waiting.

Waiting for the birth of his son.

He entered the room. It smelled quite foul, much like a battlefield, tinged with the scent of blood and other bodily fluids. The healer's assistants were busy changing the sheets on the lower half of the bed while the child itself was being cleaned behind a curtain in a shadowy corner of the room. His wife lay still on the bed, sleeping after what was no doubt an exhausting ordeal.

He waited.

His body hummed with anticipation.

At last the healer approached, a small bundle in his arms.

He handed the bundle to Soth and the knight rumbled with it as if all his fingers had been replaced by thumbs. When he had the child steady, he raised a hand and lifted the part of the blanket covering the child's face.

Soth awoke with a start, his body shivering despite the fact that several warm blankets were covering him. He looked to his left and was grateful to see that his abrupt awakening hadn't disturbed his wife. She was still sleeping as soundly as ever.

He closed his eyes and reflected upon the dream, then did his best to block it from his mind. He hadn't been bothered by his dreams in months.

This one, he decided, had been an aberration. He would not dwell on this dream as he had done with the others in the past.

He opened his eyes once more and slid out from beneath the covers, leaving Korinne to sleep because it was still well before dawn. Then he got dressed and headed down to the keep's kitchen for a quick bite to eat.

He was met there by Meyer Seril who would be joining him on the journey back to the Knights' Meeting. Although it was unlikely that Soth would run into trouble on the way-running into the band of ogres had been an extraordinary circumstance as it was-he preferred to have company on such an extended trip. If the Council didn't like the fact that he'd brought an extra uninvited knight to the event, then they would have to send them both back to Dargaard Keep.

After eating their fill of fruit, eggs and cheese, Soth sent Seril to prepare the horses for the journey while he went to the healer's chambers to check on the condition of the elf-maid.

When he reached the healer's chambers he stepped quietly up to the door and was about to knock when the door suddenly opened up before him.

Istvan was standing there, his right index finger pressed against his lips suggesting that Soth should keep quiet.

"She's asleep," he said in a whisper.

Soth nodded. "How is she?"

"She suffered bruises to her body, mainly to the extremities, but I suspect there were also injuries on the inside, ones which I could not see but nevertheless require an extended period of healing."

Soth smiled. His knights suffered such injuries all of the time and were required to get along with their daily routines as best they could while they healed. Obviously, Istvan was making a big deal about the elf-maid's condition, certainly more than was required for her to make a complete recovery.

"You've done well, Istvan," said Soth. "I look forward to seeing her completely healed upon my return."

Istvan looked at Soth for several seconds, running his bony fingers over the coarse white stubble of his beard.

And then his face brightened, as if the gist of what Soth was saying had just dawned upon him.

"I understand completely, milord."

"Good," said Soth. "Is there anything you are lacking that I may be able to pick up for you in Palanthas?"

Istvan smiled, then stroked his chin once again. "Let me think," he said. "I've heard they have ground blue hyssop for sale in some of the finer shops in Palanthas." "Is this a rare herb?" asked Soth.

Istvan nodded. "One of the few I have done without."

"Then you shall have some."

Soth quickly left Istvan and joined Meyer Seril just inside the keep's gate.

"All ready?"

"Yes milord, except for…" Seril gestured behind Soth with a nod.

Soth turned. Lady Korinne was standing there, a deep rose-red robe wrapped around her nightdress. Soth went to her.

"You've come to see me off," he said.

"Yes."

"You didn't have to, but the gesture is greatly appreciated."

Korinne smiled.

Soth kissed her goodbye.

As she watched her husband ride out through the keep's gate and over the drawbridge, Lady Korinne pulled her robe more tightly around her body.

Although it was the middle of Holmswelt, the mornings inside Dargaard Keep were still quite chilly.

She contemplated the good-bye kiss her husband had given her. Like the morning, it had been cold and passionless, a kiss one might expect from a brother, cousin, or uncle.

Was her husband's love for her waning? The thought made her shiver.

As she watched him descend onto the plain heading for Palanthas, she realized that for the first time since their marriage, Soth had left without once asking her if she was with child.

Apparently he'd meant what he'd said about not speaking of children until she was sure.

With that thought, the morning air seemed even colder.

Once Soth and Meyer Seril were out of sight of the keep, Lady Korinne postponed returning to her chambers and made a trip to the healer's chambers instead.

When she arrived she knocked lightly on the wooden door, making sure to be careful not to disturb anyone who was not yet awake. After a short wait she knocked again.

When there was still no answer, she tried the door. Much to her surprise, it opened.

Korinne looked down the hall in both directions before entering the chambers. Inside the sunlight that was usually shining brightly through the windows at this time of day was blocked by fabrics that had been draped over the openings. The deep reds and greens of the fabrics gave the room a soft and comfortable glow.

Korinne waited just inside the door for several moments, waiting for Istvan to appear from the shadows as he was sometimes known to do. But as time passed, it became obvious that Istvan was not here. Perhaps he had gone for breakfast, or was preparing some mixture.

Whatever the reason, he'd left the elf-maid alone.

It was too good an opportunity to miss. Korinne moved deeper into Istvan's chamber and searched for the elfmaid.

She was sleeping on a bed at the far end of the room, covered to the neck by a light-colored blanket. Korinne moved closer in order to get a better look at the maid.

When she was standing next to the bed, Korinne felt her heart sinking like a stone in a river. The elf-maid was beautiful, a stunning example of the sort of elven beauty that had made the race famous throughout

Krynn for their grace, comeliness and elegance.

How could a human woman compare to a creature possessing such fair skin and hair, such a lithe and supple form? How could a human woman compare herself to an elf-maid?

Korinne thought of that for a moment.

And let out a little laugh.

How foolish could she be? How could she compare herself to an elf-maid?

There was no comparison. Surely her husband was aware of that fact.

Korinne was still young and it would be many years before her own beauty began to fade. And even if Lord Soth found the elf-maid attractive, she was still his wife and according to the Oath and the Measure that was a bond that was as highly honored and respected as the one linking him to the knighthood.

What's more, Korinne was in the prime of her life, ready and more than willing to produce an heir to the muchheralded Soth family name. It would make their union complete, draw her even closer to him.

Ready and willing, she thought.

But unable.

The worry that had fled her heart and mind just seconds earlier, came back with a vengeance.

She turned to leave the healer's chambers, her hand groping the wall in order to keep herself steady as she walked.