Ballad of the Red Paladin

Chapter Two

"The trick is that it's all in your ass," Meshach son of Saul said as he balanced on one leg of the stool he was sitting on. He waited a second longer before tossing the blade he was holding in his right hand. It flew across the great room of their building, turning end over end before sticking blade first into the far wall. Meshach was aiming for what was once a face, or maybe a shield on a wall tapestry that had come with the building. It had taken two months for him to start this habit. But as the blade dug into the new pine wood column that the ragged remains of the tapestry were hanging from, he could see that it had struck the upper right corner of the face-shield or whatever it was.

"Victory!" Meshach said as he sat all four legs of the stool back on the ground.

"Yea," a soft but gravely female voice said next to him, "It only took you half a year to hit what you were aiming at."

Meshach turned to look at Manha as she finished her third pint of ale this morning.

 "Trying to work up your courage to bathe today, Manha? You need it, I don't even think the dogs would lie with you tonight." Meshach said with a sly smile on his face.

Without looking up Manha filled her empty cup with more ale from a pitcher on the table. 

"I guess half a year isn't really that bad for you, old man. It's been what? Thirty years and you still haven't stuck a women yet?"       

Manha almost pulled it off but Meshach saw a little color flash across her cheeks as she delivered the quip.

"I see the sand dog is baring her teeth already today and it's not even noon, are you sure you don't want to bathe today, it would get some of the sand out." Meshach said timing his reply for when Manha was in the middle of a sip.

Manha spit up her ale, half laughing half choking. She raised up her right arm, slightly binding her elbow to her side as she pointed her hand down, fingers together, the Ubaki sign of surrender.

"Already? Blah, what else are we going to do if you give up so quickly?" Meshach said, pushing Manha off her stool. She fell to the floor laughing and coughing.

"Women, you give up when you should press forward and you press forward when you should give up." Frustration in his voice as he scratched his bald head.

Manha had stopped coughing and was in the middle of an all-out belly laugh on the floor.

It took her a minute or two to stop laughing but when Manha got up she refilled her cup and Meshach's, but this time with wine from the wine skin.

"We should drink the day away and then see how good your aim really is." Manha said with a slight wink from her right eye.

Manha daughter of Amos was a pretty woman, with her fair skin, which was uncommon among the Ubaki. She had long brown hair done up in a warriors weave, four tightly weaved rows of her thick brown hair hugging the scalp from her foreheadto the back of her neck. Some eight years younger than Meshach she had been with the Legion for the last three years, and because of her Talent, was his Second here on this gods-forsaken mission. Manha was tall for an Ubaki woman, which was normal for the Ubaki along the coast. They had more mixed blood, especially Ispen blood. Their sailors were not as devout as others. Here in Ispe she would be a normal height for a woman, all of these sand dogs were giants.

Sitting here in the large and empty great room Meshach looked her over, they were both dressed in the Legions light wear. Tan pants that tucked into knee high brown boots with a red sash around their waists. Manha wore a short sleeve white shirt with her left sleeve showing her rank of Under Lieutenant while her right sleeve had a green fern embroidered on it, marking her as a Healer.  Meshach wore a long sleeve tan shirt, left sleeve embroidered with his rank as a Captain Commander. His right sleeve bore two intertwined brown snakes; the symbol of the 6th regiment. Manha's shirt showed just a hint of bosom but it fit her body well, showing that the gods had not left her gift-less.