Flower of Bulann

Chapter 7

Liu Kuan watched Vior and sir Garbrand's clash with a mix of awe and horror. The sheer will to win emanating from both men was astounding, and the fact that either man walked away was nothing short of a miracle.

He turned to Tai'ishi, the always stoic warrior had watched the battle without moving. And were it not for his occasional comments about form, Liu would have sworn he slept.

Vior rode his horse over to them, dismounting before a servant led his horse away.

"I have never seen such courage, lord Vior" Liu said, trying to keep his tone level, but he was sure there was still at least a trace of the awe he felt remaining.

Vior bowed, from his reputation as a ronin Liu had expected him to be curt, perhaps even crass. He was, it seemed, the complete opposite.

"That is high praise from a prince such as yourself" Vior replied, offering his hand which Liu grasped eagerly. "Long have I studied the code of the warrior, and that of the lord. I wish only that it came to me as easily as it appears to manifest in yourself."

Liu couldn't help but be impressed at his decorum, Liu's own father was a man possessed of greed, and throughout his childhood, his king father had become more hateful as his envy of the other clans grew. Liu was at best, the spare of a spare in his father's eyes and considered useless. Winning lady Kinna's hand would be Liu's only chance to climb from his brothers' shadows and gain recognition from his father.

"I look forward to your joust, prince Liu," Vior said before taking a seat nearby, removing his helmet and towelling his face, though his eyes seemed red to Liu.

The other matches came and went, though with the contenders having no experience of jousting they were sloppy affairs, with nearly all of them decided by points. Having Vior and sir Garbrand start had perhaps been a mistake as the crowd remained silent, clapping only when Tai'ishi had unhorsed his opponent on their first pass.

"Be wary of your opponent" Tai'ishi had cautioned him. "He and I have a history and he is not estranged from combat in the saddle."

Liu had wanted to ask more questions, but the red-clad warrior clearly had no intention of conversing with him further.

After a short intermission, it was his turn to take the arena. Liu mounted Windrush, his dappled mare stamping its hooves in anticipation. The boisterous stallion always yearned to rush into the fray, even if Liu did not.

He watched calmly from the saddle as his opponent, prince Yinat confidently paraded himself around the arena, manoeuvring the horse with only his knees, the skill of a true mounted warrior evident, for not even Vior or sir Garbrand had been so confident whilst circling the arena.

As Yinat reined in his horse to take a lance Liu trotted himself out to the cheering crowd, and to his great happiness, Kinna clapped for him also. He smiled broadly, glad he had a face plate to hide his happiness from the crowd.

"You can do this" he whispered to himself, gripping the reins tightly as he passed the lord's box, waving to Kinna and her father.

As he circled the crowd, Liu noticed the looks of boredom upon their faces, the cheers were merely respectful now and not the roars Vior had gotten. He could hardly blame them though, the previous bouts had hardly lived up to the promise of the first joust after all.

Liu took his lance as the guard explained the rules, all he had to do was strike true and outpoint his opponent to progress, there was no need to be reckless like Vior had been. Prince Yinat looked resplendent in his golden armour, wearing a cape of white velvet that draped over his horse's rear.