The House of Oldenrock

The Founding of the Gray Guard

Chapter Thirteen:  The Founding of the Gray Guard

            Margot sat quietly with Hal at a table in the great hall of Tower Outpost.  She sat there fidgeting in impatience and excitement, for they had just had supper after returning from their third hunt, and all the recruits knew that a surprise followed them after their third hunt.  Margot was aching to know what it was.  After spending just over four months in the Gray Guard, she still had not found out what it was, among other things that were kept secret from the recruits, and the mystery was upon her every waking hour.

            She rolled her lips together and almost jumped when the Captains stood up and finally gestured for the recruits who had just gone hunting to follow them.  Margot did not need to wait for them to ask for her to follow them, for she was already up and quickly moving.  It was time for the surprise, and Margot had never stopped to wonder if the surprise would be good or not. She was one of those people who could never be left in the dark for anything.

            The Captains led them through the narrow hallways of Tower Outpost until they were deep in the mountain, and all the light came from the torches on the walls, for there were no longer any windows to provide any natural light, not that there was that much light anyway after sundown, even on a full moon.  Finally, they came to a round room that was bare of any artifacts other than an old hooded Guardsman sitting in a chair in the middle of the room.  Was he supposed to be the surprise?  Although Margot had never seen him before there was nothing really exotic about him.  He wore an old gray cloak with no indication of his rank and the cowl was pulled over his face.

            Margot stared at the man wondering just what was under his hood and if his face was actually something that needed to be hidden, but her thoughts were interrupted when Captain Meghan firmly said, “Sit!” to the recruits.  Captain Meghan’s tone of voice signaled that the recruits had to obey immediately without question, and Margot was forced to sit on the bare ground.

            “I don’t know what any of you were expecting tonight,” Captain Meghan began, but I do know that none of you were expecting this as the third hunt surprise, which I know you all have heard of.  Until we relieve you, there will be no talking, none, and you will give Atir Ralston your undivided attention.  This is where we leave you,” and with that the Captains marched out leaving the recruits sitting on the floor alone with the Atir.

            Margot wondered why he had been called Atir, for Atir was not one of the official ranks of the Gray Guard.  She had studied them, and they were Lieutenant, Captain, Major, and then finally Commander.  It took a lot to get promoted, and many rarely made it passed Captain.  Yet Margot wondered why the man had been called Atir.  Ralston was not one of the Clan or House names, and Atir did not sound like an Olgen first name.  What language was it in?  Then Margot figured out the answer.  It was Land Speech.

            “Atir means ‘Keeper’,” she suddenly blurted out forgetting Captain Meghan’s strict orders to remain silent.  Hal nudged her and gave her a look as if to say, what were you thinking?  What was she thinking?  She was not, but it was past the time to question her actions.

            The Atir’s hood turned to her and said, “And how would you know?”  Margot did not know how to answer that.  She had no explanation as to how she had known.  The knowledge had just come to her, so she had inadvertently blurted it out.  “You can’t answer that,” he said.  It’s been a while since we had Listener walk the Earth, almost as long as our time spent without the light of a Brightshield.”