Tales of Cobardon

Chapter I

This chapter has been dedicated to my mother.

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Trevan

The bailey was empty, its colour a drenched green as the plants drooped and trees groaned. A light rain pattered down, blotting the summer sun, as the first rain of an early monsoon fell. The clouds churned like froth in a cauldron, shades brewing and melting into the black of the sky. Occasional crackles of thunder broke the silence. There was no person in sight, no one in the courtyard, no one yelling triumphantly on the child-made mud hills, no wooden sword beating near the armoury. The place had died.

Memories, not a week old flashed to his mind as if they were distant dreams.

He smiled, a genuine smile not fake or mocking or complacent, but a grin of happiness, at Hapem who was playing a game in which he acted like a great warrior return victorious from a massive battle - a dream of every boy (mostly). Hapem walked a tiny, flattened strip of land and on its end. Margh sat smugly on a chair. He had a cup held between two fingers, which had water in it, but he pretended it to be some rich brewery and sipped it with deliberate slowness.

Little distance from it Robert and Lopelanzec's sword-master sparred, the sword-master barking tips with no pause. Robert's right side was open, and the swordmaster's sword rushed to strike it. Whoosh! Suddenly, from nowhere, Robert's blade came to his teacher's head. Robert gave a pompous smirk, asking sarcastically, "That could have hurt a bit, wouldn't it?" The master spat on the grate and added, " Don't get so cheerful, lad. I was going easy on you."

"Yeah, you sure were."

Robert walked towards both of his role-playing brothers. Hapem saw him approaching and teased Margh, "You will never be Lord of Lopelanzec, then why pretend?" Margh snorted and riposted, " You will never be a gallant knight, then why pretend? Anyway, who knows one day I might become The Lord of Lopelanzec."

Robert laughed and spoke mockingly, "Sure!"

"Our brother over there appears so egotistical and confident. He needs to be taught a lesson", Hapem said to Margh. With that, Margh and Hapem both rushed onto Robert, toppling him to the ground. Robert laughed and yelled, "Get off! Get off! You win."

Trevan glimpsed Arthur's cloak's tail disappear off his lord's estate's balcony.

Trevan smiled anew — life had been great in the past. Lopelanzec was a ghost town to what it had been a week ago.

"Oh, mighty Raguela. Bless us! Bless us!"

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Micura

It was a cosy estate with rich, high-yielding fields and servants to serve to every need. Cooking was not an everyday task, but an occasional luxury. He and his wife sat around a table, face-to-face, staring at the crimson sky, leaning on each other. His partner's middle bulged massively, both of them soon expecting a child - their first child. In the understanding silence, they sipped on the soup cooked by Micura.

"It is tasty, like always." Micura nodded, sensing something important was developing.

There was a moment of expected silence, and later, after releasing a deep breath, his pregnant wife spoke, "Life is perfect, why do you wish to leave? My lord, are you hungry for more?" She stressed on the word LORD as if saying that being a lord was enough.

Micura gave a soft laugh and responded, "No, my dear. I desire no more - no more lands, no more wealth, no bigger title. Nothing more ..." He paused, and they basked in the quiet. He continued, "Duty calls ... and without Orwen I would have just been the last heir of a long-lost lineage, which every other gentry felt non-existent. I had land of my own but still was a farmer in its own mean. He brought me up to this, this world, and voiced no complaint on my retirement. He merely sought one thing from me, his best friend 'to come to aid when the times were dire and no soul stood on his front'."

"If no soul stands on his side and the times are dire, wouldn't it mean defeat or death?" his wife pointedly inquired. "No, it doesn't. When we two meet, we shall dig allies from the very Barren Lands if need be. Others will turn to our cause," he asserted, confidence evident in his voice.

His partner replied with a sigh, "One can only hope."

"One can only hope." He repeated after her.

His House's motto was ever true.