Enderal I Lords and Mages
Chapter 7 Flying Puppy
8th Era, 479, 13th of Weeping Widow
North Sea, the Longboat Bloodied Nymph
Aleron Pyke Point of View
With the morning the sun had starred rising. I woke up in the tent set up in the back of the longboat. I wanted to give my women some freedom from the eyes of my men. I knew how they looked at Adrianne with a deep desire. They also knew what I’d do to them if they touched her. Well, they didn’t exactly know, but they knew it would be lethal and extremely painful.
I laid next to Lionella and rubbed her belly as she was rubbing her eyes sleepily. My thought was on my baby in her belly. In about three months I’d have a child and I found myself surprisingly excited for fatherhood.
“I’m glad you found me on that ship,” I heard Lionella mumbled sleepily.
I chuckled slightly. I enjoyed how she was so broken she convinced herself I did her a favor when I took her as my property. I broke from my trail of thought as Vaerkyrion hiss. I turned my head left and watched my little dragon puppy climbing around on Adrianne. Adrianne giggled as Vaerkyrion climbed from her left shoulder to her right.
A thought struck me and I got to my feet and pulled on my boots and left the tent. I saw to the freeman I dealt with yesterday evening. I hadn’t liked how he look at Adrianne, it was a wanting look that didn’t care whether she was wed to me or not. I marched to the front of the Bloodied Nymph and turned to look up at the mast. Up top hung the accused man by the arms, his head hung low. The body lacked much of its ski and trails of dried blood ran down to the bottom on the longboat. I looked at the faces of my men. None of them dared to look at me. They feared me, as it should be. Deep down I knew, that freemen-the commoners-was generally less obedient and more pigheaded than freeholders. The freeholders held plots of land, or rather their family did. They were proper men and obedient. They weren’t nobles or had rights to surnames, but they held farms and small things of the like.
I stretched out my arms and yawned.
8th Era, 479,
Continent of Mordurel, Easterlands Region, Summer Hall Estate
Jhaenera Silverstag Point of View
I kissed my children and bid them and my husband goodbye. Laengos would leave before me. He returned to Culhaven with mother before he prepared his departure.
“Come on safe from Sand Isle,” I told him, almost commandingly.
He smiled bravely and offered my lips an emotionless peck. It was part of the act, a show to onlookers that our marriage was strong and stable. It was stable but there was little love between us, after a little over a decade of marriage we still lacked a feeling of love between us. We both loved our children, but that wasn’t the same.
“I will. I always do. I’m like a boomerang that way, always comes back.”
“You always say that,” I reminded him.
“And I always come back,” he argued with a small smirk.
With that he got into the carriage that my family would travel in back to Culhaven. Our children had already entered. My mother was the last to enter, her long crimson gown had the rear end carried by two young maids. She stopped by me and smiled sweetly.
“I will see you back in Culhaven my little warrior,” she said and gently touched my check.
“Yes mother,” I agreed. I leaned in and gave my mother a hug.
Mother looked at Serene, her gaze turned chilly. Serene was sitting on top a horse, clad in her midnight black Obsidian plated armor. she was heading towards Davenport where she lived with her husband at the moment.
“I expect you to be pregnant when I see you next time,” our mother said before stepping in to the carriage.
I knew that my sister was happy she did, because what would you say after your mother said something like that?
In short the carriage and its escort started moving. With the most important people in the Easterlands traveling the escort was a significant one. Ten knights, eight members of the Kingsguard and forty Royal Guards. The remainder of the Kingsguards was still here and would travel with me and Myna. We would remain for the final pleasantries and such with the lords, though the tourney was officially over and the merchants was packing up and the peasants had already left.
As I walked back from the road I had Ormond Oakenshield and Anton Mayflower at my back. Aegon Blackling and Destrian and Claire had returned home with Lord Blackling to give Haegor a proper burial. A burial befitting a lordling.
I saw Myna speaking with Sir Mont. The young ginger lordling must have said something funny because Myna giggled away, like a young woman in love. I pondered the happiness of her face. Was it a crush or proper love? I did not know much about love like that since my marriage lacked it. They stood not far from the Montelyn pavilion that was in the process of being taken down by servants.
The inside of the Estate was a fancy one with marble floors, lovely expensive tapestries and painted ceilings. I made my way into a study and sat down for my planned meeting. it was an official meeting so I might as well pick a fitting location. A knock on the door led to Jeyne Pennyrose entering. She wore a velvet gown as fiery as her mane.
“I hope I’m not late your highness,” she said apologetically as she curtsied.
“Not at all, join me,” I said. As she sat down I asked, “Would you like a glass of wine?”
She declined with a wave of her hand.
“No thank you. When I was pregnant with Ozmun the midwife told me I shouldn’t drink when when I was pregnant,” she declined.
So that answered that rumor. She was having a second child.
I smiled, “Well, congratulations. Lord Pennyrose is probably ecstatic,” I said, though I doubted it.
“He’s very happy,” she tried assuring me. “He loves little Ozmun. Our one year old little knight.” I recognized the motherly love in her voice. I felt the same way about my own children.
I put my arms on the sturdy desk and leaned forward slightly.
“Have you see Myna yet?”
“I haven’t had the pleasure, no,” she answered.
“I know she’s interested how you’ve been since you were her lady-in-waiting. Now, shall we get down to business?”
“Off course your highness. My Houses request to pay less taxes to the crown,” she got on point. “I am sure Queen Scarlet would accept it if you supported it.”
I watched her eyes for a moment in silence.
“She would, surely. Convince me, why should you pay less taxes?” I leaned back, waiting.
She sat straight in the comfy chair with her hands displayed on her knees.
“I believe that we should have that right for similar reasons as to why the Wards pay less in taxes. They defend much of the border against the Nordlings and even Norsemen,” she said. “House Pennyrose protects parts of the western seaboard and Nightingale’s Eye and we have four large castles that keep Norsemen and Nordling Longboats away, protecting trade and our people.”
“Other Houses fleets patrol those waters as well,” I reminded her, though, I knew she knew that. She might be fifteen, but I believed she was smarter then she looked. “Orkshield, Fartyde and Lyratheon have fleets station on Shield Isle, and any raider must pass them first. Before you say, good amounts do yes. Not to forget Dressen, Ashwood, Riverwood and so on.”
“Our fleet is the same size of the Orkshield, Fartyde, Lyratheon and Ashwood fleets combined. My lord husband and his lord father spent a ridiculous number of coin and manpower on creating a vast fleet.” She spoke with an even, matter-of-fact voice. “If you remember your highness, six years ago my lord husband led two hundred ships to aid the three noble Houses on Shield Island when the Norsemen Jarl Igro the Raper took a fleet to Shield Island. The Pennyrose ships surrounded and annihilated the Jarl, his ships and every single one of his men. Eighteen thousand Norsemen warriors gone, like that. It would have been impossible without my lord husband’s fleet and the commoners sing songs and tell stories of the battle yet today,”
“Your highness, defending the western seaboard and Shield Island and Nightingale’s Eye might fall under half a dozen Houses, but we do most of the work. To keep it up, we need more coin to maintain our fleet and that means paying less taxes to the crown. For the best of the Easterlands. We must all do our part to keep the old empire from ruin.”
I could really only admit she was right. She had a good point. There was only a few Houses that could brag about a sizable fleet of Galleys, Galleons and Carracks. One small flaw could have been exaggerating the story, as the Norsemen primarily used Longboats-like the Iceborn-and in ship to ship engagements Galleons and Carracks destroyed them, mostly the same with Galleys but not nearly as certainly. When Jarl Igro sailed to Shield Island he had bought Galleons from the Nordlings and had managed to get his hands on a dozen Carracks, how, we never figured out. The Nordlings had assimilated our ship types while the others was not adapting. Old foolish traditions.
I wondered how this fifteen year old was so persuasive.
“How much less taxes would you prefer? Make it acceptable,” I advised her.
“Naturally. I believe forty percent less will suffice.”
I stared at her with a flat expression.
“I said, make it acceptable. Did you miss that part?”
I saw a little blush on her face.
“Oh, I…if we are going to maintain a fleet and the necessary men, it is necessary. However, I can go down to thirty percent and still make it work,” she offered.
I wondered if she was playing me and sought thirty percent from the start. Either way it was acceptable, even though some lords will get upset about that they have to pay more than some other House. But that could always be chucked up to loyalty, as well. Accepting would make the Pennyroses more loyal to our House, and it would protect the western part of the kingdom.
“That’s more acceptable. I will talk to my mother when I return to Culhaven.”
I sighed. Our coffers was already strained between the wars and raids. I knew my mother awaited word from the Kyroshi, from our ambassador send to negotiate peace. We would surrender our two occupied colonies for their annexation. We couldn’t afford to send men over there.
“Thank you your highness,” she said in a pleased tone. “That means a lot to us, to me.”816Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2hIoAoPcye
