Assessments

The ride to the border went by quickly. Not because I was enjoying myself as I had hoped, but because I had a lot of thoughts to unpack.

We were at war. Albeit during a strange cease fire, but who knew when it would change. I was not completely confident I could fight well with those with me. I took inventory of the skills we had with us.

Sir John was certainly the most experienced fighter, at least I would not have to worry about him. Lord Jacobson was young and freshly a Swordsman. He might not be the asset the Queen thought he might be. At least he had training in the basics, but without being battle tested it was hard to gauge his reliability.

The twins were wrapped up with Princess Alina in my estimation. Both of the children from the clan of Wolves fought tenaciously. It was well known among the knights and warriors that trained at the castle. But they might be too focused on protecting the Princess. Cali and Princess Alina were best friends. It is hard to watch your back while watching someone else's.

A similar idea but with questionable motives ran across my mind with Carrion. He might protect the Princess, but only because he was looking for a position that went along with her title. His fighting might selfishly sacrifice his brothers in arms for his own gain.

The Princess herself made considerable improvement while she trained at the Stag Manor, but she was nowhere near battle ready. She would be our biggest vulnerability.

Finally I allowed my mind to assess the boys from Falcon. The conversation I had with Sir Gavin still ran through my head. I was not sure if he was simply a perfectionist or if being pompous was a trait of the Falcon clan. He had a sword in his hand from the moment he was old enough to lift one. He could fight. I even heard that he won some tournaments. Maybe he should let his sword speak for him instead of his mouth.

This idea of Sir Balor in battle made me chuckle aloud. I could see him finding the largest rock to hide behind and staying there for the duration of the battle. Although even in the mountains, it would be hard to find a boulder wide enough for the plump man to fully be hidden from view.

I sobered myself. That thought was unkind. Even if this man-child was a brat I should not lower myself to the same type of rude remarks. I might owe him an apology.

We arrived near the landmark where we were to meet the gnomes the following day. There was a natural stone archway that was used to mark the border between Ensis and the Gnomish kingdom.

I stopped my crew a good distance from the arch. My intuition told me that this encounter probably was not meant to be a trap, but that did not stop me from being cautious. Tales of mysterious things happening near this particular landmark also ran through my mind. Although I did not put much trust in the rumors, there had to be some reason that a town was not built close to the natural wonder.

"We will camp here till dawn," I announced to the group. "Ladies, please stay with the horses…"

The chubby falcon finally found his tongue. "Ladies? There are women with us?"

Princess Alina dropped her hood and looked toward the annoying man. "Yes, Sir Balor," the Princess said in a smug tone. "Though I guess you would have preferred my mother."

I could hear the gulp in Sir Balor's direction. I got the impression that this was not the first time the man got himself in trouble with this particular member of the royal family. He might have been the one that caused a commotion at Princess Alina's birthday party, but I hardly paid attention to who the troublemaker was.

I did not have time to referee a fight between the two, although I already knew who the winner would be. "Lord Jacobson and Sir Carrion, please set up a tent for the women. Sir Gavin and Sir Balor, please collect some firewood. I need a moment to speak to Sir John."

Everyone did as they were told with a moderate amount of grumbling coming from the chubbiest of the men. Maybe I should ask for compensation for this babysitting gig.

Sir John approached me, looking exhausted. I don't think the man has slept since his brother died. I know he handled a lot of things for his family that Jacobson might never know about.

"How can I help?" Sir John asked, unsure why I called him over.

"I was trying to figure out watch schedules. We do not have too much night left, but I still do not think it should be one shift. I can take the first bit, but I don't think the younger ones should be left alone. Do you have any suggestions on how to best pair them off?" Any insight that he has would be helpful. He spent more time with all of them than I had.

"Just don't put Carrion and Jack together unless you want an uncomfortable ride tomorrow. As for everyone else, I think it might be easiest just to let Cali sleep. It will let Alina get more rest since they are sharing the tent," Sir John looked like he had one more request but was having a hard time vocalizing it.

"I know you're in charge of this mission, and rightly so since you know the area best. I will follow orders, just," he paused again, unsure of how I would react to something. "Just don't make me sit watch with Balor."

I suppose everyone felt that way. I laughed loud enough that Princess Alina and Cali turned our way. Most of the conversations up until that point had been barely above a whisper. I suppose I scared off any wildlife left in the area.

"Would it be easiest to split the night between us instead of involving the boys?" I asked looking for more honesty.

"I can do that," Sir John nodded in agreement before pulling his bedroll off the back of his horse. He took it and started making himself cozy next to the tent that was still being set up.

Only after he left me did I realize I made a strategic error. I was in charge of putting all the children to bed.