Celadonian Tales Vol: 1 Blood and Brass by Walter Shuler Page A

the doorway seemed normal enough, but the reavers' reactions told the boy otherwise. Here was the source of their fright.
    "Aye, alchemist," the reaver answered.
    The newcomer advanced into the room, the light from the torches revealing him in better detail. He was tall, with shoulder-length blond hair. He wore a small beard and moustache in a style Aelfgar had never seen. The man's eyes devoured the captive, greedily absorbing his appearance. The man's stare unnerved Aelfgar, but the subsequent smile truly rattled him. It was the grin of a predator cornering his prey.
    "He will do fine. Come, boy. Come here."
    The reaver thrust him forward, eager to be gone. Aelfgar, determined not to show fear, stood as tall as he could.
    "My name is Aelfgar, not boy," he told the man.
    The man's eyes narrowed and his mouth twisted. "You have no name, boy. You are lost."
     
    ***
     
    Haem, Lord Northwarden, drummed his fingers as Thorne rambled on. The man always set his teeth on edge. However, as the king's representative, Haem could not afford to show irritation. Mikael Thorne was not necessarily a powerful man, not in the military sense, but King Rickard Joss set great store by his counsel. It was for this reason that Haem found himself sojourning in Brightwatch Keep, far from the wooded hills of his beloved Northwarden.
    Haem regarded his host thoughtfully. Thorne made a striking figure, Haem had to admit. His blond shoulder length hair showed no signs of the gray that speckled Lord Northwarden's own, and his frame was tall and straight. All in all, Thorne presented the perfect picture of a courtly gentleman. What was it about the man that grated on Haem's nerves so? Haem's bodyguard, Suldred, made no attempt to disguise his feelings as he glared at Thorne.
    "Well, if we're agreed, I believe that we should get on with the demonstration. It's what you came to see, correct? Thorne’s smile was unctuous.
    Haem sighed and looked to Suldred. "I suppose we should, at that. You said something of a new weapon?"
    "A weapon? Oh, much more than that, Ha – Lord Haem. But come, come. You'll see soon enough." Thorne waved for Haem and Suldred to follow as he led them out a thick wooden side door. Haem and Suldred trailed behind through several passages, until finally emerging in the bright daylight. The air carried the salt tang of the nearby sea, and the bright sunshine lifted Haem's spirits.
    Thorne led Haem and Suldred across a walkway to another structure connected to the keep, itself. A long set of stairs descended to a sandy floor, while the sides of the structure curved away from the trio, wrapping around to form a rough bowl. Haem was somewhat surprised to find himself standing in the keep's famed amphitheater, built so long ago that its builders were nearly forgotten. Brightwatch was old – far older than the Celadonian kingdom that now claimed it. Once it had been a seat of power for the Aedanotii, before that kingdom crumbled into dust.
    The amphitheater was impressive – almost as splendid as the one in Celadon, where King Rickard was wont to entertain the court and foreign ambassadors with mock battles, celebrations and demonstrations of military might. However, it was not the history of the amphitheater that captured Haem's attention, but it's contents.
    Several structures stood on the sandy floor of the amphitheater. One was a wall of wood, the logs peeled and held together in a fair semblance of a frontier fort. The second was a wall of neatly fitted stone blocks, mortared and solid. A third item was a mock knight, complete with plate armor. A curious construct stood in front of these.
    Haem at first took it for a statue – its gleaming, golden form resembled a man in that it had a head, shoulders, two arms, a torso and two legs. However, it stood a full head taller than Haem's six feet, and was a strange amalgam of shapes and pieces. The chest and head seemed solid, made of burnished bronze with runes etched into the surface,