The Dark Tower

Chapter 18 - Mice and Messages

‘Oops,’ I said, my eyes roaming over the five men facing us.

We both rose to our feet. Gwaine had already drawn his dagger and positioned his sword to hand.

‘Make her apologise to me for that,’ the man roared, sounding as much like a bear as he looked.

‘Apologise? You should be apologising to her,’ Gwaine said, his voice low and calm.

‘Or what, stranger?’

‘Or I will be spewing your innards onto this fine floor.’

The bear roared with laughter, turning towards his companions and throwing back his head. Until he felt Gwaine’s blade at his throat, not anticipating that Gwaine could vault the table quite so quickly. As the other men tried to assist the big man, Gwaine fended off the two to his right with his sword, while I steadied the two to the left with my own dagger.

‘Get back!’ Gwaine roared at them. ‘Or the big man gets a new smile.’

Confused, they stepped back, not wanting to risk Gwaine’s sword and unsure how to deal with being threatened by a woman. Still holding the blade to the man’s neck, Gwaine guided me behind him towards safety, but the other men found their courage and lunged at Gwaine. He fended the first one off easily, whacking him on the side of his head with his sword so that he collapsed to the floor, taking his colleague with him. The bear took the opportunity to draw his own dagger and faced Gwaine straight on while I now stood to Gwaine’s right.

There was a short stalemate as we assessed each other’s position when the man on the right suddenly collapsed to the floor, quickly followed by the man next to him revealing Steric’s grinning face, his knife at the bear’s throat.

‘This looks like better odds, Sir Gwaine,’ he said. I saw the bear flinch a little. Perhaps the title held some sway with him. He dropped his dagger and Steric kicked it towards us. ‘Now, an apology, I think.’

The bear muttered something unintelligible under his breath, but it was enough for Steric to release him and we stepped over the men who were rolling on the floor in agony.

‘Are they badly hurt?’ I asked as we left the landlord to sort them out.

Steric lifted his leg to show me his metal knee pads. ‘Quick jab behind the knees with those and down they go.’

Gwaine looked impressed. ‘Do they work on women as well,’ he asked with a grin. I nudged him in the ribs. ‘Well you certainly don’t need them, you have your elbows,’ and he rubbed at his side.

The following day saw us riding into Winterfell although progress was slow as Steric seemed to know everyone.

‘You have letters of introduction for Lord Stark?’ Steric asked. ‘I suggest you make contact early as it is rumoured the King and his entourage are on their way from Kings Landing.’

‘Will that include the Lannisters?’ I asked.

‘His wife, Cersei, certainly. And I expect her brother Jaime will be with them. As for the rest, the King does not travel anywhere lightly these days. I expect his party will be numerous. Was there someone in particular you wanted to see?’

‘No,’ I replied, smiling. ‘Just interested. But I hear Jaime Lannister is very handsome.’

‘Hey, I am here!’ Gwaine protested.

Steric found us a room in the only inn in the village just outside the city walls. It was very basic, mice scurrying into corners as we entered our room. We freshened up and then walked with Steric to the castle. It was about as far from Camelot as you could get, dark stone, cold and forbidding, the small muddy village a far cry from the bustling town outside Camelot’s citadel walls, the inhabitants grey and miserable. I didn’t think I’d properly felt warm outside of Gwaine’s arms since we’d arrived in this country, and I could not wait until we had returned across the Sunset Sea and home.