The Sword Master
(Swords with Souls)
Cover by Darren Joy
Dark Fantasy Fiction
(Adult content)
The king stands and bows to his lady, “My Lady,” he replies before sitting again. “Show me James,” the king says to his son with outreaching hands.
The prince steps forward onto the open floor between his mother and his father. He draws his short sword and brandishes in the air. Next, he makes a flourish of attack movements as if foes are coming at him from every direction. After a few moments he stops, re-sheathes his sword and bows to his father. “I am ready to lead our forces against the dwarves and giants to the north should they disobey your commands, or to cross the sea to destroy the heathens.”
He’s impressed with the boy’s sword fighting display. There were a lot of bold and useless movements but that could just be age. That he would mention the dwarves and the giants was interesting. The king’s great great grandfather was said to be a near giant himself. King David created the heights of banishment. It’s rumored that the woman he fell in love with liked someone even taller than himself. When she refused to marry King David, he had her measured and decreed that she was a deviant. Any woman or man her height, or shorter, would be banished. He had himself measured as well. Anyone his exact height or taller was also to be banished to the mountainous areas in the far north. That the Rule of Banishment should continue to this day made little sense to him but such were the forever rules of kings.
“I can defeat anyone now, father!” the prince proclaims.
He smiles and sees the rest of the room doing the same. What a sweet child. The only one who does not smile is Sir Ganbold.
“You doubt me, Sir Ganbold?” the prince demands to know.
“You are young, My Prince, and untried in battle,” Sir Ganbold replies in his soft and deadly voice.
“Draw your sword and test me, son of infidels,” the prince challenges to the shock of everyone in the room.
Sir Ganbold stares straight ahead as he replies, “I must draw blood if I draw my sword, Prince.”
“James,” the king says in a stern voice.
The prince ignores his father and spits into Sir Ganbold’s face. “Coward!”
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