A Skillful Warrior (SoulNecklace Stories Book 2) by R.L. Stedman Page B
Authors: R.L. Stedman
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deck planks. You could see it twisting in the light. Dust falling! So exciting! Ignore your tears, Dana. They will pass.
Using knotholes in the wooden walls, I clambered up the sides of the cabin, pressed my face to the deck slats. Above me, red sails turned in the wind. Barrels, full of oily-smelling liquid, dripped onto the deck. A rope flicked across the deck and I flinched backwards, falling into straw.
I lay there for a time, just watching the light. My dreams were certainly becoming very strange. It was the beads about my wrist — now they’d established themselves they seemed to see my head as their own territory. Phileas, the singer, visited my dreams often. As did Robert, Suzanna and Adianna; a constant parade of people capering through my head.
Adianna had been the regent nearly four hundred years ago. Her husband had died fighting on the mainland, leaving her in charge of the Kingdom and their five-year-old son. And after the son had grown, she’d taken on the role of Guardian.
‘The current Guardian was growing frail. So I stepped in.’
‘You volunteered?’ I asked.
‘Well,’ she said, ‘what else could I do? My son, Owein, had grown and the Regency had long been dissolved. It seemed the best for all of us, really. Besides, I couldn’t stand his wife.’
I couldn’t imagine why someone would volunteer to be a Guardian, but to Adianna, becoming a Guardian wasn’t a death sentence; instead, it offered her independence.
‘I’d become used to being in charge,’ she said, ‘becoming Guardian was a natural progression.’
Phileas told me more of the history of the Guardians. Originally the Guardian was the person best fitted for the role — male, female, royal or common. Anyone was acceptable, provided they had the gift.
‘But the gift was most commonly found in those of the blood,’ Phileas said.
‘The blood?’
‘The royal family. Usually, that is. There are exceptions, of course. Rinpoche was one.’
‘I thought that the Guardian had to be the daughter of the King.’
Phileas laughed. ‘You’ve met Rinpoche?’
I nodded sadly. I missed the small man’s jolly smile, his laughter.
Phileas touched my hand gently. ‘Don’t be sad, Dana. He is one with the world now. Rinpoche was there when the necklace was newly made. Oh, there have always, always been Guardians. But the necklace — ah, now that came much later, with Rinpoche, for it was he who brought the ruby to the Kingdom. The ruby changed everything, of course. Rinpoche was one of the first of the souls who formed the Necklace. And he was male. Of course a Guardian can be a man.’
The evil dreams had not returned, but I still felt permanently on edge, like a thread that is pulled so tight it might snap. I was restless from inactivity. I needed an outlet — I needed movement . This room was so damn small.
When Will and I had begun sparring, we’d done slow exercises, a way of stretching into the activities. I could do this now. So I began to drill: lifting arms, breathing in; pushing down, breathing out. Twisting, rotating head and neck as far as one could go. Calming my breaths to match the movements. It was difficult to keep my balance against the movement of the ship, but that was good, because it added to the challenge.
What was it Will had said?
‘Imagine you are carrying a sword in two hands.’ He had lifted my arms above my head. ‘Bend your elbows. Turn your head. Now, lunge sideways, point the sword at the target. Slowly, slowly, breathing all the while.’
I had felt like an idiot at the time, as if I was dancing without music. Now, I was grateful for the teaching, because although I had no partner, I could still dance. I could still move. And when I moved, I felt that I was still me.
I practiced constantly, inventing new poses based on fighting postures. I had no weapons, but I imagined that I did; knives or staves. I imagined an opponent sometimes, which made the practice seem more like combat. At
Using knotholes in the wooden walls, I clambered up the sides of the cabin, pressed my face to the deck slats. Above me, red sails turned in the wind. Barrels, full of oily-smelling liquid, dripped onto the deck. A rope flicked across the deck and I flinched backwards, falling into straw.
I lay there for a time, just watching the light. My dreams were certainly becoming very strange. It was the beads about my wrist — now they’d established themselves they seemed to see my head as their own territory. Phileas, the singer, visited my dreams often. As did Robert, Suzanna and Adianna; a constant parade of people capering through my head.
Adianna had been the regent nearly four hundred years ago. Her husband had died fighting on the mainland, leaving her in charge of the Kingdom and their five-year-old son. And after the son had grown, she’d taken on the role of Guardian.
‘The current Guardian was growing frail. So I stepped in.’
‘You volunteered?’ I asked.
‘Well,’ she said, ‘what else could I do? My son, Owein, had grown and the Regency had long been dissolved. It seemed the best for all of us, really. Besides, I couldn’t stand his wife.’
I couldn’t imagine why someone would volunteer to be a Guardian, but to Adianna, becoming a Guardian wasn’t a death sentence; instead, it offered her independence.
‘I’d become used to being in charge,’ she said, ‘becoming Guardian was a natural progression.’
Phileas told me more of the history of the Guardians. Originally the Guardian was the person best fitted for the role — male, female, royal or common. Anyone was acceptable, provided they had the gift.
‘But the gift was most commonly found in those of the blood,’ Phileas said.
‘The blood?’
‘The royal family. Usually, that is. There are exceptions, of course. Rinpoche was one.’
‘I thought that the Guardian had to be the daughter of the King.’
Phileas laughed. ‘You’ve met Rinpoche?’
I nodded sadly. I missed the small man’s jolly smile, his laughter.
Phileas touched my hand gently. ‘Don’t be sad, Dana. He is one with the world now. Rinpoche was there when the necklace was newly made. Oh, there have always, always been Guardians. But the necklace — ah, now that came much later, with Rinpoche, for it was he who brought the ruby to the Kingdom. The ruby changed everything, of course. Rinpoche was one of the first of the souls who formed the Necklace. And he was male. Of course a Guardian can be a man.’
The evil dreams had not returned, but I still felt permanently on edge, like a thread that is pulled so tight it might snap. I was restless from inactivity. I needed an outlet — I needed movement . This room was so damn small.
When Will and I had begun sparring, we’d done slow exercises, a way of stretching into the activities. I could do this now. So I began to drill: lifting arms, breathing in; pushing down, breathing out. Twisting, rotating head and neck as far as one could go. Calming my breaths to match the movements. It was difficult to keep my balance against the movement of the ship, but that was good, because it added to the challenge.
What was it Will had said?
‘Imagine you are carrying a sword in two hands.’ He had lifted my arms above my head. ‘Bend your elbows. Turn your head. Now, lunge sideways, point the sword at the target. Slowly, slowly, breathing all the while.’
I had felt like an idiot at the time, as if I was dancing without music. Now, I was grateful for the teaching, because although I had no partner, I could still dance. I could still move. And when I moved, I felt that I was still me.
I practiced constantly, inventing new poses based on fighting postures. I had no weapons, but I imagined that I did; knives or staves. I imagined an opponent sometimes, which made the practice seem more like combat. At
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