An Heirloom Amber
This novella is included in Timeless Changes, Knight Traveler, Part 2
This short, action-packed adventure is the next step in the Knight Traveler series that launched with Timeless Vision.
King Arthur has been warned of a talisman infused with powerful magic that could threaten Camelot. Summoning Sir Kay and his bear companion to ride with him, Arthur travels to assess the trouble. But they aren’t alone in the quest as the blackhearted Mordred is determined to steal the amber talisman and use it to advance his twisted, evil agenda.
For the full list of books in this series visit the Knight Traveler series page!
~REVIEWS~
“a fast moving story of magic and well-developed characters who follow King Arthur is his quest to protect the talisman ensuring the safety of Camelot.” 5 stars, John, amazon review
4 stars! “What fun to escape to this fantasy world!” -Rosemary, amazon review
~ENJOY AN EXCERPT~
One
Arthur strode through the bailey, the urgency of his persistent nightmares pressing him from all sides despite the sunshine and clear skies above. He couldn’t allow his concerns to show or share his worries over a future no man here would live to see.
Merlin had left weeks ago in pursuit of some legend or talisman that might help their cause. Arthur didn’t bother keeping track of the magician, fully aware his friend and advisor had his own agenda. Especially amid the challenge as big and dark as the one they faced now.
Arthur watched his knights testing and training, eyed those tending horses or weapons, and enjoyed the harmony of the community at large going about their daily endeavors. His knights had fought valiantly to bring about this peace and he wanted to ensure they could preserve it for future generations.
Months had passed without further news from Sir Gawain. His young squire had returned to Camelot, confided what he knew of the knight, and traveled home per Gawain’s orders. Arthur tentatively counted it a victory that Morgana, Gawain’s quarry, had also seemingly disappeared. He’d sent out a party to confirm that the survivors who had followed her, greedy for power and darkness, had been few and scattered so they could do no more harm.
Yet his nightmares plagued him. In some there were visions of a hard and violent future crowded with people and inventions he could barely comprehend. Others showed Camelot withering away, reduced stone by stone to nothing more than a crumbling ruin and the founding ideals of his kingdom no more than dust blown to myth by the winds.
Of course he would not live forever but he’d established Camelot with a lasting legacy in mind for those generations unborn. What he and the knights had built, they’d built to last and he would invest his every breath and beat of his heart to safeguard that future.
A horn blasted from the tower, followed quickly by a cry at the gate. Arthur leapt to a wagon for a better view, startled by the sight of a lone horse, hooves thundering over the bridge at a full gallop. A rider pressed close against the mount’s neck, clinging like a burr. The horse weaved through every man’s attempt to slow him until he stopped abruptly in front of Arthur, giving a hard shake from nose to tail.
An enchantment to be sure. Arthur hopped back to the ground, calling for help for the lathered horse and weary rider. The rider slid off, and bowed low, only to stumble forward. Arthur caught him up.
“My king,” he said as Arthur steadied him. “I bring word from Sir Eiddlig.”
As of the last report, Eiddlig, the dwarf knight, was camped with his men in the north to protect growing villages. A student of myth and mystery, the dwarf’s gift for unraveling true power from mere rumor rivaled his accomplishments on the battlefield. Enchanting a horse to deliver a missive indicated a troubling desperation. The rider was young, caught in the awkward stage when a lad is all jutting knees and sharp elbows, but he would have been small burden for the horse.
“You need a meal and rest. Then we shall speak.”
“The message first, if you please, my king. It is quite urgent.”
As if the nature of his arrival hadn’t made the urgency clear enough, the plea in the lad’s eyes outweighed the exhaustion. Arthur conceded. “This way.” He turned toward the closest source of privacy, the chapel, slowing his strides to allow the lad to keep pace with ease.
“Your name, lad?”
“Daniel, sire.”
Arthur opened the door of the chapel and looked about to be sure they were alone. “How many days have you been on that horse?”
“We were sent out two nights ago, sire.”
“You stopped for nothing?”
The lad’s eyes went round in his lean, pale face. “We stopped only when the horse needed water.”
“I see.” He assumed the child had not been able to dismount at those times, held in place by the enchantment Eiddlig applied to propel the horse. Arthur sat down on the bench closest to the altar, pleased when the boy did the same. “Deliver your message so we may see to your care.”
“Sir Eiddlig sends you his fond regard and hopes you are well,” Daniel began, reciting every word quietly and with great care, his gaze locked on Arthur’s. “After recent stormy weather, he requests the assistance of Sir Kay immediately.”
Trouble, but not as Arthur might have expected from his nightmares. If Eiddlig was calling on Kay, nothing good was happening in the north. He didn’t care for the reference of storms, knowing any of his resourceful knights could manage normal weather conditions. “There must be more to the message.”
The lad’s wary gaze flitted around, even lingering on the ceiling beams and the high window over the altar before he reached into his tunic. He withdrew a travel-worn parchment. “I cannot read, my king, though Sir Eiddlig has promised to teach me. This message has been protected as he intended.”
“Many thanks for your honesty, Daniel.” Arthur read the short missive twice over. He wanted to stand and pace as he considered his options, but he remained seated so the boy would not feel obliged to stand as well. He read the missive again, his curiosity piqued by the mention of a powerful talisman and his thoughts and eyes catching repeatedly on one terrible name, that of Mordred.
Years ago, Sir Eiddlig allowed himself to become Mordred’s prisoner and had used the time to undermine a plot to betray and destroy Camelot. Sir Kay and the bear he traveled with had been instrumental in the dwarf knight’s rescue and putting down Mordred’s rebellion. Now it seemed Morgana’s black-hearted younger brother was stirring another uprising.
“May I ask, sire, if I have arrived in time?”
Arthur reached out and clapped him on the shoulder. “You have indeed. I am certain we are all indebted to you.”
Color rose in Daniel’s face. “I would like to serve by any means necessary, if you will allow it.”
The boy’s earnestness reminded Arthur of several friends and foster brothers he had known at this age who grew into honorable men. He would not leave Daniel in Camelot when Eiddlig clearly had use of him. “First you must rest and eat well while I make plans.”
“Yes, sire.”
He could see the disappointment in the lad’s brown eyes. “I assume you can ride without the aid of an enchantment?”
“Yes, sire.”
“Good.” Arthur studied the boy closely. He had courage to go with that earnest mien. “The spell Sir Eiddlig wove around you and the horse did not frighten you?”
“A little,” Daniel confessed, his cheeks going pink once again. “I did not want the horse to come to any harm in our haste.”
“You understand by now Sir Eiddlig would never allow such a thing?”
“Yes, sire. I only joined his camp a short time ago.”
Eiddlig would take no chances by risking this message to just anyone. There was more to the boy than Arthur could see at the surface. “You must have proven quite trustworthy in that short time.”
The lad’s chin bobbed up and down. “Sir Eiddlig and those with him have been kind to me.”
A story here, Arthur thought. A story better coaxed out of the lad during the journey ahead of them. He pocketed the missive and led the way as they exited the chapel. Signaling one of his guards, he gave instructions for the lad to be indulged in the kitchens until his belly was full and then allowed to sleep in the stables near his horse.
“Prepare to ride out with me at dawn,” he told the lad before striding away.
The missive gave him much to contemplate and much to research before they roused Sir Kay and turned north to assist the dwarf knight.