Where the Heart of Anti-Shurtugal Rises Again.

Chapter Ten: Gault Aulbrek

The epigraph is from The Chivalric Illuminations of Raijael. For the sword of Raijael is bathed in heaven. There are some sins unforgivable in the eyes of Raijael. Grace is not sufficient. Only by the shedding of one’s own blood can forgiveness be attained. ‘Tis only by the Chivalric Rule of Blood Penance that one’s station can be restored at the side of Raijael.

A snowstorm is passing as Gault lingers by the fire alongside Beau Stabler, another of the Knights Archaic, and the horses belong to Stabler, Spades and another knight, Hammerfiss. Aeros’s tent is pitched nearby at the foot of one of the Laijon Towers; Hammerfiss and Aeros’s Bloodwood are standing guard and Aeros and Spades are closeted together inside. The rest of their army is camped around them, still flushed with victory at having finally conquered Wyn Darré and eager to fight again. On the battlefield ten miles away, King Torrence and his forces were left to freeze and rot, their souls condemned to the underworld. The Laijon Tower itself is one of five such ancient constructions lining the cliff above the nearby coastline.

Hammerfiss, a huge, bearded, tattooed man, comes over to the fire. He’s angry because the Bloodwood has been quoting the Illuminations at him, describing good and bad deaths, which he finds offensive. Stabler tells Hammerfiss to not antagonize the Bloodwood, but Hammerfiss thinks all the Bloodwoods give him the creeps and asks Gault what he thinks. Gault looks over at the Bloodwood, who is now writing in a small notebook next to his monstrous black horse, and just neutrally says that he’s right that there are good and bad ways to die. Hammerfiss is just annoyed, especially since the Bloodwood claims to have stabbed him without him noticing. Gault looks back at the Bloodwood, thinking about how sinister and treacherous he looks in his black cloak and about all the weapons he knows he keeps on his person. He remembers a time the Bloodwood slaughtered his way through a squad of Wyn Darré knights and knows he’s deadly. Gault doesn’t know his real name, but he knows Black Dugal calls him Spiderwood, and most people call him the Spider. Everyone hates him and avoids him except for Hammerfiss, who can’t resist needling him.

The knights joke about how hard it would be to stab someone through full armor without them noticing… and finally notice that Hammerfiss is bleeding, leading him to curse angrily. Stabler has heard that Spiderwood’s knives are poisoned – that would be a bad way to die. He used to be King Aevrett’s favorite torturer before being assigned as Aeros’s bodyguard, and maybe he’s marked Hammerfiss as the next victim for Black Dugal’s Sacrment of Souls. Hammerfiss isn’t amused and yells for Spiderwood to come over here so he can show him what real torture is. Spiderwood waits a moment, then puts his book away and comes over to join them, cold and confident. Hammerfiss looms over him and tells him that if he wants respect, he’ll have to earn it on the battlefield, not through sneakiness and cruel jokes. Spiderwood says he’s Bloodwood and does as he pleases… and kills as he pleases. So does Hammerfiss, clumsily.

Hammerfiss is furious at the insult, but Spiderwood isn’t intimidated. He was just playing with Hammerfiss today. Next time might be painful. Hammerfiss says he’d kill Spiderwood right now if Aeros didn’t like him; Spiderwood dares him to try. Gault and Stabler get between them, but Hammerfiss presses on, calling Spiderwood a treacherous weakling who relies on tricks because he lacks real courage. Spiderwood, finally irritated, tells Hammerfiss not to mock him but Hammerfiss presses on, demanding to know how the Bloodwoods have actually helped the war effort, listing notable battles they weren’t there for. The dead Knight Archaic whose place Spiderwood took died with honor; Spiderwood says he sees no honor in a brute with a flail. Hammerfiss protests that he has conquered kingdoms and the Illuminations record his deeds – and Spiderwood should know better than to quote them at him, since he’s been following them since before Spiderwood was born. Spiderwood describes a certain knight who led a hundred of his fellows to their deaths in a misguided charge – what is the honor in that? Will the Illuminations ever record it?

Stabler says victory is their gift from Aeros, who communes with both Laijon and his son Raijael; they are commanded to kill all, and Raijael will know his own. A better creed than the Bloodwoods and whatever is in their secret black book, in Stabler’s opinion. Spiderwood says his purposes are secret as well – they all know the Bloodwoods don’t follow Raijael, Laijon or even Mia, but he reminds them King Aevrett gave Black Dugal his sanction. Gault is troubled, being reminded that no one really understands the relationship between Aevrett and Black Dugal or why they have to put up with Spiderwood. Stabler guesses that Spiderwood has been sent to hunt Hawkwood, but Spiderwood is angered at the mention of his brother. Finally, Spades comes out of the tent and yells at them all to keep it down – they’re bothering Aeros. Everyone falls uncomfortably silent. Spades sizes the men up, calls them all idiots, and tells them that Aeros has their orders. Their next stop is Gul Kana, the village of Gallows’ Haven. They’ve found out that King Torrence’s younger brother is living there under a false name. Gault notices that Spiderwood’s eyes narrow hatefully at the mention of Roderic Raybourne.

The Knights Archaic go back to their fire, silent and troubled. Gault flashes back to his childhood, remembering his family’s deaths. According to the Illuminations, death in battle is the best death. A peaceful death is an embarrassment, not an honor. Only through violence can a place at Raijael’s side in the afterlife be earned. War is Sør Sevier’s heritage. The Chivalric Illuminations are both a detailed, ten-volume, constantly growing military history of Sør Sevier and a holy text. Gault’s whole life has been war, and he’s spent five years fighting in Adin Wyte and another five in Wyn Darré. Their armies have left desolation behind them, but that is as it should be. Sør Sevier has suffered centuries of raids and invasions from those two isles, and now that has been avenged. But Gault has also known many men who have disgraced themselves in battle. But now Aeros and his five Knights Archaic – Gault, Stabler, Hammerfiss, Spades and Spiderwood – stand ready to take the true prize, Gul Kana.

In Sør Sevier they consider Gul Kana a rich, soft land inhabited by gluttonous, decadent heretics and home to the Church of Laijon, which converted Adin Wyte and Wyn Darré away from the true path of Raijael. Aeros will make them pay for that and give them the Fiery Absolution they long for. Aeros was raised and trained by his father all his life for this; he’s King Aevrett’s pride and joy. And when he takes Gul Kana, he will fulfil prophecy and rule all the Five Isles as a god, both Laijon and Raijael reborn. In Sør Sevier, they have no cathedrals, no bishops and archbishops, and no Grand Vicar. To be saved, one must only follow the Chivalric Illuminations, swear allegiance to the House of Raijael as the true heirs or Laijon the Father and Raijael the Son and stand ready to serve them in war. And Aeros is the culmination of that bloodline’s ambitions.

Thinking of this reminds Gault of the Angel Stone; he wishes to see it again, though he knows that’s unlikely. His faith had been slowly ground down through years of constant war, but seeing that stone restored some of it. He wonders if it’s really an Angel Stone and if he dares believe in it, and that frightens him. He’s interrupted from his thoughts as Spades leaves the tent and Spiderwood takes her place guarding Aeros, flipping her lucky coin as she goes. Gault thinks about Spades’ past and the horrible abuse she suffered as a child. Violence is the only power she’s ever known, and she’s very good at it. In the army, she made a meteoric rise from common soldier to Knight Archaic. Gault tries to read Spades’ expression but can’t. He knows he’s attracted to her but also knows nothing good would come of that relationship. Besides, he knows she’s taken up with Spiderwood recently. They share a common enemy – Hawkwood. He was Spiderwood’s brother and Spades’ ex-lover but betrayed them both when he fell for Jondralyn Bronachell. Most people believe that Jondralyn’s mother, Queen Alana Bronachell, died giving birth to her youngest son Ansel but Gault knows the truth – she was poisoned by a Bloodwood, Hawkwood. He was supposed to kill Jondralyn too, but fell in love with her instead, turning his back on Sør Sevier. No one fails Black Dugal, or betrays him for a lover, and lives – and no one leaves Enna Spades for any reason. And so, Spades keeps her lucky coin – a Gul Kana copper bearing Jondralyn’s face, so that when the time comes, she’ll know who it is she has to kill.

MG’s Thoughts

Well, this chapter was certainly a breath of fresh air compared to the last one! Mostly it was exposition, about Aeros, his Knights Archaic, Spiderwood, and Sør Sevier religion and culture and their motivations for waging this war. Unfortunately, this does have the result that this chapter is very exposition heavy and drags somewhat as a result, though I’ve certainly seen worse.

I don’t really have a whole lot to say here beyond some general observations. I do think it’s interesting that despite the Church of Laijon being very heavily Catholic-coded, in a negative way, the split between them and the worshippers of Raijael seems more inspired by the initial divide between Sunni and Shia Islam, with Raijael’s followers splitting off because they invested religious authority in Laijon’s descendants rather than an unrelated priesthood. On the other hand, their creed of “only through a heroic death in battle can you get the best afterlife” feels more stereotypically Norse. Gault himself is a reasonably effective anti-villain POV, though I can’t say he’s a particularly fresh or original character. And Spades… to her previous characterization as “edgy bad girl who uses sex to get men to do what she wants” we can now also add “woman scorned.” Fun.

And it should probably go without saying, but I think it’s pretty clear by now that Hawkwood and Spiderwood are Hawk and Spider from the prologue.