Temple Captain

1. Regensbach-2

"And we likely will, but our first responsibility is to report to the senior member of our order."

"Wouldn"t that mean the Grand Mistress?"

"It would," said Charlaine.

"That"s intimidating."

"Not at all. She"s still a fellow sister, regardless of rank."

"Easy for you to say. You"re used to mingling with the rich and powerful."

"Why would you say that?"

"You presented your plan to the Baroness of Rizela, not to mention dealing with the Admiral of the Holy Fleet."

"I might remind you I wasn"t the only one there. Correct me if I"m wrong, but as I recall it, you were there at my side on both those occasions."

"Oh yes," said Danica. "I suppose I was. Still, the Mistress of the Order? I don"t think I"ve ever met someone that important in my life. Do we tell her anything about Brother Mateo?"

"I"m not sure that would be wise at this point. And let"s be honest, what has he really told us? All we have are some cryptic words of warning."

"True, but surely you"re not suggesting we simply ignore them?"

"Not at all," said Charlaine. "Once we get settled in, I"d like to see what we can dig up about Brother Mateo. That might give us some idea of what"s going on around here."

"And if it doesn"t?"

"Then we"ll dig deeper, but we"ll need to be careful. If he"s right about this, we may have a hard time telling friend from foe."

"And if he"s wrong, we"re just being overly cautious?"

Charlaine chuckled. "Better safe than sorry."

The next morning found them approaching Reichendorf, one of the larger cities of the Petty Kingdoms, its massive walls dominated by still larger towers. Even Danica, who"d seen the great fortress of Corassus, was impressed.

Despite its intimidating nature, their entry was unremarkable. Being peacetime, the gatehouse guards paid little attention to the comings and goings of its citizens. Apparently, a pair of Temple Knights was a common enough sight in these parts.

Several times through the narrow streets, they were forced to slow their progress as the press of people became worse. Danica fidgeted in the saddle.

"At this rate, we won"t reach the Antonine till well after dark."

"It"s not as if we"re in a hurry," said Charlaine. "You should relax and try to enjoy the scenery."

"Scenery? What"s there to see? The only thing in sight is all the people crowding the streets."

They turned down a side alley in an attempt to avoid the traffic. Charlaine"s head snapped around as the sound of a hammer striking steel rang out.

"Do you hear what I hear?" she asked.

"If you mean the sounds of a smithy, yes. Let me guess, you"d like to investigate?"

"Of course." They rode on, the sounds growing louder. Finally, they spotted the hammer and anvil, the universal sign of the smith. Charlaine dismounted, tying off Stormcloud"s reins to a post.

"Coming?" she asked her raven-haired companion.

"Do I have to?" groaned Danica. "It"s not as if I haven"t seen a smithy before. Anyway, why are you so interested? You have your own."

"Correction, I HAD my own. There"s no guarantee our next posting will let me continue my work."

"And so we must investigate all the smiths in Reichendorf?"

"Not all of them," said Charlaine, "but I want to get the lay of the land and find out if the guild has a presence here."

"Why?"

"Call it common courtesy if you like, but the tradition is for a smith to announce their arrival to the guild upon reaching a new city."

"You didn"t feel that urge in all the other cities we passed through on the way here."

"True, but then again, we never stayed for more than a single night. This time, however, we"ll likely be here for weeks."

"Well, when you put it that way," said Danica, "we"d better mind our manners and say hello." She climbed down out of her saddle and tied off Spirit. Her task complete, she stepped up to the door and opened it, sweeping her other hand in a grand gesture. "After you."

"Why, thank you," said Charlaine, exaggerating her manner as well.

Outside, the sound of hammering was loud enough to echo down the street, but it was downright deafening here, inside the building. Three forges blasted away, flooding the room with oppressive heat.

"By the Saints," said Danica. "I can hardly breathe. How do they stand it?"

"You get used to it," noted Charlaine.

"Can I help you?" called out a voice.

A bald, thick-set individual moved closer, extending his hand. "I"m Erkson Tane."

Charlaine shook his hand, briefly pressing her own thumb between his thumb and forefinger—the secret handshake of the smith"s guild across the Petty Kingdoms. If this fellow was a member, he failed to respond in kind.

"Are you looking for armour or weapons?" the man asked.

"No, we"re just here to have a look around. Tell me, do you do commissions for the Temple Knights?"

"Not unless they pay upfront."

"Why is that?"

"Why do you think?" replied Tane. "They"re notoriously slow at paying their tab."

"And do the other smiths feel the same way?"

"I don"t know. You should ask them."

"Might I enquire as to where I could find them?"

"You can enquire, but it"ll do you no good."

"Why is that?"

The man"s face contorted into a look of disgust. "I"m not in the habit of sending business to my rivals. Now, if you"re not interested in commissioning a work, you"ll need to leave. I"m a busy man."

"My apologies," said Charlaine. "I didn"t mean to intrude."

The man stomped off as the Temple Knights stepped outside.

"He didn"t look too happy with us," noted Danica. "And what was all that business about not settling tabs?"

"I have no idea," replied Charlaine, "but it sounds like someone isn"t doing their job. Either that or the Church is short on funds."

"We"d best get on our way to the Antonine unless you want to find another smith?"

"No, not until I find out more about what"s going on here."

"You think there"s more to this, don"t you?"

"Of course," said Charlaine. "Don"t you? First, we receive this mystic warning from Brother Mateo, and then we learn the smiths don"t trust the Church to make payment. I"ve never heard of such a thing."

"Your father was a master swordsmith. Did he ever deal with the Church?"

"He did."

"And?"

"They were always most accommodating when it came to payment. Something is going on here that gives me an uneasy feeling. You?"

Danica shrugged. "I don"t know. Maybe we"re overreacting? The Church is a giant bureaucracy. Perhaps that accounts for the late payment?"

"From Temple Knights? What kind of precedent does that set?"

"I suppose you"ll just have to take it up with the Grand Mistress."

Charlaine laughed. "I"ll just wander up to her and say, "Pardon me, Your Grace, but are you having trouble paying your bills?". I can think of no easier way to find myself back in the middle of nowhere."

"Hey, now," said Danica. "If it hadn"t been for your first posting, we never would have met."

"That"s true, and I wouldn"t change that for anything."