Temple Commander

4. Abandoned-1

Marlena stared at the wide-open door. "This doesn"t bode well."

The entrance to the old Cunar commandery revealed a passageway strewn with discarded clothing, broken furniture, and scraps of paper. Charlaine moved in cautiously, scooping up a letter as a gust of wind disturbed the rest.

"Anything of interest?" asked her aide.

"These look to be orders of some sort. It appears the Cunars left their home in some haste." Charlaine perused the paper. "It"s a patrol schedule. Certainly not the type of thing they should’ve discarded carelessly."

"But they abandoned the place. What does it matter that they left such things behind?"

"Every Temple Captain has specific instructions on how to shut down their command, should it prove necessary. The doors are to be locked, and the contents secured. In addition, they should have destroyed any correspondence left behind."

"Could these notes have been accidentally lost?"

"Perhaps, but we should make an effort to gather them. If nothing else, it"ll give us some idea of how they operated here."

"I"ll close the door," said Marlena. "That, at least, will stop this incessant wind from blowing them all over the place."

There turned out to be almost twenty pages, although some were in worse shape than others. Marlena dutifully tucked them under her arm.

"Where shall we start?" she asked. "The stables?"

"I think the captain"s office might provide more answers, don"t you?"

Treading the halls of this abandoned commandery was an eerie experience, as the layout was identical to theirs back in Korvoran. Here, however, disturbing signs indicated something was amiss, for although it was common amongst the Cunars to hang their banners in the upper halls when not carried into battle, there were at least three abandoned here, an unforgivable sin within any order of Temple Knights.

"How do you account for this?" asked Charlaine, staring at one such flag.

"Could their rush to leave have been so hasty as to avoid their duty?" Marlena moved to the closest door, opening it to reveal a barracks room with furniture broken and unusable, fit for little more than firewood. A shutter that used to open onto the courtyard was broken in half, with the other side off its hinges, lying on the floor. "Such destruction."

"It seems they didn"t want anyone else using it."

"But the doors are all intact."

"Yes," said Charlaine, "but they"re thick oak, made to be defensive positions in case of an attack. I doubt they"d be easy to break. I suspect we"ll find more of the same as we explore. I"m afraid it will be expensive to get this place up and running again."

"I don"t understand why they would do this?"

"We all think of the Cunars as a highly disciplined order, but recent events paint them in a different light. I believe this is an indication of just how low they"ve sunk."

"Couldn’t someone have come in after they departed and destroyed all of this? After all, they left the door wide open."

"To what end? If they wanted firewood, they could have just carted it away. And the furniture in this place could have fetched a tidy profit if it were still intact. No, this seems more intentional."

"What if Halvarian agents were responsible? They bear no love for the order."

"True, but if that were the case, wouldn"t they have taken those papers?"

"Was this a regional command?"

"Not to my knowledge," replied Charlaine. "Their commander is based out of Burgemont, but I’m not aware if that still holds true."

"Do you think their other commanderies look like this?"

"I shouldn"t like to speculate at this point. Let"s find the captain"s office, shall we? Perhaps we"ll discover more of those papers."

They made their way upstairs, stopping at three more rooms along the way, but they all told the same story: the destruction of furniture and damaged shutters.

The captain"s office proved a surprise, for whoever had commanded here had seen fit to install a heavy desk made of shadowbark, possibly the most expensive wood on the Continent. It was undamaged, which was not surprising, considering its robust construction, but its drawers were open and devoid of contents. Even the curtains were removed, although a rickety-looking armour stand remained off to one side.

Charlaine moved to look out the window. "There"s a clear view of the bay from here, and we"re only a block or two from the docks."

"Are you suggesting we make this your regional command?"

"Not until we get more knights, but it"s worth looking into."

Marlena moved to stand beside her, taking in the view. "I can see Valiant out in the bay."

Valiant "Yes, but of more interest are the Halvarian ships, particularly the Conqueror."

Conqueror"Why so?"

"It"s most unusual for a warship of that size to sail into port without an invitation. Many might consider it an act of war."

"Do you think it’s here at the king’s behest?"

"We"ll know more once I meet with him."

"And when are you to do that?"

Charlaine chuckled. "Let"s get settled in first, shall we? We’ve yet to officially take office." She was about to say more, but something out the window caught her attention. "It appears the Valiant is sending a boat towards the docks. How about we head down there and see how Danica fares?"

Valiant They left the commandery, making sure to close the great doors behind them. The docks were easy to find, and before long, they were watching the ship"s boat as it rowed up to the pier.

"Didn"t expect to see you here," said Danica. "Any luck with the commandery?"

"That"s a discussion best left for later. You?"

"I made some enquiries concerning the presence of a shipping guild, but the trade here looks to be unregulated.” She paused to reach into her cassock. "I also have a letter from Temple Commander Nina for you."

"And they took it out to you?"

Danica shrugged. "They thought you’d gone back aboard the Valiant. The messenger seemed surprised you weren"t there, but I assured her I"d deliver it into your hands."

ValiantCharlaine took the letter and broke the seal. "It appears she’s vacated the commandery."

"That was quick."

"I assume she was eager to be on her way."

"Still," said Danica. "I would’ve thought she"d at least formally pass over the command."

"I might remind you we had no such welcome in Korvoran."

"True, but if you recall, that was different. They sent you to make up a shortfall in command, whereas Nina was a regional commander. Surely that accounts for something?"

"We can complain all we like, but that won"t see things sorted. Better to put this behind us and get on with our assignments here."

"Our?" said Danica. "Does that mean you want the Valiant to remain in the area?"

Valiant"The Vanguard, too, if that"s all right with you. I suspect the Halvarians are up to something, and it would be nice to have some eyes I can trust out at sea."

Vanguard"You could always hire some local fishermen?" offered Marlena.

"I doubt I could expect them to give an honest account, particularly after the reception that woman gave us when we first arrived."

"True," said Danica, "but that makes me wonder what the king will make of having Valiant in port. I doubt the Halvarians will like it."

Valiant"I"ll be sure to put that at the top of my list when I meet him. In the meantime, I must now assume command of the region."

"Mind if I tag along? It wouldn"t hurt to have an ally."

"What do you call ME?" said Marlena.

"Sorry. I should’ve said an additional ally. I hope you"ll forgive me."

"Of course, Admiral."

Charlaine smiled. "Then come along, you two. There’s work to be done."

They returned to the Agnesite commandery to see three sister knights guarding the doors, a far cry from their first visit. At Charlaine"s approach, two of them stood at attention while the third disappeared inside, no doubt to inform the Temple Captain of their approach. She must’ve been close by, for mere moments later, the guard returned, followed by a short woman with streaks of grey running through her red hair.

"Commander Charlaine," she said. "Welcome to the Lidenbach commandery. I"m Temple Captain Bernelle, and this is my aide, Sister Octavia. I"m sorry I wasn"t here to greet you earlier, but Commander Nina had me busy elsewhere."

"Nothing serious, I hope?"

"A minor misunderstanding with a local horse breeder. You may rest assured it"s all been settled."

"Glad to hear it. May I introduce my adjutant, Sister Marlena, and Temple Captain Danica, Admiral of the Fleet."

"Pleased to meet you," said Bernelle, then turned to Charlaine. "We"ve been expecting your return. I hope you don"t mind, but I took the liberty of ordering the knights to assemble in the courtyard. I thought you"d like to address them."

"Most definitely. Lead on, Captain."

The building was a hollow square, with a courtyard in the centre, where the entire company had assembled, resplendent in their cassocks. Captain Bernelle ordered them to attention as their new commander made her way to stand in front of them.

"Sisters," began Charlaine. "We find ourselves in unprecedented times. The Temple Knights of Saint Cunar have abandoned the region, and we’ve been called in to take their place. Now, I know what you"re thinking: we lack the resources to assume the task, but the grand mistress has assured me reinforcements are on the way."

She paused, using the moment to search the faces staring back at her. They were eager for news, yet what else could she tell them? Charlaine had no idea how many Temple Knights the Antonine would send or when they’d arrive.

"As regional commander, my duty is to ensure those under my command are ready and able to respond to any threat that might present itself. To that end, when you are dismissed, proceed to the armoury immediately. I want to see each and every one of you back here in full armour and weapons as quickly as possible. Is that clear?"

A few mumbled responses drifted towards to her.

She raised her voice. "I said, is that clear?"

"Yes, Commander!" came the reply.

Charlaine turned to Captain Bernelle. "Is this everyone?"

"All except for two in the infirmary."

"Injured?"

"A slight fever. Nothing contagious as far as we can tell."

"I shall make a point of visiting them later. Dismiss the company so they may don their armour." Charlaine turned, walking over to where Danica and Marlena stood watching.

"Dismissed!" called out Captain Bernelle.

The Temple Knights hurried into the building, eager to don their armour.

"Anything we can do?" asked Danica.

"As a matter of fact, yes. While this lot gets dressed, I"d like you two to inspect the stables. You know what to look for."

"And if we find anything amiss?"

"Unless it affects the well-being of the horses, you can tell me later in my office. There"s no sense in discussing such things in front of anyone else."

"And you?"

"I"ll be having a chat with the good captain here."

Charlaine waited for them to disappear into the stables before waving the captain over. Bernelle walked stiffly, uneasy in the face of her new commander.

"Do you have a patrol roster?" asked Charlaine.

"Yes, Commander. Back in my office. Shall I fetch it for you?"

"Not at the moment. I"m not so interested in names as I am in how you carry out the patrols."

"I send them out in groups of six, each led by a senior sister."

"And how many times a day?"

"Only once, Commander."

"Yet there’s an entire company to call upon."

"Your predecessor didn"t wish to cause undo hardship on the population of Lidenbach."

"And how, might I ask, did our patrols cause hardship?"

"Ever since the Cunars left, there"s been a lot of animosity towards us."