Chouchou – THE LEGEND OF THE GREAT HORSE trilogy

“Knights need horse!”

“Henryk looked up with a new light in his eyes. Meagan softened. Perhaps, she thought charitably, the horse’s lop ears did not hang out of laziness. Perhaps the white blaze across his forehead made him look simpler than he really was.” —excerpted from Eclipsed by Shadow (Book #1 of ‘The Legend of the Great Horse’ trilogy (p. 230)

Medieval Horsetrading c. 1240 AD…

The man seemed to be having difficulty waking his enormous horse, and finally resorted to kneeing him in the side. The horse grunted and raised his head. “Ach, see! Much the calm horse!” Gathering that Meagan was still unimpressed, the trader bore his attention down on the young knight. Great gestures accompanied an inventory of the horse’s virtues, given while Henryk ran a hand down each of the horse’s stovepipe legs and nodded appreciatively.

“Henryk,” Meagan complained, “this horse would be much too slow.”

The trader wagged a finger. “Fraulein, bitte! Of course, knight he needs such horse. How so he conquest Tournament St. John and no horse?”

Henryk looked up with a new light in his eyes. Meagan softened. Perhaps, she thought charitably, the horse’s lop ears did not hang out of laziness. Perhaps the white blaze across his forehead made him look simpler than he really was.

“Ach! Der holzkopf!” the trader screamed as the huge animal settled on his foot. After being slapped repeatedly, the horse removed his hoof reluctantly, as if being deprived of a soft place to stand. The trader recovered and patted the horse’s shoulder as if nothing had happened. Tears stood in his eyes.

Henryk crossed his arms, still nodding in approval.

“Henryk,” she pleaded, “remember we have no money.”

“Fraulein, bitte. Pleasing.” The trader spread his arms. “Knights need horse.”

Meagan walked around the huge beast. The horse’s eyes were small in his coarse, heavy head. His throatlatch was undefined and the upright “mutton” shoulders meant he would offer an uncomfortable, jarring trot. “No Henryk, I think you can do better.”

“The horse from this finest bloodlines!” the trader insisted with a flourish. “His fathers have sweep this infidel from Holies Lands! Ach! See the chest, it is large—so! This animal can carry too much weight. He stop at nothing.”

“He is about to fall over asleep. Henryk, please warn the man about the Tatars, and we should go.”

But Henryk was stroking the horse’s nose with growing confidence. The animal’s eyes were half-closed and he was beginning to doze. Seeing the knight’s interest, the trader dismissed Meagan. “Now we set price,” the man said firmly. The trader’s eyes alighted greedily upon Henryk’s garment of chain mail, and the two began negotiating in earnest…

Eclipsed by Shadow (Book #1 of the trilogy) won national awards including the Eric Hoffer Award for best Young Adult Fiction, and the Mom’s Choice Award for best family-friendly Young Adult Fantasy.

« “The devils ride a tainted bayard!” || See all Excerpts »

The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy is an adventure through history … each section is about a different time period. The above excerpt is from “Home,” the 1st section of Eclipsed by Shadow, set in modern-day California.

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» See All Excerpts from The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy.

» Read the 1st Chapter online.

» See the Media Kit for more information about the trilogy.

Check out the trilogy’s page on Facebook!

Chouchou, the reluctant Knight’s destrier

“Chouchou started down the Lane with promising speed, but when he scented the carefully laid turf—obviously a thoughtful buffet—he stopped and dropped his head.”

Marti Adrian Gregory‘s miniature of the 13th-century knight Henryk and his trusty steed, Chou Chou, is a humorous rendition of what Meagan calls the “dynamic duo.”

Chou Chou means ‘teacher’s pet’ in French, a name knight Henryk bestows upon his dream mount―a Great Horse of Europe, a destrier―who goes very slowly.

#80- On the Run in the Middle Ages

Galloping horse “Targa ducked away from this second wave of horsemen. Looking back, Meagan expected to see her pursuers toiling away in the distance—instead, three galloping riders were coming up fast behind her.” – excerpted from Eclipsed by Shadow (Book #1 of ‘The Legend of the Great Horse’ trilogy)

In which Meagan and her Mongolian warpony, Targa, are given a poor welcome …

SUCCUMBING TO THE taunts, the young knight lifted his legs wide and clapped them to Chouchou’s broad sides. The heavy horse grunted and sauntered off to meet the line of horsemen.

“Of all the … Henryk! Come back here!” A chorus of shouts came from the horsemen, and one shrill battle cry from Henryk. When the young knight raised his sword, it dawned on Meagan that Henryk was truly attacking—though his charge was scarcely a walk. “Oh be serious, Henryk! There’s seven of them! And they can’t catch me anyway.”

The knights charged on.

“Please, Henryk. Let’s just go. You don’t have chain mail, remember? Henryk!”

The horsemen clashed in brief anticlimax. Henryk batted a lance away with his sword, but then Chouchou stopped completely. Henryk was left kicking to restart his mount while the seven continued on, coming for Meagan.

Wonderful, she thought, turning Targa in the other direction. I hate knights. She cantered over the top of a hill and glided down the other side. At the bottom she slowed, hoping the men had stopped. Moments passed before Meagan heard the rumble of hoof beats. Rising over the hill came the horsemen, swords out, lumbering in slow motion.

“It is too ridiculous!” Meagan said out loud in frustration. Clucking to Targa, she skirted in front of them and cantered back up the hill, leaving the horsemen to interfere with each other as they tried to turn. She cantered over the hill and almost collided with another band of riders.

Targa ducked away from this second wave of horsemen. Looking back, Meagan expected to see her pursuers toiling away in the distance—instead, three galloping riders were coming up fast behind her. These were not armored knights on slow heavy horses, but caped men on sleek runners.

Meagan clamped her legs around Targa and gave the pony her head. Across an open field they ran, the pony mare stretched out in a dead run. Meagan saw a line of woods and turned toward them. The pony was fast and the long-legged horses did not gain—but neither did they fall behind.

After the day’s travel Targa was beginning to tire. The racing mare’s breath came in bursts. A shadow darted to the side of them and stopped—they were past it before Meagan realized it was an arrow striking the ground. Another sailed past, closer. Crouching, she drove the pony toward the trees…

Copyright © 2008 John Royce

« “A Medieval Watering Trough” || The Castle Sobrezy »

The above excerpt is from “See all Excerpts,” the medieval-era section of Eclipsed by Shadow, and is set in 1240AD. (p. 235 Hbk)The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy is an adventure through history … each section is about a different time period.

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Quick Links:

» See All Excerpts from The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy.

» Read the 1st Chapter online.

» Check out Book #2 of the trilogy: The Golden Spark.

» See the Media Kit for more information about the trilogy.

Check out the trilogy’s page on Facebook!

#79- Observing proper horse care in a medieval village …

‘…Meagan and Henryk saw a village ahead. The road ran through the settlement and up another hill, disappearing under a stone archway—the walls of the Castle Sobrezy.’ ~ excerpted from Eclipsed by Shadow (Book #1 of ‘The Legend of the Great Horse’ trilogy

On the run in the Middle Ages with Meagan’s Mongolian warpony, Targa, and Knight Henryk’s stout (some might say “fat”) horse Chouchou.

(c) Terry Robinson / CC-BY-SA 2.0

IN PLACES THE road dwindled to a bare line in the grass, in others it became a muddy bog. By late afternoon the path began to travel past cultivated fields and thatched houses. Coming over a hill, Meagan and Henryk saw a village ahead. The road ran through the settlement and up another hill, disappearing under a stone archway—the walls of the Castle Sobrezy.

There was no drawbridge, though the stone walls were square and crenellated, and towers rose from the corners. Guards walked the parapets and flags waved from high turrets. Below, men on horses practiced archery before the rampart, cantering across the green in a display of rolling color.

“Allez!” Henryk called, slapping Chouchou heartily. Meagan hesitated. The stone fortress seemed to forbid visitors, not welcome them. She looked up; the overcast sky hid any sign of the nomad army. She gave Targa a reassuring pat—for herself—and started towards the castle.

No one challenged them as they rode past fields of men swinging rakes. A gray ox pulled a cart across the shorn field as hands heaved bundles of hay aboard. Swarms of children gathered scraps.

The road through the village was rutted and foul. Buzzing hornets and flies, squealing cartwheels and babies’ cries filled the air. Geese flapped from round poultry houses, bells hanging from their outstretched necks. A pond lay at the bottom of the hill, with a trough dug into one end. The horses nickered at the sight.

Meagan steered toward the pond. “We should water the horses here, Henryk, before we go on.”

Women gathered in groups at the edge of the brown water, washing laundry with hiked skirts. Henryk lifted his sword to them and kissed its hilt before dismounting. The women tittered and whispered to each other as Meagan rolled her eyes.

Arriving at the trough, Targa made dainty sips while watching the women carefully. Chouchou dunked his head into the green water and took long draughts, his ears moving in time with his swallows. Targa suddenly lifted her head. The mare’s tiny ears strained forward, nostrils wide and testing the air. Henryk’s smile faded and he pulled Chouchou from the water.

Seven horsemen riding massive horses moved ponderously toward them across the field…

Copyright © 2008 John Royce