Eclipsed by Shadow – Page 7 – THE LEGEND OF THE GREAT HORSE trilogy

#82- The Reason for Castles

“The ground was black with horsemen. Galloping shadows swirled through the flaming village below. Black lines streaked across the green rampart. Mist rose in places to give glimpses of the nomads pausing to devour the village.”—excerpted from Eclipsed by Shadow (Book #1 of The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy

Under attack by the hordes of Genghis Khan…

Meagan heard the bells in her dreams long before she opened her eyes. The white glow of the room’s opaque window showed dawn was approaching. Meagan heard shouts from the Great Hall below.

Her first thought was that breakfast was even louder than dinner. Then she heard something else, or rather felt it. A tremor was coming through the stone floor, the rumbling of a hundred thousand hooves.

Shouting was in the hallways now. Meagan pulled her gown from a clothes pole and dressed in the half-light. She followed a stream of people into the hallway and through winding corridors. Bells rang from the towers as she crowded with others onto the battlements. Meagan strained to see, but all that was visible was a placid dawn sky. She pushed her way to the edge and looked across the fields.

The ground was black with horsemen. Galloping shadows swirled through the flaming village below. Black lines streaked across the green rampart. Mist rose in places to give glimpses of the nomads pausing to devour the village.

Men ran through the courtyards and lined the battlements, but they were pitifully few against the onslaught. A shrill scream drifted on the wind, a sound Meagan remembered with a knot of terror. The massed horde surged up, spreading as it came and circling the castle like a rising tide.

Thin flames streaked through the air as galloping riders shot burning darts over the stone walls. Castle archers returned waves of arrows. On the balcony, tonsured men began sacraments against the attackers as others backed away, ashen.

Copyright © 2008 John Royce

« Previous excerpt: “Mealtime at 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. 245 Hbk)

The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy is an adventure through history … each section is about a different time period.

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.

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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.

#81- Mealtime at the Castle Sobrezy

In which Meagan enjoys the hospitality of the Middle Ages …

Breugel, “Wedding Feast”
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EVERY NICE THING Meagan had ever thought about castles was wrong. Standing inside her quarters (which she shared with four others), she could hear things crawling in the sweet-smelling rushes laid over the floor. Her newly-corrected wardrobe, a light gown, left her shivering in drafts or roasting beside fires. The best thing about a castle was probably its view, Meagan decided, if only you could see it. The heavy glass over the room’s single window had the transparency of milk.

“Madame?” came a maid’s voice from the doorway. “The meal begins.”

Meagan smiled politely and followed the servant into the smoky hallways. Rush torches made shadows dance along the stone walls, bringing the rich tapestry to life. Woven scenes of Demons and the Heavenly Host seemed to watch them pass in the flickering light. Suddenly all was brightness and sound. A large bonfire burned on a ledge above a great hall. Racks of candles hung over the room. One long banquet table was set upon a wide stage, with gaily clad occupants lining the wall to face the crowd below. Perhaps two hundred people milled about the floor, eating, drinking, shouting, singing, and throwing bones to dogs. Odors of spices tangled with those of spoil and sweat.

“Meagan!” The voice was nearby, but it took two more calls before she saw Knight Henryk standing on a bench waving, obviously inebriated. A mild-looking man sat beside him. She made her way across the room.

“Sitting, Meagan,” Henryk slurred, pointing to the table’s community bench.

Almost faint with hunger, Meagan wiped off a used spoon. This is how people manage to eat with this smell, she told herself—they are starving. There were no place settings, but there were piles of trenchers made of brown bread lying on wood platters. She scooped thick stew into one from a central basin and tried not to slurp, not that it mattered to the gobbling crowd. Roving servants traveled the tables with large pitchers, sloshing wine into outstretched goblets. Others carried trays of cut fruit. People began grabbing pieces before the tray was set down and Meagan, too slow, went without.

Copyright © 2008 John Royce

« Previous excerpt: “On the Run in the Middle Ages”

The above excerpt is from “See all Excerpts,” the medieval-era section of Eclipsed by Shadow, and is set in 1240AD. (p. 242 Hbk)

The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy is an adventure through history … each section is about a different time period.

__________

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!

#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.

__________

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