Total pages in book: 54
Estimated words: 48568 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 243(@200wpm)___ 194(@250wpm)___ 162(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 48568 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 243(@200wpm)___ 194(@250wpm)___ 162(@300wpm)
Lucan stood at the head of the training ground, naturally dominating the space. He could not help but cut an imposing figure, even without his shining armor. Today he wore a gambeson, light mail, and a tabard bearing the sigil of King Thadecus Force, the stag. Even at a distance, he made Sebastian’s heart skip a beat.
The word charisma could have been invented to describe Lucan. He was not elegant with his words the way courtiers were, and he did not dress in the manner Sebastian was accustomed to, but he had an energy that drew the young prince unerringly.
On this day, Lucan’s dark hair was slightly longer than it was sometimes, hanging shaggy about his ears. It looked as though he might have cut it himself, even though he had the same access to the royal barbers everybody else in Thadecus Force’s inner circle. If he had cut it himself, it did nothing to diminish the hard, handsome lines of his face.
Lucan owned land, but unlike most knights, he did not spend any time there. He spent all his time at the castle training younger knights, upholding the traditions and military standards of Force. He was a fixture of the royal household, and Sebastian had looked up to him for as long as he could remember.
It was deeply wrong to lust after such a man. An honorable warrior deserved more than the decadent attentions of the prince. Sebastian was not permitted to associate closely with any of the soldiers, and so in spite of having moved in the same circles for years, this was the closest he might ever be to the man he so admired and desired.
Though Sebastian was still at a relatively great distance, he did not dare look the knight in the eye. He was going to keep his head down until such time as he distinguished himself through his training feats, at which time he would reveal himself to be the prince and prove once and for all that he belonged among the men of Force.
He had it all planned out in his head. He would stand out in each of these drills, impressing Lucan more and more until the knight took him aside and demanded Sebastian become his squire. And Sebastian would become his squire, keeping his identity hidden with the low helmet, which he would continue to wear, claiming it covered some hideous disfigurement. He would live his quiet, sheltered life as the Prince of Force, all the while slipping out to serve Lucan as Lucan needed to be served. The finer practicalities of this plan did escape Sebastian a little, but from the perspective of the eighteen-year-old prince, it felt as though everything was going to work out. The first part of his plan was already working perfectly. Surely the rest of the plan would work out too.
He joined the general fray of young men who had passed through the first stages of selection. Sebastian felt quite comfortable doing this. They would not yet know one another very well, nor would they suspect the true identity of the young man joining them.
Sebastian was taller than a lot of the other hopefuls, but he had the lighter, lither build that was quite common to them. Knights usually didn’t bulk up properly until their mid-twenties at least. Most of the squires were from the regions and didn’t have a lot in the way of meat on their bones.
“LINE UP!”
Lucan suddenly boomed the order at the top of his lungs. Sebastian felt a jolt of pure electric excitement as he followed the other would-be knights into line. The leather helmet came down very nearly over his eyes and made it somewhat hard to see properly, but he didn’t dare tip it back. He absolutely had to stay anonymous. If anybody were to catch a glimpse of his regal bone structure, all would be lost.
“You’ve been chosen from among hopefuls because each of you demonstrated a talent for combat. But sheer brutality will not be enough to see you through the selection process. You will need to develop skills and demonstrate other talents too. A knight is more than a brute. He is a gentleman. He is educated. You will trade blows today, but later you will read books. You will learn how to fit in among high society. But before any of that can happen, we will see how you retained the forms you were taught at selection.”
Sebastian hung on Lucan’s every gruff word, becoming more and more excited. Lucan did not speak much when in the presence of the king, or anywhere around Sebastian. He certainly did not issue orders in this easy, naturally dominant manner. Already Sebastian was thrilled to his very core. Excitement tingled through every part of his body. He felt it in his scalp, his fingers, even the joints of his toes. With every passing breath he was more and more certain he had made the right choice in coming here. Any moment he was going to begin distinguishing himself among these common men.