The next day was the people’s rest day. Justin was glad for the chance to spend the entire day with Tory. He could wait for just the right moment to talk to him. They spent the early morning fishing in the stream and their catch was lunch. After eating they had stretched out in the shade of a large tree beside the house and dozed for a while. A large fly with a particularly loud buzz edged into Justin’s consciousness little by little until he awoke, groggy from the short nap. He saw that Tory was stirring restlessly too. “You awake, Tory?” he asked at a volume that would promote an affirmative answer.
“What? Yeah, sure,” came the reply.
“I met a guy in town, Tory, who agrees that Roth needs to be removed as Lord of this area.”
“Justin, you heard how the men here reacted to your suggestion of a rebellion day before yesterday. I can’t believe that the men in the town would be that differently minded.”
“You’re right, most of them wouldn’t. But there is one at least that feels something should be done.”
“Well, you also heard that they have sent an envoy to the Great King to see if anything can be done.”
“Well, Wyatt thinks something can be done now, and is willing to do it.”
“If you are speaking of Wyatt, the son of Gresham, I can easily imagine that he does think that. But he would not be able to fairly consider the matter given his family’s history with Roth.”
“What do you mean?”
“You mean to say that he didn’t tell you? Then you will be treated to another story today,” Tory said as he sat up and faced Justin who had already done so and was leaning against the tree. Tory yawned once and began, “Roth has his Lordship by right of marriage, Justin. The previous lord had no sons. Roth married his oldest daughter thus gaining the title for himself when her father died. But she because of her nature was not one who was sought in marriage by many, regardless of the incentives that she carried. And she was not Roth’s first choice either. He only married her for the title, and only after he had been utterly refused by the one woman whom he had pursued. That woman was Wyatt’s mother. She married the man she loved and respected, after spurning Roth for whom she could have neither love nor respect. By the time Roth came into his title, the whole thing had been forgotten, by all except him. When Roth gained power Wyatt was a baby and his father was a successful tanner in the town. Roth changed that. Nothing was too vile for him. He used theft, vandalism, slander and probably more already forgotten, to ruin Gresham. He was driven into poverty. Some believe the grief and stress of it was what sent Wyatt’s mother to an early grave as well, though of course one can never know something like that. So you can see that anything Wyatt thinks is strongly biased, Justin. Anyone in his place would have a very hard time regarding Roth without prejudice.”
“But even the most unbiased person could easily find fault with Roth, Tory.”
“But why do you want to, Justin? The Great King will take care of this matter. He expects us to do our part, but He must do His. We couldn’t if we tried.”
“Well, what of the gifts you told me about. The Great King gave them to you to use. Could any of them be helpful against Roth?”
“Yes, He has given them to us, and they are wholly ours to use.”
“Then why not employ them?”
“We do not hesitate to use them when we need to. But before we would employ their powers in this situation, we would want to know His will; after all He is wiser than us and tempers His justice with mercy. We might only end up being cruel like Roth if we tried to judge him. Furthermore, the gifts have their powers from the Great King. Who is to say what might happen if they were misused? And to be honest I can’t see how they could be of any use in this matter.”
Justin could easily believe that Tory would never have conceived the plan to use the mail vest that he and Wyatt were plotting. He did consider what Tory said about the consequences of misusing the gifts at the rest day gathering that afternoon. But the very way that they all sat around talking at will annoyed him. No wonder they never accomplished anything. They had no leader. No one seemed to be in charge. Any one of them could begin to talk, and the rest would immediately listen, and the only real judgment they seemed to apply to anything was what they or someone years ago had heard the King say. Justin found it infuriating that the slow strong men refused to do anything about Roth. No matter what, he knew that they would wait for the messenger from the North side of the Mountain, and word from the Great King before acting in any way. Nor would they use the gifts without His direction. Justin decided he wasn’t going to wait around doing nothing. In that building lay the means to victory and justice, punishment for Roth for the evil he’d done, and he deserved it. He couldn’t figure out how to punish his own enemy and still he worked on it. These slow and stupid farmers had the means to bring their enemy down and they just sat there. Every day they waited Roth went free to do as he pleased. It was an insult. Justin’s mind was made up. He would get the vest and wear it into combat with Roth himself. It would feel good to deliver the farmers, even if he couldn’t help his own friend. And it could easily be done without anyone losing face, since in their way of thinking it shouldn’t even be attempted.
The more he thought about it the more he wanted to look at the vest. Justin left Tory involved in a game with his friends and walked alone toward town. Before he had gotten half way there though, he turned off the road and set out through the fields making straight for the north side of the town. When he got near the northern side of the town he realized that it jutted out into a peak there, and sat up on a slight rise in the land. The late afternoon sun permeated everything including him as he climbed the knoll, and the warmth seemed to go completely through him, and to quiet the world with its weight. Once atop the small hill, it was easy to spot the field that Wyatt had spoken of. Uncultivated did not equal unkept. The field stood out from the surrounding ones in that it contained no cattle or crop, but more than that, by its immaculate perfection. The grass was lush and even. No rocks, sticks or debris of any kind were to be found, and trees as equally tended as the lawn marked the boundaries. The building too was an example of the finest work of the people. The smooth wooden pillars and beams gleamed dully in the sun and the daub walls had been inlaid with shiny pebbles, outlining some of the symbolic designs that Justin had noticed to be the favorites of the clan. The peace that rested on the entire area seemed to emanate from this one small field and building, and as he stood there taking it in, Justin wondered if everything Tory said about the King might not be true after all. But as he paused considering this, he felt as if he were walking in a dream and shook himself as if to awaken his mind and body. He moved quickly down the knoll and across the beautiful field. As he approached the building, though, a cloud moved across the sun throwing everything into shadows, and by the time it moved away the sun had sunk below the horizon taking its warmth with it. Justin felt a slight shiver as he reached the only door in the front of the small building and put his hand out to turn the handle and enter. Hurriedly he opened the door and slipped inside lest, he be observed by someone. He quickly closed the door almost completely behind him, leaving only a slight crack to admit a bit of the evening light. He had no difficulty locating the gifts. They were the first things his eyes fell upon. A deep, highly polished wooden shelf was built into the back wall running the entire width of the building. Resting on it were the exact things Tory had described to him.
The first to catch his eye was the canopy because the shaft of light coming in fell directly across it. It was folded neatly and lying in front of some poles, almost as highly polished as the shelf, which were obviously used to erect it. It was deep purple in color, and the woven cloth shimmered a little as the light moved on it when Justin stepped forward to touch it. When he did so it was the smoothest thing he had ever felt and it was warm, almost as if it was alive. The warmth and reflected glow seemed to spread to him. What had Tory said? Something about representing the covering of the King.
Suddenly he was curious about the other gifts as well as the vest. Deliberately he moved down the shelf to the next thing instead of skipping on to the one he had come seeking. The stone was next. Justin didn’t know what he had expected, probably nothing in particular, but certainly not this. A stone given as a gift from a king should be something unique and exquisite. But it looked like any number of rocks you might find in any stream. It was about the size and shape of a small melon, smooth to the touch, and mostly dark gray with tiny flecks of brown and light gray. Tory had talked about faith. Perhaps faith wasn’t a flashy thing.
The lamp was next. It too was gray. A smooth, soft feeling metal that warmed quickly under his fingers when he laid his hand on the base. It was simple in design, made like any other lamp, but beautiful too in that the curves of the metal were more artistic than function actually demanded. Justin resisted the urge to open it and look at the magical oil that didn’t run out, but he couldn’t help thinking that anyone could open it and refill it quite easily. Justin thought of the wisdom Tory believed to be available, which was symbolized by the lamp. He thought how nice it would be if that were true.
Justin almost overlooked the sower’s bag. Folded neatly, as it was, it was merely a small flat oblong shape on the shelf. It was light brown in color and made of woven cloth so rough that it had a somewhat hairy appearance. Justin debated whether to pick it up. But it was so unassuming in nature that he felt bold enough, and looked inside. Nothing. Quickly he refolded it and laid it back in its place. He gave no credence whatsoever to the story Tory had told him about the bag.
Finally he approached the item he had come seeking. Even though the shaft of light falling through the door did not come near the vest, the links of the mail caught the scant light and reflected it with a soft bluish glow. Justin stood admiring it for a moment. It was magnificent. The workmanship was both perfection and simplicity in their utmost forms. Every aspect of it was designed for ease of use. Even before lifting it off the shelf, Justin knew the tiny links of which it had been wrought would make it smooth and supple in his hands. Gingerly he picked it up and was not disappointed. He then lowered it carefully over his head and settled it on his shoulders. He twisted his body from side to side and reveled in the metallic whisper emitted by the vest. He raised and moved his arms in mock combat. There was absolutely no restriction. Justin had never known an object that he so immediately coveted. He inspected the mail and knew instantly that it was sound protection. Also, it fitted so naturally that it could easily be worn under a heavy tunic undetected. Justin was tempted to do just that right then and keep it. But if they took it too soon before they needed it, it might be discovered missing and their plan might be foiled. At that thought he was pulled back to where he was and what he was doing, and suddenly he wanted to get out of the small house and away to talk to Wyatt. Only as he put the vest back in its place on the shelf, did Justin remember that Tory believed that it could make the wearer invincible. Well, he at least thought that it would be an asset when confronting Roth.
As he stepped through the door and back into the evening the dusk was settling across the fields. Justin turned his steps toward town at a brisk rate. For some reason he wanted to get indoors and in human company. As dusk quickly settled and promised to become dark soon, the landscape that had seemed so pastoral a few moments ago took on a different air, like that of a young horse in the process of being trained, sometimes friendly but not at all tamed. Justin shivered as a cool, humid wind curled around his back, gently splashed in his face and rolled down the neck of his shirt. Suddenly he decided to enter town from the closer, north end even though he never had, and wasn’t sure of his route to Wyatt’s place. He just wanted to be out of the open. He lowered his head and walked even faster.
Once he entered the town limits he raised his head again and slowed his pace a little, lest he appear suspicious to the small number of people who remained outside leisurely enjoying the last moments of their rest day. Now all seemed normal around him. Inside, however, he couldn’t shake the uncomfortable feeling that had been with him ever since he had looked at the gifts and decided to use the vest. He only took one wrong turn in finding his way to Wyatt’s home from the north end of town, and soon he was sitting in the warm room across the table from his recently made friend. There he was able to regain his equilibrium. Wyatt was like him, open and determined. The kindred spirit relaxed Justin’s nerves as they again went over their plan to deal with Roth.
“So it is settled. I will be the one to confront Roth,” Justin insisted when they had come to the end of that argument yet again. He couldn’t stand the thought that Wyatt’s life and future might be forever ruined by the deed. What would the reactions of his father and his intended wife and her family be? These were not the arguments he used. He hammered on Wyatt’s complete lack of experience, knowing that that was one point that couldn’t be countered. As for himself, he couldn’t presently see anything in his own life that could be made any worse. So he refused to take part in the plan unless he had it his own way.
“I don’t like it,” Wyatt growled. “I know I don’t have the experience in battle you do, but it doesn’t seem right. If we are ever to get any farther, though, I think I am forced to concede.”
“Finally. You speak sense, friend,” exclaimed Justin almost joyously. “Now on to the finer details. You said that you will see me into the tunnel through the second opening, and then enter the tunnel through the first opening after Roth passes. There you will wait.”
“Yes, that is right,” said Wyatt. “If I hear any cry being raised or anyone coming down the tunnel, I will create a distraction. I am well known to Roth’s men. They will be glad to get their hands on me. And I will give them plenty to keep them busy for a bit.”
“Meanwhile, I will confront Roth. If there has been no disturbance, I will hurry back to you as soon as I am finished, and we will escape together, ready to turn men’s thoughts in the right directions when all is discovered.”
“Yes, and if I have been captured you will be able to hear so from outside the tunnel. If that happens you will need to work quickly. Some will probably be going to try and catch Roth at the stables while the others will take me back to the manor. The first opening is close to the manor, and my best chance is if you are there before us, and we are also ahead of those who went to get Roth. You will then say to those on guard that you bring word from Roth at the stables that he wants them all to go to him immediately. In that case those who have me will most likely lose interest, thinking that they can easily pick me up later and settle with me then. By the time Roth is discovered we will be forming a resistance. You will then have to disappear forever, my friend, but with our lifelong thanks.”
“I understand.”
“But if the crime is discovered while they still have me, it is much more difficult. You must get away and rally the uprising on your own. If you have no luck inspiring a rebellion, you can try for a rescue party. But under no circumstances are you to try and get me out by yourself. You will have already done so much more than your part, it need not be mentioned. I will not have you captured or killed as well.”
“You have the ropes and scythes?”
“Yes, they are all ready. Last night I placed the sickles I showed you earlier in the branches of a tree that we will pass on our way. The ropes I have ready and will hide in my clothing in the morning. I have already tried it and when I wrap them around my middle they do not show at all from the outside.”
Finally it seemed as though they had planned for everything that they could in advance. Neither of them thought that they could be prepared for any turn the escapade might take, but this did not bother them. In a way it exhilarated them and made the thing even more appealing because of the possible challenge. But as the talk slowed and Justin’s thoughts turned toward his walk back to Tory’s barn, the uneasy feeling began to rise up again inside him. He dallied, putting it off for a bit, but small talk was not a strength that either could claim, and the pauses in conversation made it obvious that they were through for the evening. Besides it was late enough that all who had work to do in the morning were already in their beds. Justin rose to leave.
“It is late. I had better be going.”
“You may sleep here if you like,” Wyatt replied. The offer was unexpected, but very welcome to Justin. Not only did he not want to walk or sleep in solitude tonight, he did not want to encounter Tory again before they had done what they were going to do.
“You wouldn’t mind?”
“Not at all. It will be even later by the time you reach the fields and you seem very weary. We are going to need to be rested in order to carry out our plan tomorrow.”
“Thank you, I think I will accept your offer.”
Wyatt took down from the wall mats like Justin used at Tory’s home, and pulled some rough blankets from a wooden box in one corner of the room. Soon they were both sleeping soundly on the floor.
