The Dunston Blade (29 page)

Spring turned to summer and the year rolled on. Tania gave birth to another son, that pleased John and Harold who was delighted that he had a brother.

John was walking in the Castle gardens when he received a message that Stephen’s and Tristan’s investitures were to take place and arrangements were made
for all of them to travel to Wymondham. The occasion went well and after the two young men’s night vigil the ceremony took place in the Abbey. John was
proud of the two men and what they had achieved while in his service. They were both to return to Dunston and take up positions there under John. The next
big event was Gavin and Joan’s wedding which had been arranged to take place just before Lent, it was a joyous occasion and many of the Tenants came to
wish them well.

Tristan walked up the stairs to John’s room, this was the first time he was to meet him since he had returned from Wymondham, he knocked on the door.

“Come in,” called John. “I am glad to see you Tristan, I want to tell you of a trip I am taking and I want you to accompany me.”

He then explained that he would be going to France and taking Alban and Chad as Squires.

“I want you to accompany me, I need a man with experience.”

“I would be pleased to accompany you Sir, after our last trip to Flanders it has given me a taste to see more of the world,” replied Tristan.

John continued by telling him he had arranged with Stephen to support Gavin here at the Castle while they were away. The next days were spent preparing for
the trip, and making sure horses and weapons were in good condition. Tania was quiet during this time and John knew that she was not happy that he was
going away, after speaking with her father she had accepted that John needed the excitement of new horizons and would be more settled on his return.

One evening as John walked the battlements of the Castle he looked down and saw Tristan still training his new destrier, John had acquired it from Sir
Cedric and Tristan was getting used to being up on such a large animal. They were twisting and turning and Tristan put the horse to an old sack laying on
the ground, the horse obediently stamped on it and snorted. All war horses were trained to shove, bite and kick opposing horses and also stamp on fallen
bodies, Hammer excelled in all of these. John wondered if they would need these skills on their travels, France was an unsettled country these days.

The day of their departure came and as they rode away from the Castle John turned and saw Tania standing with Harold and the baby and felt a pang of
regret.

They rode on towards Yarmouth where they would spend the night and find a ship that would take them across the Channel. William Fisher was pleased to see
John again and offered hospitality to John and Tristan with their Squires accommodated above the stables. Early in the morning John, accompanied by Fisher,
went down to the harbour. The Mayor said that a ship had come in the previous day and would be returning to Caen in two days time. They found the vessel
and called for the Captain, he came on deck and invited them aboard, in his cabin John explained that he needed passage for his group and they agreed a
price for the voyage. In the interval before they departed John decided to ride over to Lowestoft and meet the Mayor whom he found in good health and the
town thriving. As soon as he returned to Yarmouth they boarded the ship and prepared to sail. The voyage was uneventful and standing on the harbour of Caen
John realised they had no friendly place to call on.

“We will set off south into Normandy,” he said. “We can make camp at the day’s end and discuss our plans.” As they made camp that evening John looked at
the information that Sir Cedric had given him, the first place to make for was the town of Villedieu les Poeles where they would find a guide to take them
on. When they arrived at the town they found it was a centre for making copper articles and it was full of the sounds of the coppersmiths at work. They
stopped in the town square under the inquisitive stares of several towns people, John asked if anyone knew Monsieur Garrond, the name that Sir Cedric had
given him. This was answered with stoney silence and cold stares.

“There’s an Inn,” said Tristan. “I will go and ask there.”

“Take Chad with you,” said John. “He does not speak French but two are better than one in a strange place.” Tristan returned with the news Monsieur Garrond
had been arrested by the King’s men. He was asked if they were going to visit their English friends. John was puzzled as the Earl had said the Chateau was
looked after by a French family, who also tended the vineyards. They moved on and headed towards Brittany and the town of Rennes where John hoped to find
out more. As they travelled on they became aware of a distinct antagonism towards them and heard that Brittany was under attack from the King of France,
this made them avoid the main towns and move on as fast as they could. They eventually came to the region north of Rennes and looked for the small town of
Guipel where they hoped to find the Chateau. The place was more of a village than town and as strangers they were initially viewed with suspicion. John
visited the church and met the resident Priest. He asked if he knew where the Chateau Vent was.

“Yes, my son, it is but two leagues north from this church. Have you come to visit your English friends?” John looked at him.

“I have come at the request of the owner Sir Cedric of Wymondham and he told me the estate is being looked after by Monsieur Trouville, I know there are
many English families here but not on this estate.”

“We have not seen the Earl for a long time and then two men came with instructions to take over the Chateau. They say they are his men but they do not act
like the Earl. He was always generous and kind and a good employer as most of the villagers rely on the Chateau for work. We have not seen Monsieur
Trouville since these men arrived.”

John explained to the Priest that Sir Cedric did not send these men, whoever they are, and he was here to find out what was gong on. That evening as they
sat in their camp John discussed the situation with the others. “In the morning we will go to the Chateau in full apparel and give off as much authority as
we can even though we are only four.”

Out of the evening gloom a voice hailed the camp and two men appeared. John stood to greet them.

“Good evening sirs, welcome to our camp, how can we be of service?”

“We have spoken to our Priest and he has told us of your mission. There are several of us who used to work for Monsieur Trouville at the Chateau and in his
vineyards and we would want to help the Earl recover his property, if you needed us,” said one of the men. “My name is Gerard Vigneron and there are about
fifty of us.”

John asked him and his friend to sit and join them. He said his intention was to call at the Chateau in the morning and if he, and his friends would like
to gather at the gates he could use their help, if needed. Gerard said.

“They have about twenty men they have recruited from the local riffraff and are not looking after the vines, this has been worrying us as it is our
livelihood.”

After a few glasses of wine and conversation the men left.

“Who the hell are these men,” said Tristan. “I know Sir Cedric has not been here for a while but as far as we are concerned it is his property.”

They halted about five hundred yards from the gates in the morning and could see there was a gate guard. The group of villagers met them with an assortment
of weapons, swords, scythes, axes and a few with bows. John and Tristan were in armour and so were their horses, they told the villagers to wait while they
approached the gate. They rode up to the gate and said to the guard to open it as they had the authority of the owner. The man looked confused and said he
would have to speak to his master.

John put Hammer at the gate and the great horse pushed the gate down with ease.

“Tell him Sir John Ivanson is here to take over this property.”

The man ran up to the Chateau and very soon John saw two figures running towards the stables. John and Tristan charged over to where they had disappeared
and found the two men frantically trying to mount horses. They charged into them and the two men fell to the ground, some of the villagers had caught up
with them and pinned the men to the ground. John and Tristan dismounted and looked at the prisoners. John exclaimed.

“We know these two!”

The villagers forced the two men to their feet and John removed his helm.

“Thatcher and Carpenter, what are you doing here? Find somewhere they can be locked up securely while we go to the Chateau.”

John and Alban moved off as the villagers rounded up more of the trespassers. Entering the Chateau they searched the first floor and found, locked in a
room, Monsieur Trouville his wife, son and daughter. They were weak and in poor health, the room had two straw matrices, a table, four chairs and a bucket.
When John entered they cowered in a corner, afraid of this man clad in armour. John spoke calmly to them and told them who he was and Madam Trouville broke
down in tears, her husband stood in front of John and held out his hand.

“When you have had something to eat and drink I want to know what has happened here,” said John.

He went out to where he had left Tristan.

“Where are they?” said John.

“We have locked them in one of the store houses,” replied Tristan.

“They can stay there until we find out what has been taking place here. Where is Gerard?” said John. Gerard was with the villagers who had rounded up the
rest of the intruders.

“There were some who resisted,” Gerard explained. “They will not bother anyone any more. There are no casualties from our men. Two of these prisoners came
with the men you know.”

“Thank you for all your help,” said John. “Let’s find out what has been going on here.”

They questioned the prisoners and it transpired that the ship had put in at Brest and Thatcher and Carpenter had made good their escape. They were making
their way to Caen when they reached Rennes they heard of the English Lord and his vineyard. They had recruited the riffraff and taken over the Chateau.
John went back to the Chateau and found the Trouville family much recovered and full of gratitude for their release. Some of the villagers were workers who
had been thrown off the estate and immediately began to clean and tidy up the house. John and Tristan change into more comfortable clothing and discussed
what their next steps would be. That evening the house had been transformed as servants began to return and most importantly the cook was back in the
kitchen. Over a late meal Monsieur Trouville told John that the money from the last grape harvest was hidden and the two villains had not found it. All in
all it had been a successful day but John was tired and it was soon obvious as his head kept dropping so excusing himself he went to bed.

He was rudely awakened by Tristan shaking him.

“They’ve escaped. One guard killed and another injured!”

John quickly put on some clothes, grabbed his sword and dagger and followed Tristan to the scene of the escape. There had been a man who had escaped
detection when they were rounding up the other men employed by Thatcher. He had returned and killed one jailor and severely injuring the second then
helping Thatcher and Carpenter to escape. Chad and Alban had saddled two horses which Tristan and John quickly mounted and set off towards the coast which
was the direction the two prisoners had been seen heading. The sun was just coming up when they could see three men making for a wood some distance away.
John and Tristan spurred their mounts in that direction hoping to cut off the escapees before they reached the trees.

They only just made it and the three men on foot slashed at the horses as John and Tristan drew their swords and told the prisoners to give themselves up.
John jumped from his horse and before the startled men could do anything his sword had parted Thatcher’s head from his body and was going after Carpenter
who tried to run but was pierced through before he had even turned the third man fell to his knees begging to be spared. Tristan had also dismounted and
grabbed John’s arm.

“Stop he is unarmed John,” he shouted.

John, breathing heavily lowered his weapon. Tristan could feel John’s arm trembling as he fought for control.

“It has a mind of its own,” said a shaking John. “ I must get rid of it before it lands me in real trouble.”

He wiped the sword clean and told the third man to bury the bodies, he sat down with his back to a tree. Tristan looked at him and said that he only used
the sword in defence or attacking enemy so maybe he should keep it and learn how to control it better. When the burial was done they went back to the
Chateau and agreed with the villagers that the prisoners should be taken to the nearest town and handed over to the authorities.

John spent a fitful night, the actions of the previous day weighing on his mind, did the sword have some fearful power. He rose early and went down to the
stables, saddled his horse and rode to Rennes arriving at the Benedictine monastery of Saint-Metaine just as the office of
prime
was finishing.
John found the Abbott and asked if he would hear his confession, after which the Abbott suggested that John place the sword at the foot of the High Altar
and pray. As John knelt there he heard someone enter and turning his head he saw Tristan walking up the aisle. The young man knelt beside John and the two
of them joined together in prayer. A sudden intake of breath from Tristan made John open his eyes and he saw the sword had a gentle glow around it. Tristan
stood and stepped back but John could not move, he was transfixed by the swords glow, he could read what his father had inscribed on the blade clearly ‘DEO
JUVANTE’.

John stood and picked up the sword, sheathed it as the suns rays continued to pour through the upper window like a spot light directly onto the altar where
the sword had lain. John smiled and turned to follow Tristan.

John and Tristan rode slowly back to the Chateau, both deep in thought. It was an experience they would both remember for a long, long time. When John
arrived he went straight to his room and considered what had happened, when the sword had been made his father had worked normally, there had been no
unusual occurrences. He vowed to learn to control the weapon to his way of fighting. The next morning, after a meeting with the Trouville’s, John walked
out to the gardens and found Tristan and Alban practicing with their swords.