Ursula lets slip one of her secrets before joining the others for breakfast. Later she watches a mock battle in the courtyard, which raises further questions about where she is and what is going on.

The Voyage of the Visund

A tale of Anmar by Penny Lane

12 - In the Courtyard

Disclaimer: The original characters and plot of this story are the property of the author. No infringement of pre-existing copyright is intended. This story is copyright (c) 2018 Penny Lane. All rights reserved.

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"Ow!"

Bennet spun to face Ursula. "What happened?"

Ursula rubbed her hip. "Oh, I caught my hip on the door frame." Her expression was rueful. "I am still attempting to adapt to this body. What I had before wasn't this shape at all."

The armswoman stared before nodding. "I think I understand, though of course such an idea is strange to me. You were truly a man's shape before you came to... Anmar..." Bennet clearly had trouble believing this concept, but continued, "and you have become accustomed for some years to having a certain shape. As a woman, of course your hips will be wider than those of a man's, that you may in time bear children. It is not surprising that you will sometimes misjudge."

"It isn't that simple. If I just do things, I seem to be fine, but if I think about them, that is when I start making misjudgments." Ursula grimaced. "Bearing children? Maybe, but first I have to be certain of what is really going on. Shall we get dressed? If we delay too much we might be late for breakfast."

The two moved into the dressing room, where the clothes from both their chests had been hung on the rails. The selection was not large, that of Ursula being what had been obtained in local markets in the last few days and Bennet had relatively few, as a crew member of the Visund.

"I do not know if I should be giving you advice, Mistress," Bennet observed. "I still do not really understand how much you know about the attire that women wear."

"Ha! Very little, Bennet, and that only learned in the last day or two. What happened before my memory returned is somewhat vague. Most of what is here isn't what a woman would wear on Earth, except in some very traditional regions. However, what I have worn so far is comfortable and fits me reasonably well. What advice would you give me?"

"Not to wear the same clothes as you wore yesterday, Mistress. In this warmer weather, we will inevitably sweat and, though it may not stain the cloth, you may become smelly with time."

"That is sound advice, Bennet, only I have so little to wear. How do clothes become cleaned around here?"

"In the palace there is an efficient laundry, Mistress, and I doubt not that His Grace's establishment will have something similar. We have but to discover it, probably by asking Her Grace. As you say, there is almost no choice, not until the seamstresses make more for you. Perhaps the green one?"

"I guess so."

Bennet extracted the dress from the hanger and gave it to Ursula, who promptly turned it inside out. She examined the stitching in the bright light of early morning.

All hand stitched! I guessed so from what happened yesterday but now I have seen it for myself. Chances are that every other item of clothing around is hand stitched too. I cannot believe that they went to all this trouble to set this up just for me. What is really going on here?

"Is there some flaw, Mistress?"

"No, not at all, just looking at the workmanship."

That didn't translate, what came out was roughly, "quality of the craft-work". Ursula by now had become aware of the automatic translation going on when she spoke or listened. The interesting thing was that it happened whatever language she thought in, Russian, English or French. Curiously, incoming speech always got translated into English, and she had wondered why.

She righted the dress and, with Bennet's help, pulled it over her head and was laced in.

Bennet stood back and cocked her head. "I cannot imagine what it must be like, to suddenly become other than the way I was born. To be a woman is so different than being a man, I struggle to even imagine it."

Ursula thought. "It was a shock to me when I first understood it, but there may be reasons why it does not affect me the way that it could affect somebody else."

"Oh?" Bennet was now pulling on a uniform tunic over her underwear.

"Let me see if I can explain it to you. You were born a girl, I assume, you have grown up a girl and now you are a woman. Is that right?"

"As you say, Mistress! Of course, I have always been female, I assume that is why I think this way."

"Then, Bennet, I did so as well. The only difference is that I had to do so from inside the body of a boy, and then that of a man."

The guardswoman stopped and stared at Ursula. "I do not understand, Mistress. What you are saying, I think, is that your body was once that of a man but that you have always thought of yourself as female. Is that right? How is that possible?"

Ursula gave a small, sad smile. "It happens to a very small number of people, Bennet, and it seems that I am one of them. How much do you know about medical matters? About what happens before a baby is born?"

"Very little, Mistress. I know that the baby grows in a woman's belly after a man gives his seed to her, but that is about all."

"Very well. Simply put, then, the seed, which is so small that you need special instruments to even see it, contains half the instructions for making a baby. The other half comes from the mother, when her body makes an egg."

"Half?"

Ursula waved a hand. "This will take too long to explain, and we must get ready for breakfast. You can imagine that a lot must happen inside the womb, in order to turn that tiny seed into a baby ready to be born."

"Aye, I can see that. Is that not what happens to all creatures, then?"

Ursula nodded. "Yes, and plants too, in the main. So, part of turning that seed into a baby is instructions to make a boy baby or make a girl baby. To do that, there are certain... secretions, let us say, that decide which way the baby's body will develop. These make the ovaries, where the girl's eggs will eventually be made, and give her a vagina for the seed to go in and the baby to come out. For a boy, different secretions instead make testicles and a penis."

Bennet thought about this as she tied her sash. "I think I understand. But how..?"

"I am coming to that. Women's bodies are full of one kind of secretion, which makes them think like women, and ensures that... Kalikan happens, and so on, and men's bodies are full of the other kind, which makes them grow taller and stronger, and makes their skin hard and maybe hairy. These secretions also make their brains work in different ways, in order for men to find women attractive and so on."

Bennet checked Ursula over and then led the way to the door of the suite. "Aye. I can see that might be how it happens."

"So, just very occasionally, the secretions work on the body of the baby, but don't prepare the brain properly for the life to come. Or, the mother's secretions overwhelm those of the unborn son. This can have a number of different consequences."

"Oh! I see!" Outside, in the corridor, Dirgan gave them a salute and then fell in beside them. Bennet gave him a sidelong look and then said, "You think that is what happened to you, Mistress?"

Ursula noticed the look. "That is one explanation. We know that certain things like that can happen, but we don't really know the full details, and sometimes it doesn't become noticeable for some years."

"As you say. Perhaps we should leave this conversation until another time? Others may be interested in what you have told me."

Ursula thought about this as they walked down the stairs. "Perhaps. It can be a complicated subject and I don't know all of the details. But, that explains why I might not be so upset over my current situation."

"Ah, I see. Thank you, Mistress, I may now appreciate your circumstances a little better."

Dirgan positioned himself outside the dining room door as the two women entered. Before they greeted those who had already arrived, Ursula leaned in towards Bennet and said, "That is also why I have trouble believing this place is real. I wanted to have a female body, I should have had a female body, but I know that is not how it actually happened. I was born a boy but I am a woman here, so this cannot be real!"

Bennet thought. "But you have what you desire now, Mistress."

"And what happens when I wake up? This place is in many ways my dearest wish, but if it is only a dream..."

The armswoman nodded. "As you say. It would be a cruel awakening, I deem. But, Mistress, you are really here, I can guarantee it. I am not someone in your dream, I can remember my whole life before you came."

Ursula gave her a sidelong glance. "And I could have just dreamed that you said those words, Bennet. This is a big problem, since we cannot prove what is real and what is not."

The guardswoman stared at Ursula. "You worry me, Mistress. If what you say is true..."

"Do not concern yourself, please." Ursula waved a hand. "This is my problem, really. I have to find a way to solve it on my own. For now, let us eat breakfast."

Maralin joined them with a smile. "Good morning, Ursula, Bennet. You look as if you are discussing something profound."

Ursula glared at Maralin but then softened her gaze. "You are right, we do. Good morning, Maralin. We were discussing a problem that has troubled philosophers for ages past. How does anybody know what is real and what is not? How can anyone prove that we are not dreaming, or that we are not part of somebody else's dream?"

"Phew! Mistress, that is a serious subject for this early in the day." Maralin's gaze was sharp. "Oh, but of course this is not just a hypothetical discussion, is it? We are back to what you can believe and what you should not. Have you reached any conclusions?"

"Of course not. How can I? This world of yours is so strange I cannot really believe in it, at least not yet. And there is another factor, one that started this whole discussion."

Ursula considered. What risk am I taking telling them this much? Some of them know some of it anyway, it is part of why I was on the run.

She sighed. "It is very difficult for me to admit this, but since I have already told Bennet I imagine it will be around the whole building before long." She took a deep breath. "If you did not already know, I am a woman in a man's body. A transgender person, if you will."

"A woman in a man's -" Maralin looked briefly confused. "Oh! I see! You mean that is what you were on Earth! Of course, here it is the other way around... which means, I think, that you are now in the right body, yes? Is that what you mean?"

It was Ursula's turn to be confused. "That would appear to be so... but, since I am not really a woman, that means that this whole world cannot be real. I know that I was born male, even though I have wanted my whole life to have been female. But it was not to be, I could not afford to have things put right, and so... I was still male... when you found me... when you found this body. But," she gestured to her own body, "you can see that I am not male, so this body cannot be real, even though I wish it to be so."

"Huh! Now I understand your problem, Mistress." His smile was wry. "Of course, I have the opposite problem, in that I am a woman who now inhabits a male body, and originally much against my own wishes. It took me a while, and a short war, to accustom myself to my new circumstances." He nodded. "I think I understand your problem now. You have your dearest wish, and you are very much afraid that the whole thing is an illusion. Does that sum it up?"

"In some ways, yes. But..." She shook her head. "I do not know who to trust, if anybody. I do not trust you, any of you. You could be some of those who are after me, but I have no means of proving who you are or who you are not, who you work for, or what your reasons are for doing all this."

"Tough matters, indeed. Look, let us speak of lighter matters over breakfast and you, I and the Duke should have a meeting afterwards, to try and make some sense out of all this. You were -" He stopped, shaking his head. "No. I'm guessing our point of view is so different to yours that we're really talking at cross purposes all the time. Leave it until later, Mistress."

Bennet said, "Tenant, The Duke will have petitioners coming this morning again, if you recall."

"Oh! You are right, Bennet. We might be able to squeeze in a short meeting before the hordes descend on him."

Eriana appeared then with Semma. Both were wearing the same uniforms as Bennet, but Eriana carried her scabbarded sword in her hand while the guardswomen wore theirs on their belts. Those in the dining room bowed and curtseyed to Eriana.

"Good morning, Your Highness," Maralin greeted her. "Forgive me for asking, but are those your exercise uniforms?"

"Good morrow, Maralin, Bennet, Ursula," Eriana replied. "Aye, we have spent a week sitting about in a ship doing very little, it is time for us to see if we may remember ought that we were taught by Armsmaster Haflin and Captain Merek. Captain Hambran has invited us to try our skills against His Grace's men."

Maralin smiled. "Doing very little? Did you forget finding Ursula, tangling with a giant fish and avoiding Duke Jarwin? What are your busy days like, then?"

Eriana smiled back but then the smile faded. "Aye. Those days would include the attacks on Boldan's Rock, and the defense of Gylfi's Rest. Not to mention nearly sinking in a storm, far from land. Maralin, sometimes the quieter days are preferable but we may not choose our fates. Suffice it to say, it is exercise that we need today and exercise that Hambran offers. Shall you join us?"

Maralin's eyes briefly slid to Ursula before he replied. "Perhaps. His Grace has some essential matters to deal with today before I could join you. Are you really going to train with that broadsword?"

Eriana laughed. "No indeed, Maralin! I bring it to show his men and to give a weight, that Hambran may provide me a practice blade of like balance."

Maralin grinned. "Frighten his men off, you mean."

"Aye, well, one day they may meet a Prince, a Duke, or even a Princess on the field of battle and they must learn how to face them. We are not given leave to choose the enemies that may face us, as you well know. Better that they learn to adjust in a place of safety than be surprised and overwhelmed when it matters most."

Maralin was interested. "How did those of Yod react when they saw you, Danisa and Heldra?"

The Princess showed her teeth in a fierce grin. "It unmanned them, Maralin. They knew not what to do, except run away." The grin softened slightly. "I am told that Garia had the like response, when she fought beside Keren on the highway."

"And she is half your size, with unusual swords." Maralin nodded. "I have seen both of you spar at the palace, Highness. I am not sure that I would want to face either one of you."

Bennet said, "Would you face me, Maralin?"

His response was cut off by the entrance of Fanis and two ladies of her court. Everybody paid their respects as she joined them.

"Good morning, Your Highness. Good morning, all. My, Eriana, do you really fight with that big thing?"

"Fanis, I did and I do. Good morrow to you. This morning I and my crew seek to shake the stiffness from our bones by trying ourselves against your men. Shall you come and watch?"

The Duchess shook her head. "Not this morning, I must excuse myself, though to see women fighting would be most instructive, I deem. You should know that there is a reluctance among the forces of Joth to permitting women to join, though they have your own example before them. You and your men will be here a while, mayhap I will join you another day, if I may. Today, I must join Wallesan in his deliberations over matters which arose while he was away."

She turned to Ursula. "My dear, we are too busy to give you the attention you deserve today. If you are, as my husband tells me, a visitor to our world as Maralin is, then you deserve to be treated according to your status, which presently we are unable to do. You have my personal apologies, should you consider that we are ignoring you."

Ursula was at a loss to find a reply. "Your Grace, I do not feel either ignored or insulted. I merely -" She stopped, then said, "This is a strange world, and I struggle to understand it."

"As well you might, dear. I have heard how Maralin struggled when he first arrived. Eriana, if you would look after Ursula this morning? I believe that the seamstresses are returning this afternoon after our nap, to bring cloth samples and gown designs for you and your girls - and Ursula, of course - to look at."

"Aye, Fanis, we can manage that, I deem." She smiled. "Though I do not see Ursula wielding a sword, somehow."

"Yes! It is too early for such adventures, I agree. Tell me, are you happy providing a companion for Ursula, or should I assign her a maid? My establishment is not as big as that of Robanar, but I should be able to find a reliable maid or two, should you desire such."

Eriana shook her head. "For now, let us continue as we are. Girls?" She looked at Bennet and Semma, receiving nods from both. "Then it is settled."

Ursula was unsettled. Nobody asked me! A maid? I have seen women walking around without maids. What determines if I am entitled to a maid? What would she do?

Oh. With these clothes I would need help dressing in the mornings and undressing at night.

And in the bath, though I could manage on my own if I had to. I did before!

And on the toilet. Awkward on my own, but possible.

What a strange way of doing things!

Wallesan arrived talking with Hambran. Everybody bowed and curtseyed and then moved towards the table. Eriana naturally took the seat of honor to Wallesan's right. Ursula found herself directed to face the Duke, with Maralin next to her facing Eriana.

Wallesan smiled at her as the food began to be served. "Mistress Ursula! I trust you are beginning to settle in without too much problem?"

"Your Grace, it is all so strange... I am used to none of it. There has been nothing so far that has caused me any real problem, though. Thank you for asking."

"I try to look after my guests, my dear. I know that your particular circumstances trouble you, but that is no reason why your stay here should be unpleasant. If anything should cause you distress or concern, you know that you may speak to Fanis or myself at any time."

"Thank you, Your Grace."

Wallesan turned to Eriana. "I see you have brought your big sword this morning, my dear. Do you intend to upset all my men?"

Eriana smiled as she pared the rind from a piece of fruit. "Wallesan, I doubt that I will upset anyone, but my men will arrive shortly and I could not say what effect they will have on your establishment."

"Indeed! I wish that I were there to see it, but I must needs deal with matters of state this morning, most of which will involve Fanis as well. I am sure that Hambran will provide anything you or your men desire."

The captain put down his mug of small beer. "Your Grace, I will. Having accompanied her men along the river, I will be interested to compare their combat skills with our own. I am sure that there is much that we may learn from them."

"Yes and no, Captain," Eriana said. "Of course we have the advantage of training by Master Haflin and Princess Garia, specifically so that we could attack Boldan's Rock. I would hope that your own men will never need to face such an obstacle as that. On the other hand, those of Joth are accounted expert with the new guns. Even though those new weapons are of Palarand manufacture, the Visunders have only used the weapons of Yod during battle."

"As you say, Your Highness. Still, the morning promises to be an interesting one."

Wallesan held up a hand. "Concerning the new guns, Eriana, I understand your interest but we must be careful in our exposure of them. Of course you and your men may inspect and try them but I would suggest that we set up a special session for the purpose."

"Agreed, Wallesan." Eriana grinned. "Today we will merely scare your men, should it please you."

He smiled back. "Scare them all you can, my dear. They are no use to us if they become frightened by big, hairy fellows with axes and huge swords."

She smirked. "I knew you would understand, Wallesan."

* * *

Ursula followed the others out of the front door of the mansion, which brought them out in the archway which connected the personal quarters of the Duke to the surrounding buildings. Instead of turning left, as she had expected, in order to enter the courtyard, the procession turned right.

She found herself in another courtyard, this one much larger. To her right was a two-storey building, she remembered that this was the kitchen block where Maralin had taken her to show her the strange meats and vegetables they apparently ate here. Facing her and on her left were more of the same three storey building which surrounded the front courtyard, with doors at ground level, windows in the middle and more rooms at the top set back from a covered balcony.

Behind the building facing her was presumably the city wall, which stood at least another two stories higher than the roof of the building which leaned against it. From each end of this building she could see stone stairways leading up to a patrol path along the inside of the wall. At ground level, at about hip height, another covered balcony ran along the front of the kitchen block and across the building attached to the city wall.

In the courtyard were a mob of men, most dressed in the blue-and-white uniform which Maralin sometimes wore. Most were standing in groups talking to what she presumed were non-commissioned officers, assuming that concept had some kind of meaning here. A small group of men and women, most wearing aprons, had crept out of the back door of the kitchen and were watching proceedings from the balcony. To her left, some younger men stood by a double door which looked as if it might be a stable entrance.

At Hambran's appearance there were shouts and the men tidied themselves into rows for inspection. The captain strode across to greet them, the others following slowly.

"Men! If I may introduce Her Highness Princess Eriana of Palarand and her two companions in arms, Guardswoman Bennet and Guardswoman Semma. Feeling stiff after their journey from Palarand, they seek to stretch their muscles by training with us today."

There were mutterings in the ranks and some expressions of interest, but most had their eyes glued on Eriana's broadsword.

"Greetings, men of Joth," she said. "Aye, this sword has been blooded at Boldan's Rock and aye, these guardswomen know their trade, though they have not yet tasted battle. You will be delighted to know that we will not use our own blades today, but will try the same practice blades you all use in exercise."

Hambran said, "Then let us get to it! Men, you will have to overcome any fear of hurting our guests while they reside with His Grace. Though you face women, you must not treat them any other way than you would another swordsman, am I clear? One day, you may face a woman with a sword who is a real enemy, and any hesitation may hasten your end. Oh, and they are guests of His Grace, so there will be no after-duty entertainments, am I understood?"

There was a ragged chorus of "Yes sir!" and the men seemed even more curious.

"Sir? Who is that?" The man pointed to Ursula.

"Another of His Grace's guests, though she is no armswoman. Her name is Mistress Ursula. She is a stranger in our lands and is recovering from an illness. She will watch the proceedings this morning, Her Grace being otherwise occupied with state business and unable to provide her usual attention."

Several barrels of practice weapons stood near one of the buildings. Everyone moved towards them, but natural politeness meant that the women had first pick. In Eriana's case, it took a while before she found one big enough and of the right balance to suit her size. It was still much smaller than her broadsword. The ease with which she swung it showed the men that she was familiar with such weapons. Bennet and Semma selected their own blades and then stood clear while the men argued over the rest.

"Dibran! You can try Her Highness first."

"Sir."

A large armsman stood forward and bowed awkwardly to Eriana. They both assumed positions and the bout began, the other men quickly clearing a space around them.

"Mistress Ursula." Ursula turned to find Renita beside her. "If I may suggest, you could sit with us out of the way. You will still be able to watch but you would not be on your own."

"Yes, of course. Renita, is it? It could get dangerous out here once they all start fighting."

The two walked back to join the other kitchen staff as the clash of blades filled the courtyard. The head cook gave her a nod as they found places on the bench.

"It seems strange to these eyes," he remarked, "to see women wielding swords, but I cannot deny that those three know what they are doing. Are there many like them in Palarand?"

"Master... Farren, was it? I do not know what Palarand is, though I could guess that it might be a country. I have never been there."

Farren was momentarily surprised. "But, I thought... oh, aye. Her Highness's ship came from Palarand, so I assumed you did too, but I remember now what Maralin said, that you were discovered along the river. Is that not so?"

"That is what I was told, yes. My memory of that period is somewhat vague."

Renita said, "Master Farren, if you would leave this subject, please, it is a sensitive one. There are still matters to be resolved between Mistress Ursula and His Grace."

"As you say, Renita! Mistress, if you would forgive me for prying, it is natural whenever somebody new comes to His Grace's mansion, that we may serve them better."

Ursula gave a faint smile. "I understand, Master Farren, it is only human nature. But I still do not know what Palarand is."

With a glance at Renita, Farren responded, "I may say briefly that Palarand is the name of a great Kingdom which lies at the mouth of our river, many marks to the east. For more, I regret that you had better ask more knowledgeable folk than myself."

"Thank you, Master Farren. That is at least more than I knew before, at any rate."

Their attention turned to the bout in the courtyard, which was being watched carefully by all the others present. It soon became clear that Eriana was much better with a sword than her opponent, so Hambran called a halt and assigned Dibran to Bennet, before choosing a practice sword and facing the Princess himself. A third man had already exchanged blade strokes with Semma.

It dawned on Ursula after a while that this was no carefully choreographed play-acting for her benefit but a real test of arms, and that all those in front of her were capable of inflicting real damage to their opponents, should they have chosen to do so. Though she knew little about fighting with swords the skill shown by all three women was apparent, and while the men were not so able, they too knew what they were doing.

After a while Hambran called a halt, shouting "Switch!" To Ursula's amazement, the combatants paused and then tossed their swords to their opponents! There was a brief pause while each tested the reach and balance of their new weapon and then the fight began again.

Ursula leaned towards Farren. "What just happened then?"

"A common training move, Mistress Ursula. On the field of battle, so I am told, anyone may lose or break a sword and it may be necessary to find another at short notice. Swapping swords ensures that each may learn to use any that come to hand, and not to rely on a single blade that they may have become accustomed to."

"Oh. I would never have thought of that."

Bennet had driven her opponent back far enough that the onlookers had backed away to give them room. There was a shout from the archway.

«There she is! This way, men!»

The crew of the Visund, all dressed in exercise fatigues of tunic and tights in palace colors, spilled through the archway and stood gathered to Ursula's left, watching the sword play with interest. Some were on crutches, others were being helped by friends and bandages were obvious. All of them still carried their weapons. Eriana tipped up her sword point, causing Hambran to step back and wait. She turned to her men.

«Wait a moment or two until we finish, boys. Then Hambran and I can find out who is fit to train and who is not.»

Without another word she turned back towards Hambran and attacked him again, causing him to smile.

"Even when you wield a smaller blade it is all I can do to hold you, Highness!"

"A lifetime of playing with weapons, together with more recent experience, Captain. Did you fight in the war?"

"Only to help retake this city," he replied, deflecting a stroke. "No amount of training prepares you for the real thing, does it?"

"As you say! Still, some training is better than no training, I deem."

"I prefer to do my training with a sword that I can actually lift, Highness! Still," he added with a smile that was becoming forced, "any sword is better than no sword at all."

"True, and that one gives you longer reach. With this one, I must risk much to even cut you."

While this banter was going on, Lars took a look at the mob of Norsemen and spoke low.

«Men, we wear the colors of the King. Let us not dishonor them in front of the Duke's men.»

The first surprise for Ursula was that she could actually understand the language. She had been picking up tidbits along the voyage but now, with her memory and faculties operating normally, she listened to Lars's gentle chiding with full comprehension.

The second surprise was what happened next. If she had not heard those words, she might not have given the men much attention, but she kept an eye on them as the fights developed. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the group sorted itself out into two lines that would have done credit to any parade ground. By the time Eriana raised her borrowed sword again to indicate that she had had enough, the men were standing at their version of 'easy'.

Eriana reversed her sword and handed it back to Hambran, who gave her back her larger training blade. With a nod, she turned to face her men with a smile.

«Lars, you managed to get them all out of bed, then? Or were they in the city lockup?»

Lars straightened and replied, «Highness, you wound me. Good morrow to you. Until we knew what we faced, we thought it better to go easy on the ale.» He switched languages and raised his voice. "Highness, company ready for inspection."

"Is this everyone? Including the wounded? Aye, well they may only watch for now, I would think. Welcome to the Mansion of His Grace the Duke of Joth! As you may see, they do things differently here than they do in Jotlheim and indeed in Palarand. His Grace does not need a vast palace with a maze of corridors and chambers," she grinned, "you will all be relieved to know. What you see around you," she gestured around the courtyard, "is almost all of it. That is the main reason you have been found living space elsewhere in the city. Lars, have there been any problems?"

"Nothing we could not fix, Highness."

"Good. The reason you are all here this morning? I wanted to make sure that you all had some weapons practice, both our way and the way of Joth, which may not be the same as we learned out at the Kallend estate. This is a chance for you to learn tactics from His Grace's men and show them some of your own tricks." Her gaze became stern. "It is not a chance for you to forget yourselves and injure his men, understand?"

Many of the men looked offended but some of them just grinned.

She continued, "Since I do not yet know how long we will be staying in Joth, I have not yet made a plan for our activities here. His Grace is still very busy and I have not been able to discuss anything at all with him. I do want to get us out to the practice grounds for the guns sometime, and I want you all to ride out and spend some time in the country.

"Now I see that some of you are already sweating, even though it is still morning, and I can sympathize. Tenant Maralin has made some suggestions concerning... lighter wear... for the hotter months and that means that this afternoon you will all be measured up by some of the city's seamstresses. You know that Joth sewed uniforms for many of the armies who came through on their way to Yod, so they are very experienced and you should given some more comfortable clothing in a small number of days. Yes, there are new outfits promised for myself and the girls, oh, and for Ursula too of course.

"Regarding Ursula, she regained her memory early yesterday morning so may have more questions to ask you and more to say to you. As far as the local healers know, she has been passed fully fit, which is more than I can say about most of the miserable bunch in front of me."

Lars asked, "Highness, does Mistress Ursula now have her birthing name?"

The question took Ursula by surprise. She reddened and shook her head.

Eriana replied, "The situation is complicated, Lars. There is much that we do not understand and much that she does not understand. All may continue to name her Ursula for now."

She clapped her hands. «Right! Those of you with crutches and with broken bones or cracked ribs, go over and sit by Ursula, please. The rest of you, over to the barrels to find some training blades. Take off those of your own and stack them against that wall.»

«Any axes, Captain?»

«Hah! This is a civilized land, Stine! For chopping wood, aye, but for battle? I do not think so.»

There was a general burst of laughter as the ranks dissolved, some to amble or limp over towards Ursula, while the bulk headed for the barrels of training swords. Those who joined Ursula sat on the edge of the walkway, there being no room left on the benches.

"Hey, Ursula! Are you well now?"

"Thank you, Olof, I am. How is your foot?"

The man grimaced. "I cannot yet... excuse me." He turned to his neighbor. «How do I tell her that I cannot stand on it yet?»

Ursula answered, «You just did.»

The group turned to her as one, surprised. Olof asked, «You can understand our tongue?»

She smiled. «It seems so, though I don't know how I learned it. I could never speak it before... I came here.» She hesitated. «I don't know how much I know, only that when somebody speaks, I can understand you.»

One of the others pointed a finger. «That might explain something. When we rode back from Joth to Palarand, the Duke and Maralin came with us. It seemed to me that Maralin learned our words very quickly along the way. Maybe it is because you both come from the mother world?»

Interesting. Even possible, if what Maralin told me is really the truth. I know that I could never speak Norse before!

But how is something like that possible? Maybe I am still in some kind of dream.

She shook her head. «I cannot agree or disagree. I haven't had my memory back for very long so I don't know what is happening. I am trying to find out where I am and what is going on. I cannot say any more.»

There were frowns at this declaration, and Ursula saw that most left strange ideas like philosophy to others. Thinking back to what she could remember of their voyage, she came to an unhelpful conclusion.

Most of these men really are simple sailors and warriors. I cannot believe that they are actors playing a part to give me a false sense of security. I have lived with these men and watched them work, rest and train. One or two might be, yes, but most are exactly what they appear to be.

Where does that leave me and my dilemma?

A clash of steel took everybody's attention back to the courtyard, where an apparent full-scale melee was now taking place, Palarand against Joth. Ursula watched and realized that she was actually frightened by the levels of violence taking place in front of her, even though everyone was making determined efforts not to cause any deliberate injuries.

This would be much, much worse than fixing up gunshot wounds. If this was a real battle there would be blood and body parts everywhere.

When one gave his opponent an apparent injury that would have taken them out of the fight, the two would briefly raise their weapons to each other and then go off to find somebody else to attack, which roughly mirrored what would happen on a battlefield, at least to the victor. In this way most of the participants were able to test themselves against most of the other side, giving all the benefit of any experience.

Farren turned to two men standing beside the kitchen door. He had to raise his voice to be heard over the clash of blades. "Fysel, Lerron, if you would go put another tureen of water on to boil. These fine fellows will desire pel once they have finished their practice, and there are twice as many as we usually supply."

"As you desire, Master Farren."

Ursula heard tureen but also heard samovar inside her head. She wondered how the translation mechanism somehow worked. She shook her head with frustration at the impossible circumstances.

Farren turned to her. "Do you not like pel, Mistress? I can find you fruit juice, wine or even water if you would prefer."

"What? Oh, no, Master Farren! Pel will be fine, thank you. I was thinking about... my own particular problem. I'm trying to understand how this," she gestured at the mock battle, "fits into it."

"Well, of course, our men -" he began to explain but then realized that she was speaking of what had been hinted at the previous day. "Ah, as you say. I regret, I cannot offer you help, nor can any who is here today, I deem. I suspect that you must needs find your own answers to your questions."

She grimaced again. "That is my conclusion as well, Master Farren. Thank you for your concern."

The match between Eriana and Hambran had finished earlier, so the two stood side by side discussing what they could see happening in the melee. Finally, after a nod from Eriana, Hambran put a small flared pipe to his lips and blew a single note, whereupon everyone put down their weapons, some with obvious relief.

"I think we have seen enough, men. Anybody hurt? I mean, seriously hurt?"

There were mutterings but nobody owned up to having any injury that would take them off duty. Eriana made a gesture at her own men and most shook their heads.

She clapped her hands. "Right, men! Return your training swords and pick up your own weapons, please. I see that some of you are not yet fit enough. I want to see you all fighting fit by the time we depart Joth, am I understood?"

There was a roar from her men, with practice swords upraised. Many of the Jothans jumped at the display.

As the men all converged on the weapons barrels, Eriana came across to the injured and spoke to each of them, showing all her real concern for their welfare. She reached the end of the line and looked up at Ursula.

"Well, Mistress, what did you think?"

"I am surprised that there were so few injuries after such a display. Is this what passes for warfare in this place?"

"From what I can tell, it seems so. Do you remember that I and my men come from another land, distant from the Great Valley? There we are raiders and brawlers, mostly, while here matters seem to be more formalized, with much bigger armies facing each other." She shrugged. "But the actual fighting is much the same."

"But... swords, spears and axes? I thought I heard someone mention guns earlier."

"It is true there are now guns on this..." Eriana blinked and then changed what she had been about to say. There were too many ears listening to the conversation. "...in the Great Valley, but that is because people like yourself who came from... elsewhere... brought the memory here of how to make them. It will change this land forever. Fortunately, only a very few people know the secret of the guns, and most of those reside in Joth. That is why I will take my men to their testing ground, to make sure we learn the latest developments they have made."

No guns? I can't think of anywhere in the world that doesn't at least know about guns. And people fighting with swords went out centuries ago! Maybe only some Arabs and nomads still fight with them now. What is this place?

Oh. I wonder if I could somehow get hold of a gun. It might make a difference if I have to fight my way out of this place.

"Oh. Thank you, Highness."

Two men came through the kitchen doors with trays of mugs, distributing them to all they could before going back for more. Ursula lifted her mug and smelled the aroma of the curious herbal drink they called pel. It was too hot to drink so she just cradled the mug in her hands.

Hambran came and joined Eriana. "Highness, I wondered if your men would like to try line fighting, as one might need to do on the field, or perhaps while defending a gate or something similar."

She nodded. "Aye, why not? We had some instruction in Palarand, but we knew that we would not need to do it at Boldan's Rock so did not make much of it. You are telling me that your men are expert in this?"

"Aye, but today I would speak of instruction only, Highness. To practice such a method, we must needs venture to the fields beyond the walls, to give ourselves space to maneuver. What say you?"

Eriana looked up at the sun. "We have a bell left before lunch?"

"A bell and a half or so, I would think. With all this noise I have not heard the clock."

"Hah! I shall ask Robanar to tell Milsy to send you a clock you can mount on the wall yonder, that your men shall know at all times what bell it is - or what hour."

"It has already arrived," Hambran replied with a smile. "A clock was delivered yesterday, along with a whole wagon-load of gifts for His Grace and his people."

"Do you tell me? Your city will soon seem a different place, I deem, when it has many clocks, all wired together. What else has been sent, do you know?"

Hambran shook his head as the two turned and walked away. "I do not, except that several of the crates were large and delicate. I am told -"

Ursula stared at her drink. A clock? What is significant about a clock? I really do not understand what is going on!