"The Eyes Of A God" - читать интересную книгу автора (Marco John)

The officer came forward, escorting Lukien and the disgraced Trager to the gallery, both of whom bowed before the king and queen. Cassandra noticed how Trager kept his helmet on, a breach of etiquette, surely. He couldn't even look at her, so strong was his shame, so she let the lapse pass.
Said the officer, "Sir Trager has jousted well, but Sir Lukien has jousted better. So to him goes the diamond."
'Sirs," said Akeela, "These gentle folk thank you for your snorted. The officer of the joust stepped off the field, heading to the side of the gallery to stand with Breck and some other Royal Chargers. And Cassandra, sick with anxiety, clutched the gem-stones in her fists until her knuckles turned white.
Lukien and Trager lowered themselves into riding stances. Akeela raised his hand, held it aloft for a moment, then let it fall. Lukien's charger bolted forward. Trager raced toward him, his lance aimed. The air filled with clods of dirt and the noise of hammering hooves. The two jousters devoured the distance between them, each pointing a lance at the shielded heart of his opponent. The air sounded with the report of cracking wood. Lukien's lance drove into Trager's shield and Trager's into his, and Cassandra saw her champion's weapon buckle, sending up shards of wood. The jousters roared past each other, neither unhorsed. The crowd cheered wildly.
'Another lance!" Lukien cried. He whirled his horse around, anxiously waiting for his pages to bring him a fresh weapon and clear the debris from the ground. From the opposite end of the field, Trager waved at him 'Ha!" the lieutenant crowed. "You are clumsy this year, Captain!"
The folk in the gallery loved the banter. They shouted at the jousters, urging the combat to continue. Lukien fixed his new lance beneath his arm and spurred his horse forward with a cry. Trager matched his moves, bolting forward. This time the clash sent Trager's lance skidding off Lukien's shield. Again, neither man went down. Their horses came to skidding stops.
'Well done, Trager," called Akeela. He favored the soldier with a smile. "This year you are truly worthy. Will the diamond be yours at last?"
'It is as good as won, my lord," replied the knight. He turned to his bronze opponent. "What say you, Captain? Again?"
'Again," replied Lukien. He raised a guantleted hand, waving Trager forward. "Now, come and get your lesson."
Incensed, Trager crouched and drove his boots into the flanks of his mount, spurring the charger onward. Lukien joined him, racing forward. Again their lances closed, again the crowd was wide-eyed. And this time the Bronze Knight found his mark,
great labor. Trager, since you are second best, you get this ruby." He glanced at Cassandra, nudging her to bring out the gem. Cassandra complied, holding out the ruby for Trager, who took it reluctantly.
'Thank you, my lord and lady," he said.
Akeela continued, "And Lukien, once again you have jousted best of all. Once again, the diamond is yours, my friend."
Cassandra needed no encouragement this time. She held out the diamond for Lukien, placing it in his outstretched hand. But before he released her, he bent and gave her hand a kiss.
'For the honor of my queen," he said.
and drank down its contents furiously, then wiped his hand across his brow.
'Whew! That girl can dance!"
Of course, thought Akeela blackly. AH the girls want to dance with Lukien.
'Sit, Lukien," he offered. "You look about to collapse."
'Indeed I am," said the captain. He came around the table and fell into a chair beside Akeela. He had doffed his armor once again and now wore a crimson tunic. When a servant brought over a full pitcher of beer, Lukien took it and drank without a glass. He was in fine spirits after his victory in the joust, and wore the diamond around his neck to prove it. Trager, on the other hand, was conspicuously missing from the banquet. His lieutenant's absence only buoyed Lukien's mood.
'So?" asked the knight. "Why aren't the happy couple dancing, eh?"
'The queen is tired," Akeela explained. "The excitement of the day."
'Tired?" Lukien looked at Cassandra. "Is that all, my lady?"
Cassandra grimaced. "Yes," she said. Yet her eyes seemed to say more.
'Well, then," said Lukien awkwardly. "You should rest."
'She is resting, Lukien."
Akeela and Lukien looked at each other. Lukien's smile sagged. He nodded and returned his attention to the pitcher of beer, filling Akeela's goblet again.
'Good beer," he said. "Let's drink a toast to the two of you."
'Yes," agreed a new voice. "Let's drink to the young lovers!"
Akeela looked up and saw Baron Glass approaching the table. He had a goblet in his only hand and a smarmy smile on his bearded face. He had left behind his pretty young wife and undisciplined children, and he bowed slightly to Cassandra as he came forward. Cassandra forced a pleasant countenance.
'Baron Glass," she said, "you are welcome to drink with us. Come, sit yourself down."
'The queen is gracious," said the baron. He looked around for a chair, then found the one that Figgis had vacated. Coming around the table, he pulled the chair close to Akeela, but before hat evening, the celebration continued inside the halls of Lion-keep. The ladies danced and the minstrels strummed their instruments, and children played beneath the tables with the dogs, enjoying the atmosphere fostered by the king. Festoons of flowers hung from the walls, scenting the air with lilac. Akeela sat with his new wife at a gigantic ebony table covered with platters of game birds and flagons of wine and beer. Out on the floor, Lukien was dancing with the daughter of Chancellor Nils. Cassandra watched them, frowning slightly. Akeela noticed the expression and wondered.
'You do not eat, my lady," he said, offering her some food from his own plate. Cassandra turned her nose away.
'I've already eaten enough for a week."
'Is the music too loud for you? You look uncomfortable."
'I'm fine," replied Cassandra. Then she smiled apologetically, adding, "It has been an exciting day, that's all. I'm just tired."
'Yes, exciting," Akeela agreed. "But you don't look well, Cassandra; your color." He studied her, wondering why she was so white. "Perhaps you should excuse yourself, get some rest."
She shook her head. "It's our wedding night."
'Cassandra," he whispered, "I'm not going to force myself on a sick woman. If you're not feeling wellЕ"
'I'm fine." She smiled weakly. "Really."
Before Akeela could reply, Lukien hurried over from the dance floor. Perspiration covered his face. He took up Akeela's goblet like you and I, King Akeela. Knowledge is for people who can handle it." He gestured around the chamber. "Look about this room. What do you see here but nobles? These are the elite of L№ria, my lord. They already know how to read and write. They don't need your library."
'Precisely," argued Akeela. "The library is for all those people who aren't here; the people left out to celebrate my wedding in the streets." He smiled slyly at the Baron. "I'm building the library for your servants, Baron Glass, so that maybe they can do something better than swill your pigs and shear your sheep."
Glass' face reddened. "King Akeela, not everyone can be noble. Fate chose my birthright."
'Nonsense," said Akeela.
'It's not nonsense," said Glass. "And the same power that made me noble put you on the throne. Do you think my servants tend my herds because I keep them from something better? No. They tend my herds because they can do no better. It is Fate's will."
The notion incensed Akeela. Like many in L№ria, Glass was Fateist, part of a cult that believed the world controlled by an unseen force, neither god nor devil. It was just one of many faiths accommodated by L№ria, but it was influential in the country, and Glass believed its myths devoutly.
'Baron," said Akeela carefully, "this is my wedding day. I don't want it spoiled by politics and religion, and I don't want to argue with you."
'You should listen to me," Glass warned. "I am not alone in these thoughts. There are others who are concerned with your ideas, my lord. They think they are dangerous, and so do I."
'The people support me," said Akeela.
'The people do not run the chancelleries," Glass countered. "You and I are of noble birth; we know how to govern. At least that's what your father believed."