The next day saw the group being woken early by the guards. Although Rialto was normally a heavy sleeper he was awake and up before the guards had moved on to the next room. Nedric enquired about his speedy rise “What’s the rush? You must be almost packed.”

“Food, my friend, food. If I’m quick about things I might be able to get something extra from the kitchens and I’m sure that whatever I can get will be better than the food they serve on boats. Generally it’s fish and I can’t stand fish!”

“I heard that these river boats were luxurious, all the merchants demand top quality food.”

“A top quality fish is still a fish!”

“You came up the river to get to the keep?”

“No, it was too expensive so I came overland but boats equal fish and that’s it!”

Nedric was surprised that his friend, knowledgeable in most ways, was so certain about the food they were going to have. He had asked Marryn about the boats and the stout lad hadn’t mentioned a limited diet of fish and he would certainly have said something if subjected to the same meal for two weeks.

Leaving the house that had sheltered them was like moving into another world. One that seemed more underwater than above it. The ever-present mist had turned into a constant downpour one that promised to keep going forever. The sky, even in the pre-light before dawn, had a greyish cast and the road down to the river was rapidly becoming a stream. Nedric was soon extremely glad of the strong boots and good waterproof he had purchased. Others of the students had been less prudent in their purchases and cursed each time the group had to pass through a puddle. The temperature had dropped a few degrees since the previous day and that with the omni-present water caused a general feeling of gloom amongst the company. Even Rialto who had been crowing about the amount of food he had managed to cadge was reduced to muttering and complaining.

The boat, when they reached it, was sufficient to stop their complaints. One of the new type operating on a similar process as the boardways, it had large wheels on either side containing a number of paddles. These pushed the boat through the water at a constant rate. They were sufficient to make the upstream journey from Elseth to Waterfall last a mere two weeks. The downstream journey was of course significantly faster and they were hoping to reach Elseth in a week. The amount of rain falling promised a speedy journey although at the moment the group did not appreciate this.

The rooms on the boat were designed to hold no more than two people, as the general passenger was a merchant possibly travelling with a companion. The students were therefore split into their normal room assignments and Nedric and Rialto found themselves in a cabin at the fore of the boat. The cabin being more of a triangle than the normal rectangle was actually roomier than it looked and suited the lads perfectly.

Other than the cabins there was a general area where meals were taken and people could play a number of board and card games. There was more space outside on the decks of the boat but as the rain was still falling this was temporarily unavailable. Although most of the students had gathered in the general area, the merchants, some of whom were playing a gambling game that Strawn was itching to join, had commandeered all of the best tables. Marryn had disappeared and Nedric and Rialto seeing that nothing was happening retreated to their cabin.

It was during these days of travel that the hobbies that the two had begun came into their own. There is nothing like days of empty time to help develop a skill and with nothing better to do Nedric’s juggling improved no end and Rialto became more fluent on the mandolin. Rialto was now able to pick out most of the tunes the boys knew and could play a couple of them fluently. It was much harder to assess Nedric’s progress, as whilst he was developing quite a few new tricks, not having seen any other jugglers for a while he couldn’t tell how he compared with them. At some point Rialto got fed up of Nedric asking, “Have you seen this trick?” and decided to have a go himself. By the end of the week the two lads were able to pass six balls between them. Nedric had also learnt to play a few notes on the mandolin.

Marryn’s disappearance was explained during one of the meals. Much to Rialto’s relief the food had been varied and excellent. This didn’t stop him eating some of his stores; he was after all a growing boy. Nedric was sat next to Marryn during one of the meals, “Where have you been hiding yourself?” he asked the stouter lad.

“You know I’m interested in food.”

“I could hardly miss that!”

“Well I thought I’d talk to the chef here and I’ve been down in the galley, helping with the meals and learning a lot, the man is a genius!”

“I noticed the meals were better than most.”

“They were better than that, the chef uses herbs and spices from all over the world and knows the correct proportions and uses for all of them. He knows where to get the finest of all the different types of food and where the best food can be bought cheaply. He has more recipes in his head than anyone I’ve ever met. I’ve been writing some of them down.”

Nedric guessed that the other lad was rather enthused, as he had never heard him say so much before; he decided to encourage Marryn, as the other was normally more than a bit shy.

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

“You should collect recipes from other people as well and then write a book. The problem with most of the books is that they contain nothing that most people want to read but everyone likes food.”

“I might just do that. Even if it were just for myself it would be worth it. I can’t remember all the recipes the chef here knows, let alone all the others that must be out there.”

It was on the last day of the boat ride that trouble developed. Strawn had been trying to gamble with some of the merchants from the moment he saw them playing cards at one of the tables and after spending days watching them play had managed to get himself included in a game.

The merchants played for small stakes, which was just as well as Strawn whilst the son of a moderately wealthy merchant himself, did not have large amounts of money with him. This did not mean that the games were not competitive. The nature of the game was that several hours were needed and that it was not concluded until one player ran out of money.

On the previous days the blond boy had gambled for small stakes with the other students. Strawn was either skilled or lucky enough that he had made a little money each day and was feeling confident and somewhat cocky.

On the final day the merchants invited him to sit in on their table. The amount that the players gambled was agreed at the start of the game and on previous days they had played until one player had lost all their money. This time they were playing until either one player had won everything or the boat docked at which point the players would keep whatever winnings they had.

The stake was much higher than on the previous days and Strawn couldn’t really afford to lose the money. He also hadn’t thought about the change in rules. He began to get a little worried when the weaker players started to drop out.

There were two players and Strawn still playing when the city of Elseth came into view and Strawn knew he was in trouble. Both of the other players were better than him and his money was gradually diminishing. His hope was that he could hold out until they docked and maybe still have some winnings. His hopes seemed to be realised when the docks came into view.

It was then that the other players did something that Strawn had not expected. They co-operated, raising the stakes higher and higher. Strawn could have just thrown his cards in and let the game continue but he was sitting looking at a very good hand. He threw all his money into the bid in a do-or-die gesture. One of the players immediately folded knowing that he had plenty of winnings already and not being prepared to risk them. The other player covered the bet and waited as Strawn was forced to show his cards. Strawn was not a bad player, the hand he held was one of the best, and only a few could beat it. Unfortunately the one that the other player lay down was one of those few. Strawn was livid, he upturned the table and drew his dagger shouting that the other player must have been cheating and attacked him.

The other player was a cold-looking man of middle years. He didn’t react to the shouts but just watched Strawn and the knife. As the lad came closer he reacted, grabbing Strawn’s wrist in a hold that forced the dagger from his grip and left the boy screaming in pain. He let go of the wrist, kicked the dagger away and turned the table back on its legs. He then turned his back on the lad as he and the other player collected the money from the floor. As Strawn retrieved his dagger he made his only comment, “Don’t be such a bad loser boy, others would not have been so soft on you!” With that he collected the last of his winnings, shook hands with the other player and left the now docked boat.

Strawn looked like he would throw himself after the man when he felt himself grabbed by his shoulders. The two guards who had accompanied the students were now restraining him and indeed dragging him backwards towards the masters. Master Ernick was looking sour, which was nothing unusual, what gave Strawn pause was the look on the face of Master Karik. The master who had never before shown anything less than a smiling countenance now bore a look of disdain. He said only a few words to Strawn but the boy was instantly subdued. “We will deal with you later.”

The students, normally a fairly lively bunch, only exchanged a few quiet remarks to each other as they collected their belongings and made ready to disembark. “What will they do to Strawn?” Nedric asked Rialto.

“I’ve no idea, but it will be bad!” his friend replied.

The group went directly to another house owned by the Duke of Asgril. Not the duke’s own residence in Elseth, which was a magnificent building, but a smaller but still substantial accommodation that he used only occasionally. As the students separated, Strawn was detained by the guards and led into a side room. He wasn’t around when the students reappeared for their meal a few minutes later.

Master Karik let the students sit down and then rose to speak.

“It is our responsibility as Masters to educate you, it is also our responsibility to see that you are safe. It is impossible to do that if you do not behave in a reasonable manner. Strawn by his actions has shown that he is irresponsible and therefore will not be going further on this trip. He will be spending the next week in the company of the Duke and it will then be decided whether he will travel back to the keep or be returned to his family.”

By the way he spoke it was clear to the students that Strawn would not have a pleasant time with the Duke and that his future as a student was very much in doubt. This might not have meant that much to Strawn but to the other students, particularly those without the moneyed background of Strawn the threat of being unable to finish the course was extremely serious.

Nedric in particular knew that graduation from the keep would lead to a job and that he had little hope of anything as good anywhere else. The others, coming from merchant families, at least had the prospect of working for their families. Nedric had noticed that some of these had looked as concerned as he felt at the prospect of being forced to leave.

In the room the boys shared that evening the atmosphere was extremely subdued. Without Strawn, his friends seemed unable to find anything to do with themselves other than to complain when Rialto started to play a jaunty tune on the mandolin. They didn’t complain when he changed to a more sombre tune so he continued with others in a similar vein. Marryn had his head buried in a pile of papers and was constantly writing and oblivious to all else. He barely looked up when one of Nedric’s juggling balls landed beside him and then it was only to suggest that Nedric keep the ball to himself and not disturb his papers.

“What’s the chance of Strawn coming back to the keep with us?” Nedric asked Rialto.

“Fairly high I would guess, he misses out on the best thing to happen this year and he can’t get into much trouble at the keep.”

“I wouldn’t want to spend a week with the Duke, he always looked pretty scary when he came to the keep.”

“Serves Strawn right for starting a fight. When he gets angry he doesn’t think and that got him into trouble. Perhaps this week will get him to think next time.”

“I seem to remember you almost getting into a fight not so long ago.” Nedric was thinking of Rialto’s reaction to the taunts of the villagers.

“Well I have a better friend in you than Strawn has with his followers.”