The dog barked loudly at the Knight as he approached, its jaws powerfully opening and closing, its lip curled in a manner to display its large teeth. Nearly a half-dozen dogs joined it, seemingly materializing out of the clusters of sheep and rushing towards the barking.

The sheepdogs were large and white, almost hard to apart from the sheep afar as they were similarly sized. They were shaggy in coat, but the large muscle beneath was obvious. The knight stood no chance, he would be torn to shreds if he harassed their stock. He would not be able to outrun or outfight them.

The knight had left the old man’s village three mornings ago, traveling south in hopes to find the Long Road, a road called so because it connected the far east and west sides of the continent. The flat grasses of the edge had begun to crest and peak, turning into long rolling hills. The grass had lengthened, now nearly knee-deep in some places, and the color yellowed. Clumps of dark green trees and bushes grew, forcing the Knight to route around them. The temperature had also picked up, and sweat soaked through the Knight’s clothing.

The Long Road would duck through the Valley of Rage, the only path through the large mountain range with a road. He knew it was near and south as he had come this way when he passed through on his way to the Edge of the World. He hadn’t seen sheep and dogs when he passed through the first time though.

The Knight paused for the dogs, hoping to quell their passion at least a little. A couple of them did stop barking, but the others continued, their shaggy and hairy tails wagging as they bounded around him. Taking a few slow steps forward, the Knight tested the dogs, and none were too unkind, continuing to bark and howl, but none had the signs of aggressive or scared dogs, so he began the slow navigation between the clumps of sheep and dogs.

The dogs made sure to position themselves between him and the sheep as he moved through, wary but controlled. When he got too close to the sheep a near dog would let out a low growl and bare its teeth, so he would stop and walk parallel, and the dog would go back to its tail-wagging, running, and barking. He realized that the dogs were escorting him, that this was a practiced dance, and they knew he was no real threat. A high whistle sounded, and the dogs bolted off in its direction.

An older woman approached, a mob of dogs now bouncing around her. She waved at the Knight, and as he got closer, he saw she was smiling.

“Knew it was a person. They bark different you know, for humans and wolves or bears,” her voice was quick and sharp, despite her face saying she had lived a full life. It was wrinkled every which way and spotted dark in places. Her smile was also missing many teeth and any that remained were yellow or black.

“A good day to you elder,” the Knight bowed his head.

“Been better days. Where you coming from? Artana?”

The Knight looked to her eyes, “The Edge of the World.”

Laughter bellowed out of the woman’s mouth as she turned her head away and ducked to compose herself.

“Excuse me, wasn’t meaning to laugh at you.”

“What was so funny?” the Knight asked, a confused grin on his face.

“Big, brave western knight like you, too craven to go beyond the Edge. A silly sight.”

“How do you know I didn’t go beyond? And come back.”

“No one ever comes back,” she said, “Why do you wear a priest's clothing? You have a knight’s cloak and pendant,

where is your armor?”

“I lost it. But I hope to reclaim it one day.”

“Where are you headed now?”

“I was looking for the Long Road. And hopefully, a place to buy food and perhaps rest the night.”

“These are bad times to be traveling the road, but it is a few miles south of here, though I don’t know why you didn’t keep going west to it, that would’ve been closer to the edge I think.”

“Food and rest?”

She now regarded him thoughtfully. “I am sure you are a good person stranger, but these are unprecedented times. Raiders come through weekly, you would be better off turning back and going west to the road.” A dog pawed at the knight’s leg, asking him for attention. He obliged, scratching behind its ears.

“That’s Bell, not even a year old, she’s got no sense, real sweet though,” the woman said.

Bell’s large tongue rolled out of her black lips and past her dark teeth, as she closed her eyes and let the knight scratch. When he stopped, she rammed her head into his hand, asking for more.

“I went through a village a few days back; everyone had been slaughtered.”

“Aye. Likely the children’s work, the bunch of butchers and rapists.”

“Children?”

“The Children of Elladan, a bunch of farmboys and mountain men who fashion themselves as heroes. A few of my dumber sons and grandsons even joined them. A good way to get some money they claimed. I think they just wanted to get their spears wet with blood and women. Fools even robbed me the other day, they killed a dog, stole a few sheep, and all the coins I had. They even killed poor Brun, he didn’t deserve that,” there was a sad tinge to her voice at the end.

“What lord maintains this land? Why do they allow brigands to roam it?”

“I couldn’t tell you why a lord does as he does. Only thing I know is that Elladan is dead and chaos reigns.”

“They should honor their god, even in his death.”

“As I said, I don’t know a lord’s mind, do you have a name stranger?”

A name. The knight had many names in his life. The simple name his parents had given him, the name he had earned when he became a knight, among others. But a haze fell over his mind as he tried to say one. He had lost the right to those names.

“Kulin,” the knight eventually said, not his name, not a name he had any right to, but a name that came to mind. From where the knight did not know, but only a false name could he now carry.

“Pleased to make your acquaintance, Kulin. I am Amma, and now that we know each other, I will offer you a place to sleep tonight, and a place at my family’s table.”

“Thank you. Your kindness will not be lost on me.”

“I hope not. I won’t force you to work for food and rest, but after Brun died, we have had a bit of extra work to go around…”

“I would be happy to help.”

Amma nodded and turned around. The knight and the dogs followed her. She stopped and ordered the dogs to stay, and they did so dutifully, if not a little sad. Bell especially seemed to want to come. At least until one of her packmates took off running in the other direction and she sped off after them.

As they walked Amma spoke of her family, describing names, people, and events that the knight had no reference to, so he simply nodded and let her speak.

She led him up and down a few of the rolling yellow green hills, and a small little house came into view, nestled in a valley near a little clump of trees. It was small and humble, only a single room. A mob of children now replaced the mob of dogs, and they pestered with questions about the knight. Who was he? Where was he going? Amma introduced each by name and who their parent was.

“This is Lond, a son of my daughter Teri, and, Emmi, daughter of my son Ellar.”

“No,” the boy spoke up, “I am Lurt’s Lond, not Teri’s.”

“If you hadn’t all been named Lond I might’ve been able to keep you straight.” She wore a warm smile, amused even.

“You do it on purpose,” the boy whined, a smile on his face as well.

A few teen girls walked out of the house to greet him, obviously curious like the little children, but more courteous and holding questions back.

“If you want to marry one,” Amma said, “just carry her off. Got too many of the damned things already.”

“Grandmother!” one of the girls blushed, a young freckled girl who looked thirteen.

Amma led the knight into the house, where he met her eldest son, Little Lond, and his youngest son, Londy. He met Little Lond’s wife, Seri, a short round tan woman with a sharp tongue. Little Lond was older, his dark hair clouded with silver, and he was not enthused to see the knight.

“What barbarian have you brought before us mother,” he cried.

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“Look at his pendant. He’s a knight,” said Londy, who looked nearly eleven.

“A knight of what? Carts? Lice? Dirt? No knight looks like that, he probably stole the pendant.”

The knight didn’t disagree. He knew his appearance was shabby, pathetic, unlike what a knight was supposed to be. Was he even still a knight? The thought hit him hard, like a raging bull crushing his chest. He had been a knight since his teens, but his vows were broken, his sword destroyed and his armor lost. The only thing left that was a knights was the silver sword pendant. That made him a knight. Undeniable proof that he was a knight and is a knight. It had to be.

“We could give you a shave,” Amma said looking at the knight, “and a haircut, if it suits you.”

The knight nodded ascent. His beard had been scratchy and annoying. He had let it grow out of apathy rather than any desire to have it. There was no need to resist a shaving of it. Amma nodded back to him and ordered one of the girls to fetch the razor, knife, and pumice.

Amma had the knight sit in a seat, talking the whole time.

“How do you want your hair cut? I am not much good for any cut other than short, as that is what my husbands and sons and grandsons have had. Short hair.”

“Short hair will do.”

Amma nodded, “Are you sure? My sons would love to have long hair like yours. But it’s impractical when you get so dirty with the work. And bathing is expensive.”

“I am on the road for now. Bathing hasn’t been easy.”

“I could smell that,” she smiled, “But it’s no trouble, let me wash your hair first.”

She filled a bowl with water from a large tub and had the knight lean his head back into the bowl. She thoroughly soaked his hair, before wringing it out. She then took the knife her granddaughter brought and began to cut gently through his hair.

“You are too kind to someone you do not know,” the knight mumbled lightly.

“Kindness is easy. Besides I know you, you are Kulin the Great Knight.”

“Great?”

“Oh yes. I am sure we have not yet heard of your exploits because we are too remote, soon I imagine the traders will bring stories of you.”

The knight smiled lightly. The smallest of people always surprised him with such unexpecting kindness.

“Why are you so kind?” he asked.

“I told you. It is easy to be kind. I imagine if you were one of my sons or grandsons, and how I would treat you then. You are someone’s child, and I hope they wish you treated as kindly as I wish my children are treated.”

After the haircut, Amma moved and shaved his face with the iron razor, one little drag at a time. After his beard was gone, she then used a pumice stone and roughed his face of any stray hairs or remaining stubble.

“Look there. You almost look half handsome. Now come, we have a day’s work for you.”

The knight worked all day. Carrying things, repairing things, chasing animals. Nothing was unfamiliar to him, as he had done things like this during his childhood. The dark fuzz around his memory strained again. Had he done things like this? He remembered goats. He also remembered a little field, and how his father toiled daily to make that field into something. Were these memories real?

The evening had come, and the heat had gone down with the sun. But now, bugs of every sort clouded the air, mosquitoes latched onto his skin and drained his blood. His clothing had grown nasty with sweat and effort, it was too tight and far more annoying than helpful.

After a dinner of a dark brown brothy stew, made by Seri, the knight dared to ask Amma if they had clothing he might be able to wear.

“I’ll pay. I have a little coin,” the knight said.

“No. no.” Amma sized him up. “You are taller and broader than most my boys, but some of Brun’s clothing might fit you.”

She fit him with a much more comfortable blue shirt and brown pants. These were a little large, but that mattered much less than a little small.

He found himself outside again after that, watching the last vestiges of light leave this place. Londy was speaking to him, but he could hardly hear what the boy said.

“Have you won any battles knight? Met any gods?”

The knight shook his head absentmindedly. He had done both but did not care to speak of them.

“I saw a grave earlier today,” the knight said to the boy.

The boy looked down. “That is Brun,” he said quietly.

“A brother?”

“My cousin. Aunt Phani’s son. He was tall. Not bright, but big and strong and kind.”

“What happened?”

“Children killed him. One of them tried to lay with the girls and Brun tossed him like a stone. Then…” Londy’s voice trailed off.

The knight could guess what happened next. “Losing someone is never easy.”

“Yeah… You know… You look sorta like him, at least from a distance you are nearly tall enough to be him. When you entered I nearly thought you were him, come back fine.”

The knight nodded. “I saw my brother after he died. In the street, behind a corner.”

Little tears had formed on Londy’s face but he wiped them quickly with his sleeve.

A moment after he composed himself, “Was your brother a knight too?”

“Not this brother. But another one, my elder brother, me and him became knights together.”

“Two knights in one family! Is your father a godling?”

“No gods in my family.”

“Do you think I can be a knight?”

“I am not sure you want to be a knight. It is immensely hard. The training is tough but you could do it if you wanted to.” It was severely unlikely that a child from a poor shepherd’s family would ever be a knight but it felt wrong to tell him no, as the knight himself had lowly origins, so who was he to tell another fellow poor soul that he couldn’t be one.

“Where are you going, Kulin? You are leaving tomorrow, right? Going to fight for a god? For a new god?”

“New god?”

“Like the Traitor Knight. Or the Spear Maiden.”

“They aren’t gods, just pretenders.”

“Could I come with you? I could be a squire. I could hold your sword, feed your horse.”

“Do I have a sword or horse? You couldn’t come. I am going into war, into battle. No place for a young boy.”

“So, you will fight for a god?”

“I will fight for Elladan.”

“So, are you going to Erim?”

“Why Erim?”

“That is where the Spear Maiden has gone. The lord is said to have made her his bride, and that he fights for the new gods.”

The Knight nearly fell over. The Spear Maiden was near, Erim was close. One of his targets was close and he hadn’t known. There was some doubt to the validity of the claim, as the Knight doubted that the Spear Maiden would marry the petty lordling of Erim, but Erim shouldn’t be too far out of the way.

“How far is Erim from here?”

“A week, I think.”

A week of travel on the Long Road, south and away from the Valley of Rage, but such a rumor was too big an opportunity to pass up.

“I guess I am going to Erim.” The Knight said, almost giddy.

“The Children were also going to Erim. Their priest also says that she isn’t a god and that he will kill everyone who supports her.”

That could prove to be a problem. Or the Knight realized that if he played this right, a boon. He ruffled Londy’s hair and thanked him. The Knight went to bed anew with energy. He had a goal. He had a target.

That night the Tired Knight went to sleep but the Knight Kulin was the one who awoke.