Opening the gate, Ondus led Arle out into the aisle and handed Khollo the reins. “Take her out into the courtyard and ride around some, see what you think. I’ll get Fanne here ready to go.”
Khollo tugged gently on the reins and Arle followed obediently, clip-clopping along behind Khollo. Outside, the weather had cleared up and the sun was shining, albeit weakly. Khollo put his left foot in the stirrup, then hoisted himself up into the saddle, swinging his right leg around. Arle never moved the whole time, looking around the fortress curiously instead.
Khollo looked around too, but for a different reason than idle curiosity. He was worried about embarrassing himself. Fortunately, the remaining cadets weren’t drilling in the open today and few people had decided to brave the outdoors besides the sentries. The sentries, for their part, seemed more interested in staying warm than observing a young rider and his new horse.
“Thought I told you to ride around a bit,” Ondus grunted from behind Khollo.
The young warrior turned and saw that Ondus and Fanne were behind him, waiting. On the larger Fanne, Ondus was two feet taller than Khollo.
“Thought I’d wait for you in case something went wrong,” Khollo replied.
Ondus grunted. “Well, I’m here. Get to it.”
Khollo touched his heels to Arle’s flanks and the little horse walked forward obediently. With a gentle tug of the reins, Khollo urged her left, towards the main gate. He could hear Ondus and Fanne following close behind.
This isn’t so hard, Khollo thought, relaxing slightly.
Arle continued to plod towards the gate. Halfway there, Khollo reined in and looked back at Ondus.
“The fortress doesn’t have much space for riding lessons.”
“Nope,” Ondus agreed. “That’s why we’re going outside the fortress. More room to run.”
“We’re leaving the fortress?”
“I cleared it with Janis,” Ondus replied airily. “Besides, there are no vertaga here.” He smiled reassuringly and pointed towards the gate. “Let’s get a move on.”
Khollo urged Arle forward again, this time a little harder. The little horse sprang into a trot, bouncing Khollo up and down like a sack of potatoes. Khollo quickly adjusted to the new motion, setting his feet in the stirrups better and bracing himself against Arle’s movements.
Ondus shouted at the gate guards from behind Khollo. “Open the gates!”
The guards complied immediately. Ondus was a senior officer, and his orders were to be followed without question. As the gates opened, Ondus took the lead on Fanne and urged her into a canter. Khollo followed a moment later with Arle. The chestnut seemed eager to run, to be out in the open. Khollo was less eager to try riding faster. His backside already felt as though it had accumulated a good layer of bruises.
Ondus led Khollo down the slope leading up to the fortress and onto the flatlands below. “There’s a village an hour’s hard ride south,” he said. “We’ll head there, then come back to the West Bank for lunch.”
Khollo nodded, fearing that if he opened his mouth a sudden jolt would cause him to bite his tongue off. Ondus turned to face forward again and leaned low over Fanne’s neck. The larger horse sprang away, kicking up plumes of pulverized snow in her wake.
“Well, this is it,” Khollo said to himself. “Come on, Arle.”
Khollo pressed his heels into Arle’s sides and she sprang instantly into a gallop. The young warrior was taken aback by the sudden acceleration. In almost no time, he had drawn level with Ondus and actually had to slow to avoid passing him. Ondus looked over at Khollo appraisingly.
“Not bad,” he said ponderously. “Not bad at all. You sit pretty light for a novice.”
“Thank you,” Khollo replied, deciding that this was probably a compliment.
Ondus grinned. “Arle will keep that pace all day with no problems. Fine horse, that one, for someone your size. And ideal for what you’ll be doing. She’s been trained to alert you if there’s any foes in the area. She’ll flick her right ear and duck her head. Real quick like.”
Khollo filed the information away. Ear flick, head duck, enemy. Got it. “Anything else I should know?”
Ondus shook his head. “Not right now. We’ll talk more on the way back, take it a little slower. For now, just ride and enjoy the view.”
The two warriors rode on, ever South. In all directions stretched a featureless snowy landscape. Occasionally, a hill would rise up or a small frozen stream would form a crease in the snowy blanket, but other than that there was little to see. Khollo quickly became bored with the land and focused instead on Arle.
The little horse was galloping surprisingly smoothly, and with a remarkable economy of movement. Arle was breathing normally, but her breath still sent great plumes of steam back over Khollo as she ran. Khollo reached down and rested a hand against Arle’s flank, feeling the thrumming muscles beneath the surface propelling them across the landscape, marveling at the raw strength and power within. He could not imagine what Fanne must be like, huge as she was. Like a great drum, he supposed, beating continuously in time with the hooves pounding the ground. Ondus was sitting on his mount easily though, with no sign of having to overcome tremendous vibrations, so Khollo gave the theory up.
A little over an hour later, a dark patch appeared on the horizon, standing out from the snow. “Holwey village!” Ondus shouted over the noise of the horses. “Not long now!”
Ondus’ definition of not long left something to be desired in Khollo’s opinion. It was another quarter of an hour before they were cantering into the village proper, slowing to avoid plowing over the villagers.
Khollo looked around curiously. He had never visited a southern village, never having had the opportunity to. For as long as he
