BYRON:TROUBLE AT THE YARD (pt2)
They arrived at Miss Coopers school house just in time with the final tolling of the early morning church bells.
The school was in fact a small wooden well-tended structure which seemed to be sandwiched between many other not so well kept buildings.
Indeed, it seems as if the original builders of the school just threw up the structure to fit whatever space was available. Though small and narrow the outward frontage was immaculate with whitewashed walls and treated wooden supports. Indeed two large potted rose bushes adorned either-side of the entrance to the small building. Though small and meagre this dwelling had enjoyed a lot of time on its upkeep and appearance in stark contrast to its surroundings which in many cases were structures that were bleak, derelict or un-cared for, with shattered panes of glass, broken doors and a general air of neglect.
Greta walked ahead of Byron chatting non-stop, to Byron and then turning her attention to the diamond eyed Dragon like Drake, that now chose to accompany the barbarian when-ever he ventured out of doors. Indeed, the tiny draconic reptile had nestled itself quite comfortably on Greta's shoulders, wrapping itself around her neck as she talked and could be heard... purring as Greta scratched him behind his ears.
Miss Cooper was there to greet them as they arrived at the teacher’s schoolhouse and quickly ushered Greta inside to join a few other local children as the final chimes of the morning temple bells sounded.
Miss Cooper to Byron at least, looked a lot like Devlin in age and dress, wearing a long dark pleated skirt and buttoned up white blouse, with hair neatly brushed and pinned high upon her head. Not much over 5 foot the short thin frail schoolteacher looked the hulking barbarian straight in the eye. Many bigger stronger more aggressive men would balk at the idea of staring straight at the big man but here at her school she exuded the quiet authority of all teachers pinning the barbarian to the spot.
" Will you be collecting Greta Mr Byron at Mid-day, " enquired the schoolteacher.
"No Miss..." came the warriors hesitant awkward reply, "Alice and Rose will be by to pick her up."
"Oh, good well I won't keep you then," and as the schoolteacher turned to make her way into her own classroom, the sounds of raucous alarmed shouts and clattering upturned chairs and running feet could be heard coming from the school room!
"Oh no you Little Focher!" Byron exclaimed as he quickly made his way through the front door into the little classroom.
" I beg your pardon, " replied the shocked school-maam as she followed him in.
"Sorry miss," Byron hurriedly apologised as both barbarian and Miss Cooper regarded the scene of chaos that confronted them. A number of chairs and desks were upturned, black slates and chalk were scattered all over the floor. A couple of children were hiding behind the blackboard with wide eyed look of fear upon their faces, seeing the big barbarian bursting into their classroom did little to calm their fears. However, shouts and cries from the back of the building caught the warrior’s attention.
"The yard at the back where the children play," Miss Cooper answered the barbarians unspoken enquiry.
Quickly Byron passed through the classroom, passed the stairs that led upstairs, undoubtedly to the teachers’ living quarters and through a small room furnished with a desk, a couple of mis-matched chairs, shelves with a few books and a number of black board slates stored on them. The back door to the yard was open through which there could be heard of the animated arguing sound of children. Quickly the warrior rushed through the door followed by Miss Cooper, her speed belying her age. They were witness to a scene of utter chaos as 6 or 7 children were running around and pointing up at the overhang of the next buildings guttering, in which could be seen hiding a scaled jewelled eyed Drake. And under the guttering trying to coax the reluctant draconic beast down as well as administer a verbal tongue lashing to a young black-haired boy who was no doubt wishing he'd played hooky from school, was Greta. In between her gentle calming murmuring to the hidden reptile Greta expressed her now strident opinion on the young male boy who had foolishly pulled the Drakes tail but also on all boys in general.
"What is the meaning of this," barked Miss Cooper as she strode pass Byron into the middle of the yard? Her voice cut the noise dead of the childrens excited arguments, blame naming, screams and chatter.
The children looked slightly abashed under Miss Cooper's stern gaze.
"I repeat what is going on here?"
Greta stepped forward, "Well Miss he... Ranon," Greta indicating the boy to her right, " pulled little F... "
"Greta," exclaimed Byron quickly in alarm!
"Pulled the little Drakes tail causing little Fou...Flamer to hiss and bear his teeth, frightening everyone out here and then fly up there. Now he won't come down..and it's all Ranon's fault!" Greta finished her account with her hands on her hips sternly looking at the young boy who was desperately trying to hide from the gaze of not only Greta but Miss Cooper and a hissing Drake. Byron felt for the boy realising in the last few short minutes his whole morning had come crashing down, from school yard bully to having to face Greta's anger and indignation, and two dragons, one a hissing Drake and another that could give him detention!
" Miss Cooper let me take little F.... Flamer and leave you to it, " and without waiting for a reply the big man walked up to the guttering and offered up his arm onto which the jewel eyed Drake alighted, quickly scrabbling up to the big warriors neck well out children’s reach.
"Scary kids.... let’s go boss," whispered the small but rotund lizard like dragon.
"We'll be off now Miss Cooper and Greta see you at home," and with that Byron without waiting for any form of reply made his retreat, quickly out of the yard, the school house and was down the street before anyone could draw breath.
After a few streets of quick walking Byron slowed to draw breath and give his reptilian companion a stern look.
"What?" snapped the Drake to his master’s unasked question.
" What happened in there? "
" I don't want to talk about it boss, children they're traumatic! " Continued the Drake, "and I didn't bite any of them."
“ Well, that's something I suppose, " was Byron’s short acerbic response.
"And I'm not sure my tail will recover." And with that the small Dragon like creature looking in adject misery coiled itself around Byron’s neck whilst simultaneously cuddled his injured tail and dignity.
Absent mindedly Byron started gentle scratching behind the small creatures ears and deciding it was time to move on and get on with the rest of his day.
"Where we going boss?" the Drake asked, his own misery clearly audible in his tone.
"We're off to the yard!" And with that both Byron and his lizard like 'familiar ' made their way to the docks.
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The unlikely duo of warrior and winged lizard made their way up the wharf-side greeting many of the dock workers, shop keepers and buyers as they passed. The docks were a hive of activity at this time of the day with many of the harbour berths filled, many of the local fisherman having already returned from their days work having started their labours in the dark small hours and were now tied up and looking to sell their catch.
Various fish stalls, basket weavers, coopers, smith's, carpenters, net makers and rope seller's and others were all open and selling their wares, customers and vendors arguing noisily over the price down to the lowest copper piece. The noise and bustle were frenetic, frantic, and it was through this lively industrious humming throng that Byron leisurely made his way. Loving the docks at this time of day with the harbour-side at its most active, loud and alive, Byron would often walk this route, greeting many of the merchants, vendors and local fisherman like old friends and in turn being hailed, lauded and saluted himself. By the mid-day bell the local fish market would be winding down most of its business over and done but for now commerce and industry was in full swing.
Eventually the warrior pushed through to the north end of the wharf and left the docks behind making his way to a cleared area of land that was strewn with what appeared to be rubble and stones.
"What's this,'" enquired the Drake his curiosity perking up his spirits, his earlier treatment at the hands of Miss Coopers school children now forgotten.
" Focher this is the Yard, " replied Byron, " a place where I work."
" What do you do, " asked the small jewel eyed reptile not sure if he'd ever seen the big human work?
" I break things, " came Byron's short reply.
" Oh, that you are good at, " came the cheeky Drakes rejoinder.
The Yard was an open space the size of three or four houses and close to the crumbling cliff edge bordering the waterside, which had discouraged many from trying to build on it and was now a dumping ground for many of the stone masons of Korvosa who wished to discard their rubble, cracked stone work, broken statues and remnants small and large of stone columns, pedestals and pillars without having to pay any haulage or tipping fees. A number of years ago Byron had started to use the area as a makeshift training camp, to lift and move heavy awkward weights and crush stone with a sledgehammer to help him improve his strength and stamina and now it was simply regarded by the locals as his. What Byron referred to as The Yard the locals referred to as The Bear Pit.
In the lead up to a fight you could always tell if it was a major contest by the amount of onlookers congregating around The Yard. The crowds would consist of locals, gamblers, guards, touts, children, and other fighters all come to watch the Bear train and Byron would indeed play up to it loving the attention his size, strength and 'infamy' bought. But on this day, there were no crowds or excited onlookers except for one woman sitting on a column awaiting their arrival.
"Gina," exclaimed the Drake who alighted from the safety of Byron's neck as a perch to buzzing and swooping around Gina in excitement.
"Hello little one," came Gina's response as she was gently buffeted by the Drakes dives and sweeps, " I think if you look carefully, you'll find a rat or two around here! "
"Will I" came the Drakes eager reply as he landed on Gina's well-muscled arm, "really?"
" Indeed, " chimed in Byron.
" I could do with a bit of Rat, " and with that the rather rotund Drake flew off to sit stop a broken stone pillar, looking more akin to a gargoyle than dragon-kind, as he eagerly awaited his first sign of prey.
"He's a greedy little Focher," mused the barbarian.
"Maybe you should change his name ," Gina remarked?
" Maybe, " was Byron's guarded response as he thought of the earlier misunderstanding at Miss Coopers, " but I think he likes it now. " Suddenly aware of the female warrior’s presence after the mornings scene at Ruby's, " You here to work...or what? "
" Yeah that's why I brought these," continued Gina brandishing two heavy sledge-hammers, an old leather hold-all and her heavy padded vest.
The two warriors moved to one end of the stone yard where a substantial pile of large stones was situated. After a few lazy swings with their respective hammers to loosen their shoulders, the warriors began to pound their chosen pieces of masonry into small pieces of gravel and dust. Steady rhythmic swinging with the heavy sledges was the perfect start to the day’s session. As both Gina and Byron began to loosen up channelling more power through the hammers, sweat starting to appear on their brows. through the mid-morning prayer bells they toiled and on to the end of prayers both man and woman concentrated upon their work, stopping only to drink from a couple of water-skins taken from the hold-all Gina had brought, which also contained two substantial metal wedges for cutting slabs of stone.
Many busy inhabitants of Old Korvosa hurried by occupied with important daily tasks and vital errands of their own, oblivious to the two tall muscular warriors who were using the hammers and metal wedges. Others with not so pressing appointments took the time to linger and watch and wonder at the strange behaviour of the two powerful figures as they pummelled the discarded blocks of stone with potent and devastating strikes from their heavy hammers. Many of the onlookers soon grew bored at the ongoing spectacle and moved on with their day, whilst one or two more sinister and sullen looking figures skulked close by watching the warriors at work.
"We're attracting some attention," observed Gina as she paused to take a drink from the water-skin.
” Always do, " replied Byron intent on striking the metal wedges deep into the remains of a once ornate column. With one incredible blow the hammer struck the wedge and the column split and cracked into three or four sizeable chunks.
"I think we're done. ..." said Byron.
"Great let's go," Gina too quickly replied.
"...here. We've still got to move the mountain," and a genuine smile of joy crossed Byron's lips at Gina's vexed and dismayed reaction.
"Not the mountain?" Gina came back hoping to sway the big man.
"You bought the vest; you knew we'd be doing it."
" I'd hoped we weren’t! "
As the two bickered they made their way to a massive pile of heavy broken statuary that was situated at the far end of the Yard. All the broken bits of statues and segments of columns, half cracked pedestals and heavy rocks that comprised this 'mountain' were of a size to make them awkward and heavy to carry.
"All we need do is move this lot over to that lot we've just broken up," instructed Byron, " and then we're done. "
"Can't we just move that lot over here, this will take us past the mid-day bells," complained the warrior woman.
"Sooner we start the sooner we finish," and with that Byron quickly grasped a heavy looking pillar and began to carry it over to the pile of recently broken chunks of stone as if we're nothing. Gina soon followed and before too long they had moved over a third of the massive hill of granite, sandstone and marble. Absorbed as they were in completing their labours, they hadn't noticed that the one or two sullen looking types who had taken an interest in their activities had now become a gang of vicious looking street thugs. As the groups apparent leader made his way into the 'Yard', Little Focher quickly flew down landing on the ground between the group and his two chosen masters and hissed at the group warning them off and alerting both Gina and Byron to the gang’s presence. Both 'labourers ' dropped their load and Gina sensing trouble deftly picked up one of the discarded sledgehammers.
The gang’s leader was a small barrel chested man with dark close set eyes over a rather sharp pointy nose and a mouth that contained very few teeth. His hair was bedraggled, greasy, unkempt, and dirty much like the thugs and ruffians that followed him. They all had their hands on knives and cudgels trying to exude a sense of authority and menace as they faced both a smiling Byron, Gina who was nonchalantly twirling her sledgehammer, and an angry irate, hissing Drake.
"How can we help you fellows," asked Byron an easy smile upon his lips and hands on his hips apparently not cowed by the groups show of force and menace.
"Name is Tallon and I recognise you, you're Gaedrenn's little lamb," and Tallon chuckled at his own joke though a number of the men behind him began to look a little nervous and ill at ease, the man's demeanour was unsettling and this was no type of woman they'd ever encountered before with a lump hammer in her hand and neither 'victims' had no fear in their eyes.
And that vicious hissing Drake!
" Fallon is it... I'm not Gaedrenns man anymore and I'm certainly no one’s lamb," replied the big man still with a big open smile upon his face which to many of Tallon's roughs was really un-nerving.
"It's Tallon.... and as Gaedrenn hasn't been seen in a while we're taken the dockside over,” stated the big chested hairy rough, "and that includes this area here!"
"Is that so Gallon?"
And again just that smile as the giant looked down at the ringleader, hands casually placed on his hips. And he was looking down at them, Tallons group of thugs realised. Damn he's big!
"It's Tallon and I won't be put off by no hoodlum especially if he calls himself the bear," shouted Fallon his anger starting to get the better of him.
" That's the Bear, " a voice whispered from the gang?
"He was in The Mermaid the other day. they said he had a witch with him and she can make you do things you don't want to do."
" Shut up Mort you snivelling worm, " rebuked Tallon to one of his own men, a small thin framed weasel looking man.
"No Tal you ask Kreas's boys, she bewitched them and she was with the bear," the weasally man continued.
"And what happened to Kreas, he was gutted," Halen another of Tallon's hoods added.
" I was in the Weasel and they said the Bear gutted him, " another chimed up.
"I heard it was a swords man dressed in black that burnt him," another ventured.
"No he was gutted..By the Bear," and the group looked at the man smiling socially in front of them .
"And he's the Bear?" Suddenly Tallon's mob unease was becoming apparent.
"Will you lot shut up, there's 7 of us," shouted Tallon , " we can take one man, one woman and a pet lizard.
"Yeah but he just smiles, she's got a sledgehammer and that lizard looks bloody savage Tal, " Mort continued having found his voice.
"And they say he's got a Dragon for a boy" one of the voices from the group ventured.
"What that hissing lizards his boy," Halen exclaimed !?
"And that he's friends with Trevor from the Weasel," another voice added.
"Is he..I like Trevor!"
"Will you lot shut up," exploded Tallen all attempts at menacing the big man forgotten as he turned on his men to try and get some control and order, " that's a bloody Drake, they live all over the city, he's just a man not a bloody bear and who cares if he's friends with a green skin... and will you lot shut the fuck up! " Tallon turned back to face Byron who had just stood there with that smile still on his face, hands still non-threatening on his hips, the aggressive Drake still standing guard between them angrily hissing and violently waving his tail.
"Mellon..."
" It's Tallon! "
"I've been polite and this has been fun but it's time for you to leave."
" You can't tell me to leave... " Tallon never finished the sentence for suddenly the smile fell from Byron's face as he burst into action, closing the distance quickly on the hapless ringleader, raising him off his feet with a vicious looking claw extending from his hand into the face of the would be bully.
Gina quickly taking her cue from big man stood in front of Byron and with massive, controlled swings of her hammer forcing all the members of Tallon's gang backwards onto the back foot ably aided by Focher who took to the air and started to swoop and dive the group, viciously hitting out with his tail.
" I'm not Gaedrenn's beast, I’m the fucking bear and if I see any of you lot in the harbour-side ever I will fucking gut you. Now fuck off before I get angry! " And with that Byron tossed Tallon into the inept band of ruffians who decided that flight was the better part of valour took off down the side streets away from the Yard and the harbour-side.
" We'll that has to be first, " quipped Gina?
"What," answered the big man?
" You winning a fight and not maiming, injuring or grievously hurting someone, " observed Gina, "I'm impressed!"
" Don't be, they were low life. Hardly worth the effort and any-how a good way to finish off a session in the Yard. You're good with a sledge. "
"Yeah I thought so to," replied the warrioress, "and Byron... It seems I was wrong."
Byron looked slightly puzzled "About what?"
" It seems having Flowers for friends might not be as bad as it seems. "
"What you're admitting I was right!" exclaimed the big barbarian.
" Hardly, just don't get killed, "
And with that the two warriors picked up their hammers, water-skins and one very hissy Focher and made their way back into the heart of Old Korvosa just as the mid-day bells tolled.
