The Squire and the Warlock

After finishing my homework, I decided to watch something on TV. After struggling to find something good go watch on TV, I came across an unfamiliar, but interesting-looking, show. I tried seeing if there was anything else to watch, but the show apparently was on every single channel. The show was a cartoon about a knight in a fantasy world. But there was something strange: the knight was talking to me and addressing me by name! I felt the urge to come closer. My mom noticed and told me to not stand too close to the TV. But I felt myself coming closer and closer. Suddenly, there was a flash of light, and I found myself in a strange place that looked exactly like the fantasy world that the show took place in! I was also face-to-face with a knight that looked quite similat to the knight on the show as well! After the knight addressed me by name again, I realized that I had somehow ended up sucked inside of the show? I asked the knight, "How do I get out of here?" The knight replied, "You must defeat the evil warlock who is trying to take over." Suddenly, I heard a strange sound. I looked around, and I saw…

A dark hooded figure hunched over. The strange sound, I came to realise, was it’s bizarre raspy cackling. “Him? Defeat the warlock! HA” His voice sounded like he had eaten a hand full of nails and they were now lodged in his throat. To listen to him was painful. The knight placed a hand assuredly on my shoulder, bent down a little and whispered in to my ear; “Ignore the old coot, he is harmless, a bit gone in the head.” Now returning to the old man the knight spoke clearly “My friend, do not tease this boy, he shall become my squire, and will learn the ways of the sword and the horse.”

“And how many of these poor squires have you gone through now?”

“I beg your pardon?” The knight was taken aback, and I was now becoming very worried about my safety.

“I’m just saying, in recent times I have seen you greet many a young man only for them to go missing.” The old figure said this with a slight shrug, he knew he was testing the knight’s patients now. “but what do I know, I am just an old coot.” He patiently started filling his pipe with a herb of some type.

“Oh, and I suppose you could teach this boy better? What possibly could you know about fighting and warlocks?” The knights voice wobbled, and he glared toward his attacker, his hand now rested on his sword. The old man was unphased and I was starting to like him, he had an old face with skin that hung baggily around his cheeks, he obviously had a knack for teasing, but I could not shake the feeling that there was more to him.

After a leisurely puff of his pipe, the old man hobbled shakily on his stick towards the knight. “I know more than you, you’re but fly larva to me boy.” He tapped the expensive looking leg armour of the knight. “You think this will protect you from a warlock? Do you even know how they fight? Have you ever even seen one?” The knight looked taken aback “w-well uhm no but I have read a lot.. and I know where the warlock hides!”. The old man stood upright for the first time, he pulled his hood down and waved his arms. “Oh yes that is all the knowledge you need! You fool. No wonder so many of your poor squires have vanished, they probably died horrid deaths based on rumours and fairy tales.” The man now walked towards me, walking stick pointed towards me. “And this boy? He is a stick! Look at him!” I looked down at myself, now I felt horrendously self-conscious. “he’s all length and no strength, maybe he could be fast but being sneaky with a body like that, it’s going to be tough. You hear me boy?” He beat me on the head with his stick. “You’re gonna need to start learning to hunker down and hide that height of yours or they will see you coming in the next city.” I put my hands on my head to protect myself from his stick. He had a very strong arm. “Right you so called knight.” He turned to the knight who was watching this all unfold as if it were a dream, or a nightmare. It seemed he was no longer really with us. “I have a deal for you. You can train this boy however you please for the first four days of the week, but those last three, the boy is mine and I will try to actually make sure he doesn’t die.” The knight nodded his head solemnly and respectfully. He now knew this man was not to be trifled with. “Right that’s settled then. You will be trained by a foolish knight and an old coot. May the Gods be on your side.”. My stomach ached and I felt a bit faint now. I had no idea what was going on, but I nodded respectfully and agreed.