The joust

Vel trotted Veldred onto the track where he and Dina were about to clash. On the other side, Jeane was still double-checking the saddle and other trappings on Dina’s horse. That was part of the second’s job, Adi had already done it for him. It had then taken her and a groom to get a fully armored Vel into the saddle. This particular suit was made for tournament jousting and not the battlefield, but it was still heavy, and his bad leg was completely useless when he wore it. It couldn’t move the joints of the armor without throwing cramps. He positioned himself along the fence that would separate him and Dina. Adi carried over the gear she was responsible for and took up her own position. Old Kreibar was on a slightly raised dais meant for spectators, so he could perform his duty as adjudicator. Lynn, who had blown off her cicerone to watch this, was sitting next to where he stood. Their Mother had not been happy about that and had absolutely forbidden Ella from skipping her own tutoring sessions to also attend. She would have nothing to do with it either, and was probably having tea with the cicerone while complaining about her children or something.

Jeane was finally satisfied and gave Dina the nod, then helped her into the saddle. Vel was using one of his custom saddles but, in the interest of fairness, had not strapped himself down. Dina had not demanded it, but he would not give her any excuses. And it would make him more difficult to unhorse, which wasn’t fair. It did mean he wasn’t as safe in his seat as he would like to be, but that couldn’t be helped.

Dina and Jeane finally took up their own positions and both riders raised their fists to the master at arms. “Knights, hear me and listen well.” Vel chuckled in his helmet, of course Kreibar would adhere to the old formalities. “The two of you are on this field of honor of your own volition and have accepted the rules I shall lay out.” He cleared his throat and sounded a bit less stiff and formal as he went on. “This will be a three tilt joust according to the classic rules of imperial tournament jousting. The riders will make three passes at each other and will each be afforded three lances. A missed thrust or glancing blow awards no points. A lance broken against the opponent’s body awards two points. As this is classic tournament rules, the head is off limits, and breaking the lance against it will award no points. If a rider is unhorsed in any way, as long as the rules are not broken, the other rider is declared the victor.” He took a deep breath. “Both riders are agreed on these conditions?” Both Vel and Dina raised their firsts again, agreeing. “Both riders are familiar with the basic rules of classic tournament jousting, so I need not recite those as well?” Again, two raised fists. Kreibar nodded. “Seconds, are you ready?” Adi and Jeane each raised one of their fists. Another nod from Kreibar. “Arm up.” Adi and Jeane each tossed a lance to their rider, then quickly retreated to a safe distance.

Vel breathed deeply in his helmet. He could feel Veldred’s unshakeable confidence. The destrier had complete faith in both himself and his rider. Vel drew upon that to calm his nerves, which were surprisingly unsettled. He hadn’t been nervous at all up until this point, but something about staring down another rider in full armor was getting his blood pumping. He took a deep breath again, letting Veldred’s strength calm him some more. Then he raised his lance at Dina in challenge.

His sister raised her lance in return, it had begun. Both riders angled their lances forwards and spurred their horses on. Dina with actual spurs, Vel with a mental command. His nerves vanished instantly, and Vel knew he had already won. It went by fast, and to him it seemed almost scripted. They thundered towards each other, quickly closing the gap. Vel, knowing his reach was slightly longer than his sister’s, aimed a powerful thrust at her chest, seeking to hit her before she even touched him. She attempted to dodge, but Veldred put on a burst of speed right before they met, throwing off her timing. The trust caught her on the left side of her chest, sending her toppling out of her saddle. Her lance never even touched Vel’s armor. Adi and Lynn were clapping.

Dina fell on her back in the dirt with a loud clanking sound, and Jeane rushed over to her side. Her horse, being well trained, trotted over to stand next to her fallen rider. “The victor is Velas Andros by unhorsing in the first tilt. Congratulations, you rode well and struck true.” Kreibar seemed to consider his job done, and also went over to check on Dina.

Vel trotted over to Adi and she and the same groom as earlier helped him down. While Jean and Kreibar helped Dina back to her feet, the groom and Adi helped Vel out of the armor. Vel quested out for Dina’s mind to make sure she was unharmed. He saw some pain, but nothing major. She was not seriously harmed. She was, however, humiliated, angry, and terrified. Good.