Tales of the Lorekeepers 01 - Rise of the Red Dragon

on the pommel of the rugged leather saddle, then his left foot in the stirrup dangling in front of him. At that moment, the horse decided it was the perfect time to stretch its legs and took a few steps forward, forcing Samuel to jump sideways.
    The men behind him renewed their wild laughter.
    Samuel decided it was now or never. Holding his breath, he took a step up, pushing on his left foot, while swinging his right leg up and over the horse’s back. Before realizing it, he was sitting on his mount. For the first few seconds, he had some trouble adjusting to the new angle of vision. He also suddenly felt exposed to the rest of the camp, fully in view of anyone looking in his direction.
    “Come on, Sam!” yelled Malloy, a little annoyed about the show his friend was putting on. “It would be nice to get to the fatherless boy before he becomes a man.”
    “Go on,” replied Samuel. “I’ll catch up in a minute.”
    “I hope he fights better than he rides,” said Atwood.
    By some miracle, Samuel was able to make the horse move with a gentle tap of his heels on the flanks, something he had seen people do in movies. Quickly, the horse rejoined the group of warriors. Samuel also realized that no matter what he tried to do, whether it was steering right or left or even trying to slow down, the horse would only follow the group ahead of him. It certainly made it a lot easier to follow the men. That is, until they started to gallop. After a few minutes of violently colliding against the leather saddle with the rolling gait, Samuel felt it would be impossible for him to do this for more than five minutes, let alone a few days.
    Malloy looked back at his friend and had to restrain himself from bursting out in laughter. He slowed down and came alongside Samuel.
    “You’ve never ridden a horse before, have you?” he asked the boy.
    “No.”
    “What about a pony?”
    “No.”
    “A donkey?”
    “Look, I’ve never climbed on any animal’s back before, all right!”
    “Didn’t you tell me that your sister and you …”
    “Forget about my sister! Please, I beg you, show me what I’m doing wrong, because I can’t keep this up for much longer. It feels as if my butt is turning into mashed potatoes.”
    “Don’t tell me your noble father never taught you how to ride?”
    “No, he did not. Please, you have to help me!”
    “You are impossible. Stand up for now, while we are galloping. Push down with your feet, keep your heels down and raise yourself from the saddle. It’s that simple.”
    Samuel did as Malloy advised, and gave his rear end some much needed rest.
    “Now,” continued Malloy, “this is only to give you a rest. You won’t be able to ride like that for the whole day. The key is to follow the horse’s pace with your body. Watch his left shoulder. When it moves forward, stand up. When it moves back, sit back down. Don’t let yourself fall, simply move up and down. Try to keep in rhythm with the horse.”
    Samuel tried to follow Malloy’s instructions, which proved easier said than done.
    “Like that?”
    “Yes, sort of. Don’t worry, after a full day of riding, you’ll be just fine. Now let’s catch up with the rest of the group. We don’t want to find ourselves lost in the woods.”
    Samuel silently cursed the fact that the dice did not give him the power to ride a horse properly.

    “I think I may have spotted the sorcerer you told me about,” announced Morghan to the dark stranger. They were standing in the advisor’s tent, where no one could see the man in black.
    “Good.”
    “He did not look like much of a threat to us, if I may say so.”
    The dark man sat down in a large wooden chair that was usually reserved for the king when he visited his advisor. Morghan did not find the courage to ask his visitor to rise.
    “Don’t be fooled by his appearance. He is much more powerful than you can imagine. Even he probably doesn’t know the full extent of his power, which makes him a hazard and that much more dangerous.”
    “What shall I do with him? He is part of the group that was sent to search for the boy you mentioned. I thought it would be best to leave him be for now, and not delay our plans unnecessarily. We can always capture him when he returns.”
    “I will keep an eye on the group. It’s important that the boy named Myrddin arrive safely at Dinas Ffaraon. As I told you, only he can break the curse of this place.”
    Morghan grabbed an apple from the fruit basket on