Adventure

In the 1690’s, JIMMY SMYTH is a young stableboy enamored of the legendary swordsman RICHARD O’RILEY.  But, the times were changing in Galway, Ireland.  The English had invaded under William of Orange and left English lords to rule over the people.  O’Riley’s father, a king’s man to Galway’s King O’Halloran, had taught his son to be skilled with the sword.  But his father, along with King O’Halloran and the rest of the king’s men, was long dead now.  Cannons and guns had changed the battlefield and the codes of honor and chivalry were dying. 

There is no longer a place in the world for the likes of Richard O’Riley.  Lost and alone, he befriends Jimmy and makes him his confidant.  He teaches him the ways of the sword and his ideas of the ways of the world.  O’Riley believes that there can be peace if there is honor and equality.  His countrymen want freedom and cannot understand why O’Riley wants to make peace with the English.  O'Riley lets Jimmy in on a secret.  He is in love with the new lord's daughter KATHERINE KENTWOOD.

LORD KENTWOOD does not trust O'Riley because he judges him by his own lack of honor.  He wants his daughter to marry his knight HEATHGRAVE.  But, Katherine feels differently.  She sees in O'Riley a man of honor and valor worthy of her love.

Can the love of O'Riley and Katherine change the world they’ve come to know?  Can the understanding and compassion they share with each other make any difference in times to come?  Jimmy believes it can.  So he tells the story of the glory days spent at O'Riley's side to his grandchildren in hopes that they will hold fast to its moral and pass it on.

MAJOR CHARACTER SYNOPSIS

RICHARD O'RILEY is a bold, fearless, principled young man skilled in the art of swordsmanship. In the 1690's, he is living in a time of change.  No longer is the sword with its chivalrous rules of engagement the preferred weaponry of might.  Guns and canons belligerently wielded by arrogant oppressors have taken the stage.  His people and their Catholic religion are less than tolerated by Lord Kentwood, the Englishman who sits in power over them.  O'Riley continually frustrates Lord Kentwood by always out maneuvering his best knight, Heathgrave, in every exhibition match.  Lost in a lost world, O'Riley befriends Jimmy Smyth, a young stableboy.  Jimmy is the only one privy to O'Riley's deepest secret - he is hopelessly in love with Lord Kentwood's daughter Katherine.

JIMMY SMYTH is a starry-eyed young boy who works for his father and uncle in the town stables.  It is his special honor to care for Canonball, the stallion that belongs to his hero and friend Richard O'Riley.  

KATHERINE KENTWOOD is the lovely, high-spirited daughter of Lord Kentwood.  Her mother died when she was young.  An independent thinker, she rebels against the dictates of her father and his knight Heathgrave.  It is love at first sight when she lays eyes on Richard O'Riley.  And the more she gets to know him, the more passionately she falls in love with him.  

LORD KENTWOOD is the arrogant, unfeeling English snob sent to rule over the defeated Irish populace of Galway.  He wants the best for his daughter.  He considers Heathgrave a good candidate for her hand in marriage, believing he can both protect and provide for her in such an unsuitable environment.  He'll be damned if he'll allow Katherine to be with O'Riley.  His pride drives him to use devious means to achieve this end.

HEATHGRAVE is the steadfast, loyal right-hand man to Lord Kentwood.  Though a trained knight, he finds himself having to straddle the remaining gap between chivalry and swords and the brute force of guns and cannons.  Exhibitions of the traditional weaponry require one set of skills while the battlefield requires another.  Try as he might to be the best at both and to sway the heart of Katherine Kentwood away from O'Riley, he fails much to the chagrin of Lord Kentwood.  Loyal to a fault, he does his best to proceed with all of Lord Kentwood's schemes.