Genesis ran his eyes over the interior of the Church. His men stood at attention on the left side of the building. Honor’s men stood against the back wall. Bartholomew had his men on the right side of the building. He didn’t see any hole in the security which was a good thing, he reasoned. If there was any holes, the Warrior Queen would have a fit and will argue that there were benefits of having the military disbanded. He sighed.
Footsteps rang out from behind him. He turned and saw his cousin, Lady Rosemary, approached on the arm of Sir Gawain. Rosemary looked at the Knight, admiringly. Genesis resisted the urge to smirk at the knight, knowing Rosemary had set her gaze on him, but the General saw the affection wasn’t returned. Instead, Gawain looked trouble by something. His shoulders were too tensed for it to be a simple problem. However, it wasn’t any of Genesis’ business and he pushed the matter from his mind.
“Thank you, Sir Gawain, for escorting my wonderful cousin here,” Genesis greeted Gawain, “I will take her from you.”
“Thank you, General Genesis,” Gawain nodded at the General, “She has been the most pleasant company during the Mourning Dinner.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” Genesis nodded at the Knight before the knight drifted away to find his own seat. He turned to Rosemary and asked, “How was your dinner?”
“It was alright,” Rosemary admitted, “I ended up getting assigned to a table where Sir Gawain sat with a couple of the other knights, Lord James Black, and a other ladies.” She paused, her eyebrows cinched together, “I am beginning to thing it was some sort of set up - to find matches among the court.”
“It was,” Genesis stated, “I am pretty sure some of the elderly ladies of the court want their grandkids to find suitable matches with an Ancient and Noble House.” He glanced around the Church, staying alert. “Though, I thought they would wait until after the Choosing Ceremony before they try anymore matchmaking games.” He saw Remus escorting one of the ladies he had forced to sit with to her family before he started to head Genesis’ way.
“Since Arthur has been found unworthy of the Holy Sword, the Chosen King could be looking for a suitable wife if he isn’t already married.” He turned his gaze to the doors where Jacob was passing through with a Lady from one of the Sacred 150 Houses. Genesis briefly watched his cousin strolled with the Lady on his arm to near the front of the Church. “Then the fun truly begins for the matchmaking, the wheeling and dealing, and the backstabbing among the houses.”
“Yes,” Rosemary smirked, “I do feel sorry for the man who gets Chosen.” Genesis’ eyes flickered to Rosemary’s. She raised an eyebrow, looking at him innocently, saying, “It probably would be worst then Lady Freya’s past time.” She paused, “I did hear before leaving the White Hall Estate an interesting tab bit.” Genesis kept his gaze on his female cousin, waiting. “Your sister, Valentina, could have a betrothal contract, soon.”
“Oh, she is going to love that when she finds out,” Genesis drawled, “She already is going through a broken heart.” Rosemary gasped. Her eyes widened. “Grandma sent a letter to Valentina, requesting her presence at the Estate.”
“That’s why Lord Bardock isn’t here and you are acting as the Head of House?” Rosemary questioned. Genesis nodded. “That’s explains a lot then.” She went on, “There was something else going on back at the White Hall Estate, but I couldn’t find out much more then that. Though, Little Nattie seemed out of sorts over something. Hopefully, Lord Bardock will be able to get to the bottom of the issue.”
“I hope so, too,” Genesis agreed. He turned his eyes back upon the crowd moving around them. “I hope Natalie doesn’t get pushed into a betrothal contract like my dear old grandmother is trying to do with myself and Sis.” Rosemary made a noise of agreement.
“Isn’t Nattie a little young for a contract like that?” the Heiress of Clover questioned.
Genesis snorted. “You obviously don’t remember the arguments between dad and grandma after Mom took Sis with her when she left.” He paused. “Or after Mom came back for a year then took one of the Twins with her after she gave birth.” Rosemary shook her head. “Grandma wanted to get the girls into a marriage contract immediately for some reason or another.”
The General nodded his head at Jacob as the heir of Morning Glory returned to the family after dropping off his escort with her family. “Something about wanting to make sure they wouldn’t taken advantage of once word got out again.” The red head general just shook his head. “I don’t know what she was talking about. It was most riddles anyway. I couldn’t never figure what she was trying to hint at, anyway.”
Remus appeared in the doorway at the far end of the room, looking ready to bolt from the lady on his arm. She stared up at the Heir of Lunar with adoring eyes that Genesis wanted to laugh at his cousin’s predicament. However, he resisted the urge. He knew Remus would do the same for him if he was in the precedented. He thought about for a long moment. Maybe. Genesis did smirk.
“What kind of riddles,” Rosemary asked with a curiosity note.
“Times are changing when the patriarchy falls,” Genesis quoted one of his grandma’s lines, “Matriarchy will rule for a decade.” He fell silent when he saw his most mysterious cousin walk into the God’s Holy Light on the arm of the Battle Mage. His lips parted in shock.
He watched as Valentina’s lips moved rapidly as she spoke with Merlin. Her green eyes reminded him of a guarded place. Her body language screamed at the General that she felt uncomfortable with the Battle Mage for a reason. The Battle Mage either didn’t notice it or didn’t care as he lend toward her with an inviting smile, his eyes glinted with a familiar looking mischief gleam.
The General frowned. He thought she was being escorted by Lord Salazar or Lord Godric, not the Battle Mage. They were the ones sitting at her table, in fact, on either side of her. He kept his eyes on them as Lord Merlin guided Valentina through the crowd to Genesis. If the Battle Mage tried anything, Genesis told himself, his men would have a new target to explode. That thought helped calm him down, just a little bit.
“Here we go, my lady,” Merlin commented as they entered God’s Holy Light Church and Tina spotted Genesis standing at the opening of a pew, talking softly with the red head who escorted Tina to Tristan’s room a few days before. She watched as Genesis looked in their direction, looked away then returned his gaze to them. “This is God’s Holy Light Church.”
“Why is the Church called that?” Tina asked, cautiously. There was something bugging her about Merlin, beside the fact he shared the same name of the Legendary Adviser to King Arthur of Legend. She tried to ignore his aura. It seemed very old. She was strongly reminded of some of the demons she had ran into at the Black Tournament.
It served as some sort of warning that she need to keep her head down and not draw attention to her. Tina knew she was too rusty with her spirit energy to any use if she had to defend herself, seriously, however, if someone like this Merlin thought her to be a serious threat, they wouldn’t hesitate to take her out of the picture.
“The Pastor who found this Church was a Pope approve mage,” Merlin explained, “He was only allowed to use White Magic.”
“Okay, I have to ask,” Tina glanced upward at the dark haired mage, “White Magic? Is it like healing spells and other magic aimed to cast out evil spirits?”
The possibility of a Catholic style church being opened to magic seemed outlandish for Tina to believe. She was always taught that magic was spawned from Hell and it was taboo to even think about using any type of magic. So, the idea of a church encouraging some sort of magic, even though they would call it Holy, was outlandish.
However, the concept of the Templar - oh what were they called now? It began with P, Tina knew that - wasn’t. Organization changed over time, taking a new name with a new purpose. According to the history books, she had managed to get her hands on, there were several organizations like that during the beginning of the 21st century, changing their name and coming up a new purpose on paper, but really kept to the same agenda. She didn’t know how these organizations were allowed to do that.
“Yes,” Merlin gave her a smile, before he spun around to face him and lend down, close enough where their noses touched, “You are really intelligent, Lady Valentina. It almost begs the question where you came across that intelligence.”
“I take after my parents and I paid attention in my lessons,” She said as calmly as she could. She resisted the urge to summon her spirit energy and pushed him into a wall. The feeling of unsettledness was eating at her gut. She took a step back, creating some space between herself and the mage. “Could you just show where I am suppose to sit?”
“As the lady wishes,” Merlin winked at her. She resisted the urge to storm away. She was off her game tonight. First, dealing with Salazar, a Vampiric Lord. Now, a flirty version of Merlin. She was starting to miss the days where her biggest concern was passing the writing assignment over the Arthurian Literature worth one-third of her grade for the class. She let out a sigh as they approached the red head general.
“Ah, here you go, Lady Valentina,” Merlin announced, coming to a stop by the red head general, “The White Hall Family.”
“Thank you, Lord Merlin,” Lady Valentina curtsied to the Lord of Magic before she stepped away from him and hurried to the far side of Genesis, brushing past him without a word, but the general grabbed her upper arm.
She turned her gaze to him. Emotions danced through the green orbs. He wanted to say something soothingly to her, but he couldn’t find the appropriate words to help her. He uncurled his fingers from her upper arm. She continued on her way. Rosemary sent him a small smile before she went after her, silently.
“My, my, she has a lovely spirit,” Merlin commented, gazing after her, “It’s too bad that she wouldn’t staying after the Choosing Ceremony. She would be a delight to have around the castle.”
“I am sure she will be back when her presence is required,” Genesis drawled, trying to keep suspicion out of his voice, “Please, excuse me, Battle Mage, as acting head of the White Hall Family, I need to make sure my family will be able to find their seats without any trouble.”
He spun on his heel and walked after Valentina. He was sure trouble had found Valentina, at least, from the way she was acting. In the short time, he had known her, she was more open then what she had displayed in the last few minutes.
There were times where he thought he knew her from a long time ago, when they were children. However, he tried to think about it, he would draw a blank and he would remember something he had to do. It was strange.
He heard Merlin chuckle under his breath as he drifted away to the back of the Church. The General took some comfort in that. The battle mage wasn’t allow any near the front of the church without a good purpose, thanks to Former High Queen Belladonna’s agenda and her laws.
“Hey, Valentina,” Rosemary’s voice rang out from behind Tina. She paused. Her heart raced in her chest. Glad to be away from the annoying mage, Tina lowered herself to the pew. Rosemary claimed a seat beside her. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah,” Tina sighed. She relaxed into the back of the pew. She winced as the wood scrapped against her back. She ignored it. She saw out of the corner of her eye Genesis strolled the space in the back of the pew in front of their row and the one she sat on. Tina pointed at the red head general to Rosemary. She turned to see what Tina was pointing at then she scouted deeper on the pew to allow their acting head to slip by them. Genesis claimed the empty space beside Tina. He rested an arm on the back of the front pew, facing her with a worried look on his face.
“Did he do anything,” Genesis questioned, “I’m not above requesting his presence at the training field for some…” he paused long enough to glance around them before he went on, “Target Practice.”
Tina blinked, surprise, as she recognized the overprotected mode he had slipped into. It was a strange feeling. It was similar to comfort and joy mixed together, knowing someone wanted to protect her. The only reason why she recognized it was she had once experience before she entered that failed relationship, there had been one Greater Hell Demon who had set eyes on her. Her team protected her when she wasn’t stronger enough to take on the Greater Hell Demon.
She returned back to the conversation and snorted in amusement, “If he did go to the training field for some target practice, I would be the one patching you and some of your men back up, Genny, as you guys would be nursing more then just bruised bodies.”
Genesis drew back, silently, shock spreading across his face, “What did you just call me?”
Tina frowned, thinking about what she said. Genny. She had called him Genny. Her eyes widened, and she opened her mouth, “I’m sorry, Genesis! I didn’t mean anything by it. That nickname just slipped out!”
Genesis nodded slowly, before he explained, straightening up in the seat beside the red head woman, “My missing sister used to call me that.” He looked forward, keeping his voice low, “It used to drive me crazy when she did it.” He paused. Tina watched as a series of emotions played across his face. “I miss her calling me that.”
Tina didn’t know what to say at that. The nickname felt familiar and slipped off her tongue with ease like she had said it before. Her mind drifted to the letter from Lady Freya. She already started to piece together the puzzle this Lady Freya gave her just by coming to Camelot. She couldn’t deny that she shared a lot of similar features with Genesis, besides being a red head.
They had the same shaping of the eyes and chin. She had noticed it when she burst into his room the other morning when Genesis fired his gun. She briefly wondered if Lady Freya had other reasons to summoned her to the White Hall Estate. Perhaps she should travel to the Estate soon before she started to head home. She was starting to have more questions then answers at the moment.
Movement out of the corner of Tina’s eye caught her attention and she glanced over Genesis’ shoulder to see Reno, if she remembered his name correctly, coming to a stop. She made eye contact with Genesis and jerked her chin in Reno’s direction.
The General spun, tensing before he saw who was standing behind him and relaxed. Genesis stood up. Reno motioned the General to follow him and Genesis turned back to Tina, saying “I will be right back.”
Genesis followed after Reno and Tina frowned, briefly. Maybe they had to discuss something to do with security or military matters. It didn’t matter to Tina. That little conversation gave her a few things to think about.
“So,” Rosemary started to say from Tina’s right, “I saw you were sitting in between Lords Salazar and Godric.” Tina turned her cousin with a raised eyebrow. “Are they as handsome up close as they are far away?”
Tina blinked before a grin parted her face. She looked away from Rosemary and around the chapel, seeing majority of the Court settling down into the pews, the Royal Family settled down into the first two rows of pews, and the Pope, the Templer Knight, and the Head Priest drifted toward the front of the church where several rows of seats were set up. She turned her attention back to her cousin who was waiting for Tina’s reply.
“I don’t know,” Tina admitted, honestly. “I wasn’t paying attention to their looks.” Rosemary gapped at her. “But I can tell you that Lord Salazar is someone you don’t want to get on the bad side of and Lord Godric is full of himself and very flirty.”
Rosemary asked as she lend forward, “Tell me everything you discussed with them.”
Tina let out amused laugh and glanced around before she asked, “Why do you want to know?”
“Cousin!” Rosemary whinnied, “Lady Freya is trying to hook each of the grandkids up with possible matches.” Tina lost her smile. Her eyes widened. She felt the blood drain from her face. “I want to find my own match before she gets to me.”
“Who has she been able to find matches for?” Tina whispered.
“Jacob has to leave the day after tomorrow to fetch his bride,” Rosemary explained, “Freya tried to find Genesis a bride but his reputation proceed him and scared away many of the possible matches.”
A loud sound rang out in the Church. Tina looked away from Rosemary as the other woman fell silent. They looked up at the front of the Church. Tina saw one of the Brothers walk toward the podium, at the center of the stage. The Pope, Tina noticed, sat in the front row with the Not-Templer and the Head Brother. She really needed to figure out their proper titles.
Apparently, the mass was starting. Tina scooted to rest her back against the pew and Rosemary straightened around. Genesis appeared at the end of the pew and claimed his seat beside Tina.
The Brother raised his arms over podium and started the mass. His voice rang out, filling the Church. It didn’t take Tina long to figure out the service was going to be a long one. The Brother was speaking in Latin, a language Tina didn’t understand.
However, it didn’t long for Tina’s mind to go back to what Rosemary said about Lady Freya and possible matches, but she distracted herself by grabbing what looked like the bible front a pocket in the back of the pew in front of her. She started to flip through the book.
Genesis kept his attention toward the front of the Church, but he kept glancing to his right where his cousin, Tina, sat, thumbing through the Holy Bible. He noticed she didn’t stay on one page for long. It appeared she was skimming through the lines before she flipped the page. He wondered if she could read Latin.
The Father of the God’s Holy Light started to speak. The Latin language filled the silent hall. Genesis noticed that Tina tilted her head to the side, her eyes staring at the back of the front pew. Her lips moved, silently saying the words that the Father spoke before a spark of recognition flew through her widening green eyes. Her gaze went to the Father. She sat there, with a greedy, but intelligent look in her eyes.
Genesis wanted to laugh. Apparently, Tina never exposed to Latin before and wanted to learn the tongue. He turned his gaze onto the Father, listening and understanding that the Father was praising Uther’s life as a Christian, a caring King and a loving Father, how Uther kept to the old traditions, and how much the King would be missed. The Father prayed Uther reached Heaven and be accepted by God.
The red head General knew the service was coming to end as the Father led the mass into the Lord’s prayer. He glanced toward Tina. Her eyelids started to drop. The Bible laid on her lap, opened to the Book of Enoch. His eyes scanned the paragraph where Tina’s right hand spread. It went over how Enoch went into the heavens and saw God on his throne.
A loud chime echoed through the Church. Tina jerked. Genesis glanced toward her. Her eyes darted around, a fearful expression spread across her face, and her breath caught in her chest. She relaxed, obviously, realizing where she was.
Movement out of Genesis’ eye caught his attention. He turned his head and spotted his second in command started in his direction. They met eyes. Genesis nodded. Reno returned it.
Reno moved along the pews, disappearing outside, quickly. The second knew what to do. The men of the Fire Brigade moved along the wall, heading to the back of the Church. Genesis stood up, directing his gaze toward Bartholomew and Honor. They already had their men moving. He looked at the Ruling Family Box. High Queen Kalliope moved from her seat and with a wave of a hand, rejected Prince Arthur’s offered arm. She walked by him.
The acting Lord of the White Hall House shook his head as he spotted Belladonna’s expression. The Warrior Queen was furious. He hoped the next Chosen King have the will to ride out that storm.
“Remus, Jacob,” Genesis spoke. His cousins turned to him, “Make sure Tina and Rosemary get back their rooms.”
“Of course,” Jacob nodded, “Rosie?”
“How many times have I told you not to call me that, Jakey,” Rosemary glared at him, but didn’t offer any protest over Jacob escorting her back to the White Hall Wing. They stepped around Remus and waited until their pew was able to leave. Once it was their turn, they joined the line, heading out of the Church.
“Tina?” Remus turned to her. She nodded while she chewed on her lower lip.
Genesis stepped out of the pew and joined his men as they filed out. He knew they would be creating a long line, leading back to the Castle. Henry, his third in Command, would be taking over the Command for the rest of the night. However, Genesis’ gaze landed on Tina and his cousins.
He knew starting the day after tomorrow, the Chosen Ceremony would take place for public. If a Chosen King wasn’t found within the week, there was a good chance they would be facing a war with the Mercy and the Frank Kingdoms.
The reports he had been able to read over informed him that the enemies forces were waiting on the border of the Kingdom. Determination filling him, the General made his decision. He was going to try to pull the Holy Sword out of the rock and put a White Hall on the throne, the first one in over 1,000 years.
Tina sensed Genesis leave the pew behind her and head to the doorway of the Church as she followed Remus down the pew. Standing now, she felt awake. She bit back a snorting laugh. She nearly fell asleep during the service.
At first, she was intrigued by the fact the Pastor or Father, if she remembered the correct term to describe the leader of the Church, spoke Latin. It was a language she never thought she would hear. As far as she knew, it was a dead language. Most of the languages she knew of or spoke changed over time due to the influenced of other languages and slang terms being introduced.
She had skimmed the Holy Bible. It didn’t take her long to realize that the book was written in Latin. She had seen the written version of the language. However, she didn’t know which book of the Bible she had stopped at, but the Bible was a lot thicker and heavier then the ones she had seen in the Book aisle at the supermarket. It sparked interested in the desire to know what books were in there, if there was any she didn’t read before, or any lost sands of time.
Tina yawned, turning her attention back to what was happening. She glanced toward the doorway as people moved through the open doors. The line was slowly moving. She wondered what time it was as her gaze drifted around the Church, noticing various mothers of the Court holding their youngest child to their torso as their child slept. Her eyes landed on a stain glass window of the Virgin Mary praying over Jesus in the manager. The sky behind it was dark. Tina knew it was dark when they had arrived at the Church. According to Merlin, it had been 7.
She let out a sigh, waiting for the line move forward. She yawned again. She wanted to go to bed, already. She didn’t know how long she had to wait until Remus moved forward and she followed. Remus stepped out of the pew before he turned to her, holding out his arm to her. She took it.
Together, they walked toward the Church doors. Tina closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she stepped out of the stuffy church. She allowed Remus to guide her along.
“Ah,” a familiar voice rang out, “Lady Armstrong.”
Tina opened her eyes to spot Tristan, falling into step beside her. “Well, howdy Sir Tristan.”
“How are you doing this fine evening?” Tristan asked. Tina turned her gaze onto him with slight narrowed eyes.
"I'm ready for bed," She admitted. Tristan nodded in understanding. "How are you doing?"
"I'm excellent," Tristan's tone caused Tina misstep. She grabbed Remus' arm out of relax before she glanced down at her feet, grabbing a handful of her long skirt then she settled a stare onto the Knight of the Round Table. "Though I do need some help from a beautiful, wonderful lady like yourself, Lady Armstrong."
Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.
Tina watched as Tristan turned his brown eyes to her, with a puppy dog look on his face. His lower lip pouted out a bit. His arms bent at the elbow and his hands placed together like he was praying over his chest. He stared at her.
Tina blinked at Tristan, slowly lending toward her cousin. She heard Remus laugh a bit. She shot him a glare. She turned her attention back to Tristan, asking, "What do you need help with?"
"I want to you to be a witness," Tristan started, "Merlin has started to bug me this evening about trying to pull out the Holy Sword. However, I need at least one witness."
"Why do you need a witness," Tina asked. She didn't want to commit to do something when she didn't have all the information she may or may not need.
"For proof that I either did or did not pull the Holy Sword out," Tristan explained, "Apparently, Merlin don't trust me not to lie when it comes to making an attempt to pull out the Holy Sword."
Tina frowned. She glanced up at Remus before she replied, "Alright. As long as Remus comes."
"That's fine with me," Tristan looked toward Remus, "As long as Lord Lunar doesn't mind being dragged along."
"I think I don't have much a choice in this matter," Remus said, "Given your reputation with the ladies of the Court."
Tina's eyes darted between Remus and Tristan over that comment as the Knight replied, "Most of the stories you have heard are not true."
"I am sure," Remus drawled out.
Tristan sighed, but Tina smirked. “So, you have a habit of talking the ladies out of their clothes, Tristan?”
The knight glared at her, “I don’t have a habit of talking the ladies out of their clothing.”
“Are you telling me that majority of the ladies that get involved with you somehow lose their clothes when you are around?” Tina asked before she innocently added, “Like I did.”
She heard Remus choke on his breath while Tristan’s cheeks turned red as he tried to find the right words to explain what really happened. She let out a bark of laughter as she sensed the heat of Remus’ glare directed at Tristan. If Tristan was preventing her going straight to bed, she was going to get some amusement out of this situation.
“Troublemaker,” Tristan grumbled, loud enough for the three of them to hear.
"So," Tina started as she walked between Remus and Tristan, heading down a hallway. There had been a lot of twists and turns that the Knight and the Lord had dragged Tina down that she had mentally stopped trying to map out the route. "Where is this room at?"
"Just up the hallway, now," Tristan replied.
Tina resisted the urge to sigh. She couldn't believe she was doing this when she could be curling up in bed and be swept off to dreamland. She fought off a yawn.
"What does this Holy Sword do?" Tina asked, trying to remember why the sword was important.
"It choses the King of Camelot," Remus explained, "Long time ago, when King Arthur I was dying, he requested Merlin to recast the Choosing spell over one of Arthur's swords. Ever since then, whenever we have a King die, we hold a Chosen Ceremony."
"While it is common knowledge among the Court," Tristan picked up the conversation, "that knowledge isn't common among the lower classes."
"Why is that?" Tina wondered. It was wrong not to let the lower class not to try to pull the Holy Sword out of the Sheath. The person who could sit on the Throne as the Chosen King could be apart of the lower classes.
"Some of the Court doesn't want that knowledge to get out," Tristan answered, "If that knowledge would get out from the Court, they fear a person from the lowest class could raise to power and destroy Camelot through various means." He paused. "I know the Ruling Family will want High Queen Kalliope to remarry if the Chosen King doesn't have a wife already. If the Chosen King already has a wife and children, she will be expected to step aside and the Chosen King's wife will be crowned as High Queen. However, the court will tell the public that the Chosen King is a distinct relative the Current Ruling House."
"I was wondering how they will tell the public about that little detail," Remus confessed.
Tristan nodded before he went on, "If the Chosen King is not apart of the Court, he will be forced to take classes on how to rule the Kingdom. Usually, there will be a ball in celebration of the new Chosen King, but if the Chosen King is in the process of learning everything majority of the Court and the knights already knows, that ball would be pushed back until the Ruling Family - in this case, House of Drake - feels like the Chosen King is ready to be introduced to the other Kingdoms without a worry of sparking a War with them."
Tina nodded, understanding, "So, it is like a debut to society." Tristan and Remus nodded.
Tina knew a Debut to Society was an old fashion concept from the Victoria Era. Back during that era, young women would have a come out to society called Debuts and it was used as a way for Families to announced that a Daughter would be allowed to see suitors and seeking a husband. Tina thought that concept died out or was limited to higher society circles. She paused, briefly, about that. She was dealing with a higher society circle. She hoped she didn't have to go through a debut. It would be awkward and incredibly boring.
"Valentina, Remus," Genesis' voice rang out. Tina looked up and spotted the General standing by an open door. Beyond the open door, she saw Merlin standing with his back to the door. “What are you doing here?”
“For the same reason you are here, I think, Genny,” Tina commented, “I’ll be acting as a witness for Sir Tristan, here, to see if he can pull the Holy Sword out or not.”
“As for me,” Remus stated, “I came along to protect our cousin’s precious virtue.”
Hearing that, Tina slowly turned her head and stared at Remus with a mixture of shock and amusement before she said, “My precious virtue?” Her eyes darted between Remus, Genesis, Tristan, and Merlin. The three of the four men turned to look at her when she snorted, stating, “You are a few years too late on that one.”
Remus’ jaw dropped as his eyes widened. Genesis put a hand over his face. Merlin half turned to raised an eyebrow at her. Tristan sent her an amused glare, saying “I couldn’t have never guess that.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “I mean there are very few respectful women who would stripped down into bare skin in front of a man not her husband.”
Genesis gapped at Tina as she turned to the Knight and said, “You could have turned around instead of gawking like a fool or ignored me.”
“I am man,” Tristan protested.
“And I am woman,” Tina pointed out, “It doesn’t mean I am going to sexualized everything you do or don’t do…unlike you are doing.” Tristan opened his mouth. His eyes darted to his left then the right. He snapped his mouth shut. “I thought so.” Tina sent him a smirk. “Now, go pull the Holy Sword out so I can go to bed, Sir Tristan.” She turned to Genesis. “You are planning to try the Holy Sword out as well.” He nodded. “I guess I’m staying for that, too.” Tina turned to Remus.
Remus sighed, “I might as well it get out of the way, just in case, no body else can and it becomes open to the Court.”
Well, three for three,” Tina stated, “Come on, boys. I don’t have all night. I need to get some sleep before the maid wakes me up to get ready for the Funeral.”
“My, my, you are bossy,” Merlin commented.
“You have no idea,” Tina admitted. She walked through the door. Her eyes immediately found the Holy Sword. She stopped in her steps, staring at the image she saw.
The Holy Sword stood, hilt up while majority of the blade disappeared into a large gray rock. A sense of familiarity washed over her. She blinked and dismissed the feeling. She probably saw the image in a movie or a TV show, but forget she had watched it. Her eyes ran over the hilt, noting the large red gem sitting in the pummel. Her right hand itched to curl around the hilt. She flexed her hand to get rid of that feeling.
“Do you want to try your hand at pulling the Holy Sword,” Merlin’s breath drifted over Tina’s exposed neck. Her back snapped straight. Goosebumps rosed over her skin. She skipped forward a step and turned on her heel. She raised her head and met his gaze in a glare.
“I wasn’t aware a woman who could try,” Tina commented, smoothly.
“Usually,” Merlin waved a hand through the air, “Most women don’t even think about trying to pull out the Holy Sword.” He sent her a smirk. “I do wonder what could happen under a woman’s rule.” He met her gaze. “It would be a rule that would go down in History, that is for sure.”
“You said most women,” Tina started, “So, there have been women who have tried to pull the Holy Sword out, before.”
“Yes,” Merlin commented, “Most of them I don’t remember, however, there is one who I do remember. Rowena of House Caligula. She was one of the most talented magi I have taught, but she wasn’t satisfied with her position and what she could. She tried to pull out the Holy Sword, but she discovered she couldn’t because Arthur I was the Chosen King.”
“She didn’t like that,” Tina said. Merlin shook his head. “What would be the title of a woman who managed to pull the Holy Sword out?”
“Chosen Queen, of course,” Merlin shrugged. “The spell on the Holy Sword is designed to chose the best suited person to rule Camelot as the Ruler, no matter what their sex is.”
Tina hummed. She turned to her cousins and Tristan, saying, “Who is first?”
“I will,” Tristan announced.
Tristan felt his gut twist into knots as he made that announcement. He felt Lady Valentina’s gaze flicked to him before she went back to studying the Holy Sword. He never thought he would be able given the chance to pull the Holy Sword out. He knew if he managed to do so, it would change his life forever. He would have to deal with the various headaches of ruling and would have to find a wife as soon as possible.
If he went with the thought of being prove to be worthy to rule Camelot as King, he could request the High Queen Kalliope to be his wife. However, he heard the various rumors of Kalliope having a secret lover, he couldn’t take that chance of a normal life away from the High Queen.
The Violent Knight glanced to the red head woman. Lady Valentina could be fill that position, if he could talk her into it. Marrying her would give him some allies in the White Hall Family and their vassal houses. That would be something he would need, especially against the House of Black and their allies.
He knew Queen Belladonna would be pushing him to marry one of the Black Ladies. He really didn’t want to deal with that. If Lady Valentina didn’t want to help him out, he was sure he could find another who want to rule at his side. He watched as the mysterious Lady Armstrong raise her eyebrow at him.
“Are you going to try pull the Holy Sword out sometime this year, Tristan,” she asked, “Or are you waiting until we are old and gray before you try?”
If Lady Valentina was another knight, he would have sent a rude gesture, but since she was a noble and apart of the Court, he had to behave. He sent her a half concealed glare and spoke, “I am just gathering the courage to make the attempt.”
“It is just a sword,” Valentina said, shrugging, “It may say you are worthy to be King, but your actions will say otherwise. Remember that.”
Tristan hummed, thinking about what she had said. The Holy Sword may have a say on who will be sitting on the King’s throne, but it will be his actions that will cause others to say if he was a good or a bad King.
He thought about Uther. Tristan didn’t agree with rulings Uther had announced, but did those actions make Uther a good King? His thoughts drifted back to that Fawn Village. Those non-humans had celebrated at the news of Uther’s death. He wondered how many other non-humans did the same. He wondered if it was the same with several human families.
Uther had tried to rule with an iron fist, steeped in tradition. The previous King was influenced by Belladonna who fought for traditions, against the equal rights for the non-humans, and often treated women who in his view didn’t have the same equal rights as their male counterparts.
He glanced at Valentina and had a thought. He sent her a smirk before he said, “I just had a thought.”
“Did it hurt?” Valentina asked, innocently. Genesis snorted. Remus chuckled.
“ I have a proposal for you, Lady Valentina, if you are willingly to hear me out,” he stated. She raised an eyebrow and nodded. He went on, “If I managed to pull the Holy Sword out and become King,” Tristan started, watching her, “You have to do two things for me.” He held up two fingers on his right hand. “One, you will agree to be my wife.”
Genesis’ growled, “Sir Tristan, you have overstepped your bounds.”
Merlin let out a whistle. Remus brought up a hand and rubbed his face. However, Tristan kept his gaze on the red head. Valentina straightened up so fast Tristan was worried that she might have caused her back some damage. Her eyes widened in a mixture of emotions before they went to the floor, darting back and forth. Her face lost some color. Her fists curled at her sides. Her chest heaved with a sharp intake of breath. Her lips pursed together. She looked up and finally spoke, “Why?”
“I will need a wife who can hold her own in various conversations and situations I will be faced,” Tristan explained, walking over to her and grabbed her left fisted hand. He rubbed his thumb on the whiten knuckles. “From our experience in the Fawn Village, you seemed to be a decent fighter, smart, and capable of holding your own in a dangerous situation. I will need that kind of woman at my side, especially over the next few months.”
Valentina nodded, slowly, and asked, “What is your second condition?”
Still rubbing her fisted hand, he lend in slowly and whispered in her ear, “You confess your family the reason why you are here in Camelot.” He pulled away, staring down at her. Her face still haven’t recover the color she had lost at his declaration of his first condition. Her eyes were a dark forest green. It reminded him of the shades of the forest in a looming storm. It was strangely beautiful.
She took a deep breath before she announced, “Fine. I agree to your conditions.”
“Valentina!” Genesis snapped. She turned her gaze to him. “Our family matriarch may have already chose a possible husband for you.” Tristan saw the glare the Explosive General sent the red head woman.
“Well, if Sir Tristan manages to pull out the Holy Sword,” Valentina’s eyes narrowed, “I am sure she will agree to the match. After all, I couldn’t do much better then to marry a King.”
Genesis argued, “I have no doubt of that. However, there are reasons why I won’t allow this match to go forward.”
“It is my choice,” she shot back, “Not yours or Lady Freya’s.” Her lips pressed together as Genesis and Valentina stared at each other, sparks meeting in the air.
Tristan’s eyes darted back and forth between the secret siblings before he spoke up, “If I don’t found to be worthy of being King, my proposal won’t matter.”
“Exactly,” Valentina stated. She turned her gaze onto him, “Are you going to try to pull out the Holy Sword or are we going to stand here all bloody night? I would like to get some sleep, soon.”
Tristan chuckled and dropped the red head’s hand, stating, “As my lady wishes.” He felt the heat of her glare on his back as he turned away and strolled over to the sword. He took a deep breath, stopping in front of the sword, and stared at it with some wonder. He never thought he would have a chance to pull it out.
Personally, he didn’t want the job of Kingship. On the other hand, he didn’t want to experience another time where the Kingdom of Camelot didn’t have a Chosen King sitting on the throne. The situation was a headache and half. He reached out and wrapped his hands around the hilt.
The hilt felt cool under his warm hand. He reflexed his fingers before he tightened his grip. He took a deep breath and pulled hard up on the hilt. The sword didn’t budge. He tried again. He got the same result.
“The Holy Sword has found you unworthy to rule the Kingdom of Camelot, Sir Tristan,” Merlin announced. The mage’s voice bounced off the stone walls.
A sweeping since of relief rush through him. He let out a sigh. He let go of the hilt and turned around, facing Valentina and the members of the White Hall family. He met her eyes and said, “It seems the proposal is invalid.”
“Apparently so,” She agreed, relaxing “I think you managed to dodged the bullet there, Tristan.”
“I think it was you, dear cousin, that dodged the bullet,” Genesis’ voice held a note of relief, “I was not looking forward to explaining the reason why I had to allow such a proposal to go through to my grandmother.” The red head general ignored the glare Tina sent him. Tristan, on the other hand, hoped that glare would never settle on him. “However, it is my turn,” Genesis announced.
Genesis took a deep breath as he strolled past Valentina, letting it out slowly. His heart thudded in his chest. His stomach rolled with emotions. He couldn’t believe he was making an attempt to pull out the Holy Sword. If he did managed to do it, his grandmother was going to have a field day, trying to find him a wife. The worst of it, he wouldn’t have the power to say no.
He would have families lining up to offer their daughters to him in marry. It would allow whoever he took as his wife, her family would raise in status, becoming A Noble House. However, it would mean he wouldn’t be able to marry for love like he was hoping to do.
He came to a stop in front of the Sword. His hands shook, slightly, as he reached out and wrapped them around the hilt of the Holy Sword. He shifted his weight from foot to foot. He gathered his courage. He would really prefer to face down an entire army by himself then to make an attempt at pulling the Holy Sword.
However, he wanted to change Camelot for the better. He was sick of Belladonna looking down on him because he chose to be a part of the Military instead of following his father’s footsteps into knighthood. He was sick of seeing the non-humans killed because they were not human. He was sick of hiding a part of who he was. He was sick of so many things happening inside the Kingdom. He wanted to change it all.
The Explosive General Genesis White Hall took a deep breath. He bent his knees. He tightened his grip. He gritted his teeth. He pulled upward. The Holy Sword didn’t move. He tried again. He got the same result. He tried for a third time. For a third time, he got the same result.
Genesis’ shoulders slumped in defeat. The Holy Sword found him unworthy to rule Camelot. Merlin announced it before he turned to Remus, asking, “Are you going to make an attempt to pull the Holy Sword out, Lord Lunar?”
Genesis turned to his cousin and saw the uncomfortable look on his face. The General bit back a chuckle.
“I prefer not to,” Remus started, but everyone saw Merlin give a wolfish grin and said, “I have to insisted you did try since you are here and you have witnesses, available. After all, we don’t know who will be The Chosen King and I’m sure you don’t want to experience another Kingless Era.”
Genesis hummed in acknowledgment. There was the line the red head was waiting for. He knew Merlin would go for the low blow. From some of the conversations he had heard, the Battle Mage was dealing the low blow if a Lord or a Knight wasn’t willingly to try to pull out the Holy Sword. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as Remus sent a death glare at the Battle Mage before he took a deep breath and let it out in a huff, agreeing.
Lord James Black strolled down to the room where the Holy Sword was kept until the Public Choosing took place. He couldn’t believe his cousin, Arthur, didn’t pull the sword out. James’ dark eyes narrowed with worry. He didn’t want to worry about another Kingless Kingdom Era. The last one was bad enough. He had lost his mother and one of his sisters due to the mindless killings. He glanced over his shoulder to see his cousins, Arthur and Margiette.
Margiette was at the Court by partly on his orders and their great Aunt’s request. She didn’t want to come to Court but she knew her time was quickly approaching to find a husband. She preferred to find her own husband, with James’ permission, instead of being used a pawn in their Aunt’s game and her desire to increase their family power in the country side.
Speaking of their Great Aunt, the Warrior Queen match James’ step by step. She didn’t like the oppressive nature of the Black Family, but she had no problem pushing those oppressive nature onto the rest of women of the family. It was a confusing notion that James figure he would never understand nor he had the desire to.
James glanced ahead and saw the door to the room for the Holy Sword, standing open. He spotted the battle mage standing in the door way, but he couldn’t who else was in the room with him. As he led his family toward the open door, he spotted the mysterious Lady Valentina of House Armstrong standing with her back facing him and General Genesis stood by the rock where the Holy Sword sat.
Arthur entered the room first, but James paused by the opened door, allowing Aunt Bella and Margiette to pass through the doorway before he did. James’ eyes roamed over the room. Sir Tristan stood at Lady Valentina’s side, muttering something in her ear. She nodded, listening, as her eyes watched the General with wonder, awe, and hint of confusion.
“Ah, General,” Aunt Belladonna greeted the Heir of the White Hall House. Her voice bounced off the walls, echoing loudly. Everyone turned to the members of the Black House and one by one bowed at the waist toward the former High Queen. However, Lady Valentina simply tilted her head toward the Queen.
James felt a rush of amusement go through him. Was Lady Valentina trying to piss off his Aunt? Nearly everyone knew at Court that the Ladies curtsied to the Ruling Family, not tilt their head. An amused smirk played at his lips. The sharp inhale of breath from Aunt Bella told James all he needed to know. He made sure his face was turned away from his aunt. He didn’t need to have her wrath turn upon him.
“I’m sure it is past your bedtime, girl,” Aunt Bella sneered at Lady Valentina, “Perhaps, Sir Tristan would be care enough to escort you back to your family wing so you can go to bed already.”
“Or I can stay and see if my cousin Remus can withdraw the Holy Sword then he can escort me back to my chambers and tuck me into bed,” Lady Valentina suggested with an innocent look. “After all, it wouldn’t be good for the good Sir Tristan to be caught all alone with this girl.” She paused, frowning, before she continued, “We don’t want anyone to think the great Sir Tristan get caught by anyone important escorting an unwed lady around the castle. It might cause a scandal.” She blinked innocently at Aunt Bella.
James wanted to laugh. A quick glance at the Prince informed him that his cousin wanted to do the same thing. However, Tristan looked like he had shallowed a lemon.
“Could you hurry up a bit that, dear cousin?” the Lady turned to the Lunar Heir. “We don’t want to keep the lovely Queen Belladonna up any longer then we have to. I’m sure she needs her beauty sleep to be her best for tomorrow.”
Remus let out a sigh before he stepped up to the rock where the Holy Sword was impaled. He reached to the hilt, wrapping his hand around it, and gave a mighty pull. The Holy Sword didn’t budge. He tried it again. It still didn’t budge. He let out a growl. The sound bounced off the walls of the empty room.
However, Lady Valentina commented, “Well, cousin, dear, it seems like you dodge a cannon ball there.” Remus turned to her, an eyebrow raised. “At least you don’t have to deal with a royal headache of someone urging you marry their great niece, I think, or granddaughter.” She tilted her head to the side. “Just like our family matriarch doing the same thing, but at a much longer distance.”
James’ eyes widened and he bit his lower lip, hard. He couldn’t believe the Lady of the Armstrong House was sassing his Aunt. He was half-tempted to seek Genesis out and request to Court the Lady Valentina, eventually reaching a marriage contract with her. It would piss his Great Aunt off to no end, but it would be worth it to watch the Lady sass the Former High Queen whenever they had to visit Camelot. He briefly wondered how she would handle the rest of his family.
Tina knew from the older queen’s expression, the red head managed to get under her skin. Perhaps it was time to leave while she still could. She turned to her family and Tristan, commenting, “Alright, you three proved that you are lacking in some department.” She paused long enough for her words to settle in their heads.
“You —” Genesis started to say as Merlin let out a chuckle.
“I need to get some beauty sleep before tomorrow,” She cut the General off, “I don’t want to show any disrespect to the dead by falling asleep during the funeral.” She looked between Remus, Genesis, and Tristan, “So, let’s get going, boys.” She spun on her heel and started out of the room. She sensed Tristan and Remus following her as she past the Queen and her family members. It was a moment before Genesis started after her.
Tina yawned widely as she entered the hallway and stopped, waiting for the men to caught up. Once Genesis stepped out of the room, she walked down the hall.
“So,” She began, “That was the Holy Sword.” One of the men hummed in agreement. “Has it always been the same sword since King Arthur I’s time as King?”
“Yes, it has,” Tristan replied, “As far as I know, the sword has been enchanted with some spells to allow it to be as sharp as when King Arthur I first used in battle, over 1500 years ago.”
“Has it ever been broken?” Tina wondered. It would probably caused a lot of problems if it did break. “And it really has been 1500 years since Arthur first formed Camelot?”
This time, it was Genesis who answered, “Surprisingly, it hasn’t. It never got a creak of any kind in the blade. If it did, Merlin and Morgana managed to fix it before anyone saw it.” He went on, stepping around Tristan, falling into step beside Tina, “And Arthur wasn’t the one who formed Camelot. It was his father, Uther, who founded the Kingdom during the aftermath of the Roman retreating back to the Empire.”
At least, that information was true. Tina remembered reading about how Romans called back their armies to guard the borders closer to the Empire, but it didn’t help when the Western part of the Empire fell into ruin. Most of the Historians of the King Arthur myth thought it was during this time that King Arthur lived or at least the King Arthur like Figure.
“Uther was apart of the Purple and was used to the Romans’ lifestyle,” Genesis explained, “As a result, he has many wives. He did have a favorite wife, as well as favored heirs.”
“Arthur was one of these favored heirs,” Tina said as they exited the hallway leading to the Holy Sword and started down another.
“Yes,” Genesis agreed, “It wasn’t always the case.” He took a breath. “According to history, Uther didn’t have a favor heir until Arthur was born from the Favored Wife, but Morgana was the favorite princess out of the couple dozen girls Uther fathered.”
“How many wives did Uther have?” Tina asked, shocked. That was something new. If Uther was apart of the Purple - meaning of Roman blood - he would have followed the Roman traditions and took only one woman as his wife.
“35,” Remus answered, “He fathered over 100 children, but in the years after Uther’s death, the Children wared upon each other for the Throne of Camelot. Eventually, by the time, Arthur was found worthy by the Holy Sword, there were still 75 children alive. Majority of them sided with Robert, Uther’s first born, and fought against Arthur. Morgana, however, being the favorite princess, managed to get out of many of the marriage proposal offer, but it wasn’t the same for many of her sisters. They were used as pawns to help grow Uther’s power over the various lords and the other kings in the land at the time until Camelot became one large Kingdom.”
“Many of Uther’s sons either died on the battlefield, became lords in distant lands, or ended up vanishing through various means,” Genesis picked up the history lesson, “Robert eventually was killed by Arthur on the battlefield when he refused to submit to Arthur’s rule.”
“Good lord,” Tina whispered. Camelot’s origins was bloody. She didn’t think Uther would have had a harem and fathered so many kids that they ended up fighting among themselves to rule the land. However, wasn’t it the way with Royal Families? One family member thought they deserved to be the Ruler and sought to kill off the other families members. The War of the Roses came to Tina’s mind when she thought about that and they played the Game of Thrones.
Tristan cleared his throat as the group entered the courtyard. Tina glanced his way and he spoke, “Lady Valentina,” He reached out and grabbed her left hand, bringing it up to his lips before he kissed her knuckles. “Thank you for coming with me tonight to bare witness if the Holy Sword had found me worthy or not.”
“You’re welcome,” Tina replied.
“I hope you have pleasant dreams,” Tristan sent her a smile and allowed her hand to drop from his gasp before he headed to a tower in the distance.
Tina heard Genesis grumbled something under his breath, but she ignored him. Remus took the lead, heading back to the White Hall Wing of the Castle. Tina followed, lost in thought over the new information she got from her family. Genesis brought up the rear. However, Tina turned her gaze toward the forest looming over the southern castle walls. Her gut tightened. She knew Ralph and his team was out there. She could only assume they managed to get to this side of the barrier and activity searching for her. She hoped tomorrow would go smoothly and she didn’t have to worry about him finding her location, again, before she managed to get home.
“Are you sure she is here?” Ralph stared, unblinkingly, at the castle in the center of the town. He couldn’t believe the brat made it to Camelot. He remembered General Genesis of White Hall House lived full time in the castle. He didn’t doubt that Tina had ran into her older brother, already. If not him, the other members of the main branch family or the minor branches. He glanced toward Waya.
“Yeah,” Waya said, “the conversation I overheard in that tavern, informed me that she had ran into Sir Tristan and they traveled here together.” He placed his weight on his heels
“Great,” Kikyo stated, “Just bloody great.” She stood next to the tree, her arms crossed over her chest. She placed her foot against the tree, lending her back to the bark. Her eyes narrowed into a glare. “Now, we have to deal with a knight of Camelot.”
Abasi looked down at the woman from a higher branch and corrected her, “Not just any knight. Tristan, if I remember correctly, is known as the Violent Knight due to his bloodthirstiness on the battlefield and a Knight of the Round Table.”
Kikyo shot him a deeper glare.
“Enough,” Ralph’s voice took on a commanding tone. “We know where she is.” He met each of their eyes. “We spend the night planning.”
“When should the plan be put into action?” Waya questioned.
“The Day after the Funeral,” Ralph replied, “We can’t interrupt a Funeral for a Ruling Family Member. It will look bad if the Hidden Bark Village intervene with the Funeral.” He paused. “If you want to think of it this way, what if it was our Leader we were in the process of burying when another force interrupts it, how would you feel?”
“Revenge for the disrespect,” Kikyo replied.
“Anger,” Waya announced.
Abasi narrowed his eyes, “Blood will be split.”
Ralph nodded in agreement, “So, we wait until after the Day of the Funeral to make our move.” He turned his gaze to the Castle. “Let’s find a comfortable place to rest and plan.” The other three nodded. The four of them vanished into the night, leaving nothing behind in their wake.
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