The advisors bowed their heads in understanding and gathered up all the plans to excuse themselves from the throne room. Malcolm, Kiara, Justin and Eshean all walked towards the throne. When the door was finally closed behind them, Malcolm turned with a smile to his daughter.
“What is it Kiara?” the king asked, looking between all three of them, wondering if something was wrong.
Kiara placed her hands timidly in front of her and took a deep breath. “I’ve come to plead for the life of Nathaniel de Hunt, who is currently sentenced to death and being held in prison.”
Malcolm peered at her curiously, then looked to Justin or Eshean for any sign of this being a joke. “Why would you want to do something like that? He is a criminal. Are you aware of his offenses against the kingdom, my child?”
“Yes, father, I am, but I assure you that those old ways of living are far behind him. He had confided in me that he truly regrets the many crimes he has committed and has said that he is, indeed, a changed man. He has killed people along this long journey we took together, but he only did so in order to defend me. He really is an honorable man and deserves life, not death. Father, isn’t there some way that you can released him from this sentence?” Kiara could hear her own voice breaking with each heartfelt word.
Her father sighed and sat down upon his throne to look at the three. “And what have you others to say about this matter?” he asked in a very formal way, his bright countenance turning contemplative.
Justin stepped forward and bowed to be recognized. “Father, I whole heartedly believe in Kiara’s plea. From what I witness and heard from him three days ago, he does seem worthy of mercy… One thought I had, would be that since he is a rogue and an excellent fighter as Kiara has told me, that he may be of good use to us when we have to confront Deceiver. I ask that if you see it fit, that he would become a squire under my tutelage.” Kiara looked to Justin with a wide smile at such a notion. “I believe that he would be a very important asset to your army. And, not to sound rude, but we can’t make much good of him if he is dead.”
Malcolm stroked his beard thoughtfully, then turned his eyes to Eshean. The old man hobbled forward as Justin stepped back.
“My lord,” Eshean began, “I agree with both of your children. I have not formally met this man in person, but from what I hear of him, he seems to have a promising future, if given the chance. If what Kiara says is true, he is sorry for his crimes and could repent. Then, if you see fit that Justin’s idea is logical and wise, then after he repents, he could, indeed, be a great asset to you. I believe it would be a wise decision that you show mercy if this man does repent. If he does not, then by all means, do what you see as just.”
Eshean stepped back as Malcolm went deathly silent. He stared at the ground, stroking his fingers thoughtfully over his shallow grey beard. Kiara gazed hopefully, lacing her fingers nervously together, wishing there was some more way to persuade her father further. Justin was anxious only because of what Kiara had told him earlier about if Nate was killed, then she would be tempted to kill herself. He loved his sister too much to let her die. Eshean, knowing that Kiara secretly had feelings for the convicted man, wanted what was best for everyone. It was not wise to get rid of a man who truly wanted to do good and had won the heart of the princess.
Malcolm looked up to the three, having a pensive, simple look on his face. “Summon the man to me,” he ordered. Eshean nodded and backed away to give the orders to some guards outside the throne room.
Kiara and Justin exchanged bewildered glances, unsure if their father had accepted their plea or not. Either way, Malcolm did not speak again until Nate was escorted into the throne room. Despite his tired, sickly appearance, Nate walked confidently up to the throne, a guard on either side of him. He was still bound in chains that rattled and clanked together inside the throne room as he strode forward, and then willfully lowered himself onto his knees before the king. The three others stayed off to the side to watch the judgment.
Malcolm stood up with his chest thrown out, resembling a mighty lion ruling over his pride. Kiara held her nervous stomach as Malcolm descended the few marble steps from his throne to approach Nate.
“Nathaniel, you have been sentenced to death for heinous crimes against me and my kingdom. You have pled guilty to these accounts. I told you that your sentence would be carried out as soon as my daughter had awakened. As you can clearly see, she is awake. The time of your execution has come.”
Kiara stiffened her jaw and tried to keep herself together, but slowly, her self control was unraveling. If it weren’t for Justin’s comforting hand upon her shoulder, she probably would have lost it all together in that moment.
Nate’s head bowed low with resignation. The guards were about to pick the prisoner up by the arms to lead him to the chopping block, but Malcolm held out his hand to stop them.
“Nathaniel, I will give you one last chance to redeem yourself… Do you repent of your crimes and evil deeds of your past?”
Kiara looked frantically from her father to Nate, waiting for the answer.
Nate lifted his head proudly. “I do, your majesty. I repent of my crimes.”
“And you do know that repenting is not the same as being sorry? Repenting involves knowing you did wrong, admitting it and changing your behavior so it will not happen again. Being sorry means you are just regretful that you got caught… Which are you?” Malcolm’s tone was stern, but very fatherly towards Nate, which surprised Kiara and led her to hope.
Nate grew silent for a moment. “I truly repent of my crimes and have already been making changes in my life to prevent these crimes from being committed again.”
Kiara held her breath for Malcolm’s response.
“Do you swear your allegiance and loyalty to me and me alone, promising to serve me all the days of your life until the day you die, whether in battle, of sickness or old age?”
“I do, your majesty.”
The throne room went silent, so silent that the lightest breath could be heard from across the way. Kiara felt her lips curl into a relieved smile as she knew what this meant for Nate.
Malcolm smiled and nodded his approval. “I had a feeling you would… Take those chains off of him. I hereby pardon all crimes for which he has stood accused of. His slate is wiped clean. You may begin again, Nathaniel.”
The guards, oddly confused by the whole display, unlocked his chains and carried them away. Nate, thankful and at a loss for words, fell onto his forearms, concealing his head before the king as if he were worshipping him. Kiara could hear the rogue sniffle back a few tears. Malcolm stooped down and put a gentle hand on his shoulder to assure him that all is well now.
Kiara the urge to run to Nate and hug him but knew that she would be harshly reprimanded for it. Justin held her back as she even felt like crying out of shear relief and happiness that Nate would live.
“Justin, could you come here, please?” Malcolm requested, waving his son over with a calm smile upon his face. Justin nodded and walked over, leaving Kiara with Eshean. Nate finally pushed himself up into a sitting position on the floor, his legs too weak at that moment to stand. His bloodshot eyes glanced between the two.
“Nathaniel, this is my son, Justin, the crown prince. He has graciously offered to take you under his wing to become his squire. Is this an offer you would like to accept?”
Nate looked like he would burst with fresh, joyful tears. At last, he glanced over to Kiara, who nodded in encouragement. He looked back to Malcolm and nodded, still unable to speak.
The king grinned. “Very well, then. Justin, show him his new quarters in the soldier wing and get him some clean clothes and a bath. Tomorrow, you start your training and from now until you are able to find your own baron to sponsor you, I will gladly do so and you may stay here as long as you like, Nathaniel. Welcome home.”
Kiara felt like shouting for joy and it looked to be that Nate did as well. All five looked very pleased with the new verdict. Nate’s c
ountenance proved as “thank you” enough for Malcolm that he needn’t say a word. So many emotions swirled within Nate that he hardly knew how else to respond.
Justin helped Nate up off the floor and out of the throne room. Once they were gone, leaving only Malcolm, Kiara and Eshean, the little princess could hold in her happiness no longer. She ran and threw her arms about her father with joy glowing from her expression.
“Thank you, father! You will not regret this, I assure you! Thank you so much! You don’t know how much this means to me!” she exclaimed, holding her father so tightly that his voice seemed to have less air behind it.
“You are welcome, Kiara. I am glad to see you are happy,” Malcolm had to pry her arms away just for him to breathe freely again. Once she fully let go, he continued, “Tomorrow night, I will be holding a banquet in your honor to celebrate your return home. I advise that if you want some of your friends from the village to be there, you go send them invitations.”
Kiara beamed with excitement. “Oh, father, I also met some people in your kingdom recently that you know and I have found favor in. May I invite them?”
Malcolm smiled and tapped his thick finger on her tender nose playfully, “Of course, my dear. But, you better hurry. I don’t have many messenger riders left to spare.”
The princess nodded and skipped out of the throne room with glee.
Eshean and the king were now left alone. The old advisor approached his king, leaning heavily upon his wooden staff.
Malcolm sighed within himself and stared at the grand doors that Kiara had shut behind her. “Do you think I did the wise thing, Eshean?”
“I do, my lord. Kiara is happy, Justin gets a squire, you get an extra soldier in this impending battle and I don’t have to clean bloodstains off of the axe and pavement… I believe you did the right thing,” Eshean said with rather comical air.
The king gave an amused sideways glance to his advisor and sighed. “I suppose so… I have one more thing to ask of you, though,” Eshean turned to Malcolm and waited, “I need you to send out a few scouts to monitor Deceiver’s movements within my kingdom. I want to be the first to know if he steps across Resh Pass, even before he knows it. Deceiver may not be that strong of a force, but his hatred and lust for revenge will fuel the fight in him. The battle may be close this time.”
Eshean, slightly startled by the king’s grave words, decided to consul once more before leaving. “Your majesty, good always triumphs over evil. Justice will be served one way or another. You have the most highly skilled knights and soldiers in the entire known world and Deceiver’s army of rebels are no match for you… I only advise that you do not let your own search for revenge for Kiara’s sake fuel your motives.”
And with that, the king was left on his throne room to ponder these things within his heart and mind. He knew Eshean was right. If he did not keep a level head in this battle, the whole kingdom could be lost to darkness.
Chapter 23
Nate hadn’t moved for hours on his little cot bed in the soldier wing of the castle. He was so exhausted, so worn out from not sleeping for days that as soon as his head hit the pillow, he was out like a flame on a wick of a candle. He had managed to change into some appropriate, clean attire of a white tunic and brown trousers after his bath, but besides that, he was too tired to do anything else. Other squires from knights that had already arrived saw Nate sleeping there, but didn’t bother him. Some even recognized him from the tournament in Daleth. This confused them since Sir Ethan hadn’t arrived yet.
All the knights who had arrived to Aleph over the past few days took up their own rooms in the higher levels of the soldier wing. There were three levels, the squire and mercenary bunkroom being on the bottom most floor and the knights higher above. The bunkroom was more or less a large chamber with bunk beds lining both sides of the walls and a row of beds in the center.
Nate was so relieved to finally be able to relax for the first time in years. His crimes were wiped clean and never to be mentioned again. It was like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders, allowing him to finally breathe easy for the first time in years. When he had fallen on his face before Malcolm the evening before, he did weep for joy. He had never felt like that in his life. Of course, he would have to deal with the shame of his actions, but he was not going to receive the punishment for them, which was more than enough for him. Nate never knew how gracious Malcolm could be. He would not waste that grace he has been given.
And on top of it all, he was offered to be Justin’s squire. What an honor, indeed. It wasn’t what he’d dreamed of, but it was very close and Nate was even more grateful for this chance. The only thing that made him anxious was the fact that he was living in the same castle as Kiara. He would see Kiara every day, which meant that he would eventually be invited to her wedding. Nate didn’t know how he could handle that sort of disappointment, but he wasn’t going to worry about it for the night. He wanted to sleep.
Early the next morning, almost before the sun was visible in the sky, the bunkroom door was cracked open to admit Justin, carrying a candle and pail into the dark sleeping quarters. Men all around him snored and stirred in their beds, but he was not concerned with them. Justin came straight over to Nate’s bed and shook the rogue’s shoulder violently to wake him.
“Nathaniel, wake up. It’s time to start your training,” the prince said in a hushed whisper.
Nate cracked a droopy eyelid open and his eye roamed in the darkness before closing again. “Five more minutes,” he grumbled incoherently, then seemed to fall right back asleep.
Justin sighed, rolled his eyes and pulled up the bucket of cold river water to pour over Nate’s sleeping body. Needless to say, the rogue was up in an instant, his body receiving a cruel shock from the freezing water. He almost fell out of the bed, but he held himself up on the edge, panting heavily to try and catch his breath. Nate felt like lashing out the prince, but he held his tongue and sat up on his mattress, his clothes and bed sheets all wet. Some of the other men around the room were roused by the splattering of the water on the stone floor and Nate’s noisy efforts to recover from the rude wake up call.
“You know, you gave me these clothes yesterday to wear and now I have to change again,” Nate quipped as he set his wet feet down onto the stone floor, looking up to Justin.
“I wouldn’t have had to do that if you had just gotten up when I asked. It’s time for your training. Let’s go,” Justin ordered sternly, turning and walking towards the door. Nate stood up and shook his body in an attempt to get the moisture out, but his clothes hung over him, clinging to his skin in some areas, making it extremely uncomfortable to walk.
“What about them?” Nate asked, passing a few young men who were snickering at his misfortunes.
“They have already been trained to fight. Come on. The sun will come up any minute and breakfast will be served in a few hours.”
As Nate approached Justin waiting by the door, he pinched a piece of his wet tunic and held it out for the prince to see. “Can I at least get a clean shirt, my lord?”
Justin chuckled. “Of course.” He bent down just outside the door and picked up a new white tunic that resembled the one Justin was wearing, then tossed it to Nate. The rogue caught the shirt and glanced between it to Justin.
“You knew I wasn’t going to get up easily?”
“I didn’t suspect so. Kiara told me how you don’t sleep very often, so you would be hard to wake.”
Nate, disregarding any forms of etiquette, shed his wet tunic as Justin shut the door behind them. “Oh yeah? What else did she tell you?” he asked, feeling suddenly less hostile at the mention of Kiara.
“That you are a noble man and a very good fighter,” Justin replied with a smile as they began to travel down the a covered pathway towards the main part of the castle.
“Then why do I need to be woken up at the crack of dawn for training?”
“Because there are some things that you don’t know how to
do.”
“Like what?” Nate asked as he pulled on his new tunic to replace the wet one.
“You’ll see,” Justin replied with a wicked smile, making Nate slightly nervous.
When they arrived to the armory, the familiar sight rekindled Nate’s memory. He remembered as a child looking around at all the armor and weapons that hung on the walls, most of which hadn’t even been taken down and were left to collect dust. It was here that Nate had done much of his childhood dreaming. It was fortunate that Malcolm never had a real use for all of this weaponry over the years.
Justin pulled out two suits of practice armor from an old crate and instructed Nate to wait out in front of the stables. Nate did so with a respectful nod and waddled out to the grassy field, his pants still soaked through and chaffing his thighs.
When he stepped out of the armory, even more blessed memories came to mind. He looked over to his right and saw the courtyard where he and Kiara used to play as children. Right next to the armory, was the library and study, which he recalled as the princess’s favorite place in the castle.
To his immediately left were the horse stables, where so many years back, two children played under the watchful eye of the old armorer just beyond. Nate saw that the hammer and anvil in the blacksmith’s shop hadn’t been used for a very long time and almost everything was as it was when had he left. It was like the scene had been frozen in time just for him, waiting for his return. He felt a sense of nostalgia wash over him and he longed to have his father and Kiara there again with him. Maybe then things would become simpler like they were so long ago.
Not long after Nate grinned at the peaceful memories, Justin came out with a small wagon full of armor and practice weapons, which were similar to those that Sir Ethan had in Daleth. From what he saw on that cart, he knew that had a long day of training ahead of him.
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