Minutes seemed to pass like hours, or at least for Lucie it felt like they did. The sun was high in the sky now. Every rock passed appeared to be no different from the one before and not a single tree grew in the valley bar the grove the group had set off from, which now appeared as a speck on the horizon behind them.
"You're not a very talkative one are you?"
"Unlike you," was the only response Lucie could produce.
For the past however many hours, since the trio had set off on their journey, the mutt of a boy had been trying, and miserably failing, to extract information from the girl.
If the two knights were going to be this nosy the entire trip, Lucie was more than willing to ditch them in the middle of the valley. She had even told them so not but fifteen minutes ago.
"Why exactly did the bandits capture your brother? You don't exactly scream wealth."
Taking a breath to settle her irritation Lucie spared a glance at her company, "Morgana."
Morgana was at the top of the young girl's list of suspects.
Since the passing of her sister (Lucie's mother), Morgana had become somewhat crazed… well at least more than was considered usual for Lucie's wicked Aunt. Many strange things had happened since the death of Morgause.
(Flashback)
Rain belted on the door as though it were death itself coming to collect the frail woman that lay on the bed, her breathing shallow, coming in gasps.
"Lucie."
At the sound of her name, the young girl looked at her mother. Grasping her daughter's hand so tightly nails drew blood, the bronze-haired priestess pulled the child closer.
"Promise me you will protect him. You are all he has now, my child."
The girl, freshly thirteen summers old nodded.
"Promise me!" her mother croaked.
"I promise, I swear it! I'll protect him Mother, I'd sooner lose my sight than not," she cried, clinging to her mother's icy hand.
Lighting flashed and thunder growled, making the cottage shudder in fright.
With one last quivering gasp, the light in her mother's eyes faded, leaving in its wake two glassy orbs that stared mercilessly into the very soul of the child.
"Lucie?" a voice broke through, shaking her from her memories.
"What?"
"Morgana, who is she?" the lion-like man quizzed.
Lucie paused mid-stride in surprise, "You really don't know?"
Galahad was quick to respond, "If we did, would we be asking?"
"She is a powerful sorceress who keeps a dragon as a pet. It is said she slaughters children and steals their youth to stay alive…"
"A dragon?" Gawain interrupted, "They're tales that stop children from wandering off into the hills!"
Galahad nodded as though his confirmation would make the statement truer.
Lucie was aware of these stories, she too had been told the tales by her mother, "Yet that is what people say."
"Do you often take to listen to gossip, girl, or just when it relates to nonsensical things like dragons?" Galahad quizzed, teasing the girl for her apparent naivety.
With a huff she bit back a response, "One day you will eat your words, boy."
An uncomfortable silence fell upon the travellers as they ventured closer to where the two mountain faces that encaged the marshland met.
"How many summers have you seen Lucie?"
"Fifteen," a small smile spread across her face, "And you sir?"
Gawain smiled back at her, "Twenty."
Unimpressed by the pointless chatter and still fuming from the previous insult Galahad stalked ahead.
"Is he always so… impossible?" Lucie questioned, eyes burning into the dark haired knight's back.
"He does not take kindly to such an insult, he has seen things few his age should… it troubles him."
The silence returned leaving the two to their thoughts as they hurried to catch up to Galahad.
"Galahad…" Lucie began, though stopped when she realised the young knight continued to ignore her.
Either side of the group, the mountain faces began to rise up into sheer rock faces, resembling the edges of a gorge. The passage began growing narrower and narrower with each passing step, until finally the only way they could pass through was by walking single file.
Dark threatening clouds were consuming the sky at an alarming pace and while Lucie cared not for the distance they had travelled, if they didn't happen upon some sort of tree or place of shelter before the weather turned bad once more, she was certain Galahad's incredibly foul mood would not be improving anytime soon. Her eyes returned to the uneven ground as she tried to avoid tripping over any of the odd rocks that made up the path. The light was fading fast.
"Whoa," Gawain breathed, suddenly coming to a halt, "Never have I seen such a thing."
Lucie eyes scanned the intricately carved archway that marked the gateway to Experior Forrest (also known as the Forrest of Lost Souls), "The Giant's Arch… I didn't think this was even real."
Through the stone arch rose a dense forest, full of ancient looking trees, some as tall as Hadrian's Wall, successfully concealing everything except that which could be seen through the trunks of the gigantic trees themselves, which sadly was almost nothing at all.
Gawain turned, throwing her a concerned look, "What do you mean you didn't think it was real?"
A scoff sounded from further ahead, "She means, Gawain, she doesn't even know where she's going in the first place. Crazy girl has probably lost her mind! To put it simply, you've got us even more lost than we were to begin with. Gods be damned, where's Tristan when you need him!"
"Look!" Lucie gasped, pointing at something behind the two knights, "A will-o'-the-wisp."
"Arthur, next time you hear reports of mythical, fire-breathing beasts, don't volunteer us. For all we know it was probably a trap the Woad's planned all along!"
Lancelot was not happy. Since the ambush yesterday, the four knights had been riding about the countryside looking for a hide or hair of their missing brothers-in-arms.
The commander had no response for his friend.
"Shut up Lancelot," Cai growled as he continued to scan the thickly wooded area, "You're not helping."
"Maybe we should stop for a bit, make camp? We've been riding since the ambush. Besides if we stay still Tristan will probably be able to find us."
"Good idea. Cai and I will ride ahead and see if we can find a good clearing to make camp in. Lancelot, you and Bors can go track down something to eat."
"Oh yes, split up… because that's been working so well for us lately," Lancelot mumbled under his breath as he turned his mount to follow Bors, "Hopefully there's something other than Woads roaming the woods."
"Right. I reckon we leave the horses here and go by foot. I'll kill, you clean," Bors decided, climbing from his horse and stomping off into the bush with his bow. Graceful was certainly not a word to describe the loud father of six (or was it seven?). Letting out a puff of air Lancelot followed, eager to eat something for the first time in almost two days.
While the weather was somewhat better, it was a far cry from perfect. The cool breeze slithered through the trunks, ruffling the leaves of the trees and tugging at his coal black curls as it passed overhead.
Minutes melted away. So far, Bors had only managed to snag one rabbit. Hardly enough to feed the four knights… not that Lancelot was complaining, but the bloody rodent was virtually skin and bones.
The snap of a twig alerted them to a new presence. The two shared a look as Bors notched another arrow, aiming it in the direction of a noise. The half-light of the thick woods was the perfect cover for anyone who knew how to use it.
One heartbeat. Another. Three…
"You should always watch your back," a familiar voice stated behind them, as an armour-clad body stepped out in front of them.
"Bloody ghost," Bors bellowed at the braided warrior who had successfully stalked them, "One day you'll give me a heart attack."
The silent knight said nothing though glanced over at Bedivere who stood smiling, five plump rabbits tied to a stick that was slung over his right shoulder.
"Good work Tristan. You found them!" Bedivere chuckled, "Anybody hungry?"
Lancelot shook his head trying to remove the smirk from his face as he moved towards his friend, "Arthur and Cai have gone to make a camp. Join us."
Bedivere nodded and turned to find Tristan had disappeared again, "I'm about ready to start calling 'im shadow… Well never mind, he'll find us again. Let's go."
Bors still grumbling about their mysterious comrade turned to the pair, "Who's with you lot, Vere?"
"Dagonet and Percival, but they're getting water not far away." The bronze-maned man explained as they began the trek back to the horses.
"No Galahad or Gawain?"
The grey-eyed warrior looked up, concern blazing in his eyes, "They're not with you?"
Bors shook his head frowning, "No. The pups aren't with us."
Bedivere chuckled nervously, "Don't let Gawain hear you say that… if we find them. Perc won't be happy."
Lancelot shuddered at the thought of a pissed off Percival. Galahad's older brother was a force to be reckoned with at the best of times. Arthur better start praying to his God that the two youngest would show up or blood would be spilt, be it Roman, Woad or everything in between.
They had all lost brothers, friends, though Percival and Galahad were the only two siblings remaining out of the large group that had begun their service all those years ago.
Letting out a sigh Lancelot hurried to keep up with Bors who was currently untying the horses and joking with Vere about dinner.
