Chapter 20

Rhain passed an equally sleepless night.  He spent it with Edwyn in his study, going over their plan of action until neither man could bear to look at it any longer.  They spent a great deal of their time together in silence, each man lost in his own thoughts.  Rhain paced the length of his chamber so many times that he began to feel that he had never done so much walking in his life, not even during any of his previous lengthy marches into battle.

            At last, the feeble rays of dawn began to peek through the windows and the two men exchanged a glance.  Rhain felt such a sense of dread in the pit of his stomach that it nearly sickened him.  Edwyn did not look as if he felt much better.

            "Let us dress and then we shall visit the priest in the chapel for our prayers," Rhain said to his friend.

            "Is your father to be there?"

            "Nay, it shall be just the two of us.  My father and mother take their prayers in their own chambers with their own priest in attendance."

            Edwyn's face held a sympathetic expression.  "I cannot imagine the dread and fear under which your mother must be suffering."

            "Nor can I," Rhain replied.  "I only hope that it shall all come to nothing."

            "As do we all," Edwyn replied.  He rose from his chair and walked over to his friend to clasp him on the shoulder.  "I shall return presently, my friend."

            Rhain nodded and Edwyn left the chamber.  Rhain walked over to a window and gazed out of it for a moment.  He could see the forest spread out before him, the trees now touched with the blazing colors of autumn.  He thought back on the wonderful times he had spent there with Keelin and wished that he could flee there now, that he could conceal himself within the forest until she came to him.  The prince found himself wishing most fervently that the two of them could hide themselves away in the forest together forever, never to face another danger or another fear.

            With a sigh, he turned away from the window and walked to the door that led to his chamber, opening it with a heavy heart.  He found his servant waiting for him and, as much as he wished to be alone, Rhain knew that he would need the man's help to get into his clothing and armor.  When the servant was finished, Rhain dismissed him so that he might have a moment's peace.  The weight of the armor only added to the crushing weight he felt on his heart, making the prince feel as if he would collapse under the pressure.

            He heard a knock on his door and knew that it was Edwyn.  Rhain found that his friend looked as grim as he felt and the two men began to walk down the corridor toward the chapel.

            "Are you to see Keelin today?" Edwyn asked.

            "Nay," Rhain said, swallowing around a painful lump in his throat.  "I saw her yesterday and made her a gift of a locket ring with a lock of my hair in it."

            "You told her of your feelings for her, then?"

            "Nay, she would not hear them."

            Edwyn looked at him with some surprise.  "How did you explain such a gift if you did not present yourself as her lover?"

            "I told her 'twas a token of my friendship and that it would cause me pain if she did not wear it.  I could not bear to leave England without knowing that some part of me stayed behind with her.  I shall leave her my heart, but she does not know it.  'Tis enough that she knows she has a small lock of my hair."

            "I am most heartily sorry, Rhain," Edwyn said.

            "'Tis perhaps better this way.  If anything should happen to me, her pain must be much less than it would be if she did love me and if she were engaged to me."

            "I am sorry that you have nothing of her to carry into battle with you."

            "But I do.  I not only have my memories, I have this surcoat, which she alone stitched for me.  She told me that she said a prayer with each thread that she stitched in the hope that her prayers would work their way into the surcoat and protect me."  Rhain ran his hand briefly along the embroidery on his chest.

            "I am certain that they shall," Edwyn said.

            The two men reached the chapel, which was closed off to everyone else in the castle.  Rhain felt that he needed the sanctuary to himself, with only his most trusted friend and the priest to bear witness to his prayers.

            The priest said a mass, asking for the blessing of Their Majesties' safe return and praying that no harm would befall anyone of the company.  He then prayed with Edwyn and Rhain for a great while.  Rhain felt a sense of peace during these proceedings, but it was not a complete tranquility of mind.  He had a premonition that something horrible would happen, but felt some comfort in the belief that it was all part of a greater plan and that he would be called upon to act his part. 

            Rhain's prayers were not confined to the members of the party to Germany.  He also said many fervent prayers for Keelin, praying that she would be safe, happy, and well while he was gone, praying that the castle walls would be her sanctuary and that she would remain ever unchanged.  His one selfish prayer was that he would someday return to see her smiling face before him, to glory in her presence once again, and to be made breathless by her beauty.

            After two hours, Rhain and Edwyn finally rose with great reluctance.  They knew that it was time for them to depart.  The priest said one final prayer with them before following them out of the chapel and down the corridor.  Their party to Germany was to have a public send-off, with members of the court gathered in the main courtyard.  The royal procession would then lead them along public streets that were certain to be teeming with peasants to the docks, where they would board the royal ship and begin their voyage to Germany.

            Rhain parted company with the priest at the door to his father's study.  Edwyn stationed himself outside the door so that he might walk with Rhain and the king when the time came.  The prince entered his father's study alone so that he and his family might say their goodbyes in private. 

            The king stood inside with a look of grim resolution on his face.  He said nothing when his son entered, but took him in his arms and embraced him.  Rhain was surprised to see that his mother was tolerably composed and suspected that it was for his benefit.  Her breath came in short, quivering bursts and she was deathly pale, but she managed to keep her tears in check.  She held a handkerchief so tightly that her knuckles were white.  She grasped her son in a powerful embrace, surprising the prince with her strength.

            "May God bless you, my son," she whispered to him.  "I pray that you shall return safely to me and with good news very soon."

            "God willing, mother, we shall.  Remain faithful and continue to pray for us."

            "I shall," she answered.  "Know, my darling, that I love you and that you shall never be far from my thoughts."

            "Nor shall you be far from mine, Mother.  I love you."

"Go now so that you may return all the sooner," she replied, finally pulling back from him and smiling tremulously.  He kissed her on the cheek before turning to his father once again.

            "'Tis time," the king said, leading Rhain from the chamber.

            They paused just outside the doorway so that the king could receive Sir Edwyn's bow.  The knight and the prince's pages came forward, helping their masters with their metal gauntlets and handing them their helmets.  The king had decided that he would forgo his armor in favor of wearing an elaborate traveling costume in the interest of appearing at ease and confident in the safety of the German kingdom.  This made Rhain feel a little uneasy.  Still, he supposed that it was nothing to worry about, since his father would be traveling inside a closed carriage with knights all around him.  Finally, the three men began their procession down the long corridor and toward the heavy, studded oak double doors that formed the main entrance to the castle. 

            As he walked, Rhain kept his right hand clasped on the hilt of his sword, as if it would somehow guarantee him, his father, and the knights a safe journey.  The prince carried his helmet tucked under his left arm, pressing it so hard against his side that he almost fancied he could easily crush the metal.  His palms were sweaty inside his gauntlets, creating a clamminess that seemed to spread across his entire body, part after part of him becoming coated in a layer of cold, clammy sweat.  His stomach churned most unpleasantly.

            An enormous crowd was gathered inside the main courtyard of the castle.  Members of the court stretched on each side of their path, eagerly bowing and kissing the hem of the robes of the king and the surcoats of Prince Rhain and Sir Edwyn.  The servants of the castle lined the upper walkways, crowding around the guards and archers who were stationed there.  As Rhain gazed up, he caught sight of the sewing women and of his beloved Keelin.

            Keelin's eyes met his, as if she instinctively knew that he would have picked her out in the crowd.  She held her hand over her heart as she gazed at him with a serious, somewhat fearful expression on her face.  She raised her hand and mouthed "Fare thee well" to him.  He nodded at her and mouthed "I shall return."  He took his right hand briefly off of his sword so that he could run his metal-clad fingers briefly across the lion that was emblazoned across his chest, the lion that she had stitched.  She gazed heavenward, as if willing God to prove the veracity of the prince's vow.  Reluctantly, Rhain tore his gaze from her, unable to keep her in his line of sight as he continued his advance.  His last impression was of her lifting her handkerchief and waving to him. 

            The men reached the edge of the castle's main courtyard and mounted their horses.  They were promptly joined by the rest of the king's knights and they rode out into the streets of the town.  The lesser nobility waved and cheered from the upper windows of their manors and the streets were lined with peasants who offered prayers and shouts of, "Long live the king!  Long live Prince Rhain!"  The men held their banners high as they rode down to the docks, but it was an unusually solemn procession.  Rhain felt as if he could cut the tension with his sword.

            Before long, the party reached their ship.  It took some time to board and as the ship's crew was at last preparing to shove off from the dock, Rhain felt the insane urge to mount his horse and ride off the ship as quickly as possible.  Instead, he turned away from the sides of the ship and walked swiftly across the deck and down the stairs that carried him to the cabins they would inhabit for the next several days at sea.  Sailing was always the prince's least favorite part of any approaching battle or diplomatic meeting.  He did not have the stomach for it and found that the anticipation of the coming event made his confinement onboard even more unpleasant than usual.  He was certain that he would be nearly crawling out of his skin by the time they reached Germany.

            When he reached his cabin, he found his servant waiting inside for him.  The man helped him remove his surcoat, armor, and gear, so that he was left wearing a simple shirt, leather jerkin, breeches, and boots.  He waited until the man was done tending his armor and then dismissed him.  When he was gone, Rhain walked over to the precious surcoat and ran his now bare hand across it.  The knowledge that Keelin had labored and prayed over it for him gave him a new sense of strength and fortitude.  He soon felt equal to the long hours of meetings with his father and Sir Edwyn that faced him.  He quit his chamber feeling considerably stronger than he had when he entered it.