Title:
Per Te

Written By:
LegolasLover2003 aka Ashley

Category:
Fanfiction – Movie – Kingdom of Heaven
Historical Fiction – The Crusades (September 1187)

Genre:
Romance/Drama

Note:
This story, while based on the characters of the film, "Kingdom of Heaven" are going to lean more toward the historical than the fictional. I've since learned that there really is no Godfrey of Ibelin, and that Balian II's (Orlando's character in the film) real father was Balian of Ibelin. Balian II was sometimes called Balian the Younger, Balian of Ramla, Balian of Nablus, or, his true birth name (for later it was changed, in the 12th century) Barisan. Balian II was the youngest brother (I believe) to Hugh of Ibelin and Baldwin of Mirabel. Apparently Balian married the King of Jerusalem, King Amalric I's widow, Maria Commena and they had children, one of which was a later Lord of Ibelin, John of Ibelin. Balian II was noted as defending the City of Jerusalem against Saladin. It can be found that Balian II was, most likely, somewhere between the ages of 23 and 34 during the Siege of Jerusalem. However it is not certain and I am simply theorizing on the age since Balian II's father was born in 1134 A.D. and the Siege of Jerusalem by Saladin took place in 1187 A.D. For more on Balian II's heroic efforts, do a bit of research on the man or simply see the film, "Kingdom of Heaven" in US theaters, May 6th 2005 (though keep in mind portions of the film are fictional).
I would also like to note that I will be referring to Balian II as Balian d'Ibelin throughout the course of this piece.
As another side note, the name John (having no relation to John of Ibelin) and the name Raymond (having no relation to Raymond of Tripoli) are fictional and created by me. I have found no record of the names of the two other knights who defended Jerusalem with Balian d'Ibelin and thus, I have had to create names for them. I choose to use names which were widely used during that time.
Characters who are true to their names are Balian d'Ibelin, the hero of this piece; Maria Commena, the wife of Balian d'Ibelin; Sybilla, the Queen of Jerusalem and the wife of Guy de Lusignin; Guy de Lusignin, the king of Jerusalem; Heraclius, Jerusalem's Patriarch; Saladin, the leader of the Muslim forces; and Ernoul, Balian d'Ibelin's squire.
All in all, this story is based on the information I've gathered about Balian d'Ibelin the true man, and the trailers and tv clips of the upcoming, "Kingdom of Heaven".

Disclaimer:
I would like to note that I do not take credit for anything that is connected to the film, "Kingdom of Heaven". I have simply researched the subject for a previous report of mine and for my website as well. Also, the song used in this one shot story is performed by Josh Groban and entitled, "Per Te" which is also the title of the piece. I take no credit for it either, nor do I take credit for it's translation. I do not speak Italian, the language of the song, and I took the translation from the website, That Josh Groban Guy. There are a few phrases within this story that come directly from the "Kingdom of Heaven" trailers. I do not claim those as my own either. Most everything else however, is historical fiction.

!#

Per Te

Part I

Per te, per te vivro'
L'amore vincera
Con te, con te avro'
Mille giorni di felicita
Mille notti di serenita
Faro' quello che mi chiederai
Andro sempre dovunque tu andrai
Daro tutto l'amore che ho
Per te

-"Per Te" (Josh Groban; Closer)

!#
"They're here."
My friend shakes his head, "It is only one man." He replies with a smirk.
With a slight sigh, I lower my hands. "No. They're here." And as I speak the words I realize that we will all surely die.
The knight at my side laughs, "Balian, it is only one man!"
"Do you think I don't know that!" I shout back, spinning to face him. I can feel the heat of anger rise just beneath the surface of my skin, but I press the feeling away. "And after one comes, another will come, and then another. He is here to take stock of our defenses. Defenses that do not exist!"
John takes a step back in shock. "But now? They wouldn't attack now."
"Why not?" I ask, my anger gone and replaced by patience. "I would attack."
"But the knights…."
"Are not here!" my harsh whisper quiets the man at my side. "They are not here and now is the perfect moment to strike us. How many in this city know how to fight, John? You and I and Raymond are the only knights who remain in Jerusalem. How long do you think we can withstand?"
Frustrated, I turn from the city wall and make my way down the steps. I can hear John rush to catch up to me once he has taken a last look at the rider. My mind however, is on one simple thing.
"We must make this rider believe that there are many within Jerusalem who are willing to defend the city." I reply, leading the way to the middle of the city. "Come. We have little time."
"Balian!"
I can hear my name and I turn, my eyes lighting upon the balcony above my head. There stands the lady Sybilla.
"M'lady?" I call up, wondering what she wishes of me.
"Balian, rumors have reached me of an invading force. What of it?"
I shake my head, "Rumors for now, but I fear they may be true. Where is Maria?"
The woman smiles slightly, "I don't know, nor do I care to know." She replies with a touch of jealousy.
With a sigh, I look back up to the balcony. Though I know Sybilla's husband has been waylaid, much as I was, by Saladin, I realize that now is not the time to get into an argument with such a powerful woman.
She is the Queen after all.
"M'lady, could you have someone deliver a message to her? I need to speak with Maria, as soon as possible."
"Whatever for?" Sybilla laughs. "Certainly it can wait until these rumors are quieted."
"No." I reply, my visage darkening. "It can't. Saladin's army is preparing to march upon the city and I have his word that I may take my wife and children from Jerusalem."
The Queen scowls down at me. "Tell her yourself." She replies before hastily closing the balcony doors.
"Is it true?" John asks after a few moments of tense silence which have left me starring up at the departed Sybilla.
"Is what true?" I ask, turning to look at my friend whom I had, by all honesty, forgotten was standing with me.
"Are you leaving?" John replies. "We've only got three knights, Balian. You can't possibly begin to even think about leaving the people."
"Why not?" I ask angrily, "It is Guy de Lusignan's fault that Jerusalem is so ill equipped. He is the king, and yet he was so blinded by the likes of Reginald that it makes me sick. Because of them, our forces were decimated at Hattin. It is his fault that now I cannot defend Jerusalem?"
"But why?" John presses.
I sigh, turning away and pinching the bridge of my nose. 'Why indeed?' I ask myself. 'It is because of love that I cannot.'
"Balian?"
"Because I swore an oath to Saladin, John." I reply, my voice angry and harsh, though it is directed at my own actions more than at anything John had said. "Because I swore to return to Jerusalem to simply take Maria and our children away before the battle beings. I swore to stay but this one night and, I swore, to never again take up arms against Saladin or any other Muslim for that matter. I can't go back on my word."
"But Balian…"
"I can't!" I shout, my gaze locking with that of my friend. "Do you so readily forget our oath, John? Be without fear in the face of your enemies. Be brave and upright, that God may love thee. Speak the truth, even if it leads to your death." I sigh, "What am I if not a man of my word? To go against my oath to Saladin, would go against my oath as a Knight."
John stares hard at me for a long moment before finally finding his words. "I do not and shall never forget the oath of a knight, Balian. But you have forgotten that of the oath which I hold above all others. Safeguard the helpless. What of the people of this city! They are helpless, Balian! And unless you stay, unless you stay and help us defend this city, defend these people, they will die!"
I nod, for his words do speak true. "I'm sorry, John. I can't stay."
!#
That night, my prayers were centered upon the safety of those within Jerusalem whom I would be forced to leave behind. I knew that forsaking those of the city was wrong, but how could I truly go back on the oath I had made?
My wife, Maria Commena, knows better than to disturb me while I am in prayer, and yet I suddenly sense her presence behind me. Moments later, I hear my name.
"Balian?"
Turning, I smile slightly and stand to my feet, "Yes?"
"I did not wish to interrupt, but Patriarch Heraclius has come to speak with you." Maria replies, glancing back over her shoulder, "Do you know what this is about, Balian?"
I shake my head, "No, but I believe I can guess as to why."
"Balian?"
"I will tell you once he leaves." I reply, walking over to my wife and kissing her gently on the forehead. "For it concerns you as well."
Maria looks up at me, her eyes curious and yet trusting of my judgment all the same. "Don't be too late then." She replies with a smile before turning and exiting the room through another doorway.
I smile, rubbing my chin in contemplation, just now noticing how unshaven I have become of late, before going to speak with my guest.
"Patriarch Heraclius." I say, bowing in respect. "This is an unlooked for surprise."
"Spare me, Balian d'Ibelin. You know full well why I've come." The elder man replies from the chair, no doubt, my wife offered him prior to my entrance.
I shake my head, walking over and taking a chair across from him. "No, I don't. I have my guesses however and I…"
"How can you just abandon the city!" Heraclius interrupts, looking to me angrily.
I shake my head, "Forgive me, but I have sworn an oath to Saladin."
"An oath to an unbeliever, Balian."
"It is still an oath, is it not? It is still watched by God and thus I can't break it." I reply.
Heraclius sighs, "And why did you make the oath in the first place, Balian d'Ibelin? Did you do it out of fear?" before I can respond he continues, "I know you witnessed the horror of the Battle of Hattin. You know Saladin's true strength now. Are you afraid and thus, running and leaving the innocent people of Jerusalem to fall to his terror?"
I shake my head once more, "Never would I act so cowardly, Patriarch. If I may?"
The man nods his assent.
"I swore my oath to Saladin for the sake of my family. If I were not married, if I had not children, I would stand on Jerusalem's walls until death took me or until the battle was won. I have my family to think about, Patriarch. Saladin's army will crush the city. There is no hope for the people."
A long moment of silence follows my declaration of the fate of Jerusalem. Patriarch Heraclius knows I speak the truth. He knows I have seen the enemy and that, even a Knight in the service of God, realizes when there is no hope left.
"Then you will do well to listen to what I have to say." Heraclius said, standing and looking down upon me. "You have sworn an oath to an unbeliever and, thus by God, you are not charged with keeping that oath. Your duty, my Lord Balian d'Ibelin, is to safeguard the people of Jerusalem. I suggest you look to it."
"But Patriarch Heraclius…" I begin, but am interrupted once more.
"You would leave countless thousands to die at the hands of a non-believer!"
I look down, letting my heart, and not my head, listen to the words of the Patriarch.
"You would sacrifice an entire city for your wife and children! Be without fear in the face of your enemies, Balian d'Ibelin, for surely our enemies are great this day."
"What more could one knight accomplish!" I shout, my gaze locking with Heraclius' own. "I am but one man!"
"You are a great man!" the Patriarch replies, his statue rising. "You are a knight and it is your God given duty to protect these people!"
Suddenly, there is a knock at the door. I tear my gaze from Heraclius as I rise and walk across the room. I am glad for the respite in the conversation.
However, it is Raymond and John at the door and, as I open it, they step in.
"What are…" I start to say but am cut off.
"Patriarch Heraclius, Balian, we have seen it for ourselves. Saladin's forces are encamped not far from the city gates." Raymond says, bowing to the Patriarch and nodding to me. "They are prepared for war."
"What?" Heraclius asks in surprise.
"They've brought siege towers. It looks as if they mean to starve us from the city." John remarks before looking directly at me. "What are we to do? We are but three knights. We can't meet them on the battlefield."
The eyes of both Raymond and Heraclius turn to me. I start to argue that, once more, I was but one knight, and that my oath had been made. However, behind the men, at the opposite end of the room, I see Marie. Her simple nod to me, is all I need.
"I must to see them for myself." I reply, moving past John and to the door. "Have the people assemble before the palace in the morning. Let's see what can be done to save Jerusalem."
!#
"When will it begin?" Raymond asks.
He stands by my side as I gaze across the desert. The banners, and the tops of the siege towers of Saladin, are clear in the bright light of the moon. Looking to the heavens, I watch the stars, shinning their light down upon this city. It is as if the very starsthemselvestry to protect Jerusalem's walls.
"Soon." I answer, turning to walk back into the city.
Guards stand at attention on either side of the great gate. I stop, turning to look at them.
"Seal this gate and come inside. Your post will be from the walls now. Tell all those who bear arms with you to prepare for a siege."
The guard nods, following behind us and shouting to his peers to close the doors of Jerusalem.
"Balian, we have no army." John reminds me as we rejoin once within the city.
"I know." I reply, looking to both him and Raymond. "We will have to make an army. John, head to the armoury and inquire as to how many people they can outfit. Return to my home once you have this information. Raymond, we have no acting king. Patriarch Heraclius has put me in charge of this city. I want you to make sure that every single person is assembled in the morning. Cripples, women, children, and boys under the age of ten need not assemble if they wish it, but I need every able bodied man and lad over ten to hear my message tomorrow."
"This will be your army, Balian?" Raymond asks, confusion in his dark eyes.
I nod.
Both men look at each other before turning back to face me.
"May God be with us then." John replies before he and Raymond head off to their appointed tasks.
I, on the other hand, have my own task to perform before the morning.
!#

Most Esteemed Saladin,

I write to you to apologize for not being able to return to you personally. While I realize that my oath sworn to you is valid among the eyes of some men, it is the belief of my people, that an oath between a Christian and a non-believer, is neither valid nor binding. It is with great guilt upon my own conscience that I am unable to comply with the oath which I swore upon our parting.
You must understand, the duties of a Knight are far removed from the duties of a normal man. We have a code to uphold, a solemn oath sworen to our fathers and to our people, faith, and our Lord.
Be without fear, in the face of your enemies. Be brave and upright, that God may love thee. Speak the truth, even if it leads to your death. Safeguard the helpless and do no wrong.This is our oath.
I send this letter to you, under a flag of truce. I have been persuaded, by not only my oath but by the fear and urgings of the people of Jerusalem. With our king no longer among us, they look to me for guidance. What sort of man would I be to abandon them now? To leave women and children to cower while their brave men fight and die?
In honor of our oath, though I can not keep my end of the bargain, I implore you to take my wife and children into your protection, until such a time as I am able to see them again. I would never have struck the bargain, for my return, with you, if it were not for their existence, and for the love I have for them.
I ask this of you, even though our people are at war and even as our precious Jerusalem comes under siege.

Baron Balian d'Ibelin,
Knight and Protector of the Kingdom of Jerusalem

!#
"The people are assembled." Raymond says from my left as we walk down the streets of the city.
"And the armoury can outfit every man and young lad able to fight." John adds from my right.
I nod. "Good."
"Have you figured out what you will say to the city?"
"Not yet, John. No. I… I have found that leading a force of trained Knights into battle is one thing. Leading a force of peasants and merchants and people from all walks of life within this city into battle, may be something entirely more challenging."
Raymond sighs, looking to me as he speaks. "If they breach the walls, we will not be able to defend the city."
After a few moments of contemplation, I nod. "I know."
Turning down yet another avenue, we come face to face with the beginnings of the assembled crowed. They part to allow us passage as we make our way to one of the archways of the city, this one located in the heart of Jerusalem.
I am hoping that my words will be heard by all, and if not, passed along by others.
Standing before them, not on a raised platform but like equals, I begin to speak.
"Saladin's forces are encamped just beyond the next hill!" I shout, hoping the masses can hear me. A hush moves through the crowd, allowing me to speak once more. "He has brought his army, and siege towers, to take this city. As a Knight, I can not allow it to fall into Muslim hands without a fight. As a fellow citizen of this great kingdom, I can not watch nor stand idly by as our walls are torn down and our people imprisoned."
I move to say something else, but a man nearby stops me.
"My lord?" he asks humbly, shaking his head in confusion, "How are we to defend Jerusalem without Knights?"
Turning to him, I look over ata boy, probably no more than thirteen, nearby.
"You were born a servant?" I ask, taking stock of his ragged clothing.
He nods, trying to avert his eyes from my own gaze.
"Kneel." I command him.
The boy looks at me with confusion, but promptly does as he is ordered.
Turning, I look about me to the people nearby. "Every man in arms, or capable of bearing them, kneel!" I shout, watching as men comply with my request.
Both John and Raymond look on my actions with a smile. Perhaps, I believe they are thinking, we may be able to defend the city yet.
"Be without fear, in the face of your enemies!" I shout, beginning a recitation of the oath, the code, that has been so ingrained into my own heart that it has become a part of me. "Be brave and upright, that God may love thee! Speak the truth, even if it leads to your death! Safeguard the helpless! That is your oath!" turning, I find the servant boy whom I had picked out of the crowd just moments before.
He stares up at me with eyes full of hope and pride, for even a servant boy can realize when he is being knighted. Quickly, I draw back my gloved fist, for I am in full dress for the battle to come. The back of my hand connects solidly with the boy's cheek. I feel my own cheek heat up with the slap I had received upon my own knighting. The boy reaches up tentatively, shocked at my actions.
"And that," I tell him, looking directly into the young lad's eyes, "Is so you'll remember it." Turning to the vast group of people around me, I shout out at the top of my lungs. "Rise a knight!" I take another breath, shouting even louder this time than before, "RISE A KNIGHT!"
As I move to make my way from the crowd, both John and Raymond in tow, smiles on their faces, the same humbled man who had spoken up earlier, speaks yet again.
"Who do you think you are?" he accuses, and his words make me pause. "Will you alter the world?" the man asks before indicating the youths and men around me, "Does making a man a Knight, make him a better fighter?"
I think on those words for what seems like an eternity. Finally, when I turn, my eyes lock with those of the humble but now outraged man.
"Yes."
John and Raymond smile to one another as they follow me from the crowd.
"Does it really, Balian?" Raymond asks once we are far from the earshot of the multitudes.
My own eyes find his and I smile, "It made me a better one."
!#

To Be Continued...

!#
Author's Note:
The reason this story has been slit into two parts is simple. Trying to read the film through research and watching trailers to devise what happens before a battle is one thing. Trying to do the same with the actual battle is a completely different story. For the purposes of keeping true to the film AND to history, I wish to implement a bit more of the film into this story. So far, everything I have done has been based on my knowledge of Balian d'Ibelin as a real person AND on the quotes given to us from the trailers for the film, "Kingdom of Heaven". I will admit that while the trailers (and believe me, I've seen every one, including perhaps the best trailer I have ever seen in my life (which oddly enough had contemporary music melded with the original score for the film).) give me some insight into the battles through flashes of battle scenes, it is hard to tell wether it is actually the siege of Jerusalem taking place, or the battle before it (which is the Battle of Hattin, though I believe the it is called something different in the film). Therefore, to prevent any confusion on both my part and the part of the reader, the second and final chapter to this story will be posted up (and written) after seeing the film, "Kingdom of Heaven".
I would also like to note that, at the end of the second and final chapter, you will get the translation of the chorus of "Per Te" and find out why I found it appropriate for the story I was attempting to tell.
Thank you all, and I hope you will find this story, short as it is, most enjoying.
Until next time...
Laters!