All's Fair in Love

Author's Note:

Readers of this story will likely enjoy the film Kingdom of Heaven, which begins Friday May 6th. Note that the film takes place in the 5th crusade and while my story deals with the first, many of the same issues were prevalent throughout all the crusades.

Leon found himself standing alone on a hill top. He tried to gaze ahead of him to see what lay beyond the hill but there was only darkness. There was no sound. He took a few steps forward and heard nothing. Suddenly he heard the screech of an animal coming from above him. He looked upwards and saw a bat hovering over him. A stared at it momentarily until a surge of pain in his hand forced him to his knees. His surroundings were no longer silent. The bats' screech continued and was accompanied by a deep growl. Although he could not make out a form, Leon sensed a presence behind him. He felt something land behind him. Two golden eyes shined out of the darkness. The sound of heavy breathing filled the air. Leon ran. In running down the hill Leon stumbled and began to roll downwards. When at last he reached the bottom he landed before a wooden pole. Leon stood up and saw that the pole was in fact a cross. Taking a few steps back he saw the silhouette of a woman hanging from the cross. Leon struggled to make out the details of her face but the darkness would not allow him. The cross then erupted into flames. Leon saw that the flames were coming from above. The bat he had seen previously flew off into the distance. Hovering above the cross was a huge golden dragon. The dragon touched the ground in front of Leon and wrapped itself around the flaming cross.

"No!"

Leon awoke sitting up in his bed. His clothes were damp from perspiration while he slept. It was that dream again. It had haunted him while he had been in the grip of fever for a whole month. Two months later it still pursues him. Always he desperately tries to cling to the fleeting details of the nightmare. Always he fails but to capture a vague sensation left after its departure. He arose from his bed and sought drink to replenish the water that his body had unleashed in his sleep.

It was early. The sun was shining through the curtains of his quarter's window. Opening them, he was greeted by the sight of the wide open expanse that surrounded Sarn. This sight had become familiar to Leon over the past three months that he had been recovering from his experience at Tartery. While most men with a wound like his would be bandaged and shuffled off to the next campaign, Mathias had insisted that he rest. Thanks to this, and Lady Sara Trantoul's constant vigil, Leon was able to regain the use of his left hand. He was not ungrateful. The alternative would be a stump in the place of his five fingers, yet he felt ashamed that he should be given this special treatment. He did his best to console himself that he still had his hand and that his recuperation involved being in the company of such a delightful woman such as Sara. His time with her had been a one of kind of experience. Before this he had had little time to converse with women. In his previous service his duties did not allow for much contact with women. And the few that he did meet were dull compared to Sara. She was as intelligent as she was beautiful. She seemed too versed in all sorts of conversation and hold a fundamental knowledge of anything that Leon could speak of. Even in matters of war she seemed quite adept. This was probably due to her exposure to Mathias who spent much of his time talking of nothing but how to execute a war.

He paused his contemplations on Sara, to ready for his daily tour of the town. Since his recovery he had been given new attire. Gone was his stallion adorned chest plate, and in its place was a simple tunic with the crusader's cross. Underneath he wore a heavy coat of chain mail with accompanying gloves and armored shoulder plates. Among the others gifts he found awaiting him when he awoke was a new sword to replace the one he had lost during his excursion to Tartery. Sara told him that the note it came with explained that it was from Casmir himself. He thought it was odd, however since he could not read the note himself he had to take her word for it. There was yet another thing that amazed Leon about Sara, she could read. The knight whose tutelage he had been under did not think reading was an important skill for a warrior. So long as a man could read a map that was sufficient.

"Good morning, Lord Baron." A passing soldier greeted Leon.

Baron Leon Belmont. Like his special treatment, Leon had yet to grow accustomed to the title that had been aggregated to his name. He did not feel any nobler than he did before. Yet since awakening from his month long fever, he felt as though everything that had transpired beforehand was from another life. In other aspects he felt like a new person. Perhaps a better description would be to say that he felt he inhabited another person's body. Sara has told him that this will pass in time. He prayed it was so.

He now walked through the narrow streets of Sarn and came upon that familiar junction where so long ago he had saved Mathias from death.

"Life is a most curious thing," he whispered to himself. Over the past two months Leon has had ample time to think over the events that led him to where he was now. IF he had the chance to live his life over again, he would save Mathias. Although he had not met him, he had heard he was a man of honor. No man deserves to die in such a trap. Mathias' actions since then have been questionable. However Leon did not feel that any of the decisions he had taken were made with any malice towards him. He was just the right person at the right time.

Mathias had been away on campaign for a month now. He was desperately trying to push back the front that their foes had built up. He hoped he was successful. In fact he hoped that he would soon be able to rejoin the battle. His fellow knights from Gaul had joined with Casmir's ranks. Now that he had a title of his own, Leon did not have an obligation to march under Casmir's banner, however they were technically his people in the sense that their army was under the mandate laid out by the Pope. Mathias' army answered to Emperor Alexius. Leon had thought much about what he and Mathias once conversed. He remembered how Mathias tried to explain to him that although he and his fellow crusaders had come to rescue the Holy Land, Mathias' people were not necessarily considered their allies. Leon learnt that the hard way. By placing Leon in between Casmir's plans to take Tartery for himself, Mathias had revealed to him the man's true motives. Leon still held hope that there were some crusaders with good intentions.

Leon's meanderings had brought him to his favorite place in all of Sarn. Over the course of two months, Mathias' men constructed a large look out tower behind the town hall. It now towered over the hall by several feet so that it could offer a 360-degree view of the surrounding area. As usual, Leon found a man posted to keep vigil. When the guard saw him he saluted him using his new title. Leon shrugged. As the guard continued with his duty, Leon proceeded to lean on the railing that circled the tower. He did not know how much time he spent looking at the sandy landscape that surrounded Sarn, but unexpectedly a voice broke his thoughts.

"A beautiful sight, is it not?"

He turned and saw that it was Sara. A smile overwhelmed Leon's face and he greeted her enthusiastically.

"Would you care to join me?" He asked.

"If I am not intruding…"

"Absolutely not, after all, it's just me and the guard."

Sara laughed.

"He's not good a conversationalist. Not as good as you."

She suddenly stopped laughing and just looked at Leon, smiling. "Thank you."

"It's true. Your company has been a healing factor these past few months. I cannot thank you enough."

"It was only my duty. Mathias holds you in high esteem. But, I too have enjoyed your company."

There was a moment of silence between them as both stared outwards. Leon racked his mind as he tried to think of something to say. Then it came to him.

"What will you do once the war is over? Once we reach Jerusalem?"

"I'm not sure. I had not thought about it much. I assume I will return home and continue serving Lady Elisabetha. What about you?"

"Well, apparently the church has awarded me some land back home. I think I will make a trip there. To see what it is that I have."

"What do you want it to be like?" she asked zestfully.

"I want it to be like the home I remember as a child. I remember a metal smith's shack. It was very simple and had only two walls. It was built under a large tree that afforded it great shade. So there was always a fresh cool wind passing through it. That is something else. I hope there are many trees. I remember sitting under trees as a child. I recall being reprimanded for climbing them."

"Sounds like fun."

Leon laughed. "It was, until I was caught. Then it became a somewhat painful affair."

Sara was standing to his right and gently grasped his hand. He responded by turning his head to face hers. Finally he raised his left hand which was still bandaged.

"It's all right. This hurt a lot more."

Despite herself, Sara laughed again, this time Leon joined her. The pair descended the watchtower together, arm in arm. As they went down, Leon spoke again.

"I would be pleased if you would come one day to visit, to see my new plot."

"I would love to…" she blurted out. She then recomposed herself. "I would be honored. However, your home is much further away from mine. I am not sure if my lord and lady would go so far. Especially, my lady, she is somewhat fragile in terms of travel."

Leon hid his discontent. "I see." For a moment, the truth dawned on him. They were from two separate worlds. He was aware of the political and religious differences of kings, popes, and emperors. But for the first time, Leon realized how far from home he had come. To say he was on the other side of the world may be no small exaggeration. The realization that he might one day have to return home and leave Sara behind also came to him. Inadvertently his hand grasped hers. The pair had walked some distance and finished their walk standing outside Elisabetha's quarters.

"Sara!" Elisabetha's voice could be heard calling from inside.

Sara looked to Leon, "I am needed."

"I know."

"Would you care to visit? I am sure my lady would not mind. You have scarcely met with her these past weeks."

"I would not want to impose. Anyway, I would like to rest now."

"Very well then, I will see you later. Good day."

Leon watched her disappear into the lady's quarters. "What a terrible thing it is to watch her go," he thought to himself.

Later the same day, after Leon had returned to his quarters and rested, he was roused by a loud ruckus. Looking out from his window he could see that it was a returning army. After a mixed procession of infantry and cavalry, at last Leon caught sight of Mathias leading the wounded train. He saw Mathias dismount and wave to an upper floor where a no doubt thrilled Elisabetha would be joyous to see him return safely. For some time Leon sat by the window and wondered what news there was from the front. Finally, he just went to bed.

The next day, Leon found himself summoned to see Mathias in the quarters he shared with his wife. The interior of the chamber was luxurious compared to the others he had seen in Sarn. It also had no comparison to his chamber. For the first time Leon did not feel so special. He could see that Mathias spared no expense to make his wife comfortable. The lady's lodging was multi-chambered. The chamber he stepped into was the living chamber and featured a domed ceiling that was common to the local architecture.

"Leon!" Mathias greeted him warmly. He stood by his wife who lay on a large sofa. "How is the hand? Healed?"

"Mostly. How go the battles?"

"That is exactly what I wished to speak with you about." He paused and look to his wife. "You don't mind that my wife remain while we speak?"

Leon looked to Elisabetha. "Not at all."

"Excellent. It has happened on occasion that generals or advisor have objected to my keeping Elisabetha during these talks. However, I hide nothing from my wife."

"What news do you bring of your campaign?"

"It is not mine that I wish to speak of. Rather, I think you would be interested in knowing about Casmir."

"Casmir? What of him?"

"Tartery has fallen."

"What!" Leon exclaimed in utter shock. "How?"

At this, Mathias began to pace back and forth. "Casmir underestimated his enemy and the importance of that fortress. Several weeks after they took it, they realized that the wells had been poisoned. A few days after, the remnants of the army of Tartery returned to lay siege upon it. They knew all the weak points. I'm surprised Casmir held out this long."

"Are we in any danger? Sarn is almost no distance at all from Tartery."

Mathias placed his hands on Elisabetha's shoulder and briefly massaged them. "We are in no danger here. I would not allow my wife to remain if such were the case. Sarn is far too insignificant to be of any importance." He then crossed over to a nearby table and removed a scroll from a satchel. Handing the scroll to Leon, he continued. "This is a letter from Casmir offering you command of one of his cavalry knight units. The siege has reduced his ranks and he is now in some need of reenlistment."

The letter in Leon's hand seemed to weigh more than the heaviest sword. The effect that this news had upon him was apparent on his face.

"You have no obligation to answer this call. You are a Baron now. However unorthodox it may seem, you could choose to fight under my banner."

The baron's eyes did not move from the letter. He had unrolled it and was trying to decipher its meaning in the hopes it might mean something other than what he had been told.

"I do not think that my people will take kindly to that. As you have told me before, our goals are the same yet different."

"You are right of course. However Alexius allows me a certain amount of flexibility. Believe me when I tell you that you would not be far from your goal if you fight with me."

Leon remained silent. His eyes exchanged glances between Mathias, Elisabetha, and the paper. Finally his eyes landed upon a figure slightly hidden behind a curtain that led to another chamber. It was Sara. His thoughts began to pace back and forth through his head. Was the love of this woman worth the risk he would be taking? Did she love him? Did he love her?

"Yes."

Mathias' eye brow rose quizzically. "Yes?"

"I will fight with you."

Joy spread across both Mathias' and Elisabetha's faces. Mathias grasped and shook Leon's hand while Elisabetha bowed her head and offered him an enthusiastic smile. As Mathias pulled Leon into a corner to discuss matters, Leon saw Elisabetha disappear through the curtain that he had spied before. Although slightly muffled my Mathias' exuberant conversation, Leon could hear a joyous womanly laughter emerge from the adjacent chamber.

Baron Leon Belmont pondered the wisdom of his choice. Ultimately, he came to one conclusion. Whether it was wise or not, it was his decision, and whatever consequences or whatever destiny awaited him, was his by choice.