Tale of Two Ages
Chapter Four – The Beard King and the Maiden Fair
Author's Note: This will be the first of the Past one-shots taking place in King Arthur's time. Like the legends themselves, the setting will be anachronistic and I do not claim that anything written here is historically or canonically accurate. Although I'll try…
5th Century Britain
Cameliard
Arturia stands still as her squire tightens the straps of her armor. Breastplate, gauntlets, greaves, all are shined and ready for battle. The squire lays her helmet on the table and bows before he leaves. Arturia dismisses him with a nod. An opened letter lays next to her helmet, a letter from the King of Cameliard—an old ally of Uther's and the first to pledge his allegiance to King Arthur—requesting for aid against King Rience.
She was all too glad to rally her troops and ride to Cameliard with haste. Aside from helping a valued ally, she was given the chance to meet King Rience in battle. Her eyes narrow as she remembers the haughty messenger Rience sent to Camelot who demanded her beard and undying loyalty else her kingdom will be destroyed. It took a great deal of effort not to chop the messenger's head off and send it back to his liege.
A ridiculous man with a ridiculous custom. Collecting beards from rival lords and kings? What purpose does that serve?
"King Arthur." A scout enters her tent and lays a fist over his chest. "We have spotted two armies fighting by a riverbank two leagues away. The smaller army flies black and gold."
Cameliard's colors. Arturia grabs the knight guarding her tent. "Inform Bedivere to ready the troops and to get here as soon as possible." She turns back to the scout. "Is the smaller army in danger of being overwhelmed?"
"They were holding their own when we left, Your Majesty. Lieutenant Bendric and ten of his men stayed behind to help the men of Cameliard."
She nods and inspects the war table. A map of the surrounding area is laid on it. Pieces representing her armies, the armies of Leodegrance, and those of Rience are placed at strategic points. Arturia moves them around based on the scout's information and a plan starts forming in her head.
They ride when ready.
Arturia's troops reach Cameliard in a state of turmoil. She can smell the iron scent of blood through her helmet. She raises her sword and spurs her horse, Llamrei, on, signaling the advance. Rience's infantry topple before the charge of her cavalry. They scatter the enemy around, making them easy pickings for the Cameliard army.
Archers from above shoot at will, aiming for the reinforcements arriving from northeast. Arturia maneuvers Llamrei successfully, slaughtering enemies left and right. Leodegrance's army is emboldened by the arrival of allies and they fight with increased fervor.
The enemy fights back just as fiercely, driven with the desperation of survival. She laments that such men are wasted fighting for a liege like Rience. She grimaces and moves forward, decapitating someone giving orders. "Reinforce the right wing!" She yells.
The battle stops for a second once smoke coming from the east rises into the sky. Merlin and Kay must have found the enemy's supply lines and destroyed them as she has ordered them to.
"It matters not! Keep fighting, men! For we shall have Cameliard soon!"
Arturia spares what attention she can to find the voice that had spoken. The voice that had sparked the enemy's will to fight must be Rience's. Now they fight with more than just desperation. They also fight with revenge and greed.
"Stand your ground!" A captain from Cameliard's army shouts.
This needs to end soon. More and more Breton blood is spilled the longer this battle endures. "Bedivere!"
"My lord?" Her marshal grunts as he shoves a sword through a knight's armpit.
"Cut me a path to King Rience." Arturia blocks an incoming sword.
"Bedivere," She repeats as he hesitates.
"We cannot hold the path for long, my lord. The enemy is still too numerous."
"Then don't hold it."
"We will not leave you stranded in the middle of enemy forces. My lord," He says with uncharacteristic defiance.
Arturia grits her teeth. They do not have time to argue. "It was not a request, Bedivere." She does not need his permission. She raises Caliburn. Despite being covered in blood, the sword still shines in the sunlight. "Cavalry! Cut me a path to the Beard King!"
Her cavalry heeds her call and charges in. The enemy parts before the lances like the Red Sea.
Arturia readies her lance and strikes it against King Rience's horse as he charges at her. The Beard King falls and hastily grabs his sword. "I shall have your beard false-king!"
Arturia unmounts Llamrei and draws Caliburn. "As I have said, Rience, I have no beard nor a knee that would bend in your presence. I shall have your head for your impudence." For waging a war over your ridiculous collection of beards.
"Ha! We shall see!" Rience closes the gap between them and strikes Arturia. Their swords clang loudly.
Rience is a powerful man, every inch the arrogant king she thought he'd be. His gilded crown glints atop his head, contrasting with his red hair. His eyes are intelligent, scheming, and proud. His sword is well made, sturdy and covered in nicks from previous battles. Every inch the dictator. Have men like him lorded over the people since Uther's death?
Rience circles and attacks her right side. She turns and blocks him but he smiles in wicked glee and tries to use his greater height and weight to his advantage, he pushes forward, trying to overpower Arturia.
She, however, digs her heels in and gives him no quarter, her dragon heritage easily matching her against him. She stands her ground and shifts her stance, analyzing Rience for weaknesses.
The Beard King is, while a strong man and a formidable warrior, an impatient person. Arturia breaks the deadlock and strafes to his flank. Rience follows and strikes again. Arturia dodges his overhead slash and stabs him in the bicep. While she knows that it will do little damage, it might numb his arm and possibly enrage him.
This deadly dance goes on for a while with Arturia dodging his attacks and exploiting his openings, and Rience getting more and more reckless with his swings.
"Is this the best you can do, Rience?" The boy-king taunts, attacking with an upward swing and getting within her enemy's guard. She hits Rience's unprotected side with her knee, forcing him to fall and drop his sword.
Arturia hits the side of his helmet with Caliburn, causing it to turn to the side and depriving him of his vision. He frantically tries to turn his helmet back but stops when he feels the tip of the Sword of Appointment touching his Adam's apple.
King Arthur's army cheers for their liege. The Beard King's army is moments away from retreating from the battlefield. She had not noticed that the fighting has dwindled during their duel.
Arturia smiles coldly and raises her sword.
"Wait!"
She is about to behead Rience when Caliburn is violently swept aside- by a staff?
"Merlin, what is the meaning of this?!" The King demands, fixing her grip on Caliburn.
"Your Majesty, let me explain." Her teacher starts and steps on King Rience's breastplate to ensure that he stays. "Repaying malice with malice will only deepen the hatred. You should not demand a head for a head or a beard for a beard."
She frowns. "What do you propose then?"
Merlin's cat eyes shine with mischief as he proposes her plan.
Arturia blinks, considering it. Then she raises the visor of her helmet, revealing a predatory grin. "I suppose that is a fitting punishment. See to it then, Merlin."
As the King decrees, the deed is done. King Rience and his brother Nero, will be laughingstocks of the kingdom for the rest of their lives. All who look upon them will be reminded of the folly (and embarrassment) of challenging the High King.
Arturia has managed to break away from her overjoyed and boisterous men for a quiet moment by the stream. She removes her helmet and works out the cricks in her neck.
"Here Llamrei. Now don't run off with that, or I'll have a lot of explaining to do." She tells her horse as she ties the Sword of Appointment by Llamrei's side. The horse snorts in consent and rubs his head against his master. Arturia smiles and pats her horse's neck.
She moves away and lays her helmet on the ground, leaving the horse to graze.
"Oh! What a beautiful horse!"
Arturia whirls around, hand moving towards the dagger by her waist, seeking the source of the sound.
"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you, Sir Knight."
The High King is struck dumb by the image in front of her. A fair maiden, wearing a simple dress that did not detract in any way from her beauty. In fact, it may have even accentuated it. Her chestnut hair framed on her face as she averted her eyes. For a woman to look at a man, which Arturia was supposed to be, straight in the eye was a breach of etiquette. The maiden was fidgeting and her right hand was fiddling with the base of her neck.
Arturia coughs and also averts her eyes. It was not polite to stare at a lady. "Nay, my lady. The fault is not with you. Certain habits are… hard to let go of."
Arturia sees the maiden raise her face and smile from the corner of her eye. With a shade of blue found in the sky, the maiden possessed the most enchanting eyes she had ever seen.
"The horse, then, he is yours?" The maiden finally asks after stealing glances at the knight.
She is probably wondering if I can be trusted.
Arturia nods and smiles, turning to her horse. "His name is Llamrei." She takes the reigns and walks him over to the maiden. She takes care to put her body between them since her steed is the unruly sort.
"He is beautiful." The maiden whispers, making the King smile in return.
"That he is. Although he possesses a temperament to match, I am afraid."
The maiden then looks at the knight as if she is pondering something. "If I may ask, kind sir, did you fight in the battle earlier?"
"I did, yes. Against King Rience."
The maiden looks relieved for a moment then averts her eyes and hesitates.
"Is there something you would like to know, my lady?" Arturia asks, puzzled at her behavior.
"How- how did the battle go? I am hoping that all went well, and you did say that you fought against King Rience… but…"
Arturia observes the maiden for a moment, trying to understand why she is asking. She might be worried for a friend who fought against King Rience, a possibility that Arturia prefers. If this maiden was on the humiliated King's side, she might be forced to consider the option of holding her for ransom. A rather deplorable-
"My lord?" The maiden prompts and Arturia realizes that she has been frowning.
"My apologies, my lady. I did not mean to cause you distress. As for the answer to your question, King Rience was defeated on the battlefield and his armies were routed."
"Thank the Lord." The maiden sighs with relief. She smiles at the knight. "No doubt one such as you has contributed much to the battle."
Arturia chuckles and shakes her head. "Not exactly." She did not do much other than duel with Rience. Although one might compare that as playing with one's food before eating it.
The sound of a bell coming from Castle Cameliard interrupts their discussion. The maiden's eyes widen. "I- I need to get back." She has taken a few steps towards the castle before turning back to the knight. "I did not get your name, kind Sir."
"Wart. It is Wart." The King blurts. She does not know why she says her brother's nickname for her.
"Wart." The maiden repeats. "'Tis a peculiar name." The bell rings again and the maiden becomes frantic. "I greatly apologize for leaving so, Sir Wart. I hope that we will be able to speak once more." She says as she walks briskly in the direction of the castle. It is odd how she can make walking briskly look elegant.
"Fare thee well, my lady!" 'Wart' raises a hand in farewell. The bell has rung twice. It is also important for her to go to the castle, but not for a while yet. King Arthur is only required to attend the evening feast held in his honor, going to the castle before that would only be a courtesy.
Arturia rubs her neck and watches Llamrei graze. She would only be a nuisance if she were to go now. Maybe she can get some rest in her tent for a few hours. As she picks her helmet up, she notes that she hadn't been able to get the maiden's name.
After the feast held in her honor last night, Arturia agreed to meet with King Leodegrance in his study to discuss the invasions. She sits on a couch by the fireplace in her borrowed room. She holds a ledger in one hand, and a quill on the other.
Leodegrance has not summoned her yet. There is still time to finish tallying a portion of their expenses.
"Seven hundred horseshoes, four hundred saddles, several rolls of rope, thirteen bales of hay…" The tip of the quill scratches across parchment as she mutters to herself.
A sharp knock on the door interrupts her accounting. She suppresses a sigh as she bids the guard to come in.
"My lord." He thumps a hand on his chest and bows slightly. "The King has… um.." The guard falters as he glances at her. "Lord Leodegrance has bid me to tell you that he is free, my lord. Er, Your Majesty." His tone is unsure.
Arturia smiles in pity for the guard. Titles and proper forms of address are very important to the nobility, an innocent mistake can earn a lifetime of enmity, or worse. Learning the nuances of court etiquette was not something she, herself, found enjoyable. Neither does she find the stammering and the scampering of nervous courtiers particularly endearing.
Once she is King-a proper High King, she will eradicate this stifling atmosphere. She will make it so that people will not fear punishment so much that they will be afraid to make mistakes that they can learn from.
"King Leodegrance is still a King, sir." She corrects him gently as she puts the ledger under a pile of similar parchment. "You may call both of us King."
"Y-yes, my lord. Thank you, my lord."
She nods and hooks Caliburn to her side. "Let us be off, then."
The guard blinks at her but then he bows and leads her to King Leodegrance's study.
Arturia sighs inwardly as the lone guard showing her the way eventually turned into an impromptu escort. The guards escorting her are as nervous as the first one, yet their shoulders and back are pulled straight.
"Where are your guards, my lord?" Leodegrance asks her, he seemed somewhat surprised when he opened the door to his study to find her escorted by his own men.
"I have given them the day off. I don't need an escort, King Leodegrance."
The brown-haired man chuckles. "Apologies, King Arthur. The men look up to you. After all, if you hadn't arrived when you did, Rience might have sacked our castle or stole livestock from the villages. They are… proud to have you as their High King."
Arturia blinks. "I… see. I didn't realize."
"Our actions are far-reaching, my lord. They have more effects than we realize. Yours moreso than mine." Leodegrance stands and leads her to his war table. A crudely drawn map of lower Britain is spread out over it. "But you did not agree to speak with me to hear a lecture."
Arturia smiles and points to a portion of the map. She feels much more comfortable discussing matters of war. "You are concerned about the presence of the Saxons here, yes?"
"King Lot and Duke Eustace do not support me?"
"There was no love lost between them and your father."
For a moment, Arturia wonders how Sir Ector knows these people. Then she figures that Leodegrance was probably speaking of her real father, Uther. "I am not my father though."
The two Kings have spent hours discussing various matters of warfare. The recent topic- and the most important in her opinion- is what should be done regarding the eleven Kings who have risen up against King Arthur.
King Leodegrance looks at her with an appraising gaze. "No, you are not. Most peculiar indeed," he says with some amusement.
Arturia narrows her eyes in confusion. "Peculiar? What do you-"
Two sharp knocks interrupt her question. Who would be brazen or foolhardy enough to interrupt a meeting between the King of Cameliard and the High King?
Leodegrance frowns in annoyance and murmurs apologies as he rises from his seat. He walks to the door and converses silently with the person on the other side.
His motions become more active, agitated even as the conversation goes on.
"Is it important, Leodegrance?" She asks politely even as her curiosity peaks. "We can continue our discussion another time if it is."
The brown-haired man turns back to her, his eyes apologetic. "Are you certain, my lord? Deigning to summon you was bad enough. Postponing our discussion-"
"Will allow you to concentrate on other important matters." Arturia completes his sentence. She stands up and sips the remaining wine in her cup. Leodegrance still looks divided and guilty as he stands by the doorway. He is a tall man, easily hiding whoever he was talking to behind the door.
"Truth be told, all this talking has exhausted me," Arturia lies. She is not tired at all. But something important must have come up if he was acting so agitated.
"Yes, Father. It is getting rather late."
Her eyebrows rise as another voice speaks. Leodegrance sighs. He moves away from the door once he notices that her attention has shifted.
"My lord," He leads-or half drags- a woman by her elbow into the room. "May I present my daughter, Princess Guinevere of Cameliard."
There is something familiar about her. Arturia cannot put a finger to it, but she feels as if she has seen the young lady before.
"Guinevere, this is the High King of Britain and the man who led us to victory yesterday, Arthur Pendragon." Leodegrance frowns slightly at Arturia. Apparently, he was waiting for her to introduce herself as courtesy dictates.
Arturia coughs. "It is a pleasure to meet you, my lady." She inclines her head, not too much because that would be too subservient and not too little because that would be rude. Arturia reaches out her right hand, asking for the Princess'.
The Princess only blinks her blue eyes at her. Perhaps she isn't the only one inwardly groaning about etiquette and all its rules, Arturia muses.
"You- you aren't the King."
That… was not the right response. Arturia frowns and stares at her for a moment before retrieving her outstretched hand. "What?"
"You are not the King." The Princess-Guinevere-repeats. Her eyes are wide as she stares at Arturia.
The fair maiden from the river! It's her! She now wears a more elegant dress and her hair is styled elaborately, but it is her. So this is what she looks like without hair falling over her face. The similarity between father and daughter is very apparent now that they are standing beside each other. The same blue eyes, the same hazelnut hair, the same lean build… although their facial features are different. The Princess must take after her mother.
"Guinevere!" Leodegrance grips his daughter's elbow tightly, his face reflecting barely restrained anger. "What on earth are you talking about?"
"Ah-" The Princess opens her mouth but nothing comes out. She casts frantic eyes over Arturia, searching for something.
"King Leodegrance."
"King Arthur. I… I beg your pardon, my lord. My daughter is perhaps, just tired after all the-"
Arturia exchanges glances with the Princess and then shakes her head. "I am afraid that the fault is with me, my lord."
Her statement is met by blue-eyed stares from father and daughter. Confusion from the former and disbelief from the latter. She ignores them both.
"I had introduced myself as a knight who fought against King Rience's armies and not as King Arthur when the Princess and I had met yesterday, so the Princess might have thought I was trying to fool you by pretending I was the King."
The Princess' shoulders sag in relief and she looks at Arturia with gratitude.
"You- you met? Where did you meet?" King Leodegrance's eyes flash as he looks at her daughter.
Guinevere's look of gratitude turns frantic once more. And Arturia remembers how she had ran from the river yesterday.
"By a castle tower." Arturia looks away as if she is trying to remember where exactly they met. Merlin has told her before that her eyes gives her away when she lies. "One with a window on it. The Princess was leaning against it, looking as if she was waiting for something."
Please let her guess be right. That Guinevere ran back to the castle once the bell had rang because she wasn't allowed to leave. Arturia suppresses a gulp as Leodegrance remains silent. He frowns slightly at her, trying to suppress the wariness in his eyes. She wonders idly how much more menacing Leodegrance would be if she wasn't his liege lord.
He turns to his daughter. "You were supposed to be taking your lessons."
"There was a war going on! Enemies were right outside the castle, father. And I-" The Princess bites her lip but Arturia catches a glimpse of her relieved eyes as Guinevere looks away. "I couldn't concentrate. I'm sorry."
Her guess wasn't accurate it seems. But far better to let Leodegrance think that his daughter was merely avoiding her scholarly duties and not wandering outside the castle... with a war going on no less.
She has meddled enough in family affairs. "Shall we continue our discussion tomorrow then?" Arturia asks the other king before an awkward silence can develop.
"Y-Yes, my lord. Thank you." Leodegrance bows.
"A pleasant evening to you, King Leodegrance, Princess." Arturia nods at the two royals who nod in return. She is certain they have more to discuss that are not for her ears to hear.
As she departs the king's study, she wonders why she had felt the urge to lie-she did lie- for someone she barely knew.
Author's Note: Since it seems that some people are confused as to what F/SN route this fic comes from, it's Unlimited Blade Works and not the Fate route. (It's the only route with an anime adaptation lol) So Saber and Shirou never became more than friends.
P.S: Anyone recognize where the title of this chapter was inspired by? *wink* *wink*
P.P.S: The site is not properly registering a long dash and leaves a short dash (-) in place of it. So, in areas that a single dash is not appropriate, like when Leodegrance was introducing Guinevere for example, just pretend that it's a long dash there.