Immortal: Hello all and I present another chapter featuring Mordred as she faces a new challenge. But speaking of challenges, I am afraid I will be facing one pretty soon as of the posting of this chapter. My work will have me traveling overseas, so to be honest I may not be able to post a chapter for at the least a month or two, maybe longer. But unless something crazy happens, I promise by all the money that Gudako (not Female Ritsuka) threw to whaling this story WILL continue. I even have intents on making a new story for afterwards. Also, I managed to finally figure out a way to separate paragraphs better after looking around and seeing how to make it work. Also, a thanks to Agent of Chaos 112 for helping to give me tips and pointers to make sure that this chapter was good enough for me to post.
Gudako: You better PRAY that in the interim that you are gone that I don't find you because if I do, your wallet will BLEED funds so I can get Bunny Artoria, Avenger Nobu, and ALL the swimsuit servants!
Immortal: Oh go play a different gacha game! Actually, no don't do that. My wallet can barely survive one gacha game let alone two!
Disclaimer: This story is fan-based writing. All characters and location are owned by their respective copyright holders for the Nasuverse as well as Arthurian mythology. I do not own them in any way, shape, form, or concept to include Reality Marbles, Singularities, or Lostbelts. Please support the official release, but don't go too crazy spending your money ton the Fate/Grand Order gacha!
The Adventures of Mordred the Squire
The Only Easy Day was...
The golden summers had come and gone in Cornwall and with the change in season came the autumn harvests and the dread of whether one would survive the winter or not. Despite the protection and efforts of King Arthur, the average person who did not live under the vassals and knights of Arthur was fraught with nervousness. Even in Tintagel Castle there was a visible tenseness by most of the people there, save for perhaps a few who were more concerned with other matters.
For Mordred herself, the changing of the seasons merely meant she would have to wear different attire, perhaps have her training change when the Green Knight deemed it so. She still had her daily chores as expected of a squire, but with the changing of the weather going from sunny to cloudy almsot everyday she was feeling rather glum despite her training going well. Even riding Moon did little to help her spirits as she felt restless and impatient, bored with lessons and instead craving physical activity. She was excelling in her weapons training and getting better every day with her physical training as well, but sometimes the training was nothing but books, map reading, and court etiquette. The squire had never ceased to think about joining King Arthur and his court, but some days it felt like it would be forever before the chance would arise.
Sir Bertilak had found that the child absolutely did have the intuition on how to naturally wield a sword among other weapons. But in their free-fighting moments, he had begun to notice that as Mordred got tired, she pushed for more offensive strikes and utilizing reflex and what she called "gut feelings" to fight. But against a patient opponent who would wait for an opening, this style of fighting was useless. On top of that, he had not yet seen Mordred use any form of mana aside from that one incident with those boys. Every since that incident, despite efforts at quelling it, Mordred was mostly avoided by other children her age and even the adults seemed wary. Yet Morgan had promised that Mordred was embedded with the same Dragon Core that Artoria possessed, giving her incredible power that just needed to be prodded the right way. So on this particular day, the Green Knight decided that another test was needed to see just how to make Mordred use her mana, consciously or not.
~~0~~
"DODGE!"
Mordred slid her left foot to her side and pushed hard off her right foot as she narrowly avoided getting wacked on the head with a wooden sword that Sir Bertilak held in his great fist. Her adrenaline surged and Mordred ducked and batted aside a blow that nearly disarmed her before she rolled under another horizontal swipe of the practice sword to thrust her sword at the Green Knight's armpit, only for the attack to be blocked. Keeping her grip on the practice sword, Mordred span in a half-circle before attempting to sweep Sir Bertilak's leg, only for the Green Knight to expertly pivot and stop her attack with his own strike. He lunged at her with a mailed fist and Mordred leaned away, dodging the attack before striking at his knee. Sir Bertilak didn't even buckle as he lifted his hand, planting it on her face, and shoved hard enough that it sent her tumbling away. Despite her improvement, she was still a child with all the strength and weakness that came with it.
"On your feet Mordred!", called her master as he strode over to her and raised a foot to stomp on her. The squire saw it loom over her face before she rolled towards him to dodge the crushing foot, but she was caught between Sir Bertilak's legs and she frantically scrambled to and fro, dodging his steps and trying to get back to her own feet. In the struggle, Mordred had let go of her sword, unable to get back to it and focused on avoiding being stomped on.
"Come on! Get your sword back you useless idiot!", roared Sir Bertilak before overstepped in an attempt to pin the squire down.
Seeing her chance, Mordred finally got enough room to push away from the Green Knight before she grabbed her weapon. But she grabbed the wooden sword by the blade and swung the hilt like a mace at the back of Sir Bertilak's knee. He buckled a little due to being caught off-guard and staggered for a moment before raised his weapon to smash it down onto his squire. She rolled out of the way again, getting to her feet and panted hard as she held her weapon in a guarded stance, keeping her feet steady as she held her weapon in a close guard, the tip pointing upwards at Sir Bertilak's face. The Green Knight laughed, "Hahahaha! I never taught you that one! That's good. In a REAL fight, you use the unorthodox to win. Hell, use your fists and your legs like I taught you! So now that you know how to use the unorthodox, let's see what you can do against THIS-!"
The Green Knight had distracted his squire with talk and threw his practice sword at her. She flinched and held her guard up deflect the sword, but then she saw Sir Bertilak rushing at her like a bull, his cape was billowing like the wings of a massive dragon as he leapt at Mordred with his knee aimed at her with a loud shout.
"RRRAAAAAAGHHH!"
Mordred's hands moved before she could even think and she brought her sword down in an overhead strike, crimson lightning briefly crackling as it connected with Sir Bertilak's knee. The wooden sword splintered and exploded into burnt pieces, but the Green Knight's attack was slowed just enough to bowl the young squire over rather than break her ribs or shatter her sternum. Despite wearing the protective gambeson and thickly padded training clothing, it still hurt to the point that she dropped her broken sword. Her eyes widened and spittle flew from her mouth as she felt herself about to vomit before she was knocked back, tumbling until she came to a stop.
"Guhh.. urgh… aaah!", Mordred cried out and her vision was swimming before she fought to catch her breath. She couldn't move even as she tried to make herself to get up, her hands pushing at the ground. Finally, she rolled over to her side, her forehead resting on her hand and her small body shook as she pushed herself up on all fours. But the Green Knight wasn't done and he strode over to her, his boots stomping the earth as Mordred looked over her arm and she pushed herself up to one knee.
"Come on boy! You better use your head for this one!", he laughed as he raised his massive foot up again to stomp on the squire. She saw the shadow loom over her and her eyes widened before she threw herself to the right as the Green Knight's foot smashed into the ground. Mordred crawled away as fast as she could, unable to yet get to her feet. Even as she tried to stumble and get to her feet, all she could do was continue to move on all fours even as the Green Knight continued to try to stomp on her like a giant. Crawling out of the dueling grounds, she moved past the weapons rack where a myriad of weapons both real and for practice stood, but Sir Bertilak followed after her and simply smashed it aside. Weapons scattered all around as Mordred grabbed a chair to get to her feet. But it was barely a moment before she got up when Sir Bertilak ripped it out of her hands and sent her stumbling before she caught a wooden bench.
Mordred's feet were unsteady and she held stomach with one hand, fear filling her as she looked up in shock and confusion as well. The chair was in Sir Bertilak's hand and all boisterousness went out of his face as he looked at her with a suddenly blank face. Then before her eyes, she saw him look at her and slowly began to crush the chair until it exploded in a shower of wooden splinters. It was then that Mordred knew in her stomach that this was going beyond the normal training. Sir Bertilak really DID want to hurt her! He had in the past been forced to discipline her when she got too willful or when she copied his curse words. But all that had meant was extra chores, the rare physical disciplining with a wooden paddle, or training even longer than usual, but those were far few and in-between. He had even been pleased with her recent efforts, praising her in fact when she performed above his expectations. He threw in tricks and hidden tests from time to time, but Mordred saw that this was different. She could see in his eyes that Mordred was not just fighting to train.
She was now going to fight for her life and if she failed, then she would die here and now
~~0~~
He loomed over her and Mordred felt herself wanting to yell for help, to cry out for Mother. Surely Mother wouldn't let her come to harm! …right?
As if reading her mind, the Green Knight scowled at her and said, "Don't even bother, boy. Your mother will not come even if I squashed you like a bug! King Mark won't give a rats ass about one more squire who died under me. So go ahead, scream, cry, beg for forgiveness, it's all the same to me! Now come on, fight for your life or run!"
Mordred wanted to move, but more than the pain that threatened to make her sink to her knees was icy cold sensation of fear filling her. A part of her did want to beg for the Green Knight to not hurt her, to appeal to his compassion for their bond, and to ask for forgiveness for whatever she did that caused him to suddenly want to kill her. There was nobody else in the castle's training yard save for herself and the Green Knight. Sir Bertilak's eyes changed from green to red and terror filled Mordred so much that she almost wanted to sink to her knees and she began to shake, unable to move despite her brain roaring at her to move. It was like being in her Mother's room all over again, standing helpless and powerless in the wake of fury too terrible to behold. Sir Bertilak took one stomp forward and roared, "Are you deaf?! I said fight or run you cowardly brat! RUN MORDRED! RUN!"
The shout suddenly made Mordred snap out of her paralyzed terror and she stepped away from the bench, feeling her back connected with a table before she darted under it. The Green Knight roared and split the table in half with a heavy hammer blow, nearly smashing Mordred's leg as she tucked them under her just in time. Her breath came out in short, rapid gasps as she tried to escape her master's wrath, crawling and stumbling away from the Green Knight as he came after her like a starving giant. She rolled over a bench on the other side of the now split table and the Green Knight threw it aside as if it were weightless. The squire ran over to the fallen weapons to find something to protect herself with. She grabbed a quarterstaff from the mess of weapons that had fallen and no sooner had she brought up when her master easily snatched it away and threw it into the air. He raised one hand to catch it, spun it several times over his head, and he swung it at her. Mordred ducked and winced as she heard the quarterstaff snap with enough force to break both it and the training dummy standing behind her. She bolted away from the training dummies to hide behind the archery targets, panting as sweat poured down her face. The squire poked her head out just enough to see how far she was from the exit and let out a yelp of shock as the tip of a spear appeared next to her head, narrowly missing her head.
The Green Knight lifted another fallen spear and threw it at her as she ducked behind another target. She willed herself to move as fast as she could before her fear could halt her movements and Sir Bertilak's voice roared, "That's right! Flee you coward!"
Then she saw him rip a training dummy from the ground with two hands, ripping the entire log that it was tied to out of the ground, lifting it over his head, and lobbed it at her. Mordred saw the shadow looming over her and she pressed on the ground, crimson lightning crackling around her feet as she felt her breath stop before she found herself projected several meters away as if she had been shot from an arrow. The Green Knight watched as she stumbled and nearly fell from the sudden and unexpected burst of speed.
The exit to the training yard was within sight and she ran for it with all her strength, her breath coming out in ragged gasps before she placed her hand on the heavy wooden door. With no thought behind it, she looked over her shoulder in case more projectiles were thrown her way. But Sir Bertilak was not pursuing her anymore and instead was staring hard at her, "Well, I suppose this was all I could expect. When it comes down to it, you really are a weak girl in over her head at heart no matter how much you pretend to be otherwise."
At that, Mordred paused. She was still afraid and her mind and body begged her to flee, to escape from danger, but that fear was being replaced by something else that began to beat back the terror in her heart.
~~0~~
In the haze of grinding pain and encroaching fear, she saw before her eyes the mocking sneer of Sir Kay, heard the melancholic voice of Sir Tristan say he would weep for her should she succeed in her dream, and recalled the majesty of King Arthur when his gaze temporarily brushed over her. All this had brought different emotions, but each one had an aspect of fear to it. Fear of being nothing but a helpless girl, fear of having her dream not coming true, and fear of being unworthy of King Arthur.
Fear... Distress...Trepidation... Anxiety... Terror...
All these things threatened to break her spirit and shatter her resolve, but amidst this weakness there came a memory that was like the sun shining through the darkest clouds.
Mordred remembered one of the greatest tales of King Arthur, of a time before he had been crowned. It was the story that never failed to leave her inspired no matter what. It was the story of how King Arthur alongside Sir Gawain had fought the evil dragon Vortigern. That was seemingly an impossible battle and even Sir Gawain had temporarily lost hope, begging Arthur to retreat. Sir Gawain… even he had been mortally afraid enough to want to run in terror. It was an honest response to an overwhelming threat wasn't it? But it was told that Arthur merely smiled and asked Gawain to help him in his battle. Arthur never gave up even against that terrible opponent and if Mordred wanted to guard his back, then she could not give up either. The image of King Arthur on his steed came upon her again and her silent vow came across her lips.
'I will become a knight. I will happily stand in your shadow. I will protect everything that you represent… Arthur.'
Then with that, she tightened her grip on the door handle and strained as she shut the door with as much strength as she before turning sharply to face the Green Knight once more. Mordred was still afraid, but she found that her fear was now being overshadowed by anger. The Green Knight had never mocked her for being a girl before, but this… this was a line that he had crossed, master or not. She wiped her forehead of sweat and eyes of dirt, sweat, and tears with her sleeve as she returned to the dueling grounds. Sir Bertilak's gaze never left her and he smirked at her as she picked up his fallen wooden sword before getting back into her guarded stance. The sword was much taller than her, molded to fit the Green Knight's hand, but Mordred's stance and middle guard position still enabled her to hold the massive training weapon.
"Heh, I figured you for a smart one to retreat in the face of danger. But I suppose you are enjoying yourself?", said Sir Bertilak as he strode forward like a giant once more. Mordred stood her ground for a few moments and she realized that in spite of her fear, in spite of the damage she so far sustained… Mordred found that she was absolutely enjoying herself as a bloodthirsty smile appeared on her face in the face of her master's presence. The balance between life and death was so thin, yet Mordred had never felt so exhilarated in her life. It was just like when she had first ridden Melsh Dick, but several times greater than that because she wasn't fighting some animal, but a real and truly powerful foe. Rage at being treated like a weak girl and exhilaration at the struggle turned her former weariness to hardened steel as Sir Bertilak raised both hands over his head to slam down on her with another loud bellow.
Mordred did retreat this time, but not from terror as Sir Bertilak's fists smashed into the earth where she had stood. She knew full well she could not hope to fight Sir Bertilak head-on, but her instincts were telling her more clearly than ever that she had to get an advantage elsewhere. She ran backwards, resting the wooden sword on her shoulder as she retreated back to the unfallen wooden benches and whole tables before getting on top to change the height difference. Sir Bertilak laughed as he followed her and tried to punch Mordred, only for her to duck under his fist and smash at his hand. The wooden sword made a DING noise as he drew it back, shaking it before trying another hammer blow with his other hand. Mordred stepped back and nearly fell off the table when it table split in two, but she still had her footing, used the Green Knight's arm as leverage to jump, and latched onto his shoulder.
The Green Knight flailed and strained as the squire recalled one of his lessons, her body moving on instinct as she hung onto his pauldron and scrambled to avoid the Green Knight's hands. But Sir Bertilak reached around his body, caught her leg and pulled her off him, dangling her upside down. But then he suddenly gagged and dropped Mordred as she jabbed the tip of her wooden sword into his exposed throat. The squire landed on her back and barely got to a crouch when the Sir Bertilak kicked her in the chest and sent her flying once more before she came to a rest against the walls of Tintagel Castle's training yard. She held her ribs and groaned, having the wind nearly kicked out of her yet again.
The Green Knight coughed and growled before rushing towards Mordred, the air rippling about him like a typhoon before he raised his foot to pulverize her. She rolled to the side and Sir Bertilak's leg crashed through the wall all the way up to his thigh. He had let his own temper slip and he had applied more force than intended. Mordred took this moment to catch her breath and began to strike at Sir Bertilak with her wooden sword, aiming for whatever unarmored portions she could hit as she had been taught. Slashing behind the knee to stagger, stabbing at the gap at his hip to off-balance him, and thrusting her sword at the small of his back. Her master had taught that even if the blades didn't pierce, it would still weaken an opponent even if you struck them with enough force. Her master didn't even seem to feel the blows however and he was trying to pry himself loose, cursing that King Mark was going to give him an earful for damaging the castle walls yet again. He grunted as Mordred nearly made him lose his balance before he turned, planted a huge hand on her face and shoved her away, but this time she rolled instead of just slamming back onto the ground. Mordred gritted her teeth in a snarl as she got back to her feet yet again as she held the wooden sword in both hands. Technique be damned, she just wanted to hit the green bastard as hard as she could!
"AAAAAAAAHHHHH!"
She let out her own roar as she felt her anger rise to its pinnacle. Frustration with the Green Knight's tricks, anger at being struck, anger at being called a coward all rushed through her, but the greatest anger she felt was being called, "girl". Crackling trails of crimson lighting danced around her hands as she tightened her grip, causing smoke and angry veins of red to course throughout the wooden sword. The Green Knight wrenched his leg out the wall and he turned before clenching his massive fist and throwing his weight in an overhand swing. Mordred slipped under the fist even as she felt her master's massive hand brush alongside her head and she pivoted before raising her weapon and bringing it down on his arm with all the strength her 10-year-old body could muster.
The sound of a tree being split by lightning was heard as the weapon broke in the squire's hand and the Green Knight's arm appeared to have a second elbow as it dangled limp. He let out a strained and loud grunt at the strike, but before the squire could savor any victory, she was suddenly punched in the stomach by the Green Knight with his other hand.
"AAGGH!"
Spit dripped out of her mouth as she felt herself lifted off the ground as if impaled before she retched and she fell to her knees, one hand on the mouth and the other on her stomach as she tried to hold her guts inside her body. She looked up, her anger almost overwhelmed by the pain as she saw Sir Bertilak stoically look at his limp arm with almost morbid fascination, panting slightly. Then he grabbed the broken arm at the elbow. His fingers dug in and blood began to ooze out of his skin before he wrenched, twisted, and pulled. Mordred watched in horror as the Green Knight made no sounds save for a few pained grunts and with a sick popping, tearing sound as if a tree was being pulled out by the roots, tore off his own arm at the elbow. He let out a loud snarl, "AHH FUCK! SHIT THAT HURTS! GODS... DAMN IT!"
Mordred promptly vomited the contents of her stomach onto the ground.
~~0~~
Blood continued to pour from the dismembered arm and the stump from the Green Knight. He hissed through his teeth before her dropped it in front of his squire. The fingers were still twisted as if they were meant to hold something and renewed terror began to fill the squire, but for an entirely different reason.
She had struck her Master in a way beyond the training.
But he had tried to really hurt her this time, he had really tried to actually cause damage to her, so wasn't she justified in responding with equal force? More importantly, why had Sir Bertilak maimed himself like that?! It didn't make any sense for him to do that. Mordred had once had her arm and was injured due to falling off her horse Moon when a wolf startled her, but the Green Knight had helped her splint it until she healed, joking that she needed to toughen up if that little sprain would slow her down. But with this, how could he train her to be a knight now? What will happen to her? Was her dream truly over before it begun!?
"Forgive me Master, I didn't mean to-!", began Mordred frantically.
"Oh be quiet, boy.", snapped Sir Bertilak, cutting her off before he looked at his elbow at it bled red blood. Even in the shock, Mordred couldn't help but think that his blood appeared… thicker and denser than normal blood, almost like honey or tree sap. Her master grunted and strained, veins bulging on his massive bicep and around his face as his arm shook until the bleeding slowed from a spurting, to a flowing, then an oozing, and finally the bleeding stopped completely. Mordred could not look away as the Green Knight seemed to force his body to obey him by sheer will.
Green light began to form around his feet as Sir Bertilak concentrated, utilizing the very blessing of Natura to rejuvenate her knight, smaller lights began to rise form the ground and began to dance around Sir Bertilak. Then before his astonished squire's eyes, the Green Knight began to grow his arm back. It was like watching a tree grow from a seed all the way to its full bloom from the roots, trunk, branches, and leaves. Then the tree began to twist and split into five digits, shrink and narrow itself until the distinct shape of a human hand was formed. Finally, the branches darkened until they were as black and lifeless as the trees in wintertime before he brushed the tiny branches, leaves, and bark off himself. The bark peeled off like scabs and showed underneath the freshly formed skin, green as the rest of his body, if only in a slightly lighter shade like grass that was just growing in the spring.
Sir Bertilak flexed his arms and fingers, rotated his wrist, and clenched his fingers into a fist before he approached his squire, who was still looking at him in sheer amazement despite the puddle of vomit in front of her. The Green Knight stared at her before gesturing down with his eyes. Mordred looked down to see the fragments of Sir Bertilak's arm dissolving like dead leaves until it disintegrated completely and returned to the earth.
Thousands of questions began to plague Mordred all at once before Sir Bertilak laughed and said, "Now isn't that something? Ahh Mordred… you continue to impress. So now let's review what we-"
"No way!", cried Mordred as she nearly stumbled before she got to her feet and pointed a finger at her master, "What the hell was that?! How were you able to grow your arm back?! A-and what's with that light you had? Just what the HELL are you?!"
Normally Mordred was not this insolent, but the events of the training along with her physical aches and pains made her throw any decorum off the castle walls and into the sea below Tintagel Castle. Sir Bertilak looked down at his squire and began to regard her. She was bruised, sweating, and looking so openly hostile that it actually made her look cute rather than intimidating to Sir Bertilak. The Green Knight let out the sigh of a long-suffering tutor to an impertinent student before he said, "Very well. I suppose we can take a break and humor your curiosity."
"Don't just dismiss me you green-!", snapped Mordred before the green knight flicked her forehead, earning an "Ow!" and a finger being jabbed at her nose.
"Listen here brat.", said the Green Knight sharply, "In a few moments, I shall yank your breeches down and redden your ass with the flat of my axe unless you calm yourself. You are feeling anxious, irritable, your heart is racing, your mind is all over the place and you are not thinking straight. It is the rush that knights and soldiers feel in the thick of combat. Controlled, it can give even the most average of men feats that he would not under normal circumstances possess. So sit down and take some deep breaths. Control your breathing like I taught you."
Mordred continued her angry glare, still sore from the forehead flick that was another tally to all her other aches and pains.
"Well… you didn't have to call me a girl.", said Mordred with a sullen, sulky tone.
Despite the temptation to remind Mordred that she was in fact female, the Green Knight held his tongue readied his hand for another forehead flick. The squire breathed in through her nose, counted to 5, and let out an exhale through her mouth. Several times she did this until she finally began to calm down, though her hands were still shaking. Perhaps it was the training that was making her bolder, because every single time she had ever shown defiance to her mother the consequences were dire. But aside from the fleeting moments between training and occasional meals, Mother had all but ignored her nowadays save for checking how her training was going and reminding her why she was doing what she was doing.
However, the child still held the hidden desire to serve King Arthur rather than kill him despite Mother's words of how awful a person he really was. Thinking of the king always cleared her head or brought her perspective, so after a few more breaths, the shaking stopped and Mordred calmed down enough that she wasn't glaring as hard at her master, but she still had a slightly sullen look on her face. Then her master instructed her to sit down and she did so with as much defiance as she dared. Once Mordred was seated, Sir Bertilak retrieved a bench and sat down on it before he began to explain to her what he had done was use his natural magical energy through his connection with nature.
~~0~~
"If one were to speak of magecraft, your Mother could explain it better as that is her practice. But for our purpose, I will simplify it as best I can so you can learn the basics,", said Sir Bertilak, "All you need to know is that what I have done to regrow my arm is through use of my natural OD and the Mana provided by the world. What is the world? Why, it's this! All that you see and beyond is all part of the world. Most people nowadays will tell you that beyond the seas there is nothing and if you sail beyond the horizon, you would fall off the edge of the world. I tell you, it is nothing but balderdash."
Mordred's sullenness was soon accompanied by curiosity and she thought back to almost a year ago when that little cottage in the woods was the only world she knew. But even with all that she had seen, Sir Bertilak was telling her without a shadow of a doubt that the world was so much more and far beyond anything else. But she had to stifle her questions as Sir Bertilak went on.
"Mana is magical energy that is the breath of life that the world naturally produces. OD is the life energy found within humans, animals, and magical beasts like… dragons for instance. These two energies, are the source to actualize the mysteries of Magecraft. In my case, what I did was utilize what I called, "Mana Burst", to infuse my body with Mana from the earth and my OD to correctly heal myself. Are you with me so far?"
Mordred shook her head. Admittedly this was all very confusing after having just fought for her life, so it was hard to think clearly. Sir Bertilak nodded and stroked his beard once before he asked her, "So how about we think of it this way. Imagine if you have a cup and it's filled with water. Think of the water as the magical energy and the cup as your body. You follow? Good. Now the cup can only hold so much water at a time before it…?"
"Before it… overfills and spills.", answered Mordred after thinking for a few moments. But she winced as her body pains began to make themselves more obviously known.
"Good. Now say that you utilized your own Mana Burst using the OD in your body. It would be the equivalent of draining the cup of water until it was empty. But say that the cup becomes empty and you were right next to a river. We will use the river as a metaphor for Mana, which is provided by the world as we established. Do you understand me so far?"
Mordred hesitantly nodded, so the Green Knight continued, "Now if you needed LOTS of magical energy, then by utilizing the river, you would fill the cup back up with water, giving you the magical energy you needed."
Mordred now was more confused than before. The nuance of magecraft and magic was an entirely different world, which she didn't fully understand even despite witnessing it for herself when her Mother did such things. But then something else came up, which was bugging her and she asked, "Master… you said that humans, beasts, and magical creatures had OD in them, but I'm-I'm not human. Mother told me I was a homemonkuuluss, that I was different from everybody else.". Ever since she had found out about it, she had asked her Mother what it had meant, and was only told that it meant she was "different", though Mordred wasn't satisfied with the answer, and that it only meant that she would be "stronger" than the average person. It was a subject that Mother did not like to discuss at all and was noticeably irritated whenever the subject had been brought up.
Sir Bertilak didn't even blink as he answered, "This is not new to me. And it is "ho-mun-cu-lus". Do not think of it as something to be ashamed of. A normal human child would not be able to break my arm no matter how hard they hit me. On top of that, you endured blows from me that would have grievously wounded other children your age. Even fully grown men would have been injured greatly."
"Is it because I'm a ho-mun-cu-lus?", Mordred had to sound the word out. The Green Knight adopted a pensive look yet again before he answered, "Partially. But it also has to do with the fact that you have been utilizing your own Mana Burst and haven't even realized it, but you used it in a very uncontrolled manner. Mana can greatly increase the speed, power, and defense of an individual or be utilized in many other ways. It honestly requires experimentation more than anything to truly see what you are capable of and even then what may be hard for you comes easily to others, while what seems impossible to others can be done without a second thought by you. Today was the second time I have witnessed you use your mana unconsciously."
The squire could only blink before looking at her hands before the Green Knight pointed to the broken wooden sword. It was in pieces and looked as though it had been burnt, but the Green Knight spoke again, "You utilized your Mana Burst and the weapon could not handle the magical energy you put out, which caused it to do that. Tell me, exactly what did you feel when you struck me? This will help us figure out just how you utilize your Mana Burst."
"I…", began Mordred hesitantly, worried that Sir Bertilak would be displeased, "I felt… mad. Really, really mad. But I was also having fun."
"So you enjoyed it when you broke my arm?", the Green Knight asked with a raised eyebrow. He cut off Mordred with a wave of his hand, "Don't get me wrong, there are those out there who enjoy fighting just for the sake of it. But let me impress this upon you. If you ever want to serve as one of Arthur's knights, you must NEVER enjoy harming the innocent. Defeat evil, feel triumph over it, take pride in your deeds. But never relish causing pain for the pleasure of it. Torturing and needlessly humiliating your enemy is something that King will not tolerate."
Mordred felt her gut clench, which was unpleasant enough due to the fact that her body was still sore from that punch she got.
"What about when I was throwing all those things at you? You moved more swiftly than an arrow.", asked the Green Knight, pressing her for more answers.
"I don't know… I just… I just did.", said Mordred in quiet reply.
The two sat in the midst of the wrecked and messy training yard before the Green Knight sighed, "Pray forgive me Mordred for my harshness. I had hoped to try to discern the way you can utilize mana properly, but I fear that my methods were improper in this manner and unnecessarily cruel. You are my squire and I will continue to train you, but even I can admit when I have gone too far because had you not given your all, I truly would have killed you today."
Mordred kept quiet, unsure of how to answer her master. The Green Knight was an excellent tutor in the ways of knighthood, but his methods and hidden tests could not help but bring up feelings of frustration with him and even resentment at times. Hearing his blunt words that he would have killed her today caused Mordred to feel she could never look at him the same way again. But even so, she nodded at him, and the Green Knight instructed her to go see to her pains. He would summon the pages to assist him in the cleanup. Mordred carefully got to her feet, feeling more tired than she had ever remembered before. The sun was now an orange color as it began to set, so now was a good time for her to bathe, yet there was still something she had to do first. So she took off the protective outer clothing and felt cold when the sweat met the cooling air.
The Green Knight once again dismissed her and told her that they would take the next day off to rest. But Mordred knew she couldn't rest. Mana had made her stronger, but she did not know how to use her mana or OD or whatever that Sir Bertilak had instructed. There was only one person whom she knew had any deep knowledge of the mysteries of magic. She shivered again as a cold wind blew before she left the training grounds to go search for Mother to find the answers to the questions she had.
~~0~~
The search proved fruitless when Queen Iseult herself, who was walking the castle with her handmaids came across the squire after she found her Mother's room to be empty. The Queen was dressed in warm, earthly colors that resonated with her dark-brown hair, giving her a gentle if somewhat melancholic appearance. Queen Iseult informed Mordred that Mother had left the castle grounds with her permission on some business of her own at least a couple of days past. Mordred bowed and thanked the queen, unable to hide the disappointment on her face.
The queen regarded her for a moment before she reached down and with a gentle hand brushed Mordred's messy hair out of her face, to which the child flinched reflexively. "Oh I'm sorry!", exclaimed Queen Iseult in apology, "I should have realized that Sir Bertilak's training wasn't without hardships and that you might be in pain. Hmm... I think that a hot bath would do wonders for you to relieve your aches and pains. Would you like that, young Mordred?"
Mordred's eyes lit up at the thought of a hot bath to clean herself in. Her usual method was simply to rinse her body with a rag and a bucket of cold water if not just dumping it over herself. The royal bathing rooms were separated for the King and Queen and for distinguished guests, where large tubs were filled with hot water. The squire imagined herself happily soaking in a hot tub when the Queen suddenly added, "I see you like the idea. I can have my servants wash you as well."
"No!", said Mordred suddenly, surprising the queen and causing her handmaids to look aghast at such rudeness. If any of the handmaids saw her in the bath, they would instantly know that she was a girl! Her disguise would fail and she would be found out! Frightening scenarios began to run through her head as she tried to come up with a more justifiable excuse, unable to look Queen Iseult. But the queen watched her with a thoughtful expression before she smiled gently and said, "Of course. You are a growing child and I expect you would wish to bathe yourself. Come, I should like a brave knight-to-be to be my escort to our destination."
"Y-yeah! Uh, er, yes, Your Majesty.", said Mordred before she stepped behind the queen and between her handmaids. They took her to the queen's personal bathing room after a short five minute walk through Tintagel Castle and Mordred opened the door for Queen Iseult. The walls and floor were polished white stone with large, luxurious carpets, the walls were lined all around with candles hanging from iron sconces. The tub itself was a wooden one, lined with soft cloth that was so large that it had a wooden step built into it to allow for the queen to step into. In a large, immaculately polished stone ewer were cloth towels of various sizes. The room was well let and a great stained-glass window of many colors depicting an angel piercing a dragon with a spear on top of a hill with a large tree in the background covered a great portion of the wall. The sun had net fully begun to set, giving the room a beautiful if somewhat sad appearance. The Queen spoke to Mordred as her servants began to retrieve hot water and fill the bath, asking her basic questions, though the child was a little reluctant to speak to her.
But Queen Iseult didn't mind and listened with interest when Mordred did talk about her training. She frowned a bit when Mordred told her of the day's training, but Mordred had begun to get more animated and reassured the queen that she absolutely was not scared at all and felt herself swell with pride at the queen's praise for her bravery. After the bath had been filled, the servants were dismissed to go fetch Mordred her clean garbs in her room. Mordred didn't undress however and the queen seemed to understand before she graciously walked out of the room and told her to knock when she was ready to come out, for her servants would be waiting.
But Mordred waited for a few more minutes even as the water began to lose its steam before she was absolutely certain, even after going so far as to listen at the door. Satisfied, Mordred quickly undressed herself, her feet slapping the wooden steps, and standing in front of the large tub. It wasn't quite full, but it was more than suitable depth for one her size. She dipped a toe in and was satisfied by the heat, so with a wide smile she stepped into the bath.
The water was simply heavenly and Mordred let out a long sigh of pure bliss that something as wonderful as hot water could exist. She rested against the backhead of the tub and closed her eyes before sinking into the depths, just allowing herself to float weightlessly in the water. True to the queen's words, the water began to help relieve Mordred's aches and pains, and the squire simply rested for a longer while. She ducked under the water when one of the handmaids came in unexpectedly to deliver Mordred's clothes, but the squire thankfully didn't have to wait long before she left the folded clothes and boots on a nearby cushioned stool. But the sun had almost fully set by the time the squire felt the water start to go cold. So she got out and began to dry herself off before she put her clothes back on and knocked on the door. The servants went to go about their duties when one of them informed Mordred that the king demanded her presence. Mordred wondered just why King Mark wanted to see her, but she was more curious than anything else and immediately left for the king's throne room, her aches and pains still present, but were now only slightly distracting.
~~0~~
It wasn't long before she arrived at the grand hall, adorn with the tapestries and flags of the lords and knights sworn to his service. His throne room had black and white tiles that looked very similar to a chessboard, with a long blue carpet that extended all the way up to his throne. The king was looking grouchy as usual and Mordred approached him before stopping several feet away, kneeling as per the custom demanded. King Mark's horse ears and mane had been removed, but he still had a long face and tended to snort when he was angry, which was often. His clothes and crown were rich indeed, but as per usual to Mordred's eyes, he looked less majestic and more shabby than King Arthur. On his left and right were two knights in full plate armor with face concealing great helms, each holding a halberd that was taller than they were. They were bedecked in blue capes with the black wyvern symbol embedded into the fabrci
"Rise, young squire.", said King Mark eventually and Mordred obeyed. The king, despite his surliness, had an oddly troubled look on his face. This worried Mordred and she asked, "What is it that you need of me, Your Majesty?"
"Ordinarily, I would have had my retainers or somebody less important pass on this grave news I have for you. But I feel that in this case, it is much direr and you ought to hear it from mine own mouth. Mordred… I just received a letter a few moments ago that a group of sellswords led by a particularly sick freak known as" Breuse Sans Pitie". I would normally let my knights deal with this, but this concerns you directly because your mother, whom I had brought under my protection, is well... Agh, I shall let you read for yourself."
The king held out the letter and the cold feeling in Mordred's stomach began to fill her body as she approached him and practically snatched the letter out of the king's hand as she began to read aloud,
"TO THE CUCKOLD KING, ",
Your knights are weak and pathetic before my blade. Your lords are fat, stupid, and too slow to catch me. Your serfs and peasants are helpless as lambs before my pack of wolves. But more importantly, I have discovered your blasphemy and wickedness on full display. Truly, this is the sign that I am God's righteous vengeance upon you and your sinful people.
The witch you have been harboring in open defiance of King Arthur, the murderer of Urien Rheged, Morgan le Faye, is dead..."
Immortal: DUN DUN DUUUUUUUN! Oh man... what a cliffhanger to leave this on! Oh, but don't worry, I just need you guys and gals out there to leave reviews on your thoughts, what you think, and what you predict will happen for the next chapter!
So here's a little something to keep you folks interested and keep the reviews coming in... The Adventures of Mordred the Squire will after the next chapter come to an end.
But in its place shall begin a new saga.
"The Adventures of Sir Mordred"
Gudako: LEAVE A REVIEW SO THIS LAZY MORDRED SIMP WILL GET TO THE GOOD STUFF!