City Of Antioch

The Principality Of Antiochi

Outremer.ii

18th May 1268

The siege had only been going for a couple of day but already the walls were beginning to show their weakness and the lack of soldiers to man them proving to be more problematic than was anticipated. One man lay on his pallet reading a vellum bound book with a puzzled look on his face, a knock on the door made him look up and place the book beneath his straw mattress. The man got up and threw on his creased and bloodstained mantle, white underneath the grime of the past couple of days siege, with a red cross splayed across the chest; the uniform of a Templar knight. The man rubbed his short beard, Templar knights were forbidden from shaving but Merrick kept his beard as closely trimmed as he could get away with; he walked to his door and opened it to reveal young man, no older than 16 standing there with blood covering half his face.

"Are you hurt?" Enquired Merrick

The boy shook his head, panting to catch his breath.

"Take a moment boy, catch your breath"

The boy was wearing a black mantle with a red cross splayed across his chest, a sergeant of the Temple, a knight in training. He took one last deep breath and straightened himself.

"The Mamluksiii have broken the west wall, it won't be long before it comes down. You're wanted on the front line."

Merrick frowned and grabbed his sword, strapping it to his waist whilst running, he emerged from the building and could see nothing for several moments as his eyes adjusted to the light, but when the did what he saw made him freeze. There was a gaping hole in the western wall of the city and it seemed the Mamluks had started concentrating their siege engines on that wall, it would come down in minutes at this rate, and the Muslims outnumbered them inside at least four to one. Once the wall came down the city would fall in less than an hour, and not a soul inside would be spared, Merrick had seen it before. He cursed under his breath, he had a more important mission than defending a city, he turned and went back inside.

Merrick grabbed the book from under his mattress and turned to leave when he was thrown into the wall knocking over several jugs of wine as the earth gave an almighty shake. The wall had fallen. He threw the book and a loaf of bread into a sack and ran out the door. He heard the war cries of knights and Muslims alike and saw just a cloud of bloody smoke where the where the centre of the west wall once stood, he saw fellow knights he had known for many years falling under Mamluk swords with blood curdling screams; and he turned away from it all and ran down an alley.

Merrick negotiated the beehive of alleyways with practised ease, he had prepared for this situation long ago, knowing the walls of Antioch could not withstand the force of the Mamluk army should they set their sights on it. Halfway down one alley a couple of Mamluk soldiers saw him and made a beeline for him, swords drawn. Merrick cursed to himself and drew his sword. The mantle of a Templar granted him respect, power and the contacts he needed for this mission, it made him all too conspicuous in this situation though. He dodged the sword of the first warrior and brought his own up into the second, the curved sword finding the exposed flesh just under the armpit of the soldier and almost cutting the man clean in half, however Merrick's sword was now stuck and he spun the man around to take the blow of the first soldier, which sunk deep into his comrade's shoulder, Merrick loosed his blade and brought it crashing down into the man's skull.

Merrick tightened hi hold on his bag and continued down the alleyway. He emerged on a street that could not be avoided and had to roll to dodge a Mamluk spear, he picked up a discarded javelin from the floor and threw it with expert accuracy and it sent the Mamluk flying from his horse. Merrick turned and saw a sword coming straight for him and only just managed to get his own sword up in time to avoid losing his head, he spun around swinging his sword behind him as the rider passed and cut the horse along the back of it's knees sending the beast crashing to the floor and the rider catapulting off its back.iv

The rider got to his feet, his helmet having been discarded, and advanced on Merrick who saw the tell-tale star shaped white defect in the centre of one of his pupils, it was the Lion of the East, the Crossbow. Sultan Baybarsv himself. Merrick frowned, it was not his place to kill kings and change the course of history. Baybars advanced on him, both swords drawn and a murderous rage in his eyes, he attacked with a fury and skill that surprised Merrick and made him drop his bag and concentrate on the fight, gripping his sword with both hands. Merrick was surprised by the sultan's fighting skill, he knew the man was legendary, but then so was Merrick. And Merrick had many years more experience, but still he was fighting harder than he's had to in a while, he parried a strike at his neck with a flick of his sword and brought up his elbow which connected with Baybars' chin sending him stumbling backwards, but the sultan brought up his other sword with lightning speed and cut a deep gash in Merrick's cheek. The warriors stopped for a second and sized each other up, panting and circling like lions; then the fight started again with Baybars charging Merrick and Merrick fending off his blows again.

Then Merrick got lucky and managed to catch hold of one of Baybars' arms and push it aside giving himself an opening, he slashed viciously across the sultan's chest and kicked him to the ground, the sultan looked up at him, a look of surprise on his face. Then Merrick heard a whistling sound and turned just in time to cut down a spear that was coming straight for him, the rider who threw the spear drew his sword and bore down on Merrick, who ducked the man's blade and threw his own which buried itself in his back just below the neck, he turned and saw another rider coming towards him, spear held out in front. Merrick stepped aside and caught hold of the man's spear and sending him flying from his horse and into a wall where he lay limply. He then ran over to the man in whom his sword was and pulled it free, the sunlight glinting off the bloodstained blade and blinding him for a second, but it was enough and he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder.

Merrick looked from the arrow in his shoulder to the end of the street where at least thirty riders were charging down the street shouting their sultan's name. Merrick turned to run down a side-street but had to throw himself to the ground avoid arrows coming from soldiers the emerged from a doorway. He looked around and saw he was surrounded, trapped. Merrick lay on the ground as one warrior approached him, sword drawn and kicked Merrick's sword away, he then raised his sword and was about to strike when a shout stayed his hand. Baybars was on his feet.

"You are the first person to ever defeat me in battle, do you understand me?" The sultan spoke in Arabic and Merrick nodded, he had studied the language before coming to Outremer. "You would have killed me today had fate not intervened as it did, so you shall be left to the hand of fate." The sultan kicked Merrick's sword towards him and motioned him to stand.

You may leave, if you survive the dessert then you may live on, if not then fate is not as kind to you as it is to me. Go now."

Merrick, not wanting to try his luck got to his feet and walked away, he could feel the eyes of the soldiers on him, he gave one last look back and saw Baybars bending to pick up his book, his jaw tightened and he left the city of Antioch.

Los Angeles

2006

Merrick's eyes snapped open and he fell off his sofa, hitting his head on the coffee table. He shook his head, got his bearing and stood up. Of all the things in his past to dream about, why that; it was nothing, a blip in his history. Merrick looked at his bedroom door and his brow creased in a frown.

The night before

"THE Tara Maclay?" Morgan's eyes were wide with the realisation of what it meant

"Yes, you know of her?"

"I know of what happened, and believe me Merrick I don't want to be anywhere near when Willow finds out what you've done. And don't think you can handle Willow Rosenberg Merrick, she'll be beyond even you if she loses it again."

"Perhaps."

"Your arrogance will be your undoing Merrick." She stuffed her favourite guitar in it's case and picked up her suitcase of clothes and essentials. "I'd rather not be around to see it."

"Where will you go?"

"I have a house in Wales, I'll go and stay there for a while, probably visit my parents." She stopped at her bedroom door and turned back to him "I may not approve but you're in this now, take care of her."

She opened her bedroom door and walked over to Tara who was sitting on the sofa, she but down her guitar and suitcase and embraced the girl.

"His methods may seem odd at times Tara, but you can trust Merrick."

Tara looked up and sighed.

"You're leaving?"

"Yes, I have to go see my parents."

"But I just met you." The sadness in Tara's eyes was apparent. The girl obviously never had many friends. Morgan took out a piece of paper and wrote down several phone numbers and an e-mail address.

"Keep in touch OK?"

Tara nodded and Morgan headed for the door. She tossed her key to Merrick.

"Look after the place for me will you."

Merrick nodded and Morgan left. He turned to Tara and held out his hand.

"We should go home," she nodded and got to her feet.

Merrick went into his kitchen and poured himself a glass of milk, the dream still perplexing him. He had all but forgotten his time as a Templar. Then with the glass halfway to his mouth he had an idea and set the un-drunk milk down on his counter and headed for the door, throwing his coat on.

iDuring the time of the crusades (11th century to 13th century) the land of Outremer was divided into 4 states, these were the Kingdom Of Jerusalem, The Principality Of Antioch and the counties of Tripoli and Edessa.

iiOutremer was what the Christians called the holy land, the word means abroad or 'land beyond the sea'.

iii Mamluks (Arabic: مملوك (singular), مماليك (plural), "owned"; also transliterated mameluk, mameluke, or mamluke) was a slave soldier who converted to Islam and served the Muslim caliphs and the Ayyubid sultans during the Middle Ages. Over time, they became a powerful military caste, and on more than one occasion they seized power for themselves, for example ruling Egypt in the Mamluk Sultanate from

ivNo horses were harmed in the writing of this chapter.

vBaibars al-Bunduqdari (also spelled Baybars) (Arabic : ‬بيبرس‭ ‬البندقداري) (epithet: al-Malik al-Zahir Rukn al-Din Baibars al-Bunduqdari (Arabic الملك‭ ‬الظاهر‭ ‬ركن‭ ‬الدين‭ ‬بيبرس‭ ‬البندقداري)) (1223 – July 1, 1277) was a Mamluk Sultan of Egypt and Syria. He was a Kipchak Turk[1[2 captured and sold in Kipchak steppe. It was said that he was captured by the Mongols and sold as a slave, ending up in syria.

He was a commander of the Mamluks in around 1250, when he defeated the Seventh Crusade of Louis IX of France. He was still a commander under Sultan Qutuz at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260. After the battle he killed Sultan Qutuz on a hunting expedition, because he expected that he would be rewarded with the governorship of Aleppo for his military success; but Qutuz, fearing his ambition, refused to give such a post and disappointed him. Baibars then took power for himself and became Sultan.