Page 1 of The White Knight

Prologue - Part I

Lancelot

I am startled awakefrom a deep sleep. The sound that stirred me awake was something between a roar and a screech. The dragon. In an instant, I am on my feet, reaching for the sword on my hip. But it is not there. As I look around, searching for my weapon, I do not recognize my surroundings.

Tall, ancient-looking trees surround me. Long sticks of wood topped with greenery. A sprinkling of snow decorates the forest floor. I walk a few paces to my right, where the trees stand aside to offer a breathtaking view of an endless forest. I know in this moment that I am no longer on the island of Britain.

I am lost. Far from home. From Guin. How far? When will I see my love again?

A pain in my chest brings me to my knees. I should have never left her. She was mine to protect, and now she is alone again. An agonizing wail escapes from the deepest depths of my soul. I do not care if the dragon hears my screams. It knew I meant to kill it, so it dropped me in the middle of nowhere with no means of returning home. A fate worse than death.

I will make it back. I must. For Guin, my life, my beautiful wife. I will make it back to you. I close my eyes and envision her before me. Her dark copper strands of hair entwined in my fingers. She is stroking her swollen belly, a joyous smile plastered on her face. This vision is one I have had many times. Even before we wed. I have dreamed of Guin as my wife, the mother of my children, my life partner.

And I swear on all that am, I will return to her.

First, I need to find my damn sword. I take inventory of what has survived the flight. Two daggers are still secure in the sheaths against my thigh and ankle. Most of my armor is still intact. The clothes I am wearing underneath will not keep me warm enough though. I will need to find a large enough animal with a thick hide I can skin.

Despite being late March, this place is considerably colder than even the highlands of Britain. I am unsure how long winter will last here, as I do not know how much farther north I am.

Trudging along, I comb through the area of the woods where I had awoken, searching for my sword. After scanning behind a cluster of trees quite a distance away, I find it stuck in the ground.

I am now surrounded by trees with no view of the outside world. Since I need to get a better bearing on my location, I walk back out to the small clearing. The sun seems to sit lower in the sky, but it still feels like it could be late morning or perhaps the afternoon.

It had been nearing evening when my men and I began our pursuit. The dragon must have flown all night with me stuck to one of its spikes. I do not remember dismounting or falling. Why did the beast not kill me? I only remember the look in the dragon’s eyes before it took flight. And where was the dragon now?

I had heard it just as I woke up from a dreamless sleep. But I do not see any signs of the beast anywhere in this part of the forest. I will have to stay hidden. Learn the terrain. Survive.

“Guin. I promise. I will find my way back to you,” I speak aloud, hoping some god hears the desperation in my voice and sends a message to Guin. I need her to know I have not abandoned her.

Prologue - Part II

Guinevere

The light of themoon shines brilliantly against the temple, casting it in a luminous luster. It looks younger than I remember. Almost as if I had stepped back further in time. Or perhaps the priestesses have only renovated the once dilapidated roof. But even the rough and worn edges are as smooth as freshly carved stone.

As I walk up the west-facing steps, I notice a soft white light pulsing from within. The temple is still open on all sides, but I cannot see what is causing this unnatural light. Even though the moon is full and bright in the sky, it is not the source.

Suddenly, I feel strange. Something is off. My stomach swells with anxiety. A cramp causes me to keel over, making me fall sideways. Before I hit the ground, a soft, feminine hand reaches out from the light, pulling me back up.

I follow the pale skin of this hand up to a face I recognize but cannot place. Her eyes are the brightest blue. Her hair, platinum, shining from the white light pulsating from her body. And even stranger are her ears. They are pointed.

She is smiling at me with sparkling tears pooling in her eyes. “Hello, Guin.”

A gasp falls from my lips as I recognize her voice, finally meeting her face-to-face. “Excalibur?”

She nods assuringly before pulling me into a warm hug. “My name is Elnaril,” she says, stepping out of our embrace.

“But how is this happening? How am I able to see you?”

“It is nearly time for me to leave you, Guin. But I did not wish to do so without saying goodbye.”

“Leave?” My heart cannot take another loss. But it’s not my heart that pulses in this moment. My flat stomach, which should be rounded in my late stage of pregnancy, throbs as another contraction shakes from within, and I almost fall over again. “What do you mean, leave?”

“Your son, Galahad, will leave the safety of your womb soon. I must depart with him. I must protect him and prepare him for his future.”

“My son?”

Elnaril pauses in thought, looking up to the moon hanging so close to us in the sky I could reach out and touch it. “I never intended to hurt you. I need you to know that. I did not know everything that would come to pass. Only that you and Sir Lancelot would conceive a son. And this boy would one day become the bravest knight Britain has ever known. A man of patience, piety, loyalty, and purity.”

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