“There is always hope,” Rainna defiantly answered.
“We shall see,” Murlox replied with a crooked smile. He waved the guards to remove her. As Rainna disappeared and the chamber door slammed shut, Murlox turned and gazed fiendishly at the Book resting silently on the stone table.
The fire guards led Rainna up the stairs of one of the castle’s towers. They shoved her into her bedroom, locked the door and left. She looked around sadly. It was a simple room with only a worn bed of straw, a wooden table and a cracked mirror. It was hardly what one would expect for a royal princess. Rainna walked over to her bed and fell to her knees. Placing her head in her hands, she wept.
“When? When, my King, shall you deliver us?” she called out into the darkness. She rose from the floor.
Rainna looked at the jewels and rings on her fingers. She took them off and threw them across the room.
“They are nothing,” she cried. “All the riches of this land are nothing without my King!”
Rainna wept again.
Suddenly, a gentle breeze of wind rushed through her hair. It was soothing and cool. Rainna reached up to try and touch it, but she could not. She looked around quickly and saw a figure standing there in the darkness.
“Who are you?” she called out.
“Do not approach me,” the figure said. It was a young girl’s voice. “Take the Book to the city of Rone. Your King has heard you, Rainna. Your horse is ready. Speak of my instructions to no one.”
There was another gush of wind and the figure was gone. Rainna looked down at her hands. The rings and jewels had been returned.
Chapter Five
They rode together, Marsonee and Justin, on the road to Rone. It was late evening and the sun was beginning to set on the horizon.
“Will I get to see the King?” Justin asked. “Is he in Rone?”
“In time, all people will see the King,” Marsonee answered. “But, he is not in Rone. The King lives beyond the Great Divide in the Kingdom.”
“Are we supposed to worship Him?”
“The King is wise and just. We must be obedient to him. All things exist through the King. In turn, he gives us freedom.”
“Why does Flar not allow the people to speak of the King?” Justin asked.
“He fears the great power of the King,” Marsonee answered. “He knows that if given the choice, the people would choose the King over him.”
“And the Golden Knight, who is he?”
“Hmm…,” Marsonee chuckled. “Has it been so long that this generation has forgotten the tales of the Golden Knight and his Holy Order?”
“There is more than one knight?” Justin excitedly asked.
“Oh, yes, there is more than one knight,” Marsonee replied. “There are twelve knights in all, but the Golden Knight has been chosen by the King to be their leader. Many generations ago, long before your parents even walked this land, the King lived among your people and ruled over them. The Knights of the Holy Order were his champions and the protector of the people. No evil was allowed to form in the Kingdom before the knights would seek it out and destroy it.”
“What happened to them?”
“As with all things, the people eventually turned away from their heroes,” Marsonee sighed.
“And the King believes that I may be the Golden Knight?” Justin asked.
“Only time will tell, my young boy,” Marsonee replied. “That answer is not for me to know. Just the King can truly know your destiny.”
“You have doubts,” Justin said. “I can tell that, you know. You don’t believe that I could be the Golden Knight.”
Marsonee stared at him intently.
“There are great trials ahead for the Golden Knight and for this kingdom,” he said. “If you are to be him, I pray that you will be equal to the task before us.”
“You are very serious to be an angel,” Justin said. “You do know that, Marsonee.”
“And what makes you think that I am an angel?” Marsonee asked.
Justin pointed at Marsonee’s back. “The wings. I mean, they give it away.”
“They can be quite useful.”
“I like the wings,” Justin commented. “They really add something.”
“I am an archangel,” Marsonee said. “We are a higher order of the angels. And we are always very serious beings.”
“Can you tell me more about the Golden Knight?” Justin asked. “I want to know everything.”
“In time, Justin. In time,” Marsonee halted his horse. “It will be dark soon and the roads will not be safe for travel. There is a clearing up ahead. We will camp there for the night.”
“If you’re an archangel,” Justin said. “surely a bunch of robbers doesn’t frighten you.”
“It is not for me I am fearful,” Marsonee replied. “You have no weapon and I have pledged to my King to see you safely to Rone. We have journeyed far today. Rest will do you good.”
“I will be the Golden Knight,” Justin forcefully said. “I will protect the King.”
“To be the Golden Knight, my boy, one must put the protection of others before thy very self.”
Chapter Six
Princess Rainna rose from her bed and wrapped herself in a hooded cloak. There was a clap of thunder and a flash of lightning outside her window. Gazing through the metal bars, she could see a storm brewing over the castle. She walked to the bedroom door and pushed. It was locked. Taking a small hair pin from her mirror stand, Rainna began trying to pick the lock.
“Do not fail me now,” she mumbled to herself.
After several attempts, the door creaked open. She looked down the hallway. It was empty. Rainna slowly and carefully began creeping down the stone stairwell toward the castle’s inner chambers.
As she made her way down, Rainna could hear the columns of soldiers marching about the castle. She pulled the hood over face and avoided making any eye contact with them. Within minutes, she had reached the sorcerer’s chamber undetected.
The room was dark and hauntingly quiet when she entered. In the center of the room, the Book rested on the table. Rainna removed the hood from her face. As she approached, Rainna could not help but be awed by its peaceful beauty. She lifted it off the table with relative ease despite its size. She traced the cross design on the cover with her finger.
“You will be safe,” she whispered. “I will keep you safe.”
“A little late for a stroll, don’t you think Princess?” Murlox said.
Rainna turned quickly and saw the sorcerer standing in the doorway with two fire soldiers.
“I’m taking the Book to a safer place,” Rainna remarked. “Away from you and Flar.”
“I can assure you, there is no place better for that book than Devon Castle,” Murlox answered. “Now be a wise girl and return it to the table.”
“I don’t think so.”
“As you wish then,” Murlox slyly said. “Seize her.”
The fire soldiers stepped forward. Rainna stumbled backwards until she finally struck the wall. Suddenly, there was a blinding flash of light which filled the entire chamber.
“Aaahhh!” Murlox grimaced in pain as he tried vainly to cover his eyes. As he recovered his sight, Murlox quickly shot glances around the room. All that remained was himself and the two fire soldiers. Rainna and the Book were gone.
“Don’t just stand there!” Murlox gasped in amazement. “After her!”
Rainna raced down the hallway. Up ahead, she could hear the sound of approaching soldiers. Looking around quickly, she noticed another staircase.
“There she is!” Murlox cried, directly behind her. “Do not let her escape!”
Realizing there was nowhere to go but up, Rainna bolted up the stairs. They seemed to go on forever. She knew she could not stop as she could hear the sound of the soldiers behind her. Finally reaching the top, she swung open the wooden door and ran out onto the castle ramparts. The storm was in full force now with rain pouring down and lightning streaking
across the sky. Rainna looked around frantically as she found to her dismay that she was trapped.
“What do I do now?” she whispered, gasping for breath. “I cannot fail my King. I cannot fail the Book.”
Murlox and the fire soldiers appeared in the doorway.
“Wonderful weather we’re having, isn’t it?” Murlox sarcastically remarked.
“Not one step further or I’ll…” Rainna shouted as she lifted the Book over her head.
“Or you’ll do what, Princess?” Murlox heckled. “Go ahead and throw it over the wall and into the moat. We will simply retrieve it from the waters in the morning.”
Rainna looked over the castle wall in panic. In amazement, directly below, she could see her horse waiting, prancing in panic as a bolt of lightning flashed overhead, followed by a clap of thunder.
“You’re trapped, Rainna,” Murlox continued. “There is nowhere left for you to go. Surrender to me now and I will recommend a lighter punishment for you to Lord Flar.”
“No, I will not surrender! I will be your prisoner no longer, Murlox!” Rainna cried. She climbed onto the top of the wall. She could feel the rain streaming down her face.
“Very well then,” Murlox said. He motioned to the two fire soldiers. “I had grown tired of you, Princess, long ago.”
The demonic soldiers drew their swords. The blades immediately engulfed themselves in flames. They approached her with devilish grins on their skeletal faces. As they drew near, one of the soldiers raised his blazing sword to strike her.
“No,” Rainna almost whispered as she closed her eyes to accept her fate. She clutched the Book firmly against her chest. It began to glow.
An arrow streaked through the night sky and struck the fire soldier squarely in the face. He toppled backwards and collapsed to the ground.
“How?” Rainna gasped as she wiped a strand of hair from her face. She rose and gazed out into the stormy night. There, perhaps fifty or sixty yards away, a figure in white robes, basked in radiant light, hovered in the air supported by the flapping of his mighty wings. He held a bow in his hands with a quiver of arrows strapped to his back. He removed another arrow and reloaded the bow. With ease, he pulled the bowstring back.
“Get down! Get down, you fool!” Murlox screamed to the remaining fire soldier.
The second arrow struck the fire soldier in the shoulder. He arched back in pain and stumbled backwards, dropping his sword to the ground.
“Step off, Rainna!” the figure commanded.
“But, I’ll fall!” Rainna cried back.
“Where is thy faith? Step off!”
Rainna reached down and grabbed the fire soldier’s sword. She closed her eyes and stepped off the castle wall into the darkness. To her surprise, she did not fall. Rainna opened her eyes and saw a small, yellow, cushion of energy had formed underneath her feet. Despite the storm, it lowered her slowly and safely to the ground below and then vanished. The Book was no longer glowing. Rainna carefully placed it in her saddlebag. As she calmed and mounted her giddy horse, she looked up into the night sky to see if her rescuer was still there. To her surprise once again, the figure was gone. Rainna nudged her horse and galloped quickly away through the storm.
Murlox rushed to the castle wall in time to see the princess riding away. The wounded fire soldier stood, the arrow still in his shoulder.
“Speak of this to no one,” Murlox said, brushing the soldier aside. “I know where she is going.”
Chapter Seven
Justin and Marsonee sat around a campfire. Both of them held a stick with a piece of meat on it over the fire. The horses were tied to a nearby tree and a small, makeshift tent made of burlap had been put together.
“It’s hard to imagine an archangel needing to eat,” Justin said, taking a bite of his meat. “Or being such a good cook.”
“In your world, we must do as you do,” Marsonee replied. “Including sleep.”
“How many archangels are there?” Justin asked. “A couple hundred, maybe?”
Marsonee chuckled and looked up into the night. “No, my boy. Not a hundred. We are as numerous as the stars you see in the sky.”
“There’s too many stars to even count,” Justin remarked. “Have you been in many battles?”
“Oh yes, far too many battles,” Marsonee reflected. “Far too many comrades lost. But, as long as evil makes war on the good, we will stand ready.”
“Can an archangel die?”
“Yes, but not in the sense of your level of understanding,” Marsonee said, taking a bite. “Hmm…still slightly undercooked.”
“Will you train me,” Justin asked, “so I can be a great warrior?”
“No training will be required from me,” Marsonee replied. “Many things you already know. The rest will be revealed to you in the Book.”
“The Book?” Justin questioned.
“The Book contains the laws of the King,” Marsonee answered. “It is a guide to the Kingdom. Only through the Book can the Great Divide be crossed.”
“Is it the source of a knight’s power?”
“No,” Marsonee said. “All of a knight’s power and virtue flows from the King. And powerful, a knight will be. The Book is merely a gateway to the Kingdom.”
“Is the Book in Rone?”
“Unfortunately, my boy, it is not. The Book is in the hands of Flar, the fire lord, who now commands Castle Devon. That is why we must move quickly. If Flar was to discover who is the Keeper of the Book and destroy him, all would be lost.”
“If the Book is not in Rone, then why do we go there?”
“Because that is what I was instructed to do,” Marsonee said.
“You speak in such riddles, Marsonee,” Justin said. “I feel as if I will never understand.”
“Prophecy is never easy to understand,” the archangel answered. “But your willingness to learn and act on faith that what I am telling you is true is encouraging to me.”
They sat in silence for several moments.
“Do you know of Princess Rainna?” Justin finally asked.
“I know she is of the House of Devon.”
“She came to Arter once,” Justin said. “And I saw her. My parents say she does not agree with the rulings of Flar.”
“Did she see you?” Marsonee questioned.
“No, I don’t think so. When her carriage was coming through the village, she dropped one of her rings on the ground and I picked it up. I keep it with me, just in case I ever see her again. It’s been like a good luck charm for me.”
Justin stood up from the fire and walked over to his horse. He rummaged through his saddlebag.
“I have found that no charm can give one luck,” Marsonee said.
“Here it is,” Justin remarked. He tossed it across the clearing to Marsonee who caught it with his large hand. It was a beautiful ring with a large cross in the center. The cross was surrounded with gold, silver and bronze. “You would think she would have come back to get it.”
“And this ring came from the finger of Princess Rainna?” Marsonee asked.
“It did,” Justin said. “I will never forget it. She was so beautiful.”
“Devon Castle is far from here. I doubt that you will ever see her again,” Marsonee said. “Perhaps it is best if I hold onto this ring for now. Go and rest. I will take the first watch.”
“It looks like storm clouds to the east,” Justin said. “Do you think it will rain tomorrow?”
“I see the dark clouds that you speak of. But, they are far off. The sky is clear now.”
“Good night, Marsonee.”
“Good night, my boy, and do not be troubled.”
Justin crouched down and pushed the tent flap aside. He stared at the mighty archangel sitting sadly alone by the fire. Justin crawled into the tent and went to sleep.
Marsonee examined the ring again.
“I have seen this ring before,” he whispered to himself, “but I cannot recall where.”
Several hour
s passed. Marsonee rose and walked over to a small pile of wood. He collected several pieces and placed them on the fire.
Suddenly, the night was shattered by a scream.
To Be Continued…
The Adventure continues in The Golden Knight #2: The Battle for Rone! Coming Soon!
About the Authors and Illustrator
It all started when a 12 year old boy asked his father a simple question: “Dad, can you help me write a story for these characters that I created?” A few months would pass before the world of the Golden Knight was born. Justin Clark is a student at Cass Middle School and a member of its Art Club. Justin loves anime and superheroes. He draws and creates many of his own characters. His father, Steven Clark, has written stories, songs, stage plays and poems since high school. He is a graduate of Kennesaw State University with a degree in history. The Clark family (Steven, Leslie, Justin, Jason and Brooke) live in Georgia.
It was fate or sheer luck that brought Taylor Gibson and Steven and Justin Clark together. After responding to an online advertisement for an illustrator, Taylor was chosen out of a number of candidates to be the artist for The Golden Knight. With experience in graphic design and manga style artwork, Taylor was the perfect person to take Justin’s sketches and characters and bring them to life. Taylor lives in North Carolina.
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