King Arthur: Battle for the Sword

Chapter 9

I had another unusual dream, with the same unfamiliar woman insisting to be me in it. It was a diabolical nightmare scape that horrified me to my core and I wished I could forget it, but there was no way I could.

I was standing a heap of corpses. A mangled mess of remains under my feet, all draining out into a river of red. I heaved, covering my mouth as I stared at the features of the carcasses below me. I identified them as people I recognized, from Olivia, Lady Blackshire, other maids I grew up with, and worst of all, Arthur. His dirty blonde hair was matted to his head by crusted blood. His normally blue eyes now pale and gray.

"It is our moment to rise! We should not be discouraged! The Daughter of Merlin oversees us as we take back what is ours!" A man's deep voice reverberated around me. I glanced around terrified, trying to find its origin. Before I could, the remains caved, making me sink into them.

I shrieked, thrashing around trying to grab onto anything, anything to make me stop falling. The hooded personage in my dreams flickered around me, ridiculing me as I fell deeper into the hole. It laughed at me, calling me a string of vulgarities that are too wretched to be true. I felt the tears flow down my face as the sense of doom sitting in my gut was only getting worse.

I hit the earth, shooting awake, gasping for air, and clutching my heart. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, Rose-" Arthur's voice spoke from beside me, his hand touching my shoulder.

I trembled, the panic almost becoming too much, "relax, it was only a dream... Breathe." He mumbled. He recited his words as if they were an ancient song. Arthur's low voice pacifying my senses into a foreign calm. My breathing relaxed after a few notes, making me feel leaps better than I had moments before.

"Do you mind my asking, but, what happened?" He murmured. I took in a long breath, wondering if I should keep the truth from him. I peered at his face, his cerulean eyes soft with perception. He had night terrors? I nictitated doubtfully, it was unheard of royalty having these bad dreams.

"Rose?" He whispered, his fingertips moving my locks behind my shoulder to reveal my face. "I-I... I was standing on a pile of bodies... They belonged to people I knew- people I know. Then..." I hesitated, thinking if I should keep out the part about what the man said. I shook my head, "Then I fell, into a hole... The bodies caved into themselves... I woke up when I hit the ground." I ended, looking at the foot of the bed. He said nothing for a time, then I heard him breathe.

"I once heard that dreams are our worries for our future... That the uncertainty of the unknown follows us into the dream world. Some say that dreams are warnings of the future and that we should listen to their warnings." He replied, looking away from me, "You decide to believe your dreams, or try to find the deeper meaning behind them." He laid back into the bed, "In any case, you're safe here, with me." He sounded, settling back into a more suitable position.

I swallowed, shaking my head, "How can you be so certain Arthur? I should have been safe in the castle, but here we are." I waved my hand in front of us, gesticulating to the small room we were in. "And here you are." He exhaled. I groaned, trying my best to not be frustrated with the King. It must have been a King or a man thing. I never found myself this frustrated in the presence of a woman.

"We leave for the Northern part of the land tomorrow at sunrise. I recommend you get some sleep. You'll need it." He rolled away from me, leaving me with my philosophies.

***

We ambled down the winding footpaths of the countryside, the only noise coming from either of us was the sound of our horse's movement.

Some of Arthur's men were leading us and some were trailing us, granting us enough range to be private, but not enough to be ample. I, for one, was not content with the lack of women around me. I was used to ladies, so being around men I got frustrated or quiet. An abnormal occurrence for me.

Arthur subsequently cleared his throat, "We're going to be passing through a village soon. Try to not be so... antagonistic." He flashed me a smile, making me roll my eyes. "I am agreeable!" I defended. He lifted his eyebrows, "Oh really! Then let me tell you something, it's a village of wicked men who haven't seen women in months and they have no manners." He waggled his finger at me. I narrowed my eyes at him, not being able to tell if he was being playful or telling the truth.

He regarded me for a moment, then let out a snort, "Relax! It was a joke!" He ticked his lingua at his horse and rode ahead of me. I moaned, shaking my head at the frustrating man that was now in front of me so that I couldn't defend myself anymore. I could tell he was teasing me, it seemed to be something of his nature to give people a hard time.

"Rose..." a melodious song called from somewhere around me. I looked about, trying to find the person who was trying to get my awareness. "Rose..." the voice spoke again, getting louder this time. I turned my head toward the tree line and gasped.

There at the point of the forest was someone in a black disguise, observing the horses go by. I sensed their eyes on me as we strolled passed making my epidermis crawl. My mouth hung open, "Arthur." I muttered, not recognizing if he was going to be able to hear me or not. I stared ahead of me, "Arthur." I spoke louder, looking at the person at the edge of the woods. "What?" He answered, seeming annoyed. He stopped his horse so that mine could catch up to his, "Arthur!" I almost shrieked, watching as the person lifted their hand, a weapon aiming in my direction.

Arthur's orbs mirrored mine and he paused, grabbing the back of my dress, yanking me off the horse, "Brigands!" He shouted as I hit the dirt with a plop. I stared up, "Arthur! They aren't brigands! They talked to me!" I yelled as the men around me geared up to defend Arthur and me.

"What are you talking about woman?" Arthur demanded as he drew his sword, "They said my name!" I screamed as I rose to my feet before I was swept backward. I flew through the sky, "Grab the Daughter of Merlin!" Someone shouted as I connected with the earth.

I groaned, feeling my side and back begin to burn as I settled on the ground. I gasped, the feeling of the wind leaving my lungs. I whimpered, my body beginning to feel as if it were on fire as I realized that happened. I saw specks in my vision, the white spots whirling around as I hopelessly tried to move away from the struggle. My eyes fluttered as I watched helplessly as a dark silhouette moved toward me, kneeling to look at me. I heard cries around me before I blacked out, shouting things that I couldn't understand. My eyes lulled closed as I completely fell into darkness.