"Knight part three" by Alexis Paige Millan

Now, it is easy to practice, and prepare to be knocked off your horse by a guy with a big stick, but actually doing it is another matter. Bryn was not off to a good start. In her first match she broke only one lance, and came very close to falling off her horse. This would be very bad, because if a knight is dismounted, his opponent keeps the horse as a prize. This is not a disaster for a wealthy nobleman, but a terrible problem for Bryn, who has only one horse. Her second match was even worse, though this is to be expected, as the opponent was considered the greatest knight in all England. Sir Cedric was a very wealthy nobleman with very old money. He broke all three lances on her helmet, beating her by six points and pleasing the crowd at her expense. This is all rather predictable. The unpredictable, and very unfortunate part, was that after this Bryn became infatuated with sir Cedric. Not by his manner or appearance, mind you, for he was rather old, and certainly not what you would call attractive, but by his skill and bravery, as she saw it anyway. She became determined to equal him in competition, much to Edward’s dismay. Her goal was no longer to make a decent living of the sport, but to become the best. She trained non-stop, looking forward to the day when she could meet her hero in battle again.

As time passed Bryn became much better. She traveled to small tournaments on often won prizes, but it frustrated her that she was only beating the mediocre stars of the sport. She decided that she would compete in the tournament in London, hoping to face off with Cedric for the championship.

“You already know that I think you are in no way prepared for this. I think you should stop this whole thing now, before you get hurt.”

“Edward, your concern for my safety is overwhelming, but why, pray tell, should I stop now? I have become something more than a moderate success, and we are making a good living. Tell me you don’t eat better now than you did as a poor country boy.”

Edward did not respond to her. It seemed pointless. He was not really concerned for her safety, though it turns out he should have been, he was concerned about her pride. If she faced Cedric again and lost as badly as she had the first time, she would be quite disillusioned. Even someone like Bryn has their breaking point.

As they approached the outskirts of London the effects of the tournament were already visible. There were people hanging out of windows, heralds singing of their approaching knights and drunks wondering the streets. Drunk men. Even after her masculine experiment Bryn could not understand the joy men found in drinking away a weeks wages. It was apparent that Sir Cedric had already arrived at the tournament. He had with him several dozen servants, all wearing his family crest, and they were at present scurrying all over town making preparations for their lord and making sure the gamblers knew who the certain winner was. Bryn and Edward tried to contain their awe, for, truth be told, it was the first time either of them had been to London.

Bryn played the tournament well. All the nobles, and certainly the gamblers, were soon wondering who this young newcomer was. Lord Bryan won all of her matches, and was set to meet Lord Cedric in the match for the championship. She was scheduled… if certain complications hadn’t arisen first. She had all intentions of fighting him. In fact, both knights had mounted their horses and saluted and were about to make their first run when… a very large dragon descended on the tournament, landing right in the middle of the field.

Now, before you say anything, I want you to remember that this was a very different time. Dragons were quite common and regarded as despicable pests. They ranged in size from as small as a mouse to as large as the largest dinosaur. These dragons did indeed exist, and the only reason that no evidence of them can be found today is that, like seagulls, they fly out to sea to die, where they quickly decompose and are unlikely to leave any fossilized evidence.

Anyway, the very real dragon descended onto the unsuspecting tournament. People ran, children cried, and high nobles shoved their way to safety. The only people left were Bryn, Edward, Sir Cedric, and his squire. The dragon loomed forward, smoke curling out of its nostrils. The squire was the first to go. He had only stayed this long because he was too stunned to move. Bryn pushed Edward out of the way, he would gladly have helped, but she felt that this was not the place for a man without armor. Secretly, Bryn felt a chill run through her, the chance to fight alongside her hero against a common foe, it was almost too good to be true. She approached the dragon slowly, unsure of how to begin fighting it, only to take a blast of his fiery breath to her shield. Now certain that slow and steady was not the way to approach this, she ran at the dragon with full force, stabbing as high as she could reach with her sword. The dragon roared in anger and grabbed at her with its claw. Bryn looked over to Sir Cedric for assistance, but was shocked to see him running headlong for the exit gate. It seemed a long moment as she watched him run. All of her admiration and adoration ran with him. She was so consumed by this life-altering moment that she almost forgot she was standing next to a very angry lizard. Said lizard, who was not experiencing anything life altering knocked her over with its tail. Jolted back to reality she turned to fight. The dragon was again clawing at her, but this time she took advantage of it. She ducked the claw, and as it passed over her head, she caught a finger. The dragon, who, being a dragon, was not very smart, stared at the spot she had been standing, wondering where his lunch had gone. This was all Bryn needed. She jumped from the dragon’s claw, thrusting forward her sword deep into the chest of the beast. The monster roared and bucked, her sword still stuck in its hide, as she fell to the ground. It thrashed for a moment longer before taking flight again, possible to fly out to sea, but more likely to go lick its wounds until it could face this knight again.

Bryn lay still for a long time, long enough that Edward, fearing she had injured herself in the fall, rushed out onto the field. By the time he got there she had come to her senses and was slowly standing up.

“My God, my little Bryn, ah, Bryan, are you alright? That was terrible!”

“Yes, it was, wasn’t it.” She replied, though she wasn’t thinking of the dragon. “I suppose then the joust is off?”

Edward chose to ignore her serious tone. “Of course it’s off, the defending champion is halfway across the channel by now.”

“Really?” She replied, before realizing that is was a joke. She smiled. In the long run, the loss of an idol who didn’t really deserve the respect he had been given wasn’t really a tragedy. If there can be a moment when a young girl can become a true knight it was this. Bryn understood that being a knight was not about winning tournaments, but about following the old ways, and doing what is right. As Edward helped her off the field she began to rethink her life’s destiny. She had to follow the ways of chivalry, and the ways of the knight, because it was in her blood. It was what she had to do. The noise of the returning crowd had grown from a low murmur to a resounding cheer. She looked at Edward and smiled, fairly certain that he understood what she was thinking. He tried to speak, but she couldn’t hear him over the roaring crowd, all of whom were chanting: “Hail, Sir Bryan! All Hail…”

And is that indeed the end of her story? Most certainly not, what about that dragon, and Sir Cedric, whatever happened to him? And did anyone ever discover her true identity? Her lordship’s tale is a long and adventurous one, wrought with danger and peril at every turn, and if you will come visit me again, little one, I will tell you more about your grandmother: my darling little Bryn.