Page 6 of The Sword & the Stone

Before I could respond, a chorus of shouts rang out across the square. Ames and Reeno's reinforcements had arrived, a motley assortment of thugs and sellswords with murder in their eyes. They faltered at the sight of Excalibur pulsing with golden light.

Chapter Two

ARTHUR

All around us,people began to emerge from their homes and shops, drawn by the commotion and the otherworldly glow. They gathered at the edges of the square, murmuring in shock and wonder. Shopkeepers and merchants, mothers with babes in their arms, grizzled old men leaning on gnarled canes—all staring at me with a mixture of reverence and disbelief.

"The sword!" a woman cried, her voice shaking. "It's chosen someone at last!"

"Impossible," a man hissed. “The sword could never choose a woman.” But his eyes told a different story as he stared at me in disbelief.

A ripple passed through the growing crowd, building like a wave. More and more people poured into the square, heedless of the rain, their faces upturned and shining in Excalibur's light. Their awe was a palpable thing, pressing against my skin until I felt like I could barely breathe.

"Arthur," Merlin said cautiously. “We need to get out of here now.”

Just then, dozens of palace guards emerged from the streets like a steel tide, their crimson cloaks billowing in the wind. They marched into the square in perfect formation, boots striking the mud in unison. At their head strode a towering figure in ornate armor, a plumed helmet tucked under one arm.

"Make way for the Captain of the Guard!" one of the soldiers bellowed.

The captain came to a halt before the plinth, his eyes raking over me and Merlin, lingering on Excalibur blazing in my grip. Up close, I could see the lines of age and experience etched into his weathered face, the silver threading his dark hair and close-cropped beard.

"So," he said, his voice deep and measured, but not unkind. "The sword has chosen."

I couldn’t tell if it was anger in his voice or just confusion. The other guards surrounding him glanced at one another, then back at me as if they couldn’t comprehend what they were seeing.

It was not a question, but I answered anyway. "I suppose it has."

The captain studied me for a long, weighted moment, assessing me and judging. I met his gaze squarely, chin lifted. Never in my twenty-four years on this earth have I let a man talk down to me, and it wouldn’t be starting now.

Then, moving slowly and with great ceremony, the captain sank to one knee. He bowed his head, fist pressed to his heart in a gesture of fealty. "My lady," he said, the words with utter reverence.

All around him, the palace guards followed suit, dropping to their knees in a ripple of crimson cloaks and glinting armor. Their heads bowed as one, fists over their hearts, a sea of allegiance.

The watching crowd gasped and murmured, then slowly, hesitantly, they too began to kneel. Weathered knees and work-roughened hands sank into the muddy cobblestones as they paid homage. To me. Their future queen.

Holy gods…

I stood frozen, unable to comprehend what was happening. It felt like a dream, or maybe a nightmare. A day ago, an hour ago, I had been a nobody. A vagrant and a thief, scraping by on quick wits and quicker fingers. Now I held a legendary sword and a hundred people knelt at my feet, ready to pledge their lives to my cause.

But I had no cause. I was nobody.

A warm hand settled on the small of my back, startling me. But it was just Merlin. I glanced at him and found his eyes already on me, bright with awe. “Don’t let them see you falter. They’re hoping for it,” he whispered, so low that only I could hear him.

The captain rose to his feet. He approached me with measured steps, his expression inscrutable. "My lady," he said again, bowing his head. "By the ancient laws of Camelot, we must bring you before the king. He will wish to see the chosen wielder of Excalibur with his own eyes."

My stomach clenched with nerves, but I nodded. "I understand."

The captain gestured to his men. "Form up! We escort the lady to the castle." The guards rose in a clatter of armor, falling into formation around me.

I glanced back at Merlin, suddenly desperate not to be parted from him. He was the only familiar thing in this strange new world I'd been thrust into. "Merlin..."

He squeezed my hand, his eyes holding mine. "Don't worry, Wart. I'll be right behind you. I promise I'll find you as soon as I can."

I clung to his words like a lifeline as the guards marched me away, the crowd parting before us. We passed through the winding streets. The people pressed close to catch a glimpse of me, their faces alight with wonder and hope. Children darted underfoot, their laughter chasing me as they reenacted the moment I'd drawn the sword.

All too soon, we reached the castle gates. They loomed before us, wrought from the blackest iron, twined with vines of hammered silver. Beyond them, the castle rose in a sprawl of soaring towers and crenelated walls, its pale stone turned to molten gold by the rising sun. Crimson pennants snapped in the wind, the dragon of Camelot on their folds.

The guards led me across the lowered drawbridge, our footsteps echoing off the ancient stones. We passed through a labyrinth of courtyards and cloistered walks, past burbling fountains and gardens lush with herbs and flowers. Servants in the royal livery stopped to stare as we went by, their eyes wide.

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