The Knights of Aragon

Chapter 3

The Vault of Arathmus was a known legend that every child hears of. No matter what age you enter school in or if you were such a saintly child, the mothers make it a tradition to tell you the darkest truths before hearing the greatest triumphs of Aragon. I believed it to be a fairytale that mothers tell children to make them behave since this story does not have a happy ending for its hero.

Arathmus was the most beautiful lady in all the land. She was seen with many suitors pining for her and showering her with gifts of all kinds. Dresses, jewels, shoes. Anything you can think of, she had it. But Arathmus wanted something truly unattainable: Duke Dustan of Eiroclates. Eiroclatians were of a higher class and richer than anyone else, but she didn't care.

She did everything she could to catch his attention, but no amount of gold would make him notice her. So, one night, she sneaked out of her home and traveled to the Lake of Glass in search of someone who could give her the exact thing to catch the Duke's love and adoration. The travel took many days and nights, but she made it, nonetheless. In her desperation, she approached the lake and called out, "Lady, oh, lady. Give me my hearts desire. Lady, oh, lady. Tell me all that it will require."

Just like that, Arathmus saw a figure rise from the water but all she saw was a mere reflection of herself. "You, who summoned me, may call me Lady of the Lake," the Lady said to her, "I shall give you want you want, if you are willing to pay the price." Arathmus in her haste did not care of the payment. All she wanted was the answer to her question. "Please," she began, "What should I do to catch the attention of the love of my life?"

The Lady walked closer to her as the water in the lake ripples and moved in anticipation. "What your beloved craves is information, intelligence," she finally answers, "give it to him and he shall be yours." Arathmus, without a second thought, then asked, "Will you give me the knowledge he seeks?"

This time, her reflection comes to life and grins back at her. "I shall, but beware!" she exclaims, "This gift is not at all what it seems. This gift I bestow upon you will carry a great burden." Arathmus did not care for the warning and accepted the gift. So, she returned to her home and prepared a feast for the Duke and his company. At the end of the night, Arathmus demonstrated her gift to the men and the Duke immediately saw her value.

Six days later, Arathmus and the Duke were wed. However, word spread about Arathmus' gift of knowledge and fights began to rise. Duke Dustan used Arathmus to win the battles that broke out between his kingdom and others in hopes of unifying them. But, just as the Lady of the Lake predicted, her gift demanded a price. For the more she used her gift, the less she could see from her own eyes. The Duke argued with her to stop using her gift but Arathmus wanted more. More insight, more knowledge, more power. Until one fateful night, Duke Dustan died fighting in the battlefield as consequence for her selfish drive for knowledge.

Heartbroken, Arathmus ran to the Lake of Glass, demanding the Lady of the Lake to return her husband back. But all she said was, "Do you believe that villains deserve love? For, are you not the reason many lost their lives? You craved for power and paid the price." Arathmus, now completely blind to her own future, locked herself away from the world and wrote down everything she saw in her mind's eye. She shut it all out and kept everything in her vault.

The Elders have that so called vault in the church's basement. The number of extraordinary things that could be down there. Hidden texts and scrolls full of the unknown. They had it all stashed away. For no one to find. Until now. I cannot believe what I'm hearing. Whatever is in there can clearly give me some insight about what exactly happened last night. And if I'm correct, the Vault is the last known source to have true facts on what occurred in the last 300 years. No myths or legend or stories. Just the truth.