The Paladin (The King Eternal Monarch AU)

Fallen Dominoes

[Update every three weeks now]

The entire ceremony went without a hitch. Still, her inner child always looked out for something to go wrong. It was just funny whenever anyone committed a faux pas or whenever an animal (usually a cat) decided to lick its butt right in the midst of the proceedings.

From the raised dais where the throne was, Elizabeth saw the telltale flash of a metal barrel. It was pointed slightly to her right, and she knew who the target was - James.

There was nothing to think about. She acted instinctively. She moved in James' direction. She saw the concern in East's face as she moved uncharacteristically towards James. He probably thought that she was just woozy. She wasn't. She had seen the gun and known where the bullets were supposed to land.

Everything happened in a split second and then there was a burst of pain in her collar bone. It hurt like a bitch but she remained standing. She saw James' turn to look at her incredulously. She knew he understood what she had just done. His face was full of rage - he was not going to forgive her for protecting him. That was her last thought before she lost consciousness.

Keith watched horrified as the Queen slid slowly down onto the floor. The royal guards surrounded her and she was quickly brought away, with South as the Paladin on duty. Alexis was also quickly marched away to safety by her own guards.

He spoke into his earpiece to get to Bryan. The Comptroller would send a signal to the television crew filming and broadcasting the naming of the Crown Princess. There would have to be footage that needed to be deleted. For now, live broadcast had to stop.

A bark from West kept him moving. The gunman was still in the midst of the congregation. He was trying to run but all the doors leading out of the Audience Hall had been locked shut.

The great white and gold doors directly opposite the throne were the last to swing ponderously shut. North parted the crowds in the front before heading down the aisle with murder in his eyes.

Keith ran down the left side of the Audience Hall while West ran down the right. North strode calmly down the aisle getting nearer and nearer to the lone gunman. Only Keith knew that his best friend was seething with anger under all that calmness and all that armour.

Royal guards made a circle around the congregation for their protection. Most of the congregation were bracing their heads as though they were in an aircraft which was about to crash.

The crowd gasped as the man tried to shoot North through his armour. The armour was an alloy of silver with rare metals embedded. The bullets did not even stop the Paladin's advance. While a normal man would recoil, the Paladin of the North only slowed down a little before picking up his relentless, implacable pace.

Keith knew for sure now, seeing how the bullets ricocheted, that armour made of alloy was definitely stronger than pure silver amour. It was one thing to know but a sight to behold.

With no bullets left, the gunman tried to swallow a vial of poison that he uncorked. But it was too late for him. North had arrived. He twisted the man's arm until the vial of poison dropped and deftly knocked him unconscious with his silver gauntlets.

The hall was deathly silent as they watched North drag the man bodily out of the Audience Hall with only one hand. Keith, seeing that the situation had been defused nodded at the footmen - allowing them to open all the doors once more.

Keith knew that Bryan, the Comptroller of the Royal Household would take over with the guests' wellbeing, as well as release a statement to the press as to what had just occurred.