One With Nature 2

The Rush: 2

Third POV:

"Is everything ready?" Gawain asked Lancelot as the two rode their horses right outside of Camelot's western walls with Percival and the soldiers meant to accompany them.

Lancelot, who was in charge of preparing the troops, nodded. "All soldiers and supplies are accounted for. We should make the trip to Snowdon without a problem."

"Alright," turning to face away from Camelot, Gawain looked at the dark horizon as the sun had only just began rising from the East. "All troop, move-"

"Wait!" Someone called out.

Turning their steeds, Gawain, Lancelot, and Percival were surprised to see another knight heading towards them on his own steed. What surprised them wasn't the sight as much as the identity of the knight itself.

The Green Knight.

As soon as he appeared, the soldiers began whispering amongst themselves. Percival looked pleasantly surprised, but Gawain and Lancelot simply looked at each other with questioning looks, wondering why he was here.

"Sorry about that. Had trouble finding a decent horse," The Green Knight apologized as he reached the members of the Round Table.

"Are you... Are you truly the Green Knight?" Percival asked. He knew that anyone can wear an armor, as such he didn't want to get his hopes up.

"Indeed, and these two can vouch for that," the Green Knight replied, motioning to Lancelot and Gawain.

"That is true," Gawain nodded before asking. "Sir Z... Green Knight, may we speak privately for a moment?"

"Alright," the Green Knight nodded as he and Gawain whipped the reigns of their horses and moved away from the group.

As soon as they were far enough to not be heard by the rest, Gawain stopped his horse, turned it around and looked at the Green Knight. "What are you doing here?"

Zack shrugged his shoulders. "I wanted to join, so I asked Arthur and I got permission."

"Then why didn't you inform me or Lancelot?" Gawain was obviously not pleased by his glare. "Our supplies are accounted for every member to ensure the city's own supplies do not suffer. Even if it's just one more person-"

"Oh, don't worry about that. I don't need to eat," Zack replied, cutting Gawain off.

Gawain's stern glare kept up for a few more seconds before he sighed and shook his head. "Very well. If it is his majesty's desire, then there is no problem. However, be sure to inform us of such things before hand."

"Well, I do apologise and feel sorry for forgetting to tell you, for what it's worth," Zack said as he and Gawain returned to the waiting soldiers and knights.

Gawain nodded to Lancelot, signaling that Zack will join them and that he'll explain later. The knight of the lake nodded back, receiving the message, while Percival looked at them curiously.

"All troops, march!" Gawain turned his steed west and began riding forward. Lancelot, Percival, Zack, and the soldiers charged behind the Knight of the Sun.

Time Skip:

The knights have been guiding the soldiers for the entire day. Only late into the evening did they stop to rest and make camp. They had made some considerable distance, but they still had a long way to go.

Gawain was walking amongst the troops, looking around to make sure everything was as it should be. Lancelot was on guard duty for the night, and Gawain would switch with him after dinner.

The knight of the sun saw a large group of soldiers gathered in a circle. Getting curious, Gawain walked close by and tried to see what they were looking at.

At the center of the gathering was Percival, cooking a stew on a large pot over a bonfire, but that was not what the knights were gathered for. What had the soldiers' attention, including Percival's who was cooking on the pot, was the Green Knight who was apparently telling a story.

"So, I grab him by the face and start pouring liquid fire down his throat," Zack said, making motions with his hands as if he was choking someone while covering their mouth.

"Isn't that a bit extreme?" One of the soldiers asked.

"Ah, but here's the thing with vampires," Zack raised a finger, saying his point. "There's no such thing as 'extreme' with blood suckers. They all have healing abilities. Unless you have holy weapons, you should aim to do as much damage as possible to beat them before their regeneration picks up."

The soldiers seem to eat up the advice and story. Even Percival seemed thrilled. "That's incredible. I've never encountered Vampires, but I've heard of them. I never expected to meet someone who fought their kind," the latest knight of the Round Table stated.

"Oh, I've fought way more weirder things in my travels than just Vampires. I have all kinds of stories to share," the Green Knight replied before crossing his arms. "But that has to be all for tonight. If I tell you all my stories now, I won't have anything to say for the rest of the journey."

The soldiers seemed dejected but understanding. Before they start feeling down, however, Percival called, "Dinner's ready!"

As the soldiers began lining up to get their meal, Zack slipped away and stood besides Gawain. "So, you've fought Vampires?" The Knight of the Sun asked.

"Sure. Heard of them?" Zack replied with his own question.

"Yes, Merlin was sure to explain them to me should I encounter them," Gawain rested his hand on the hilt of the sword. "He believed that I would be the best suited to deal with them should we ever encounter them because my sword is powered by the sun."

"Hmm, I guess that's true," Zack hummed. "How long do you think we'll need to get there?"

"At least a week if we keep up this pace. Both Vortigern and King Lot are sure to get there before us but they'll run into each other before reaching the weapon," Gawain answered.

"I'm guessing they're not exactly on friendly terms?" Zack questioned, tilting his head.

Gawain scoffed. "Hardly. Vortigern's reputation amongst other Kings couldn't be worse than it already is, and it's not without reason. They'll probably be fighting each other by the time we reach them."

Zack shrugged. "Hey, that just means we should focus on getting the weapon, whatever it is."