Author Games: A Knight's Valor

Task Seven: Female Entries

Lemaria Female: Ren Lancaster

The sky was clear. The sun shone brightly on the horizon, hanging just above the treetops in the early morning light. The birds' song drifted through the air as they hopped around in a field just below the forest. The scene was all too serene, all to happy. Yet the people who lived in the surrounding area were not. Despite the fact that a week had passed since the death of the kingdom's beloved king, it did not seem fair that the world did not go on mourning as the people did.

***

Shwack!

Thud!

Shwack!

Thud!

The air whistled as arrow after arrow went flying to the target, a volley of anger and sadness being directed into sport.

Ren watched as each arrow pierced the canvas, tearing a new hole. She knocked another arrow, her breath only just visible in the crisp morning air. After exhaling, another arrow was let loose, hitting her mark yet again.

Since the king's death, Renauda had become more and more involved in her training. She wanted, no, needed to become faster, better, stronger...braver. When the king needed her most, she had failed him. She blamed herself for his death. If only she had seen the traitor before it was too late. If only she had looked for them harder before they had the chance to kill him. Instead, she had been so caught up in herself-boring the king with stories about herself.

Not only that, but she had lost Cynesige when the king died as well.

"I'm going to find whoever did this."Only two days after the king had died, Ren was not going to let her grief stop her from avenging the king.

"Ren, you have to stop."

"Can you hand me my sword?" As Ren paced back and forth in her bed chambers, Cynesige stood against the wall. Obliging her, he picked up the sword she had been given at the first tournament task.

"Renauda, you're not going to find him, her, whoever it was. Not all by yourself anyway."

Ren sent him a glare, a bit confused as to why he was being so serious all of the sudden, when he normally couldn't keep a straight face for more than a few seconds. "That's why you are going to aid me in my quest. I have to go back up to that balcony, to see what I missed before."

"I can't help you anymore. The king's death is going to affect all the lands, I must return to mine. You should return to your family." Cynesige shifted his eyes down when her gaze found them. Her blue eyes that had worn a shadow since witnessing the king's death, darkened even more.

"Don't you see? I swore to protect the king with my life. And I failed. I can't go back, I could not do the one thing I had dreamed about doing. This was my one chance to prove myself, I can't go back a disgrace."

"And I can't stay, not anymore. I just came to say goodbye."

It was then that Renauda broke. After watching the king die in her arms, after not being able to save him, all those emotions that she had been holding down during the trials flooded to the surface. She had been strong for so long, and she just couldn't anymore.

"You are a coward!" She picked up a candlestick from the bedside table and flung it at him, narrowly missing his face. "Get out of here! I never want to see your face again!"

"Ren," Cynesige picked up from underneath his shield constructed of his arms. His eyes held concern for Ren in her hysterical state. "Please st-"