The Lady Knight

Chapter 4

          Morning came. 

    Dark clouds loomed in front of the sun, casting an ominous shadow over the land. The exhausted villagers put down their weapons for the day, finally heading to their beds after a long night of standing watch.

          A blood-curdling scream echoed throughout the castle, jerking the snoozing guards out of their light slumber. The residents flew from their rooms, weapons raised as they rushed towards the alarm.

          Bursting through the door, the survivors shoved their way into the room. Lady Katherine was against the far wall, her hand covering her mouth as tears rushed down her cheeks. Wordlessly, she pointed to the bed.

          Drawing his sword, one of the men slowly walked to the side of the bed. There appeared to be a person sleeping under the dusty covers. Taking a deep breath, he yanked back the blanket and raised his blade.

          "A fake!", the man gasped, voice rusty with sleep. A bundle of dresses had been bunched up to create the illusion of a person.

          Kate couldn't believe it. She had gone to wake Alexandra, like always, but it wasn't her daughter lying in the bed.

          Without any explanation to the worried people swarming in the doorway, Kate shoved her way through and ran as fast as she could down the corridor, her bare feet slapping against the cool stones. She made her way through the Tower, bursting into every kitchen and dining hall with the dying hope that Alex would be inside, her feet casually resting against the table despite the servants' grumbling. Flying out into the field, she sprinted to the only other place that Alexandra could be.

          The stables were quiet other than the hushed mumbles of the boys attending to the horses. Kate, surely looking like a madwoman, pushed away one of the concerned boys who approached her and ran to the last stall, only to find it empty.

          Heart in her throat, Kate collapsed to the hay-covered ground. Tears continued to fall from her cerulean eyes, her cheeks becoming a blotchy red. She wrapped her thin arms around her stomach, providing little comfort.

          She examined the name that was carved into the wooden door of the empty stall. Nightmare was neatly scratched in with a heart next to the name, courtesy of a seven-year old Alexandra. She and Demetrius had done this together on Alexandra's birthday after the stables had first been built.

    Alexandra had looked up to her father ever since she was a baby. She still looked up to him, even long after his death. The memory of her daughter's birthday came to her mind as if it had just happened yesterday.

          "Can I see my present now?", Alexandra asked impatiently. She couldn't wait to see what her papa had gotten her.

          Giving his wife an amused look, Demetrius finally took off the blindfold off his beloved child's head.

          Alexandra gasped at the beautiful creature standing before her. The young colt was breathtaking; his midnight black mane shone in the sunlight, just like Alexandra's waist-length locks. Trusting grey eyes met deep blue ones, and immediately Alex knew that this horse would be her most trusted companion.

          "What's his name?" Alexandra asked, turning to her parents.

          "He is yours to name," Kate told her daughter with a honey smile.

          Putting her thinking face on, the child circled the horse. After completing her slow circuit twice, Alexandra stopped and put her hands on her small hips and raised her head with a pride rivaling that of a queen.

          "Nightmare," the child said proudly. Kate and Demetrius were shocked. Their seven year-old daughter was going to make her horse 'Nightmare'?

           Demetrius shook his head and let out a surprised chuckle. He scooped up his daughter into his arms and asked, "And why are you naming him Nightmare, child?"

          Alexandra lifted her head and stared directly into her father's eyes. She announced in her best attempt at a serious voice, "I named her Nightmare because if anyone messes with us, we'll become their worst nightmare."

          Tracing the name carved into the stall with her finger, Kate sighed. She knew where Alexandra had gone, but prayed to the gods that she was wrong.

          Giving the stall boys a reassuring smile, she hesitantly climbed back to her feet. Tipping her chin up, she smoothed her gown and brushed the strands of hay from her being before making her way back to the Tower. Kate stopped at the entryway and turned, scanning her experienced eyes across the empty land.

          After regarding the dangerous world her daughter had gone off into, Lady Kate raised her head and whispered, "Good luck, my little warrior."