Black Crystal Part 1 - The Origin

Chapter Forty Nine ~ The Final Battle

The bells of temples all throughout the City of Portland began to ring early that morning. Announcements of the marriage between Nicholas and Princess Lenora spread like wildfire across the whole City. Everyone wanted to attend it, but the Castle was already extremely crowded. Garen and John snuck into the reception hall along with the other Greycoats in the Castle, carrying their sniper rifles. "My goodness," Garen whispered to John, looking around at the Castle. "I feel like I was gone for too long."

"Look who you're talking to," John scoffed. "I've been gone nearly ten years. At least the Castle still looks nice." One of the Greycoats in front of them turned around and sharply shushed them.

"This is the wedding we've all been waiting for," he hissed. "Don't screw it up for the soon-to-be Prince." The Greycoat looked forward once more as they marched along, and Garen exchanged glances with John.

Soon-to-be-Prince? Garen thought to himself. The Greycoats in front of them stopped marching, which was their cue to stop as well. They all turned towards the center of the reception hall. Across the way stood another line of Greycoats in front of a large audience. Garen noticed the large group of people behind him as well, people looking forward to seeing the wedding, but among the group was Millicent, Horace, and Rin. Where did Xander go? Garen thought to himself, but as soon as he did, a pair of double doors on the northern end of the reception hall opened up, where Nohr, Maevis, and Xander walked through, accompanied by an old man with a rounded body. The Chancellor. The spectators all broke into applause, and the first thing Garen noticed was that Nohr and Maevis looked like they were in very poor condition. Their usually bright , lively, and cheerful faces were replaced with tired, terrified, and scarred expressions. It was absolutely sorrowful to witness. Once the four entered, they each sat at the thrones, but this time, the Chancellor sat in Nohr's throne while Nohr sat in Lenora's.

"That's not right..." John whispered to Garen. "That's not right at all, dammit! The Chancellor does not deserve that throne!" Before he could say anything else, the hall went silent as Lucius walked up to the center podium with a Bible in hand.

"Wait a minute," Garen whispered. "Lucius is officiating the wedding? Don't tell me he approves of this..."

From the southern entrance, Nicholas emerged with a cocky grin, and the second Garen locked eyes with him, he immediately felt anger, knowing that was the man marrying Lenora. Nicholas approached the front of the hall and saluted his father. He turned towards the southern entrance, along with everyone else. Garen's heart started racing. The silence in the air was tense, but it was broken when Lenora emerged from the southern entrance. For a second, Garen felt his heart flutter. Lenora looked beyond beautiful, and she had a glow about her, almost like she was an angel. In that moment, Garen and Lenora locked eyes. Lenora knew they were his eyes, even behind his disguise, and the rest of the world faded away around them. Garen wanted that moment to last forever, but Lenora turned away from him and walked towards the front of the reception hall as if she hadn't seen him.

"Dearly beloved..." Lucius began, but his voice trailed off in Garen's mind. Garen felt like he was about to faint. Lenora and Nicholas were standing face-to-face, hand-in-hand. Nicholas was smiling, and Lenora had a solemn expression on her face.

Does she really love him? Garen thought. His heart immediately broke at the thought. So, she's made her decision... maybe it's for the best. Maybe that man could provide her a life I wouldn't be able to. Garen felt like crying, but he couldn't. Not when he was trying to keep up appearances. He stiffened as he watched the end of the reception.

"Nicholas Guinness," Lucius said, turning to Nicholas, "Do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

"I do," Nicholas replied with a grin.