Knights of the Faux God

Chapter 1: The Baptism

The merchant held up a light blue gem for Winston to see. A cold aura seemed to emanate from it, as if it was an ice cube under the grin of a summer sun. Cut to a brilliant and just about the size of a coin, it was made to fit in the hilt of a knight's sword.

"That'll be ten coins for ya. Malagmium." The merchant lifted his other palm.

Winston amusedly shook his head, a smile on his face. "Good price. Doesn't sound like a rip off." The knight slid a pouch of coins onto the merchant's table.

The merchant dropped the gemstone onto Winston's hand and pulled up the pouch to count the coins inside. He simpered and looked up at the knight. "There are twenty in here. It's always a pleasure doing business with you knights."

Winston gave the gem a closer look. The first side he saw showed a distorted version of his white face and silver hair. As he twisted his wrist to look at all other angles, the bright Monday sun created sparkles inside the jewel. Winston moved his glance to the hilt of his sword, and then plunked the stone right into it's gem slot.

A surge of power burst out of the jewel. A light as blue as the sky enfolded the blade. It stayed bright for a good five seconds, and then everything returned to how they were, except for the sword, which would remain enchanted for as long as it had the gemstone.

"Fantastic!" Winston slid the weapon into its sheath. "Can't wait to know what it does."

The merchant chuckled. "The last knight who bought from me wished to never need to use his stone."

"Why?" Winston swung the sack onto his back. "Was he afraid of adventure?"

Adventure. The five year old him merely fantasized of such. To be able to brandish blades and lash them at enemies. To lift a shield against the fangs of beasts. To go on journeys across places never before travelled! As a child, he was led to believe that all those things were just lies of novels. But when Winston had been given the opportunity, to train in the Academy of White Knights, he pounced on the chance faster than a Griffin catching a prey, realizing he'd be able to prove that the tales were not mere myths. Five years he spent with the warriors in the Kingdom of Armor. He'd put every second he could to mastering the art of swords and shields. Until ultimately the War God Animus himself deemed him worthy. Today, and for the rest of his life, his dreams would be fulfilled.

*******

Winston had ridden a cycosphere. An orb-shaped vehicle large enough to fit forty people at full capacity. The bottom half was made completely of steel, and contained an energy tank and plenty of fans and gears arranged to keep the machine flying for a year without recharging. The upper half was encased by tinted glass, allowing passengers to view the outside world without being ignited by the sun. Cycospheres were self-piloted, meaning they were able to drive themselves after receiving passenger instructions. Winston ordered his particular one to bring him to the Court of Morpheus Castle, and he arrived after merely seven minutes, zooming through eighty and six kilometers across the city.

A portion of the cycosphere's glass gasified, allowing for an exit. Then the knight followed a ramp leading to the grassy lawn of Morpheus Castle. Several other cycospheres were also landing, giving out mechanical whistles as they did. Many other knights began to swarm the field. There were also mages. A bunch of them, giving the crowd a variety of colors that were not silver or blue. It wasn't just Winston whose dreams were about to come true.

"Gleen, use your magic. I wanna see myself." A mage in red robes friskily combed her hair, in a futile attempt to make it look better.

"Hurry." The second mage grumbled as a mirror reflecting the first appeared. "If the castle's door closes on us, we might need to wait another season for the next baptism."