Night Of The Knight

I gazed up at the stars. The sun had just faded and the various constellations now lit up the night sky. I saw Gemini and Tauros. I saw Cancer and Scorpio low in the sky.

I was a knight in the kings army. I was granted knighthood mainly because I was the son of one of the greatest knights in history. Also partly because I had shown great promise in my training.

I sat upon Snowfire, my white steed. I had been training all my life for this day. It was the summer of the year 1213. England had just declared war on the French.

I rode up and down the ranks of soldiers. All of them were brave-hearted and hardened warriors, grim determination set upon their faces. I felt proud of commanding this legion.

We were located in Walton Castle on the coast of England. I was designated as the keeper of the castle by the king. I was responsible for defending and planning attacks out of the castle.

My aide came up to me and said, "Sir, the French are on their coast."

"Prepare the ships," I told him. He nodded and ran to the docks.

Our fort had its own fleet. It had five carracks and multiple smaller ships. We had to search far and wide to find sailors for all of them. We even resorted to hiring some pirates because we were short on manpower.

I turned to my men. They all looked up at me with hope and determination. But there was also the paralyzing fear of death in their eyes.

I usually shied away from large crowds. But now I couldn't. All these men were expecting me to say something inspiring to ally their fears. But the truth was, I was just as scared.

I had lived in the safety of the fort my entire life. Now I was going away to fight an enemy I didn't know. But I shoved these feelings down and spoke-

"Men! Our enemies are massing on their shores. Prepare yourself. This might very well be the fight of our lives. This is our duty. Defend our motherland. We will defend it with our lives! We may be going into battle with unknown enemies, but know this. We Will Prevail! I ask you to believe, men. Like our fathers and their fathers before them, who saw fit to protect this land. Think of our people back home." I raised my sword and shouted, "For Home!"

Everybody cheered and shouted. I could see restored inspiration in them. I was surprised at my success. I had nothing prepared and I just spoke from my heart. It seemed to have worked.

I then rode to the docks to check on the ships. Four out of the five Carracks had been prepared. The fifth one was swarmed with people and ropes. My aide came to me and reported the status of each ship.

As I had seen, the fifth Carrack had yet to fully equipped. Some of the smaller ships also need to be prepared. I went to the ships and spoke to the captains.

I also gave them an inspiring speech which resulted in yet more cheering. It was about midnight now. Everybody slept for a while before the ships were ready.

I too slept for about two hours. My aide woke me up and told me everything was ready. I started wearing my armour. I wore clothes on the inside first.

Then I put on my boots and greaves, gorgets and braces. I put on my chest plate and tied my cape to the back of it. I grabbed my weapons and my helmet and went outside.

All of the men were walking towards the docks, which was about five minutes away. I grabbed the reins of Snowfire and sat on his back. I nudged him into a slow trot.

Only knights and other people in high places of power rode on horseback. Everybody else walked or went into chariots. All the footmen and archers were in the front while the carriages containing equipment came up the back.

It took us about half an hour to get everyone was there. There was a role checking by assistants assigned by me. All the equipment was accounted for too. 

Everybody was restless and shifted around in their places. The sailors and some soldiers helped load the equipment onto the ships. The ships had already been stocked with food and drink to last a few weeks.

On top of the foreboding mood, there was a slight drizzle that made everyone shiver. After everything was checked and stowed, all the soldiers started piling on to the ships. 

We made an effort to evenly distribute everyone among the bigger and smaller ships. It was getting lighter as it was turning to day time.

I then rode Snowfire up the gangplank and onto the deck of the biggest Carrack. We now just had to wait for the wind to pick up. And it was, slowly.

I went among the soldiers and sailors and muttered words of encouragement. Soon after, the wind picked up and we started moving forward.

I then hoisted the flag on the flagpole. Everybody knelt and paid their respects to our country. I then tried for a similar speech to the night.

The fire in their eyes lit up again on hearing it. They all were eager for a chance to properly serve their country. They had all been tested by fire and all of them showed undying loyalty.

This inspired me too. We were now slowly picking up pace. We had just left the docks when battling horns were blown on all ships. This was the fight of our lives and we could not fail.

I then shouted, "To Battle!" All of my men also shouted along with me. This was my first trial and I did not want to lose it. I then gazed up at the sky, very well knowing that this may the final time I would see the stars again.