For all you readers who are probably thinking “What the heck,” yeah, I agree. No one’s crazier than Xavier.
He gets like that sometimes. Well actually, it’s more like every time we have a quest, which is most times. I like to ignore that factor.
So anyways, I was talking to Arthur when that idiot charged down the path. Aragon was a timid beast. He didn’t like getting scared, and he definitely didn’t like running fast. It took a lot of effort to catch up to the crazy kid and his horse.
I caught up to him at the top of a hill that overlooked the capital, where surprisingly, he and his horse had waited for us. It looked more like they’d suddenly forgotten how to move because Xavier looked dumbfounded, an expression I rarely ever saw on his face. Curious, I followed his gaze and my jaw dropped. It was astonishing. Houses lined the streets, everything clean and whitewashed twice over. I saw people the size of ants bustling about in crowded stone streets, setting up markets or chatting with each other. The lavish decorations dotted the city, a mirage of colors greeting us from below.
The most amazing part though, had to be the king’s castle. It towered over the other buildings, sparking under the sun. Its white-washed walls looked brand new, even though I knew it had to be centuries old. I’d never seen anything more beautiful.
Arthur eventually caught up to us, ignoring how both his brothers were staring down at the capital like the lowly peasant idiots we were. He glanced at the capital like he’d seen stuff like that millions of times before. Always leave it to Arthur to be the calm one. He gave Xavier a scolding for taking off before leading us towards the city gates. Slowly, we winded down the path. The sun was beaming down on us, and nature itself seemed to be reaching out towards us, inviting us towrads the capital.
I was stuck in the back. Aragon was still resting, so he did a slow trot behind the others. He was a strong white horse. The only problem was that he was lazy most times, or, well, basically every time he wasn’t in danger of getting killed by some ugly monster. I sometimes wondered if it was because he wants chocolate too. Honestly, I didn’t think it was good for them, but Xavier kept treating his horse to candy. Talk about spoiling your pet.
Xavier still looked astonished to see our surroundings. Then again, he hadn’t been to many places before, though he'd seen his share of ugly mucks in need of monster purging. His black hair was light brown under the sun, and his eyes were sparkling, his left green, his right brown. Just another strange thing about the kid.
He glanced over at me and gave me a happy, peaceful smile as if he’d forgotten all about our dispute in the morning. I had a flashback to a time six years ago, when I had seen the exact same smile. I gritted my teeth and forced a smile back. Xavier innocently smiled again and turned back to study the landscape.
I don’t hate Xavier that much. He’s just a pain when we need to leave for a quest. He acts so unwilling when he’s always the one having the most fun.
The memory pushed its way back into my mind. I clenched my teeth, trying hard to push it away. That was why I didn’t like looking at Xavier. It stirred up many unwanted memories, especially those about Galahad.
Ok, I’m getting a bit ahead of myself. Forget everything I just said. I don’t know a Galahad. Well, actually, Xavier’s real name is Galahad, but I prefer calling him Xavier. It was what he usually called himself, even though he magically became the great Sir Galahad when we’re off on a quest. I still called him Xavier though, and it’s not mostly to annoy him. Mostly.
Why are the three of us named after the Knights of the Round Table? Because Father was a crazy fan. So Arthur got to be the great king, Xavier the greatest knight, and I got stuck with Lancelot. I mean, he’s great and all, but personally, he’s not my most favorite character. I try hard not to get linked with him.
We arrived at the city gates. Arthur spoke to the guards in his all leader-like mature way, and we were allowed in. I couldn’t help thinking everyone would die to have a leader like Arthur, good people and bad people alike.
Why? I guess mostly because he was perfect, just like a king. And he always got what he wanted. Only those really big and ugly monsters and villains were able to stand under his gaze without being influenced into doing something other than what they'd been planning.
Arthur’s light brown hair shimmered under the sunlight. His smile literally radiated perfection as he smiled and waved at the city people who had crowded the streets just to look at us, his green eyes twinkling kindly. Hans trotted slowly in front, allowing the kids to come up and pet him. Arthur even let a kid ride on his legendary horse for a while.
Hans was a legend mostly because, well, he just was. Sorta like how Arthur just was perfect. There was no explanation to it. His sandy coat was always clean, mostly thanks to Xavier. He could pull a carriage by himself, run for hours without stopping, and emit a neigh so powerful that most minor monsters flee in fear.
Pluto was a bit of a legend too. Xavier had found him roaming in the wild when he was eleven. Somehow he’d befriended the beast, and they seemed to share a weird understanding between them. Pluto was pitch-black from head to hoof. As he demonstrated before, he could run faster than the wind, although only long enough to lose an enemy.
The castle loomed over us, but not in a menacing way. Even the dark side of the castle seemed to be sparking, showing off its brightness and power.
Soldiers stopped us at the gate. We dismounted our horses and followed their lead to the stables where we left our horses there. Xavier managed to throw Pluto another candy bar before we were ushered in. He really does spoil that horse.
We were led into the palace. I had to pinch myself really hard to believe that I wasn’t dreaming.
Everything around me was red. Red, red, and more red as far as the eye could see, and all in every single shade that existed for red. A deep crimson carpet covered the floor, leading down a long hallway that had alizarin red walls and ruby chandeliers draped with magenta cloth fixated onto the ceiling every five yards. The walls were covered with paintings of former kings, queens and nobles. Huge rose tinted windows lined the right of the hall with scarlet curtains draping from them.
I started to feel dizzy, and I could tell Xavier was too. We had never seen so much red in our lives before. I didn’t know about Xavier, but I was used to seeing green. Hills, plains, forests, and such. Maybe once in a while we come across some blue or white, especially in the skies, but still, not red. I didn’t know how people could stand seeing this color every day, everywhere.
Of course, Arthur casually followed the guards, urging us to get a move with it. He got used to things so quickly that you’d think he’d lived there all his life.
We passed a small door. It was white, probably the only thing in the hall besides the paintings and the door in front of us that wasn’t red. It was a relief to see some other color. A tiny golden shape decorated the center of the door, but it was so small, I couldn’t make anything out of it. I thought I heard something from behind it, but the soldiers led us through the gigantic red door at the end of the corridor before I could register what it might have been.
The soldiers opened the door with a lot of effort, and we were ushered inside a large room. It was dark, but I faintly saw two golden thrones on the other side of the room. Arthur started towards them, leaving me and Xavier no choice but to follow.
As we reached the middle of the room, the lights were suddenly switched on. I flinched and looked down. I wished I hadn’t.
I was standing in empty space. Nothing but blue sky and clouds were underneath my feet, little dots of buildings far below where I stood.
I yelled in terror and leapt backwards. Sad to admit it, but I was scared of heights. Absolutely terrified of them. Xavier was beside me, his legs shaking. He probably was afraid that he’d fall through the sky, though at least he had magic. He could probably fly up if he fell. Me? I'd fall and go splat when I hit the ground.
There was a loud boom of laughter, and I looked up to see a handsome man in his forties looking down at us from his throne. A beautiful woman was on her own throne next to him. They each had a gold crown on their heads as they sat majestically on their thrones. They were so beautiful, you couldn’t really describe them. Describing them would’ve destroyed their image for others, if you know what I mean.
“Do not worry about falling to your deaths, my knights,” the queen said. Her voice was faraway and lofty, the feeling that one has when they’re unable to reach what they desire most. I didn’t like that feeling, but the queen’s beauty made up for it.
“I see our painting is very realistic, yes?” the king said, booming with laughter.
My mind drew a blank. I was standing on a painting? I wasn’t afraid of falling now. I was just scared by the fact that there were some people who were way too rich compared to people like us.
Arthur gave a deep bow. Xavier and I quickly followed suit. One thing you learned from living with my brother was that you always followed what he dis because he was always right.
“The floor indeed is very impressive, your Majesty. However, and I say so in the greatest respect, I believe your Majesties did not summon lowly peasants like us to exhibit your floored painting.”
The king laughed again. I guessed he must have really liked laughing. He said, “Very well put, young man. Indeed, we summoned you not to show off our lovely painting. We have a task we’d like you to complete.”
“Like a quest?” Xavier chirped. I wanted to punch him. Every time he’s in Galahad mode, the moment he hears the word ‘quest’, or something along the lines, he hears the word ‘quest’, or something along the lines, he forgets everything else. Even when he’s in front of the most important people in the kingdom.
Thankfully, the king and queen didn’t take offense. Instead, the queen said, “Yes, a quest it is. But as a warning, it will be dangerous. We cannot tell you much of the details beforehand, so the three of you must decide now whether or not you would be willing to take such a risk.”
Arthur glanced over at us. I knew he was waiting for our decision. He never made the choice of going on a quest or not, always leaving it to us to decide.
Xavier looked at me with pleading eyes. I glared back. He loved quests. His rule? The more dangerous, the better. The kid was always looking for trouble when he wasn’t sulking around. I mean, so was I, technically, but he was ten times worse in Galahad mode. He turned quest crazy in that mode, and I, I was only a fraction of that most times, and at least I kept my sanity with it.
He continued to stare me down. I raised my eyebrows and thought at him, Seriously? His head bobbed up and down like an idiot. I sighed.
“Fine, we’ll take it,” I said to the king and queen. Silence. Arthur glared at me. Praying to God that he wouldn’t kill me, I added as fast as I could, “Your Majesties.”
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