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cbraund
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United Kingdom of Great Britain
Jan 2001
time: 05:20
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Hmm... Interesting.
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Arthur Pontalazzo always knew he was different from the others. It wasn't only because his wavy black hair and dark complexion made him stand out from the other children at the orphanage. There was something almost magical about the way he was able to see the connections between things - putting the pieces together like a great jigsaw puzzle. When the abbott first noticed Arthur's powers of perception, he immediately had one of the monks begin tutoring the boy. Though Arthur was a quiet boy and the community remote, it wasn't long before his unique abilities gained the attention of the powerful Duke of Tabiz. If Arthur's late father hadn't been such a good friend of his, the abbott would never had tried to protect the boy from the Duke's ambitions. No one ever crossed the Duke without regretting it...
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"Where has he gone?!" The Duke asked impatiently.
"We don't know lord."
"Then find him! The boy may work out who he is!"
Arthur Pontalazzo was the son of the King, his real name being Arthur Pendragon. His father wasn't dead as he was told, but his mother died giving birth to him. His father had remarried, and sent him to the Abbot to live as a common person, then to become a soldier, so he would make a fair and just ruler.
The Duke of Tabiz, or Calais as it was more commonly known, had just had the King assassinated.
Now he had to find the boy and kill him before the Abbot could get him to Westminster Abbey and be crowned King. If he could do that, then as the closest relative to the throne, the Duke would be King.
But where was the boy?
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Ponty, as he was known to his friends, couldn't understand the hurry of the Abbot.
"Why must we go to Westminster?" He asked once more.
"I will tell you when we reach the Tower of London." The Abbot knew that if he could reach the Tower of London, the Keeper of the Tower knew who Arthur was, and would defend him. Also the crown was there.
Once in the Tower, they would be safe, and then able to march with the guard to Westminster Abbey.
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The Duke raced ahead of his men, all on horseback, determined to reach London.
He entered the city soon, but already had seen the flag on the Tower.
It meant the King was in residence.
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Ponty had received military training while in the Abbot's care, and had proven himself deadly with a very un-Kinglike weapon, the longbow.
But he was also one hell of a swordsman, but only 16, just old enough to be crowned King.
He knew he would have to fight for his throne, as many would try to take it off him, but already his mind was piecing together how he could rule England.
Then he heard the horn. He rushed to the Tower walls with the Abbot and the Keeper.
"What is it?" He shouted. He saw the Duke and an army waiting outside the moat. They had been keeping Ponty and his small guard stranded inside the Tower for days.
"The Duke," an aide replied, "has merely come to accompany the King to Westminster."
The Abbot, always too trusting for his own good, persuaded Ponty to accept. The meeting would take place on the drawbridge.
Ponty was worried by it.
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The Duke rode onto the drawbridge, then dismounted, and knelt before his King.
He kissed the hilt of Arthur's sword, a sign of obedience.
Then, as he stood, he drew his sword in one quick stroke.
He went to slice upwards at the King's throat, then without a word, dropped to the floor, a longbow arrow stuck in his throat.
"Who disputes that I am King now?" Ponty asked, stepping from the crowd. A double had taken his place at the meeting, as the Keeper had thought it too dangerous for the King himself to go to it.
There was only one voice that spoke in dissent from the other side.
A brute of a man, carrying a huge battleaxe walked onto the drawbridge.
"I am the Duke of Tabiz's champion! You have slain my master in an honourless way! If you are to be King, I say that you must prove you can fight honourably!" The man shouted.
"I accept." Arthur said to the Abbot's horror.
The man and the boy bowed at each other, then charged, the King with his sword drawn.
The axe swung down hard, and Ponty ducked under its swing. He sliced at the hand holding it, then moved as the axe arced back up ready for another swing.
The brute kicked out at Arthur, and sent him flying to the ground. He swung the axe towards Ponty's head, but Ponty kicked out, taking out the man's legs.
He slammed to the floor, and Ponty quickly got back up.
The axeman stood, looking for his prey. He found it when a sword swing chopped off his hand and sent it and the axe into the moat.
The giant of a man swore and screamed in pain, and drew his sword in his left hand.
He charged at the boy, determined to use his strength.
Ponty parried, then ducked and slid the sword into the man's stomach.
He slid to the floor, gasping.
Ponty was King.
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The King entered Westminster Abbey, knowing that his latest rival, Peter Bosworth, was only a few feet away.
But surely he wouldn't try anything at a coronation?!
The answer came as the monarch reached the stairs to ascend the throne. Peter wouldn't, but Henry of Oxford would.
Henry called out for a test of combat against the new King, then drew his bow.
The King crumpled to the ground, the arrow through his heart, as Ponty slipped out the door.
He heard combat between Henry and Peter. Neither he knew cared about him. Henry was supposed to have been his guardian, and had betrayed him. Peter had actually remained loyal, but now was more worried about his own claim to the throne.
He left London quietly, deciding he preferred the simple life. Power seemed to corrupt everyone, and make them untrustworthy. Even the Abbot had proven himself to be a supporter of Henry, as it sounded from the brawl inside the Abbey.
Ponty stood in the great oak's shadow, sighing softly to himself. So it had all come to pass and he was still here. With one last look back at the city behind him, he reached up onto the low-slung branch and clambered up into the foliage's shelter, leaving the world to its own devices once more.
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What do you think? Poor I know, but I didn't want to take very long lol.
Comments appreciated.
Chris
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29-06-2002 02:56
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