Kingdom's Quest (3 page)

A JOURNEY OF WILL

The meeting with Cedric and the other Knights of the Prince was at first cautious, then joyful, then exciting, as all became aware of the mighty work the Prince was beginning. Initially, some of the knights fell into dispute regarding the Outdwellers, arguing that they must first be made citizens of Chessington and prove that they would uphold the Articles of the Code. But Cedric stood with Gavinaugh as he declared the words of the Prince and His intention to make knights of Outdwellers, regardless of their citizenship. In the end, the hearts of all were unified and confirmed, for they accepted and understood the Prince's intention to reach the entire kingdom.

At the counsel of the Knights of the Prince, it was determined that Weston should travel with Gavinaugh for a time on his journeys to other cities and regions. They departed the following morning to the port city of Kumbria.

Kumbria was a quaint city nestled between the lush, rolling hills of the country and the shore of the Great Sea. It was an access point for much of the trade from other coastal regions to the eastern kingdom. Ships of all sizes and origins dotted the harbor of the city. Gavinaugh and Weston found a few people who were willing to hear their words
from the Prince, but they perceived a strange fearfulness in the hearts of most. Ten came to believe on the Prince, and Gavinaugh and Weston began to train them diligently in the art of the sword to become true Knights of the Prince. Remarkably, they met no resistance, for there were no other knightly orders to take offense at their training.

One day while Gavinaugh and Weston were in the market square, a man approached Gavinaugh and spoke quietly, as though he did not want to be overheard. He glanced about the square as if searching for something or someone.

“What can I do for you, sir?” Gavinaugh asked.

“The prefect Sergustine of Kumbria wishes to meet with you,” the man said, continuing the search with his eyes.

“We would be honored,” Gavinaugh replied. “We will come with you now.”

“No!” the man said quickly. “He will meet you at his manor in the back courtyard tomorrow morning at sunrise.”

“We will be there,” Gavinaugh said, and the nervous man departed at once.

Weston scratched his head. “What is it about this city?” Gavinaugh asked him.

“I don't know,” Weston said. “The wealthy are certainly apprehensive, and I sense that our presence is becoming uncomfortable to them. Perhaps our recruits can give us an answer.”

That evening Gavinaugh spoke with a young man named Cade. He said he had been drawn to Gavinaugh and Weston earlier while hearing them talk in the marketplace. He was curious about the strange story of the Prince and the order of the Knights of the Prince. Gavinaugh spoke with him while Weston worked with the other men.

“But I thought a man must possess great wealth and train many years in order to become a knight,” Cade said.

Gavinaugh shook his head. “When a man's heart beats with the purpose of the Code and he follows the truth of the Prince, he is more
of a knight than one who owns great lands and has trained with a sword since childhood. The ways of the Prince are a great mystery to those who don't believe, but to those of us who do, they are life itself. The irony is that the Prince calls the poor and the lowly, and not many wealthy or mighty will accept these truths and yield to Him. For a short time they will have their reward, but your reward is so much greater and will last forever. A grand manor awaits you in the Kingdom Across the Sea. Your reward will not ever be taken from you—not here or in the kingdom to come. We have become like the Prince Himself—joint heirs to the kingdom—and we will rule with Him one day.”

“How can this be true? I am so unworthy … I am just a pauper.” Cade seemed quite perplexed by Gavinaugh's words.

“Those who know they are unworthy and yet believe are true Knights of the Prince, for it was the death of the Prince that made them worthy. Those who think themselves worthy by their own skill and power shall never see the King's kingdom. It is only through His Son that one can find the way—the only way!”

Cade's face shone with interest. “What of the other knightly orders? They seem to uphold many of the same ideals as the Code of the King.”

“Do not be deceived, young Cade. Only one order is the true order. Many are beguiled by the apparent goodness of the other orders, but they do not believe in the Prince or in His sacrificial mission to Arrethtrae. In reality, the Dark Knight is the architect behind these orders to entice as many away from the Prince as possible. He is as cunning as a serpent that has mesmerized its next victim. The ways of these orders seem right to many, but in the end, they will be destroyed.”

“What of those who live by the true Code of the King? Are they worthy?”

“No man save One has perfectly fulfilled all of the Articles of the Code, and that man is the Prince. If a man believes he is worthy as a knight because he has fulfilled the Code, he is a liar and fools not only
others but also himself. It is the Code that brings understanding to our unworthiness. Only when one accepts the truth of the Prince and His mission here in Arrethtrae is he worthy to become a Knight of the Prince. He cannot fulfill the Code, but nevertheless he is worthy because of the Prince alone.”

“Do we then not live by the Code if we are unable to fulfill it?” Cade asked.

“May the King forbid it!” Gavinaugh said. “Because of the Prince, we are made worthy and we establish the Code all the more, for our hearts desire the ways of the Prince and to become like Him who fulfilled the Code to perfection.”

“To believe in the Prince … it seems too simple, Sir Gavinaugh.”

Gavinaugh smiled. “It is the simplest and the hardest thing you will ever do.”

“Why do you say it is hard as well?”

“You must understand that if you become a Knight of the Prince and live by the Code, you will encounter great adversity. There are those who have left the order because of such challenges. The Prince requires complete surrender of all that you have and all that you are
to Him
. This is why the wealthy and the mighty find it nearly impossible to yield to Him. He must become their Lord, and often their pride and greed prevent it. When you become a Knight of the Prince, you join an order that is contrary to the rest of the kingdom, and you then become the adversary of the greatest enemy of the King that has ever existed—the Dark Knight and his Shadow Warriors. If you choose to follow the Prince, you must prepare yourself for great battles, young Cade. But remember that the Prince has promised that He will always,
always
be with you!”

Gavinaugh could see the light of truth twinkling in the young man's eyes.

“Are you prepared to take up the sword of the Prince? To give Him all that you have and all that you are? To honor and serve Him in all
that you do? To endure the adversity that will surely come to you as one of His knights?”

“I am!” Cade answered.

“Kneel.”

Cade reverently dropped to his knees.

“Do you believe in the Prince, the King's Son, and in His death on the tree to save you? Do you believe that He rose up from death and lives?”

“I do,” Cade answered.

“Will you take up the sword of the Prince and uphold the King's Code unto your last breath?”

“I will.”

Gavinaugh unsheathed his sword and touched Cade's shoulders with it as he spoke. “Then I dub you Sir Cade, Knight of the Prince! Rise, Sir Cade.”

Cade stood, and his eyes gleamed with the light of his new life.

“All my life I have hoped to hear such words and thought them possible only in the words of a fairy tale. But here today I have been lifted from a life of despair and hopelessness into a life of promise and expectation. Now my life has purpose and meaning. I feel like a new man.”

Gavinaugh placed a hand on his shoulder. “And that you are! Now you can help me discover some truth.”

“What could I possibly teach you, Sir Gavinaugh?”

“Tell me about Prefect Sergustine.”

“I don't know very much about him, but he seems to be an honest man,” Cade said.

“Our presence here seems to have made the leaders of the city nervous. Do you have any idea why?” Gavinaugh asked.

“You are probably right, but they always seem nervous to me.” Cade hesitated. “I only know of rumors as to why.”

Gavinaugh looked into his eyes. “I am meeting with the prefect tomorrow. Perhaps your rumors will prepare me.”

Cade hesitated and then nodded. “As a child, I once heard of a mysterious dark warrior who visited the prefect years ago. It is believed by some that he is the true prefect of the city and that Sergustine is simply a pawn used to bring the wealth of the city to the mysterious warrior. Some claim that this dark warrior lives nearby, but most everyone thinks him to be a myth. No one will speak of such things openly, though.”

“Why not?” Gavinaugh asked.

“I'm sure it is just a coincidence, but a mischievous lad who claimed he saw this mysterious warrior one evening was found dead a couple of days after telling his story. People said he was kicked in the head by a horse, but some suspect that his untimely death was not an accident at all. I think perhaps your presence and talk of the Prince has resurrected this great superstition among the people. You should be careful, Sir Gavinaugh.”

“This all sounds quite bizarre, but rest assured … I will be careful,” Gavinaugh said.

That evening, Gavinaugh pondered all that Cade had said. There was indeed a strange and fearful heart among the citizens of Kumbria. It was a fear he had tasted once before.

BLACKNESS OF A SHADOW

At sunrise the next morning, Weston and Gavinaugh rode to the prefect's manor. They left their horses to graze in a field nearby and walked to the courtyard at the back of his estate. The courtyard was large and beautiful, full of flowering trees and shrubbery that was manicured to perfection. It seemed more like a garden than a courtyard. Many cobblestone paths branched off of the main walkway that led to the manor, each one inviting a passerby to partake in the beauty.