The Beast of Caer Baddan (46 page)

Even though Owain did not care for her, she felt fortunate that she was his wife.

Chapter Thirty Six: Change

When Britu arrived at the small fortress on the wall of the City of Venta, he noticed that the guards jump to attention.

“Prince!” one said, taking his mount. “We were not expecting you!”

“I was not expecting to come here,” Britu replied.

The warden was brought immediately and expressed the same surprise.

“Where is the Gewissae prisoner?” Britu asked.

“Still confined,” the warden replied. “He gives us no trouble. Has the king sent for him?”

“I have come to take him,” Britu said. “Show the way.”

The warden brought him inside, down the passage ways, to the very last cell. The bar was lifted and the door opened for Britu to enter.

He found a young man lying on the cot, a look of boredom on his handsome face. The man appeared to be strong, well nourished, and in reasonable spirits, and Britu felt relieved by this knowledge.

“I am Britu Prince of Atrebat,” Britu said.

As he spoke, he thought how silly he was, talking to a Gewissae without a translator, but then he noticed in the younger man's eyes that he understood his words.

“Who are you?” Britu asked.

“Why do you ask?” the prisoner replied. “So you can execute me?”

Leola had spoken Latin to Britu but her speech was halted and she had not pronounced all of the sounds correctly. But this man before him was schooled like any Britannae prince. His speech was impeccable.

“You are the Prince of the Gewissae,” Britu said.

“What if I am?” the man asked.

“I shall take you to the Town of Tiw,” Britu replied. “You shall be made King of the Gewissae in your father's place.”

Britu saw the shock on the younger man's face.

“Why are you doing this?” the man asked. “Why would you do this?”

Britu remembered Owain's words to him in his tent the morning before he died.

“When you are battle leader, you shall do as you see fit.”

Britu was not a dominae, far from, for he had never received an honor from the emperor. But within the Kingdom of Atrebat, Britu was the battle leader and had been for over a year. Now standing in this prison, he knew what was the correct action to take.

“The Gewissae need a king,” Britu replied. “You are the perfect person for that position but only if you are ready to rule your people.”

The man came to his feet and straightened his clothes.

“You are correct, Prince Britu,” the man said. “I am Aluca, eldest son of Giwis King of Gewisland. I'm more than ready to be king in my father's place.”

Britu nodded and directed the younger man out of the prison cell and down the narrow passageway to freedom.

Four days later brought King Emrys and Queen Madge to the castle in Baddan. They were a pleasant couple, and Leola was grateful for their company even though they were strangers to her.

“They are fine boys,” King Emrys said.

“And look exactly like their father,” Queen Madge said.

“Have you decided what their names should be?” King Emrys asked.

“Owain for the elder and Emrys for the younger,” King Irael replied.

Leola started in surprise at these words. It never occurred to her that she could not name her children or that their names might even be predetermined by a tradition other than her own.

King Emrys seemed surprised as well, yet for a different reason.

“You name the younger after me, King Irael?” he said. “I am honored indeed.”

“You are their godfather,” King Irael replied. “Had they been daughters they would have been Elen and Madge. Gratianna was to be called Elen, but Owain felt he could not name her thus because of the child's mother.”

Leola noticed his eyes grow pained as if he were remembering a great sorrow. She doubted that Gratianna's mother would cause such an alteration, and thus decided he must be thinking either of his wife or son.

“They shall both be called by my name as well,” he continued, with forced cheer. “I wish to ensure that the kingdom is passed on without any questions.”

“Very wise,” King Emrys replied.

The two kings talked of other things, as Queen Madge stroked the babies' little faces.

“They are quite beautiful, but I suppose that was to be expected,” she said to Leola.

“I suppose,” Leola replied, self-conscious of her
speech now that she was expected to reply to strangers.

“And early too, from what I heard,” the queen said.

“The midwife said six weeks too early,” Leola replied. “Which is what I had guessed.”

“Very early.
But they do look well. Emrys is perhaps a bit yellow, but many babies are when they are born. Owain Irael and Emrys Irael.”

Leola wrinkled her face and looked away.

“What is wrong?” the queen asked. “Princess, tell me what it is.”

Leola gave her a reluctant smile.

“I do not like their names,” she whispered.

“Oh,” the queen said in some surprise.
“Of course. They must be strange to you. But you know Latin well. Do you like them in Latin?”

Leola thought but could not decipher what they would be.

“Can you say them to me?” she asked.

“Well, let me see,” the queen said.
“Euginius Aurelianus for the elder and Ambrosius Aurelianus for the younger.”

“Euginius Aurelianus and...” Leola mused.

“Ambrosius Aurelianus.”

They did sound very well.
Regal. Beautiful even. They seemed like the names for the sons of a powerful prince, names that would command respect and admiration from knights and lords alike.

“Ambrosius
Aurelianus,” and Leola giggled. “I suppose I do like them.”

“Good. We shall stay for the dedication, and of course you know that King Gourthigern and Queen Severa shall be here as well.”

Please, no.

Leola had been forced to tolerate Britu's presence for the two days leading up to her labor. She did not wish to see his horrible mother now that she was recovering.

“But you cannot be much in company,” the queen continued, “for rest is the best cure for exhaustion. Rest and laughter.”

“True,” Leola said with a smile. 

“King Irael,” the queen said, “you must hold Euginius. He is your heir.”

“No, no,” King Irael replied. “No babies for me. I shall admire them from here.”

“Really, King,” King Emrys said, in amused surprise. “You always worry that you shall drop them. I dare say you never carried Prince Owain until he was five and no longer wanted to be coddled.”

King Irael laughed at the thought. “I must confess
, I believe that is true!”

Yet for all King Emrys’ insistence, King Irael would not touch the babies, and soon the two left Leola’s rooms and went out to the library.

“Do not be offended, Princess,” Queen Madge said, gently.

“Oh, no, of course not,” Leola replied, with a confused shake of her head. “I just never thought he would not want to hold them.”

The queen let out a long sigh. “He is only afraid of hurting them.”

Leola was surprised by these words. The thought of such a gentle, caring man harming his grandchildren was ridiculous to her.

“I wonder why,” she said, bewildered.

“He did pick up his son when Prince Owain was only a three months old,” the queen replied. “But they say the king’s hands shook so violently that he dropped the baby, and so he would not touch small children after that.”

“He dropped him!” Leola cried.
“How terrible! But why did his hands shake?”

“From the fever.”

Leola frowned, trying to think. “The fever he had when his father and brother died?” she asked. “I thought he was twenty then. That is half his life ago.”

“He was one and twenty, I believe, and that is more than half his life ago,” Queen Madge said with a laugh.

“But surely enough time has elapsed that he would not be endangering them,” Leola said. “I have never seen his hands tremble.”

“Oh, I doubt that his hands shake anymore,” the queen replied, “but it is the memory that troubles him.”

Leola realized that the king's concern must have stopped him from bonding with his young granddaughter.

Father afraid of dropping Gratianna, and Gratianna thinking he does not love her!

Leola was certain that he did care for the child, if only he could overcome his fear.

I shall have to mend that.

“After the dedication, we shall have a little feast, just the six of us,” the queen said. “Won’t that be nice?”

“I- I’m not sure I want to be in company at all,” Leola said.

“Why not?”

Leola hesitated. She liked Queen Madge but was not sure how much she should tell her.

“I shall be expected to speak to people,” she said, at last.

“But you speak very well,” Queen Madge replied. “Surely that cannot worry you.”

Leola's mind flew to the ordeal she had with Queen Severa less than nine weeks before.

“I’m a commoner-”

The queen laughed and gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

“Do not let that trouble you, my dear,” she said. “Not everyone is born a prince. In fact, my own husband, Emrys, was born a commoner.”

“He was?” Leola was shocked.

“Certainly.
It wasn’t until long after the people of Pengwern had rebelled against King Gourthigern, that they elected Emrys as their ruler.”

Leola was impressed at such an honor, that a people would chose to make a man their ruler as opposed to hi
m conquering and subjugating them.

“Why did they elect him?” she asked.

“He was something of a hero I suppose,” the queen said, her eyes betraying her false modesty.

“Tell me,” Leola prompted.

“Well,” the queen replied. “There was a knight of the Coritani who was very cruel and heartless toward the people. He stole all of the meat and wine for himself and his friends. He chased the women, even very young girls. Everyone hated him, but he was a grand warrior that no one could beat. He was called the Basilisk, for he wore the image of a huge venomous serpent on his breastplate and on a ring he wore on his right hand.”

Leola was amazed. She had always thought that Britannae knights were villainous towards the Gewissae women because they were their enemy. Now she realized that all people were afraid of knights. Everyone that is but the princes, for she knew how the knights in the Britannae camp had revered Owain and perhaps
were themselves afraid of him.

“Now,” the queen continued, thinking of the events, “
the Lady of Gore was a daring warrioress who feared no pain. She did not care that no one could defeat the Basilisk. She was determined to try herself. She scaled his fortress and fought his guards and his friends, all fierce knights themselves. She killed or wounded nine of them until she found her way into the great hall. There she met the Basilisk all dressed for battle. They fought there, and the Lady of Gore was vanquished. As she lay on the floor at his feet, the villain said to himself how she had angered him by beating his friends. He then devised an evil way to punish her for her daring. He decided to kill her by cutting off her fingers, and then her toes, and then her hands, and then her feet, and finally her head. She would have died had it not been for Emrys.”