By Order of the King

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CHAPTER 19: THE CHINK IN HIS CHAIN MAIL
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“Who is Ekronus, and why does he hate you so?” 

Anna felt Tristan’s arms tense underneath her head and his pulse heighten ever so slightly. The room was silent for a long time. Neither of them made a single noise. Anna was beginning to wonder if she had asked the wrong question, when Tristan sighed. 

“Ekronus is my enemy -has been ever since I was a scant eleven years,” he paused for a moment as if trying to gather his thoughts. Anna saw that his eyes were not focused on anything in the present, rather they were lost in a past time, a place where she could never go. “Both of my parents were nobles, and they led a small village and keep in Southland. They had an issue with raiders as well. It was much like it is now. They would ransack the villages, rape, murder, pillage. It was a hard situation. My father received information as to where the raiders were hiding out in the forest, and he decided to attack.”

Anna didn’t move a muscle, knowing that his story was not even near its finish and not wanting to jar him out of his memories. “My father told them not to leave any man alive. He wanted to flush them out. And he did; however, Ekronus and two of his men were off hunting excursion and were away when my father attacked. Ekronus came back to find that everyone had died, and among the pile of the dead were his wife and seven year old son. My father thought that there were only men in the camp, but when he was told there was one woman and child and that Ekronus was no where to be found, he knew he had made a grave error.”

Tristan sighed and looked down at Anna. His eyes were a mix of pain, sadness and determination. “Three nights after my father had attacked, three men came in to the keep under cover of darkness, and murdered my parents. Ekronus was to kill my father. Another was to kill my mother. And one was assigned to kill me. Ekronus wanted my whole family wiped from the face of the earth, just as my father had his. My mother and father were both killed by slit throats; I, on the other hand, was not. I had trouble sleeping that night and went into the kitchens. That was always my favorite place as a lad. All bustle and joy. However, my servant boy always slept in the same room as I did. He had a corner behind a small partition with a bed, and when he noticed that I was no longer in my room, he got up and walked into the hall. Ekronus’ man was there to intercept him.”

Tristan cleared his throat as if the emotions were becoming too much or him and began again. “When I returned to my room, I saw Rance lying on the ground in a pool of his own blood. His face was pale and his pulse was absent. He was gone. I ran for my parents room and saw the same thing. It was a nightmare. After what happened, I heard from whispers in the Knights’ Barracks who it was. I heard that Ekronus and his men had done those terrible acts, and I vowed that I would become a knight and rid the world of such an evil.”

Anna was silent. She knew his tale was finished. Such a hardship, she had never expected to hear utter from Tristan’s lips. After a moment more of silence, Anna asked another question. “What happened to your parents, that is what drives you to keep fighting the raiders, isn’t it? Even when you sorely outnumbered.”

Tristan looked away and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly into a sad smile as he looked up at the ceiling. “It was, but not as much anymore.”

“I don’t understand? What could it be now? What takes such precedence over your parents?” She was thoroughly confused and could not understand her husband’s meaning.

“You. You take precedence. Anna, my parents are dead. They are not coming back. I have had sixteen years to deal with that. You, rather, are more important to me than anything I could ever obtain. You are also very much alive. My drive is to protect you and to make sure that you are cared for. I would be lying if I told you that you were not the first person I think about every time there is a threat to the keep. But if I didn’t care about your safety, I would not be worthy of your love.”