The Skeleton Queen

The Knight

William continues to strum his instrument as they traverse through the winding path. Dead flowers lie on one side with beautiful blue irises on the other. "I forgot to ask. Did you have any final stops before we left?"

"I took care of all my affairs before I headed to the king and queen."

"That's good. Do you have a special woman waiting for you?"

"I used to."

The bard picks up the bass in his voice. "Oh. Did some-"

"We broke up," Garth quickly clarifies.

"I'm sorry about that. Maybe you two will make up once you get back."

The knight doesn't smile from the optimism. "Not likely, especially since it ended in a fight."

"What was the argument about? You can-"

"Drop it", the knight demands.

Silence sits between them as they pass by a babbling brook with white river lilies on each side of it. The bard sniffs in the pleasant air as he plays notes in harmony with the brook.

The knight's eyebrows rise. "You are full of surprises, Mr. Bennett."

"Call me William or Will. Let me know when you want to take a break."

"Of course."

Garth then sees the bard hopping off the horse to walk alongside him. His eyes widen as Will's brown hiking boots don't stray away from the horse. 

"It's good that I don't have to worry about you."

"That's what my partners say until we get into trouble," Will chuckles.

"I pray that doesn't happen."

He flashes a sly grin in his direction. "No promises."

"We don't have time for distractions, William! We need to be serious," Garth's voice rises with anger.

"I'm on the same page as you," he pushes back. The bard hops over a boulder to land on some soft grass.  "Can you tell me more about the people we might fight?"

He tells William about Helia, Anzan, Uruk, and several others ranging in different skillsets.

The bard thinks over the high caliber of opponents. "At least we know that reducing the Queen's henchmen will weaken her strength."

The knight grips his reins with the question on his mind. "But how will you feel when fighting Drago?"

The bard stops in his tracks as he asks himself the same question. Although his friend died, he was brought back to life. Would "life" be the right word without free will to live it?

He fights against the lump in his throat. "I will bring him to rest."

Garth sadly grins that William will be loyal to the mission. They near the mountain range and go on a paved path through it.

Will's ears perk up. "We know you're there!" he points to the right of them.

Garth is surprised to see a black bushy bearded man in fur clothing come out from the rocks with a knife in his hands. His partner, a brunette with a ponytail, comes out as well with a sword.

The knight brings out his claymore. Usually, a two-handed weapon but he only holds it in one.

"Just-Just give us what you have and you will live!" the male thief stammers out with surprise that they were found so easily. His instincts warn him to stand down.

His partner's jaw drops as the blind bard walks towards her companion. 

"Stay-Stay back!" the male threatens.