Chapter 1: The Beginnings

Once upon a time in a vast and beautiful Kingdom not so far away, a baby was born. Now for some this may not appear to be a very extraordinary thing—babies are born all the time, everywhere. However, this baby, this girl-child, was very special—she was loved by the King of Kings. (In fact all babies are very special and are loved by this same King, but this is not a story of all babies, it is the story of one baby in particular.)

     

It happened that this girl-child entered the world amidst highly unusual and dramatic circumstances. (For what hero enters a story in any other way?) Yet the true reasons for deviating from the general birthing customs of the land when it came to this girl-child even now are known only to the King. It was according to His will that Victorious, for that was the baby’s name, make her entrance in such a grand and rapid fashion that there was no time to summon the mid-wifery.

In fact, Tori, for that is a shortened version of her name much more appropriate for a small child of her age, gave her parents little warning that she was coming. Within minutes of the first labor pains it was apparent that her birth was imminent, but the family was traveling on the open road in another part of the Kingdom! Tori’s parents made a decision, inspired by the King, to veer off their chosen path and make for Sir Vincelot’s estate and not a moment too soon.

Before long on that early, frigid, winter morning the baby’s first cries were heard. She was ushered in by her dear father and his friend, Sir Vincelot, and the rest is history in the family-lore of the Knights.

But it is that very history of which we are concerned now. In looking back it is hard to determine at what time an impish and troublesome creature began to hover about Tori. Her name was Impatience and though we cannot pinpoint an exact time when she began visiting Tori, the circumstances of Tori’s rapid birth lead one to conclude that Impatience, even in a very shadowy and faint form, was present from the beginning.

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But let me back up. This story really begins much earlier with another story that took place before Tori was even born. And I should warn you—this tale is full of lots of light, but of course there is the lurking darkness that is always present in every fairy-tale.

     

The story begins on a barren beach, where Tori’s father, Lame Knight, would sit each day, feeling hopeless about his disability and the family profession. A lame knight was simply useless to everyone or so he thought. He spent his days starring off at sea in despair.  He thought perhaps someone, anyone, would find him and give him some hope.

And as it happened his hope did come from over the sea. A group of mariners came upon him one day. Later it was told that the King had sent them for he had heard of the hopeless lame knight who would sit on the beach day after day longing for someone to find him and help him. And so the King had spoken to his chief navigator giving him orders to go and search for young Lame Knight and bring him into the Kingdom.

When the chief navigator and the other mariners had shared this good news with Lame Knight he felt hope rising in his chest and strength entering his legs. He agreed to go with the chief navigator and meet the King, who had spent so much to seek him out and find him. And this happened not a moment too soon. (Is it any wonder that it was at just the right time? This is always the case in every story involving the King.)

Only a day after the chief navigator’s visit it was heard that messengers from the Moon Prince had also come to the beach in search of Lame Knight. Their dark lord had schemed to bring Lame Knight into his kingdom by sending messengers masquerading as children of the light. But according to the will of the King, Lame Knight had already moved on.

Hopeful Knight, for that is the new name given to him by the King, stayed by the chief navigator’s side for a few years, traveling by sea to nearby lands, though never too far from home. They waged war together in the King’s name, Hopeful Knight taking up his armor and sword and the chief navigator charting the way. Hopeful Knight tried to learn everything he could about the King from the chief navigator since he had worked with the King for so long. And during that time Hopeful Knight’s legs were strengthened even more and his demeanor so changed that those who heard his story were amazed that he had ever been known as the Lame Knight without hope in the world. People remarked that Hopeful Knight was beginning to resemble the one who had saved him from despair—he was beginning to look like the King.

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But there is yet another story within this story. I should point out, that Hopeful Knight did not journey solely with the chief navigator. No, the King had arranged for a fair, foreign maiden to be his helper. Now this maiden was a mysterious and rare beauty, yet the fact that she was a foreigner in a land not her own gave her reason for dismay. Things were not quite right, she did not have the same privileges as citizens of the land, but she knew she could do nothing to remedy the situation.

However, just a few months before Hopeful Knight’s encounter with the mariners, she also met messengers of the King. They were crusaders, sent out not with the sword, but with a message of peace. They invited the fair, foreign maiden to become a full citizen of the Kingdom, with all the rights it afforded. It was an offer she could not refuse and so she readily agreed to accept the King’s gracious invitation.

Lame Knight, for he was still lame at the time, had heard of her encounter, but soon the crusaders were on their way again and so he had not been able to see if they could help him as well. But he noticed a change in the fair, foreign maiden, she radiated peace and the beauty that had been hers became altogether irresistible.

Beautiful Citizen, for that was her new name, began to enjoy participating fully in the Kingdom as a true citizen, but she longed to learn more about the King and to know him better. So when Lame Knight, who had just become Hopeful Knight, shared his news with her and introduced her to the chief navigator, she asked to journey with them and they happily agreed.

Soon after, Hopeful Knight and Beautiful Citizen were married and those that knew them began to refer to them as the Great Knights. They settled in a land not too far away, spending their days about the Kings business, waging war with the King’s enemies and bringing light and peace to those who were far and near.

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To Be Continued