ARDELLE'S POV:
The forest erupted within a few hours.
Their target was King Alaric. They attacked his pavilion only to find he had been escorted and they were caught.
The silence of the rain was shattered not by a silver trumpet, but by the roar of the bandits as they surged from the treeline.
They thought they were attacking a wounded beast. They thought the Obsidian Pillars were cracked, the men exhausted and his sword arm failing.
They were wrong.
I stood by the central fire as ordered, my hands clenched so tightly in the folds of my dress that my knuckles ached. The chaos was a clash of steel and shadow, but in the center of the storm was Lord Kaldric.
He fought with a ferocity that was frightening me. He was injured already, at this rate, he would worsen his stitches.
His movements… that wasn't the disciplined, cold movement of a Commander from the coup; it was something primal, something possessed.
Every time a rebel or a bandit even pivoted toward the center of the camp or the central fire, Lord Kaldric was there.
He was a whirlwind of black iron, his claymore singing a song of death that terrified even Sir Aldwin, who fought several paces away with a look of pure shock.
"What in the Mother's name has gotten into him?" I heard a soldier yell as Lord Kaldric cleaved through a bandit's shield.
He was pumped with a frantic, restless energy I couldn't understand.
Was it the betrayal of the informants? Was it the rain? Or was it something else?
Every few seconds, amidst the spray of mud and blood, his silver eyes would snap to mine and I flinched, hoping my presence wasn't a burden on him.
He was ensuring I hadn't moved an inch from the fire's light.
But as the last of the bandits was captured, the fire in him began to flicker.
The adrenaline that had sustained his injured frame began to drain, leaving only the raw reality of his exhaustion.
I saw his shoulders loosened. The hand holding the massive claymore trembled, the tip of the blade finally dipping to the blood-soaked earth.
"My Lord!" I called out, rushing forward before Sir Aldwin could even move.
Lord Kaldric's knees buckled. The man who had seemed like a monster just moments ago was suddenly heavy, mortal, and dangerously pale.
I reached him just as he began to tilt forward. I threw my weight into him, my small frame bracing against the cold, wet obsidian of his chest piece.
I caught him, my arms wrapping around his waist to keep him upright though it was hard for me. He was immense, a mountain of iron that threatened to crush me, but I didn't let go.
The heat of his breath against my neck was shallow, hissing in pain.
"Ardelle..." he growled, his head falling forward to rest against my shoulder.
"I have you, My Lord." I whispered, my heart breaking at the sight of the dark blood beginning to seep through his tunic where the stitches had undoubtedly strained.
"Please, stay with me. You've won. They're gone. I will call the medics to check on it."
He let out a long, shuddering breath, his weight settling into me with a trust he had never shown before.
Slowly, he lifted a heavy, gloved hand, resting it against the back of my head for a fleeting second.
"You did…. argh…" He was about to speak but the pain surging in his veins didn't allow him. My grip on him tightened.
"Don't strain yourself further." I whispered, "I–"
Only to get interrupted when the other knights arrived and began to take him away as I watched from afar, holding my dress, praying for his well being.
Lord Kaldric glanced back at me, his silver eyes clouded with pain but holding a spark of something I was impotent to encrypt.
Later, his stitches were cleaned and bandaged properly.
"Fools. They believe anything can harm me in the presence of my pillar." His Majesty's prideful voice boomed as he came to check up Lord Kaldric who was resting on our tent.
"You have done well, Commander, yet again you have proven your unwavering loyalty to me." He smiled, placing his hand over his shoulder as a sign of praise, the biggest compliment one could ever receive, being touched by My Liege.
Truly, in his words he married me. For him, he abandoned me too. Truly, Lord Kaldric only has the heart for the King, nothing else.
I grinned, admiring the sight. Especially when I saw Lord Kaldric smiling for the first time ever.
It did not suit his hard features, maybe I wasn't used to it. But, some men also whispered 'what an ugly smile'- Yet to me, it looked beautiful.
For a moment, becoming greedy, the desire to earn a smile for myself rose. I could only wish…
"Rest well for now. We will only move when my shield is fully healed now. Rest of you, clear the forest." King Alaric ordered, pulling back.
"Yes, My Liege."
Then, his eyes closed, and for the first time, the Commander allowed himself to rest. The Medic was beside me and explained the complexity as if he would listen to me.
"I had given him a herb to help him sleep. He will be deep in sleep soon. Don't let him get up and stay by his side. Feed him this in the morning."
"If I will be asleep, I don't need eyes on me. Don't bother-" Lord Kaldric paused, changed his mind midway, "Whatever. Stay. I don't trust you alone."
Lord Kaldric lay on the low cot, his armor finally stripped away, leaving him in a simple linen tunic and soon fell into a deep slumber.
He looked peaceful, an expression that seemed entirely foreign on a face carved for war. I stayed by his side, sitting on a small stool, refusing to sleep even though my eyes were heavy.
But, this was the longest I had looked at him without interruption, without a mock, without any reminder that I was a burden.
I watched the steady rise and fall of his chest. For the first time, I wasn't looking at a Commander or a jailer, I found myself staring at my… husband.
Deep down, whatever, however it was– it was mine. A smile adorned my lips as I began to miss the lack of his voice in the tent in a twisted way.
"You are a responsibility I was forced to take," I whispered, mimicking his deep, gravel voice. He wasn't going to listen anyway.
I tilted my head, trying to pull my features into his signature stony scowl, "Do not expect a husband, Woman. I have no room in my chest for a heart– only the King's law."
And then acted myself too, letting out words I wouldn't even dare to release if he was awake.
"And you know what, Lord Kaldric? I only have you now. You are my everything, you empty-head knight." I pointed my finger at him with a pout, more like commanding him with a triumphant smirk.
"You are going to carry this burden and show her the entire kingdom on your horse's back."
I giggled softly at my own imitation, the sound feeling bright and strange in the quiet tent. It was easy to be brave when those silver eyes were closed.
And it was true, to the girl who had nothing, this man, with all his edges and cold words, had become the sun and the moon.
He was the one who had pulled me from the dirt and introduced me to a foreign world I never imagined in my wildest dreams.
Where food was endless, where I slept on a comfortable surface, where people called me 'Lady'.
Curiosity, a spark I hadn't dared to indulge before, finally overcame me. I reached out, my finger trembling. He wouldn't know, right?
I poked his cheek. It was firm, it was a thrilling sensation that widened my smile.
Poke. I moved to his forehead, tracing the faint line near his temple.
Poke. Then, his hair. I let a dark strand twirl around my finger, marveling at how soft it was despite the violence of his life.
Finally, my finger hovered over his lower lip, the place where his thumb had rested in the forest. I tapped it once, twice, a grin playing on my face.
"I believe the medic informed you that I need rest and uninterrupted sleep, Ardelle. It was not an invitation for mischief."
I gasped, my heart attempting to leap into my throat. I tried to scramble backward, my stool scraping loudly as I prepared to bolt for the exit.
But I wasn't fast enough.
A large, warm hand shot out from beneath the furs, ensnaring my wrist with practiced ease. He didn't pull me, but the weight of his grip was no less than a shackle.
Shutting my eyes, the excitement began to fade as I mentally prepared myself for a scolding that would definitely break my heart.
"My Lord! I... I thought... the medicine..."
Lord Kaldric opened one eye, looking up at me with a look of dry, exhausted amusement.
"I am a soldier, Ardelle. If I didn't wake up when someone was poking my face like a curious kitten, I would have been dead years ago."
I looked at the floor, my voice a tiny squeak, "I was only... checking your fever."
"By poking my lip?"
He didn't let go of my wrist. Instead, he slowly sat up, the furs sliding down his chest.
"And your impression of me needs work. My voice is much deeper than that."
He didn't mention what I said. He discarded my part completely nor that it matters to him after all. I bit my lip, trying to hide my smile.
"I'll practice more, My Lord."
"Do not," he grumbled, though his thumb began to trace slow, absent-minded circles over the pulse point of my wrist.
"It is bad enough having one of me in this tent. I do not need a smaller, prettier version barking all the time."
I stayed there, shy and silent, the tension of the previous days melting into a sweet, humming warmth.
For a long moment, we remained like this before he regained his senses and let go of me instantly, falling back into the cot, covering himself.
"Go to sleep, Ardelle," he said softly, "Before you decide to poke my eyes next."
"I wouldn't," I whispered, moving to the small rug beside the cot.
"You would," he countered, "You are a fooler, remember?"
I laid my head down, a genuine, happy smile on my lips. "I remember."