One of the assignments for my language arts summer work was to create a short-story centered around a specific time period. I decided to make my short story set in the time of the early Renaissance and ended up making it fifteen pages long. Not wanting to let this effort go to waste, I’ve chosen to post it here and share it with other people. Hope you enjoy!

He laid there, lifeless and unmoving. A hollow husk of what was once a great and honorable knight who dedicated his entire existence to the Code of Chivalry and all it stood for. So, how did he die? An arrow through the head? A decapitation from the sharpened blade of an opponent? Bleeding out from many injuries attained in combat? No, none of that. Thomas’s father died of a damned disease.

Thomas witnessed every stage of his illness. The coughing up of blood, the endless convulsions, and those eyes of his draining themselves of any semblance of life after he managed to mutter his last words, “Farewell Thomas, my child, and Jane, my love.”

Being only six-years-old, Thomas was confused, distraught, and knew naught but to grieve over this sudden loss. All Thomas wanted was to remain forever by his father’s side and grieve. Sadly, that right could not be granted to him as his father’s funeral occurred days after his death. Many came in remembrance of this fallen agent of chivalry who died unfairly and unexpectedly. Seeing the amount of individuals who cared and were affected by this death as much as he was eased Thomas’s remorse. And, weeks later, he eventually came to terms with this horrid event.

Although he had accepted the passing of his father, Thomas was unsure about whether to continue towards his path as a page. Jane saw this feeling in his eyes and said to him this, “This uncertainty of yours is a true fie that will most certainly lead you back into the depths of misery. I beg you, remove this feeling from yourself! Is this what your father would have wanted? Nay! Your father would want you to end your wallowing and live the full life he could not. He would want you to use the kindness and courage you inherited from him and make the difference in the world that he did not have the chance to. What say you?”

Taking in the words just spoken to him, Thomas stared into space, wondering how he was supposed to respond to that. He held high contempt for the abruptness of this choice thrust upon him; give up and throw away the years of training meant to prepare him to be a page, or put an end to his misery and let his mother’s words be the North Star for the direction of his future. Like a spring, Thomas-now newly rejuvenated-quickly hugged his mother, looked her directly in the eyes, and said, “Aye!”

This being the answer she hoped to evoke from her child, Jane patted Thomas’s chestnut colored hair and smiled whilst looking deeply into his ocean blue eyes that reminded her so much of her late husband. It was because of this perception that Jane somehow knew that the one she loved dearly lived on through Thomas.

***

Their clashing of wooden blades meant that yet another sparring match had begun. One combatant was Thomas, a person who, when fighting, preferred to remain defensive by parrying and dodging attacks, striking only when his opponent left an opening. Peter, the other combatant, always chose to aggressively attack his opponents as he could easily turn his foes’ attempts at retaliation to their disadvantage.

Peter began the match by directing his sword with as much force as he could muster straight down at Thomas’ head. Thomas took a small leap backward and promptly blocked Peter’s initial attack with a horizontal block. He then pushed his sword up, knocking Peter off balance. Seeing this as a possible opening to strike, he quickly twirled around and went to hit Peter with a circular slash. Peter defended himself by blocking diagonally with his sword. Peter followed this with a barrage of attacks that came from nearly every direction imaginable. Thomas tried to block, dodge, and parry all these attacks, but grew weary with every strike. As a result, Peter finally was able to disarm Thomas, who dropped to his knees due in part to both his defeat and heavy exhaustion from the fight.

Peter walked over to Thomas and extended his arm out. Thomas grabbed it and accepted the kind gesture. “Verily, your combat skills are getting better with each passing day,” proclaimed Peter.

“You as well, my friend. Has it not always been your main goal ever since we met to control that anger of yours and prevent it from getting the best of you? And now look at yourself, you’ve learned to transform that unrelenting fury from a hindrance into a force to be reckoned with,” replied Thomas in an effort to be humble and fair.

“Keeping in mind your appreciated words of praise, I can’t help but reminisce with you on the day we encountered one another, for if it did not occur, we would not be where we are right now.”

“I dare not to waste time on such a thought. ‘Tis true that we did not meet one another in a special way like friends in stories always do. But, the life we have now is perhaps the best one we could have ever hoped for. We are great friends with one another. We have Constantine and Wolfgang, knights who train us in the intricacies of combat and whom also act as our fathers since we have lost our own. Also, let us not neglect to mention the nobles we currently serve who’ve given us the ability to live close with Constantine and Wolfgang in addition to each other.” Peter nodded as he followed the same train of thought.

“I’m willing to live in agreement with that and be greatly thankful for it considering that, in my years prior to becoming a page, my dastard of a father looked down upon those whom he saw as ‘lower’ than his grand old self and expressed his disappointment in me every opportunity he got. It’s because of that that I am more than happy to have become a knight in order to get the opportunity to prove that not all nobles behave in that manner. And of course, I could not forget Wolfgang, a person who I would much rather prefer to refer to as my father instead of my real one. Though, of course, I realize the circumstances surrounding my father are nothing to complain about when your original father is gone and you only have Constantine, something I apologize for mentioning.” Thomas saw that Peter became visibly flustered due to both the circumstances surrounding his father and the possibility that he may have upset his dearest friend. In an effort to reassure him otherwise, Thomas stated, “The need to apologize is no more. Mayhap when we first were willing to discuss our lives openly to one another, but now when we are thirteen and less than a year away from becoming squires, I believe we have a strong enough bond to talk about heavy topics without the need for apologies.”

“Then I pray it’s not too heavy for you to apologize for being late for your training and not doing your daily chores,” Constantine told Thomas as he, along with Wolfgang, walked towards the two.

“Not at all, sir. We were just practicing out some combat techniques and proceeded to dis-”

“I care nought for what you were doing before, I care only for that you must now halt what you were engaged in and take care of your responsibilities your noble and I have set forth for yourself.”

“The same goes for you Peter,” said Wolfgang.

“Yes, sir. Anon Thomas.”

“Anon, Peter.”

And with that, the four walked away from one another-Thomas with Constantine and Wolfgang with Peter-with it being evident how much they all cared for each other; something that would not last forever.

***

'Twas the middle of a rainy night. Constantine had just returned from town with an assignment directly from the church. Dismounting from his horse after returning to his manor from town, Constantine’s face was still and unmoving, like he had been told something shocking. Something that made him and every fiber in his bone wish to ignore what he’d been told, but also made him very aware of the consequences for not taking heed to what had been told to him.

Constantine walked into the manor in which Thomas resided, hoping to somehow clear his mind and prepare himself for what he must do next. Instead of turning to Ale like many other would in this dire time, Constantine turned to prayer and asked God for the strength to carry out his current assignment. After doing so, he sat in silence, contemplating all the thoughts which were flying through his mind in an attempt to achieve some level of composure. Realizing that he was simply trying to stall the inevitable, he stood up, left the manor, and rode on his horse for a short time as he ventured to his destination.

It wasn’t the noise of Constantine’s actions that woke Thomas up, but the surprise that Constantine did not greet Thomas as he always does when he comes home. Knowing that this most certainly meant something alarming was transpiring in his life, Thomas decided to follow his father figure, being driven by both curiosity and concern for him.

With his horse being absent from the front of the manor despite making noises mere minutes prior, Thomas was aware that Constantine traveled on horseback. With it being evening and difficult to see, Thomas lit a torch and went outside to follow him.

Using the light of the torch, Thomas was able to see tracks from Constantine’s horse leading straight to Peter’s manor. Following the horse’s muddy tracks, he eventually reached the door of his friend’s manor. He then walked inside and headed to a room with voices coming from inside of it. These voices belonged to that of Constantine and Peter’s noble.

“They’ve accused him of blasphemy,” whispered Constantine as he informed Peter’s noble of what his assignment entailed. Thomas peeked around the corner of the doorway and witnessed Peter’s noble hanging his head low before saying, “As much as it pains me to say, I understand and will not stand in your way against the fulfillment of your mission.” The noble then pointed his finger and told Constantine, “He’s in the training room.”

After hearing this, Thomas hid out of the way of Constantine and saw him walking over to this very room, only to discover Wolfgang and Peter packing equipment such as swords and armor alongside already full bags that contained supplies such as food and water. Not seeing Constantine moving towards them, Peter broke this seemingly perpetual silence by quietly asking Wolfgang, “Must we really depart from here? What of Thomas and Constantine? Certainly, you cannot think of leaving without bidding them farewell?”

“We must! 'Tis already e’en. By this time, the church will already have a knight being sent to arrest me.”

“Arrest you for what? Not only have I just heard of you possibly being arrested, but you have not even given me the courtesy of telling me what for.”

“The time for explanations will be soon, but not until we are far away from our known living location.”

Finished packing everything they needed, Wolfgang ordered Peter to follow him. It was only after commanding this that Wolfgang saw Constantine standing in the doorway of the training room.

“Constantine, I have not the time to explain. Please step out of the way and let us continue our business.”

Constantine stood there, performing no actions except the drawing of his sword and him saying, “Wolfgang, on behalf of the church, you are found guilty of blasphemy.”

A tense silence entered the room, being only broken by the sound of Wolfgang shockingly asking, “You? They’ve sent you to detain me!? Constantine, I beg thee, we have been friends for countless years. Please do not let that be forgotten simply because the damn church ordered you to arrest me. Let me pass.”

Seemingly ignoring these spoken words, Constantine told Wolfgang, “The church recognizes your years of service as a knight. Thus, it will not be making your arrest public. Furthermore, you will not be subjected to punishments such as stoning and hanging. Instead, you will be supervised morrow and e’en in a comfortable location where you will live out the rest of your days.”

“Enow! If you expect me to willingly give up my freedom and be taken away from Peter, then you leave me no other choice.” Wolfgang drew his sword at Constantine, signaling that a fight was about to begin.

Realizing this, Peter backed away from the two, knowing it would be best to remain out of their way. Thomas, on the other hand, moved closer to the room. Knowing he cannot intervene in this, all Thomas could do was hope this conflict would somehow be resolved peacefully. His hope was misplaced.

The training room was brightened only by the four torches lit in the corners of each room. These allowed Thomas and Peter to see Constantine, a clean shaven man with long blonde hair stare intently at Wolfgang, an individual with a gray beard and aged brown hair. They circled each other, letting their swords and chain mail armor shine brightly. Sadly realizing that he had no other choice than to strike down his friend, Wolfgang dealt the first blow, initiating the battle.

Wolfgang’s blade went straight for Constantine’s head, forcing him to duck down and let the wall behind him attain a large scrape. Constantine retaliated by using his sword to create an opening for himself to charge at Wolfgang shoulder first. This sent Wolfgang crashing into another wall, creating a hole to the outside.

As he struggled to get up, Wolfgang angrily yelled, “Are you now yet another one of the church’s dogs? Unable to think for himself and only capable of blindly following orders? That is precisely why I began to tell others to break away from the church lest they be the next to succumb to its brainwashing ideologies. For you, it seems I was too late as you would already know what that feels like, wouldn’t you?”

Wolfgang ran at Constantine and slashed him across the stomach. Surprised by the suddenness of the attack, Constantine was unable to defend himself against it and paid dearly for it. Standing up, Constantine noticed blood dripping from the middle of a newly formed injury. Knowing full well that if he didn’t stand up and fight he would be killed, Constantine used his sword in order to aid him in getting back up.

“Why must you make this more difficult than it has to be? Wolfgang, the church only means to maintain peace and nothing more.”

“How is forcing masses of people to conform to one train of thought and punishing them if they refuse to do so maintaining peace?”

“Because it’s the best and only way for people to live safely and without danger in this world.”

“If you really believe that, then you are incapable of being the same Constantine I’ve known for many years prior to this fateful night.”

His wound still open, Constantine was losing a lot of blood and becoming weak and dizzy as a result. However, he would not give up and stand down, even if the person he was facing off against was his best friend.

This determination allowed Constantine to briefly block a couple of Wolfgang’s attacks. But, not for too long as a swift kick to Constantine’s wound left him howling in pain. Thus, an opening was created, giving Wolfgang the chance to disarm Constantine of his sword and kick it across the floor to the training room’s doorway, where Thomas was standing.

Sprawled onto the floor with little movement, Wolfgang found it easy to place his foot right below Constantine’s chest and keep him still. Raising his sword to deal the killing blow, Wolfgang despondently said, “I’m sorry it has come to this Constantine.” Wolfgang was about to plunge his sword into Constantine’s chest, only to stop midway through.

He stumbled forwards and fell, dropping his sword along the way. As Wolfgang fell, he saw the face of Thomas, the person who plunged a sword straight through his heart. Without thinking, Thomas had picked up Constantine’s sword and, with all of the strength he had, ran up to Wolfgang-with his back to the door- and shoved the blade right through him in order to save Constantine.

Thomas stood there, frozen in shock at what he had just done. Though, one person more shocked than him was Peter. Not only had he just been witness to the brutal death of his father-figure firsthand, but he also perceived his best friend of all people kill Wolfgang.

“Peter, I-I’m sorry. I just…”

“Don’t you say a word to me! Just get the hell away from me!”

In a blind rage, Peter threw one of the torches at Thomas in an attempt to inflict pain upon him. Distracted by the flames, Thomas did not see his friend escape through the hole made in the battle, never to be seen for many years. Since the fire created by the thrown torch was spreading like wildfire, Thomas helped Constantine up and quickly assisted him in exiting the manor. Once they got outside, Thomas saw not only the manor diminish in the flames of the fire, but the friendship held with his once most treasured friend along with it.

***

Six years had passed since that dreadful night. Thomas was now nineteen years old. He had received rigorous training during his time as a squire. Although Constantine was unable to physically provide Thomas training in advanced skills like horseback combat and archery due to injuries from his previous battle with Wolfgang, he knew Thomas would learn these things with words alone. And, while the training may have been difficult and grueling, Thomas persevered and became a great knight his father could be proud of.

It was in recognition of both this extreme training and a successful carrying out of Constantine’s assignment of “bringing justice” to Wolfgang-albeit in a way they didn’t plan on-that lead to Thomas being knighted at this ripe, young age. The one commissioned by the church to perform the honor was none other than Constantine.

Constantine raised the grand sword sent to him by the church for this special occasion. A silver blade with an extravagant gold hilt topped off with a ruby placed in its center. With this, Constantine lightly tapped each of Thomas’s shoulders, officially pronouncing him a knight. As he sheathed the sword with the process complete, Constantine told Thomas, “I hope you understand how great of an honor this is.”

However, Thomas knew full well that this was far from an honor he deserved. Yes, it was true that he killed Wolfgang to save Constantine’s life. But the fact still remained, he murdered someone close to Constantine, close to himself, and most importantly, close to Peter. Peter, his best friend whom he had made utterly hate him because he murdered the father who truly loved him.

Still, he would reluctantly accept the honor as it was what his father would have wanted. So, with that in mind, he replied to Constantine’s statement by saying, “I do.” Pleased by his reply, Constantine smiled and walked away. Thomas nudged himself a couple inches toward a wall and sat there, simply thinking about everything in his life.

***

Thomas’ career activity would be astoundingly low until two months following his initial start as a knight. The reason for this is because he received a letter from none other than Peter. Thomas tore open the letter, eager and scared to read what words were held inside of it. He was correct in having the latter emotion for inside the letter was a challenge proposed by Peter to face off against Thomas in a fight to the death on a nearby mountain well-known to the two. Thomas would journey there not to agree to the challenge, but to mend the fractured friendship formed between the two many years ago.

***

Peter stood there patiently, waiting atop the mountain for Thomas to arrive. He knew Thomas would come as he was aware that his past friend would not give up the chance to see him after not doing so for many years. He was right in assuming this as off in the distance he could make out a vanilla colored horse with a light blonde mane that had Thomas on top of it. Since Thomas as well could see Peter, he forced his horse to move faster, as if his friend was going to disappear if he did not rush towards him.

Even after Thomas reached the same level of ground he was on, Peter’s only action was to turn around and slowly unsheathe his sword. No words. No reaction. Just a sign to Thomas that he was here for one reason and one reason only, to kill the man who murdered his father.

Armed with a sword and shield and covered in armor like his opponent, Peter attempted to ram into Thomas with his shield. However, he failed in doing so as Thomas found himself able to side-step out from the reach of this attack. He refused to retaliate to Peter’s attacks as his wish was to create peace between them, not to kill his friend and win a frivolous challenge.

“Peter, I had not the intention of ending Wolfgang’s life. I acted to save Constantine and that’s all.

“And I’m acting to avenge Wolfgang, that’s all.”

Disregarding Thomas’ attempts at trying to come to a peaceful understanding, Peter went to kick his foe. Expecting him to strike with his sword, Thomas was caught off guard and just barely able to block Peter’s following attack that was by his blade. Successfully defending himself, Thomas bashed Peter with his shield and then rammed into him with it, making him incapacitated for a short while. Knowing he would be unable to attack when doing this, Thomas walked over to Peter, extended his arm out, and said, “Let this madness end Peter. Let there be no more death. Let there be peace, please.”

“Peace? You talk of peace when you do not even know what it feels like to lose a father that has been there by your side for many years, guiding you, raising you, loving you?”

“My own father passed away as well, so don’t you dare speak to me ab-”

“Your father passed away when you were six years old! So don’t you dare tell me what it feels like to experience the loss of a father you grew close to!”

Visibly more ready to kill than before, Peter used his foot to knock Thomas out from under himself, giving himself enough time to get back up. Caught off guard by this, Thomas was unable to get up before Peter tried to stab him. These stabs were dodged thanks to Thomas quickly rolling out of the blade’s direction before it could injure him.

Before Peter could attack again, Thomas got up fast. He knew it was time to end this and talk some sense into Peter. Thinking this, Thomas threw his sword and shield off of the mountain, leaving himself completely defenseless. Peter was admittedly surprised by this, but only for a second as he took this opening Thomas had created and went to deal the killing blow. Unwilling to accept death, Thomas had no option but to guard himself. Because of this, Thomas cost himself his left hand. As a result, Thomas was left rolling on the ground in pain.

Though, this did not last for long as Thomas was forced to stay still due to Peter placing his foot forcefully on him.

“Any last words?”

“Would you strike down an unarmed individual? Have you stooped that low!? 'Tis true that I have made horrible decisions throughout my lifetime. I have not gone a single day without regretting my killing of Wolfgang, whether it be to protect someone or not. Also, I have not let a day pass without hating myself for thoughtlessly acting and ruining the friendship held with my dearest friend.”

“You think I care about our damned friendship!?”

“I would think you’d care about basic human life! Our lives are what we make of it, nothing more. That sword you hold in your hands resembles the good you can do for yourself and for others. It resembles the life you can grant by choosing to spare your opponents or the death you can grant them by not. For the betterment of yourself, choose to spare your conscious by not ending me as I wrongfully ended Wolfgang long ago. Though, the choice is ultimately yours, as the status of our lives is determined by our own actions and choices alone. So, I bid you, mercy or vengeance?

Peter stood there, taking into account the words just spoken by Thomas. His hands still holding a sword over Thomas, were used to push his blade down into the ground. Peter backed away from Thomas, his eyes acting as a representative to the realization of all the horrid things he’s done.

“I’ve permanently injured you. I’ve brought shame to Wolfgang. I’ve proved my father right. It turns out, I am a disappointment.”

“Peter, do not think like that! You have made mistakes, that is all. These are mistakes you can persevere through and learn from. My friend, come here. Come home with me.”

“I can’t…I won’t.” Upon saying this, Peter backed away from Thomas towards the edge of the mountain.

“Peter, don’t!”

“I’m sorry Thomas. I cannot return to the life I once had. Please, never forget me and do the right things in life that I failed to do. Remember, it’s not too late for you.”

Peter smiled at Thomas, a sign that deep down, despite appearances and all, he always cherished their friendship. Then, Peter took a step off the mountain and fell to his death. Thomas screamed in saddened agony. He instantly thought of jumping off himself and joining those who he’s lost in the afterlife. However, he then remembered the words of his mother and Peter. The words that told him to press onward and make those that have become deceased proud by continuing to live in an honorable way that they either didn’t have the chance to, or regretfully chose not to.

Requiring every ounce of strength left in himself, Thomas stood up and walked over to his horse. He mounted it and started to ride off the mountain toward a life dedicated to doing good, in memory of those he’s lost



