#Lorefight 137.1

Bells chimed with merriment over the sacred city of Bastonne as knights gathered from far afield to witness the marriage of Lord Anthelme d’Austray, Heir to Quenelles and the grail damsel Lady Anara d’ Garamont, sister to one of Bretonnia’s most legendary grail knights Calard d’Garamont. Flowers were sprinkled from balconies, grand carpets were laid out along the route from the nobles’ quarters to the Cult of the Lady’s cathedral where its bishop, Sir Almaric de Gaudaron, had received personal blessing from the Fay Enchantress to wed the happy couple and all peasants not involved in the catering for the banquet later on were kept well away from today’s proceedings. However, a storm approached.
A horse-drawn cart approached the city, its reins held by a small peasant as two figures rode in the back clad in heavy robes and carrying their cargo.
“State your business.” a city guard demanded.
“I bring food for the feast.” the cart’s driver barked.
“Let’s see it then.” The guardsman wandered round and inspected the cart’s cargo, two wolf-hounds one with a grey pelt and other with a much darker tone. “These are dogs.” the guard exclaimed, confused.
“Hey, I don’t judge his lordship for his tastes.” the cart-driver responded.
“I’m going to need to report this.”
“You do that…. I’m sure Lord Anthelme won’t mind his wedding festivities being delayed. I’m sure he will reward the guard who wasted his time and appetite on this, the greatest day of his life.” the cart-driver responded sarcastically.
And so the guard let the cart into the city, not wanting to feel any of the knights wrath for delaying their supper. Having made it into the city Ennar, Mallobaude and Eustache abandoned their cart and began about their true mission. Eustache ran off early after Mallobaude commanded him to secure their exit plan while Ennar and Mallobaude proceeded to break into the city’s keep via the same means that Ennar had escaped the first time – wading through the city’s sewer water in search of the waste chute connected to the dungeons which Ennar had fallen through in the first place.
“I can’t believe you swam in this filth… it makes Merovech’s court look clean by comparison.” Mallobaude spat as he trudged through the muck which clung up past his waist.
“Well I’m sorry the first ever man to escape from Bastonne didn’t have keeping clean on his mind at the time.” Ennar responded, his lips dripping with sarcasm and the smell of sewage water.
Finally Mallobaude and Ennar reached the summit of the waste tunnels and found themselves inside the keep. Upon entering the castle’s hallways Ennar was about to head off to the dungeons to liberate his allies when Mallobaude called him over to say goodbye.
Ennar: “Well, it looks like this is it.”
Mallobaude: “It seems so. If we both survive this I recommend we meet in the Duke’s throne-room. I doubt our paths will cross again though. Good luck Ennar, I hope you find everything you’re looking for.”
Ennar: “The same to you, Mallobaude.”
And so Ennar set off as Mallobaude attempted to wipe as much sewage off his armour using some cloth he found in the lavatories while remaining hidden from view. (You can read what happened to Ennar in #lorefight 137.2)

Despite still reeking of dung and barely fixing his complexion, Mallobaude took to the halls and began sneaking his way toward the Cathedral of the Lady.
Meanwhile, the wedding ceremony was well under way as Calard walked his sister down the aisle (for their father died at the hands of a fearsome beast known as the Gave a long time ago) and handed her over to her fiancée to begin the ceremony as the Bishop, Sir Almaric de Gaudaron, proceeded to read out their wedding vows, as sanctioned by the Fey herself. However, shortly after the ceremony began Calard was called out of the ceremony by Duke Bohemond “Beastslayer” of Bastonne who informed him of a break-in in the dungeons and requested his assistance in investigating it. The two grail knights left the Cathedral, not realising the Serpent Knight was hiding behind the door, and so as they left Mallobaude snuck his way into the Cathedral behind them, before slamming the door shut and locking it behind him. Realising something was wrong, Bohemond commanded Calard to deal with the escapees while he went off to find a battering ram.
As this was happening, Almaric was busy with the wedding reading out “If any one of you has any reason to to this unity sanctified by our most holy of rites, speak now or forever hold your peace.”
The room went silent only for a loud yell to suddenly sound “ALMARIC!” The church congregation turned to see Mallobaude at the door as four of the Beastslayers of Bastonne instantly charged toward the intruder with their polearms only to be killed either by a slash of the sword sword or by the Serpent Knight’s repeater crossbow.
“Enough! This is consecrated ground and I will not abide the shedding of blood here! You have a problem, you come to me!” Almaric demanded.
The damned paladin stepped forward, noticing that all the lords, knights and ladies in attendance were unarmed as was customary for a wedding, until he finally reached the bishop who was promptly being strapped into his armour by a group of squires.
“I’ve been waiting for this.” Almaric noted as he took his bishop’s staff and unscrewed its end, converting it into a lily-shaped ceremonial mace which glowed gold in his hand while a squire brought him his shield and Mallobaude attached his crossbow to his belt. “I must admit, I never expected you to smell quite this badly though.”
….

• Love React: Almaric leapt forward toward Mallobaude, swinging downward overhead with his mace which ignited in a flutter of golden sparks upon making impact with Mallobaude’s raised shield only for Almaric to use this opportunity to bash Mallobaude’s chest with his shield.

Mallobaude responded, arcing his sword for a low swing only for Almaric to block that attack and deliver a blow of his mace to Mallobaude’s helmet.
“You have met your match, Snake! I am blessed by the lady, I have bested the likes of Kemmler, you on the other hand are nothing but an entitled boy!” Almaric taunted as he pressed his attack, hitting Mallobaude with his mace again while continuing to deflect the Serpent’s blade.
The veteran warrior and holy figure allowed no opportunity for respite, slamming his shield and beating Mallobaude with his mace over and over again until finally he found an opportunity to strike at Mallobaude’s wrist, causing him to drop his blade at which point Almaric beat Mallobaude another two times, just to reiterate how badly he’d thrashed his foe.
Rendered weaponless and with significant trauma to his head, Almaric invited the Beastslayers to arrest Mallobaude and throw him in the dungeons while Almaric went on with Anthelme and Anara’s wedding before all went on to enjoy a celebratory banquet, having practically forgotten about Mallobaude’s intrusion.
….
(Prelude to all other react options)
The serpent and the bishop clashed in an almighty armed frenzy with Almaric swinging overhead while Mallobaude aimed for lower cuts. For each hit one landed, the other would parry another and land a slash if their own. However, as the duel wore on Almaric began to tire, finding that even the boon of the Lady’s blessing couldn’t quite match the stamina of a knight decades his younger, who fought more regularly and was driven by such grim determination. As Almaric began to slow, Mallobaude proceeded to taunt him. “It’s finally come isn’t it? The day I’ve been dreaming of all my life… O, do try not to fall asleep though it will you? You really have grown tired haven’t you?”
Suddenly Almaric interrupted Mallobaude’s taunts by throwing himself onto the serpent knight, tackling the snake onto a small set of steps before delivering a blow of his shimmering golden mace to Mallobaude’s armoured face.
As he took the hit, Mallobaude responded “Not quite how I imagined coming home but…we can still give this a good pointy end.” before taking his smaller crossbow from his belt and shooting Almaric torso at point-blank range.
As Almaric staggered back, Mallobaude pushed his advantage, angling himself so he could deliver a kick to the older knight’s chest, thus finally getting him off him. From there Mallobaude took up his blade and stabbed his foe just between the lining of plate and chain around Almaric’s knees leaving the bishop incapacitated.
“I’ve won.” Mallobaude said to himself, quite astonished by his achievement though this was far from over. As all around him were hundreds of people who wished him dead. Realising this, Mallobaude ran over to Anara who in defence launched a bolt of static electricity from her palm, forcing him to let go of his shield. Still, she couldn’t impart any more damage onto him as he came behind her and placed his sword against her throat with his right hand while his left held the small crossbow which he pointed towards the audience.
“Alright, this is what’s going to happen! My friend Anthelme here is going to pour you all a glass of wine from the Bishop’s chalice. Should he refuse, I kill his bride. After that I am going to place my enchanted ring in that drink thus enabling me to transform it into my black grail. Should anyone try and stop me, I kill the bride. Finally, you knights of valour are going to drink from my little concoction and see the truth, just how much of a farce this society you reside in truly is. If you refuse, I kill the bride.” Mallobaude instructed. By now Duke Bohemond had found a battering ram and was beginning to pound his way through the cathedral’s door.
As Anthelme began pouring the wine into the bishop’s chalice Mallobaude noted “Oh, it is good to be home.”
“Home? You think this is where you belong, all drenched in filth and threatening damsels? No, you’re nothing but a traitor, a serpent.” Almaric responded as a noble in the stands helped him to his feet.
“I am not a snake!” Mallobaude yelled from the top of his lung, consumed by fury. “I am a knight, just like any of you! And I deserve respect as such!”
“A knight? You’ve forsaken every vow a knight could possibly hope to uphold. Look at yourself Mallobaude, look at what you’ve become. You are no knight.”
“That is not my name! Say my name! The one father would have named me if he hadn’t thrown me out for being his bastard!”
“You are Mallobaude, the Snake of Mousillon. That is all you will ever be known as.”
“Even now you all reject me…after all this time. All I wanted was to show you all the truth…and you speak to me of the vows beholden upon knighthood? Well, we all know them well honour the family, revere the Lady and obey the Monarch. Well tell me this, what do you do when your own father abandons you? What do you do when it turns out your precious Lady is a farce serving a foreign power? And how can you maintain faith in royalty when the king himself ignores the line of succession? Lords, ladies, knights of Bastonne hear me! I am not the snake of Mousillon! I am the Lion’s cub! I am the son of Louen Leoncouer! I am Prince Madreut and I have come home!”
“This is not your home, you are not a knight and you certainly are not my prince.” Almaric concluded.
“Well, I don’t care what you think Almaric. I care what they think. I care whether it actually means something to be a knight in this country. They will drink from this grail and see the truth or I will slaughter this bride right now, on her wedding day!”
Anthelme finished pouring the wine into the chalice and then brought it to Mallobaude who dropped his signet ring into it. The red wine in the golden chalice bubbled purple, as its golden metal was scorched black and the drink turned itself into a strange, hallucinogenic creation.
Anthelme brought the drink over to the first row of church guests.
….

• Laugh react: The church guests each sipped from the grail and so had a similar vision to the one Medraut had all those years ago which turned him into Mallobaude today. Almaric watched helplessly as hundreds of knights, lords and ladies both of Bastonne and of neighbouring provinces who had come here to see the wedding, turned their backs on the lady and dropped to their knees in honour of Medraut, the true Prince of Bretonnia.

….

• Sad React: As Anthelme brought the chalice over to the audience Almaric came over and smacked it out of his hands. The grail hit the ground and broke, followed moments later by Almaric crushing Mallobaude’s ring beneath his armoured boots.

“You will die for that!” Mallobaude spat as he fired his crossbow straight into Almaric’s right lung. Though his armour helped soften the penetration somewhat, the arrow still caused an internal breakdown, resulting in Almaric gasping for breath.
However, even as he was dying Almaric remained determined, slowly pacing toward Mallobaude who warned him to stay back, his demands growing angrier by the second. Finally, Mallobaude tossed Anara aside in a fit of rage and plunged his sword through Almaric heart. Almaric fell but clung onto the blade with whatever grip he still had, depriving Mallobaude of the ability to retrieve his weapon.
Sensing their opportunity against the defanged snake, Anara shocked Mallobaude with a bolt of lightning, sending him flying back. As this happened, several of the wedding guests came up and proceeded to beat and kick the electrocuted damned paladin to death.
Sir Almaric de Gaudaron fell that day but his selflessness would be remembered throughout the annals of history. The Bishop-Knight who slew the Serpent of Mousillon.
….

• Angry React: Just as Anthelme d’Austray was about to pass the drink to the guests in return for his fiancée’s safety, Duke Bohemond and the rest of the Beastslayers of Bastonne successfully smashed through the heavy cathedral doors and came charging toward Mallobaude.

Anthelme warned them to stop but they took no notice, resulting in Mallobaude slicing Anara d’ Garamont’s throat. As the grail damsel fell to the ground dead Bohemond entered combat with Mallobaude, this time allowing for no mercy or patience as he brutally crushed Mallobaude beneath the wrath of his two-handed war mace.
With Mallobaude slain some wedding guests thanked Duke Bohemond while others privately wondered whether anything of what Mallobaude said had indeed been true. However, the young heir to the Dukedom of Quenelles would never forgive Bohemond for inciting his bride’s murder.
….

• Wow React: The black grail was passed to the first few guests who began seeing visions akin to what Mallobaude first saw. However, upon reaching the thirteenth drinker something went very wrong. The first 12 grail knights who’d taken a sip of this drink all collapsed onto the ground, their skin burning away and their eye sockets hollowing out as their eyes burst into flames and crimson vapour escaped their mouths. The thirteenth drinker threw the grail aside, having no interest in achieving this broken state while Mallobaude looked on puzzled. This wasn’t supposed to happen, Duke Merovech guaranteed to him that the concoction would merely provide visions, not kill their drinkers.

But the transformation went further for in reality the grail had been cursed – not by Mallobaude, not by Merovech but by the Lady herself as punishment for acquiescing to the Serpent Knight’s demands. The twelve grail knights wilted away before being cursed to an undead state, becoming rabid wights sustained by their own dishonour as opposed to the powers of a necromancer.
The wights went on a rampage, some taking the halberds from the guards Mallobaude killed earlier while others were happy to kill people with their own bare hands/claws. The unarmed grail knights attempted to fight the wights but were soon defeated by the unatural vigour. In time Mallobaude sliced Anara’s throat as the wights killed everyone else still living in the room before pledging themselves to him as his very own squadron of knights – the Knights of the Black Grail.

#Lorefight 137.2

Having finished saying his goodbyes to the Black Serpent Knight of Mousillon, Mallobaude, Ennar made his way through the dungeons of Bastonne and huzzah! Mallobaude had not lied to him after all for inside the most secluded portion of the keep’s prison centres he found the legendary Bowmen of Bergerac including the infamous Bertrande the Brigand, a man of noble birth who forsook his lands amd titles to become an outlaw and combat a horrible tax placed on the peasants’ livelihood, as well as his two favourite companions Hugo le Petit and Guis le Gros among seven others.
Acting with haste Ennar opened the cell’s gates, found where their bows were stored and released the bowmen before showing them the way out of the keep before any guards could notice their disappearance, using the fact most knights were too busy guarding the wedding ceremony instead. The Bowmen alongside Ennar filtered out into the streets and instantly got to work creating as much noise as they could to get themselves noticed by the local peasants to launch an uprising. They ran through the streets, hollering at the top of their lungs and clanging together whatever pots, pans amd brooms they could find to call people to action while Bertrande waved a flag of Bastonne he’d found attached to a flagpole. Unfortunately for them, this made it quite easy for them to be tracked down by the authorities.
Calard d’Garamont, one of Bretonnia’s most famous grail knights known for exemplifying the best virtues of his country, was none too pleased to be called away from his sister’s wedding having only just walked her down the aisle before being called to quash the rebels by Duke Bohemond. Calard took to the streets atop his steed with twenty of Bastonne’s finest knights at his back (most of which were grail knights of course) to put an end to the commotion and return to the wedding ceremony once and for all. By the time they tracked down the peasants the knights found several wooden barricades made from tables and chairs piled up in the street by the rebels (who’d clearly been notified of their arrival by the sound of their horses’ gallop) with those rebels positioned behind them, their bows strung. Wanting to resolve this situation as soon as possible, Calard took a step forward on his horse and lifted his helmet to call out to Bertrande’s brigands who were only some 30-40 feet away.
“Rebels, please listen to me. The people of Bastonne will not come to your aid for they lie peaceful in their homes and have no reason to risk their lives in such foolish endeavours. You have no chance! You have no chance at all, whatsoever, against my men. Why throw your lives away for nothing? Hand yourselves over to us and we will return you to your cells. If you do so no additional harm or punishment shall be wrought onto you for this. We shall simply move on and forget. I swear this to you both as a lord and knight as do I as a brother who merely wants to see his sister’s wedding day. Violence can be avoided today.” Calard beseeched the peasants empathetically to see reason and give up on this foolish crusade for a liberated Bastonne.
….

• Love React: The peasants spoke to each other and soon realised that what the grail knight said was true. There was no way 10 peasant bowmen were going to slay 20 mounted knights nor was there any chance of them outrunning the knights’ steeds. Furthermore, the legend surrounding Calard d’Garamont was known far and wide and so the peasants knew him to be a man of honour who would stand by the promise he made. As such, the peasants threw down their bows and handed themselves in; Ennar, Bertrande, Hugo and Guis included.

….

• Sad React: The bowmen of Bergerac stared at each other pensively for a second. Were they really about to take on grail knights? Could they find themselves in any more of a foolish position?

Suddenly Ennar, the mere mouse-like pickpocket who’d proven himself to have the courage of lions spole up. “If we are to die. We should do so facing our foes. We should make them bleed while we still can.”
“We should make them pay through the nose.” Hugo interjected.
“We should make them pay for every man whose lost his life in this cause.” Guis added.
“We’ve come too far to give up now, brothers!” Ennar demanded.
And so finally Bertrande stood tall and decreed “Then we shall die today brothers as martyrs in arms so that others may rise to take our place until this land is finally set free! Vive la Bretonnia!” before turning to the archers and shouting “Loose!” spurring them on to launch their first volley of arrows.
“En marche!” Calard commanded his knights. The barons galloped towards the enemy, their swords and lances shimmering gold under the Lady’s favour as their steeds effortlessly stormed their way thrpugh the peasants’ crude barricades. The peasants did all they could, killing none in their first volley followed but slaying two knights once their enemy was at a closer range and their arrows began to have some impact. One knight’s horse got its hooves stuck in a crste from the barricades thus making him a sitting target for one of Bertrande’s arrows which pierced his neck and finally, once the knights came into melee range the giant of a man Hugo le Petit used his thick timber bow as a club to knock a questing knight off his horse and beat him to death.
Still, the peasants’ days were numbered as the knights swarmed over the peasants with Hugo le Petit being impaled upon the sharpened end of a lance and Guis le Gros taking the spikes of a morning-star to the back of his head. The knights put each rebel down one by one until only Ennar and Bertrande remained standing back to back surrounded by Calard and his 16 remaining knights.
In a final act of defiance, Bertrande and Ennar held the flag of Bastonne up together before both were finally slain by the grail knights’ blades.
…..

• Wow React: Just as the peasant bowmen were considering Calard’s offer they suddenly heard an immense raucous sound coming from the distance behind them and as they looked in that direction they saw a huge crowd of people coming to their aid, a mob of thousands wielding pitchforks, torches and other farming instruments who finally had enough of destitution under the feudal order and so were rallying to Bertrande’s cause. The sight of the crowd almost brought a tear to the bowmen’s lives for they’d always dreamt of this day and now, it was finally here. They stood tall and proud, casting aside their own barricades to let the mob through.

Seeing the immensity of the enemy force and knowing that slaughtering people en masse would violate all his codes, Calard ordered his knights to return to the city’s keep and prepare to endure a siege.
….
….
….
(Prelude to both Laugh and Angry React)
While the knights of Bastonne were otherwise distracted by the peasant rebels in the streets and Mallobaude’s threats in the cathedral, Sir Eustache of the Rusting Blade set about putting their real plan into motion. He made his way back to the city’s gates, slaying anyone in his path with his sword, before opening them and waving a burning torch to signify it was time for his masters to reveal themselves.
Over the horizon a huge undead suddenly appeared, for they had been shrouded by a group of powerful necromancers including the infamous Renar who’d served the Red Duke in his wars with Gilon d’Aquitaine only to now switch sides for a new dark master, Merovech the Butcher, Duke of Mousillon!
Upon seeing Eustache’s signal, Merovech instantly gave the attack order, riding at the front of his army alongside his host of black-clad blood knight bodyguards the Senechals as well as some of Mousillon’s greatest barons including:
– The Cannibal Knight aka the ghoulish baron Jules de Fontainebleau.
– Sir Maldred d’ Mousillon who’d been made Duke of Mousillon during Merovech’s death/slumber. During that time he attempted to crown himself king of Bretonnia using a false grail and kidnapping the Fey Enchantress only to have his plans thwarted by the Green Knight and the questing knight Gaston de Beau Geste.
– Maldred’s illegitimate daughter and personal champion Mallory d’ Mousillon who had been trained in the dark arts and as a knight since an early age.
– Finally and most poignantly, Calard and Anara’s own younger brother Bertelis who had fallen from grace after pushing Calard’s fiance Elisabet (who had been possessed and forced to bear the Norscan chieftain Egil Styrbjorn’s demonic son) down a flight of stairs to her death. Having been told by Calard he coul no longer call Bertelis his brother, the younger knight found comfort in Merovech’s court, being given the blood kiss which turbed his guilt and shame into a lust for anger and cruelty befitting a blood knight of Mousillon. Defeated once before by his brother, Bertelis has been resurrected by Merovech for one final chance at vengeance.
The armies of Mousillon stormed the city walls, their cavalry charging straight through the open gates while the scores of necromantic creations dealt with the city’s guards.
…

• Angry React: Scarcely having any time to respond to the sudden undead invasion, Calard’s knights found themselves attacked in the rear by the Senechals who sent many of the grail knights flying from their steeds.

The undead knights overran both the followers of the grail and the peasant rebels with Merovech sparing no mercy in putting the peasants in their place as he decapitated Bertrande with a single swipe of his blade moments before Mallory killed Hugo le Petit and the Cannibal Knight leapt onto Guis le Gros, tearing him limb from limb and feeding on his raw flesh, Guis’ blood trickling from Jules’ fangs.
Meanwhile, Calard held his own taking on both Bertelis and Maldred and even managing to didmount the latter with a well timed slash at the would-be duke’s saddle. However, even the mighty Calard could not delay the inevitable as Merovech joined the fray, partying his blade against Calard’s thus leaving an opening for Bertelis to finally stab his foe through his right arm pit right in the spot between where the plates met to facilitate movement. Suffering blood loss Calard pressed on, attempting to defeat ever-insurmountable odds only to find himself yanked off his saddle by Maldred and promptly executed by Merovech.
With the peasant bowmen and grail knights defeated, Ennar was taken prisoner by Mallory while the remaining barons of Mousillon prepared to besiege the city’s keep.
….

• Laugh React: Facing a blood knight charge from behind Calard’s knights had little time to prepare themselves but thankfully, fortune decided to favour them this day as the Green Knight suddenly appeared and charged straight toward the Senechals, thus giving the grail knights time to turn around and launch their charge into the undead ranks. The Green Knight hadn’t been all too concerned about the prospect of a few peasant uprisings but seeing his home city fall to vampires and heretics? That was a different matter entirely.

Calard and his knights sallied forth with Calard entering combat with Merovech while the Green Knight made quick work of Maldred, plunging his ethereal blade straight through Maldred’s chest-plate before turning to deprive the cannibal knight’s shoulders of a head. While this was taking place Calard’s duel with Merovech turned fierce, the two exchanging surgical blows at one another until finally Calard gained the upper hand and forced Merovech to sound a retreat.
However, Bertelis refused to flee, succumbing to all his guilt-ridden hatred as he attempted to take on both Calard and the Green Knight while Merovech, the Senechals and Mallory fled in one direction and the peasant rebels fled in the other. Bertelis put up a surprisingly decent effort but ultimately found himself unable to best two of Bretonnia’s greatest combatants as the green knight slashed through his shoulder’s armour plating and Calard shoved him from his saddle. Only now once he was personally defeated and dismounted did Bertelis attempt to surrender, trying to appeal to his brother’s fraternal mercy. However, it was much too late for that as Calard reiterated that he had no brother and executed the Undead heathen once and for all.