Chapter 43

The following day, the three of them woke up at about 0300. Luke wanted to be out of town before the sun rose, so if they had to fight the king, he would have room to fight before they got to York. Marion made sure the other commanders were up to race out of York at a moment’s notice. Gabriella woke up the rest of the bodyguards while Luke prepared the cavalry.

The welcoming party was ready to go within an hour, and the rest of the army was stirring. Marion’s party rode out on the road they knew Godwinson was on, and just as the sun lit up the sky, they found him. His army was preparing to march when Marion’s party came into sight. Luke ordered the soldiers to hold their position, stay out of sight, and not attack unless Godwinson attacked first. Next, Luke ordered a flagbearer and bugler to accompany Marion, him, and her guards while they met the king. The 13 of them galloped up to the king’s army. Once they met with the king’s guards, Marion told them:

“I am Marion of York here to see the king.”

The guards were unsure what to do with her because they were not used to women in the field, and half of Marion’s party were women. Luckily, an officer came up before one of them could make a wisecrack. He had served in one of the armies that Luke had crushed a couple of months before, so he knew who Luke was and had heard tales of Marion. Seeing her in the flesh, he could see that the rumors were true. The officer sent a messenger to the king and invited Marion’s party to dismount. They politely refused, and the officer didn’t blame them because he wouldn’t have dismounted if he had been in their position.

The king came up, and Marion’s party, including Luke, dismounted. He saw no benefit in insulting the king now; he would die in a few weeks. Marion kneeled before the king, and Luke was glad he wasn’t the area’s ruler because he wouldn’t kneel before anyone but God. When the rest of the party kneeled, however, he had a problem, but Luke, being Luke, remained standing. Fortunately, Marion was prepared for this:

“I would like to apologize for my general not kneeling, Your Majesty,” she said without even looking at Luke, “but the only person he will kneel before is God, and although he has kneeled before me before, I suspect that was mostly for show.”

“You never looked back; how did you know that he refuses to kneel before the rightful king of these lands?” asked the king.

“Your Majesty. That man is not only my army’s commanding general, but he is also my husband and has saved my life many times over the last year and a half.”

“Ah.” The king then moved around to stand directly before Luke, feeling more than a little uneasy; he had never met a man so large.

“You know that it is a capital crime not to kneel before the god-chosen ruler of these lands? I can and should have you executed!”

Marion held her eyes shut and cringed, knowing what was coming, and she wasn’t disappointed.

“God chosen, seriously?” snorted Luke. “God chooses no king or queen; they are chosen by people too lazy or ignorant to rule themselves. Do you think that God cares what happens down here on Earth when he is eternal, and we are mere mortals?” Luke chose to ignore the king’s comment about execution.

As Marion had feared, the king had set off Luke’s temper, and there was no going back now.

“Do you not believe in God and that he appointed me to lead the English people?” asked an increasingly angry king.

“Fuck no. I have seen more death and destruction caused by people in the name of their god than I care to remember. As far as I am concerned, I have the right to my beliefs the same as EVERYONE else, and as long as they practice those beliefs peacefully, I have no problems with them. That is why I encouraged my wife to protect any Jews and ALL other religious groups in the area.”

Marion knew she would have to act fast before the king and Luke came to blows.

“Excuse me, Your Majesty,” she said as she wormed between Luke and the king. “What my blunt husband is trying to say is that as complex as God’s word is, it helps to have as many viewpoints as possible to try to further our understanding of it. Plus, we are all God’s children, are we not? So why should the Jews or any other group not be protected as well? And while on the Jewish question, was Jesus not Jewish himself, and did he not die, so all of our sins be forgiven?” She then turned to Luke and shifted to modern English. “Before you make an even bigger ass of yourself, why don’t you go do something useful, honey.”

At first, Luke was pissed, and then he smiled:

“Admit it, you just like watching my ass as I walk away!”

The guards had to stifle a laugh as Marion bit her tongue. The bodyguards had been around Luke long enough to understand his English. Many preferred speaking it, finding it easier than the standard English of the time.

“Luke, go so you don’t get us into deeper trouble. Please?”

“Fine.” Luke deadpanned

Luke then grabbed hold of Marion’s arse and picked her up to share a kiss, and she instinctually wrapped her legs around his waist. Before he put her down, they stared into each other’s eyes to tell each other that everything was good and that they loved each other. Luke gently put her down and remounted his horse. He raced back to the top of the hill that was hiding the rest of the troops, where he turned to watch over Marion’s group like their guardian angel.

When Marion turned back to the king, she saw that he was still mulling over what she had asked him, so she waited for him to finish. Finally, he appeared to finish his train of thought.

“Well, that is a matter for another time. I need to get going so that I may be able to beat back those damn Vikings and my treacherous brother.”

“Your Majesty, that is why we came here this morning.”

Marion turned and gave the signal. A small band of horses came over the top of the hill, escorting a litter. When they got to the king, Marion asked the king to go with her as she went over to the litter and pulled back the sheet, revealing the king’s dead brother. She just hoped that he didn’t ask too many questions about the type of wound that he had received. When Gabriella shot him, the bullet had blown off the entire back of his head while making only a small entry wound. The king looked sad momentarily before he shook himself back to the present.

“As you can see, Your Majesty, we have already defeated your brother and his Viking allies. King Hardrada is recovering from a leg wound back in York, and before you ask, none of the Viking Army escaped.”

“I must go see Hardrada for myself, you understand. I feel that I cannot simply take your word for it.”

“Of course, Your Majesty. Your army is welcome to come into York if they behave and leave their arms back in their camp.”

“My army will travel wherever they choose, and they will not disarm!”

At this, Marion’s guards instantly became more visibly alert.

“I am sorry, Your Majesty, but your army will not be permitted to bring their weapons into York.”

At this, the King drew his sword. Marion’s guards had their weapons out within the blink of an eye, and Gabriella moved to where she was between the King and Marion. In the distance, Marion could hear the sounds of her cavalry escort moving, and within moments, they became visible over the top of the hill with Luke right out in front with her flags flying.

“As you can see, Your Majesty, I have an army at my back, and unlike yours, they are ready. Plus, if you insist on fighting me, you WILL be the first one killed because the young woman standing in front of you will kill anyone who threatens me.”

Marion tried to stay calm, hoping the king would see reason. Gabriella at least hadn’t drawn her weapons yet, but it was clear from her posture that she could within a fraction of a second. The king then did something monumentally stupid when he tried to push Gabriella to the side. She grabbed his arm and, using the moves Luke had taught her, flipped the king over her body and onto the ground. As she flipped him, Gabby managed to get his sword away from him. Holding it to his throat, she demanded he back down and apologize to her mistress, Marion. Marion gently moved Gabriella out of the way as she offered her hand to help the king get back up, which he took. Gabriella returned his sword to him when he was back on his feet. Luke now had the army moving forward at a trot.

“As you can see, Your Majesty, I was not joking, and unless you want that army behind me to attack, I strongly suggest we come to terms. You can come into York to see Hardrada, retain your arms, and bring one armed guard. Your army can come into York if they behave and leave their arms back in their camp. If they misbehave, they will be subject to the laws of the people of York. Also, while Hardrada is in my care, he will not be harmed because he is currently under a doctor’s care, and her word is law in the hospital.”

“Her word?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. We believe in equal rights for both men and women, which is one reason why women comprise a good-sized part of my army. The head doctor is a woman, one of my best engineers is a woman, and my head guard is a woman.”

The king took a deep breath. Marion had him over a barrel, and they both knew it. He would have to accept Marion’s terms to confirm that Hardrada’s army had been crushed. Her army was ready to charge and was almost halfway down the hill while he was mostly getting ready to march. It would take the English Army some time to get into proper formation. While getting into formation, they were easy prey to enemy cavalry.

“Very well, I accept your terms.”

“Good! How soon will you be ready to go?”

“Not long.”

“My troops will escort you to York then. Just ensure your men understand they are to be on their best behavior in My lands. As long as they behave, then nobody will have any problems.”

Marion turned away with her guards, remounted, and returned to her army. The king, meanwhile, was a bit dumbfounded. How the hell did things come to this, him being beaten by two different women? Flustered, he turned to give the orders to his army. After he was done, he quietly observed Marion’s army. Even at this distance, it was evident her army was highly professional. The king couldn’t help but get a little jealous; most of his were levy spearmen with only a few professional soldiers. Finally, his army began to march, and as promised, Marion’s army escorted them to York.