Chapter Twenty

September 3, 2011

 

On the day of the tournament, Brannick stands before the crowd, and with eyes reflecting the pride of a father, he honors Briggette with an official knighthood. "Henceforth, she shall be known throughout the realm as Sir Briggette Bellyn, Protector of Saint Cuthbert!" The crowd goes wild and lets loose an uproarious cheer to opoen the tournmant.

During the festivities, Ulric accidentally kills a knight in the joust; however, the man is purported to be an abuser of women, so the billet determined it was simply the will of the gods, and Ulric had done no wrong.  Both he and Briggette win their tilts easily.  Brianna shocks the assemblage with her skills in the hand-to-hand combat.

During the grand melee, we work together as a group and defeat all the combatants.  In the end, only Briggette, Ulric and Korvinean are standing.  Korvinean kneels to cede the fight, and Ulric steps up to Briggette, kneels, and offers up his sword in surrender.  The crowd goes wild, and Briggette is declared the winner.  That evening a massive celebration ensues, and we all enjoy ourselves—except maybe Brianna.

Over the next two days, the joust continues.  Both Ulric and Briggette remain undefeated, and end up facing one another in the end.  On the first pass, each of them shatters their lance on the other.  Both of them missed on the second pass.  On the third, Ulric connects solidly with Briggette’s shield, and she is summarily unhorsed.

 

Ulric is handed a wreath of flowers and rides slowly through the crowd to pick the Queen of Love and Beauty.  He takes his time, surveys the commoners as well as the women his father has presented as potential brides.  In the end, however, he returns to Briggette’s side and crowns her with the garland.  The crowd erupts into a crescendo of cheers as the two ride side by side from the tourney grounds.