I nodded, feeling a slow grin widen on my face. "It would, it would indeed. It is an idea made for his beliefs... I need a drink."
I rose and filled my cup, looking at Germanus to see if he wished me to pour for him, too, but he was deep in thought. He was tossing the apple mould from hand to hand, relishing the weight of it each time it thumped solidly into his grasp. Then, as I sat down again, he looked across at me.
"A coronation," he whispered, almost to himself. "We must have a coronation." Again he fell silent, and I wondered what was going on within his mind. Moments later he was on his feet, pacing about the tent briskly enough to set the candle flames flickering.
"That would be perfect, Merlyn, think of it. A coronation, just as in the days of ancient Rome, when the greatest champions were honoured with the placing of a crown upon their brows, an honour that set them high above all other warriors. Arthur will be our crowned warrior, the Church's champion, Defender of the Holy Christian Faith, and all his men—his Knights—will be God's warriors, protecting Arthur's people and his lands. But the appointment must be public, and widely heralded, presented with great ceremony and high import in some distinguished place... in Verulamium, in the great theatre there! It holds full seven thousand people, seated.
"Visualize the scene, Merlyn. All the bishops of Britain will be assembled, to concelebrate a great, triumphal Mass. Arthur will enter there, escorted by his Knights, while his armies are spread around the town, protecting the proceedings. And after the consecration of the sacred Host, before the congregation is dismissed, I, or some other senior bishop, will place a golden circlet on his brows, the champion's corona, and proclaim him King, in the name of the Church. Think of the effect, Merlyn! None could dispute his kingship. "
I grunted. "Vortigern might, for one. "
Germanus threw me a look of pure disdain. "Vortigern has no cavalry, and no long swords like these. Besides, he has been less than zealous in his work on our behalf. Agricola and his heretical fellows thrive under his patronage. No, I believe Vortigern will accept the Pope's decree, if he has hopes of his immortal soul's salvation. "
'The Pope's decree?" I grinned at him, feeling better by the moment. "You know, my friend, you should have been an impresario. The world of public spectacles and entertainments would have been improved by your presence. "
He did not react to my humour as I had expected, but spoke with gravity. "You mock me, but you should not. Appearances matter greatly in such things as these we are discussing. In order to create a great impression—and that is exactly what I intend to achieve—you must make it memorable. Spectacular proceedings foster awe, and reverence, and therefore memories. Colour we will use, and music and spectacle, and massive ceremony carried out with dignity and due solemnity. Remember Rome, and the imperial persecutions of our faith. Thousands of the faithful died in dreadful purges, but those most readily remembered died in the arena, torn apart by lions and wild tigers, trampled and gored by angry elephants for the enchantment of the Roman mobs. We will have spectacle at this, the coronation of our King, and people will remember it and talk of it forever. Mark my words. "
He glanced down at the mould that lay on the table beside him, and reached to pick it up. "May I keep this, for now? I will return it. " I nodded, and he tossed it in his hand, then broke it open once again and stared at the perfection of the half apple that he could see. "When will you show Excalibur to Arthur?"
I shrugged, shaking my head. "I don't know. When he is ready, I suppose."
"And how will you know that?"
I scowled at him. "I have no idea, but I suspect you have. Am I correct?"
"Perhaps." He removed the apple from its mould and then replaced it carefully. "There is only one way to put this apple back..." I said nothing, and he pursed his lips thoughtfully. "I have an idea—yet unformed and incomplete, but fundamentally sound, I think. But it will entail keeping the boy in ignorance about the sword until the moment of his coronation. Is that feasible?"
"Of course it is feasible, but why must we keep him in ignorance?"
"Because I believe he must be as overawed as everyone else when we unveil it to the eyes of the world. If we are to present what will appear to be a miracle, then everyone \ involved—everyone—must see and experience the miracle." ;
I shook my head, suddenly feeling tired. "Now you have " lost me. A miracle, you say? I know you are a man of God, Bishop, and I also know the power of your mind, but tell me, please, how you intend to prearrange a miracle."
He told me, and I could find no sleep for the remainder of that night.
FIFTEEN
It is almost impossibly difficult for me to write about the period that followed that discussion. I have spoken of the fact that I had two momentous conversations in the course of that one week, and I have written fluently about the first of those, recalling every word, every inflection of Germanus's voice with clarity and exactitude. But the memories that haunt me of the ensuing time are harsh and bitter; fragmentary, pain filled images of grief and terror and despair and disbelief; images that withstand recall and defy description.
My old friend Dedalus, who had some training in the art of engineering, once told me a fundamental truth he said was known to every engineer. The occasion, I believe, was a discussion we were having about the way in which the army engineers had drained the mountain lake in which Publius Varrus had hoped to find his skystone. The lake had lain at the end of a mountain glen, formed by a dam of rock blasted from the mountainside itself in a cataclysm; they had examined the exposed side of the dam and then undermined it, cracking it open like a broken bowl. Using the example of the keystone found in every bridge's arch, Ded told me then that every construction, natural or man made, contained a central, focal point on which all its energies depended. Remove that point—that beam, or rock, or log— destroy it or dislodge it, and the entire construction would come crashing down in chaos and ruin.
The construction that I thought of as my life came crashing down after that second conversation, splintering in ruin and chaos on the hard floor of reality, and the disruptive force that brought it down was a human voice, speaking an alien tongue.
Briefly, we encountered a large force of Outlanders the day after I had talked so long with Germanus. Benedict brought the news of their arrival. He had been scouting with his forward force on our right flank, and one of his foremost outriders, riding beyond the limits of his own appointed sweep, had seen the enemy approaching. Had he been obedient to his orders and performing as commanded, he would have been elsewhere and would have missed them. As it was, he reported back to Benedict immediately.
From his concealed position, two miles ahead of us, Benedict watched and counted more than a thousand men, all of them afoot, moving in five divisions each perhaps two hundred strong. They had emerged from the forest in the east and crossed the valley bottom, headed directly towards us, moving steadily and in good order. Benedict waited to see no more, convinced that they knew where we were and were moving directly against us. He withdrew his scouts and rode back at full speed to report his findings. Between the enemy and us lay two wide valleys. The hillsides of the farther of these two were thick with trees; those of the nearer valley, atop which we now sat, were grass covered, with not a tree in sight.
I made my dispositions quickly, I recall, thinking clearly and logically. A thousand strong force must have been organized long since, and the odds were great that they had marched to intercept Germanus and his party and were unaware of our cavalry. A plan came fully formed into my mind, drawn from my memories of my grandfather's notes on the tactics of Alexander of Macedon. I quickly ordered a hundred of my men to dismount and present themselves as infantry, and sent the remainder of our forces out of sight on the far side of the hill. I then briefed Germanus quickly on how he should proceed.