Out of the dungeon and into the carriage, Arthur heard the city come alive much stronger than what was before the gate entrance. Camelot was well and truly alive as it revealed itself under the simmering sky above. Each building caught the sun's rays like a blade of fire. Bards sang in the streets as children played around them. The wind swept across towers so immense in height that they touched the sky and cast a shadow on those below so large it was like it was night time.
The carriage then passed a certain checkpoint, with the market now coming into view. It was absolute madness. Men screaming prices, women balancing goods in their hands and children darting between market stalls and carts that passed by. A thousand lives were stacked into this mad house that was the market. With no one noticing Arthur since he wasn't the only one there on some journey, searching for something.
Smells mixed together, sweet, salty and spice could all be smelt and almost felt in the air. It overpowered the nose of Arthur, so he decided to close the window nearby and look into the carriage instead.
The inside were draped in a deep crimson velvet, every inch of the carriage screamed wealth, with one touch screaming comfort. Then on a service tray nearby was pure crystal glasses, Arthur was scared to even touch it. It was something that would run him into debt so large the next generation may have to pay it off.
He was incredibly uncomfortable in the carriage, his father prepared him for war and revenge, not comfort and decidance. His body was stiff like he was trained to do in unfamiliar circumstances. Then Berry across from him noticed this and decided to talk.
"Not comfortable sir. Anything that I can do to make sure that you are comfortable." He smiled. A smile that was steady and comforting, the kind that glows slow and bright, like something you want to sit beside on a cold night. This made Arthur more uncomfortable.
'No one smiles without bad intentions.' He was reminded of that face the old man next door gave to him and Emery, and the things he tried to do but Emery made sure he didn;t try that again. 'Never trust a man who smiles for no reason.'
Berry could sensed that Arthur was even more uncomfortable and decided that he should fill the awkward silence, so he waved his white, gloved hands and decided to speak. "You know we never knew that your Grandfather had any relatives that were alive. Thought the Crestfall name would die with him and turn into another noble family in the Tome of the Forgotten."
Arthur hesitated before speaking, his voice slightly dejected. "We never thought so as well. We never spoke about family. Never spoke about most things my father and me." His head hang low as he looked towards the rug on the carriage floor.
A few moments passed, until he raised his head again, "But from a letter he wrote before he passed stated how my grandfather was the captain in the guards and not some noble. Was even going to wed off my mother to gain power. Actions of a weak man."
Berry looked shocked at Arthur's words, with him stating, "Your grandfather was by no means a weak man, even when young. But your father is correct. Sir Crestfall came into wealth and status in the last two decades."
"It was the time during which Valerie's Dream cursed the land and those inhabiting it. It killed off many of the most suitable candidates in the kingdom to become the King's Golden Knight. So your grandfather took the position and controlled the situation in the capital, essentially stopping Valerie's Dream. He's a hero." The face that was once filled with a wide grin, now showed seriousness and admiration for Sir Crestfall.
Just before Arthur could ask another question, something dense hit the side of the carriage. The carriage rocked to a stop as screaming was heard outside. Just when Arthur was about to open the curtain blocking the window, Berry stopped him.
"Don't look outside. Its best not to see outside. Not at their faces." Berry's face looked complicated like a puzzle many wouldn't be able to figure out. But then after voices could be heard outside.
"Murderers!", "Scum!", "You murdered our families. How can you live in such decadence.!"
The screaming outside countinued with a string of profanity being berated at the carriage. Luckily there were guards that to stop the crowd from getting any closer to the carriage.
"What are they talking about? Why are they saying we're murderers?" Arthur looked at Berry accusatoredly, very ready to pounce on him. Berry face now looked confused and embarrassed as words tried to escape his lips but failed to exit.
Eventually as the screaming quieted down outside Berry spoke once more. "Before I say anything your grandfather is a good man, he saved my life and the lives of many."
Arthur interrupted him before he could ramble on some more. "But?"
"In order to save the lives of many he had to sacrifice the lives of a few. Many generations of families died due to his action to save the city. He looked everyone who had the possibility of being in contact with some afflicted by Valerie's Dream. They called it the sick bay, but it was more of a ghetto."
"The old, frail, women and children weren't spared." Arthur clenches his jaw as he listens to the story.
Whether rich or poor they were put into these quarantined off areas until the sickness left the land. However when the gates to the sick bay were opened all that was left were the rotten corpses of those who were trapped inside." Arthur had his hands clenched tighly, with slight amounts of blood oozing out from them.
Berry's face was now filled with grief and seeing the blood from Arthur's hand almost stopped, but he continued. "Even his family wasn't spared, he locked not only the mistress in the sick bay but he sons and daughters. The youngest was placed in at the age of 4. My wife willingly walked into the sick bay to look after the child cause she didn't want it to spend its final moments alone and scared."
"Your grandfather just continued working." Veins appeared on Arthur's head. 'Even my father, whom claimed himself was the most selfish man he knew stayed by our side despite what it could do to him. Yet this man my grandfather locked away his family. He sickens me.'
"Why? Why did he do all of that? It could have been cured. People could have become immune if they waited 3 days without sleeping. What right did he have to take away those people's right to choose?" Arthur now stood up, with him swaying slightly due to the movement of the carriage.
Blood dripping from Arthur's hands caused Berry's face to be filled with fear. However he complied, "He did it because it was too dangerous. We didn't know if someone who was cured could spread the virus again. You may have been affected by it in the countryside and think you know better, but young master you don't know."
Berry's voice now had one of seriousness and a hint of anger. "People were scared to leave their own rooms. Of their own family members. Of their pets. We didn't know what was causing the disease." Arthur's mouth opened, but no words came out.
"The church called it the Dragon's Culling. Weeding out the rotten sinners and clearing the worthy of the disease. That was until Sir Crestfall showed the archbishop of the church diseased, which dissolved the rumours of divine intervention that caused this violence."
"Your grandfather culled away the gangs from the city that profited off the misfortune of others and threw them in with the rest. And before you ask again, it was under the King's authority to do this. The king allowed it yet no one blames him, but your grandfather. Even his knighthood ceremony was a joke."
Arthur now looked confused at what he should feel as the stranger in front of him Berry now scolded him like a child. "The ceremony was a way for the king to make your grandfather the one to initate the plan. He knighted him based on his accomplishments of containing the disease for this he gained Cresthill and a sizeable amount of money. The king made sure everyone knew that your grandfather had the idea, not him."
"So the crowd turned against him once the disease was over and he started to become a reculse afterwards. The only time he leaves is to answer the king's summons and well now to see you."
Arthur once again sat down on the soft interior cushions. His head hang low as he processed this information.
Outside, a guard shouted, someone else screamed, and Arthur thought he heard something hit the side of the carriage again. The shadows from the towers grew longer, darker, as if the city itself was mourning.
He leaned back into the velvet, letting it swallow him whole. It still smelled too clean. Too clean for what he just heard spoken by this servant in front of him.
"You said he saved many," Arthur said slowly. "But he didn't save his own. Why?"
He didn't look up at Berry to ask. He couldn't.
Berry looked through the curtains and stated. "Well, you can ask Sir Crestfall himself because we are here."