Christmas in Camelot - Mary Pope Osborne [5]
“I have sent my best knights on such a quest,” said King Arthur. “They never returned.”
“THEN SEND MORE!” thundered the Christmas Knight.
“NO!” shouted King Arthur, pounding his fists on the table. “Never again will I feed good men to the magic and monsters of the Otherworld!”
Jack felt a chill of fear. What monsters?
“Then you choose your fate,” said the Christmas Knight. “If you will send no one else to the Otherworld, all that your kingdom has gained through time—all beauty, music, wonder, and light, all that Camelot has ever been or could ever be—will be lost and forgotten forever.”
“No!” shouted Annie.
“Shh, Annie!” said Jack.
The Christmas Knight turned to the knights at the table. “WHO WILL GO?” he boomed.
“We will!” shouted Annie.
“We will?” said Jack.
“Yes! We’ll go on the quest!” Annie yelled. She jumped up.
“No!” cried Morgan le Fay.
“Never!” said King Arthur.
“Annie!” said Jack. He leaped up from his chair and tried to grab her.
“YES!” thundered the Christmas Knight. He pointed his red-gloved hand at Annie and Jack. “The youngest of all—these two—they will go.”
“You are mocking us!” King Arthur shouted.
“THEY WILL GO!” boomed the knight. His words echoed throughout the hall.
Oh, no, thought Jack.
“Yes!” said Annie. She pulled Jack toward the Christmas Knight.
King Arthur turned to his men. “Stop them!”
Several knights started to rush toward Jack and Annie. The Christmas Knight raised his gloved hand high in the air.
In an instant, the room fell deathly quiet.
Everyone around the table was as still as a statue.
King Arthur looked like the statue of a furious king. Queen Guinevere looked like the statue of a worried queen. The Knights of the Round Table looked like statues of fierce knights.
And Morgan le Fay looked like the statue of a caring friend. Her mouth was open, as if she were calling out to Jack and Annie. But no sound came from her lips—no sound at all.
“Morgan?” said Annie.
Annie ran to the table. She touched Morgan’s cheek, then quickly pulled back her hand.
“She’s cold. She’s as cold as ice!” said Annie. Tears filled her eyes.
Annie turned to the Christmas Knight in a fury. “What did you do to Morgan?” she asked. “Bring her back!”
“Do not fear,” said the Christmas Knight. His voice was softer and kinder. “She will come back to life after you complete your quest.”
“What—what exactly is our quest?” said Jack.
“You must journey to the Otherworld,” said the Christmas Knight. “There you will find a cauldron. The cauldron is filled with the Water of Memory and Imagination. You must bring a cup of the water back to Camelot. If you fail, Camelot will never come back to life. Never.”
“How do we do all that?” asked Annie, wiping her eyes.
“Remember these three rhymes,” said the Christmas Knight.
“Wait, let me write them down,” said Jack.
His hands trembled as he pulled out his notebook and pencil. He looked at the Christmas Knight.
“Okay, I’m ready,” he said. Gripping his pencil made Jack feel stronger.
The knight’s voice rang out from inside his helmet.
“Beyond the iron gate
The Keepers of the Cauldron wait.”
Jack quickly wrote down the knight’s words. “Okay, what’s next?” he asked.
The Christmas Knight went on:
“Four gifts you will need—
The first from me.
Then a cup, a compass,
And, finally, a key.”
“Cup … compass … key … . Got it,” said Jack.
The Christmas Knight’s voice boomed again:
“If you survive to complete your quest,
The secret door lies to the west.”
Jack copied down the last rhyme, then looked up at the knight.
“Anything else?” he asked.
Without a word, the knight pulled off his red cloak. He dropped it to the floor. It fell silently into a heap at Jack and Annie’s feet.
The Christmas Knight snapped his horse’s red reins, then galloped out of the great hall.
Once the knight was gone, the candles and torches in the great hall grew dimmer. A bitter chill crept over the room.
“What do these three rhymes mean?” said Jack, looking at his notebook. “Who are the Keepers of the Cauldron? What secret door?”
“I don’t know,