Year 481: An Unjust Conquest
General Summary
For the prior session, see Year 480: A Falling Star. For the following session, see Year 482: The Magician King.
“The King of Bedegraine has insulted Our Royal Person, and refused our simple requests. Such insolence will be punished, lest others be drawn to a similar error." - King Uther PendragonIn the spring of 481, Sir Artaire of Idmiston debates what to do with Ronan, the Irish hostage he took from the Battle of Menevia; as a lowly farmer, no lord is willing to ransom for his freedom. Ronan convinces Sir Artaire to take him on as Idmiston's steward. With Sir Gwyn of Shrewton on garrison duty for Earl Roderick of Salisbury, Sir Artaire and Sir Amlyn of Winterbourne Stoke report to Sarum for their new task. In the market quarter, the pair has their equipment repaired and replaced, and Sir Artaire buys perfume, jewelry, and poetry for Lady Adwen. He presents the lady with the gifts at Sarum Castle, and the overwhelmed Lady Adwen admits that Sir Artaire is coming on a bit strong in his courtship. Earl Roderick sends Sir Amlyn and Sir Artaire with the marshal Sir Elad of Vagon to patrol Salisbury. While scouring the banks of the Bourne River near Winterbourne Stoke and Idmiston, they are informed of a raid on the nearby village of Allington - not by bandits, but by knights. Seeing four unidentified knights slaughtering unarmed villagers, Sir Artaire calls out to get their attention. The attackers turn their attention towards the patrolmen. Sir Artaire mortally wounds one knight, knocking him unconscious, while Sir Elad cuts down a second. Sir Amlyn injures a third, but is slashed deeply. A mysterious knight on a black horse who has been observing from a nearby hill whistles to summon the remaining knights to him, and they flee. Sir Amlyn, Sir Artaire and Sir Elad return the unconscious enemy knight to Earl Roderick, who orders the knights to take him to the local chirurgeon until he is well enough to interrogate. Sir Amlyn also seeks medical help for his new wound. Earl Roderick reminds the pair that they must attend King Uther Pendragon's first court session as king, to be held at the Red Tower in Wuerensis. The next month, the two knights ride to Wuerensis and stay at Lighthorne, Sir Artaire's family home. While attempting to flirt with a scullery maid, they are introduced to Sir Artaire's uncle Sir Eiffin of Lighthorne, who is the acting lord while Sir Artaire is away, as well as his young new wife Lady Briant and their newborn son, Blaen. They also meet with the knight known as "The Silver Wolf of Lighthorne", who is quickly revealed to be Sir Artaire's older sister Lady Viver in disguise. She asks if Sir Artaire has received any news about their missing older sister Lady Orcade, and Sir Artaire reveals that Merlin the Magician had warned him against pursuing her the year prior. A concerned Sir Eiffin wonders if they should stop looking, but Sir Artaire and Sir Amlyn convince him that Merlin's predictions are often incorrect. At the Red Tower, Sir Amlyn runs into his older brother Sir Ioan with his young bastard son Asher. Sir Ioan tries to convince his younger brother that Asher is not a bastard and therefore next in line to inherit their family home of Appleton Thorn, going as far as to dress a hired commoner from Brittany as his wife, but Sir Amlyn quickly sees through the farce. Sir Ioan mentions that malicious rumours about their mother Lady Arianwen have gotten her expelled from her abbey in Cheshire, but he could not offer her a place to stay as he has not yet liberated Appleton Thorn, which was resettled to another family during the reign of High King Vortigern. Sir Amlyn offers the homeless Sir Ioan free lodging at Winterbourne Stoke if he abdicates Asher's claim as heir, but the proud knight refuses. Meanwhile, Sir Artaire joins in the gossip with Lady Harley, Lady Anne and Lady Marigold, intending to further spread the rumour that Sir Amlyn's mother was a horse thief. However, he can't bring himself to lie, and admits he has never met Lady Arianwen. Distracted from the conversation by the beautiful passing young woman Lady Wynflaeth, Sir Artaire attempts to seduce her. When this doesn't work, he jokingly offers her money, which she takes. Sir Artaire accuses Lady Wynflaeth of theft, but Lady Wynflaeth counteraccuses Sir Artaire of touching her inappropriately, causing the bouncer - a brutish knight of the King's Guard named Sir Moneval - to step in and investigate. Before tensions can rise to the point of violence, Prince Madoc intervenes, sparing his friend. Prince Madoc is frustrated that his father was not elected High King of Britain, and hints at more battles to come. He advises the knights talk again to the marshal Duke Ulfius of the Vale. Duke Ulfius tells the knights that there may be a small upcoming battle in the Cumbrian kingdom of Bedegraine, as King Rhys of Bedegraine has refused to pay his annual tribute to King Uther. Duke Ulfius assures the duo that the battle will not require many men, but tells them that they are welcome among the ranks. In a royal announcement, King Uther confirms the conflict, saying that the army is to muster at Leir's Castle in Lambor in one month's time. In the warcamp outside Leir's Castle, Sir Elad invites Sir Amlyn and Sir Artaire to dine with the baron of the castle, Duke Edaris of the Marche, as he has identified the duke's daughter Lady Rosalyn as good potential marriage candidate for Earl Roderick. Though Sir Elad maintains a stoic demeanor, Sir Amlyn and Sir Artaire are thoroughly disturbed by Duke Edaris' bizarre behavior and mood swings, which he attributes to the recent death of his father by Cambrian raiders. Despite Lady Rosalyn being low in the line to inherit, Duke Edaris insists that she is a stronger match for Earl Roderick than King Uther's ward Lady Ellen, whom the knights met the year prior. Lady Rosalyn is late to the meal, spending her time feeding the poor and entertaining the commoners, which causes Duke Edaris to lose his temper, ranting about multiple subjects. Sir Amlyn insults the duke while rebuking his tirade against the orphaned Lady Ellen and is expelled from the castle. Lady Rosalyn reluctantly concedes that the knights should heed her father's wishes and leave. After reporting this information to Earl Roderick, the earl agrees that it might be in his best interest to wait for a different candidate at a later date. The next morning, King Uther is furious to discover that Duke Gorlois of Cornwall has not joined with their army, as his march was halted due to poor weather. The king decides to press on anyway, and reveals that his opponent King Rhys' cousin Sir Sulien has secretly switched sides, now fighting for Logres. Duke Ulfius leads the vanguard, attacking King Rhys' army at a crossing over the Trent River, while Sir Sulien leads the remainder of King Uther's army over a secret crossing further down the river. King Rhys retreats to his castle, so King Uther orders his men to raid the village to draw him out. Remembering the raid they stopped at Allington, Sir Artaire and Sir Amlyn choose not to participate in the brutality. King Rhys rides from his castle to save his commoners and valiantly makes his last stand, even though he is outnumbered five-to-one. The battle is short as Sir Artaire and Sir Amlyn fight Cumbrian knights and witness a duel between King Rhys and King Uther alongside Sir Sulien and Sir Bellias, the captain of King Uther's King's Guard. Discouraged when he notices Sir Sulien refusing to attack, King Rhys is slain by King Uther and the remaining Cumbrian knights surrender. As the battle ends, Duke Gorlois rides up with his army and is berated by King Uther for his poor planning. Sir Artaire takes an unconscious Cumbrian knight as another prisoner-of-war. At the feast after the Conquest of Bedegraine, King Uther announces that Bedegraine will be incorporated into Logres as a county, with Sir Sulien earning the title of Earl of Bedegraine and granted land in both Bedegraine and Jagent. Sir Amlyn and Sir Artaire realize that the fight was a pretense to expand King Uther's kingdom - the King of Bedegraine did not actually owe King Uther an annual tribute, as the annual tribute is paid to the High King of Britain and not the King of Logres. After the feast, Sir Amlyn's mother Lady Arianwen appears at his manor in the middle of the night with nowhere to go. Sir Amlyn invites her inside.
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