Horsemen's War (The Rebellion Chronicles #3) - Steve McHugh Page 0,43

I did during that time. I can only assure you that I am not that creature anymore. My mind and spirit were healed, and it took a long time to be able to look at myself in the mirror and not see the monster I once was.”

Mordred let out a slight sigh before he continued. “I do not expect those of you I hurt to forgive or forget. But I beg that you do the right thing. Not for me but for all of us. Arthur and Avalon are coming. They will destroy everyone Arthur considers a threat, and if you are not allied or a slave state to him, then you are a threat.”

Mordred looked around the room. Most were listening intently, but more than a few radiated hate and anger. Mordred placed a hand on the hilt of Excalibur and drew it from the scabbard on his back. “This is Excalibur,” he said. “The sword can only be claimed by the rightful king of Avalon. That is me. The sword makes me stronger; this is true. When activated, it removes the magic of those in proximity to me—also true. But it ensures that no lies can be uttered when someone activates the sword’s power.” Mordred turned to Nanshe. “Can you hold this for me?”

Nanshe took Excalibur. “How do I activate it?” she asked.

“Just think about it,” Mordred said. “The sword will do the rest.”

A wave of power swept over Mordred, and he knew that his magic was gone, but he also saw Nanshe’s shock as her own power vanished.

“Ask me what you will,” Mordred shouted. “I will tell the truth.”

“How do we know it really works?” a man asked.

“It works,” Nanshe said. “Do you doubt me?”

The man shook his head.

“Why are you really here?” a woman shouted out almost immediately after.

“I seek your help,” Mordred said. “I seek a way to find Atlantis, and I need people who will stand beside me and fight Arthur. That is all.”

The woman nodded, the answer apparently satisfactory.

“And what will you do once the war is over?” a man asked, getting to his feet. “What will you do with Olympus?”

“Nothing,” Mordred said. “I have no wish to conquer. I have no wish to become your king. Anyone who wants to live under my rule is welcome, but I will not force people. I am not a tyrant.”

“Do you remember those you murdered?” a woman shouted.

“The innocence you took?” a man shouted after her. Both got to their feet, expressions of hate on their faces.

“I remember them all,” Mordred whispered. “I remember every single horrific thing I’ve ever done; I remember it and I live with it. I use that to ensure that no one else ever goes through what I went through. I was forced to murder people I loved, forced to hurt those who cared for me. My father, my brother—they turned me into a creature of pure darkness.”

“You killed my son,” the woman shouted with tears in her eyes. “His name was Christopher. He died by your hand in 1211. He tried to stop you from murdering an Avalon soldier in a small town outside Rome. You’d already killed twelve that day.”

“Red hair,” Mordred said, feeling the lump in his throat at the pain he’d caused. “He had long red hair.”

The woman nodded.

“He was brave,” Mordred said quietly. “He fought bravely. And I wish that it had been me that died instead of him. I am sorry. I am trying to make amends every day. Help me make sure Arthur doesn’t do this to hundreds of thousands of other innocent people. Help me stop it. Please.”

The woman wiped away a tear and sat down without another word.

“Are you going to do that to each of us who lost something because of the monster you became?” the man shouted.

“If I need to,” Mordred said. “Without a combined effort, we will not win. Whatever I need to do to show that Arthur must be stopped, that our alliance is the only hope, I will do it. If that means begging forgiveness from every person who I caused pain to, then I’ll do it.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Nanshe said. “We don’t really have time for it, anyway, but the thought is appreciated.”

Nanshe gave Excalibur back to Mordred and stepped back off the dais.

“People tell me that I need to be statesmanlike,” Mordred said. “But I’m not a statesman. I’m a warrior, someone who is trying to live up to the ideals that this