King Henry

Chapter 58 - Getting Revenge

As Henry went down the stairs and then walked through the secret passageway that would lead over to the castle's dungeon, he gripped onto the handle of his sword, clenching his jaw in anger as he thought about everything that Arthur had done to him.

He was forcing his favorite sister into a marriage against her will, he tried to steal Eleanor away from him even though he knew how madly in love with her he was, he stole his crown and his throne when he knew how much being King meant to him and on top of all that, he had murdered him in cold blood without remorse.

The man that had once been his best friend and brother was now his sworn enemy, the man he hated more than anyone else in the entire world. Arthur had taken everything from him, but now it was time for Henry to take it all back.

The original plan that Father Lawrence and Merlin had come up with was for Henry to sneak into the castle during the night and kill Arthur in his bed while he slept, that way no guards would be alerted and it would be clean and easy.

Henry had no intentions of following their plan. He wanted to look Arthur directly in the eyes and tell him exactly what he thought of him before he plunged his knife through his heart so he would know how that felt. He didn't deserve a quiet, peaceful death in his sleep and he sure as hell wasn't going to get one.

Henry opened the door at the other end of the secret tunnel that led to the dungeons and stepped out into the hallway, drawing his sword. He had never gone into a fight with so much rage and adrenaline running through him before. He felt invincible in that moment, like anyone that dared to step up to him would regret it instantly.

He walked through the hallway past the entrance of the dungeon and then two guards rounded the corner, coming towards him. They were so busy talking and laughing with each other that they didn't even raise their heads to notice who Henry was. He was thankful for that.

He made his way up the stairs and then turned left, walking towards the throne room. As he approached the large wooden doors, the guards standing watch outside turned to look at him and they looked stunned and in shock.

"Is that ....?" one of them whispered to the other one.

"It can't be. He's .......... he's dead," he stuttered.

Henry just looked at him with a raised eyebrow and asked, "Do I look dead to you?"

"But, but, I saw you die with my own eyes," he said in disbelief with wide eyes. "The sword went straight through your heart and you bled out."

Henry walked past the stunned men and opened the door to the throne room himself, seeing Arthur and Joan sitting on the thrones with crowns on their heads. Joan looked absolutely miserable, until she lifted her head and saw Henry walking in. Her mouth hung open for a couple seconds and then her eyes filled with tears before she launched herself out of her seat and bounded towards him, jumping into his arms and hugging his neck tightly.

"Henry! I thought you were dead," she sobbed against his shoulder. "I thought I had lost you forever."

As they hugged, Arthur stood up off of the throne and slowly walked towards them, staring at Henry in disbelief and wonder, with a face that was as white as a sheet. He noticed he was carrying the Excalibur in his hand.

Arthur approached hesitantly and studied Henry's face as he slowly lifted his hand towards it, poking his cheek with a shaky finger and swallowing hard before asking weakly, "What are you? An apparition? A ghost?"

Henry scoffed at Arthur, shaking his head. "No. Do you think a ghost could do this?" he asked, striking out quickly, smashing the blunt end of his sword's handle against Arthur's nose.