Until 4.29 - BENN

It wasn’t until 4:29, that Vortigern turned his eyes to the castle

And to the remnants of the kings Canon

Now feeble old men

They quickly realized that their existence would be reduced to dust in minutes

Of a breach of the castle’s walls

But this didn’t stop them.

They did not mournfully bury their work

They did not cease their cause, no

Instead, they moved their research plans into the sealed palaces

That were their minds, leaving no evidence behind

When the conqueror arrived, The old men

Whose plans had rid the world off so many lives, hid themselves in plain sight

It had been decades since the last balls were flung over the walls

Years, since the crows had fed, during the great escalations

It was the summer, settlers had claimed the futile lands as farms

And the fields surrounding the castle were laden with crops

As the walls were too high to mantle, and the gates were pitch black

The settlers didn’t realize that the castle was occupied

At least, not until it was too late

Every night

A member of the kings Canon would climb to the highest tower

And would stare out into the darkness

They were waiting for this moment.

In the distance

A member saw the vague flickers and glows of orange light

Coming from the fog.

They were coming

He ran to the under-croft

And informed the others of the impending plight

The men were prepared.

They left their belongings

Walked up the steps from the under-croft

And set foot into the grand hall

Together, they lifted a large stone slab

And placed it over the entrance to their quarters

Sealing it with rudimentary mortar

For the first time in years, they laid their eyes on the King

Who appeared to be almost vanished

His crown almost resting on the seat of the throne

In the shadows of the night

The men walked down the secret tunnels

And descended onto the fields

One by one, they entered the homes of the farmers

And quietly murdered anyone they found

When the army arrived

They were persuaded to allow the farmers to stay

To tend their fields

It’s how they survived, Henry

It’s how they’re still here now, generations later

Still loyal to the king they never knew