Arguing broke out amongst the men, as Thor stood there, listening, taking it all in.
“Even if we agree,” said Kendrick, “for Thor to go alone, it doesn’t seem right.”
“And how do we know you are not lying?” Godfrey asked Bronson.
All eyes turned back to Bronson.
“Yes, how do we know we can trust you?” Reece asked. “After all, you are a McCloud.”
“I am a MacGil now,” Bronson insisted. “I reject the McClouds. I reject my father. After all, he is the one who has maimed me. I fought for you valiantly during the siege of Silesia, and I have no reason to stain my honor. I vow with every ounce of my being that I tell the truth. I am a knight, as are you. We may have fought on other sides of battle, but we all adhere to the same code of honor.”
Bronson spoke with the utmost sincerity and Thor could see he was not lying.
“What could Thor have to fear anyway?” Elden asked. “With Mycoples by his side and the Destiny Sword in hand, all of Andronicus’ men could do him no harm.”
“I say we accept his surrender,” Srog said.
Kendrick slammed his fist on the table and the room quieted.
“The offer is Thor’s and Thor’s alone to accept or reject. It is his life that is risked for us all.”
Thor stood there, listening, wondering. On the one hand, he would gladly risk his life for the Ring; on the other, something felt wrong to him. He was not sure what. Then again, as they’d said, what could Andronicus possibly do to him? With Mycoples and the Sword, he felt invincible.
“I would rather kill Andronicus than accept his surrender,” Thor replied. “But if that is your wish, then I will honor it. I will go.”
There came a cheer from the group of knights.
“I will accept his surrender,” Thor said, “and I will make sure that every last one of his soldiers leaves the Ring.”
“No!” Gwendolyn called out.
The room grew silent as they turned and looked at her.
“You must not go,” she said to Thor. “It is not fair that you and you alone should risk your life.”
Thor turned to her, touched by her concern.
“My lady,” Srog said, “we do not wish to endanger Thorgrin, either. But how can he possibly be hurt?”
Gwendolyn shook her head.
“Send somebody else. Thorgrin had just returned from risking his life for the Ring. He has done enough.”
The room fell silent, and Thor looked at Gwendolyn, overcome with love for her. But she still did not understand. For Thor, this was more than just about confronting an enemy: it was about confronting his father . And that was something she would never understand until he told her. The time had come.
He took Gwendolyn’s hand, leaned over and kissed her fingers, and said softly:
“There’s something I need to tell you. Let us talk alone.”
* * *
Thor took Gwen’s hand and guided her from the room, to the puzzled stares of hundreds. They walked down a corridor, until they came to the privacy of a small chamber. They stepped inside, and the attendants closed the door behind them.
“You can’t trust him,” she insisted, turning to him, impassioned. “Fight him. Kill him. But do not go alone to accept his surrender. Perhaps I’m being selfish. But I have had you taken away from me once already, and I did not think you would ever come back. My life felt like it was over. Now that you are here, I feel reborn again, and I can’t have you risk your life again. I’m sorry. But let someone else go. Andronicus needn’t only to surrender to you. He could surrender to anyone. I don’t know what his fixation is with you. Please. Let anyone go but you.”
Thor slowly shook his head.
“I love you, Gwendolyn,” he said. “More than I could say. And I’m deeply touched by your care for me. But I must accept Andronicus’ surrender. It may spare the lives of thousands of our men in battle. Those men’s deaths will be on my own head. I must go. My honor compels me.”
Gwendolyn began to cry.
“You cannot go,” she insisted. “Not now. There’s too much at stake. It is not just about you.”
She cried, and Thor felt his heart breaking. He reached up and laid a hand on her shoulder and looked at her, confused.
“What do you mean?” he asked.
He sensed there was something she was not telling him, something she desperately wanted him to know, and he could not understand what it was.
“I sense you are withholding something from me,” he said. “Tell me what it is. Why shouldn’t I go?”
Gwendolyn looked at him, and he felt her about to say something—but then she turned abruptly, wiping tears away, and looked out the window instead.
“I am sorry for crying,” she said. “It is not Queen-like.”
Thor walked up to her and lay a hand on her shoulder.
“You are more Queen-like than anyone I’ve ever met,” he said.
She smiled back at him.
Thor swallowed, his heart thumping, knowing that the time had come to tell her. He could withhold it from her no longer.
“Gwendolyn,” he began, clearing his throat, “there’s another reason I alone must go to meet Andronicus.”
Thor swallowed hard, not wanting to say the words, but knowing he had to.
“It is more complicated than you think,” he continued. “There is a reason why he wants to surrender to me, and to me alone.”
She looked at him, puzzled.
“What are you speaking of?” she asked.
“You see,” he began, then stopped. “I…have learned something. Something which…I wish I had never learned. There is nothing I can do to change it. And it compels me to take the action that I must.”
“I don’t understand,” she said.
She looked at him, baffled, and Thor’s heart was slamming, his throat dry. He was terrified that once he uttered the words, it would ruin their relationship forever.
“There is a reason why I must meet Andronicus…” he said, “…a reason why I must be the one to kill him.”
“To avenge me?” Gwendolyn asked.
Thor swallowed.
“Yes, to avenge you,” he said. “But for another reason as well.”
She stared into his eyes, and he stood there, trembling, wanting to get out the words, forcing himself.