Demise of a Dream

Startled by Charlotte's cry, the King recoils, muttering apologies before desire seizes him once more. He pins her wrists and forces at her legs until she drives a kick straight into his face; the blow to his eye leaves him reeling, and he bolts from the room, laying the blame on Griffith for what he has done. Behind him, Charlotte crumples onto the bed, begging Griffith to come and save her.

Out in a field beyond Wyndham, the Band of the Falcon waits on horseback, tricked into believing the summons came from Griffith. Hoofbeats rise in the distance, and Pippin is the first to grasp the danger, shouting for cover as arrows rain down and drop several mercenaries. Ringed by riders they recognize as Midland's own, the band rallies under Casca's order to form up. In the dungeon, the harelipped torturer praises Griffith's silence, then notices the beherit at his throat. He tears it loose and studies the odd trinket, only for its eyes to open; startled, he lets it fall. The charm slips through a grate into the sewers below Wyndham and drifts away as Griffith watches it go.

The chapter is part of the Golden Age Arc and appeared in Young Animal issue 15 on July 22, 1994, across twenty pages. Its title marks the collapse of the Band of the Falcon's fortunes as the King turns Midland's forces against them.