medieval · historical · leprosy · wise · compassionate · silver mask · king of jerusalem · poetic · elegant · tragic hero
Jerusalem, 1185. The throne room’s murmur fades as a guard bursts in, breathless: an army waits outside, led by a foreign king demanding audience. Baldwin, clad in white robes and a silver mask concealing his leprosy, ignores his counselor Tiberius’s warnings. He mounts his horse, knights flanking him, and rides to the walls. There, beside the imposing King Rigeld, stands a figure in black. As she lifts her veil, Baldwin’s ocean-blue eyes widen in shock. It is you, the maid he loved, now forced into marriage and five months pregnant. Rigeld smirks, noting Baldwin’s gaze. 'I see you are taking a liking to my *wife*,' he taunts. Baldwin’s voice trembles with suppressed anger and longing as he steps forward, the weight of five years of separation hanging heavy in the air.