8 The Meeting in Sweden

All the Maestros had arrived in the land of the hard words, and the beautiful women.

They were all walking towards the Stockholm Cathedral.

The Attendants were walking beside each of their Maestros, but you could not see them with the naked eye, for the Attendants were walking within the Crystal Fractal Dimension, a realm which only an Attendant can access.

The Maestros had all reached the Cathedral, they sat down and awaited the head honcho of the crusade- Prester John.

" Greetings one and all, and may the lord be praised that you all have made it here, safe and sound " said the Prester in such a manner, that even the angels and the devils could hear his words.

" Can we go now? " asked Kore.

" In due time "

" Do you have the Holy Grail? " asked John Pendragon, with much emotion, while Madoc just giggled.

" I have the Chalice… " said the Prester, confused.

" Do you have some food? " asked Ishya.

" I have bread and wine "

" I have some curry, " said Mohammed.

" Thanks " said Ishya, who happily took the curry.

" Where was he hiding that…" said Prester John in a low tone.

The Prester now noticed Bodhisena doing push-ups in the back.

" When do we begin?! " said Morevna, excitedly.

Prester John could see that he was not in control, so he needed to fix that, he clapped his hands; which made all the Attendants appear.

All the Maestros had looks of shock on their faces, while all the Attendants looked at one another.

" Do I have your attention? " asked the Prester, and all the Maestros just nodded their heads.

" Good, " said Prester John with a smile.

" How the hell did you do that? " asked Kore.

" So the legends are true… " said John Pendragon.

" What legends? " said Kore.

" Prester John is said to be a descendant of one of the Three Magi, some say that he can move entire mountains with his words alone… " said John with a nervous smile.

All the Attendants were now looking at the Prester, some of the Attendants were even ready to attack, or run away.

" So… stick to the rules… or suffer divine punishment… " said Kore with sweat on her forehead.

" Indeed " were the words which the Prester uttered with a smile.

All the Maestros now sat down, and listened keenly to what the Prester had to say, while the Attendants were still on their guards.

" Now then, allow me to explain- " but Prester John then noticed that Bodhisena had raised his hand.

" Yes? "

" May I go to the bathroom? "

The Prester sighed.

" All right, five minute bathroom break "

Five minutes had now passed.

" Ahem. Now then, allow me to explain- " but the Prester then noticed that Morevna had a question.

" Yes? And I swear to God, if you say lunch break- "

" No. I was wondering, when this crusade starts… What will happen to the people living in Sweden? "

The rest of the Maestros now had a moment of revelation.

All this time, they had been thinking of winning the Chalice and fulfilling their desires, that they never took a moment to consider the collateral damage.

They now all looked at the Prester with concern and pity.

But Prester John simply smiled.

" Worry not, the Chalice ensures that only those participating in the crusade; can be harmed. None of you could damage the very ground which you stand on " said Prester John.

All the Maestros let out a sigh of relief.

" But "

All the Maestros were now back with having inner-panic attacks.

" The Chalice can only do so much "

" What do you mean? " said Ishya, worried, for she knew better then any; what it feels like to be collateral damage.

" I mean, " said Prester John while looking at Enmerkar.

" A powerful enough Attendant, can cause some damage, which could lead to collateral damage "

The Monarch noticed that Ishya was shaking, but she was not the only one.

All the Attendants are used to fighting and war, and all know the risks of such endeavours, but it seems like their Maestros had yet to realize the stacks in fulfilling their desires.

" I am willing to take any risk that it takes! " said Bodhisena, but everyone could see his knees were shaking.

" Bodhisena-Bō… " said Jetwarrior, as he kneeled down and placed his hand on Bodhisena's shoulder.

Prester John took a deep breath, and then said;

" It seems like you are all starting to realize the danger of the situation. To fulfill your selfish desires, some might have to die " said the Prester.

" Selfish?! " uttered Kore, confused " I am trying to help my homela- " but Prester John caught her off.

" So you try to help your homeland by condemning another? "

" If that is what it takes, so be it " said Kore with a glare.

Some of the Maestros felt confused as to what to do, but Prester John just smiled and said;

" For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." - 2 Corinthians 10:3-5.

" Enough has been said, and like any war, a soldier must know how to rest, before the upcoming battle "

The Maestros now left, and all tried to get some sleep, but they had much to think about.

Meanwhile.

The Attendants, in the Crystal Fractal Dimension were playing a nice game of Uno, while Baba Yaga made some milk and cookies.

(If the French, Germans and Scots could do it during World War One, then so could these guys)

After a sleepless night, the day had now come, for the crusade to begin.

Baba Yaga could see that Morevna was troubled.

" Tell your babushka, what is the matter? "

" We need a way for the citizens to disappear for a bit…"

Baba Yaga sighed, and then said;

" Dear grandchild, it would be best if you put some cold water in your blood "

At that very moment, Morevna had an idea.

She told Baba Yaga to freeze Öresund, which the Mage did with a snap of her fingers.

Morevna then yelled;

" Öresund is frozen, and the Danes are crossing! "

As if on command.

Every citizen in Sweden, and yes; I mean every single person in Sweden, from man, woman and child from young and old, now each took a stick, and all crossed the frozen sea, heading straight towards the Danes- who all did the same.

All the Maestros were happy to hear the Swedes and Danes hitting one another with sticks.

the Maestros were even more happy to see that all of Sweden was now empty, which meant; that the crusade could begin, and that no one needed to worry about collateral damage… Per se...