Selik turned the eyes of every female they passed, wearing a turquoise short-sleeved tunic which showed off the wicked gleam of his gray eyes and the muscles of his well-developed chest and arms outlined in chunky silver arm bands and neck chains. As they sat down in the church, Selik winked at her, obviously noticing her complimentary appraisal. He blatantly ignored Thork’s frown of disapproval.
Both men looked like barbarian Viking princes and carried themselves accordingly with arrogant self-confidence.
When Ruby smiled at Selik, Thork reached discreetly in the folds of her garment and pinched her behind, whispering, “Behave thyself, wench, or I will carry you off now. Sore tired I am anyway of this waiting for a private place to bed together.”
Ruby started to tell him once again that she would not make love with him, but he placed a forefinger over her lips and said in a low, silky voice, “Nay, you protest too much, sweetling. ‘Tis going to happen, and soon. Do not resist the fates that Odin—or mayhap your God—have set in motion. In truth, sometimes I wonder if they are not one and the same—”
“Shush! ‘Tis a church, not a marketplace for gossip,” a woman in the pew behind them chastised.
Thork and Ruby sheepishly turned back to the coronation ceremony at the altar, not realizing they’d been speaking so loudly. Athelstan stood godlike for his consecration by the highest archbishops of the church. The churchmen handed him the royal regalia, finger rings, crown and sceptre. “We anoint you, Athelstan, son of Edward, grandson of Alfred, to be the King of the English and ruler of all Britain. May you rule in peace under God’s holy wisdom…”
The slender, flaxen-haired man of medium height, no more than thirty years old, stood solemnly under the bishop’s ministrations. Thork had explained to her earlier that the church’s approval was essential politically to Athelstan’s acceptance as ruler of all the kingdoms he hoped to unite. King Athelstan glanced occasionally to the hundreds of ealdormen, thegns and royal emissaries of many nationalities who came to pledge their loyalty to him at the beginning of his reign. At the end of the ceremony, the charismatic nobleman performed a number of symbolic acts.
“In the name of my favorite saint and ancestor, St. Cuthbert, I restore to the Cathedral Church of Canterbury an estate in Thanet for the help given to me in gaining the English throne.” Before he left the high altar, the new king also freed a slave, Eadhelm, and his children, a public act intended to show his generosity and humility.
When he moved to the second-floor chapel with its outdoor balcony overlooking the vast complex consisting of the royal and episcopal palaces and all their accessory buildings, the young king told the thousands of people gathered outside, “I make three pledges to you, my people: First, I will keep you and those you love in peace.”
A roar of approval went through the crowd, most of whom were sick to death of warfare and the toll it had taken on them and their families.
“Next, I forbid robbery and wrongdoing by all men, regardless of their place in society. All men shall be treated equally under the law.”
At first the stunned people exchanged glances among themselves over this novel idea of justice, wondering whether the king was serious. A cheer began as a ripple, then echoed thunderously as the lowly subjects realized the import of his words.
Ruby, too, began to took at the Saxon king in a new light. These were very democratic ideas for such a primitive society. Why hadn’t she ever heard of this farsighted visionary?
“Finally, I promise a kingdom where the rule of law shall be just and merciful, spelled out clearly in law codes for all to understand and obey. Above all, with your help, we will unite this kingdom, making it the most peaceable, Law-abiding land in all the world.”
The king had said the exact words the people wanted to hear, and they cheered wildly as he moved with his royal retainers and guests to the palace where the celebration would begin in earnest. More glamorous and opulent than anything Ruby had seen thus far in these primitive times, King Athelstan’s massive great hall teemed with dignitaries from around the world, each straining to get closer to the new king and ingratiate themselves in his favor. The room was so crowded that Ruby could barely see the walls adorned with priceless tapestries and works of art.