Prologue: defender of the Defender

The contrast between the two knights on the stone wall was evident to any who saw them, even those who looked from across the field of battle. The Defender of Jerusalem foremost in gold and bright blue surcoat and his advisor in black with a plain white cross dominating his, in support. The pair waited with their ramshackle army to defend the city against perhaps the greatest force ever assembled in the land. The Defender acting as the heart of the city's defense and the other acting in the same capacity for the uncertain man.

They called him the Hospitaler. Simply that. He was the shadowy mentor and defender of Balian of Ibelin, now the Defender of Jerusalem. He served quietly and in the shadows as he had for Balian's father Godfrey.

But he had a name.

James Stewart was the son of a minor nobleman from Scotland, Sir James actually, who had taken a vow to follow God and joined the Knights Hospitaler to serve in the defense of the Holy Lands. But defend from whom? The Saracens he understood. They followed their legendary leader Saladin and their convictions of who the true God was.

The Hospitaler didn't fault them for their devotion; instead he tried to help them see the truth of who the true, Living God really was. No, he found himself at odds more often then not with those who wore a cross as well and claimed to follow Jesus Christ. No, it was the Knights Templar who schemed and fought to build not the Kingdom of Heaven but their own legacy.

When Guy de Lusignan manipulated his way to the throne on the death of the Leper King, Baldwin the IV, he used the Templars to start a war with the Saracens. Seeking to prove his valor, Guy led the mighty army of the Holy Land to slaughter, a testimony to folly and pride.

If the Hospitaler had gone, as the Order of Knights Hospitaler had, he would be lying dead under the hot middle-eastern sun too.

Standing on the wall with Balian the thought caused him to shudder despite the warmth of the day and heat caused by his armor. Then the idea of the others, friends and colleagues he'd known for years, lying dead caused him to shift uncomfortably as he looked down at his black surcoat.

Suddenly his own physical comfort meant nothing to him and he said a quick prayer of thanks to God for allowing him to continue to be used and serve in this unique way.

James had defied the command to march and instead stayed behind in Jerusalem. By rights he should not even be wearing the device of the Knights Hospitaler but no one was around to enforce it. Balian certainly wouldn't. He understood what it meant to be torn and so said nothing about it to his friend. James owed this enigmatic leader a debt. Yet that wasn't the reason he'd turned his back on his vows and defied his Order.

Involuntarily he looked back over his shoulder towards the palace in the center of the city of Jerusalem. He wondered if she were looking for him as he sought a glance of her.

It had all happened so suddenly and so innocently.

As Balian had become closer with Queen Sibylla, James had by default spent more time among her retinue. It hadn't happened until the third meeting. James had been bored and somewhat bothered by Balian's interest in a married woman despite her unfortunate circumstances. His nerves and sensibilities had been raw with the thought, and then, as if a cool breeze had blown in off of the Mediterranean Sea he saw her.

Thick black hair cascaded down her back despite the head covering she wore. Large, smoky brown eyes were accentuated by the veil she had covering her olive hued face. Despite the coverings, he knew she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.

He stared at her though he knew he shouldn't. Something drew him. The revulsion at his thoughts soon gave way to embarrassment at his inability not to stare. But then a new emotion crashed in-the ecstasy of her returned stare.

Their eyes locked across the room of chattering servants and retainers and he began to feel something he'd never experienced. Later he found out her name was Jamila, servant to Queen Sibylla. An appropriate name he remembered thinking for it meant beautiful. Suddenly, thoughts of this woman filled his mind and he desired to get to know her. The problem was not her interest, after his, what he thought were, discrete inquiries he found out in no uncertain terms she had been asking about him. The problem was her faith for she was an infidel.

That was a big problem for a member of the Order of Knights Hospitaler.

Despite his efforts to stay away from her, from what he knew he should do, he couldn't. And always she was there, watching him, inviting him to cast off restraint.

Finally his heart overcame his intellect and he dove in. Every day since he's thanked God for the decision he'd made even as he stood looking at Saladin's army and an uncertain future.

Jamila was light and life itself and as Balian and Sibylla's unlikely relationship grew so too did that of the stoic Hospitaler and the Saracen servant. Far from disapproving, those around them not only encouraged but embraced the relationship, as if it were a wonderful poem of how Europe and the Middle East could peacefully co-exist after so much strife.

That's not how his Order saw it.

One day a leader of the Hospitalers saw the pair walking together and not too subtly rebuked James for his poor judgment, forbidding him from seeing her. He'd tried, he really had, and his resolve had lasted a whole two days. During that time, despite the disdain of those he followed, he felt God smiled on the relationship.

But then Guy had taken over as king and he and his Templars had provoked a war with Saladin. Despite the council of his leaders Guy, determined to prove himself, prepared to march out with the whole array of Jerusalem to fight the canny Saracen leader. All knew it was a fool's errand. They would be destroyed and Jerusalem left undefended but duty superceded common sense and so they marched.

Duty drove James as well and he decided to stay.

Balian and his men would not leave so he felt led to stay with his young charge, continuing to watch over him. But more strongly, he felt led to stay and defend Jamila.

But what could he do? He was but one knight. In the end, after a night without sleep, he determined he could do his duty and fulfill his oath to defend the helpless.

The others in his Order had called him a coward, spit on him and worse but he'd stood and took it, even feeling he deserved it in many ways. But James Stewart held his ground. As they'd marched off the head of the Hospitalers in Jerusalem had called back that his expulsion would happen upon their return.

That never happened.

So James stood on the ramparts of the city, waiting for Saladin's mighty array to destroy them, shifting uncomfortably wearing a symbol he no longer felt he deserved. While he stood beside Balian, in defiance of his Order, standing beside him was Malcolm MacGregor, his sergeant-at-arms, in defiance of his orders.

Malcolm had served James' father and when James left to go on crusade Malcolm had followed him, showing himself to be adept with any form of weapon. The short, stocky man with wavy dark hair had proven himself to be not only loyal but also an excellent fighter so was promoted to Sergeant. When the Knights Hospitalers had marched off James had ordered Malcolm to accompany the body of soldiers so as to not share his fate but the faithful Scotsman had told him what he could do with his command in a none too Christian fashion. So he too waited for the attack.

The onslaught of Saladin up until that point had been severe. Massive ballista and catapults battered away at the walls while the defenders tried to stay out of the path of stone and burning missiles.

If the attackers had their choice, they could have stood back and battered the city into dust from a distance. But they couldn't. The Saracen leader had only a limited supply of water for his massive army so had to send them forward in an attempt to overwhelm the defenders.

That should have been easy since the army of Jerusalem had been decimated and few remained. But Balian, now acting as marshal and leader of the remnant had not only rallied the people but inspired them to unify in the defense of the common good. James remembered the speech that he had given days earlier, when all seemed lost, that caused men to believe again as they'd never done under Guy or the Leper King who preceded him. He'd given the people hope. The Hospitaler had never been prouder of his young pupil and knew his father, Godfrey, would have been proud too.

So when the might of Saladin charged they were met not only with a wall of stone that encircled the city but a wall of resolve that would not break. Time and again he threw his men and time and again they were pushed back. In the interim, the machines of war would batter away.

The defenders began to not only hope, but believe, they could hold out until late one day, Saladin's ballista found a weak point in the wall, a former gate that had been bricked over, and concentrated their fire on it. Under relentless battering the wall collapsed leaving a significant breach just as the sun dropped below the horizon. The next morning, there would be nothing to hold back the might of the Saracens.

Both sides paused to catch their collective breath giving a time of respite. James went to Jamila, anticipating it being the last time he'd see her. To his total shock she desired to marry him. The thought had entered his mind, especially after his Order had essentially defrocked him, but at this time and in this manner? What of their divergent beliefs? That was no matter either. Jamila had been listening to James' talk about Jesus and studying the man so desired to convert to Christianity.

It was all so sudden, like a dream.

Yet after the Bishop of Jerusalem interviewed the young woman and attested to her sincerity he gave his blessing. It was a small ceremony though not hastily done. It needed to be done right since the joining was to last through eternity. Balian and Sibylla attended and each seemed to look at the other in a different way after the simple, yet elegant ceremony.

There was no time for a honeymoon, only a few hours alone together before James left to join the others at the breach. He kissed her goodbye, held her in a tight embrace basking in the smell of her perfume, committing every part of her to memory before leaving, sure he'd never see her again this side of heaven.

But miraculously, the defenders held. Fighting side-by-side in the breach Balian, James and the others held the crashing Saracen tidal wave at bay time after time. Finally, tired of the killing, Saladin offered terms and Balian accepted. The defenders would be allowed to leave with the honors of war and the Christians allowed to come with them.

Hand-in-hand, the Hospitaler, James Stuart, once again Sir James, and his new bride Jamila left the city of Jerusalem and the Holy Land, happy never to see that dusty, hot troubled land again. Their final destination was to be Scotland, returning to his ancestral home and ultimately, a quiet life of peace.