Good Knight Gracie's page

Grace Hartwell always thought herself an ordinary girl—save perhaps taller than most—with average test scores, average middle-class home outside London, unremarkable life. Fairly average parents, her father a local constable, and her mother an archeologist whose tireless poring over unremarkable bits of old pottery greatly disillusioned Grace about the profession that was so adventurously depicted in the cinema. A few good friends, picked on by others for her height and girth; she did her best to ignore the bullies—unless they were picking on her friends as well. She got in trouble in school once, and only once, for pushing down a kid calling her friend Winifred names. She had some interest in botany relating to native wildflowers and herbs, in part due to her grandmother’s passion for herbalism. She was an avid reader, including mythology and folklore, especially local to Britain, and had a favorite copy of Le Morte D’Arthur that she frequently referenced, among more modern versions of such tales.

She never expected to discover the sword of Arthur was real. She especially never expected to become its next wielder.

On a school field trip to Cornwall—having been selected as one of a few students worthy of the expedition by her biology teacher due to her interest in plant life—she found herself collecting samples of algae in the Loe when her friend Winifred slipped and fell in and found herself unable to leave the water. “A monster’s got me, a monster’s got me by the leg!” Panicking and flailing, she began to go under. Without hesitation, Grace dove in to help her friend. “The monster” was the branch of a tree that had fallen or washed into the pond during a storm. Holding her breath, she tried to dislodge the branch from the edge of Winifred’s waders—only to be kicked by the panicking Winifred. Grace barreled into the tree, flipped over, herself becoming entangled in the branches. As mud and wood suddenly surrounded her, Grace herself began to panic—and then spotted something shimmering in the water. Overcome by a sudden calm, she felt compelled toward the shining object, and reached for it. She touched it, and there was a flash.

When she opened her eyes a moment later, she was being pulled away from the tree-trap by gentle, slender hands. She was somehow breathing, encased in some kind of air bubble.

“The Sword has found you, child. Dark times are coming, and it would be wielded to bring its Light against it. Will you embrace your destiny?”

Grace found herself face to face with a pale woman, with smooth, almost inhuman features. The woman was clothed in a thick white robe that somehow did not impede her movements in the water. The woman was looking toward her hand, and Grace saw she held by the hilt a shining sword—simple in design, but impossibly bright. Etched in the blade was the word CALESVOL.

Gracie thought she was dreaming. Or dead, drowned in place of Winifred. So she did not so much disbelieve what was happening, more at wondering at the purpose of it.

“What would I do with a sword?”

“The Sword is a tool—although one that would only be allow itself to be used by the right wielder. You would do what you have been doing: protect others. Respect the natural world and your elders. Behave with honor. The Sword will give you power if you do this. If you fail with consistency and knowing choice to do this, the Sword will remove itself. Will you embrace your destiny?”

What do you do when a magic lake woman asks you to embrace your destiny, and you might be dead anyway?

“Uh… yes?” The Sword in her hand gleamed. It made Grace feel more certain. “Yes I will. Destiny, sure. But you do know I can’t just run around swinging a sword around like a madwoman, right?”

The woman, the creature, let’s say it, the Lady in the Lake smiled. She produced a scabbard. “‘Worth ten of the sword,’ as an old acquaintance is believed to have said.” She waved her hand, and the scabbard unwound itself, leather wrappings moving of their own accord, and then around the girl’s wrist. Edgings reshaped themselves, so she now bore a bracer—and then Grace gasped as the bracer seemed to meld into her flesh, leaving a tattoo-like mark in the shape of a scabbard.

She gazed at the mark. “My mom’s gonna kill me if she thought I got a tattoo.”

The Lady smiled. “Your filial duty will see you forgiven I am certain. I am indeed aware the world is not what it was. And yet, the world is need of what it does not have. A knight. A good knight. When you see your duty to be done, call upon the sword by its name.”

“This is Excalibur, innit? Am I now Queen of the Britons?”

The Lady’s patience was now slightly strained. “While that is the Sword’s most known name… it does not select monarchs. That’s a different sword.” She repeated herself, “Call it by its name,” she pointed to the word on the sword, “And accept your knighthood.”

“Cal-es-vol?” The sword gleamed. And then shrank, and disappeared. The “tattoo” on Grace’s arm now showed a sword sheathed within the scabbard.

“You will need protection as well of course. Say ‘dyfres.’”

“Dif-ress?”

Grace whole body glowed, and suddenly she was wearing a suit of armor. She struggled a moment, but the seeming metal it was made of did not cause her to sink.

“Say ‘dyen’.”

“Dyin’.”

The armor disappeared.

“When the armor and sword are not in use, the inherent power of the scabbard and sword will heal you. The Sword may reveal further power to you if you earn it.” The Lady floated backward. “Difficult times are ahead, whether you prepare or not. I advise you practice. Be ready. And most of all, remain good, Knight Grace.”

Grace felt herself floating upward, and then stop.

“I’m sorry, I almost forgot. One more thing.”

“Yes?”

“Should you run into Merlin, tell him to get stuffed.”

There was a flash of light, and Grace was being pulled to the surface by a sea of worried faces, her classmates, her teacher, and Winifred. She was coughing, teeth chattering, and scraped head to toe by the tree branches.

But the mark on her arm was there.

Not long after the return to London from her school trip, Gracie went downtown into the city to go to a concert. The outdoor concert, in one of the parks, was crashed by tourist hooligan villains, Rant and Rave. There to cause sheer chaos, Gracie tested her powers for the first time, summoning her armor and sword to drive away the villains. Rant and Rave were just a distraction, though, and as Grace gave chase she found herself facing the treacherous master thief the Dartful Codger, who was trying to break into a vault nearby. While she possessed raw power and skill, the experienced Codger outmaneuvered her and knocked her out.

She found herself coming to looking at a comely woman draped in the Union Jack -- Britannia herself. "Good job protecting the kids at the concert," she said kindly, helping Grace to her feet. Britannia had arrived and stopped the Codger in the meanwhile. She urged Grace to practice using her abilities, and to not forget to ask for help if she need it. Most of all she urged her to be cooperative with the Ministry of Powers--but not let them use her as an agent.

Upon visiting Freedom City during her “gap year,” Good Knight Gracie was summoned by the mysterious mage Seven, who recruited her along with other mystical heroes to protect the realm from Una, Queen of the Netherworld. Young and unsure of herself, Gracie nonetheless helped fight several demons and giants, and rescued a mother and child in Una’s home realm from Una’s undead minions. Nearly trapped in Una’s realm while she set out to conquer Earth, she returned with her new teammates through the Hypnotist (I)’s dream portal, where she faced her worst nightmares: losing Winifred and being deemed unworthy as a protector. Her new friends in danger, she overcame her fear and helped them return to Earth, where she was part of the great battle between Una and her dragons. Seven was forced to depart to take Una’s place upon the evil witch’s defeat, and Grace joined the team Eldritch to help protect the world from magical threats since the world was without a Master Mage to protect it.

: After the great battle with Una, Grace she went home briefly to check in with her parents and friends in Britain. However, she committed to staying close to her newfound teammates by enrolling in a university at Freedom City, thus able to remain in the U.S. on a student visa. Winifred also decided to move to the States to pursue a tech degree. Grace studied botany, a happy escape from her other life. However, two years into her studies alongside adventures with Eldritch as a forming team, she awoke one day to find a huge man in green armor in her dormitory. The Green Knight challenged her to a duel on the spot. Fearing he might hurt her colleagues, Grace accepted (but preemptively refused to deal with any challenges involving mutual decapitation). She fought him to a draw—although she had a feeling he was holding back. “Not bad!” he said, and explained he served Arthur and had heard the magic of Excalibur had been released by its fey guardians back into Earth. Grace wasn’t the knight he was expecting, but he nonetheless accepted her endowment of Calesvol—but on the caveat she come with him to Avalon to train “for a week.” During that time, he helped her improve her mastery of the sword’s magic, including teaching her how to dispel evil magics with the blade.

While in Avalon, she was exploring the realm when suddenly a white stag ran past her. Stopping short just ahead of her, the stag spoke, begging her to help save him. Animal form or no, Grace could not refuse a seemingly innocent creature begging for help. She saw a large hunting party charging toward them both, and she bid the creature run while she slowed them down with Calesvol’s blinding light. The Hunt fled the sight of her light—save its leader, Gwyn ap Nudd, who charged her upon his horse. She fought Gwyn ap Nudd to a standstill—until he realized that the time wasted upon her, his quarry had surely gotten away. He departed, but swearing vengeance upon her for interfering in his sacred hunt. The Green Knight told her to think little of Gwyn ap Nudd’s threats, but she senses she has not seen the last of him.

After her training and adventures in Avalon, Grace was returned to Freedom City—only to learn she was not gone, by mortal reckoning, seven days, but 366. Fortunately, given its location, Freedom City University had a lenient policy on re-enrolling students who had disappeared due to supernatural circumstances (and she eventually finished her Bachelor’s in Science three years later). Overall her friends and family were glad she turned out to be alive, and untangling the legal mess of her existence took awhile. Winifred had continued her studies and in the meantime had started an internship at UNISON (whose security measures provided some degree of protection versus her unusual tendency to get in trouble).

When she is not saving the world, Grace works as a botanist at the Freedom City Botanical Gardens.

Grace rejoined Eldritch’s efforts to protect the Earth from magical and mystical threats, combating Medea and other foes and phenomena. All the while she knows the Nexus’ seals are coming close to opening, and is trying to prepare herself for anything.

Winifred Bianca Free (“Winnie” or “Win”) is a bright young Englishwoman, raised by her Aunt Matilda, who runs tech consulting business in London. While resourceful, quick-witted, and charming, Winifred seems to be cursed with bad luck and has frequently found herself in scrapes on at least a weekly basis, from the benignly annoying to the direly life-threatening. Her intelligence has also often threatened the bullies who were more than happy to try to torment her through her adolescence. Since childhood, her neighbor and schoolmate Grace has frequently been the one to help her up after spraining her ankle and interposing herself between her and bullies. Winifred is grateful for Grace’s abiding assistance and protection, but part of her is resentful at the same time—Grace is never condescending or offers unneeded or unwanted help, but the fact that Winifred seems to need help so much bothers her. She knows this isn’t really Grace’s fault, but she sometimes struggles not to take it out on her and often has felt smothered by Grace’s constant oversight. And then Winnie gets mad at herself for resenting someone else’s kindness and loyalty. She enjoys Grace best when they can just talk and confide in one another and not worry about everything else—and such times grow rarer. Still, she is delighted by Grace’s endowment of the Sword despite the dangers it proposes for both of them. Not only is it an acknowledgement of Grace’s nature, but it means it obligates Grace to pay attention to and protect others than Winifred herself. If having to be the occasional damsel in distress to Grace’s knight is the price for otherwise giving Grace something else to focus her self-imposed duty to protect others on, Winifred will live with that.

While as they got older, their relationship became romantic in nature, Winifred’s ambivalence about Grace’s protective nature is the main reason the romance tends to be off-and-on-again. Nonetheless, Winifred wants to stay by Grace’s side more than she’ll admit, and went to Freedom City with her both times to keep an eye on her. After all, Winifred knows that at the end of the day, Grace might actually need her than the other way around, and that’s a nice feeling.

Following her aunt’s footsteps, Winifred has pursued a degree in computer science and, seven years into Grace’s membership in Eldritch, Winifred has earned her way into a tech consulting spot with UNISON, a position she also uses to help provide Grace and Eldritch some information and access when needed (though she will not break the law to help them, unless it were truly a matter of life and death). From childhood, she has dabbled in astrology, enjoying the ancient mathematics of it, and has been working on a program that mixes the ancient pseudoscience and modern algorithms of the day.

Physically, she is pale with short, dark auburn hair and freckles. On the scrawny side, she is tall compared to an average British woman, but still seems small next to Grace. She has a good fashion sense and tends toward smart business casual.

25 years old, Grace is very tall and plump, with a rosy complexion, long honey-blonde hair, and inquisitive gray eyes. Her favorite physical activity is swimming, which gives her strong arms and legs, and she can be quite physically imposing when she straightens up her posture and asserts herself. She tends to dress comfortably and casually.

Having been bullied during childhood she has no tolerance for bullies of herself or of anyone else. She has a strong sense of justice--while she generally respects authority as a rule, someone trying to impose something hurtful or that feels wrong to her she tends to speak out against, which has sometimes gotten her in trouble. She is not always the most elegant of speakers and sometimes puts her foot in her mouth, but generally means well. Grace is an extremely loyal friend and always the first to put her neck on the line if someone she cares about is in trouble. Though she likes swimming and going for walks, Grace is otherwise a bit of a bookworm and reads a lot of mythology and fantasy; she also plays games with similar themes.