The breeze brushed through my hair with gentle fingers. It caressed my face and body with its cold embrace, making me shiver. Goose bumps formed on my arms, making my skin tingle against the leather I had dawned on earlier this morning. We were finally free. No longer mingling with criminals, no more stuck behind the many walls of the city, we were free. Instead of the pounding laughter of loud and drunk people, the air was filled with the thunder of horse hooves frantically trying to put distance between us and the city of criminal.
The trees where giant blurs of dark and light greens as we raced through the tightly knit forest. Twigs and leaves laid snapped and torn apart under the heavy beats of our horses hooves. In our desperation to get back home, we neglected to actually hide our trail. All our hope was on them being so distracted they wouldn't know where to start l
The air between all of my soldiers was heavy with silence. Almost like an invisible weight bad been placed on everyone of our shoulders. Grief hung above their heads, having lost one of our own, and learning that their was a traitor amongst us. Even as they sat on their horses, baccks straight and reigns loose in their hands, they still hung their heads. General Bregus was probably the most quiet out of all of us. He uttered not one word since we told him what had gone down the last few days. There was a strangled grunt from his lips, but he uttered no more since then. As he rode by my side, I was able to gauge his reactions. But it was hard to read him as he stared blankly into the distance. His eyes where on the horizon, but his mind had wandered into his own thoughts. It would almost seem like he had even paled a little, grieving in the silence of his own mind. I know that Micha
I will skip the boring bits and just tell you what happened next. Things actually went more smoothly than what I had expected. Illia was tossed in the dungeons as soon as I arrived per my request. She did her obviously tidbits of flailing and screaming how unjust I was for arresting her without a reason. Of course, my father tried swooping in and saving the day. But with the evidence in hand about her treason to the kingdom, she was soon after locked away. I couldn't explain to you how good it felt knowing that I was uprooting the problem. That and she was a terrible human being to begin with. Uriah's father had been in tow of my father, and was then given the evidence of all of my father's wrong doings. After scanning through the documents, he went through a trial that lasted well over a year. In that year, Laylia was caught trying to sneak into the border of my kingdom and was arr
“Alliah stop being so slow!” A boy yelled out. Jet black hair fell on to the back of his shoulders as he ran. It bounced and flailed around with every step he took. His golden eyes were filled with mischief and joy as he took off down a hallway of my Palace. They would glance back every now and then to make sure I was not falling behind. His round face was round and smooth, even despite the big grin he had. He was my best friend from another Palace, and he was here to train to be a proper Knight, just like myself. I huffed after him, my legs swinging wider so that I could match my pace to his. “This isn’t fair Nicklos! You have longer legged than I do!” I shouted from behind him. I heard him laugh but made no point to slow down. His black cape flowed behind him despite his speed. I tried catching it in my h
“You summoned me father?” I asked bowing before him in his study. It was a cute study, completed with books shelves, a small desk, and a glass door that opened to the balcony. The walls where painted white with gold swirling patterns. It was like that throughout the whole castle. It was my mother’s favorite design, and eventually became our design on the backs of our cloaks. She really had a lot of influence over my father when she was alive. He absolutely loved her dearly and did everything to appease her. It was the one thing I admired about him, his love for his family. I could not help but stare at the dark circles that had formed under his already sagging eyes. The true look of a hardworking and tired man. After my mother had passed away, he spent a lot of his time in his study. Slaving over paperwork day and night until his fingers where tired. I wo
The carriage bounced and jostled down the dirt road towards us. It was a slick black carriage led by a team of Clydesdale horses. They where elegant creatures with long legs, thick glossy bodies, and well maintained and groom manes. There ears flicked and tails swished about as they pulled the carriage behind them. They where so beautiful that I could not pull my eyes away from them. It was such a shame that they belonged to the Phoenix family. I begrudgingly pulled my horse towards the carriage and held up my hand for the man driver to stop. At first, he was hesitant, but seeing the other guards around me, he slowed his pace and stopped beside me. “What can I do for you ma’am?” He asked warily as he eyed our men. I put on my best fake smile I could muster. I felt a little insulted because I knew this driver well. Wilfr
“Your Majesty you should really get looked at.” The General spoke sternly while walking at my side. I waved his concern off as I strolled down the hallway towards my father’s throne room. I wanted to get the lashings out of the way first before I sought out medical attention. Nothing would hurt worse than my father’s disapproval. “I really am alright. The arrow has blocked the blood from escaping, so I can manage at least an hour before I must get it removed. His Majesty needs to know what transpired in the forest.” I told him blandly. The General sighed in frustration. I could feel he wanted to stop me, but he wouldn’t be able to successfully. Much like my father, we where both extremely stubborn by nature and convincing us to do anything else but wha
After spending some time getting chewed out by the infirmary nurse, I finally found myself back in my room. The sun was well beyond set behind the distant mountains now, signaling the day was finally over. Fatigue had washed over me, but I wasn’t quite ready for bed yet. I found myself settling into the bath that I requested be set up. Steam rose slowly and sluggishly from the clean and crisp water. Lavender scented candles had been lit around the rim of the bathtub, giving off a calming aroma. I sighed with relief as the warm water lapped at my aching body. The heat working at the hard tense muscles that formed over the course of the day. What would my life be like without my bathtub? I would truly be lost. The only issue I had with my bath, was that it gave me time to reflect. Now I had to face my reality with Nicklos. It was true that seeing him today made me realize how much
“Alliah, come with me?” My eyes opened slowly in the darkness of the barracks, a light hand shaking me awake as I slowly came to my senses. Was there something wrong? What was happening? I quickly sat up in bed, grabbing my sword that sat on the floor beside me in the process. Could there possibly be another skirmish on the borders? “What’s going on? Are we in danger? Why isn’t anyone else awake?” I felt the panic rise in my chest as I watched all the dark lumps sleeping in the warn white cots. They where all lined in small, neat rows in a large room. I heard a small chuckle in the dark as a hand slowly traced the top of my shoulder to where my hand rested. I felt my self-tense at the presence, my hand gripping around the leather hilt of my sword. I rubbed my bleary eyes, and in the shadow of the moonlight, I could make out Nicklos’s face. Cursin