The Broken Kingdom

by Andrew G. Wood

  “You got him!” She said spotting they had one more in number.

  “Only just,” Samuel answered, “Father and I had to deal with two cultists.”

  “The main thing is you are all safe.”

  Lady Oakley walked up to Luca, and although he was still dressed as a maid, she curtsied and dipped her head. “Your Majesty, it is an honour to meet you.”

  Luca feigned a smile and replied as politely as he could in the circumstances, although he doubted it sounded very convincing.

  Luca turned to see the two Oakley children removing their disguises and immediately thought to do the same. However, Lady Oakley asked him to stop. “I am sorry your Majesty, but you will have to mascarade as a maid a little while longer yet,” she said looking somewhat apologetic at having to ask such a thing. And well she might, as Luca thought that this entire charade was getting beyond a joke, and as much as he was thankful for their help, their methods were far from pleasing.

  “We are hoping to leave tonight. I have notified Lord Casley and Lord Ashton of our intentions and reasons,” Lady Oakley said. “Lord Winter is also going, saying that it is not safe to remain in the palace,” she added.

  “Are Oster and Robert ready to leave also?” Lord Oakley asked his wife, who responded with a simple nod of her head in the affirmative.

  Luca sat at the small dining table in the suite given to the Oakley family for their stay. Usually used by more general guests to the palace such as merchants or churchmen, it was clearly a statement that suggested the royal family did not think highly of this particular Lord. The walls of the room were plain, brightened up slightly by the two pictures adorning the far wall, although both looked somewhat lost blotches of colour amidst a sea of whitewash. Underfoot there was carpet, although nothing like the quality Luca was used to, and the fireplace was best described as small at best.

  “Nice to see that we were treated accordingly,” Luca heard the now familiar voice of Nerina say from behind him.

  “Sorry, I assumed you would have been given a royal suite,” Luca replied not quite knowing what else to say.

  “Well, apparently most of those were given over to that Lord Elthan and his vast entourage. Three of the other major nobles are down are in the rooms along the next corridor,” Nerina said sardonically.

  “Not now!” Lord Oakley said sharply cutting his daughter off before she spoke another word. “There are far more important things to worry about than you not having a plush bedroom!”

  Suitably admonished, Luca watched and smiled a little as Nerina’s head dropped as an apology was then forced out of her. Although it might have been somewhat mumbled and not all that convincing, Luca thought it no more than she deserved anyway. Afterall, from what he had heard, the Oakley’s home in Garley was far from regal, and no larger than some of the homes in the city of Miranor. As they waited for someone to tell them that their transport was ready, Luca looked at each family member in a little more detail. Not because he wanted to get to know any of them better, but more a way of passing the time.

  Lord Oakley, now dressed in his usual clothes, as were his family, was an average kind of height and build, although Luca noticed his dark brown hair was thinning slightly on the top. Samuel, also had dark brown hair but was slim and already taller than the rest of his family, but somewhat gangly looking as if he needed a good meal inside him. Lady Oakley, who had had a lighter colour hair than the others was again of average height, although Luca thought she was a bit plumper than those considered as a normal build. Nerina, clearly a spoiled little brat of a child, had her mother’s hair colouring but was thin and scrawny-looking like her brother.

  Everyone’s attention was soon alerted as a knock came at the door. Not wanting to take any chances, Lord Oakley gestured for his family and Luca to remain where they were while he answered it. Whoever was at the door was a man, as Luca tried to listen in on what was being said. Unfortunately, whoever it was, spoke quietly and other than one or two words, he couldn’t make anything out. It was clearly not whom the Oakleys had been waiting for as the Lord closed the door and turned to see everyone looking his way.

  “Well, that’s interesting,” Lord Oakley mumbled as he rubbed his chin.

  “What’s happening, Father?” Samuel asked, first to speak.

  “Well, apparently Princess Imogen is nowhere to be found, nor her husband. Whether the cultists have her or not, we don’t know. But they fear Prince Luca is dead as blood was found on his bed, but they have no body to confirm that.”

  Lady Oakley turned to Luca and smiled, “We will keep you safe your Majesty.”

  “That’s not all. Apparently, Princess Elysia as the last remaining royal has announced she will oversee things until such time they are sorted out for definite.”

  “Pfft. Princess Elysia my foot, you mean Lord Elthan and his son,” Samuel said.

  Luca turned sharply to look at the young lordling. The words spoken were odd, but yet somehow made complete sense. Afterall, Luca had thought Frederick a somewhat suspicious looking character from the off, but surely this couldn’t be their doing? With that thought in mind, Luca found himself going over all the times he had thought something strange or odd, to see if anything might give a clue as to who was responsible. However, another knock at the door quickly stopped him in his tracks, and being as this was clearly who they were expecting, he followed Lady Oakley out into the corridor masquerading as her maid.

  “Wait!” Luca said as soon as they left the room.

  “If I am to be your maid, then I wouldn’t have my own horse would I?”

  The lady turned to look at him, “No you’re right, you wouldn’t. We need to rethink this through,” she said turning to her husband.

  “We don’t have time,” he replied, clearly agitated as his moved from side to side glancing up and down the corridor.

  “He can dress in some of my clothes,” Nerina said looking over to Luca as she spoke. “Perhaps we can just pretend he is my sister, and that you have three children.”

  “Can’t I wear some of Samuel’s and pretend to be your brother?” Luca replied knowing exactly what such a plan entailed.

  “No, his clothes are far too big for you. Besides, all we need to do is change your dress, and we can continue,” Lady Oakley replied, much to Luca’s dismay.

  Without a chance to protest Luca was quickly ushered back into the room they had just departed, and with one of Nerina’s dresses already in hand, Lady Oakley helped him off with the maid’s uniform.

  “Best keep the bonnet on,” Lady Oakley said standing back and thinking aloud, “Come on,” she added, hurrying Luca back into the corridor where the others still waited.

  “You look lovely,” Nerina said with a wry smile. Luca said nothing and kept his gaze lowered, not even wanting to look to see if anybody else was looking at how ridiculous this all was.

  “At least try and walk like a girl,” Nerina said as they turned to head down the steps that led them outside.

  “Yes, but I’m not am I,” Luca snarled back at her.

  Heir to the throne he might have been, but Lady Oakley was having none of this nonsense and quickly hushed both Luca and Nerina, telling them now was not the time for arguments. Somewhat shocked at being told off, Luca kept any further opinions to himself, but was already regretting being with this awful family.

  Chapter 4. Out of the City.

  Luca was amazed that now he was supposedly the most important person in the entire kingdom, how, just because he was dressed as a girl, nobody recognised him. Thinking that Lord Oakley’s plan to pass him off as a second daughter would surely fail as they had passed through the palace gates, and then the city gates, he was somewhat shocked as to how little attention anybody actually paid them. Perhaps being considered an insignificant noble such as Lord Oakley did have its own benefits. With the four family members, Luca and the two Men-at-arms who travelled with them, the group was probably the smallest of all the noble retinues that were currentl
y within the city of Miranor.

  Only when the group had passed out of the capital city did Luca actually realise where the family intended on taking him. Not really giving it much thought before, the idea of staying with a bunch of cave-dwellers did not really appeal to him; The thought of having to parade around as a girl for any longer than was necessary even less so. As the group left the main track and turned down one of the lesser used ones, Oster, the younger of the two soldiers accompanying them, rode slightly ahead, holding his reins in one hand and a burning torch in the other. The pace was slow, and the horses moved at no more than a trot being as it was too dark to see anything in front of them. While an accomplished horseman, even Luca struggled to keep on the track, although avoiding the ruts and holes was nigh on impossible, and so the chance of moving any quicker was out of the question.

  “Where are we going?” he eventually asked, having decided to at least try and remain polite. Afterall, he supposed these people had helped him, even though it had been demeaning for him, and to a degree still was. Luca dared only imagine the embarrassment if any of the guards had recognised him and word had gotten out of the prince and future king, was running around the city dressed as a girl. How would the lower classes ever show any respect to him if that sort of thing became public? Luca shook his head and shuddered thinking that he had been lucky thus far.

  “We will travel for an hour until we reach a village called Allenton,” Lord Oakley explained. “There we shall rest up for the night and ride again at first light in the morning.”

  “No, Lord Oakley. Sorry, you misunderstood me. Where are we going? I mean surely you’re not planning on riding around forever with me dressed in this ridiculous garb?” Luca asked trying to remain calm. These lower classes were evidently not as well educated as he was, and clearly answering such a simple question required a little more tact. Being as he considered himself a patient and forgiving person, he would keep things civil.

  “Ah sorry, your Majesty. I misunderstood.”

  “That’s okay Lord Oakley,” Luca said trying not to sound too condescending.

  “Well, we intend to take you to Garley. At least you will be safe there. Then we can try and work out what has gone on and what to do next.”

  Although thinking that was going to be the answer, having it confirmed filled Luca with dread. Used to the finest things that life had to offer, he supposed he could perhaps slum it for a few days if needed.

  “Surely, gathering the noblemen together and reinstating me in Miranor would be better. Gather my armies, and we can deal with any threat,” Luca added trying to think of a better alternative.

  “Perhaps,” Lord Oakley replied, “Though as much as you may not like it, Sire, we do not know who to trust at the moment.”

  Luca heard Nerina make a kind of scoffing sound from somewhere behind him as if mocking his words and turned his head around to berate her. However, although she was only a few yards behind he could barely make her out in the poor light and decided not to bother making a fuss.

  “Village ahead, my Lord,” Oster shouted back to them.

  “At last, I can get out of this ridiculous dress,” Luca grumbled.

  Although no reply was forthcoming, either confirming or denying that would be the matter of fact, Luca had a horrible feeling his predicament was not yet going to be over. As Oster led them into what Luca could only describe as a dingy little settlement, they caught sight of a few flickering lights from some of the buildings. Although still difficult to see properly, from what Luca could tell, most were single storey dwellings, no bigger than one of the sheds in the royal garden.

  “That is where we will stay,” Lord Oakley said pointing ahead to the one building that stood out from the others.

  With the aroma of stale ale drifting on the air towards them Luca was suddenly filled with dread.

  “You mean to stop in an alehouse?” Luca asked hoping he was wrong.

  “We often stop here. It is a lovely place,” Lady Oakley replied.

  “Yes, we find the people here very friendly,” Nerina added bringing her horse up beside Luca’s. “Unlike some that we can mention,” the girl mumbled as she continued past.

  As Oster led them around the back of the building, Robert, the other guard with them, slipped down from his horse and headed off through the main door at the front to let those inside know they had guests. While the others assembled at the back of the building, Luca struggled to get down from his horse due to the dress he was wearing, which seemed to cause Nerina some amount of amusement. Not wanting to stoop to her evidently low level of satire, Luca just ignored her and waited for someone to come and take his horse.

  “Do they not have any stablehands at this establishment?” Luca asked looking around the yard. With a few oil lamps burning it was still dark, but at least with some light, Luca could make out the general layout. It was immediately evident that was not the case, although Luca noticed Lord Oakley make a sign to his son Samuel, who duly walked over to where Luca was standing. “I will sort your horse out, Sire.”

  “Yes, well. Thank you Samuel, very kind of you,” Luca replied trying his best to think of a polite way to respond.

  Unsure as to what kind of place did not even have any staff to man their stables, Luca was dreading at what he might be presented with inside. The smell of the place was not the most pleasant, and even from outside he could hear much of the shouting and laughing going on inside. At least the building had two stories meaning perhaps the rooms upstairs would be away from the general riff-raff that occupied the ground level. The wait was thankfully a short one, as Robert made an appearance at the back entrance alongside two other men, one of whom immediately headed for Lord Oakley.

  “My, Lord. It is good to see you. I have your rooms ready. You have the cargo with you?”

  “Hello, Stanley,” Lord Oakley replied, sounding far too cheerful to be meeting what Luca thought was a rather scruffy looking, overweight man.

  “Yes, we have him,” the Lord added. Luca suddenly listened with interest as he realised that he was the one being described as ‘cargo’. Great, he thought, now someone else knows who he was and that he was dressed as a girl. However, the man known as Stanley seemed to understand the need for discretion as he signalled to the other much younger man who had ventured outside with him.

  “You know my son, Edward?”

  Lord Oakley said that he did, and duly shook the younger man’s hand. “You know the importance of keeping this quiet?”

  Edward, nodded, “I do my Lord. Don’t worry I will keep him safe.”

  “You any good with a blade?” Lord Oakley asked.

  “The best in these parts my Lord.”

  With everyone seemingly knowing what was going on, aside from Luca, he thought what the heck and decided to let things run as they were. Afterall, there was little else he could do but except having to suffer a little more of the same. The sooner he could get this mess sorted out and get back to the palace the better as far as he was concerned. However, it was looking like he might have to tolerate and endure some ignominious moments before that happened and braced himself for what horrors lay ahead. Luca noticed the younger man called Edward had a sword at his waist on one side and dagger on the other as if expecting trouble. Seemingly not bothered by the fact that the boy he was supposedly protecting was dressed like a common girl, Edward approached Luca and bowed his head. Probably still in his teens, Edward hardly looked like a typical guard.

  “I swear to protect you, Sire. Even if that means forsaking my own life to do so,” he added.

  Luca wasn’t quite sure what to say. While he was used to having people doing as he asked, having a young man actually admit to willingly laying his own life down for him was not quite so common. “Thank you, Edward,” Luca eventually replied realising he should probably say something.

  Edward was probably only a year or two older than Lord Oakley’s son, Samuel, yet he somehow seemed much more than that. Although the same h
eight as Samuel, Edward appeared to be filled out, more athletic looking and not quite so fresh-faced.

  “Go with Edward, Sire. We shall meet you inside in a little while.”

  Luca, with no other choice, did as was asked, and followed Edward in through the back door. The smell of rancid ale became much stronger as they entered, although it was now mixed with the aroma of food and smoke, making a somewhat confusing cocktail of scents for his senses to comprehend. While the ale was not particularly pleasant, and the smoke being something he was a little more used to, it was the fragrance of food that had his stomach reminding him that he had not eaten since the wedding feast.

  Edward, led the way, seemingly avoiding the main common room of the tavern and heading through a side door. Somewhat dark and dingy, he then led Luca up a narrow wooden staircase onto a narrow landing. With creaky floorboards underfoot, Luca was shown to the room right at the end.

  “In here, Sire.”

  “If I am to remain incognito. I don’t think referring to me as ‘Sire’ will help, do you?” Luca said hoping no one else was within earshot of them talking.

  “Of course…What shall I call you?”

  “Luca?” Luca said thinking it quite obvious. “At least until we are away from this awful place….No offence!”

  Whether Edward took umbrage with those words or not, Luca didn’t really care, as the door to his room was opened for him.

  Inside, two small oil lamps cast off barely enough light to illuminate what was a small, dingy room. With a small fireplace that was thankfully lit, giving the room some comfort it was sparsely furnished. There was a single bed with a small table beside it, and a washstand that Luca thought would have looked better as firewood. A table and two chairs filled up an area beside a very small window, and the floorboards were covered only partially by a somewhat tatty, cheap looking rug.