by Dyan Chick
Celeste laughed. "You have a special talent, I guess. I don't have any rocks in my boots." She took a few steps away from him, into the trees. "I think I hear water. Come on."
Ashton followed her into the trees, trying to hear what she heard. He could hear the wind moving through the pine trees and birds singing. A few small animals scampered through the fallen needles. Their boots crunched over pinecones as they walked deeper into the woods. He was just about to tell her to turn back when he heard the sound of rushing water. In front of them, a fast moving stream cut through the trees.
Celeste jumped in excitement. "See those foamy areas?" She pointed to the bubbly patches of water over the rocks.
"Yes," Ashton said, "I see them."
"I might be able to catch us some fish." She looked up to the sky. The sun was low in the horizon already and the evening chill was starting to set in. "Can you build us a fire? Probably wouldn't hurt to stop here for the night."
"I miss summer," Ashton said, "we'd still have hours of light."
"Though, without the horses, we might be able to get in a few extra hours if we are careful where we step."
Ashton shook his head. "It's not worth risking injury to get there a day earlier. We wouldn't be able to make up enough time to make that much of a difference. I'll take care of the fire."
He walked away from the stream and found a flat space where he could build them a fire. He pushed the pine needles that covered the ground out of the way and set to work finding rocks to form a perimeter.
A strong fire crackled in the circle of stones when Celeste arrived back with four large, silver fish. Each fish would easily feed two hungry people. "Are we expecting company?" Ashton asked.
She shrugged. "Wasn't sure how hungry we'd be. It might be a while before we eat again."
Ashton's shoulders fell as he realized how true that was. Without their horses, they didn't have the supplies they had carefully packed to help them make this journey safer. They'd have no blankets tonight and no spare water or food. They'd have to rely on finding it along the way. He counted the days as best he could in his head, trying to figure out how long it had taken them to reach the summit. Was it five days? Six? Less? Everything seemed to blend together. And that had been on horseback. Walking would be slower. He frowned.
"What is it?" Celeste said, looking up from the fish she was gutting with a pointed stick.
"I was trying to figure out how long it might take us to reach the castle from here," Ashton sat down on a pile of pine needles. "Without the horses, it will take us longer. We might need that extra few hours of time."
Celeste shoved a stick inside the fish, set it over the fire to roast then started to work on the next one. "We'll move faster tomorrow," she said. "We might even be as fast as if had horses. These downhills would have been tricky for them."
Ashton leaned back against a tree and listened to the fire. The smell of roasting fish filled the air. All he could think about was Etta surrounded by admirers, dressed like a queen. How could she be happy back in her tent after staying in the luxury of a castle? He needed to see her again. He covered his face with his hands. Would she want to see me? Either way, they had to find this stone quickly and get it back to the camp.
29
Ashton
Celeste awoke Ashton right as the sky began its shift from black to gray. He rubbed his hands over his arms, trying to bring warmth into his body. "That's another benefit of getting down this mountain," he said. "The lower we get, the warmer it'll get."
"Until it starts snowing," Celeste said.
Ashton picked up the sword from the ground and sheathed it behind him. "Don't remind me."
Celeste kicked some dirt over the fire's meager remains. "Ready?"
They ate leftover fish as they walked back toward the pass. In the faint light of early morning, they had to tread carefully to avoid holes or large rocks.
"You think Max really stopped by the castle with his dragon?" Celeste asked.
"No idea," Ashton said. "I still can't figure out why he does most of the things he does."
"He wants you on his side, that's pretty clear," Celeste said.
"I don't understand it, though. He's the leader of the Order of the Dragon. He has several other fire sorcerers who will help him. I'm not that special."
Celeste sighed. "You're missing the big picture. He needs to remove Etta as a threat to the throne. Controlling you is a good way to control her."
Ashton stopped walking. It did seem like the only possibility that would explain why Max kept returning to Ashton. "If that's why he keeps coming after me, that means whoever is informing him either doesn't know about what happened between us, or they are close enough to Etta that they think she's still in love with me."
"True," Celeste said. "It wasn't public knowledge that you two broke up. Could be anybody in the camp, really. She probably hid it from everybody."
Ashton starting walking again. "I can't stand this feeling of being so powerless. We can't get news to the camp, we can't do anything to stop Max. Maybe we should just go back, skip this stupid stone."
Celeste stopped walking this time.
Ashton knew he didn't really mean it. He knew how important the stone was to remove the king from power. "Look, I -"
Celeste was pointing. His eyes moved from her outstretched finger and his breath caught in his chest. Relief washed over him as he stared at the castle in the distance. They were almost there. The relief turned to fear. They'd have to battle whatever the king had hidden in that castle very soon.
"I'd say we're still a half day's walk, at least," Celeste said.
Ashton glanced at her. "I don't want to enter that castle in the dark."
"Me neither. Let's cut through the woods and get as close as we can then make camp. We'll try to find food and get some rest so we are prepared for it in the morning."
Ashton nodded. They left the pass for the woods. Now that they knew the location of the castle, they didn't have to stay to the main road. They just needed to continue south toward their destination. Tomorrow was the day they'd be testing their skills. Were they good enough to defeat whatever waited for them?
Night fell too quickly. Ashton and Celeste settled in between the trees.
"What do you think we'll find tomorrow?" Celeste asked after what seemed like hours of silence.
Ashton had been staring at the orange and yellow tongues of flame eating away at the wood in their fire. He took a deep breath. "I'm not sure. But I'll probably need that sword."
Celeste poked a stick into the fire, causing the wood to shift and crumble. She jumped as the sparks flew. "Maybe we need a plan."
Ashton wondered how you make a plan for something that you have no knowledge of. They didn't know the layout of the castle, they didn't know if they would encounter threats outside of it or only on the inside. They didn't even know where the stone was being kept.
Maybe having some idea of what they were going to do would help. "We can make a plan, but we have to be willing to change it if it doesn't work."
Celeste dropped the stick into the fire. "Agreed."
"Any ideas?" Ashton asked.
"I was hoping you'd have some."
Ashton laughed. "How did we end up on this trip in the first place? What were we thinking?"
Celeste joined in, covering her mouth to stifle her giggles. She caught her breath and wiped a tear from her eye. "I've been wondering that since we lost our horses. I kept telling myself that if the others thought we could do it, we must be the right people for the job. But when Max showed up, I don't know, I just started to question everything."
"Everything?" Ashton asked.
She nodded. "Yes, everything. Like how we are going to get this stone. And how we're going to defeat the king and Max. Especially now that Max has a dragon." She hugged her knees to her chest. "Ashton, what are we doing?"
Ashton had been asking himself some of those same questions. But when he stopped to consider t
he alternative, living in a world where the king stayed in power, or Max took the throne, he didn't see much of a choice. "Have you thought about what it would be like if we failed?"
Celeste was quiet for a moment. "I suppose the king will stay in power. Or Max would take over."
"You can go back, Celeste," Ashton said, "but this is my home. If we don't succeed, my home will not be safe for anybody. People are scared. People are dying." He shook his head. "What kind of person would I be if I gave up without trying?"
Celeste dropped her legs to the ground. "You're right, you know, I could go home. But you and Etta are my family. I won't turn my back on either of you."
Ashton smiled. "So we're going through with this, plan or no plan?"
Celeste raised her hands over the fire to warm them then crossed them over her chest. Her face grew serious. "We're not just going through with this. We are going to succeed, no matter the cost." She reached into her pocket and pulled out the coin. "Just in case, I want you to know where I'm keeping it. No matter what happens, we get that stone back to Etta. Agreed?" She put the coin back in her pocket.
Ashton clenched his jaw as he took in the seriousness of her comment. "I'm with you."
Ashton woke to a strange pulling sensation behind his head. His heart thumped loudly in his chest and he looked around for any sign of movement. It was quiet. He shivered. Celeste had fallen asleep and the fire was down to the last few smoking embers.
Maybe I'm imagining things. He rubbed his eyes and pulled his hands into his sleeves to keep his fingers warm. He should be upset with Celeste for falling asleep during her watch, but he couldn't really blame her. Neither of them had been sleeping well on the mountain. Pulling his knees to his chest, he figured he'd stay awake until sunrise and let her get some rest.
A breeze went past his ear. He tensed. It had only gone past his ear. That's not how wind works. He put his hand around the hilt of the sword and held it close. Something was out there.
"Celeste." Ashton shook her gently.
She woke with a start. "I fell asleep?" She covered her face with her hands, "I'm so sorry, Ashton." She noticed the sword in his hand. "What is it?"
"Not sure yet," he said. "But I don't think we're alone."
Celeste sat on her knees, hands on her thighs. She looked around them. "I don't see anything."
"I felt something," Ashton said. He looked to the sky, trying to find the moon. "How much time do you think we have until sunrise?"
Celeste looked up. "Two hours, maybe."
Ashton stood and offered his hand to Celeste, pulling her up. "We should get moving. We can get closer to the castle and go in right at dawn."
"You want to walk through the woods in the dark?" Celeste asked. "Is that safe?"
Ashton kicked dirt over their fire to put out the lingering embers. "Probably just as safe as staying here. Whatever is in the woods knows we're here already. It's better if we can just get this over with."
The sun was finally beginning its climb and the early dawn light filtered through the canopy of trees. Ashton headed through the woods toward the castle with Celeste right behind. Pinecones crunched under their feet and they had to push branches out of their way as they walked. If anybody was waiting for them, they would have no trouble hearing them approach.
They were getting closer to the castle but still couldn't see it yet. The lingering tingle of magic spread through Ashton's fingers. He stopped walking and put his arm out to stop Celeste. "Do you feel that?"
"Yes, do you think whatever you felt before followed us?"
"This is different," Ashton said. He took a few tentative steps forward and sniffed the air. Something had changed. The clean scent of the woods mingled with a touch of something else. Sulfur. He moved forward and came to the edge of a deep gorge. Across the gorge, they could see the castle. Red and gold shimmered inside the clouds of smoke rising from it. A dragon had attacked the castle.
Ashton ran his hand though his hair while he stared at the destruction in front of him. For a moment, he wasn't sure what to think. It didn't seem real. Why help them? "Max did it."
"Do you think he took the stone?" Celeste asked.
Ashton shook his head. "He said he didn't want it. I believe him. I didn't think he'd actually attack the castle, though."
"He wants you to know he really is openly opposing the king," Celeste said.
"I guess so."
They both stared at the smoking building for several minutes, transfixed. "What should we do now?" Celeste asked.
"We move forward. Find a way across and get the stone. Hope we can get out of there before Max comes back."
"This is turning out more complicated than I thought it would be," Celeste said. "What ever happened to just battling the undead?"
"Etta happened." He thought about how different things were from what he imagined. "I thought I'd see Max on the throne by now."
"When you put it that way," Celeste pushed her sleeves up, "bring on the dragon. I'll take Etta on the throne over Max any day."
30
Etta
The next morning, true to his word, Gaius took me to meet the captain of his guard.
"Antoine," Gaius said, "I'd like to introduce you to her highness, Elisabetta, Queen of Illaria."
Antoine was an imposing figure. I could see why Gaius had him as captain. He was so tall that he probably had to duck when he went through doorways. His uniform clung to the muscles on his arms and chest, showing his sheer bulk. I wondered how much he ate at meals. He was easily the largest man I had ever seen.
"Nice to meet you, Antoine." I inclined my head toward the man and he bowed to me.
"It's an honor, your highness," he said in a thick, Gallic accent. "The king tells me you are in need of a personal guard of your own."
"That's correct," I nodded once.
"I have a few men that I would like to introduce you to. I think they would be an excellent fit for service at your court." He turned to walk and I followed behind him.
We entered an open-air courtyard lined with colonnades on all four sides. Water rushed from a fountain in the center of the courtyard making the space feel cooler and more peaceful than the rest of the castle. A breeze blew through the courtyard, filling the air with the scent of lavender. How I wished I could just sit on the edge of the fountain and lose myself in the sound of the water.
Antoine took us past the fountain to the opposite end of the courtyard where six men stood in line. They had their chins up, chests out, and arms at their sides in identical precision. Each of them had their eyes fixed on a point directly in front of them. Antoine led us to them and stopped. He saluted them and they returned his salute with sharp, direct movements.
Antoine spoke, "Men, this is Queen Elisabetta. She is here to evaluate you to see if any of you meet her expectations to become a member of her personal guard."
Antoine stepped behind me, leaving me right in front of the men. Gaius leaned over to me. "You can speak to them. Ask questions, get to know them. Whatever you'd like."
I pushed the curls out of my face and walked up and down the line looking at the men who stood alert and unmoving. They were all young. Most of them my age or close to it. They all stood at least a head taller than me and had broad, muscled shoulders. Despite their posture and uniforms, they were different looking enough that I would easily be able to tell them apart. That was a relief. In their matching uniforms, I was worried I would struggle knowing who was who. I stopped walking and stood in front of the man on one end of the line. I should probably ask some questions or something. What does one ask potential guards?
"You can relax," I began. They didn't move. Did they speak Illarian? I tried Gallic. They seemed to ease up a little when I made the switch. "Do you speak Illarian?" I asked.
One of the men took a step forward. "We all speak Illarian though some of us have not been speaking it for very long." He had no trace of an accent and spoke clearly and without any hesitation.
&n
bsp; "You're very well spoken," I said.
"Thank you, your highness," he said. "I received lessons in Illarian very young. Some of us do, some of us don't learn until we join the guard."
"What is your name?"
"Charles, your highness."
"Thank you, Charles." I turned so I could see all of the men in the line. "My uncle and his captain have assured me that you are highly qualified, so I do not doubt your abilities. My question for you all is simple. Do you wish to serve me?" I put my hand out to stop them from speaking.
"Before you answer," I lowered my hand, "consider that if you serve me, you'll be leaving your home. You'll be in my household and I will consider all of you to be loyal Illarians. We have a long road ahead of us and I cannot be sure of when or if you will be able to return to your home. You have to be willing to leave it behind."
The men were silent.
"If you would like to stay here, I understand," I said.
Charles stepped forward. "Your highness, I'm an orphan." He turned to Gaius and bowed. "I mean no disrespect to my home country, but there's nothing for me here. I would be honored to accept a position in your personal guard."
I smiled. I liked this guard. Something about him made me feel comfortable. "Thank you, Charles, I'm happy to have you."
The other five men stepped forward. One after another, they pledged allegiance to me and my kingdom. I was overwhelmed. Six men who didn't know me were voluntarily agreeing to leave everything behind to protect me. "Thank you," I said. "You are all the highest-ranking members of my service and will be welcomed into our country with open arms."
I turned to my uncle. "Thank you for looking out for me."
"I'm glad you are pleased," Gaius said. "And I know I'll rest better knowing you're protected."
I turned back to the men. "Charles, you'll serve as captain."