“Those I allied with Xander are trying to rid Thorn of the war mongers who killed your mother” Aubrey said as she noticed he slowed down a bit buckling his boots. “I am not allying with Thorn; I am allying with people in Thorn who want to see the current regime gone, you of all people should be happy we are going to war with those who made the decision to invade.” Aubrey smiled a little inside when she saw him stop altogether, but could not let his speaking to her as if they were equals go totally unpunished. “That is my way of thinking although I do not owe you any explanations for the going-ons of this Queendom. I treat you as if you were a king but you are forgetting your place as to who is the Queen. If you dare speak to me in that manner again, with that barely concealed rage of yours, I will remind you of that fact.” Aubrey watched the anger fade from his features followed by his normal look of acceptance. Although she wouldn’t mind at all satisfying her urges, she remembered her mother was the reason she fetched him in the first place. “Finish putting on your boots, the Queen has summoned you along with those Thornish women. While they are here, I do not want you and them alone together, come now.”
Xander finished buckling up his boots as he watched his wife as she walked towards the door. He hated meeting with the Queen or even being in her presence, she was a meaner version of his wife, although with a sweeter voice. Xander walked out of the room and followed Aubrey, noticing she had more guards around her than normal. Although they were not in their armor, he could tell there was chainmail under their regular clothing, something someone who did not know them probably would not pick up on. If he were to haphazard a guess, the presence of Reds other than himself still had them on edge. As Xander got closer to the throne room, he could sense Aubrey was tense, as she inhaled deeply before going in.
Xander entered the room and went to his knee until the Queen gave him permission to rise. He noticed the women from Thorn were in the room already and had gotten more than a few glances. Xander to his normal seat as his wife pulled out a chair for him to sit in, but noticed she angled it slightly so that he would face the Queen but have to turn his head to face the Thornians.
“How are you doing today Xander” asked the Queen in her normal regal tone.
“I am well my Queen” Xander replied as he focused on a spot on the floor.
“Samantha, what troops can you provide us when we make our assault? We have the strongest army around without the help of the witches but I worry about defections when we reach your homeland” Queen Celeste said in a slight variation of her normal tone, Xander could tell she was thinking a couple of steps ahead.
“I think the defections will be tempered by people joining your army, many women and I am sure men will more than make up for the number you lose, and that’s before any of my troops take the field” Samantha told the Queen, occasional stealing glances in Xander’s direction.
“Our way of life isn’t perfect Samantha but it works. I see no reason why a great number of our troops wouldn’t try to escape the commitment, possible death or slavery. I would hazard a guess even a poorly ran propaganda attack would convince a sizable number.” Celeste asked Samantha, not sure the other woman realized the true nature of the commitment.
“Your Majesty, your streets do not know the poor, the sick or the hungry. I have not seen one vagrant in Rangel, the men here do not know what life is like on the other side.” Samantha said as she thought back to women selling their babies for food, men killing each other over scraps or children stealing in the streets. “We have our affluent but they are few and far between as the rich is getting richer, the poor is getting poorer. Any struggling free man would gladly donate his labour if he knew the end result was a house and food for him and for his family.”
“Famine has reached Thorn? I was under the impression there is plenty of fertile farmland.” Queen Celeste said as she absent mindedly looked at the map of her domain, imagining it larger than it currently was. Perhaps she would marry a Thornian, that would do much to pacify their populace and force acceptance on her subjects.
“There is plenty of food your Majesty. The problem is that certain nobles and merchants would rather it rot in their sheds instead of giving it to the poor, there is no profit in that.” Penny spoke up as she glanced around the room. Samantha was supposed to be their spokeswoman but she was enamored by the Princess Aubrey’s husband. The portrait she had seen in the Rangelian palace had Erik the Red facing the Rangelians but his features were generic. Had they seen the many portraits hung in secret of Erik throughout Thorn, they would see this Xander was a dead on match. Penny had spoken to the other girls about it and they were of the same mind she was in, that Xander was a descendant of Erik the Red. There was tales after the excursion into Rangel that Erik the Red himself killed all involved under the false banner of King Janus on Rangelian soil and then ventured into Thorn and slaughtered everyone at the first outpost he found before disappearing to parts unknown. It was collaborated by survivors of the outpost along with the Inglish that the weapons some of the heavily armored troops that Rangel had at their disposal were of unheard of strength. Those enemies could only be the Palace Guard all of her party had taken special note. The deadly warrior wearing Pink Armor was confirmed yesterday by one of the slaves who worked at the castle, identifying the owner as Xander. The Bastard child of Erik the Red, possibly the most powerful person in existence, nothing but a mere lapdog. Penny smiled inwardly as she thought whatever is in-between Aubrey’s legs must be made of gold or diamonds.
“Your father and his troops, where are they exactly?” The Queen said as she mused over invading Thorn. The noble elite probably would like to expand their respective holdings, but at what cost and how much blood. The less affluent had nothing to gain by sending their men to die in a war far home, so Celeste had to make sure exactly who she would be getting into bed with.
“Your Majesty,” Samantha began, unsure of whether or not the Queen would support her. “My father is well liked in Thorn with many men willing to die for him.”
“The Question being asked is not of his character, girl.” The High Witch spoke, looking down upon the Thornian Women as if they were bugs.
“My father and his men are holed up on his estate. They are fending off those loyal to the king as we speak. The rest of the army is preoccupied on the border as Frahnse tests our borders, being the opportunist that they are. Right now the army is separated, unable to bring their might upon my father in whole. My father win or lose, will not likely see his next summer.”
“There is something this girl is not telling us” the High Witch spoke. “I will bring one of the potioners in here and get the truth out of these harlots.”
“That will be quite unnecessary as of right now Elizabeth” the Queen began in a voice so soft before quickly hardening it as she looked towards Samantha. “Now what are you leaving out, if you are not comfortable speaking with me, I can leave you and my High Witch alone for you to hammer it out.”
Samantha looked at Penny and the rest of the women she brought with her. Penny looked as if she was going to be ill, a look Samantha was desperately trying to hide herself. Samantha took a deep breath before speaking. “My mother was the only sister of the man known as Erik the Red. King Janus is looked upon as a pretender to some due to the secret deal he is rumored to have made with you for Erik’s life. I am the only blood relative to Erik left still alive, and many see me as heir to the throne. Janus wanted my hand to secure his power, he has tried to rule by force for the last twenty years and people are rumoring to revolt.”
“So you are putting us in the middle of a lover’s tiff eh?” Celeste said as she smiled, perhaps thinking about something in her past that brought laughter to her mouth. “Janus did betray that monster enchanter, but it was already a losing battle on his end, Janus just hastened the inevitable. Anaya, fighting an enemy on their land is hard, is there anyway we can gain the upper hand or balance out the scales?”
“I have thought on this already my Qu
een” said Anaya as she glanced at the High Witch, a woman she really despised. “My plan is twofold, every man of fighting age we come across we should treat them well, offering food for themselves as well as their family….”
The High witch immediately spoke up. “Offering food to men to feed their family, unheard of, it should be offered to the female!”
“Ms. Brightly” Anaya began avoiding the High Witch’s official title. “The male is the head of household in Thorn, it must be offered to him first. We will eventually impose our culture but during an invasion is not that time. As I was saying, offer money and food for those who would join us the problem is when people refuse, that’s when it is going to get messy.”
“Messy?” The Queen of Rangel spoke, suddenly intrigued about what her General had to say.
“We can’t leave possible enemies at our back, those that refuse should be brought to the witches to be killed in whatever horrible manner they devise after giving the men every chance to recant. Our position must be clear, you are either with us, or against us, let no one stand the middle ground. I recommend bringing an abundance of food wherever we go and starting the same cafeterias we have for the men in every town we come across that have the hungry..”
“That would be almost every town you come across” Penny spoke up. “The poor of Thorn have no food, as well as shelter, shoes or clothes..”
“How Barbaric” Aubrey spoke as she got to her feet. “Why would you not clothe and feed your poor? By the Gods, what do the poor do when the snows come, surely they can’t stay outside in the elements?”
“Your highness, they freeze to death if hunger doesn’t get them first. Stealing food will get your hands cut off or put to death.” Samantha said ashamedly.
Xander took in everything the women were saying as they feigned outrage at the Thornish culture. While it was true that there was no such thing as hunger and everyone had clothes, but the Arena was still firmly in Rangel where men died almost every week, many because they did not want to be a part of forced labor. Xander had yet to hear of any slaves in Thorn, the females in Rangel actually think they are helping people out by making them slaves, something that made his skin crawl. Xander sat and listened and gleamed information, apparently the military was to spend the day mobilizing from all corners of the Queendom and would begin their march into Thorn as soon as possible. The bulk of the forces around the capital was already put on alert by the General and would be moving out as soon as the meeting was up.
“Anaya, I am going to travel with my husband to the border. Find me a carriage that can make the trip there with all amenities necessary.” Aubrey began before looking at Samantha, “I worry for her future if she is as important as she says she is. Find a carriage big enough for two, we will put our greatest warrior with her as her personal bodyguard.”
“Your Highness” Samantha began, “I brought guards with me, I think they can protect me as well as any.”
“Your have heard the Princess” the High Witch spoke, thinking about her future title if Samantha is made Queen. “We can settle this right now, pick your best guard and we will have a fight to the death in the Arena with our champion. After he kills whoever you think is worthy we will keep sending your guards in one by one until our champion is either dead or has killed all of them.”
Samantha thought to herself, while the majority of Rangel’s troops were not too much to handle for a well-trained unit, she had heard of their champions, men able to slay ten times their number in a span of moments. The guards she brought with her risked their lives to get her this far, to die in an arena would be foolishness, although the High Witch did just confirm its existence, something she had previously thought was made up just to rally the people against Rangel. “There is no way they could take on this Champion, I just did not want you to take away from your defenses here is all” Samantha said, quickly thinking on her feet.
“The ladies you brought with you will be placed in another carriage; your guards can take the task of watching out for their welfare.” Queen Celeste said as she stood up, with everyone else at the table following suit. “I expect daily updates, Anaya and Elizabeth. Xander will see to that” said the Queen as she left the audience.
“Let’s get moving, I want to leave in the hour” Anaya said as she too left the group.
CHAPTER 7
Xander was loaded up in a carriage he had not seen before. The outside of it looked ready for battle, with iron walls instead of wooden ones but the inside told a far different story. The inside was very plush with compartments holding water as well as little snacks. The carriage was longer than any he had ever seen and in the middle of it stood a small table with a map of Rangel etched into it. Xander noticed there was a mechanism which allowed the table to fold down into the floor. He thought that was nifty until he learned the purpose of such a device, it was to allow the bench cushions to fold out into a bed.
Aubrey had been coming to him in the night more and more lately. At first just the thought of her touching him was enough to make him vomit but lately he had been enjoying it somewhat, something he would never let her know. Xander believed a marriage should be one of equals, not with a master and subordinate, something that was lost on Aubrey. Xander had rarely even spoken to Aubrey even though they had been married for more than a year, other than to either answer questions she put to him or agree with whatever she wanted to be agreed with. Despite this, Aubrey still found him quite attractive and although she did mind the silence, as long as her thirst for his body was quenched she often overlooked it.
Xander often wondered why she did not have concubines or visit the pleasure houses around Rangel like many women did. Men were never granted a divorce anyway so most women slept with whoever they wanted as long as the man was not married. Married men who slept around could find themselves in the arena or even maimed if their wife wanted it so. As much as Xander started to reluctantly enjoy her body, he still wished she would find another plaything and leave him alone in his misery. Xander knew he didn’t have to stay lonely, he still had a way to reach his father’s book, but he dared not travel to the Norraya forest as he was sure she would demand to go.
“Are you still cross with me?” Aubrey said snapping him out of his thoughts.
“I am not upset at you your Highness” Xander said as he thought about traveling with Thornians before adding “not that it would do any good if I were.”
Aubrey normally did not here any of Xander’s thoughts and was taken aback. Twice in one day he had spoken to her, although it was nowhere near the tone she would have liked at least he showed some emotion. Aubrey figured she would let him speak his mind this time if he chose to, since they were alone in the carriage and any conversation other than screaming would probably not be heard since they were on the road and traveling noises would most likely cover them up. “Why would you say such a thing, I listen to you.”
“Forgive me your Highness,” Xander started not really wanting to get into a conversation with Aubrey. “I spoke out of turn, I meant nothing by it.”
“Dammit Xander I am sick of this game, it is just you and me in here. Speak your mind and stop acting like an automaton from the children’s stories.” Aubrey said raising her voice slightly.
“Why, so I can be whipped again perhaps if you disagree with me?” Xander said as he felt his frustrations threatening to unleash. “No thank you ‘Your Highness’” Xander said as he empathized her title to drive home the point they were not equals.
Aubrey thought back to that day and regretted the action, but was determined to get past it. She had apologized to him, something that was difficult for her because she never apologized to anyone for any reason other than her mother. Xander obviously hadn’t forgot and thought her a monster, a title she was sure she carried in his heart since their first day of marriage. She had him talking at least, something that was rare and was determined not to waste it. “You were disciplined because you disobeyed a direct order, not from your wife
but from the Princess of Rangel. You don’t realize what you have; many men would gladly take your place at my side.”
“Then you should call on them then and give me my freedom” Xander said as he turned away from her, and began looking at the curtains covering the windows.
Aubrey stood up and slapped Xander full across the face. Any man she was with should be overjoyed at the fact, not sulking in a corner. She was the future of Rangel and many men had insinuated they would be an agreeable mate if she would have them. Instead she had been saddled with a whining boy who at the moment was only good for one thing. “Take off your clothes” Aubrey said as she began taking off her shoes. “If you are just going to use your mouth to spout off the hateful words of a child I will put it to better use.”
CHAPTER 8
Aubrey had just finished with him as the carriage came to a stop. Although she had a small sheen going, it was nothing like the buckets of sweat Xander had soaked the sheets with. She looked at him as he began drifting off to sleep, satisfied with herself for a job well done. Aubrey had ensured the carriage carrying the would be Thornian ruler was close by and used every trick she knew to ensure Xander was loud enough that there was no doubt they were making love. Aubrey played in his hair as lay sleeping; sure she would be on everyone’s lips during her travel. No one would dare look at her with a wrong eye, but Xander would get a few stares and a lot of comments about how lucky he was, especially from the soldiers that he got the privilege of sleeping with her. Aubrey could hear doors opening and movement outside and figured they were stopping for a midday meal and to water the horses. The calls of nature would probably need to be answered soon by the men, as all of the carriages had at least one seat that doubled as a bathroom with the droppings going straight out to the ground. She would have to go before the hour was up but would send Xander outside to ride with the men, some things she needed her privacy for. Aubrey had just finished getting dressed when she heard a knock on her carriage door, amazed the sound did not wake Xander.
The Terror of Thorn: Child of War: Book 2 Page 3