The King's Scare
I was in the library when Malinus returned to the castle, I had been reading a book about the forming of the Citadel from my great great grandfather. Before him, it had not occurred to the people of Vellum to have an army. That King figured with the tension between the Seely Realm that he needed to raise an army. Vellum has relatively been in peace for as long as anyone could remember at that point but one of the Prince’s from that era stumbled across the Seely Realm portal in Mesha. That King had made contact with their Queen. He had not known that the Fae were an aggressive race, and their warrior women were just as strong if not stronger than any man. After the first meeting with Queen Pearly, King Jeshua felt that it would be prudent to raise an army. A year after the first meeting, Seely and Vellum were at war. The war was in a stalemate for years until both sides had exhausted resources and decided a truce was the best course of action. Sadly, this treaty has always been on shaky grounds and both sides were weary of the other. Vellinians were particularly suspicious of the Fae since they had been the aggressors in the war. We all walked on eggshells when the Fae visited for their yearly honoring of the treaty festivities. We would then visit their realm which made me think at that point that I would need to place Fae etiquette in Alexandra’s extra curriculum.
Malinus had cleared his throat, “Your Majesty, I have delivered your letter as requested. She said she would have to read it later since she was due at Vanessa’s cottage for tea shortly.” I closed the book and looked at him, “That’s fine. As long as she received the letter directly. I’m glad we caught her at home. Knowing with which the haste she replies, I should expect to hear from her the next twenty-four hours.” I smiled at the thought of hearing her thoughts on the ball, but I was also anxious. What if she had not felt what I did and I laid myself bare to her. I rose from my seat and placed the book back in the shelf then turned to Malinus, “How was she? Blake said she had gone to bed exhausted.” Malinus smiled, “She was in good spirits if not a bit surprised to see me. I don’t believe she thought I would be bringing the letter myself.” I laughed, “I can only imagine the look on her face. I need to make sure The Chalshin is ready to guard her the day after tomorrow when school starts.” Malinus bowed at me, “Your Majesty, I took the liberty of reminding His Grace of his duties just this morning.” I smiled and nodded at Malinus. I had always admired his diligence since he came to work with me five years ago. He always anticipated what I needed and got the work done.
I had moved towards the door when the head guard of the castle came rushing in with a man in black. He spoke slightly out of breath, “Pardon the intrusion Your Majesty but this matter is urgent.” He turned to the man in black who bowed, “Your Majesty, I have been sent by His Highness. We received intel that Her Grace The Batiste is in danger.” My heart dropped at the news, “What?!” The man in black spoke again, “The Order has planned her assassination. We believe it could happen at any moment. I was supposed to guard her, but I stepped away to send a message to His Highness. I do not know where she is.” I stormed out of the room barking orders that I needed a unit of guards with me and the fastest horses the kingdom has. I had ridden that horse as fast that animal would allow. Fortunately, my horse was the fastest in the kingdom, so he got me to Vanessa’s cottage quickly. I flew off the horse and pounded on her door. The guard was a ways behind me but I would spring into action given how dire the situation was. She answered, “Okay, okay. Who died?!” Ordinarily, I would laugh at her joke but considering what I was there for, I had not found that amusing. She spoke, “Are you okay Your Majesty? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” I spoke quickly, “Where is Alexandra?!” She crossed her arms, “Well hello to you too. She left not long ago.” All of a sudden, I heard the noise in the forest stop and I looked at Vanessa whose eyes widened with the knowledge of why I had suddenly showed up to her cottage before I started to run. Pyrio assassins had an ability that was given to them through magical items that could quiet the environment they are in so they can concentrate on killing their target. I knew this was a sign that the attempted assassination was taking place. I ran as fast as I could, and it was wrong before she came into sight, and I had heard the whirl of the arrow being let go. She was standing still with her eyes wide open, knowing she was in danger. I had sprung forward and knocked her to the ground. I was a little late since the arrow grazed her cheek. I was on top of her staring down at her, “Alexandra! Are you okay?!” I could hear the guard coming up behind me on foot, but I tried to focus on what she was saying which was merely, “What?” She then passed out and I felt behind her head and felt a small lump forming.
I picked her up bridal style and walked her the rest of the way to the manor. Her servant Dana opened the door as I walked up, “Your Majesty, what happened to Her Grace?!” I walked her into the house, “An assassin tried to take her out. Where is her room?” Dana motioned me to follow her after barking orders to another servant to fetch the doctor. I laid her on her bed and pulled a handkerchief out of my pocket. I started to wipe the blood off her cheek, hoping the wound had not been deep enough to scar. Dana spoke, “Your Majesty, I will leave her to you while I get water and rags to clean her up.” I nodded and kept the handkerchief to her cheek. I had prayed a silent prayer to Aphrodite that she be okay. I cursed myself for being just a second too late, that I could have prevented her injury entirely. It was my fault that she had hit her head and passed out. The guilt of what I had done crept into my heart, and I hung my head. I was afraid she would wake up and blame me for the lump on her head. I had not meant to be so rough with her, but I had no time. It had taken a while but Dana, the doctor and another maid entered the room. I pulled away from her and paced around her room. Dana noticed this and excused herself from cleaning Alexandra up, “Your Majesty, I think it would be best if you go take a drink in the study. Please follow me.” I guess I wasn’t doing anyone any good by sitting there pacing and knowing Reggie, he had something stiff in his bar. I nodded and followed her.
Just as we were coming down the stairs Blake and Vanessa showed up. They looked at how I was disheveled and dirty with blood on my white shirt. Blake knitted his eyebrows, “Were we too late?” I shook my head, “Not exactly, she was grazed and hit her head. We will know more once the doctor is done.” He started to race up the stairs before Vanessa grabbed him, “Your Highness, it is best to give the doctor some room to look at her.” I turned to him, “We were just heading to the study to get a drink. You should wait with me there.” He sighed and nodded, “I guess you are right. I want what is best for her.” The two of made our way towards the study before we both realized Vanessa was not following us. We turned around to find her heading towards the front door. I called out to her, “Are you not going to wait with us?” She turned with tears in her eyes, “Lucien, I can’t stay here. I would rather spend the time waiting being productive. I was working on something for Xan, and I know now more than ever that I need to finish it. I will finish it today.” I knew she was talking to me with informality because she wanted to be real with me. I turned and followed Blake into the study to wait out the prognosis.
Blake poured two glasses liquor and handed one to me, “Thank you for springing into action like that brother.” I took a sip, “I merely did what I should have as her friend.” He shook his head, “No, you could have sent the guard and left it at that. You took the action yourself. I am pissed that my guy was not able to protect her himself. I will have to punish him for his ineptitude.” I shuddered for that man; I knew any failure when it came to anything about Alexandra would not be pleasant. I nodded at him, “I’m just glad he was quick enough to get to me. You should not be too harsh with him.” He took a big gulp, “You have a point, but he will still need to be punished somehow. It may not be nearly as harsh as I initially had in mind. Don’t worry about that brother.” It had not taken the doctor long before he came into the room, “Your Majesty, Your Highness. Her Grace’s cut on her cheek is merely a scratch. It isn’t deep enough to need stitches. She has a concussion and despite when she wakes up, she will have to rest in bed for about a day. Blake sighed, “So she is totally fine otherwise, right?” The doctor nodded, “We will have to wait for her to wake up. I don’t believe she will be out long.”
We all waited around for a few hours talking about the gossip of Vellum, what makes a horse a good one, the ball and the upcoming school year. Blake was particularly interested in the extra curriculum that Alexandra was going to have to go through. The doctor chimed in asking if this would be strenuous, clearly concerned for the health of his patient. I shook my head, “She will only be reading about tea etiquette the first day. She is to attend a tea party with our mother on her next day off.” The doctor nodded, “That shouldn’t be too bad then.” After he finished this sentence, Dana entered the room informing us that Alexandra was awake. We went up to see her and thankfully she seemed okay. I had informed her what had happened, and I apologized for giving her a concussion. She had forgiven me, and I was grateful, but I still harbored guilt for many things. I should have kept her security in mind earlier, I should have been quicker to get to her and I should have been less rough with her. I would not have blamed her for not wanting to keep a friendship with me. I felt my heart sink leaving Blackwood that night and I knew I would have to work hard to earn her trust again. I would make sure she was safe, and this was my mission.
