Child of the Moon.

~Chapter Twenty-Two~

Hector rode slowly down the path that led to the capital city of Corona on the back of Tekakwitha, Lady and Luna trotting close behind. Tekakwitha had grown tired of running and they were almost to the city now anyway. Hector could see it clearly now, and guess there was only an estimated hour or so left in his journey if they continued at the leisurely pace. If the rhinoceros ran the rest of the way, they would of course reach their destination sooner. But Hector doubted his friend would want to run anymore, and he would not make her.

He had left his brother's home early that morning just before the sun started to rise. He had quickly packed his things for his journey from the farm to the city before quietly slipping out the door. He had left a note on his bed in the guest bedroom of the farmhouse. It simply said,

I've left. I don't know for how long. Don't follow me, don't try to find me, and don't grieve if the worst is to happen. - Hector.

Beyond that note, he had left nothing for his family. No remaining possessions of his for them to track him with, no further instructions, and no goodbye. It would be better that way, for all of them.

The warrior had debated with himself over whether or not going to the city had been the right decision. There were a thousand things that could go wrong. For one, his family might go after him even though he told them not to, and they could find him in the city. Another point of worry was that if anyone found out the extent of his plan, they might have him imprisoned or kept under guard. He would have to be careful with his words and how much he revealed.

But despite the dangers in doing so, he decided to go to the city to speak with the queen anyway. He would try one last time to convince her, and if it failed, well... he would take his own path.

Hector rode through the gates of the city and dismounted. He would leave his animals by the gate and walk the rest of the way to the palace to avoid being noticed. He additionally pulled the hood of his fur cloak over his head and pulled a mask up over his face so that only his eyes were visible.

He strolled through the streets of the city to the palace. He was ignored by everyone, just as he had hoped, and his walk was quick enough. He soon walked through the massive front door of the glamorous palace. He was almost immediately stopped by a guard.

"Who are you, stranger?" The guard asked. "And why are you masked?"

"I am a man here to see the queen or her lover if she is truly unavailable," Hector answered. "And as for your second question, I wear this because I must for personal reasons."

"Then I repeat, who are you?"

The guard gave no further question about the mask or the cloak, which surprised Hector. He had expected keeping his identity secret to be harder.

These men should not be this easy to fool, Hector thought. Eugene has a lot of work ahead of him if he intends to make them into a useful army.

"Stranger?" The guard questioned, snapping his fingers to get Hector's attention.

"Oh! I apologize. What was your question?"

"Who are you?"

The guard's voice had grown exasperated and almost angry. His hand ever so slightly moved towards the sword at his hip.

"Simply tell your queen that the son of Troy has come to see her. She will know who I am."

The guard hesitated before briskly instructing Hector to stay exactly where he was while he went to inform the queen of her visitor. Hector obediently went to sit on an ornate bench that rested directly in front of the wall. The guard ran off, leaving Hector alone. The warrior knew that the queen or Eugene (preferably the first) would drop anything to come and see the son of Troy.