Guard of the Evergreen Princess

CHAPTER TWENTYFOUR

"Moxee!" The shout echoed through-out the camp. Many of the soldiers smiled as the familiar voice continued to speak. "Come help cook dinner!" Olympia stood next to a big pot and stirred in some veggies as she yelled for the man once again. "Moxee!"

"Hurry up Moxee!" one of the soldiers joked. "Do not want to disappoint the missus!" A cackle rose up from the surrounding men.

Olympia huffed. "You all know I have a beloved."

"Sure! Whatever you say!" Moxee chuckled, walking over to the blond haired girl. "I'm beginning to think this 'Kenne' guy is just a story."

"Washeen!" Olympia huffed again. "Tell them!" I glanced up from my post outside the Princess' tent and gave a nod toward the men who were looking at me, confirming that Olympia was indeed telling the truth.

Well, part of it, that is.

Sir Coulee met my eyes as he passed me, exiting the tent. His body language showed that he had heard the conversation from the men.

"Mix this," Olympia instructed Moxee as she stepped away from the fire. "Coulee!" The man flinched at the informal title but turned nonetheless. "How far are we from the rest of the Evergreen army?"

There was a pause as all the men stopped what they were doing and looked at the knight in question. In the last few days, Sir Coulee had grown to be an important voice among the men. A few had seen him defeat the bandits in the river three days back and stories of his fighting skills were whispered as we walked.

Sir Coulee cleared his throat. "We should be there by tomorrow evening." A cheer went up from among the men. Some went back to whittling, some to stories, and the few to their cooking chores given to them by Olympia.

I stood up straight as the tent flap opened again.  The rest of the knights, Sir Sumner, Sir Harring, Sir Marhys, and Sir Quincy exited. The Princess peaked her head out. "Sir Washeen." I respectfully bowed my head and entered the tent. In the past, I would have been in the tent alongside the knights, by the Princess' side. However, I felt it was not necessary now that she had four knights next to her.

Sir Coulee included.

I entered the tent and stood at the door with my hand on the hilt of my sword. A familiar stance.

Princess Seattel stood by the table with the map laid out on it. "Do you have anything to say?"

This confused me. "Your majesty?"

She sighed and folded her arms, leaning against the table behind her. Her chopped hair was loose and some of the men found smaller trousers and a tunic to give her. There was almost no comparison between her now and what she was like living in the castle. This Princess was ready for a revenge battle to take back her kingdom. She no longer had studies in the library or tea with the surrounding kingdoms' noblewomen.

"You have not spoken a word to me for three days, Sir Washeen." Her crystal eyes pierced mine and her lips were pulled in a tight line.

I forced myself to meet her eyes. "Yes, your majesty." There was a moment of silence as I did not know what to say next. The Princess sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"This is about the fight by the river, is it not?"

"Yes, your majesty."

There was another moment of silence and I looked down at the ground. I could hear the Princess shuffling some papers, probably the map on the table, before sighing. "Nobody is perfect. You defended me honorably. You defeated two men." She shuddered with the memories.

"This is true. But you could have died," I practically spat out, angered at myself for what could have been. I gripped the hilt of my sword tighter.

"I would have died long ago had you not been my personal guard," the Princess argued back. "Accept the loss and pride yourself with the wins." We stood and looked at each other. Her words were spoken with honesty and I felt myself relax. I had defeated two of the strongest men of the battle. The Gems who went after the Princess were never easy warriors to defeat.