Dark Queen: The Cybelline Prophecies

Chapter 5

"Stay here don't show yerself." The old soldiers told Cybelline, "Most of the soldiers don't like being here and they're skittish, they kill first and ask questions later. I'll come back for you around nightfall." He left food and water for her before leaving.

Cybelline watched as he left and stood up. Silently, followed the old man, her movements as lithe and silent as a cat. While she was no longer the international spy, the years of blending into the shadows were second nature to her. She followed him up the stream and to the edge of a clearing where a great many white tents stood in the cool morning.  In the circle of green, the sea of tents rose like the crest of wave on the ocean.

Men in gleaming armor cleaned their swords while others cooked or talked by their morning fires. A great many squires in green or teal livery trotted around, acting as couriers for their lords.

Cybelline zeroed in the ten blue tents in center of the sea of white. Six blue hooded figures walked out, their silver edged robes pooling around them like water.  They bowed to one another and separated, each followed by ten youths in blue tunics.

Cybelline turned her attention back onto the old as he walked into the camp and stood attention with the other soldiers. Some, as shabbily dressed as he, smiled and greeted him while others looked on with disinterest. A bugle sounded, and the men lined up.

Sixteen knights, dressed in silver armor with engraving that glowed gold, rode into the camp, led by a man with a gold circlet. He surveyed the large gathering of men in front of him, "For centuries the Folk have ignored our borders. They steal our food and curse our lands, so the harvest grows weaker by the year." Men growled at this as the man continued, "Kill as many as you can, leave no spawn alive. Take back what is rightfully yours!" The men roared in approval.

The man raised a hand, a knight rode out and bowed, "My King." The king nodded, "Sir Jaan, you have command of this company.  You will have Head Mage Azara and her acolytes to company you. I must go and see the other five companies off. May the Gods be with you. " And rode off with the rest of the knights and mages. 

The knight turned to the company and ordered, "Forward!"

The company of 500 marched deeper into the forest.

Cybelline followed from behind, careful to avoid the scouts in the forrest. She stayed at the tail of the company, listening to the men gossip.

"By the gods, if I find a First Blood Fae I'm going to kill it with my bare hands" A man muttered to his companion. His companion rolled his eyes "Yer more likely to trip on a diamond, it's been a thousand years since the last Fae had shown its face. Now even the Folk are scarce"

The other man chuckled, "We burned an entire village of Six Blood mongrels yesterday, they're not even true shapeshifters." He sighed, "Too bad they don't have that much magic. I had to kill twenty for just a drop of Folk Blood gem, and it's the worst quality. Burning them to find that one drop of Life Magic took so much time." He opened his hand to reveal a deep red teardrop, almost the color of blood.

"A drop of that will give you an extra year of life." His companion shook his head, "But it's half poison, and ye can't take too many. I took all the Life Magic drops I owned and traded it for this." He held up a green stone, "Know what this is?"

Cybelline looked closer, it was like the blue stone Riggans had given her yesterday, with the strange green marking on it.

"A Power Stone? The healin' one" The soldier recognized it immediately, "I only have one and I've been at this fer twenty years."

"Aye." The other soldier answered, "Mined in the fields by the dwarf slaves. It can feed a man's family for thirty years, they say. Near priceless for the likes of us. Will save ye life if yer near death."