"I cannot believe you made me walk back through the three districts just to get to the Regiment Compound." I grit through my teeth as we pass the citizens in the market district who look over us closely, bowing with a fist over their hearts as we pass. At this point many faces are familiar but of course many new ones have appeared by now as well.
"I already told you someone of status has no place setting a foot in the Arena District, My Lady. This is no time to be complaining over such trivial matters." Einar immediately retorts, her manner cool as ever.
"I'll have to address it sooner or later, Einar, you know this." I tell her with an exasperated edge to my tone.
"Of course you do." She simply comments in response.
She senses the eager steps of the child rapidly approaching us seconds prior to myself doing the same, and before I can say anything in protest, the faithful royal guard has cut the little girl off with the end of her spear just before she has a chance to barrel into my legs. This action regrettably results in the grown out, knotted length of the child's ebony hair to whip wildly through the air as she stumbles back before inevitably falling onto the dusted ground butt first. I watch curiously as the little girl covered in tattered rags for clothing clumsily shakes the hair out of her dirt covered face, and my lips part upon seeing her face, even if only for a moment, as it is enough to reveal much about her current lifestyle. I am tempted to look closer just in time for a harsh looking middle age woman to stumble up to us with haste before I can get a better look at her face.
"Maaike! Maaike, huc redire!"
By the time the raging young woman rushes up to us, she has yanked the little girl up roughly by her upper arm, the piecey strands of her hair falling from her twisted ponytail as she proceeds to scold the child in front of us without thought. It is by the time she actually raises a hand to the little girl that I step in, quickly securing a grip over the impatient woman's wrist in a moments notice.
"Who dares-My Queen!" The young woman gasps, her expression of pure abhorrence immediately softening to one of shock as she takes in just who exactly put a stop to her reckless raging. She seems to stumble back into a bow of sorts following this realization, ducking her head immediately once I have cautiously released her hand so she may complete the gesture properly.
"What is this?" I question, retreating some from the absurd scene before me as I briefly motion to Einar for an explanation. My eyes still linger over the child clumsily stumbling into a kneeling position to match the woman beside her who has agrilly tugged her down to ensure she has done so. The child rebelliously grunts upon being forced to do so, drawing a smirk from my dry lips.
"From a first glance, it would seem this child has committed a crime of sorts, My Lady." Einar begins, sounding a little less than impressed at the scene that has just unfolded before us to say the least.
I narrow my eyes in understanding once I look to the little girls hand holding a small loaf of bread close to her chest. "And you're sure of this?" I press, simply seeing if the royal guard could perhaps offer me more insight on the matter given she grew up here, even if in the royal district.
"It is evident given her clothes are... well, they are not the standard tunic children staying at the orphanage are provided."
"So, this child has committed a crime against your shop, I take it?" I suddenly ask, stepping up to the young baker before me who slowly raises her eyes upon seeing my gait emerge within her downward casted gaze.
"Uh, yes, she has, My Lady." The woman mutters, her voice suddenly not so large and demanding anymore.
"I see. And the name you were calling her earlier... has an event like this occured prior to today?" I press, wanting an explanation for such rampant anger against a child.
Just like the the young woman's fervent drive has resumed as she begins rapidly explaining, "Maaike, here, has been stealing from my shop for years now, but only when my mother was attending to the carts outside so as to prevent any form of pursuance after her. Now that she has sense passed, I am the one watching the front stalls now, and I have to say I am a little less tolerant for petty crime than my mother seemed to be when she used tend to the front of my shop-"
The woman is cut off by Einar forcing her back down onto the ground with a hand over her shoulder as soon as the young baker attempted to rise per her wild gesturing growing even more animated. Given her challenging manner, hasty explanation, and insistence that this shop is hers despite having likely inherited it, this woman seems to be incredibly entitled.
"And would said child care to explain her reasoning behind doing so?" I question to follow the young woman's explanation, stepping up to the child before kneeling down to face her downward casted expression intently.
The little girl winces once she has confirmed my observant case to be so close to her own after sparing a brief glance upward through the jungle of matted hair still covering the majority of her face. While an evident mess, it does not quite conceal her face well enough to hide the harsh burning of her cheeks to underlie the dirt already smudged all over them. Perhaps it is the crowd that has now begun to gather around us that explains such a suddenly sheepish tone taking root to the once brave little girl's manner.
"Hm?" I press upon receiving no answer for quite some time now.
"Ego vero nihil mali gessit." She mutters in a quick blur, keeping her eyes glued to the ground.
"Maaike!" The young baker hisses, her head still down.
"Is that your name? Maaike?" I infer then, resting an arm over my knee still bent before me.
The little girl swallows thickly before nodding.
I do the same, finally rising. "Einar, please escort this young baker back to her shop and compensate her for the loss of revenue. And on your way, I want you to pick something up for me."
Einar nods, taking cue to keep the following exchange just between the two of us as I keep my request unknown to the public.
"My Lady, do you care to explain your reasoning behind such a request-?"
"I do not. Now go, with haste. I wish to get to the Regiment Compound some time before nightfall, if it can be helped." I mutter exasperatedly, upon which the royal guard nods before rushing off to tend to my needs as well as the young bakers.
"Rise." I instruct the little girl, offering her my hand which she looks over curiously for some time.
I smile at her transparentness after she refuses to move from her position on the ground for a bit.
"I promise despite my foreign origins it is the same as yours, child." I assure the little girl, well aware of the fact that she, along with members of Lux Cantavit, have yet to encounter a Sky Person.
The child rolls her eyes, probably a reaction beyond her help, before nervously raising her small hand to my wrist. I meet her the rest of the way, keeping my grip firm but gentle over the little girl's, or rather, Maaike's, wrist. "Gratias tibi." She mutters, sparing a brief glance to the crowd still gathered around us.
"Scilicet." I nod, following her gaze to the many faces that watch on curiously. The crowd, it is likely one of the reasons she is so scared to talk. But that is a variable I can do something about. "Militibus!" I call, startling the child's gaze to me.
"Quid est hoc, Reginae?" One of the men questions, stepping up.
"Volo enim vos partum a circulo circa nos. Angustos turba a sententia." I instruct.
"Intellexerunt, Reginae." He responds, stepping back to bark my orders to his men who proceed to band around us in a circular formation as I requested, blocking us from the crowd.
I turn back to the little girl, bracing a hand at the hilt of my belt as she looks over the guards around us amazedly. "So," I begin, interrupting her observations, "what is it, your story?"
"My... my story?" She stutters, looking not at all confused, just hesitant.
"Exactly, your personalis fabula. Why won't you join the orphanage? Be raised amongst the other parentless children of the clan?"
"I do better on my own." She declares, raising her chin proudly. "I can take care of myself."
"Those don't sound like your words." I note, to which the little girl swallows, looking to the bread in her hand.
"I can." She simply insists after some time, finally looking back up to me.
I find myself nodding, not disbelieving of the little girl's resilience, just over how long stealing to survive like this will really last her. But even so, I can tell the second I would have her personally escorted to the orphanage herself, she would do nothing but try to find a way out of there. All I can do it instill her with as much wisdom as possible before we part, and hope that will be enough to eventually establish her trust in others.
"Discutio!" I announce, retreating a couple steps back from the child. The men obey my commands, returning to their rectangular formation at my back just in time to reveal Einar's return. She steps up to my side immediately. "Do you have what I requested?"
"Of course, My Lady."
"Good. Hold onto it for a moment." I request.
She nods, concealing the the item into her stance with her hands laced behind her back.
"You know," I begin, leaning down some towards the child so only she can hear me, "they really are just people, same as you and me. You have no reason to feel intimidated by them, to feel scared."
The child's big, golden brown eyes find my own, her lips parting a little wondrously as she releases a small breath.
"That fear you feel, it's just a demon, and demons can be killed." I tell her.
Quickly I draw a knife from my belt, causing the child to retreat some until I take her hand, setting the handle of the weapon into it.
"Fear is a demon," I begin, helping to tuck the knife into the child's makeshift belt, "one better faced with others. But if you really do insist on facing it on your own, you must appear strong to others. You may never have cause to actually use this knife, but even so, bear it proudly, use it to slay the demon."
I step back once the knife is set, and raise a hand to the little girl, a hand upon which she takes much more surely this time, a hint of a smile appearing at the corner of her lips.
I motion for Einar to follow once Maaike and I have released one anothers wrists, and we resume making our way to the Regiment Compound, only for her to brashly clear her throat, bringing the item in her hand back to my attention. "Oh, right." I recall with a grin, taking the item from her hand before turning back to face the child once again.
I toss the item to her, to which her subtle smirk bursts into a toothy grin before she lifts the bright red fruit to her lips before taking a large bite out of it; an apple.
"You remembered." She remarks once she has managed to swallow down the huge mouthful, juice from the fruit dripping through the dirt all over her chin.
"You'd be hard to forget." I remind her, looking once more at her joyous smile before turning back for the Regiment Compound.
The Regiment Compound reminds me an incredible amount of the training center in Nocte Cantavit, its set up remarkably similar with the four rectangular shaped compounds containing housing, hollowed out washing stations, weaponry and armor stations, small makeshift healing and blacksmith ports, and an indoor sparring lot for when the conditions outside may become too harsh or otherwise, although these men seem more than accustomed to the ridiculous dry heat I am gradually adjusting to. All of these spots are set up like a square, closing out the central portion which houses the outdoor fighting pit not quite as grand as the formalized fighting pit set within the first floor of the castle or as much so Nocte Cantavit. Then again Eadric trains all of his men as one group, royal guards simply receiving individualized training to their particular task within their own unit.
"That was quite the display you put on." Einar remarks as the soldiers look over us, bowing with a fist over their hearts as we pass.
"She made quite an impression on me." I shrug, nodding to one of the Barons as I pass him.
"Would you care to explain?" She tries, sparing a glance to my relaxed expression.
"It's not a complicated story." I note, but proceed to explain anyways. "I saw her on the streets when I had first arrived here, alone and hungry. So, I rolled her an apple stored away in on of my packs, she picked it up, ate it, and must've remembered it was me who did it."
"That surely cannot be all." She declares boldly if not a bit brashly, and I smirk, oddly amused by the fact that Einar has been taught to read microexpressions and situations as a part of her already extensive array of talents.
"You're right. She was also the first to cheer out to me upon me winning the duel against Vlasta. She made quite an impression on me then..." I trail.
Einar looks as though she might comment on the matter herself until a deep, vicious war cry calls out, calling both of our attentions to Olvir. His large, two handed hammer is bared as he swings the large weapon around wildly to disarm multiple opponents before setting the weapon head down and using his continuous momentum to pull himself up into a airborne swing kick across one of the warriors faces who happened to duck and dodge one of his previous attacks. A final opponent is finished off and launched back-first into the sand at our feet with a knee to his gut.
The man spares a cough, a hand already over his sternum likely aching like hell as I reach down towards the soldier, offering a hand.
The soldier takes it gruffly and without thought. "Gratias tibi-"
He freezes as soon as he sees it is I, his Queen, at the other end of this gesture. That notion irritates me some. Unapproachable and feared is not how I want to be seen by these people, not when they are supposed to be my people, and I am intended to lead them. Damn, I really wish I had better taken note of how Eadric has managed to rule so wisely all these years...
I keep this annoyance of mine restrained, however, merely releasing a shallow breath before motioning to the mans feet.
He looks to his dusted boots, clearly flustered as it is, and, as though only just recalling how to stand and proceeds to quickly do so with my assistance. "Thank you, My Lady." He remarks once fully standing, cautiously using English when speaking to me.
I nod good naturedly before releasing the warriors hand and looking to a sweating Olvir who approaches us not so quietly before setting a strong hand over the man's shoulder. "It's okay, son," he pants, the wavy strands of his hair drenched from his strenuous efforts made earlier as he continues, "this Queen is not one who rules with fear, I assure you."
"Son?" I question, narrowing my eyes to a lighthearted Olvir.
"Well, yes." He grins. "These men are my family, are they not, My Queen?" He suddenly bellows into the air, his arms raised expectantly as the soldiers cheer in response to their Duke's enthusiastic cries.
"Ita, mi pater!" They shout back quite informally, some delayed, others not even bothering to look up from where they may be wrapping a comrades injury and such, but all with smiles on their faces, I note.
"Huh, I really did wrongly judge these people upon first arriving here, didn't I?" I mutter under my breath.
Einar jostles my shoulder benignly. "No need to fret over over this, My Lady. There was nothing we could do about the reputation Vlasta had given our clan. I had faith you would see the good in this place and within us overtime."
"And I have." I assure her by the time Olvir has sent the other warrior away to resume sparring.
"I hate to bring this up now," he begins gruffly, wiping the sweat over his brow before setting both his hands over his hips, "but that body with the radiation burns, we should probably do something about that."
I can feel Einar bristle at my side, my gaze wandering to hers in warning. But much to my relief, the royal guard actually manages to quite literally swallow down her emotions before clarifying in an objective tone, "we have already made plans to do so."
"You have?" Olvir states, retreating some in surprise before his eyes wander over to me.
"We have." I confirm. "We have decided that specified members from Aer Cantavit currently residing in Nocte Cantavit territory will look into the situation further. We, they," I correct myself, sparring an awkward glance to see Einar and Olvir exchange wary looks before turning back to me determinedly, "will be able to run diagnostics on the land to better gage just how much danger we may be in here."
Olvir takes a moment too look me over, his expression still a little hesitant with his thick eyebrows narrowed in skepticism. "And you are sure they will be able to do this?"
"If that rider got word out to the King containing the secret message meant for Jackie, then yes, depending on the information they bring back to us, it should be enough for her to begin doing so under the radar before the other clans have any reason to be alarmed."
"Secrecy in favor of unity, I like it." Oliver declares confidently.
"Yes, well, our Queen is now aware that we do not always find it necessary to play by the rules." Einar answers for me.
"As long as our actions are in favor of the bigger picture, of course." I remind her with an intent raise of my eyebrows.
"Yes," she practically hisses, meeting my challenging gaze, "the well being of our clan."
"No. The well being of all the clans." I press. I turn back to a skeptical Olvir, already sick of this tangent. "Regardless, keeping the King focused on other matters will likely provide us some leeway in terms of providing our clan with more... personalized research, at least until Jackie inevitably broadens it to the others clans to check for their current status. Our clan is the only one showing any signs of radiated storms and such, so it is the only one of my concern at this moment."
"That's enough to convince me." Olvir decides after a moment with a firm nod, his hands still over his hips. "Einar?"
"Me too." She states.
"Then it's settled." I decide. "We remain here training and preparing for the ride out to Nocte Cantavit, keep a sharp eye out for any changes in the land until then, and pray we aren't somehow killed prior to the arrival of the Fall Equinox so we can properly and unitedly face this problem once and for all when the time calls for it."
Olvir grins upon me finishing my declaration, setting a firm hand over my shoulder before blatantly declaring, "I like this one."
"Oh, piss off." Einar grunts before shoving his arm off of me.
I simply grin at the pair, finally feeling more secure in my position here every moment.
Forty days prior to the Fall Equinox arrive sooner than expected, but in that time I have simply worked towards achieving my full strength again both combatually and mentally. As it would seem, having a such a strong support structure in all of this between Einar's teachings and Olvir's reassurance has moved mountains towards me getting to the mentality necessary to lead a clan, and slowly but surely, I am learning to both accept and genuinely love this new life of mine.
Poor Alfhild has suffered, however, given today is the first day I have taken a decent chunk of time to both see and personally tend to her. But even so, she is stronger than ever at having been run and properly fed and cared for since the moment I had first arrived here. As soon as I arrive to the royal stables and whistle for her, she darts from her place in the pen, ditching the attendants who had been cleaning out her hooves and oiling back her braided mane in a moments notice. My momentary guilt I feel towards having inconvenienced the attendant's work is interrupted, however, as soon as Alfhild is back into my space again. Tentatively she sniffs at the armored hand of mine for surely no more than a mere moment before tucking her large snout over my shoulder fondly, releasing a gruff breath over my back.
"Hey, Alfhild." I mutter lowly, speaking only to her. "You ready to get in some training before we head out of here tomorrow?"
The stocky horse snorts in response, pulling back to jut the tip of her snout into my shoulder.
I chuckle at her coincidentally human-like behavior and cues. "Alright, sounds good. Maybe you'll even get to see Eilefr again before we have to head back here, even." I remark, running a hand up and down the side of her neck habitually while feeding her a treat I picked up on the way in here.
As if on cue the great mare sneezes before retreating back uncomfortably, crumbs flying from her mouth as she does so.
"Oh god, let's just get you out of here and running." I mock before turning with a hand tucked under her broad chin to get her saddled up.
Oddly enough, something saddens me about having to leave the clan, even if only for a short amount of time, the following day. I really have come to appreciate being a leader of Lux Cantavit, and through having bonded so much with those having faced so much adversity and hardship to live in a place as trying as this, I cannot help but respect them wholeheartedly that. Nerves inevitably wrack my body as well. I cannot help but wonder how the clan will fare upon the absence of their new Queen and Ambassador. Will they stay loyal to my new policies? Will they continue to respect and honor them? Will the troops be able to manage well without Olvir by their side to watch over the Barons and ensure that they are properly facilitating their individual units?
"Is it really okay for me to leave?" I cannot help but mutter as I look back and up to the tip of the large castle I now reside along the base of.
Alfhild merely shakes out her braided back mane and tail in answer, likely anxious to get moving given she has not yet been run today. I suppose she does not realize the extent of the journey we are about to take.
Then again maybe she does. As I swirled the dark warpaint around her eyes and marked the familiar patterns over her body, I sensed an air of sureness and determination in her manner as I had done so. Perhaps it is her that is ready, confident to take this journey whereas I... I can muster no more than a feeling of anxiousness to get moving, as though just wanting to get all of this over with so I can get back here to continue my duties and better get to know the people I now rule over and am entitled to care for.
"You have no reason to worry about how your husband has fared since your leave." Einar comments as she slings one last pack over her horses back, the stallion almost a grey and white variation of Alfhild's pattern. "You realize he will more than likely be fine, having surely kept busy just the same as you."
I just scoff as I make my way over to her mare, setting a hand along the neck of the great creature with my other just in front of her snout to get her used to my smell. She adjusts to my attention well enough, something bred and instilled within these horses at a young age unlike those of Nocte Cantavit which harbor a much harsher, or more so independent, manner. All of the horses here seem to be variations ranging from grey coats to white, thus making Alfhild's black and ashen coat stand out greatly amongst the others. Einar has reassured me many times that this is a good thing even though I did not particularly need such reassurance anyways. I am proud of my stallion based off of her strength and adversity as it is admirable of her to have maintained it all this time given how she was raised.
"Do you worry for him often?" Einar presses upon having been answered with nothing more than silence as I allowed my thoughts to momentarily run rampant.
I release an exasperated sigh before retorting, "Einar, I'm not worried about how he has fared without me. If you must know, I'm actually worried about how our clan will do without us here to watch over it."
Einar grins at this, reaching out to adjust the double blade tipped spear at my back. "Relax, My Queen. The people seemed to do just fine without Vlasta there to monitor our every move. They will do the same upon your leave as well, I am sure of it."
"This is not even the same situation, Einar." I remind her dully, and she merely shrugs, directing her hands back to her horses grown out mane that, while treated with oils and such, is still incredibly wild with small braids interlaced sporadically throughout the length of it. These horses here seem much less disciplined than those in Nocte Cantavit. Maybe that has something to do with why Alfhild loves it so much here, though she has still been treated to my standards even so, her mane now an even more perfected version of how I had left it all those weeks ago.
"And that is partially my point, My Queen. All of us hated Vlasta's policies, but even so, we remained loyal to her orders and laws, no matter how unforgiving they may have been, because that is our purpose in life. To serve our Ambassador and Queen."
"Right, let us hope so." I mutter pointlessly. It is not even what I want really, for all of them to serve me. I want them to serve and honor their clan, to assist me in creating better policies to ensure we do so. But I seem momentarily unable to even utter a genuine word on this matter by the time the moment has passed.
Einar seems to pick up on my insistent hesitation given how bold her next statement is. "Well," she begins, her tone slightly mischievous, "I think you sending the previous radical court member to his death by kicking him off a railing sent a good enough message to the other court members that you mean business here. They now know you will resort to violence and harsh commandment if it comes to it."
"That's not what I want either." I decide, my thoughts beginning to crystalize into a clear answer then and there.
"And what is it you do want, My Lady?" She asks, seeming to detect the certainty in my tone.
"To rule like Eadric."
The royal guard looks to me, completely surprised by this bold statement of mine. "To rule like the King who terrified the clans his first few years under rule?" She repeats slowly, as though questioning my sanity in this moment.
"Not at all." I state, in partial agreeance with her. "I want to rule how does now. Through love and loyalty, not through fear."
Einar takes a moment then, retreating some before looking me over closely. She tilts my head to the side, checking the three tight dutch braids holding back the shallow side of hair before facing my head forward again. She then picks up Eadric's braid still interlaced through the longer, growing length splayed messily over my right shoulder so as though to ensure it can be seen, not unlike the wedding braids I have left alone at the lower sections of my hair, some even left from the fight against Vlasta as well. She then straightens out my armor, starting with the shoulder pads before adjusting the hood at my back and the matching ebony mask at my chin. She checks the subtly tinted black scarf that harbors a subtle, dark blue hue against the sunlight that hangs over the back of my left shoulder like Eadric's crimson one does over his own, and, after stepping back and taking a moment, seems to approve my overall appearance before simply stating, "You already do."
--- A/N
Such a short, uneventful chapter... It turns out getting back into the swing of this whole story writing, creative thinking thing is gonna take some time. But I'm honestly really excited for the next major plot line I've got planned out so I'm just gonna deal with working through this writers block until I get to that point. Regardless, if you couldn't already tell, some clear changes are slowly occurring within Aurora, many of them beyond her knowledge. She is in the process of maturing quite a bit and, as you can imagine, her childishness and disagreeable, immature traits are slowly diminishing as they must in order for her to become a proper Queen. Just thought I'd point that out in case it was something you were noticing beginning to happen. It also poses the obvious questions. For example, do you like where her character is going? Do you miss any aspects of her characterization that you believe deserve more prominence? Just some things to think about. Also, if you have any requests or wishes of anything you would like to see potentially happen in the story, merely comment them at any point and I'll see if I can eventually work them into the plot line since many other aspects of the story are still obviously unplanned up to this point. With all of that out of the way, I hope you guys are looking forward to the next chapter and, as always, thanks so much for reading!