Fallen Kingdom ✔️

A Mission

Leaving early morning was hard for all of us, but it was needed. We had to get to Nethurus before it was too late. It's known as the land of the gods as it was their home before they died. It's the furthest away from every kingdom there is. After getting through the forest, we have a long travel time to get there. Many weeks of camping out in strange places. The only way I know how to get there is by a map inside my mind. As a child, I had studied it so much I had memorized it. As soon as we get some parchment and ink, I would star mapping what I know and what I will learn on our quest. It never helped that the time in this forest changes rapidly. You could be walking in the morning for five minutes and have it be night in ten. And you certainly feel the strain on your body, as though you were really walking the entire day. This forests magic was deadly to some.

As I was thinking about that, I made a plan. "Okay everyone, we need to make a plan. This forest is dangerous, but if we keep walking towards where the sun rises, we'll make it out to the forest. Not too far from there are some white ruins. If we somehow get separated, we will meet there. It's dangerous to be alone so we'll need to have a system. Pairs of two must stay together constantly. Each taking turns sleeping and watching too."

Prince George laughed. "I'm taking the elf-orc! He knows his way around and I am not getting eaten in this forest."

"Okay, Prince George and Striker."

"I'll go with Rathelia." Jovsin told me. "We're the fighters of the group. We can stay in the back flanks to keep everyone safe."

George looked at me. "I've seen your fighting skills, Princess Victoria, you better stay with my brother. If he isn't safe I will murder you myself."

"That leaves Svenon and Rolande to be together. You don't mind me protecting you, do you Prince Bowen?"

"Not at all, Princess."

"Please, don't call me that. It's just Vic."

Riding all day took a lot out of us, though in reality it was only a few hours. There was a cave to hide in not to far from our location. I lead everyone to the large abandoned cave. The reason it was abandoned, a large magic seal was put on it and nobody was smart enough to think it was a smoke mirror of a wall and nobody was stupid enough to go running at a wall. Once inside, we started setting up camp. It wasn't bad being here with my family. My brothers started talking about being hungry, and that's when I snapped.

"You all have bows and arrows! If you're hungry, go catch us some food! Make sure you have enough for everyone. If we need to carry around leftovers, so be it. Better too much then being hungry."

Svenon smiled at me, putting a hand on my shoulder. "You're sounding like father and looking like mother. I see you have her lucky dress on."

Prince George looked around, confused. "Was I to bring one of those fabric shelters as well?"

"Yes, they're called tents. Striker, please tell me you'll teach this man to survive. I'm still teaching Prince Bowen."

"Yes, Princess."

"Prince George, you may have my tent. I'll sleep elsewhere."

Rathelia smiled at me. "Why don't you just sleep with your fiancé?"

"Fiancé?" Prince Bowen asked Rathelia. " What do you mean?"

"Prince Svenon has decided that Vic is going to marry Striker in order to make the connections between Strongma and Wyverna stronger."

"I don't care what Svenon has decided, I never agreed to it."

Striker looked at me confused. "What are you talking about, Princess? I thought we said when we were younger we were to get married after you've become a woman?"

"That was before. A lot has changed. I realized I have choices too. I only agreed to it because my Father said I should."

"Before what?" Striker asked, getting upset.

"I was a child unsure of what marriage was. I thought that when you got married, you became happy but that's not it. Striker, you are a friend, a good friend, but I don't want to think about marriage. I want it to be natural, like the way my parents were. Now that I'm starting to understand what love is, I want that type of marriage. I'm finally understanding my mother's stories and I know that right now I have a bigger purpose then to think about marrying my childhood friend I haven't seen since, well, childhood."

"So you don't love me?"

"Not the way I love..." I stopped myself.

"Not the way you love who?" Striker asked back, anger filling him.

"Not the way I love my kingdom and it's people. They are my first priority. When this is all said and done, I will start thinking about marriage. Even then, it may not be you. like I said, I want to find real love, not the love you have for me."

"And what would that be?"

Prince George answered for me. "The love of the title, not the person it belongs to. You've been known as a monster all your life and you think the only way to change that is by becoming royal. I can see it in your eyes."

"So what if that's a reason why? She's also my childhood friend."

Prince Bowen stood up to Striker. "She said no. Take the nice way before she decides to push you out of her life for good. You're lucky to have her as a friend and alias."

"Striker, I love you as nothing more than a friend. You have been a good comrade and friend, but a husband is nothing that I would think you of. You are a prince of a place of misfits. As a misfit myself, I know that Wyverna accepts you and the princes of Servania accept you. All of us accept you as another being with a pulse. You are alive and no different then us. A witch, a fallen kingdoms royalty, a princess turned stable girl, a prince who wants to save the day and a prince who wants to protect those he cares about. What a bunch of misfits going to kill an immortal king."

Striker started laughing. "I've known you better  then you know yourself. I knew when you liked someone as a child, and it's no different now. You get this shine in your eye, you start wearing dresses, you stop sleeping, you fight more, do more work to distract yourself and get a bit bossy."

"What's wrong with you, Striker? I have never liked someone as a child. I don't like anyone now."

"There's someone in Servania you've grown to care greatly about. That is for sure."

I waved my hand. "That's ridiculous. All I ever did was work, sleep, eat and train. I had no time to think about men. I had no time to think about what would come of me after returning to Wyverna. I am nothing more then a stable girl and I am more then happy with it. I had a good enough life in Servania with the kind people living there. I enjoyed how things were."

"You're being sincere. I'm quite shocked at that. You used to imagine what it would be like being a queen."

"Then I realized what being a queen meant! Giving this all up! I am not my mother and I won't get a magical ending with a prince who wants what I want! I had stupid dreams and now I'm facing reality."

With that, everyone went silent. Prince George smiled at me. "You're becoming a fine princess."

"For your kingdom. In mine, I would be hated for what I have become. I had to learn to be a princess from your family and from what little knowledge I had from my parents. Mother and Father would be disappointed in me." I walked off to Prince Bowen's tent. "We're sharing. I'm your guard so I'll act like it."