In Another Castle (Patreon)

(An Attempt at writing a Female MC)

As I danced with yet another suitor I looked up at my father, the king of the Amanita. Even in his older years he was a strongly built man. In the last few years his golden hair had gone so white it was nearly luminescent. I had inherited my golden locks from him, luckily the rest of my looks came from my mother. My father was many things, but handsome was not among them.

My cerise frilled gown twirled as my current partner tried to woo me through the wonders of dance. My ladies in waiting had done their research. I knew this particular prince was something of an embarrassment to his family, peasants and merchants on the roads at night had a nasty habit of disappearing and all evidence pointed to the prince. His standing kept him out of trouble, but the people talked, and the royals as far wide as the elven lands had already began to distance themselves. His kingdom was suffering due to his indiscretions, if he didn't make a strong ally soon the future his looked to be filled with assassins and civil war.

I gave a little twirl with my free hand as we danced. Across the room my lady inspected a crystal goblet which just happened to catch the light from a nearby candle. A moment later the music began to wind down. My partner bowed as we parted, he gave me a smile that was two shades too desperate to be charming before he walked away.

On cue my other lady appeared at my elbow almost instantly to hand me my fan. I opened it as we walked off the dance floor.

"Please, kind lord, the princess needs her rest." My lady spoke as she stepped between approaching suitors and my exit.

I understood the reason for this ball- I was a princess of age to wed, the kingdom of Amanita was a desirable ally, and we needed allies for our own problems. The majority of the suitors were in the dark about that last part. The law of our land stated that any foreigner that I married would be a crown-prince while I reigned as Queen. Our two kingdoms would be aligned and any heirs that I bore would be destined to the throne as King or Queen.

The goal today was to charm enough suitors to entice their pledges of alliance and possibly find my future husband. I wasn't prone to thoughts of fancy, true love only happened faery tales or theatre while my life was neither. My kingdom is the home to humans that could bend space with magical fields and gnomes with a talent for alchemically charged agriculture. Our allies would hope to acquire those secrets just as we hoped to use their armies to deal with the impending invasion from the dragon-folk.

For years the dragon-folk lived in the harsh lands beyond the mountains to the south. Their only natural enemies were the lizardmen of the coastal islands and the occasional run-ins with roaming desert gnomes. Things had changed in the past couple of years. Someone had unified the dragon-folk to conquer the lizardmen and enslaved the desert gnomes. Now the draconian gaze turned to the lush Amanitian fields on the other side of the mountains.

Our forces had already met along our borders. They had somehow roped the wizards and warlocks that lived in the mountains to their cause. We had slowed their progress by pulling our people back to the central providences and closing the portals to the borderlands. The dragon-folk marched steadily on toward the heart of the kingdom.

I stopped at the base of the stairs that led to my father's throne and gave a curtsy. He gave me a familiar sad smile. My mother had died when I was younger, their marriage had been a political one, but he had loved her. She was beautiful, gracious, and calm a raging storm with a word. They said I looked exactly like her, but I lacked her magical talent and had golden hair like my father.

"Your royal highness," an accented voice addressed me from my right.

I turned to see a thick built man with black mustache that was curled up at the ends. The top of his head came up to my nose and he was dressed in a rich red tunic with silver trim. My lady gave a hidden sign of remorse as she noticed the suitor that had somehow slipped through her guard.

"Princess Persica it is my honor to introduce myself, Sir Marius of San Ceorl, Knight of the Realm." The short knight bowed once more as he spoke.

"Rise, Sir Marius." I replied in Ceorlish. "You are a long way from home."

His eyes lit up as the rolling cadence of his native language graced his ears. She saw a small tear in the corner of his eye as he rose.

"Forgive me, your highness." He slipped into Ceorlish as well. "It has been a long time since I've heard my native tongue spoken by anyone other than myself and my man, Ludovic."

My gaze went to the man standing a few steps behind him who wore a similar mustache and tunic, but was nearly as tall as I was.

"After an evening of dancing I prefer a rest." I looked from the knight to my lady. "Would you care to join me?"

"It would be my honor."

Marius gave a sharp bow and then stepped aside to allow me to take the lead. Ludovic and my lady stepped into place behind us as we walked. I led our small procession to a set of doors that opened to a balcony. Archers were positioned on the floors above and below the grand ballroom at each window. We had pulled as many people as we could behind the walls of the keep and to accommodate the influx there were now more guards along the walls than I had ever seen.

"Tell me about yourself, Sir Marius." I kept our conversation in Ceorlish to allow for privacy. "Do many knights of your realm reach so far beyond your borders?"

"No, your highness," Marius smiled. "My man and I were guards in a small town near the far border of the lands of the Scimmia. A lady was taken by one of the tribes. We rescued her when others failed and were rewarded with knighthood. We turned our new standing to become protectors of the land."

"Noble of you." I meant it. "Others would have grown fat on their new standing."

Marius patted his taught tummy under the tunic. "We did not stay local for long, your highness. My man and I traveled our land gathering others to the cause. Soon we had many strong soldiers under our command. We are connected with companies Ceorl as well as Amanita and a few other lands."

"Tribal peoples of the world put to the sword?" I arched an eyebrow.

He gave a small, two-note laugh. "We fight who we must and have recruited many Scimmians into our fold as well as a select Niloctus."

"The lizard-men from the swamplands?" I caught myself a moment after the shock my voice betrayed me.

"Yes, your highness." A bright smile flashed under his mustache. "They're not as bloodthirsty as stories say."

I looked toward the window to avoid looking him in the face. Marius was an unexpected treat; a knight with mercenary connections, well-travelled, and open to new ideas. Perhaps he would do, it spoke well that I tolerated his company this long considering how tired I was. We were in need of soldiers and, if he was to be believed, knew where to find them. His being from a foreign land, and of low birth, would ensure my reign, which could be an issue if I was saddled with some minor local lord. Some enterprising noble would find a way to work the bloodlines to usurp my throne. Luckily there weren't any kings or princes that were of marriageable age.

A gnome walked by carrying a serving tray. He tottered slightly as he walked and brushed against my elbow. Marius caught the gnome and steadied the tray in an efficient motion. The gnome mumbled something that did sound quite right. Gnomes and humans spoke the same language in these lands, but the accent was off. I straightened the long glove on the arm the gnome had knocked loose. My fingers felt odd as I pulled them away. On inspection they were damp with a bright blue gel.

I looked after the gnome he disappeared into the crowd. The little man was lost, but I caught sight of another gnome holding a serving tray. This one also had blue hair, but there were thin streaks of the color running down his golden skin. Gnomes in the area were pales as the moon at night with shocks of hair that ranged in wild colors, it was a byproduct of their long history with alchemy. Desert gnomes, on the other hand, had skin tones that ran a golden gradient with brown or white hair. The two peoples didn't mix well, something in their history had split them as much as the mountains did.

My eyes rested on the blue patch. What business did a desert gnome have in Amanita?

"Bellis." I whispered.

At the sound of her name, my lady tore her gaze away from the silent conversation she was having with Ludovic. She took a short, practiced step forward and straightened her shoulders. The words in my mouth failed come out as the tall double-doors at the main entrance of the ballroom opened. Standing in the center of the doorway and flanked by honor-guard of lizardmen on either side was the most regal dragon-folk I had ever seen. His scales were a rich vermillion except around his eyes which faded into a deep emerald shade. A simple white tunic stretched across his broad chest.

The dragon looked at the nearby herald that was frozen in fear. Sharp reptilian eyes swept over the crowd as the dragon took a step forward.

"Eirikr the Dragon Lord, first of his name." His voice rumbled through the silent room. Those wickedly intelligent eyes traveled from me to where my father stood. "I've come for the princess."

"Guards." My fathers' voice rose. There was something in the tone that I didn't recognize.

"Honor your word, Amanita." Eirikr the Dragon Lords' rumble interrupted.

My fathers' face twisted into something I had not seen since the day my mother died. He raised his hand and waved at Eirikr. "Slay the dragon."

My mind grasped for answered. How did the leader of an enemy army make into the castle? Did the mystics in the mountains learn how to bend space? I looked to my father to see his face had drained of color. The guards around the room drew their weapons. Eirikr let out a high whistle; a moment later the room erupted in a clatter of noise as serving trays were dumped on the floor. Every gnome in the ballroom brandished wicked long-knives.

"Do you think I would be so easily deceived?" A great row of knife-sharp teeth flashed as the Dragon Lord smiled.

For a moment my gaze jumped from my father to the dragon. The tempo on the dance floor shifted as the fighting started. Potential suitors from across the realms and their entourages found themselves in the middle of a tussle between the royal guards, the desert gnomes disguised as servers, and the small force of lizardmen led by Eirikr.

Two gnomes rushed toward Marius only to have Ludovic boot one to the floor and my short foreign suitor to crown the other was a solid fist.

"My princess," Marius stepped in front of me. "Please excuse the interruption."

"Good, Sir Knight." I held my hand out and took hold of the sword Bellis offered to me. "It is a small thing."

He looked at the spatha in my hand then back at Bellis who shifted a panel in her long dress closed. She gave a wink to Ludovic, who looked on the verge of proposing marriage, and fell into position on my left. The four of us held our ground as the gnomes turned their attention to my location. Two guards had been stationed on the balcony nearby and they joined our group. I knocked a slippery gnome to the ground with the pommel of my sword and caught sight of Eirikr. The Dragon Lord was closer to me now. His lizardmen had made short work of the guards that tried to stop them.

Two large strides brought Eirikr close enough for his low growl to vibrate my earrings. A single backhand send Ludovic sliding across the floor and a powerful kick tossed Marius out the nearby window. The balcony railing prevented him from taking a long fall, but he didn't look to be getting up soon. Bellis dipped and danced around three lizardmen as they pushed her farther away from me.

Time slowed as my brain registered the situation. I was alone against this Dragon Lord. The gnomes had busied the guards, the lizardmen had isolated my lady, and Eirikr had dispatched the foreigners. My world was now this dragon and my sword. It all faded away. The kingdom, the looming war, the refugees below.

"Dragon." I saluted with my sword.

He gave a short nod. "Princess."

"Terms?" I shifted my feet to adjust for my taller opponent and thanked the gods that I hadn't chosen the high-heels.

"Your father has already set the terms." A single clawed finger touched his chest.

"To the death then?"

A puff of smoke wisped up from his nostrils. "No, princess, for life."

I leapt forward, my sword sung through the air. He sure did move fast for someone so large. My blade flicked to the left, then right. It dipped, prodded, and circled, but I couldn't touch him; aside from a few superficial cuts on his tunic. He moved so fast. The times my blade slipped passed his guard it would be turned away on his scaled skin. Each little cut in his tunic inspired another wisp of smoke. He was laughing at me.

He juked to the left to avoid my blade. Something underneath his tunic moved. My eyes caught the hint of a gold chain around his neck. We locked eyes for an instant. My blade flew forward and cut the chain from around his neck. A familiar shape fell out of a tear on his chest and he caught it at my eye level. His clawed hand opened to show me the truth.

There in palm of his hand was a signet ring. It looked exactly the same as the last time I had seen it. There was a small dent along the top and the jewel in the center was the color of the stars at night. My father had stopped wearing it when the refugees had arrived.

Eirikr and I locked eyes. He didn’t move as I took the ring.

"Father." I didn't scream, but everyone in the ballroom heard me. I had been trained since birth to speak in a royal voice.

The fighting stopped as the room turned to look at me. I looked my father in the eyes as I held up the ring from him to see. He watched as I placed the ring on my thumb and took the hand that Eirikr had held the ring in. I flipped the sword in my grip and handed it to Bellis, who had taken the stillness to approach.

"If you will excuse us." I motioned to the door. "It would be best if we left."

Bellis fell into step behind me.

"Attend to our foreign friends, Bellis."

"Highness?"

"I'll call for you once I'm settled."

"Yes, Highness."

Eirikr looked down at my gloved hand in his. There was a question behind his eyes as he looked at me. I nodded and led him toward the door. He let out a sharp whistle as we made it safely through the ballroom doors. The remaining gnomes and lizardmen filed through the doors and formed up as a protective detail as we walked on.

We moved quickly through the castle. Three guards approached from a side hallway. I took a breath to tell them to stand down, but before I could speak they fell into step with the others. My mouth pressed shut as we kept up the brisk pace. This castle had been my life, these guards were men I'd grown to count as friends, and yet they didn't even attempt a rescue. Yes, I had chosen this fate, but anyone outside of the ballroom wouldn't have known, and those in it probably weren't too happy about it.

I stole a look at one of the guards. A mixture of relief and worry stirred in my chest. I didn't recognize the man, in fact now that I had a look at him I wondered how I could have mistaken him from any of the guards in the palace. The raised red tattoo that ran across the bridge of his nose made it apparent he wasn't from around here.

"Where did you get the guards uniforms?" I looked at my draconic betrothed.

"We stole them." He answered without looking at me.

"And their original owners?"

He didn't say anything.

"How many of my men did you kill?"

His sharp golden eyes snapped to me. "Only those we had to. Can your men say the same?"

I narrowed my gaze and looked up at him. "What do you mean?"

"You don't know?" A faint puff of smoke accented his words.

I realized then that we should have been to the main hall by now. Out of the corner of my eye I began to pick up hints of where were and what our destination would be. We were near the western tower. I kept silent as we moved. This didn't make sense. The western tower was the tallest of the five that the castle had, but it faced the sea on one side and the castle on the other. Even if they had somehow managed to figure out how to bend space-time, there wasn't a conduit in the tower. The nearest anchor point was in the courtyard outside behind the main gate and surrounded by two fully stocked guard stations whose sole purpose was to monitor traffic.

"Are you planning on making a last stand in the tower?" I waved a hand at the winding staircase now in front of our group.

Even with the new arrivals, which had totaled nearly twenty, they wouldn't be able to hold the tower for long. The stairway was wide enough for six wide-shouldered men to walk side-by-side, or fight, which would work in their favor, but this wasn't the only staircase. Each tower had two separate passages for servants and a central platform that could be raised or lowered floor by floor. The tower would be retaken before sundown.

"Hardly, princess." Eirikr strode ahead of his followers.

The desert gnomes began to remove their disguises as we wound our way higher. They tossed their stolen jackets on the stairs, most of them used the white frilled shirts to clear out chunks of blue gel from their hair. A couple wiped streaks of the goop to paint designs on their faces, or to simply wipe it on their unsuspecting comrades. Those disguised as guards followed the gnomes lead. I quickly learned that they weren't even human, the green and red shells on their backs gave it away. A closer look at their skin revealed that it was finely scaled and what I thought were tattoos was natural. The looked similar to Eirikr in appearance with sharp draconic features, but their eyes were more akin to that of a human. None of Eirikrs' band had looked twice at me, as of yet. I guess sneaking into a hostile castle and stealing a princess doesn't leave a lot of room for leisure.

Our band more than doubled the higher we got in the tower. Every room, landing, and alcove held a waiting gnome, lizardman, or one of the shelled-folk I did not know the name for. My gown began to stir as wind whipped down the corridor. We reached the top of the tower where even more of loyal troopers waited near the open door. My heart dropped as I looked up at the patch of sky through the door. This was it, I would do my duty, save my kingdom, and avert total invasion. I wasn't sure yet how plummeting from the tower with the leader of the soon-to-invade horde, but the life of a princess is rarely a fairy tale.

Eirikr strode to the door and waited for the rest of his band to pass through. He held his hand out to me.

"The choice is yours princess." The dragons' voice still rumbled, but it was distant thunder on the horizon rather than storming overhead. "Your father gave his word, as did I, but you did not."

I glared at him. "You doubt my honor."

He gave a small, slow shake of his head. For a moment I didn't see him as fearsome dragon, but a king, not unlike my father, with the world on his shoulders. I put my hand in his. He looked down at it and then up at me.

"If we're going to jump, could we do it toward the sea?" I looked to the doorway. "I'd rather make a splash than a mess on the stone below."

Eirikr raised his head to the ceiling and let out a quick trio of flames. I was taken aback, maybe he meant to burn me alive. He covered his mouth with the back of his hand and the flames settled down into a chuckle. I stared at him, still unsure what caused this outburst.

"Slip into the castle, escort the princess to the tallest tower, and then throw her from it?" Eirikr shook his head. "What kind of plan is that?"

"I assumed you'd be right behind me."

"Behind you." Smoke rolled from his nostrils. "No princess, we're not jumping, we're leaving. I'll lead the way."

He led me out to the tower. His troopers climbed the stone battlement and stepped off.

A moment later they floated back up into sight riding on clumps of cloud. They lazily rose to a thick concentration of dark storm clouds. He pointed a clawed finger at the cluster of cloud and my eyes began to pick out lines through the mist. I raised my free hand and traced the distant edge with my fingertips.

"A ship?" I turned to look at him.

"A fleet." He waved hand at the other dark clusters that filled the sky around the castle.

Now that I knew what to look for I could pick out at least ten ships nearby. The band of troopers were heading toward the largest ship. I followed Eirikr to the battlements. He stepped up onto the stone and prodded a nearby cloud with his foot. The mists gathered around his foot until I couldn't see through it. He stepped off the stone fully onto the cloud and dipped down out of view. I watched in wonder as he floated back up and drifted off toward a nearby ship.

I was alone on the top of the tower now. All the troopers and the dragon lord were riding clouds toward their fleet. I looked back at the door that led down into the tower. My father had betrayed his word, I would not. I stepped up onto the battlement and dipped my foot into the mist. The cloud formed around my foot. I closed my eyes and stepped off.

Blind panic gripped me as the clouds under my feet gave. I opened my mouth to scream only to realize that my fall had stopped. Once I was able to convince my eyes to open I found that the clouds had enveloped me up to my under my arms. Even though I could see the mist around me, I couldn't feel anything beyond a cool breeze along my skin. The wonder of the experience won out over the panic and I found myself drifting toward the same ship the dragon lord was heading.

I busied my mind on how the clouds were controlled rather than how up we all were. The logical part of my brain told me that if this mist could hold a ship aloft then a single woman should be no trouble. Then it went on to tell me that if the clouds did fail I'd probably would die on impact. Another little voice told me that at least the ride down would be enjoyable and if luck was in my favor I might splatter enough on that ugly sculpture in the main courtyard to warrant it being replaced.

"Replaced by a statue of me in freefall." I muttered.

"Hurry princess." Eirikr called to me from the deck of a nearby ship.

"How do I make it go faster, sir dragon?"

"Focus on the ship, will it to go faster."

I glared at him. It seemed to work, my movement toward the ship increased in speed. As I neared he reached out to me and pulled me up onto the deck. I leaned over the ships railing to see the cloud join to the bigger collection surrounding the vessel. A thought crossed my mind.

"Would I have fallen if I thought about it hard enough?"

He laughed, but kept from breathing fire this time. "If that were the case it wouldn't be much of a way to travel."

"Then what would happen?"

"The cloud would stop." He let go of my hands and motioned for me to follow him. "You'll need to get inside, it gets cold out here."

He led me toward the captains' cabin at the rear of the ship. I hadn't realized he had held my hands for so long. It struck me as odd at how warm they were and how the chill of the air now pressed in on my fingers. I guess it made sense that he wouldn't be cold blooded, he was a dragon, not some lizard and the fire he breathed had to come from somewhere.

The room was spartanly decorated. I had been one a few sea voyages before, the vessels were much larger and the captains' quarters were usually finely decorated. That being said, they were ships that sailed across the sea rather than clouds, I ventured that weight was something of an issue.

"Will the clouds hold the ships aloft even if we lose faith?"

"The clouds don't hold the ships in the air. It's easier to transport them this way, and it helps take a load off the engines."

"What engines?"

"Do you hear that thunder?"

"Of course, I feel it in my teeth."

"It isn't thunder, it's the sound of engines at work to make the ship fly."

"Amazing." He placed my hand on a nearby post and felt the vibrations in the wood. "How does it work?"

"I don't know." Eirikr admitted. "These didn't exist until the last year. Great minds started to work together once they weren't trying to kill one another. They come up with new things all the time."

"Amazing."

I looked at the wood planks I stood on, the vibrations were stronger in my feet than where my hand rested. The engines were below deck. For a moment I wondered what it would take to storm this ship. My sword was back at the castle, but every crewman I saw had a knife or two on his belt. I could fight my way below deck, find the engine, and sabotage it. The clouds would provide a method for me to travel safely to the ground it I jumped down through them. No one expects the princess to save themselves, not even this dragon lord.

"What are your plans for me?" I pulled my gaze from the floorboard up to Eirikr.

"I will take you back to my castle where we are to be wed. After that we will negotiate a peace between our two kingdoms."

"That is all?"

"My people do not have kings, we have warlords. We fight, we take, and we live short brutal lives." Eirikr stepped forward as he spoke. He towered over me and seemed to fill the enclosed space of the captains' cabin. "I changed that. We have peace, such as it is, and we're working against a common enemy."

"My people are not the enemy." I stepped closer to him. I would not run. I would not beg. If he wanted a prisoner then he would choke on my chains.

"Slavers, mercenaries, and military action says otherwise."

"Lies." I took another step forward.

He looked down at me, for a moment there was no color in his eyes. Slowly the gold won out over the darkness and his shoulders relaxed. He shook his head and walked passed me to the slit of a window along the far wall. For a long moment neither of us spoke. I didn't know what more to say, but I would not allow him to slander my people.

"I sense you will not back down until given proof." He crossed his hand behind his back. "Regrettably, I will have to show you. I need to talk to the helmsman. If you plan on leaving the cabin there are coats in the cabinet. The crew will give you all the respect a queen garners, but please, leave them to their work. It keeps them warm."

He crossed the room in three wide strides and left me to my thoughts.

I walked over to the window and watched my castle fade into the distance. The ships moved faster than I realized. From this distance the tower we had jumped from was already out of focus. I turned my attention to the cabin around me. There were two cots, one on each wall, a cabinet, and a small table all made from the same dark wood of the ship. I didn't see a chair, or even a stool for the table. Out of curiosity I opened up the cabinet to find a few different coats. One was clearly for a gnome, the other would have fit a woman twice my size, and was about as long as I was tall and had a hole for a tail. At least, I hope it was for a tail.

Something in the window drew my attention. I took a closer look to see that we had changed course, the tower was now to our left rather than straight behind us. From the maps I studied I knew we were now headed for the north eastern borderlands. Until recently the area had been a hotspot of conflict. Reports from refugees told stories of destructive storms. I looked down that the floor where the engines rumbled below.

"Destructive storms." I turned toward the door.

These ships must have cannons on them. My hands clenched into fists. They had surrounded the castle. Would they have attacked if I hadn't come with them? How many would have died in their attack? What about my people, the refugees, and those visiting dignitaries? Their deaths would have sparked a war that reached to the known world.

But, they hadn't attacked. Eirikr approached my father to address an agreement in good faith. My father had gone back on his word. I leaned against the edge of the window and looked at the world from above. My father, the king, this paragon of honor had broken his word. He had led Eirikr into a trap and used me as bait.

I would not allow the honor of the crown be soiled by such treachery. The ball had been a success, I had found a suitor to deal with the invasion.

~-~
Note:
Sorry all. I'm in a rough state. I have a pinched nerve in my neck and it's acting up.