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#Post#: 8524--------------------------------------------------
Re: Vanguard
By: FloatingInSpace Date: December 15, 2015, 10:30 pm
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There was a sudden knock at the door as Galene stared.
"Shouldn't you have figured this out by now?" Galene complained,
turning as her mother made it to the door.
"Yes," Naomi said in her eternally patient voice. "But other
issues have come up, like the mountain tribes and the kingdoms
beyond and there are rumors that war is coming to us. I have not
paid much mind to things not immediate or old to me."
Galene folded her arms over her chest and grumbled to herself as
Naomi opened the door. A servant was there, white-faced and
clutching a scroll which Naomi took cautiously, feeling like the
clouds she had thought had left were coming back, obscuring the
sun once more.
The scroll was wrapped up in dirty twine and a wax seal of a
sword crossed with a snake was stamped on it.
The sigil of Autemiltis, Naomi said grimly.
#Post#: 8525--------------------------------------------------
Re: Vanguard
By: FloatingInSpace Date: December 15, 2015, 10:32 pm
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She unwrapped the scroll slowly, reading it. Galene glanced at
her mother and watched as her face paled before becoming
confused, scrunching up her nose and furrowing her brows before
her mouth turned sharply downwards and fury replaced her
features.
"Call the local guards," Naomi demanded of the soldier. "Tell
them that the royal progression of Autemiltis is coming, and
that we are going to meet them."
The servant nodded quickly and disappeared.
"What's going on?" Galene asked.
"Get dressed in your nicer clothes," Naomi said and before
Galene could protest she turned, her eyes sharper than ever. She
seemed large then, larger than Galene and towered over her,
authority and rage blending together to create a queen that was
not to be crossed. "Quickly."
Galene ducked around her, glancing at the scroll before heading
up to her room, feeling as though she had missed something.
#Post#: 8537--------------------------------------------------
Re: Vanguard
By: FloatingInSpace Date: December 15, 2015, 10:58 pm
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Naomi unraveled the scroll again, peering at it.
[i]Queen Naomi,
By now we are sure you have received our message that we are
coming for your kingdom to greet you in person, as well as your
husband and your youngest daughter. When we began this journey,
we were delighted to hear that we would be getting your daughter
for tales of Vanguard's strength and prowess, from birth til
death, would certainty make Autemiltis stronger and our ability
to provide more people for you to train will make Vanguard
stronger as well.
However, circumstances have befallen us. A plague struck the
kingdom shortly before we left and our eldest fell ill. We
received raven yesterday that she drew her last breath. The heir
at the time was still healthy so we planned to mourn her when we
returned.
Before we could make it to Vanguard and before the shock had
settled in, mere weeks after we had gotten the first message, we
were attacked. The roads are dangerous and we had not expected
the bandits to come at night. The heir was slain.
What remains is our last child, Kydoimos, the one that we plan
to betroth to Galene.
They will become heir to the great kingdom, which requires them
to take on a suitable queen to aid in producing more heirs for
us.
We hope you understand.
King Ision of Autemiltis
#Post#: 8541--------------------------------------------------
Re: Vanguard
By: FloatingInSpace Date: December 15, 2015, 11:04 pm
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Raleigh soon appeared, standing by the doorway in his furs,
frowning. Naomi shook her head slightly at him as Galene
descended the steps, dressed in suitable clothing for the ride
as well as for a princess.
"Why are we going out to meet them?" Galene said, as if she
didn't realize what that truly meant.
"We need to greet them," Naomi said curtly and whisked herself
out.
Galene grumbled about never being told anything and followed
her, albeit reluctantly.
They climbed aboard three noble steeds, white in mane and hide
and road off past the towns and cities that populated Vanguard.
The kingdom gates opened for them and they rode out with guards
flanking them, though they waved no banners. If someone out
there was trying to kill them, there was no need to give them a
target. Naomi had never truly understood the purpose of
bannermen; were they not more useful with swords, fighting? Let
the crown she was forced to wear speak for itself. They all knew
who their queen was and where they were from.
They rode for a few hours, the single horses moving faster than
a carriage and arrived out of the gates just as the sun began to
set.
"What are we here for?" Galene asked again.
"To meet your betrothed," Naomi said, staring ahead, squinting
into the oncoming darkness.
"My betrothed?" Galene repeated.
Raleigh's eyes were resting on his wife.
"Yes," Naomi said quietly. "Your betrothed. The one you are to
marry and bear children for."
"You said we would marry here,' Galene said, panic rising in her
throat.
"The other heirs are dead," Naomi said grimly. "You are to marry
the last living child of the royal family of Autemiltis. There
will be negotiations at this point."
#Post#: 8542--------------------------------------------------
Re: Vanguard
By: FloatingInSpace Date: December 15, 2015, 11:06 pm
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"That's impossible," Raleigh said. "Are you sure this is not a
farce, to draw Galene out?"
Naomi sighed. "I do not truly know," she said. "But they stated
that the eldest one stayed behind because of a plague and they
were attacked by bandits."
"Falsehoods," Raleigh spat. "Are they so dullminded that they do
not realize the danger of bandits before they leave?"
Galene almost wanted to laugh at her father's anger but decided
against it, feeling too sick at the moment.
#Post#: 8544--------------------------------------------------
Re: Vanguard
By: FloatingInSpace Date: December 15, 2015, 11:08 pm
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[center][IMG]
HTML http://i1276.photobucket.com/albums/y466/dragontigeryea/Vanguard/Meeting%20the%20Autemiltis_zpsd2c2ahu4.png[/img][/center]
Before anyone could say another word, the distant sound of
hooves and movement on the horizon told them all that someone
was coming.
"You cannot give up," Raleigh hissed to his wife.
"I will not have this deal going back on this technicality,"
Naomi snapped back, sliding off of her horse.
"This is our daughter at stake," Raleigh responded.
Galene slid off as well, feeling more like she was moving out of
habit than out of awareness.
"The kingdom is at stake. Sacrifices--"
"She is a child still," Raleigh said, voice low and eyes dark.
"She should not be fighting our wars."
"And yet here we are," Naomi responded.
#Post#: 8677--------------------------------------------------
Re: Vanguard
By: FloatingInSpace Date: December 16, 2015, 2:16 pm
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Galene glanced at her mother and father for a second. Her mother
was frowning slightly but portrayed no outward emotions
otherwise. Her father had his sword by his belt and a thin line
for a mouth, staring at the queen as if he could change her mind
that way. She turned away from them both, drawing her cloak
closer and staring out as the carriage approached.
Two guards clung to banners that had the sigil, a golden snake
twisted around a sword on a red background, and approached them.
"Are you the Queen and King of Vanguard?" one of them boomed
from behind a visor.
"Indeed we are," Naomi said, staring up at the soldier. It would
seem that they had wanted her to feel inferior but Galene felt
like her mother was taller than they all were. She had an air
about her of royalty, of largeness that the knight could never
match.
#Post#: 8684--------------------------------------------------
Re: Vanguard
By: FloatingInSpace Date: December 16, 2015, 2:21 pm
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"We are here to greet the royal family and welcome them into our
humble kingdom," Naomi continued. "And to show them that we are
sorry for their losses."
For a second, Galene could have sworn the knight hesitated, as
if taken aback by the statement. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion
but the knight had already ridden off. She turned to see her
father eyeing the retreating soldier with equal suspicion, his
eyebrows furrowed and his hand migrating to the hilt of his
sword, as if prepared to draw it and slice them through if they
dared try and lay a hand on her.
The other knight stared at them blankly and Galene stared back,
frowning slightly. What were they still doing here? Why had they
ridden ahead?
The carriage began to crawl forward again from its resting place
and the white horses dragging it along stopped before the queen.
"The family would like to step out within the kingdom," the
soldier that had spoken to them first stated. "The king begs
your understanding, as the events that have transpired have made
him suspicious."
"Of... course," Naomi said curtly.
#Post#: 8691--------------------------------------------------
Re: Vanguard
By: FloatingInSpace Date: December 16, 2015, 2:24 pm
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Her own mother was suspicious of the motives. That much was
clear as they rode back, the queen with a troubled face and the
king with one of rage. Galene felt somewhat empty, as if someone
had scooped out her emotions and left her hallow. There was
nothing to soak up her mother's worry or her father's anger.
There was none of her own indigence at being traded off like
livestock, stuck in a box and sent off to a world she had not
touched before.
As they entered the kingdom's walls again, she saw the heads of
the common folk turn, staring at the strange sigil that floated
by and the carriage that was obviously not their own. The wood
was a deeper red and was plated with much more gold, flashier
and more impractical than the ones of Vanguard. There were
horses that were dappled grey that were rare amongst
Vanguardians and there were people dressed in chainmail that was
not common to them.
There were whispers of a royal family visiting for weeks but now
they hissed louder than ever, as if the kettle atop the stove
had begun boiling. There was the sound of feet running to and
fro, as people tried to push forward and take a look at the
carriage rolling by and the royal family as well. Knights began
lining the streets, keeping the chaos at bay, their own beady
eyes peering out of visors that shielded their true emotions.
#Post#: 8714--------------------------------------------------
Re: Vanguard
By: FloatingInSpace Date: December 16, 2015, 2:38 pm
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When they reached the castle after a long trek back, Galene was
tired and hungry and about ready to scream at the sky and the
trees at what the royal family had forced them to do. She
wondered what her mother's intent was, speaking to them out by
the fields. To gauge their reactions? To see their true intents
and whether or not they truly had lied about the deaths?
Whatever it was, Naomi had not put it to rest. She looked
troubled, as if the thoughts still haunted her.
"Quickly," she told Galene as they arrived. "Go inside and go to
the kitchen to demand the cook fix something for all of us. All
eight of us."
Galene frowned but slid off her horse, going inside to the cook
and saying so.
She paused by the large dining room, counting off her fingers.
Mother, father, me, the visiting king, queen, and my possible
betrothed. That is six. Does mother truly believe they have
fibbed and that the other two children live?
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