by Rohini Menon
“Okay, Bluejacks I know we had a rough start but we can do this I’m a—BRANCH!!” yelling I pulled the reins as far as possible making him stop in his tracks but that didn’t help because we did hit the branch; more like, I hit the branch and bruised my head, while Bluejacks stood there eating an apple that fell off the tree.
“Come on,” Zaniyah said, extending her rough hand out for me. “That’s enough riding for today.”
I brushed the dirt off my pant and shirt.”
“You’ve grown up quite a lot haven’t you, Zan?” a voice said from behind the trees, along with a grating laugh.
“Why are the trees calling you, Zan?” I asked in a whispered tone.
A guy he slowly stepped into the light from the shadows of the trees. He wore a tailored chocolate-brown suit with his first few buttons open, revealing a stitch across his collarbone.
His chiselled jaw lifted with a twisted smile; his grey eyes gazed into mine filled with blood lust? Then he suddenly broke eye contact, inches away from Zaniyah. He leaned in and stabbed her.
• CHAPTER 9 •
An Old Nemesis
Red sprays of blood covered the ground, or so I thought.
“Was that supposed to hurt Seth?” Zaniyah said. She had the same knife that Seth tried to stab her with, in her hand. With full force, she charged head-first, raising her knife and jumping in mid-air. When he took another knife out, both of theirs clashed.
Seth put all of his body weight on his knife. Zaniyah took this moment and side-stepped, making him lose balance and grazing his elbow. He gave a tired chuckle: “Still got it in you I see.”
“What, you giving up already?” Zaniyah said, wiping sweat from her forehead.
“Who are you?” he asked with superiority in his voice, talk about a rich brat. “I’m a Prince.”
“Peasant,” Zaniyah and I said simultaneously.
Seth looked at her with the same confusion I had ever since she’d disappeared from school.
“He is the son of the main wheat supplier for the kingdom,” she said, gesturing to me. “He has a big ego, considers himself a prince.”
“Hey!” I exclaimed.
“Obviously you know what that’s like,” she continued to ignore me.
“Is it?”
Seth looked at me—more like, stared at my soul waiting for it burn—and Zaniyah’s constant nudging didn’t help either.
“Yeah,” she kept staring at me, as if the answer wasn’t enough.
“Yes, I am the Prince of Wheat,” I grandly gestured.
“You always did have a stupid taste in friends,” he said as if he’d just tasted something filthy and he eyed me dubiously. “Well I’ll be off, after all I am participating in the strife.”
Zaniyah let out a sigh a relief. How dare she; it’s not like she claimed she was the lord of cereal or anything? I thought angrily. “No, you are not allowed to feel relieved,” I said. “Not after lying to that brat about who I am.”
“Look, can we walk,” she said, “and I’ll explain when we reach the castle.”
“No,” I said blocking her way. “I want to hear the explanation now.”
She exhaled rather loudly “Alright, but we have very limited time so listen carefully… We plan on sending you for the tournament… The strife.”
“You want me to take part in the competition where I might potentially lose my life; and, even if I make out alive—if I don’t win—might lose my dignity?”
“Not exactly: there is a 0.1 percent chance you might be able to make it out alive.”
“No, absolutely not“
“That’s not an option.”
“Well, I don’t want to stay here any longer—I’m leaving,” I turned away, towards the castle.
“Wait,” she yelled. “Why don’t we decide it with a match?”
“And what’s in it for me?” I asked.
“If you win, I’ll get you a ticket out of this mess and even top it off with chocolates,” she said. She had me hooked when she said chocolates, but I had to play it cool.
“And if you win?” I asked.
“You take part in the competition as planned.”
“Okay,” I said casually. “But on one condition: to make this a fair fight, you will have to use one hand against me.”
“All right,” she said and took out two knives. “Here.” She tossed one towards me. “The first one to touch the other with a knife wins.” She was looking down. “Shall we?”
Then her eyes were on mine. She charged with nothing but eagle-eyed precision in them.
I dodged the first three slashes. I charged forward but she sidestepped, making me lose my balance. She tried to charge at my back, but I was quicker; I bear-hugged her from underneath and started running forwards, lifting her from her hips.
She kneed me in the chin and jumped from grasp. I fell backwards but clutched the knife more tightly. Maybe I could make her drop hers? That would make me a winner. So, I sprang at her to make her think I was going in for the kill, but with a sudden change of direction I swerved right where she had her knife.
I knew she wasn’t expecting this. I ducked under the knife and grabbed her hand from the back the same way she did to the delinquents back at school. In that instant, I knew I was the winner, but Zaniyah had another trick up her sleeve… She kicked me in the shin. The knife fell from my grasp as I stumbled backwards.
I didn’t even see her coming; it was like a panther leaping on top of its prey. In a flash, she was sitting over me, holding the sharp end right in the middle of my chest. If she had stabbed with her full strength, that would probably have been the end for me.
“Only an idiot like you could pull off something like that,” she said impressed, getting off me and brushing off dirt.
“So, I take it I’m in the competition?” I muttered. However much my cowardly legs wanted to run away from this crazy town, I still had my dignity to uphold.
“Look, I don’t want to force you,” she said. There was a look of anguish in her eye, as if she was about to tear up. “But this is really important to everyone here.”
“So, what do I have to do?” I asked.
Her eyes shot up suddenly, burning with something; gratitude? I’d never seen that side of her before… Guess there’s more to see and do than falling of horses and make-pretend titles.
• CHAPTER 10 •
I Sign the Contract
“Is that blood?” Victoria asked, getting an old book from the huge library.
“No?” I said.
“You’re not supposed to answer that with a question.”
After hours of: searching the whole castle; almost getting into a fight with one of the maids for knocking over the laundry; and having Zaniyah apply duck-tape to my mouth for yammering on too much and tie my arms behind my back, we finally found her…
“Seth has come to compete,” Zaniyah said then bit into her apple... Wait apple? Where did she have time to get something to eat?
My ‘mom’, now with a dead serious look on her face, maybe at the duck-tape, said: “He’s come?” Zaniyah gave a simple nod in response. “Okay Aaron,” Mom—Victoria—said, then walked towards me. “There is something I have to tell you and promise me you won’t jump to conclusions.” She took a deep breath.
“I’m the prince of the late king and you want me to take part in a strife tournament where I might possibly die,” I said matter-of-factly.
Victoria looked at Zaniyah “You told him, didn’t you?”
“Surprise?” Zaniyah replied.
“Fine, bring him to my room please. I have to call your mother.”
“Are you sure?” Victoria asked me.
“Mmmppphhh,” was all I could say.
“Was this really necessary?” Celine asked when she saw me.
“Yes, otherwise he might go back on his word,” Zaniyah said.
“Just remove the duct tape; let’s hear what
he has to say,” Celine said.
Zaniyah sighed “Okay, just the duct-tape—plus the ropes would take too much time to remove.”
“Oww!” I wailed as she ripped the tape off.
“Aaron, here!” Victoria snapped her fingers in front of my burning face. “Are you sure you want to take part in the strife?”
Absolutely not, is what I wanted to say…but, after I first learned of my royal blood, I had known that I had to take up the mantle as successor. Plus, I had to clear up egoistic Seth’s misunderstanding.
I smiled “A king never breaks his promise.”
“I think I can name quite a few instances,” Zaniyah said.
I was about to argue when Celine interrupted: “Okay then it’s settled, just sign here.” She pointed at the end of an old parchment paper and gave me a pen.
“I need my hands to sign,” I pointed out before being untied. As I completed my initials A.S., I realized that I’d just signed my death warrant. The urge to scream as loudly as possible and run back to my old life beckoned, but I took a deep breath instead… This was my life. I would have to face it.
• CHAPTER 11 •
Getting Around the Town
“Did you get my note?” Zaniyah asked while deciding which sword to pick.
“Of course I got the note; you stuck it to my forehead with tape,” I said.
The armoury was filled with a variety of weapons, ranging from large guns, to large swords and daggers, to rifles.
“Here,” she handed me a sheathed sword. “This is for beginners.”
Beginners!? If these are used by beginners, then what did the experts use? I decided not think about it. I removed the case and examined the sword. It was quite plain, I would have been lying if I said that I wasn’t disappointed. Not so grand.
As if reading my thoughts, Zaniyah said “As you win each round, you can choose to upgrade your weapons.” At the bottom of the hilt was a lion’s head. “Each sword here represents one’s strength. Mine is a wolf.”
She showed me her sword. Instead of a lion, there was a Viking wolf in bronze.
“It represents guardianship, ritual, loyalty, and spirit,” she explained. “The symbol has been passed for generations and so has yours. The last king, your father, had the same symbol.”
“This is the end. I have climbed this hill and now I shall die upon it,” I said in a defeated voice.
***
“Shut up, we’ve only been hiking for twenty minutes,” Zaniyah scolded me.
Well it was true, but my body could handle only so much “Can’t we…” I paused to wheeze for air, “take a…”—I nearly collapsed—“break?” I pleaded with my brown eyes like a cute baby seal, it always worked on the ladies.
“What are you doing?” she asked confused, not even sarcastically, just genuinely confused.
“I…uh…” I cleared my throat. “I’m pleading with my baby seal eyes.” I answered with uncertainty.
In return, she started laughing uncontrollably “Oh my god! Was that supposed to make me give you a break?”
“Okay enough already, I think I’d rather walk than see you laugh like wheezing donkey,” I said irritated.
“Fine, fine let’s take a break mister baby seal.”
We walked towards the greener part and sat there. “Do you think I will make a good king?” I asked.
“Despite your lack of taking any responsibility, yes I think you would make a good king.”
“Why couldn’t you have stood for the strife; I mean, you are quite eligible.”
“We all have a role to play in this kingdom. Some know theirs, some don’t. I know mine,” she said looking up at the sky, which was now filled with bright streaks of red and orange.
The way back was quiet. The shadows were twice as long now, as the sun sank lower, turning the air cooler with only the flickering of the streetlamps for light. A pair of headlights bounced over the hill, scaring me and making me fall into a pile of mud.
Great, now I’m stinking and covered in mud, I thought miserably.
***
After sword practice, Zaniyah suggested we go through the long way back to my chambers, just so I knew the insides of the kingdom.
“We’re here,” she said, analysing me for a few seconds. “Wash yourself off with the hose outside.”
Really! The hose… A part of me wanted to yell at her and walk right through the exit; the sane part thought it would be better to agree with her than to see her ugly side. I nodded and walked towards it.
“No! That’s not possible he cannot enter, he isn’t even part of a noble family,” I heard someone scream from the window right above where the hose was.
“Sire, you must understand: I saw the General sneaking it in along with the competitor forms,” someone else said, maybe one of the staff.
“It isn’t possible, the law clearly states people to enter must be from a noble family,” the man screamed in frustration.
“I have heard a rumour about the boy sire.” That staff member sounded familiar… Then I heard a series of door knocks.
“What is it?” the man who had first screamed said. “The rumour—quickly.”
“Your dinner is ready sir,” a maid answered.
“Uh yes,” the staff member said shortly after, “Master Sether.”
Sether? I thought. Stupid name, what would you shorten it too, Seth? ... And here, dear readers, is where I understood that I was the dumbest human on the planet.
Just then, cold water came gushing out of the pipe and out of control. I screamed as it hit my face. I pulled the hose with all my force and yanked it out. A breeze hit me in my wet clothes. I shivered, stood in a puddle underneath the night sky.
• CHAPTER 12 •
A New Friend
“Noo—I don’t want to die please!” I whined.
“STOP acting like a baby. You did this to yourself!” Zaniyah screamed as she dragged me through the hallway to the entrance of the castle.
“I take back what I said, please, I want to go home.”
She let go of my hand and looked me in the eyes “Aaron, before we go out and announce your entry, I need to tell you something…” she sighed. “I lied: I was told to move out from here and live with you, from the beginning.”
“What?” I asked.
“Everything was a setup Aaron, from meeting you to bringing you here.”
I didn’t believe it, I didn’t want to. “It’s almost over,” Celine said, walking towards me and holding my hand. “The betterment of this country lies in your hands.”
My hands!? “My hands are scrawny and rough, why don’t you give to someone who has softer hands?”
“Good luck,” she said and pushed me towards the door.
“And lastly, we would like to introduce Mr. Aaron Strider, son of the late king Erik Strider.”
I came out rubbing my forehead after I had bumped into a closed door. Everyone’s eyes were on me, it’s like they were totally confused on whether to believe it or not… The announcer cleared his throat and started staring daggers at me. Guess that was the signal.
“Uh…hi?” I said. Well what was I supposed to say? My whole life was a lie and I was forced there against my will… Actually, I should’ve just said that.
“Let’s move onto the choosing of partners, shall we?” the announcer said, trying to change the subject. Everybody moved outside and the announcer came up to me, looked me in the eyes, and sighed like I was hopeless.
A few people came in and showed off their fighting skills using different weapons. Everyone came except Zaniyah. “Now you may choose your partners,” the announcer said.
As he said the names of the different royals, they stepped out and proclaimed their ‘partners’.
“Aaron Strider!”
I stepped out. Did none of them know that I had already picked my partner at the age of 12? “Zaniyah” I said proudly.
Some of them we
re laughing, some of them were criticizing my opinions. “There’s no way that’s possible; she didn’t even show her skills,” Seth—more like Sether—said. I still hadn’t told anyone about the conversation I had overheard.
“Yes, she has…” Zaniyah said and took one of the BO staffs. She gestured me to move aside. I did as told. With a few underarm spins, and two-handed spins, she did a tornado round house kick and—as her feet touched the ground—she went in for a back flip, throwing the staff into the air and catching it as she gracefully landed on her feet. “So, I’m in then?” She looked at Seth smugly.
“Do as you please,” he replied as he turned around marching towards the castle.
“Well then, I think it’s time for tea,” Celine said trying to change the subject for the second time. At once, everyone had their best smile plastered on their face.
“Tsk! Obviously they would be happy,” Zaniyah murmured.
“What?” I asked.
“The tea here is considered the best in the world,” she said it as if I was supposed to know.
“Okay,” was all I said.
“Aaron about what I said earlier—” she started.
“Does it matter?” I wanted to try avoiding her revelation—of me being nothing more than a job to her—as much as I could. But the truth was, I didn’t want to believe it… I didn’t want to accept it. “Let’s try and survive.” I forced a smile and made my way back to my room.
On my way back to the room, I couldn’t help but hear some people get into an argument and some noises of glasses shattering, which followed. I held onto the knob of the door.
“I wouldn’t open that door if I were you,” I almost peed a little, but the voice came from inside… Guessing from his voice, he was around his mid-20’s. “There’s a key for that.” … And very much British.
I jumped into a janitor’s closet just in time as the door opened up “Guess we had better make our appearance before that Strider kid steals our spotlight,” he said, and a group of people started making their way towards the entrance.
Leave already, I thought. The janitor’s room stunk and I was pretty sure that I’d stepped on something squishy. He looked around and left. As soon the coast was clear, I stepped out of that horrid place and entered a room that looked like a living room except without the living part, because the room looked like a funeral home.
