The Rover Princess

by D. E. Kilgore

  To My Beloved Maribella,

  I pray every day and night that you will be back in my arms soon. If you are reading this, have faith that I will never give up my search for you. Please know if you should ever question how deeply the love in my heart burns for you. Every breath I take is pure torture without you by my side. I will scour every inch of this land and all others in search of you, even if it takes the rest of my natural born life. The news I must tell you though is troubling and has impeded my search for you. The Dragons to the East, in the floating city of Zamar, have gotten wind you have disappeared suddenly and without explanation. Rumor is circulating that you ran off once more, as you did previously twelve years ago in Sheharla. They always had interest in our land and our mountain due to the rare metal coursing through the underground caves. They will use your past against us to convince the elders and our city that we are not fit to rule the Mountain Dragon Stronghold. They are using this—us—as an excuse to take the Stronghold for their own. They found a loophole within our doctrines which would allow me to take the throne and have issued forth a challenge. They know I stand distracted and exhausted from my endless search for you. They think to use my grief against me. Unfortunately, they will learn that you are not a weakness and this distraction from searching the realm for you fuels my rage and fire in such a way they will never forget. It is because of this challenge I had to pull back the Stronghold guards from our search for you to protect our city. If it were any other clan, I could use reason with the elders who oversee all clan challenges and their rights to proceed, but the bad blood flowing between the Mountain Dragons and the Floating City Dragons runs deep and thick across centuries. We have been forced into a corner that, try as I might, I don’t think I can escape. I fear the challenges ahead and not only this one. I will delay the fight for dominance as much as I can, but if I cannot convince the elders your disappearance with the crown jewels is just a rumor, I believe this will get messy. If you are reading this and I have yet to find you, stay where you are. It is dangerous for you to be without an escort until this challenge has been put to rest. I would not put it past the Floating City Dragons to physically use you as leverage against me. I will come for you, I promise this. Maribella, my love, you are the reason my heart beats and nothing in our realm or any others will keep you from my side.

  Forever Yours,

  Rafael

  A hot tear rolled down my face and dropped onto the note. I brushed at my face angrily. There at the top of the page, Rafael had written a date.

  Three full months. That meant we were at the end of the Dry Farming Season, going into the Harvest. The Blooming Season had just ended when I’d married Rafael, only to get popped out of existence on my own damn wedding night. My fist clenched, crumpling the letter as I scanned the note again. Sprinting out of the bedroom, I ripped open the door and fell against the frame. Relief flooded my body as I scanned the night sky. We were in the same moon cycle, and only a few days had passed since Rafael wrote the letter. Pulling in another deep breath, I allowed the clean crisp forest air flow into me and coat my lungs. A sense of calm washed over my body. If Rafael thought I was just going to tuck tail and stay put like a good, meek little princess while he fought tooth and claw for our Stronghold, he was sorely mistaken.

  Hesitating, I glanced back to the faint outline of the moon, and resolve flowed through my veins. The Floating City Dragon Clan was challenging the Mountain Dragon Clan rule. How they found out I was missing didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered now was getting back to the Stronghold to show the elders a united force and stop the challenge. Rafael had promised he would never stop looking for me, but it was time for me to stop being a damsel in distress. No, this time I would be saving the prince.

  INSTEAD OF LETTING my exhaustion take control and passing the rest of the night staring into the fire, I currently sat at the table, back to the hearth, staring at a map. The yawn cracked my jaw, and I scratched at my damp hair, thankful the water in the washroom still worked. The cold bath had awoken my senses, driving back some of the weariness within me. Fidgeting with the sleeves of my shirt, I rolled them up a little more. It was spare travel clothing, long forgotten and pushed far back in the closet. It had been a pain and a half getting the dirt, sweat, and blood covered wedding dress off, but I’d managed. It was folded neatly next to a travel bag along with Rafael’s letters. I had laid out what I needed for my trip but hadn’t started packing. A few different routes led from the cabin to the Mountain Dragon Stronghold, and I was still researching which one I wanted to take. Tracing a ravine on the map with my finger, my mind wandered. I had an inkling to the route Rafael took back would be the fastest, but he would be flying and last time I checked, that was one thing I couldn’t do. Leaning back in my chair, my neck and back popped as I stretched my arms up and over my head with a moan. The snap and crackle from the fireplace was beginning to lull me into sleep. With a yawn, I rubbed at my eyes before getting up to make tea. Sleep would have to wait its turn as I still had a route to plot, a trip to pack for, and a Stronghold to take back.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  The rattle at the door, followed by a loud knock, had me waking in alarm. Eyes snapping open, my mind was blank and I tried to figure out where I was and what was happening. Peeling a piece of paper from my face, my brows furrowed, and I looked out the window. Damn, dawn was barely breaking, and I really hated early mornings. The knock echoed once more, making me jump, and I hurried over to the door as the person outside shouted a hello. Yanking open the door, I came face to face with a tall, skinny girl with a headful of wild red-orange hair. She was a few inches taller than I was, with freckles dusting her whole face, and a hint of red flushing at her cheeks. Her hazel eyes sparked with mischief as she opened her mouth to speak then stopped, cocking her head. “I thought I was replacing you? I was told you left.”

  Well, hello to you too, Faen. She had grown since the last time I saw her three years ago, letting her short hair grow long and wild. The new look suited her too. “You heard correctly, Faen.”

  She grinned and rocked up onto her toes. “That’s me! Now let me in before I die of starvation.”

  I chuckled. “Oh my gods, Faen. You haven’t changed in the least.” I stepped aside, motioning for her to come inside.

  She practically bounced to the table, dropping her bag on it loudly. “It’s dusty.”

  Snorting, I pushed past her and started to stoke the dying embers in the hearth. “Well yes, I have been gone for a while.”

  Turning around at the sounds of Faen cracking open a window, I figured that was probably for the best. The smell of dust and must, was a bit overwhelming. “Sooooo... Have you been here the whole time?”

  Pointing the stick I was using to stoke the fire in her direction, I frowned. “No, I have not been here the whole time. I just fell back into our realm yesterday.”

  Faen shrugged and opened her bag, taking out a handful of nuts. She leaned over, tossing an almond in her mouth and looked at the map along with the routes I traced along it. “Rumor is you made off with some palace jewels and sailed away to the Southern Isles.”

  The groan was audible as I walked back over to the table, scooping up the map and folding it. “Sorry to break it to you but that didn’t happen, nor will it ever happen. The Southern Isles are much too...what’s the word I’m looking for?”

  “Smelly? Bug Infested? No, wait I got it. Too many snakes,” Faen chimed in.

  “That last one was more than one word. And I was going to say muggy.” I rolled my eyes at her and she smiled, throwing another almond in the direction of her mouth. It missed and rolled across the floor. I went to clean it up on instinct before stopping myself.

  “I’m leaving today to go back to the Stronghold.”

  Faen shrugged up at me from the chair she’d plopped herself into. “That’s probably for the best. The prince is worried sick over you, and he has gone a little crazy. Do you know what he did in Sheharla?”

>   I turned back to face her, setting the map back down on the table. “What are you talking about, Faen?”

  She smiled, chewing loudly on the almonds that finally made it into her mouth.

  “Faen, what did Rafael do in Sheharla?”

  She threw up her hands, almonds scattering all over the room. “Your ass of a father offered up your sister to replace you. Your Rafael took it personally and overthrew him. He threatened the contract and made sure everyone knew going forward the only dealings with the Mountain Dragon Stronghold will be going through Elizabeth. She is set up to take over the throne now. Apparently, Rafael loves you or something.”

  I stood, blinking at Faen in shock. I couldn’t believe Rafael would lose his temper in such a way, but to be honest it was a little satisfying. Faen jumped up, startling me out of my thoughts. She grabbed the broom leaning against the wall and started cleaning up her mess. “So, are you taking the route through the pass? You had it marked.”

  I acknowledged her with a mumble and walked into the back room where all my things were laid out. She called out from the main room, “You are cutting it close! There’s already snow up that way.”

  Ignoring her, I rolled up the clothing layers I was taking with me and placed them into the small travel pack. I jumped as Faen’s voice, now in the room, intruded into my space. “To even get to the pass you have to go through the Endless Forest at the base of the Midnight Mountains. You know that the mountain elves don’t like outsiders.”

  “I’m not going the long way through the Endless Forest, Faen,” I half-heartedly mumbled, brushing past her.

  Faen’s eyes grew wide, and she followed me back into the living quarters. “Are you going through the swamp again?”

  Shaking my head once more and throwing the pack onto the table, I started rummaging around the cupboards for dried foods. I would need provisions for at least half of my journey. I could almost hear the wheels in Faen’s head roll, and the corners of my lips twitched up, when a disbelieving ‘no’ fell from her lips.

  I turned back to her. “Yes Faen. It’s the quickest way. It will cut three days off completely and it will get me to the pass tomorrow instead of in two days.”

  “That puts you directly onto the cusp of Goliath territory.”

  Ignoring her rumblings about Goliaths, I wrapped the dried food and stuffed them into the top of the bag. Plucking the map from Faen’s hands, I replaced it with a note. “Give this to Rafael if he shows up before I get to the Stronghold.”

  Faen shook her head. “Why don’t you just wait? He has been coming here right? Just send a runner that way and wait.”

  This time I shook my head. “I need to get back. I don’t know when this last challenge will take place. There might still be a chance to show the elders a united front and put a stop to whatever loophole the Floating City Dragons found.” I shook the letter at her, feeling my face start to turn red thinking about my Rafael having to fight for my reputation. “The throne, my throne, my Stronghold, and my husband are in danger. I’m not letting it fall to this stupidity.”

  Faen took a step back out of my way and whistled low under her breath. “Damnnnn, I wouldn’t want to be those Dragons when they find out they messed with the wrong princess.”

  Damn straight. Giving Faen a curt nod, I grabbed my bag and swung it onto my back. I was done getting pushed around by all the shit the Fates had thrown my way. I was going back to the Mountain Dragon Stronghold for Rafael, and nothing was going to stop me.

  PAUSING OUTSIDE THE mouth of the cave, I looked around before eventually perching myself on top of a rock underneath a moss-covered tree. It had taken a little over half a day to get to the mouth of the caves and the sun was shining bright and high in the sky. Closing my eyes and tilting my face up to the sun, I basked in its midyear shine. It was still brisk out despite how the sun was shining, but I was determined to enjoy it because the second I stepped into the cave I wouldn’t be seeing the sun for a full day. Not to mention when I stepped out it would be in the heart of the Midnight Mountains. That isn’t to say the sun never shined there. It did but no warmth ever seemed to permeate the ever-frosted pass, or so that was what all the travelers said. I only knew of the cave and the path through to the pass via old maps and stories told to us from the older Rovers. What I did know for certain was this route was the fastest way to the Mountain Dragon Stronghold. Any other route would take over a week, and from the letter Rafael left me, I knew we didn’t have weeks. This route would still take me four full days at a brisk pace with no breaks. Riffling through my bag and taking out the berries I snagged from the bushes on my way up, I popped them in my mouth. Sweet tartness burst across my tongue, and I sighed in delight. This was the only perishable food item with me, and I was determined to enjoy them while I had the chance. After this it would be dried foods and meat mixed with animal fats. Finishing off the berries, I opened my eyes, taking one last look at the sky, following a cloud moving lazily through the endless blue. The longing to see the form of a Dragon flying through the sky squeezed at my heart. Wishful thinking on my part that Rafael would just swoop down from on high, whisking me away to the castle, and along the way telling me he had won the challenge. That the Stronghold was ours to rule and we could lead the people without a worry or care. I chuckled at my naive thinking and hopped off the rock, slinging the bag over my shoulders. Stepping into the mouth of the cave, I counted out three steps to the west. Squinting, I stepped forward to a thick crack in the rock and stuck my hand down, fishing around until feeling the end of a stick. Exactly where the old Rovers said it would be.

  Rumor of the stockpile of torches on either end of the cave mouths was widely speculated, but I had no idea if it was true until now. It occurred to me I should have looked in the crack for any small, biting creatures before thrusting my hand down into it. I shivered, glad no small creatures tried to eat my hand. The gods seemed to have been on my side this time because not only were there torches, but if I guessed correctly, the torch end wrapped in cloth was bathed in the Dragons breath shrub oil. Bringing the cloth up to my nose I gave it a sniff. The sour smell of unripened berries assaulted my senses, and I gagged. That was definitely the smell of a Dragon’s breath shrub. When the shrub was discovered, a fight for the exclusive right to harvesting ensued. The shrub in question secreted a type of oil which when harvested and lit, would produce a flame which would burn and stay alight for days. The only way to put out the flame was to douse it in a lot of water, smother it, or let it fully burn through. It was a very valuable commodity. As far as I knew, the shrub only grew in very specific temperate locations and it was all but extinct within the old lands. Rumor was some very elusive and rich collectors had the Dragons breath shrub growing in their own private gardens. From the week I had been through, I wouldn’t be surprised that specific rumor was in fact truth. Pulling the fire starter from the side pouch of my bag, I lit the torch and took a step forward.

  All sense of time was lost within minutes of stepping into the dark cave. My torch snapped and popped every so often, but I had gotten used to it. What I hadn’t gotten used to was how the cave amplified every tiny sound. My mind was playing tricks, convincing me that someone or some creature was waiting in the dark. By the time I reached the halfway point, my heart was racing out of control. Or at least I hoped this was the halfway point. Someone had carved the words “halfway point” in the common language on the cave wall. Here was hoping it was not a trap. Deciding to bunk down for the night and trying to calm my nerves, I tossed my bag into the side chamber and rubbed at my eyes. Planting the torch in a crack within the rocks, it lit up the small side chamber fully. For which I was grateful for as I discovered a few miles back I didn’t like being in caves. You would have thought this fear would have presented itself to me before now. However, when I thought about it, the only cave I had ever been in was the Lagoon, and I didn’t think that counted as a real cave. In addition, there had been people, Dragon people, but people none the less; m
y people now.