by Shea, K. M.
“Thank you, Brida. I wish I had your confidence,” Elise said. “We are leaving tonight, before my brothers wake. They will never let me face Clotilde, and I feel that I must try.”
Angelique smoothed the skirt of her iridescent dress. “I think you underestimate your powers of persuasion over your brothers, Princess. If you tell them you feel strongly on the matter, I suspect they will bow to your wishes.”
Elise felt her heart squeeze in her chest, as if a hand were crushing it. “Perhaps,” she agreed, thinking of the sleeping princes with their soft snores and strewn limbs. “But, but,” she struggled for a moment to school herself. “I cannot risk them again. I almost lost them, and I could not live with myself if Clotilde cursed them a second time,” she said, her voice nothing but a whisper.
There was a long space of silence.
“I understand,” Angelique said.
“You do?” Elise perked up.
Angelique’s smile was painful. “More than I wish I did. You must leave now if you are to have a chance of confronting Clotilde without your brothers. When they wake, I will hold them off as long as possible, but they know you. The instant they realize you have left, they will set out after you.”
“Then we’ll have to make the best use of our head start,” Brida said, handing Elise the reigns of Brida’s tacked up mare.
Elise blinked; she hadn’t noticed when Brida started saddling the horse.
“You will need to go slowly. It is dangerous to ride in the dark. It is your good fortune that tonight is a full moon,” Angelique said, looking to the sky.
“We are a stone’s throw from Loire. Arcainia isn’t far beyond that. What time we gain by leaving tonight should be enough to keep us ahead,” Brida said as she saddled Falk’s horse.
“One can hope,” Angelique said. “If you excuse me, I will take my leave of you here. If your brothers ask, I can truthfully say I did not see you leave. I wish you a safe journey and great luck in your venture.”
“Thank you for everything, Lady Enchantress,” Elise said.
“I am glad I can be of assistance,” Angelique said before she disappeared into the tent/parlor.
“I like her,” Elise announced, handing Brida’s mare off to the captain before she took the reins of Falk’s fidgety horse. (Elise almost wished Brida had chosen another horse, for he was big and flighty as well as fast, but she supposed she may as well end her journey on the same horse it started on.)
“She is a good sort of enchantress,” Brida said, swinging up into the saddle.
Elise mounted Falk’s horse and followed Brida when the confident soldier set out at a walk. “Thank you, Brida.”
“For what, Fürstin?”
“For traveling with me, for risking your life for me.”
“You are a person worth risking my life for, Fürstin.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
With Brida leading the way, they made excellent time. They crossed the distance to Arcainia much more quickly and efficiently. A journey that had taken Elise a week (towing swans and mostly walking) took but a few days.
When they reached the Arcainian border, it was early morning, and the sky was still pink with dawn.
“We’ll avoid towns as much as possible, but we’re out of food, and the horses could use some grain. We stop at Trakau for those things. I will make our purchases, but I dare not leave you in the forest. You’ll need to come with me, but do not speak a word and keep your hood up,” Brida said.
“Is it so bad if we are recognized?”
“I don’t expect trouble from the people, but they will be able to tell your brothers what direction we set out in,” Brida said.
“Isn’t it fairly obvious we will make for Castle Brandis?”
“Yes, but if we’re not careful, they will intercept us on the way there. I imagine we were able to keep our lead as your brothers do not know Loire, but now that we are back on Arcainian soil, Prince Rune will be able to lead your brothers on paths that are not common knowledge and are much quicker to transverse,” Brida said, rolling up a map.
“I do not think we, as siblings, give Rune’s intelligence enough credit,” Elise said. “He is the sneakiest of all the princes.”
“Perhaps. Hood up,” Brida said before she rode off.
Trakau was only a few minutes away. Elise stood with the horses while Brida bargained for grain and foodstuff. Elise could see the foul effects of Clotilde’s rule in Trakau, just as Angelique said.
The people were thinner. Arcainia was famous for their chubby, red-cheeked subjects, but everyone living in Trakau looked gaunt, their eyes glassy like marbles. The available market goods were few and expensive. Normally the place should have been overflowing with corn, squashes, and gourds at this time of the year.
Elise nearly jumped out of her dress when a peasant woman touched her elbow, pulling her from her stormy thoughts. “Princess Elise?”
Still used to holding her tongue, Elise stared at the woman and backed up into Brida’s mare.
“It is you,” the woman said. She spoke in a hushed tone, but it was as if a wind carried her guarded words to every person in the village.
The little business being conducted in the market fell silent. The washerwomen stopped washing clothes to stare, and a farmer with a load of wilted hay even pulled his large draft horse to a stop in the middle of the road.
Everyone stared at Elise.
Brida is going to be fuming.
“Can I help you?” Elise asked.
The woman reached out and took Elise’s right hand, lifting it up for inspection.
Although Elise’s bath had remarkably improved her hands, the outdoor travel and time away from Falk’s various concoctions undid all that good work. Her hand was still spotted with oozing welts, and her fingers were painfully curled from the mad rush of knitting to finish the last of the capes. Her hands were ugly.
Tears formed in the peasant woman’s eyes, and she turned around to look at her friends and neighbors.
All at once everyone began moving again.
One man fixed a feedbag filled with sweet grain on Brida and Falk’s horses. A peasant woman wrapped a cloth around a block of cheese and packed it in Elise’s saddlebag while the village farrier picked out the horses’ hooves.
Elise watched all of this happen as the woman held her hand. “Pardon me, we couldn’t possibly—I do not know how much money we have on us… Brida!”
Brida was at Elise’s side in a moment. “While we thank you for your service, I regret to inform you all that we cannot possibly pay for this,” Brida said as a child filled their water skins from the village well and replaced them on the horses.
“We require no payment,” the farrier said, using a handkerchief to dab at the sweat on his red face.
“But,” Elise started.
“It is our pleasure, Princess,” the woman who held Elise’s hand captive said. She bowed over Elise’s hand and released her.
“But,” Elise repeated.
“Our hearts go with you,” the man with the feedbags said after he unclipped the bags from the horses.
Elise mulishly tucked her head, but stopped when Brida placed a hand on Elise’s elbow. “Leave it be, Fürstin. We must be thankful and keep moving.”
Elise reluctantly turned to her subjects. “Thank you. I can’t imagine what this will cost you, but thank you.”
Brida and Elise mounted up and set off, waving farewell. When they just left the village, a youth on a swift horse galloped past them.
“Hm,” Brida said, studying the horse and rider as they disappeared.
“What?” Elise asked, her shoulders stiff with strain as she clung to the saddle.
“We may soon have company.”
“Unwanted company?”
“No, I don’t think so.”
Elise and Brida’s travels across Arcainia had a ripple effect. Although they avoided towns and villages, people lined the dirt roa
ds Brida chose to travel on. They were not loud. No one cheered or shouted or waved flags. It wasn’t like the frequent parades Elise and her foster-brothers were put on display for.
Instead everyone was solemn. They were silent as Brida and Elise rode past, but the occasional child would throw the last flowers of fall on the road. They typically bowed, murmuring encouragement under their breath.
“Luck be with you, Princess.”
“Our strength is yours, Fürstin.”
“We stand with you!”
“Princess.”
“—Bless the princess.”
Brida seemed unbothered by the attention, but Elise beheld it with fear. Although the people were quiet, the unmistakable shine of hope lit their eyes. They looked to Elise to save them. What terrified Elise was that for the first time in her life she wasn’t sure if she could save them. No amount of hard work or discipline would win this battle. Elise could do nothing to assure her victory. She would either beat Clotilde, or she wouldn’t.
“What if I can’t do this, Brida?” Elise asked, her voice tight as she and the captain rode side-by-side past a family of farmers.
“You must trust you are strong enough. You must accept that you, more so than any of your siblings, are fit to be the savior of Arcainia. Doubting will only ruin your confidence. Believe, Fürstin,” Brida said.
Sooner than she wished, Elise and Brida were at gates of Castle Brandis.
“Steady, Fürstin,” Brida said before they rode into the city.
“Pst, Princess!” a dirty, sharp-faced girl in an alleyway said. “Princess Gabrielle sent me. This way,” she said when she had Elise and Brida’s attention. She scampered up the alley, taking them off the main road.
Elise dismounted Falk’s horse so she could lead it through the trash-heaped alley, barely able to keep an eye on the little girl who jumped from place to place like a flea.
The girl led them on a long, winding route, and just when Elise feared they were being led into a trap, they popped out of alleyway and through a back gate used by soldiers, taking them straight into the servants’ portion of the castle. Two stable boys, who were waiting at the gates, took the horses from Elise and Brida before the girl led the way to a servant entrance into Brandis.
The girl left them in an empty corridor and went skipping back outside.
“Well done Elise, Captain Meier. You have made it to Brandis safely.”
Brida unsheathed her sword and Elise spun around, looking for the speaker. “Gabrielle?” she said.
“Of course.”
Elise peered down the hallway. “Where are you?”
“Oh, I apologize. I forgot. Puss, if you would please?”
Gabrielle’s black and white cat leaped out of thin air, and Princess Gabrielle shimmered into existence. The princess wore plain clothes—a skirt that was barely knee length, men’s breeches, and black boots Elise was shocked to see—but the trial had not dimmed her beauty. Gabrielle still glittered with a natural splendor most women would envy. “I’m so proud of you,” Gabrielle said, embracing Elise.
“What? How did you—?”
“Angelique has been in contact with me. She told me how you broke the curse, but we have to hurry. Your brothers are not an hour behind you,” Gabrielle said.
“What? How did they catch up so quickly? We should have half a day on them,” Elise said.
“It is not surprising. Half the country witnessed the route we were going,” Brida said.
“I suspect Clotilde is also expecting you,” Gabrielle said.
A chill invaded Elise like icy hands grasping at her throat. “How?”
“She is in the throne room. No one has spoken a word of your travels, I can promise you that,” Gabrielle said, glancing over her shoulder as if the witch queen could hear her whispered words. “She has grown stronger in your absence and likely felt you enter Arcainia through her dark powers.”
Elise leaned against a wall, letting the cold stone support her as her sister-in-law and guard continued the conversation.
“Even if the Queen is aware of Fürstin Elise’s presence, an ambush is not out of the realm of possibilities,” Brida said.
“We could jump her in a hallway. She has a usual orbit she makes through Brandis—it is unusual for her to remain in the throne room for such a lengthy amount of time,” Gabrielle said, unrolling a map of Castle Brandis and holding it against a wall. “We have a short while until tea time. She eats here, in the Sun Solar with King Henrik,” Gabrielle said, tracing a path on the map with her finger.
“The best place for an assault would be here. A smaller space is ideal. Fürstin Elise must be in close quarters with Clotilde,” Brida said, pointing to a narrow hallway.
“We have at least half an hour before she leaves the throne room to pick our spot and fortify it. Wouldn’t you agree, Puss?” Gabrielle asked when her black and white cat leaped to her shoulder.
“At least,” the cat said. (So that part hadn’t been a dream. Elise had been hoping it was.) “Perhaps closer to an hour.”
“Excellent. We must warn the servants, but we must also mask the point of attack or Clotilde will expect it,” Brida said.
“Yes. She isn’t very bright, but even Clotilde—Elise?” Gabrielle asked.
Elise left the wall and started walking down the hallway. “No,” Elise said.
“No, what?” Gabrielle asked, taking a few quick steps to catch up with her.
“There will be no ambush; there will be no waiting,” Elise said. “I will face her now. There is no point in delaying it. I will either match her power or I will not,” Elise said, making for the throne room.
“But Elise—” Gabrielle started.
“Are you sure that is wise, Fürstin?” Brida asked.
Elise stopped walking and spun on her heels to face Brida, puffed up like an angry cat. “If I wait much longer, my brothers will arrive. I will die before I let that witch touch them again,” Elise hissed before she marched off, her black skirts swirling around her like angry storm clouds.
“Bravo,” the cat said.
“Then I will go with you,” Gabrielle said.
“What?” the cat hissed.
“It would be shameful to ask Elise to stand alone. I don’t have any magic, but I will do my best to support you,” Gabrielle said.
“I will not accompany you,” the cat said. “The princess stands a chance with her magic; your presence would be like presenting Clotilde with a fattened calf with a bow tied round its neck.”
“I don’t care,” Gabrielle said.
“I too will stand with you, Fürstin,” Brida said.
“No,” Elise said as she started up a staircase. “The, the c-cat is right,” Elise said. She never imagined a moment when she would agree with a cat. “It will be too dangerous for both you. I should face Clotilde alone.”
“Not a chance,” Gabrielle said.
“Out of the question,” Brida said.
“I don’t want you two to sacrifice yourselves for my sake,” Elise said when they left the staircase and entered the main part of the castle.
“But it’s perfectly acceptable for you to sacrifice yourself for the sake of the country?” Gabrielle asked.
“Fürstin, do you know why I stayed with you in the trees when you were angered with your brothers?” Brida asked, placing a hand on Elise’s shoulders and forcing her stop her ruthless march.
“I assumed it was out of duty or pity,” Elise said.
“Partially, yes. As a guard of Arcainia, it was my duty to see to your wellbeing. But more than that, it was because it is not good to fight a battle alone.”
“What do you mean?”
“You assume Prince Rune battles monsters on his own, yes?” Brida asked.
“Of course. I have seen him single-handedly kill vile creatures,” Elise said.
“There,” Brida said, jabbing a finger in the air. “Prince Rune kills the monsters alone, yes, but he never battles alone.”
/> “I fail to see a difference between the two,” Elise said.
“Prince Rune might be the only man pitted against whatever ill creature has done Arcainia harm, but he is never there alone. Usually there is a squad of soldiers already fortified in the area who provide support for the prince. If there are no soldiers, then farmers, villagers, and everyday citizens will take up arms to support him. True, they never do any fighting, but they are always there to support Prince Rune.”
Elise considered Brida’s words and thought back on the times Rune took Elise monster-hunting with him. The captain was right. Rune never went alone into a fight. There was always a medical personal on alert and usually several other armed, burly men who made a wall behind Rune. Sometimes people were employed as distractions to make the kill easier.
“When you knitted, you fought a battle just as brutal as the monsters Prince Rune faces. It was not good for you to be alone, which was why I made it a point to stay with you until Prince Falk recovered his wits enough to follow you,” Brida said.
Her proclamation made Gabrielle’s eyebrows raise, but the beautiful princess said nothing.
“You are entering another terrible battle. It is not good for you to enter into it alone, Fürstin,” Brida said.
Elise mulled over Brida’s words, glancing at Gabrielle when the older girl took her hand and squeezed it. “Alright. But at the first sign of trouble you have to flee,” Elise said.
“Never,” Gabrielle said, embracing Elise before pulling her along. “Let’s go battle a witch.”
“This is ludicrous,” the cat said from Gabrielle’s shoulder.
“Yes,” Gabrielle said.
“You have lost the complete use of your mental faculties,” the cat said.
“Perhaps,” Gabrielle said as they turned up the hallway that ended at the throne room door.
“Your plan is absolutely mad,” the cat said.
“It is, but you wouldn’t miss out on it for the world,” Gabrielle said, pausing to scratch her pet under the chin.
The cat growled but did not speak further as the three mismatched warriors descended on the door attendant.
“Crown Princess Gabrielle, F-Fürstin Elise,” he gasped.
