Ruby Red

Chapter One

Echoes of laughter and the pounding of hooves thundering along the dirt paths brought sound to the once dim and silent forest. The woods surrounding the kingdom of Cordavis were packed with trees and various forms of plant and animal life, and riding through them on horseback was like entering a different realm. A realm of secrecy, a realm of curiosity hiding behind every upturned root or fallen tree, and a realm of hidden wonder and magic.

The woods protected the livelihood within its borders from enemies, whether those enemies be the people living under the canopy itself or the surrounding nations. Cordavis usually kept to itself. Besides, most of any kingdom's conflicts came from within their own walls, not from their neighbors.

Alana's black hair tumbled loose from its braid and cascaded in ripples behind her. Leaning forward, close to her horse Elandre's blonde mane, a smile broke onto her typically-serious face. The road leading to the castle was getting smoother, meaning they were getting closer. The only thing Alana could hear now was her heavy breathing as her body kept time with Elandre's gallop.

Since she had been a part of the queen's guard, Elandre had been her mare. The rest of the guard knew not to mess with her, and Alana made sure of it. Every mission that required travel, Elandre had been right beside her. There was a bond of trust between them that couldn't be found anywhere except for a girl and her steed.

Slowly sitting up, Alana loosened her grip from the reins. Squeezing her thighs around the strong body of her horse, feeling the muscle shifting beneath Elandre's silky coat, she found her balance and let go. Holding her arms out to the side, Alana turned back and faced the rider behind her. "Look, Karis! Bet you can't beat this!"

Her best friend glanced up. Karis couldn't hide the look of shock on his face at her stunt, but he rolled his eyes at her playfully. "Showing off slows you down, Alana!" With a quick flick of his wrists, he jerked the reins. His chestnut stallion sped up and started gaining on Elandre.

Soon, Karis was right beside her. His dark skin gleamed with beads of sweat, and his deep brown eyes seemed brighter than normal. Alana glanced over and laughed, then lowered her arms and motioned for Elandre to pick back up again.

Their horses ran neck and neck as the stucco wall of the castle came into view. The surrounding towns were in the valley below, but the castle sat on a hill atop them all. It was surrounded by a fifteen-foot stucco wall, reinforced with layers of stone to protect the royal family inside. The white walls reflected the afternoon sunlight, making the glass windowpanes shine brighter. Dark iron accents decorated the outsides, matching the gate Karis and Alana approached.

One of the guards at the gate saw them coming and waved them forward. Everyone knew how close they were, and he probably recognized the fact that they were racing. The gates creaked open, and their horses ran through with just barely enough space to get by.

The dirt path turned to cobblestone as they entered the courtyards. Noblemen and ladies of the court on their daily promenades slid out of the way as Karis and Alana raced by. The distant protests of women complaining their skirts had been splashed disappeared into thin air as their horses drew closer and closer to the stables.

Veering off of the cobblestones, Karis's stallion took the lead for a split second as they cut through the grass. Alana whispered into Elandre's ear, "Come on, Elandre," as a wicked smirk crept onto her face. It was going to be a close call, but if she could just get a little more speed—

They met up again, side by side for the final stretch. Karis turned to Alana and stuck his tongue out at her as he pushed ahead. Alana slowed to a stop, pulling her horse to the side. Her eyes widened and her lips parted as if to cry out. Karis looked ahead one more time and immediately yanked on the reins.

His horse kicked off of the ground, and Karis was lucky he was able to stay on its back. One of the two young women he had almost trampled stepped in front of the other protectively, raising her arms to try to steady the panicked animal.

"Easy! Easy, boy. There you go." The woman in front smoothed out the horse's mane as it calmed down, its hooves prancing in the grass in front of them. "Karis, you've got to look where you're going. Were you trying to kill us?"

"Sorry, Fallon." Karis dismounted and clapped a hand on her shoulder. "I didn't mean to interrupt your date over here."

Fallon reached out behind her and her companion grabbed her hand. The other girl's pale pink dress fell like water around her ankles, matching the shade of the dianthus blossoms scattered through her blonde updo. "I don't think my mother would like it very much if I were trampled by one of her guard's steeds."

"Of course not, Princess Lévian." Alana came up beside Karis, leading Elandre along by her bridle. She bowed as she greeted the eldest heir and nodded at Fallon. "Karis was being irresponsible, as usual."

"Hey!" Karis nudged a snickering Alana's arm, which only made her laugh harder. "Besides, it was Alana's idea to race back from our spot."

"I don't care whose fault it was. Lévian could have been hurt." She brought the princess's hand to her chest and looked her in the eyes, a fake pout below her fluttering lashes.

Alana and Karis exchanged a knowing look. Fallon and Princess Lévian had only been together for a short while, but they were practically inseparable. The only times they were apart were when Fallon had to perform her duties as a guard and Lévian had to do all of the things a princess was required to do.

Lévian kissed Fallon's knuckles, which made Fallon's bronze skin turn flushed. She dropped her hand, and Fallon crossed her arms over her white shirt with a giddy smile on her face. "Don't worry about it. We all know I'm more than capable of handling myself." Alana shrugged in agreement. "I'm actually glad you both came when you did."

Karis cocked one of his eyebrows up as he led his horse into the stables. "Why's that?" Alana followed him with Elandre, and Fallon and Lévian turned and came in after her.

"As you all know, my mother is publicizing her plans on what she'd like to do with the Vault tonight. She wants to hold a briefing to make sure all of her highest-ranked guards are well prepared for the announcement."

"And this is huge," Fallon continued. "It's Queen Marjorie's first Vault ceremony, and she's going to be the first queen to do so in, like, a hundred years, after... well, you know... King Calum." She glanced over at Lévian, who gave a quick but forced smile before training her eyes on her shoes.

Alana sighed as she led Elandre into her stall. "Do we have to go?"

"Yes, you have to," Fallon scolded. "Alana, usually you're all, 'Come on, you guys! This is important! This is the queen!'" She leaned over the edge of the stall and propped her head up on her elbows. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing." Alana swung the door out, forcing Fallon to jump back. "I'm just tired and don't want to go."

"Just because it's not King Calum doesn't mean that she's not going to have good plans," Karis said.

Alana whirled around. "It's not..." She felt anger bubble up inside of her and she took a second to calm herself down. After closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she continued. "I'm just not looking forward to this Vault ceremony. I don't want to talk about it."

She went to the front of the stable again and shook her head. "Are you coming or not? If we have to go, I don't want to be late."

The four of them started forward. Fallon and Lévian walked side by side chatting, but Karis jogged up beside Alana. He was silent as they both walked through the halls of the palace heading toward the queen's chambers. A few times, he even opened his mouth to speak, but decided against it.

Eventually, Alana glanced over at him. "Yes, Karis?" she asked, a slight edge to her voice.

"It's just... you never told me you weren't excited about the Vault. I thought everyone loved those ceremonies. It's nice getting to see all of the money the people donated to better our kingdom, and it only happens every five years."

"I don't have to tell you everything, Karis." Her green eyes turned cold as she focused on the hallway in front of her. Castle servants and nobles scurrying to and from meetings passed them every so often, but Alana barely noticed them. "Let's just get this meeting over with."