Artemis and Caspian: The Spy

Chapter One

The gates of the palace opened for its saviors in a blaze of glory. Artemis and Caspian entered timidly into the cobblestone courtyard as the golden gates slammed closed behind them with an imposing crash. As the two waited for the King to arrive in a time span Caspian gaged to be a millennium in his anxious mind, the two observed what would be home for the formidable future. The castle itself was quite intimidating and all around quite impressive. Built almost entirely of polished marble, it glittered under the afternoon sun. Gold embellishments on the doors and the guard towers represented the sun god's presence and gave off the castle's wealth. For the moon goddess silver was present in the folds of black marble streaks that shone in a sea of white. The silver lines looked like stars to Artemis, it wasn't subtle how the Castle of Stars had gotten its name. The courtyard too was impressive. In the middle of a great clearing, a marble statue stood with the gods in an impressive display of power. The moon goddess held a scepter in one hand and the sun god's hand in the other. The scepter was raised victorious over her head, her face painted with a gentle smile that betrayed the cold look in her stern eyes. The sun god carried an axe over his shoulder with his free hand, growling in a way that looked less inviting to onlookers. With her heartbeat drumming in her ears and the statue blinding her under the harsh afternoon sun, Artemis had a difficult time focusing on anything that wasn't the sea of nerves clamoring inside the pit of her stomach. Flags with Meridan's lion insignia lined the sides of the courtyard, blowing proudly in the wind. To keep her mind from wandering and her feet on the ground, she admired the way the flags unfurled in a calculated dance to the call of the soft breeze.

Caspian, who was already sweating in places he didn't think were anatomically possible to sweat in, became more nervous when he noticed the small crowd forming behind him. The two rugged and perhaps unhygienic travelers who had made their way through the lower town relatively unnoticed were now the focus of attention after an over excited guardsman made a rather gaudy announcement moments ago. Caspian tried to ignore their whispering, inadvertently tightening his grip around Artemis's hand. She responded by rubbing her thumb against his knuckle in a soothing manner, trying to calm him down while she battled with her own mortal terror.

The King eventually entered with the sounds of triumphant fanfare grandly announcing his arrival. Caspian felt like throwing up. King Tristian stood like a stone wall, his tall built stature casting an impressive shadow over the pair. A step behind him stood the Crown Prince, Prince Allister, slightly smaller built but intimidating nonetheless. On the other side of the King stood the Prince's betrothed, the beautiful Lady Helena. Her wide eyes gave her naive and curious nature away under her poised facade. The King raised a suspicious eyebrow. Bravely, Artemis released Caspian's hand and stepped forward.

"Your majesty," she greeted him, bowing deeply. "My name is Artemis and this is Caspian we're...." The King cut her off with a wave of his hand. Caspian mentally began preparing for a rather excruciating death. After a few tense moments, the saviors felt waves of relief crash over them when the King's stern brow melted away, replaced with a wide grin. King Tristian loved a good scare.

"Welcome, saviors." Fanfare struck up once again before Artemis could say anything else and the two were ushered quickly into the palace in a dizzy blur they would have trouble remembering the particulars of later. Caspian tried to ignore the murmurings of the large crowd gathered at the lip of the gate. He looked back one more time, scanning the horizon to take one last look at the forest he'd grown up in but all he could see were the faces of strangers pushing him into the mouth of the castle with elbows and blunt metal spears. Then with a sweep of the King's red velvet robe, the doors slammed shut behind them.

...

A skittish servant silently showed Caspian his room. He had to resist the urge to drop his jaw on the floor. The room was bigger than his house. Sunlight streamed in through two windows onto a luxurious canopy bed with crimson sheets. Opposite the bed stood a large writing desk, a quill and a stack of parchment paper sitting neatly on top at the ready. To store his things, a mahogany armoire stood grandly, probably costing more than all his belongings, combined. In the center a phoenix craned its head up to the sky, its unfurled wings acting as the handles. He walked in dazed, Caspian couldn't believe that all this was really his. "Will this be suitable for you sir?" the servant piped up, afraid.