The King's Gamma (#Wattys2024)

Eighty-Five

The cry of a child was heard throughout the streets loudly and clearly. 

"You did it, darling!" the man cheered excitedly as he held up the crying babe for everyone to see. He quickly ran out to where his many vassals were waiting, holding up the baby with hair as red as his glowing in the moonlight.

The vassals cheered, the roar of male voices overpowering the cries of the baby causing a new bout of wailing to escape the child's lips. 

"Hear those lungs roar! A true Northerner!"

"Congratulations, My Lord! May the Havenhell live on for another thousand years!"

This was the first and only time I met my father. He was sent away to war the day after my birth. My mother died of complications not long after. I was raised by the vassals and their wives who stayed behind. They taught me how to run the duchy from the time they realized I could talk, taught me how to handle political challenges whenever they came up and taught me how to protect myself. For years I never quite received word of my father other than the occasional letter he sent the vassals to inform them of provisions that needed to be sent out.

This was the reality I had accepted long ago, knowing that without a Havenhell to keep the northern border side running, we would fall into ruin and my father would likely be without any provisions. The Emperor who ordered the war had long stopped providing, and this fell onto the soldiers of those at home to send new soldiers and provisions every few months.

The last straw, for me, came with the order from the Emperor stating that I, Harley Havenhell, was to be sent to the very nation they declared war on as a prisoner and potential bride as a prize to be handed over. This came alongside the notice that my father and his men had been encircled by the enemy nation.

"WHAT BULLSHIT IS THIS?!" I shouted as I threw the papers at the Emperor's subordinate who delivered the notice.

"Duchess Havenhell!" the messenger seemed equal parts baffled and frightened as he eyed my frame behind the large oak desk.

"If that idiot Emperor thinks I will willingly give myself to the bastards who dared to tread onto my father's land  to encircle them, he'd best be ready to hand his head on a silver platter the day I meet him!"

"You can't say that in front of the Emperor's men, Harley," said Yonis, my advisor and my father's oldest friend.

"Why can't I talk like this? He's on my land!" I groaned at the sight of the messenger and his escort who seemed to be having trouble keeping straight faces. "Send them to the guest quarters." 

"The young Duchess is... interesting." I could hear the commentary from the hall.

"What are you planning?" Yonis asked as he placed a cup of tea in front of me. 

"I think it's time my father returns home."

"I'll tell the men to get ready."

"You're not stopping me?"

"My family has served the Havenhell family for generations. There is nothing that could be said to change your mind."

I was dressed in the official gear the men of our lands wore when they went out to war. Yonis' wife had taken great care to braid my hair tightly, allowing not a single stray hair out of place. I placed my thick cloak over my shoulders, ensuring I had all my weapons in their places.

The beast of a horse I was on whinnied as I gave a last glance over the supplies and ten-man team behind me, nodding as Yonis gave me a flask.

"Duchess! Duchess! Where are you going?!"

The near shrieking of the messenger caught the attention of the many guards who had escorted him here.

"You should ready yourself so we may take you to the Vexhelm Kingdom."

I scoffed at the man and chose to ignore him. Heeding Yonis' warning of giving the messenger some face. Yonis, knowing my temper well, tried his best to hide the approving smile that came to his lips.

"You have been ordered by the Emperor himself to..." the audible gulp was heard as I held a sword to his neck. 

I eyed the surprised knights, all of various ages and genders, who seemed ready to step in. Slowly taking my sword back, I glared at the messenger.

"Just because the Emperor is too much of a coward to do anything, does not mean that I am. I will return with my father and Vexhelm defeated, and then your Emperor can decide if he wishes to ordain himself with enough of a spine to come to the North and tell me himself who I should marry. "

I placed my sword back. "Get out of the way before the horses trample you. I do not wish to need to scrape your blood from my darling's hooves today."

I took off on my horse, hearing the men not too far behind as they followed with the two carriages filled with provisions.

The border was a twenty-day ride from the Duchy, the road littered with villages that had been suffering pestilence, sickness and poverty due to the ongoing war.

Along the road, I made sure to help in situations where I knew I could, keeping a mask and hood on to keep my identity hidden, especially as I knew there would be word the moment red hair was spotted. 

Red hair, in the north, was a rare trait. Not so rare as to state that only the Ducal house had this trait, but it was rare enough for all with red hair to have been pushed out in the past several years for the invaders to use as they saw fit. Especially those my age.

The stories reached my ears soon enough nonetheless, and I tried my best when I was younger to help those with red hair. An attempt to keep those who shared some semblance with the Ducal family from the more vicious side of war. But as Yonis told me would happen... greed in those who were desperate was strong. Soon enough reports of red-headed people popped up often, especially around the duchy. It didn't take long for us to find those desperate enough to colour their hair with toxic items and stop the assistance altogether.

For the most part, however, we stuck to the back roads and wooded areas. This kept us out of the eyes of those looking for opportunities. Arriving near the border we were quick to survey the area. Many of the men with me were of my father's generation, like Yonis, but chose to stay at the Duchy to keep the previous Duchess and the Duke's only child safe. So, as I grew older, these very same men became my teachers, confidants and advisors. And now, they were my comrades.

"Little Ley, what's your plan?" Asked Dennis, one of the men who had come with me. 

"What did you find?" I asked in return, and he smirked as though he had a great secret to tell when he waved me over to the map. 

We quickly went over where the enemy was stationed, as well as what we could figure out regarding the men in the encampment. From what we could understand, things were strained. They had been blocked off for a month longer than the Emperor cared to tell us, so it could only be deduced that both he and Vexhelm expected my father and his men to perish before I reached Vexhelm.

It was no secret that the northern duke and his family were hated by the Emperor... This was an age-old hatred instilled by generation after generation.

This was simply because the Ducal house was the strongest possible competitor for the crown, regardless of their disinterest in it.

"We can sneak in here to make contact with our soldiers," said Fenrir, another one of my now comrades.

"Wouldn't it be better to take out the smallest encampment here to distract the others so we can..."

The men continued to discuss as I eyed one of the encampments in particular. 

"Harley, what's on your mind?" asked Dennis as he noticed my intense staring at a particular spot.