A Crowned King (Complete)

Chapter 13

Winter trudged on behind her travelling companion wearily, but she knew that she couldn't stop or falter. This was her land and her people. She couldn't allow this outsider to think that he could navigate over and through the snow easier than she. That would be the ultimate humiliation for one like her and she wouldn't suffer it. She couldn't.

The Ranger stared at the back of his dark head and she found heraelf wondering about him. Supposedly he was lowborn, somwone who had fought bit and scratched himself out of the gutter to become the man he was today. Everything about him told her the exaxt opposite though from the proper way he spoke to the way he carried his head. This man was used to getting his way and having his orders followed. He had an air of natural authority about him. She recognized it and easily so.

This man -- this Martin Iron -- was no commoner who had fought his way to the top. He had been born and bred at the top. She should know. They shared that same trait. However if he was going to keep his secret she was going to keep he'd as well.

Winter doubted his true identity would do her any harm. He'd hired her to get him to Snowcore and that was what she was going to do. She wouldn't concern herself why he was going there or what he was going to do once there. She would only worry about the money. That was what she told herself anyway.

As they trudged along through the snow, the Ranger found herself thinking more and more about his motives. Why would he want to go to Snowcore, the capital of the Galtea Nation? There was nothing special there to see or do. Sure it was the capital, but the Gaals weren't well known for their wealth. Abyss they could barely grow food in their lands because of the constant cold and snows. It was one of the reasons they had contented themselves with raiding, taki g gold, silver, gems, but most of all they took the one thing that the men, women, and children of Galtea needed: crops and livestock.

She shook herself out of her own thoughts. She looked back to her travelling companion and the pack he bore on his back which bulged a lot more than what it had before. When they found his horse dead in the snow she had refused to waste the meat. Despite his protests they butchered his dead horse, skinning the rest of the usable meat. Once they had done that they used the fur from the great mount and wrapped the meat in it, tucking it in his pack. It would help them greatly on their travel to the capital.

"Are you alright?" Martin's voice broke into her thoughts, drawing her attention to him. He had stopped a few feet in front of him and he was currently looking at her with a concerned look on his face. A slight smile appeared on his face. "You looked a little lost just now. Thought I would try to find you."

Despite her melancholy the Ranger smiled. She tucked a strand of her silvery hair behind the shell of her ear. "I was just thinking about your horse. I'm sorry about that again." she told him honestly.

The man shook his head, waving his hand dismissively. "It's alright. It's not like you killed Midnight." he replied as they continued on their walk, side by side this time. They were silent for several seconds before he spoke again. "So where exactly is civilization? I've been in this country for like two days and I haven't seen even a small hut out here."

"Villages are few and far between. Galtea boasts of few cities, but are populations are pretty large." Winter told him, happy to be talking about her homeland. Despite all that was wrong with the northern Nation it was her home and she loved it more than anything. She loved the snows, the icy wind, and even the beasts that lived in the Wilds of the Nation. "You will get to see that fairly soon. Pull out your map and I'll point it out to you."

"What are a few cities exactly?" Martin asked as he stopped walking and unslung his pack. He gripped the flap and pulled it back. He dug around for a moment before pulling out a thick piece of paper that he had rolled up. He unrolled it, and after laying his pack flat, he laid the map out on top of it.