A Crowned King (Complete)

Chapter 22

Dane stared at the message he'd received with a furrow in his brow. This was concerning news from the Lord General. Apparently all three cities of Galtea were fortifying themselves, makong preparations for a war to come. And it was very likely who their target was: Star. He allowed the paper to roll up and he sat back in his chair, stroking his newfound dark stubble in thought. He was just a Knight. He had no business in this matter, but he had accepted to serve as if he were the crowned Prince so he had to make a decision. He just hoped that his decision would be the right one.

The Knight would need guidance on this first though. He would call Drianna to his side and she would tell him what to do from there. If he had to guess, he would say she would want to call the Lords of the other cities into an emergency council and decide what to do. There was only one way to know though.

Pushing to his feet he made his way to the door and opened it. Peering outside, he caught sight od the Order men flanking his door to protect him. The Knights looked at him and saluted, not realizing they were saluting one among their own ranks. To keep their secret, Drianna had been sure to keep the secret from everyone in the Royal Order save for the Grandmaster himself.

"You have need of us, my Prince?" one of the Knights asked and turned to look at him directly. He was a bold one he decided. He would need to be rewarded in the future, but not right now. That would come later.

"I need you to deliver a message to my sister. I need Drianna to come to my office to discuss something of great import." Dane told the man in an imperious voice. When the Knight didn't move he snapped at him. "Why are you still standing here?"

The young Knight flinched and saluted again. "Yes, my Prince." he replied quickly before he turned, fleeing down the hall. As the other man disappeared, he looked at the other Knight, but he made no move to speak. He continued to stand there, staring straight ahead. Good, that was exactly what he'd wanted from him. He turned back to his office door, entering and closing the door behind him.

The double walked to his desk and sat down. He leaned back in the chair after picking up the report from the Lord General and reread it while he waited. He didn't have to wait long either. Less than a half hour passed before there was a knock at the door and the Princess strode into the room with long strides.

She was clad today in violet leathers and tall black leather boots. She looked beautiful and deadly at the same time. The effect displayed her Starcrown blood better than even her emerald green eyes which was the hallmark of a born Starcrown. She walked to the table in the corner, filled a glass of brandy for herself, and joined him at the desk. Her eyes were serious as she gazed upon him squarely for the first time.

"I'm guessing that you have important news since you summoned me." Drianna said in a voice empty of all emotion. She lifted her glass to her lips and dranks down her brandy slowly as she waited.

"Very urgent." Dane told her urgently as he handed the paper to her. She took the paper with a frown and sat down her glass as she unrolled the paper, reading over the message. Her eyebrows shot high and she looked up at him, a flash of fear in her green eyes for a moment before it fell. "What should I do?"

"There are a few options for us right now. You could openly declare war, you could send your soldiers from Three Towers to strike, or you could consult the council. All have their problems." Drianna replied as ahe allowed the paper to roll up in her lap. She picked up her glass and took another drink before speaking again. "Openly declaring war would give Galtea the time they need to shore up their defenses and iron out their logistical problems immediately. Sending the force from Three Towers could result in a loss since the numbers of the Gaal army are much larger than their forces. And consulting the council of Lords could end up with pointless squabbling."