The Queen and The Guard

Chapter 1

Axlan was sitting alone on the beach in the early morning. It was early fall, just beginning to get cool, so the beach was empty. It was just him, the waves, and the sun that slowly crept over the horizon. Fog was thick along the shore and it was difficult to see very far away.

 Few people were up yet and even fewer were outside, so when a woman’s voice sounded nearly next to him, he quickly sprung up and reached back into his cloak for a dagger. In front of him was a red headed woman who couldn’t be older than 24. She was strikingly beautiful with alabaster skin and incredibly entrancing gray eyes. Behind her were two men with their swords drawn. Her own remained in its sheath and her gaze moved to his hands hidden in his cloak. “I suggest you drop your weapons now. You might be able to take these two,” She glanced behind her at them men. “But you wouldn’t last two seconds against me.”

Her obvious overconfidence annoyed him, but he did as she said. He didn’t want to have to hurt anyone. Besides, his search had left him empty handed anyway. Maybe this woman would have some answers.

Her men gathered up the dagger and other various weapons he had concealed on his person and he showed them his empty hands. “Good. Now, Joshua, Geoff, go find our other companions and finish the patrol.”

The men bowed slightly and did as she asked. He looked at her with curiosity. Why did those men listen to her so questionlessly? She was only a woman. Albeit a rather threatening woman, but a woman all the same. “Come on.”

She turned away from him and took a few steps from him. He didn’t follow. A faint smiled touched his lips when she sighed. She looked him over once and he did the same to her. She was thin, nearly as tall as him, and very closed off. Her expression had hardly changed since she first threatened him. “Look, boy, I really don’t feel like fighting anyone today. So if you’d be so kind as to walk when I ask you to, I can keep this easy.”

He crossed his arms across his chest and stood there, waiting patiently. He watched as the corners of her mouth twitched and her hand closed around her sword. “Do you want the Templace to see this? Because I highly doubt they would let it go lightly.”

That changed his point of view. He had been hiding from them for quite a few years. And the prospect of them finding him again scared him. He took a small step in the woman’s direction before sighing and walking to her side. “Fine.” He growled.

She got a smug smile on her face and he had to resist the urge to slap it off her face. He followed her as they weaved through buildings of varying shapes and sizes. She stopped in front of one that looked just like all the others. He waited a moment before walking into it after her. It took his eyes a moment to adjust but once they did he frowned. The building was empty, save for a pile of straw in the far corner.

She cleared her throat, drawing his attention over to the wall closest to the door. She pulled a panel off the wall and gestured for him to enter. He strode over and looked inside. He couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of him from the light from the opening. After he stepped inside, she followed and closed the opening. “Welcome to the Underground.”

He couldn’t see where she was and he took a step back. To his surprise, he hit the wall and he fumbled around, trying to find the way out. Before he could find it, she lit a torch and the space around him brightened. It was a tunnel. “You first.” She said, placing a hand on his back and pushing him forward.

He took a few steps and glared back at her. She shrugged and motioned for him to keep going. He sighed and started forward. The ground was dusty and littered with footprints. He couldn’t help noticing how most went down and only a few came back up.

He kept going until a seemingly solid wall of stone blocked his way. He could see that the feet kept going beyond the stone but he had no clue how to get there.  The woman stepped around him and gently pushed on the wall next to them. The stone door slid open and she gestured again. “Allow me to escort you to your room.” She went ahead of him and he was left in the door way, trying to take in everything that was in front of him.