Queen of the Castle

Traveling

Long ago, before the five kingdoms, the land of Teirn was filled with magic and peril. Pixies lived in the great southern forests, filled with Bao trees that seemed to stretch for miles upwards. In the mountains of the north lived the elves. Shrouded in mist and protected by their marble walls, they were seemingly invincible. In the great plains lived the hordes of centaurs, always roaming and always fighting. To the east along the ocean of Mir lived the selkies. They were beautiful creatures, filled with the magic of song and the thirst of death. And finally, to the west in the hills dwelled the witches. They were a formidable lot with their spells and curses drawn from the land of Teirn itself. But, as the years endured, a new foe entered the arena. Humans traveled across the great Sea of Mir in search of a new land. When they landed on the shores of Teirn, their first act was to drive the selkies away. For they had seen the sparkling shores of the east and they desired the land for themselves. Next, they moved to the south into the Bao forest, slaughtering pixies and felling the ancient trees of Teirn. As they pillaged the land, some humans decided to settle, and some decided to forge on. Within fifty years, all that remained of the natives were the elves in the northern mountains. They were fierce creatures, and the terrain was treacherous. For the most part, they were left alone. But one day, a great warrior named Errad lead an army of warriors to the north and finally breached the walls of the great elven cities.

"Seraaa!" A voice yelled snapping me out of my history book.
"what?" I yelled back, hoping my father wasn't near enough to hear my unladylike hollering.

"we are leaving in an hour don't forget" the offending voice, who I identified as my not so ladylike lady in waiting, shouted again.

I grumbled closing my book and departing my dearly beloved reading nook. Today was to be a great day for my kingdom. We are the northernmost kingdom of Teirn, the one I had just finished reading about. Only, the history books, and the rest of the world have it wrong. My great ancestor Errad was not a mighty warrior, but a traveling merchant, and he didn't conquer the elves. In fact, he saved them from a deathly plague brought into Teirn by us humans.

In return for his miracle, the elves gifted him and his people their southernmost city, the city of Aylin. In return for their generous compensation, his people agreed to live in harmony with the elves and swore to protect them from the rest of Teirn. This is my legacy and oath as well, and it is also the reason for my journey. My father is the brother of our dearly beloved king, and as such, he was appointed as the ambassador to Onden the southern kingdom. Relations between our two kingdoms have never been amicable, but their new king proposed a trade, one that my uncle couldn't turn down. In return for much needed grain and food from Onden, we would supply jewels and gold to the greedy king and his subjects. Unfortunately, my father volunteered to be the new ambassador for Onden, and by proxy, I was required to go with him. Now, I find myself sitting in a stuffy carriage with my less than honorable lady in waiting on my way to a corrupt and despicable kingdom ruled by an even more corrupt king.

"Fuck!" Amira cursed as she stabbed her finger for the thousandth time with her embroidery needle. I snickered as I looked over the bloody and rather sad looking attempt at a cat.

"whats so funny?" she grumbled as she glared at me and stabbed her needle through the cloth again.

"nothing" I giggled "its just funny watching you"

"well I'm glad my suffering is entertaining to you, you sadistic cunt" she griped throwing her embroidery on the floor of the carriage.

"Amira you know you cant speak to me that way" I admonished before I burst into laughter.

I absolutely adored my lady in waiting. She was without a doubt my best friend in the whole world, and a beautiful reprieve in the midst of a stuffy court.