To Rule A Kingdom (discontinued)

Chapter 2

Miles sat on his bed. One of his personal servants, Emma, had just left from helping him clean up his wounds. He'd insisted he didn't need any help, but she was stubborn and refused to leave until he at least had an ice pack on his stomach and groin, and no dried blood stained his face. He'd known Emma for years, she'd begun work as one of his personal servants when he was just 7 years old, and ever since then, she'd been like a mother to him.

''I've never seen Julian get under your skin like this. I know him being king bothers you, but I'm sure eventually you'll be king.'' She'd said, trying to comfort him slightly as she'd gently dabbed around his mouth with a wet cloth.

''That's not the point though Em. He resented our father and the things he says about him are just.... just pure evil. Yet father still loved him all the same. He wouldn't want Julian on the throne, I'm sure of it. I just need to figure out how he did it. But I can't stay here. I have to go down south to the southern border. There's word of a rebellion and he told me that if I don't go down and deal with it he'll kill me.'' He'd tried to explain, but Emma was having none of it.

''You're not going down south. I'm sorry Mi, it's just not happening. You can't. You know how much they hate northerners. They'll kill you.''

''I know but if I can find the leader of the revolution then maybe I can convince them that I'm a useful asset.''

''I don't care. I'm not having you go down there.''

''I fancy my chances down there a lot more than I fancy them in my own home, Emma. I need to do this.'' He'd pleaded. And Pleaded. He'd bargained and compromised until finally, she agreed to help him.

''I'll pack your bag. Go say goodbye to everyone and I'll leave your bag on your bed. Just... be careful Miles. I don't want my big lad being killed.'' She'd said, hugging him tightly. He smiled and hugged her back, kissing her cheek as they pulled away.

He'd said goodbye to all his personal servants and everyone he'd passed in the hallway. His bag was packed perfectly, the strap of the leather messenger bag hung limply around his shoulders as he stood from the bed and stared in the mirror. Could he really do this? He was just a prince after all. What if his plan didn't work? He shook his head. It had to. He'd be dead if it didn't but at least by going down to the southern border, he had a 50% chance of surviving. If he stayed in the castle, he was as good as a sitting duck and destined to be as dead as a doornail.

He took a deep breath and ran his fingers through his hair. He could do this. With that, he set off to the palace gardens. He had one more person to say goodbye to.

He put down his bag and rested his gloved hand on the frozen stone of his fathers' statue.

''Father if I die, I'm sorry. I wasn't the ruler you intended me to be. I couldn't defend my kingdom when it needed me most and for that, I feel terrible. But I'm going to try. I'm going to try father. I have a plan and, if it fails I shall die. But if I stay here I shall most definitely die. So, I love you father. I hope if I do die, I'll see you again in the kingdom of the gods.'' He smiled, wiping away the stinging tears that pricked his eyes.

He turned away from the statue and picked up his messenger bag, slinging it safely over his shoulder and chest. He walked to the stable and saddled up his horse, Squares. He tightened his boot laces and climbed on her, riding her off the palace grounds. Hopefully, the next time he was on the grounds, it would be as King Miles Edgeworth of Callar. Not ''Beloved by all, forgotten by none'' Miles Edgeworth of Callar.

He rode and rode, further and further away from the only home he'd ever known. He wasn't sure anywhere would match up to the palace. Sure it was grand, but he had so many memories in there, that no other house would have and without those memories being around every corner, the house would only ever be a house to him. Never a home.

The bitter air nipped his cheeks and nose as he rode faster and faster against the wind. His eyes stung from the whipping winds as they continued to prick his retinas, blurring his vision with burning tears of pain. The sun had begun to set, and he knew Squares and himself wouldn't survive the night, especially not alone. Each night the temperature in Callar always dropped to bellow -15 degrees without fail, which would normally be interesting to him, however hearing about a weather condition is always a lot nicer than it is to be in the weather condition.

As the final splatters of orange and red faded from the sky, and only the deep charcoal of the night sky remained, all the stars were crystal clear, like spaces freckles. He smiled through chattering teeth as he finally reached a small town only another day away from the southern border. He tied up Squares in a community barn, stroking her long face as she happily munched on a rosy red apple.

''Just one more day Squares and we'll be there. We're one day from the revolution,'' he whispered into her short brown coat. It felt unreal to say it out loud. They really were so close to freedom from Julian.

He walked through the streets of the ghostly looking town. Finally, he stumbled upon an inn and checked in.

''What's a posh northerner like you doing down here anyway?'' The man at the front desk had asked as he handed him 4 gold coins to pay for the night.

''Business,'' He replied shortly, taking the key to his room from the man. He dashed down the corridor as quickly and quietly as possible, to not wake any of the residents. Turning the key he entered the meagre room. Locking the door, he put his bag on the bed and stripped off his clothes, turning on the shower and climbing under the warm water, letting it wash over his body.

He wasn't sure of anything anymore. His father had been such a rock in his life, that when he'd died it rocked Miles' whole world. He'd thought he'd at the very least he'd had the certainty of carrying over his fathers' role as king and carrying his incredible legacy with pride, but that was completely destroyed when Julian was coronated in his place. His only certainty now was how certain he was that Julian needed to be abdicated and banished so he couldn't hurt another innocent person ever again.

He climbed out the shower and partially redressing, only getting out a fresh shirt, underwear and socks to put on. Once he was ready for bed, he put his glasses on the nightstand and blew out the candlelit next to him. He lay there, his eyes slowly closing as the exhaustion from the day set in, slowly but surely pulling him into a deep, deep sleep.

hey everyone i hope you enjoyed!! im going to come up with a proper upload schedule for here and Ao3 (most of my wrightworth stuff is also over there, ill be putting my oneshot book on there tonight) so im not uploading sporadically when i go back to school. Whether or not this will apply to amino im not sure but hopefully it will and ill be a lot more active here, there and just everywhere in general. anyway i gotta go start work on the next chapter and upload my one shots to Ao3 too byeee - Alec