The Broken Rules

Chapter 13: The War is Coming

-Young Lady, did you say your name was Luna of Nightenghale?

-Yes, that is who I am, apologies for the disruptive entrance, my King.

-Then the prophecy is true...

-I have been told that there is a prophecy but I have never really heard of it. All I know is that I am meant to be here.

-Men! Lay your weapons! They are no threat, on the contrary. Please, come inside.

-Thank you, your Majesties.

           Everyone disposed of their battle stances and stared at us continuously. Only a few went back to their previous duties. Saphire continuously stared down some guards but was less tense. The men didn't really stare much at her or at us however they were all preying on Gwaine resulting in his uneasy posture. His face showed an incredible amount of nervousness. We all walked in, the small castle was dark but warm. We ventured further into the halls into a brighter room where three thrones stood. A young lady was already sitting in one of them but stood as soon as we approached. The King and Queen greeted her and took their respective places. We bowed once more before the King spoke with a resonating voice:

-Please, rise. I present to you my Daughter, Caroline. My Queen Lydia and I, King Angus of Ragdos. We welcome you into our stronghold. As you know, we have declared war against Claribel which is why you are all here, including you, Prince Gwaine of Claribel... You have quite the courage to set foot in our Kingdom after what your men have done.

-My King, although I am seen as an enemy, I come to confess that there has been a misunderstanding. Our Kingdoms may not have the brightest past but we would never create an event that led to war.

-Nonsense! We sent you a warning letter yet your men persisted leaving us no choice!

-Angus, I know you are enraged my dear, but let the young man speak his mind. Tell us, Son of Derek, what do you mean by a misunderstanding?

-Thank you, my Queen... It is true that Claribel Kingdom did receive the letter you sent out...

-So you admit.

-Angus.

-... However, it never reached us Royals. My Father nor I ever received any warning. The last letter we knew of was the declaration of war. Those men you speak of are not mine, they belong to Alfred, my Father's consultant. He reviews the letters before passing them on to us. We've never sent out missions of invasions towards your villages at the borders and we would have deemed it improper.

-Continue.

-What I am saying is, we never knew of the attacks and my Father's reasoning is clouded by Alfred. His plan is to create an accidental death and use it as an opportunity to overthrow us, my Father holds more trust in Alfred than with I, his only son... He believes that his son has betrayed him making me lose some rights to the throne of Claribel.

-He speaks the truth your Majesties, it's been more than a month since he returned to his side because of me. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't be here and the war would break out soon. Furthermore, Alfred was the one who murdered my bloodline, it would only make sense that he wishes to be granted more power and if not granted, take it.

           The King and Queen looked at each other a little perplexed and discussed quietly. We had also warned them that the Claribelian knights were surely still looking for me and might have seen their armies brewing at the borders. Gwaine had also warned that Claribel Kingdom was not going to back down even if they sent out a letter of cancellation of war because their army was too close to the borders and his Father would surely feel threatened to just leave it at that. We had all understood: the war between Claribel and Ragdos was inevitable, the battle clock was ticking forth. The war was coming.

           Although the moment was serious and spoke of war where many men and women would die, although the scene and postures of everyone were overpowering and serious, although everything around, the speech, the air, the sound and looks were intimidating, I couldn't help but notice Gwaine's fierce gaze towards the King, Queen and Princess of Ragdos, his presence radiated power and peace, I felt uneasy but wanted to be by his side, even more, I felt drawn to him, I had felt the same feelings when we were both in the ruins and were practically pressed together when I could feel his gaze and warm breath against my face, his grip on my hip when he pushed me back against the wall, or when he had carried me to my bed when my legs had given out. I blushed a little bit at the thought of those scenes.

           It was at that moment that I realised that feelings grew in me for him however, it was also the moment that I realised he was out of my reach, out of my league. It was at that moment I had realised that he was the next King of Claribel. I could never be with him unless it was as his maid or distant friend from when I had gotten in trouble and he chased after me. We would never really be able to live back to our previous lives or at the very least, I wouldn't...

           I was called back to reality when we were directed to a grand table where war plans covered its entire surface. Gwaine looked at it in silence while the King and his greatest noble knights explained their strategies. When they had finished speaking of tactics, Gwaine gave out all the information he had discussed and planned alongside his Father and Alfred with the utmost precision. He even revealed his own propositions that were refused by all because King Derek trusted Alfred more. He warned that the Kingdom of Claribel surely treated him as an outlaw thus the plans could have been altered to avoid information being spread out.

           I added that the war was to be kept secret from the Claribelian citizens so the war was being prepared in the highest discretion possible. Obviously, the King and Queen still had a few suspicious looks but I affirmed most of the things that he said from what I could recall from the eavesdrop that I had performed over a month ago. They proceeded to tell a few maids to bring us to chambers(the few that they had left) to help us rest, we all knew that a close eye would be kept on all of us, especially on Gwaine, it was an obvious precaution.

           We walked along the unfamiliar corridors, the walls were grey and some were black, there wasn't much need for beauty and details in these walls since it was a stronghold built for wars or shelters, not for generations to live in. One thing I remembered while walking was the way that Princess Caroline looked at Gwaine, it procured an unwelcome feeling in my gut but also in my heart. I didn't appreciate her staring and smiling at him from afar, I wasn't quite sure at first but I realised that it was some form of jealousy even though she hadn't done anything.

           She was beautiful, she had brown hair and these beautiful hazel brown eyes. Her skin was pale and her cheeks were rosy, her posture and presence were emitting light, joy and love. She had a soft voice, a little squeaky from time to time. Nevertheless, she was beautiful and had set her eyes on Gwaine, I felt a little threatened although I didn't have any specific relationship with him.

           The Princess had accompanied us to show some extra form of hospitality, I was surely overreacting but she seemed to stick close to Gwaine. When we were assigned chambers, she saluted us and bid us all goodnight. Although she bided us all goodnight, her intonation and gaze were different when she had spoken those words towards him. It pissed me off. A lot. She then took her leave in an airy manner, she was extremely light-footed. I stared at her until she was no longer in sight. I got a little fright when Gwaine had caught me off guard:

-Are you alright?

-Ah! Yes, right so goodnight then.

-Sure... Goodnight Luna!

-'Night.

           I remember sleeping badly that night, I was a little annoyed and tried to pay less attention to it. Damn heart of mine. The next few days, Gwaine was still being escorted from time to time and I continued my training. The Princess and he had spent a few times together which sparked more jealousy. Useless jealousy. On the third day, we had left the stronghold to prepare army camps closer to the borders. Little did we know, Alfred and his men were riding and spying on us, they knew where we were going. A small challenge was about to come, and none of us were truly prepared.