Her Royal Highness

Chapter 35

Not more than a week later, Ben was standing with the other war leaders on a cliffside, staring down at an amassed army of soldiers. They were camped in a deep, dark ravine, and he could hear laughing and jeering. Behind Ben was their army; a mix of Auradonians and Upperlanders who were whispering and trying to figure out what the distraction was.

The Overland was much more varied that Auradon was. Thousands of cliffs and canyons with deep rivers cutting in between them. Jagged mountains towered and cast shadows everywhere and large, deep cracks had opened in the earth. Near the edges of the continents were trees and plant life, but everything in the center of the continent had died off due to the dark clouds that existed above everything. Several scraggly, grey trees existed, but not much else. That made the air harder to breathe here. And that fact was, of course, amplified by the sheer amount of dust everywhere. Fine little black particles like ash that Ben had choked on for a few hours before he learned how to breathe through his teeth. Even now, his mouth tasted like smoke smelled.

"So, what's the plan?" Ben asked as he examined the army below him. It was a little strange to think that the last time he'd been rushing into battle, it had been at Mal's side, at her lead, knowing that if all went wrong, he'd die with his true love at his side. Now, he was alone, and alone was a scary place to be.

"Eh, we could leave 'em alone, but they'd come after us later," Bunny shook his head mournfully. "Take 'em out now and make sure we're safe, but it's a bit sorry to snuff 'em out like that." Ben nodded. He didn't want to take the first shot. If Mal were here, maybe she could erect some sort of barrier to keep the soldiers from being able to leave the canyon.

Jack elbowed him. "What are you thinking about?" He asked.

Ben took in the sight of the army; big, sprawling and broad. He chewed his cheek as he considered what to reply. "I'm thinking about my wife and how quickly we could obliterate this army if she were fighting with me."

Bunny wrinkled his nose. "A noblewoman, fighting in a war?" He questioned.

Jack let out a breathy laugh. "The Queen of Auradon isn't much of a noblewoman," He gasped incredulously. "She dresses in combat boot and can track pranksters from miles away." Ben snorted in agreement and the two rolled their eyes.

"I hope you ver not getting into trouble, Jack?" North frowned, looking down the line of people to examine the guardian of childhood fun.

"Oh, not me," Jack shook his head in denial. "The Princess of Arendelle."

"Yeah, don't underestimate Mal," Ben agreed, drifting off into dreamland a little as he pictured her. "She was an imprisoned Island warrior who ruled an entire generation of children and some adults under the iron grip of fear before my family brought her to Auradon and I made her a queen."

Bunny raised one brow. "What kind of women are you attracted to?" He demanded.

"Strong ones," Ben replied with a little laugh while he straightened his gloves. "And while we're on the subject, if you ever happen to meet Mal, thank her for letting me come here because she's pissed that she has to take care of Auradon while I'm here."

"Yeah, we've got to get you back before she demands our heads," Jack chuckled, fingering his neck nervously as if he could picture Mal making heads roll. Ben laughed.

"So, Bunny began shortly. "Shall we start a different type of war?"

"What's your plan?" Ben repeated his earlier question.

Bunny smirked. "How good are you with a sword?" He asked.

Ben paused, and then a wide grin spread across his face. Maybe he could make this a little fun after all... even if Mal was gone. "I'm decent enough," He shrugged.