Quinn Eronblaz rode along with the guards beside the carriage carrying his uncle, Viscount of Drant, the viscountess, and their daughters, Phoebe and Violet Eronblaz. Ten other carriages trailled behind them, carrying goods, foods, and camp equipment. It was a long trip from Riveting to the palace. His aunt suffered from seasickness, and regardless how safe the sea had become those days, sea beasts haunted people still. The viscountess refused to even consider traveling on a riverboat through Summer's like the other lords, and thus their situation, perhaps the only convoy of nobles riding through the old south King's Pass.

"Quinn," Lord Humpty called.

Quinn gave Amber a little tug. His faithful horse slowed down and matched pace with the carriage. Lord Humpty looked at him through a window. Quinn gave a glance, the ladies inside flapped their fans with vigor. The heat in the carriage must be unbearable for their winter selves. They had changed out of their cold clothes after passing through the pass and heading north, traveling up Emerald beside the river where the weather got hotter the further they went. Phoebe celebrated rain loudly the couple of times it happened that people would've mistaken her to be mad.

"Yes, uncle?"

"Join us in the carriage. You have been riding since we left Riveting. Rest, nephew."

Quinn gave another glance. Humpty's broad forehead was ripe with beads of sweat. He smiled and politely declined.

"I will sit with the coachman if I need rest, uncle. Thank you."

The viscount gave him a knowing look.

"Thank you for coming with us, nephew. You would have arrived sooner if you take the ship."

"The journey would've been just as long, uncle."

"I doubt that. The ships these days are quite fast. Those new iron hearts are quite a marvel, don't you think? Soon enough they're going to make one small enough to put in carriages. Words are the Royal Academy is trying to do exactly that."

"So I heard, too, uncle."

"Keep an eye out, Quinn. The capital is home to many great inventors. Don't forget what your father sent you to do."

"Yes, uncle. It's still fresh in my mind," the young lord answered.

Drant was an awkward patch of land on Summer's south end, a small patch of land bordering Fymar and Blundake, marked between two converging regions and the Riveting hill. It was the only part of Summer that saw the shortest summer, and most days was cold because of their proximity to Blundake's chilling winds. They didn't have any mines and their crops non-existent, thanks to the season. The only thing Drant was good for was the mountain sheeps the people bred, ironwoods that took decades before it was good enough for any ships, and reporting activities across the river for the Marquess of Riveting.

The coins they had left after taxes would not sustain the family for long. Quinn's father, Lord Ian Eronblaz, Count of Drant, had been distressed for their future that he fell ill. Words had spread saying the Count and Viscount of Drant were lesser than barons of the north shores. It was not hard to believe when a Crescent baron could produce more coins from drying out the sea than the Eronblaz. And so, when a messenger arrived bearing letter from the palace to celebrate the crown prince's coming of age, Lord Ian sent his son and his brother in his stead. The carriages they brought was the last of their fortune and it was Lord Humpty and Quinn's duty to bring glory home.

They made their last camp on Swanville, a beautiful village short of the palace beside the river. It was a crossing village. The other half was across the river, Whitetown. Flatboats were moored to the quay. Workers was loading a merchant's carts into the larger one, a boat spacious enough to hold a couple carts and all of his horses at the same time. Another group of merchants were parking their carts outside of an inn, setting up shop for the evening. A bell tower rose above the town hall building, marking the center of the village, a couple windmills behind it, and a vast plain beyond with fields of flowers stretching toward the mountain foot. The air was fragrant, the breeze comforting, and the song of birds flying above the woods and flowers was music to the ears.

The northern region was much nicer than Drant. The castle of Lord Colver, Duke of Swansong, overlooked the heavenly scenery. The Drant estate meanwhile was just a couple forts overlooking drab and cold rocky hills. The village chief informed them Lord Colvers' family was rarely present at the castle.

"The lord have a residence at Starascend, my lord. The family have been conducting business from the city for years. It was Sir Hawkin who tend to the estate while the family are away. Sometimes Lord Colver would return during a harvest and if summer heat was unbearable, but it's been a few season where it was only Sir Hawkin who care for matters here."

Lord Humpty listened intently and nodded along. He returned to his entourage and explained the situation.

"Looks like we will be staying at an inn again, ladies."

"Why don't we continue riding until the palace. Aren't we close, Papa?" Violet pleaded.

"It will already be dark halfway there, sweetheart. The village chief said that there's bandits lurking in the woods by the river. We don't want trouble," the lord explained.

Phoebe and the viscountess managed to talk the young lady out of her tantrum, but Violet was just a child. She was eager to finally set foot on their new home at Starascend, one Lord Ian acquired from a baron in need of some coin. Violet did not want to go to the palace until Lord Humpty was forced to reveal their plan for the trip. Drant needed a breakthrough and there was no better place to find one than the capital. The viscount and Quinn shall find a promising inventor that could make something out of Drant.

The night was merriful. The village chief ended up hosting the Eronblaz. The convoy finally had a proper bath after a week of traveling, never a better timing when they should enter the capital the next day, weather permitted. They were served a northern delicacy, smoked sea beast meat grilled in butter and some of the tastiest vegetable soup. Lord Humpty was generous with his compliments, hopefully not so much the village chief thought less of these noblemen.

Quinn woke up before daybreak feeling fresh. Roosters crowed after each other and the quiet night was ended as villagers left their house for work. He finished dressing up before a servant came to his aid. Lord Humpty specifically ordered all of them to rest well. He could see Marcus re-developed some colour to his face.

"Good night sleep you had, Mark?" Quinn asked as he tightened his boots.

"Yes, my lord," Marcus answered. He set for Quinn's pile of armor and returned with a leather arm guard. Quinn placed his arm in it and switched hands so it was him holding the arm guard while Marcus tightened it for him. They continued with the other arm and then a breast pad. Quinn tilted his head while Marcus lowered the guard over his head. The crest of their house, a night owl spreading its wings with its talons raised and a pair of black crystal in place of its eyes, was emblazoned on the leather.

"Thank you, Mark. You can leave," he told his man after he finished tightening the clasp.

"Don't forget your blade, sir," Marcus handed him a sheathed dagger before he took his leave.

One of Eronblaz' family heirloom that had been in the family's possession for as long as his ancestor made their first steps on Eastland. It was a famed Forever steel, a curious blade with marks all over as if it had been eaten by rust and the spine was chipped all over the place, yet it was perfectly stainless and impossibly strong with a smooth forever sharp edge. It was magical and used to be one of its kind, where only the highest ranking of nobles were in possession of it, but Aldmryan scholars found a stash of the weapons in a ruin on a desert and now every knight on the land brandished these steel on their person.

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He turned the dagger around. The sheath was carved off ironwood, the land's strongest hardwood, with bronze inlay shaped like vines wrapped around it and a single rose where it met the guard. There was a hole in the pommel that allowed him to insert his finger and swing the blade around. It was a pretty blade, but an heirloom rendered worthless by time.

Quinn strapped the blade on his belt and went outside. The chief provided them a morning meal before they left for the palace. Lord Humpty gave the village chief a pouch of coins, for which the chief accepted with jubilation.

"Perhaps we shall meet again someday," he said before they parted.

Quinn was back on his horse and the convoy continued on the king's road. The merchant from earlier departed before them. The last stretch followed the grand river. Boats of various sizes and shapes floated past them, and the few that floated upstream was a curious sight. Their thumping iron hearts turned a pair of large paddle wheels around, white steam rising, allowing effortless travel never before seen. Slow movers, but there were no horses that would need rest, water, or hays, and the amount of goods the were carrying was incomprehensible.

"Amazing world we are in today, nephew," Lord Humpty remarked. "The peasants are using such machines to do meager jobs, can you imagine what they have in the palace now?"

"I don't see how it would help our estate, uncle. Our rivers are shallow and the rapids are nasty. These boats will be wrecked in a bad weather."

The lord smiled. "But the iron hearts can be used for other purposes."

They continued their travel in quiet. They arrived on a crossroad where it started to become crowded. Travelers from the north making their way to the palace on foot. The knights rode up and down their flanks to keep the other travelers from getting too close with their convoy, but soon it was impossible to make any progress. Sir Ridley rode with two other knights to the palace to request for assistance. It took them a while before they returned with some city guards, men in armors with red feather sticking out of their helmets.

"Good day, Lord Eronblaz, m'ladies. I am Lukas Westin, a knight of the city guard. We will escort you to the wall," said Sir Lukas when Sir Ridley brought him to Lord Humpty's carriage.

"Thank you for your assistance, Sir Lukas. I apologize for the inconvenience."

"It was nothing of the sort, my lord. Lord Hadrian informed us of your arrival. Our men did not see your arrival in Lord Colver's castle," said Sir Lukas apologetically.

"It appears there was some sort of a mix up. I hope nobody is in trouble, Sir."

"Not at all, my lord. Shall we get going?"

The city guards stopped the other travelers and directed them to the side of the road. Then they saw and felt what caused the traffic, a winding path up a slope leading to a mound.

"Esther's Gift, my lord. This is only place on Eastland where such a bridge exists."

The bridge was a rock formation spanning across the river, a natural wonder that was tall enough to allow the largest of ships to pass below it and long and wide enough for people to pass on it.

The convoy was in awe with the scenery. It was hard to believe the Gift to be naturally occurring. It was a smooth surface like a man made bridge. The side of the bridge was planted with shrubs, and railings protected walkers on foot from falling over. Beyond the bridge was the full view of the riverbank, how much the woods had been cleared to prevent bandits from hiding, the length of the traffic waiting to cross the Gift, the width of the Grand River itself, and the majestic mountain ranges that cusps the valley.

"The Gift have been around for eons, as old as Eastland itself," Sir Lukas told them.

Starascend lied beyond, on the other end of the Gift, watching for its guests. A white castle stood on a hill, six golden spires pointed to the sky from its towers, the flags of Aldmrya, a purple flag with a golden dragon curling around a silver moon, waved in the wind from the walls that spread from the end of the Gift around the fortress wall.

The city fanned out from the castle, a network of canals ran through the city, with a thousand bridges, and small boats people and goods traveled in. Commemorative decorations adorned the whole city, music played from the dozens of band who set up their own stage every other corner, Aldmryan banners hung from light posts, street merchants set up shop, and the white steam rising from beyond the roofs of building, accompanied by distinctive thumps of the iron hearts. Several large buildings towered above the roofs, one in particular was perched on a hill in a distance, just its white fascia was visible over the trees.

Quinn wondered if that was the Royal Academy.

Sir Lukas directed the convoy into the palace's north entrance and the pace slowed down. Sir Ridley pulled toward Lord Humpty's carriage and explained.

"Lord Hadrian wished to meet my lord in the palace."

"Should we not recover ourselves before meeting the Grand Minister in the palace?" he queried loud enough in purpose, so Quinn could hear them from behind.

"That would not be a problem, my lord. The lord is expecting you," the knight said before leading the way once more.

The road along the moat and then unto a drawbridge. The steel gate was drawn and beyond the wall was a square and one of the palace's six pointed . Two arch shaped entrance was wide open on each side of the triangle and a group of men was standing by the square, conversing amongst themselves.

A regal figure stood tall by the entrance, visibly leading the conversation among the group. His beard was well oiled, robe was layers of silver silks that dropped gracefully from his shoulder. A shorter man in dark blue wearing a pair of glasses and a black hat, his mustache twirled toward his nose, accompanied him. The convoy stopped by the entrance and the tall man mouthed something to his company and approached Lord Humpty.

"Humphrey, my friend," he said, extending his arm. "Welcome to Starascend. How have you been?"

"Lord Hadrian, my lord, good day to you. We've been well. How is you and family?"

"I am good. How's the ride from Drant? I hope the King's Road is well maintained."

"Oh, it was splendid. The ship would've been faster, but you know I cannot bear the tides. Now, Lord Hadrian, this is my wife, Katerine, and my daughters, Phoebe and Violet."

The young ladies gave him a curtsy, as did the viscountess.

"My lord," said Lady Katerine. "The city is lovely. Looks like the people are looking forward for festivities. We are very grateful for the king's invitation."

"The queen herself is taking care of the celebration, Katerine. Your daughters are lovely, perhaps they shall meet the princess for tea some time."

"That would be an honor, my lord."

Hadrian gave a quick nod and then turned to Quinn, and inspected the young man from top to bottom, eventually smiling.

"Ah, this is my nephew, Quinn. I don't think he had the opportunity to meet you, Lord Hadrian."

"Oh, yes. Now that you mentioned it, I see the resemblance. You have your father's eyes, Quinn. How old are you now?"

"I am sixteen, my lord," Quinn greeted him, slightly bowing his head. When he raised his head he told him, "My father told me a lot about you, my lord."

Hadrian erupted. "Hopefully not any stories inappropriate with the ladies. We spent a lot of our childhood together, your father and I. Did your father or even your uncle mention anything about 'the waterfall'?"

A slight smile grew from Quinn's lips. These young lords not even ten years old went to play in a spring. The story changed when it was spoken by his father or uncle, but in it one of the Eronblaz always slipped by the bank and grabbed Hadrian's underpants and pulled it loose.

"Oh, come on, Humphrey. You shouldn't tell kids such embarrassing stories. You know what Quinn, I do have stories of my own. I'm sure you'll find it quite interesting."

"Lord Hadrian sure love telling stories of the past," the man in hat finally spoke.

Hadrian clasped his hand and turned to the man with a hat.

"My, my. Apologies, my friend. Humphrey, meet Lord Julius Skamlin, Count of Hare."

"...Skamlin? Sounds familiar... Don't say..."

"Yes, my lord. My great grandfather invented the iron hearts. Old Paxton could not appreciate what he had in hand, well, until his downfall."

Hadrian and Humpty nodded in agreement.

"Humphrey, my friend. I shall let you to rest. My men will see you to your chambers..."

"We do have a residence here, Hadrian," Humpty interrupted.

"Baron Thorton's vineyard?" Hadrian shook his head in disagreement. "His majesty's guests shall stay in the palace, Lord Humphrey. We shall have dinner in the grand hall. A servant will lead the way when the time comes. Now, enjoy your stay and rest well, friend."

As Hadrian and Skamlin left, the servants sprung into action and carried their belongings into the building.