Bridget heard the boom of the cannon and was all the more perplexed as to what Harry went off to do. Why did he fire the cannon? Was he even the one who actually fired it? She thought about going after him and seeing what new trouble he got himself into, but the roaring shouts stopped her in her tracks. Whatever was going on was not anything she had planned, and that made her very nervous. The night had already brought enough surprises for Bridget’s liking and wanted nothing more than to just retreat to her room and get some sleep.
Those hopes were quickly dashed as a soldier kicked in the north door. “To battlestations! All soldiers, to battlestations!” he shouted. What does he mean? We’re not at war with anyone. Bridget’s desire to flee was actually feeling justified now instead of just cowardly.
Another door burst open, and Harry came charging in shoving people aside as he made his mad dash to Bridget’s side. “We need to go!” He said, grabbing her hand and taking off towards the southern staircase, leaving no room for argument or questions. Bridget stumbled the first few steps and Harry eased up his pace and let her regain her balance just enough to continue shoving his way towards the stairs. They had just entered the hallway when Bridget caught a glimpse of what was going on out through the windows. The Durvinna merchant ships were firing on the docked Sirene ships. Many already lay in flames or had begun sinking into the waters. In the city, to the west, rows and rows of torches were marching towards the castle. Then she was being pulled along again.
She was expecting to be taken up to her room or down to the barracks, but Harry led her to the east, toward the stables. They burst through into the wide open stables where many angry horses greeted them with frantic whinnies. Harry saw to readying the horses, so Bridget searched around as best she could for any hint as to what had happened. They were under attack, that much she knew, and it appeared to be Durvinna. But why them, and why now? This made no sense and Bridget found herself in an endless loop of questions all leading back to each other in a circle of broken logic. She slumped to her knees, trying to still her now racing heart, and found she wasn’t breathing. No, not now. Not again. Why do I have to turn useless now of all times?
A large bang brought another startle and Bridget managed to gasp and get her lungs working again. “Damn it! They’ve already breached the main gate!” She heard Harry shout. “We don’t have much time. Let’s go, Bridget!” He reached down and all but hauled her onto her horse. She gripped the reins and felt strength coming back to her.
“But where do we go? If they’ve taken the gate, we can’t leave!” Bridget said. The door of the stable burst open and Bridget saw her father burst through. His sword was drawn, but there were no stains of blood. At least they haven’t got into the castle yet.
“Harry! Take her to the tunnel. This is not going to go well.” He boomed.
“Not without me!” A voice called out from above. It was Zoe who then leaped from a second floor window, landing with a graceful roll. Where did she learn how to do that? “I’ll ride with Bridget.” She said.
The king nodded and led them over to one of the horse stalls. He hurriedly kicked the door open and pulled down the torch nearest to him. The whole floor of the stall suddenly fell with a loud clang of wood on stone. What was once a stall was now a ramp leading into the ground and heading down into the earth.
“Remember the plan, young knight. One week.” the king said to Harry. Harry nodded in acknowledgment. Her father now turned his attention to Bridget. “Oh Bridget,” he sighed. He seemed to falter a moment, then his resolve returned in full. “Live.” he said, and with that he slapped her horse and they were off. Bridget tried to call after him, but he had already run back towards the castle. Bridget tried to turn her horse around, but Zoe had stolen the reins and urged the horse forward against Bridget’s will. She tried to wrestle control back, to break Zoe’s hold, but they were moving too fast now, all Bridget could do was hold on.
Bridget clutched the neck of her horse and pulled herself close to it. She cried; it was all she could do now. She vowed silently to herself to come back, and then leaned into the gallop leaving no trace of their passage but a trail of tears.
*********************************
Iwan gazed upon Castle Sirene with a look of satisfaction. The tall tower rose and pointed straight to the midday sun. What a sight and what a night it had been! The plan had gone off without even so much as a minor inconvenience. Given enough time to plan, maybe he could even conquer Sunan with even fewer losses. But he knew that was his own hubris talking. True, he was now in control and occupying the small but powerful kingdom of Sirene, but that was only step one in his plans. And besides, he still needed to garner loyalty, or at least obedience from his new subjects.
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Iwan strode up to the castle, his new home for the next few months, and started scheming anew, running through contingency plan after contingency plan. He would hold on to his winnings, and he would be patient. Impatience, he had come to find out through his studies, had ended many a war campaign through history, and he would not be numbered among them. He was destined for greatness, and he would fulfill that destiny.
For now, he sauntered through the castle halls with a slight pep in his step and humming his favorite piano piece, “Rose in the snow.” The tune might have seemed inappropriate considering that bodies and blood were still being removed from the castle floors, but Iwan was too pleased to be bothered by the dead. Death had been all too common in his life and he wasn’t about to start bowing down to the grave now.
The throne room doors were open now, one side having a massive chunk missing where the locking mechanism once was, but otherwise as perfect and undisturbed as if he had been invited. Iwan smiled again, appreciating the symmetry the door shared with his conquest, and slid his way into the great hall. He was greeted by rows of soldiers on either side, spears held on the right hand side and extended over the entrance to form an arc through which Iwan now marched. At the end of this makeshift tunnel knelt the now deposed king and queen of Sirene. The two were in chains and the king had clearly suffered a few wounds in the attack. Dried blood covered his left sleeve and thick bandages showed through the hole in the right side of his shirt.
“Good morning, your excellency!” Iwan said with a half bow as he approached the two regents.
“That’s ‘your majesty’ to you, boy!” The king spat.
Iwan’s boot came across the king’s face without missing a step from the boy’s march. Fresh blood formed in the king’s mouth and he looked at his captor with an icy hard stare. Sparing only a sidelong glance at the king, Iwan then repeated his kick to the queen with identical results. “I’d mind your tongue, your majesty, as I would rather you remain alive to keep the title of Duke, which I have graciously bestowed upon you, than to see you made an example in front of my new subjects.” Iwan said, pacing a few steps away from the prisoners before turning to face them both.
“These are not your people, and I do not accept your title.”
“No, of course you don’t. The horse needs to be broken first before he will pull the plow.” Iwan studied him for a moment and saw the resolve in the man. And a very stubborn horse, indeed. He unsheathed his sword, a long and straight double-edged beast, and strode up to the queen. “So, let’s get started, you wild stallion.” He said, and swung his sword straight through the queen’s neck. Blood spilled onto the queen’s hair immediately, staining it an ugly black instead of its beautiful cerulean blue.
The king’s screams filled the throne room and spilled out into the hallways as his wife’s head and body toppled in different directions. Iwan didn’t spare the man a moment and placed another kick squarely in the man’s teeth. “Quit your wailing, or you might actually wake her up.” Iwan said laden with indifference. The king’s screams had subsided into sobs and growls as he stared up at this murderer once more. “See? Was that so hard?” Iwan continued. “The dead don’t feel anything for the living, and we shouldn’t feel anything for them. Now, will you accept my generous offer, or do we need to try breaking you again?”
The king lurched forward trying to get at the monster in front of him, to crush his skull and rip his black heart out straight from his chest. But the chains held firm and the king simply thrashed in place. “I’ll kill you! You Bastard!” he screamed.
“I see. More breaking it is. Bring in the princess!” Iwan commanded. The king stopped thrashing and froze, gaze fixed on Iwan. But the princess never appeared, and the soldiers all shuffled uncomfortably. Iwan noticed his command was being ignored and approached the only commanding officer in the room. “Captain! Where is Princess Bridget?
“Sir, my men have been searching the castle but have not found any trace of the princess yet. She must be hiding somewhere here in the castle.”
Iwan thought about this development and slowly paced back towards the king. He stared down at the man and assessed him. He was clearly no fool; the fact he had managed to bring Sirene to the forefront once more on the political theater through shrewd trades and a strong maritime empire indicated this was a man of careful planning. So how would a man like you protect your daughter? Iwan had to think for only a moment before the answer came to him. “Captain! Have your men search the lower floors and the outside cloisters. There is a secret exit somewhere in this castle.” You sly old man. How do you protect your daughter? You send her away.
This was clearly a man who would never submit to Iwan’s rule, or he would always be trying to plant a dagger firmly in Iwan’s back. Iwan squared on the man once more. “I will be sure history remembers you. Greatness should always be remembered.” He said to the now smirking king. And then the blade fell once more.