Chapter 3

Aren trudged up the city streets cursing under his breath and muttering as he went while Vella tried to keep pace. The noise of the hustle and bustle drowned out his words, which Vella thought might have been a good thing given how often he threw his arms around in anger as he walked. They cut through a gate to reach one of the higher rings of the city. Vella watched all the drab gray buildings of the military ring switch to brightly colored stained glass windows and offsetting colors in the next. Based on the appearance of the people in this ring she thought it was the one that most of the city officials and those better off lived in. Their clothing was elegant and well-tailored, mostly consisting of the purple, gold, and white that were the colors of Draeton. They passed several merchants on the streets selling different wares. Vella paused for a moment to look at the tapestries and noticed a woman showing up in well over half of them.

Aren, upon noticing Vella had left his side, turned around and noticed her gaze. “That’s not really what she looks like,” he told Vella.

“What who looks like?” Vella asked.

“You can’t be telling me ya don’t even know what your own queen looks like can ye?” Aren replied.

“I am actually,” Vella said indignantly looking a bit insulted by Aren’s words.

Running his fingers through his hair with a sigh Aren spoke again, “Sometimes I forget just how far away you live from Presidia. You may as well be in Sacrotia with where you are. I’d have to imagine that would be a shorter flight.”

“Probably,” Vella said, “Not one I’d want to make though.”

“Well, this is supposed to look like Dracyr, your queen,” Aren said.

“I know her name Aren,” Vella said, jabbing Aren in the side.

Aren made a face at her and continued, “Well it’s supposed to be her. People on this ring o the city like to decorate their houses with pictures o her. They think she’s the most beautiful thing ever, they treat her like she’s some sort of living statue or somethin’ of that like.”

“That’s weird,” Vella replied.

“I always thought so too, not like I would have anybody’s mug on my walls,” Aren’s mouth curled into a smirk, “Good enough to see my own handsome reflection in the morning.”

Vella laughed as Aren did his best to make an unappealing face. “Still, why do you say it doesn’t look like her?” she asked.

“Well… the uh… the lighting and the um… proportions?” Aren replied awkwardly.

“The what?” Vella asked again.

“Oh for the love of, you’re just gonna make me say it ain’t ya?” Aren groaned. “It ain’t as pretty as she is. Something about her ya just can’t quite capture right with anything but yer own eyes.”

Vella giggled as she watched Aren blush a little, “Such elegant words stablemaster, are you a poet? Do you idolize a woman you’ve never met?

Aren shot her a dirty look, “I don’t idolize her you whelp. Besides, I’ve met her plenty o times.”

Vella became excited at this detail, “Really, why, what is she like?”

“You young folks don’t listen,” Aren grumbled. “Like I told you before, I was a knight, a darn good one too. I knew the queen, personally…” Aren’s voice trailed off for a moment and Vella started to wonder exactly how well Aren knew Dracyr. “I worked for her, if it were up to her I woulda been the general of Draeton’s royal forces. Imagine that, me all fancy and royal an such.”

“Then how come you didn’t take the position?” Vella asked.

At this question Aren clammed up, growing distant with his thoughts, “I have my reasons, best not to pry missy. Besides, we’ve spent too long dawdling, Dracyr is a great many things but patient ain’t one o them.” With that Aren turned and began walking up the road again, seemingly expecting Vella to follow. After that, he was rather quiet for a bit to the point that Vella left him in his silence as she gazed at the city. Vella’s eyes darted back and forth, looking at all the different buildings and people as they passed from area to area. Presidia was known to be one of the two greatest centers for knowledge in all of Surren, the continent which they were on. The other being the much more secretive mage’s academy in Horath. All the great scholars in Surren gathered in Presidia to study and exchange ideas, sharing the wisdom of the world with one another and then the kingdom. This exchange of knowledge was the strength of Draeton. The wisdom of the mountains of Chirock, the oceans of Lazzure, the woods of Morenseo and the plains of Draeton came together to better all in this place. Only the dark land of Sacrotia kept its knowledge to itself.

Vella looked at the artistry of each building, seeing the stone carvings detailing each and every different guild within. Were she not in such a rush she would have loved to have visited each and every one of them simply to view the tapestries within. Supposedly each guild had tapestries telling hundreds of years of Draeton’s history, all the way back to the binding of magic.

Picking up on Vella’s wonder Aren spoke, “It’s not so great you know.”

“What isn’t?” Vella asked.

“This place, the castle,” Aren replied. “Buildings maybe, sure, but the people aren’t always great. Lots o people down in the lower and outer rings suffering without anyone up here so much as batting an eye. Whole system ain’t balanced. Some of us gotta work to pull ourselves up.”

“You know, I’ve never asked where you’re from Aren,” Vella said. “Are you from Presidia?”

“Not exactly, no,” Aren replied gruffly, “But I have spent most o my life here. Raised myself on the outer ring till I could join the knights and try and do better for myself.”

“Well, you did it, stablemaster is more than respectable,” Vella said, trying to reassure Aren who seemed down now.

“Respectable ain’t much if you can’t help the people that matter,” Aren muttered under his breath. Before Vella could ask Aren stopped in front of a large shining metal gate and pointed. “This is our way up,” he said.

Vella looked and felt her stomach churn, she saw long thin metal rails arc high into the sky over the city leading all different ways. Dragons she could handle, but she had always felt uneasy at the thought of carriages. “You sure, can’t we just walk?” she pleaded.

“Not a chance, it’d take us near a day to reach the castle and get through all the security checks. This way we’ll be at the queen’s chamber in less than an hour,” Aren replied “One o the perks of traveling with such a reputable gent as myself is that we get to use the transit system.” Vella took a hard swallow, she did not count this among the benefits of traveling with Aren. He opened the gate and led Vella in.

Two guards in full royal armor stood at the ready. They recognized Aren and bowed their heads. “Stablemaster, pleasant to see you. Have you business at the castle?” one of them asked.

Aren nodded, “Aye, just count yerself lucky that’s why I’m here. You still owe my twenty silver.”

What little of the knight’s face that was visible grew red, “well, yes, but you see I…”

Aren interrupted, “I’m just messing with ya. I know you’re good for it and I’m in no rush, besides, what could I possibly have need of twenty silver for?” Aren chuckled.

Vella looked at the carriage they were to ride in. It was the same polished silver as the rails. It had a large canopy overhead and a purple cushioned seat inside. She looked left and right, expecting to see some sort of gears or animals to pull the carriage, but saw nothing. “Umm… Aren, how does this thing work?” she asked.

Aren and the guards chuckled, “Magic Vella, same way darn near everything in Presidia works. I told you there’d be a lot more.” Aren opened the door to the carriage and basically forced Vella in. “No need for worry, safest way to travel, far safer than a dragon for sure.” As Aren clicked the door shut Vella could feel her stomach begin to swirl. Aren turned to the guard, “We’ll be needing to go right to the heart of the castle. I have been summoned by the queen.”

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The knight nodded and placed his hand on the carriage. A thrumming purple magic began to wash from his gauntlets over the carriage and the carriage began to roll forwards, picking up speed as it went. As the carriage began to speed Aren saw the increasingly uncomfortable look on Vella’s face. “Look, I told ya this was safe, would I lie?” he said. Vella shook her head, though she didn’t seem at ease. “I’ll show ye,” Aren said, reaching a hand out over the side. As he reached a purple glow flickered and pushed his arm back inside the carriage. “See, there’s a protective barrier around the whole thing, I could try and jump out and it would keep me in my seat. I swear on my life that you’re safe.”

Finally feeling a little more comfortable Vella looked over the edge. She hadn’t realized quite how high and far the carriage had gone. She looked down at the city seeing the many rings laid out below. She saw the official’s chambers they had just visited at the ring with the merchants. At the very edge of her view, she saw the hangar briefly. With every second that passed the carriage whizzed faster through the air, passing by connecting tracks that led to lower parts of the castle. Vella took a deep breath and sank back down into the seat, trying to catch her pulse.

After a few minutes Aren nudged her, “Gonna want to see this,” he said. Vella picked her head up and looked forward. The massive spire of the castle loomed in front of them. The sun washed light around it, though this was not nearly as impressive to Vella as the constant deep purple glow of magic around the outside. The closer they got the more amazing the castle seemed. Every inch of it was carved stone as intricate as possible showing the stages of Draeton’s history. The castle itself was as much the knowledge of the people as any tome or scholar was.

As Vella scanned every detail her nerves relaxed until she noticed how fast the carriage was going. They were quickly approaching a massive golden gate showing the rising sun. “Aren, shouldn’t we be slowing down,” she asked.

“No, this is always how the carriage ride goes,” Aren said. After a moment he finally realized the reason for Vella’s concern. “Sorry, I keep forgetting how little ya know of Presidia. The gates are magic. It keeps out what should stay out and lets in what should be let in. Simple as that.”

His words did little to comfort Vella as she braced in her seat for impact, fearing this moment would be her last. She closed her eyes tightly, expecting to crash and break upon the gate. She felt the wind whip through her hair and her pulse raced faster with every beat. All at once though, the carriage stopped. She opened her eyes expecting to see whatever awaited her in the afterlife and instead was greeted by the sound of Aren chuckling. “We’re here,” he said as he finished laughing. “Might wanna let go o the cushion, you hold it any tighter you’ll rip it apart.”

Vella looked at Aren, angry with how much joy he was taking in her experience, “Cut it out!” she barked at him. “You need to stop waiting to tell me things until I’m already scared. It’s not my fault I don’t know about this stuff. I didn’t choose to be born where I was!”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean nothin’ by it,” Aren said. “I’ve been here for so darn long. I don’t even realize how much of it I take for granted.” He opened the door to the cart and hopped out, extending a hand to help me down. “I’ll try to be better about warning you ok?”

“Fine,” Vella grumbled, though she was still quite disgruntled with him. Almost all of the people Vella had ever met in the city treated her that way like she was ignorant because she grew up in the country. She had always hated their condescension, this was just the first time she had ever felt it from Aren. Finally, she grabbed his hand and hopped out of the cart. There were two heavily armed knights awaiting them, each outfitted in armor and carrying halberds. The armor was better polished than any mirror Vella had ever seen. She chuckled as she saw her reflection. Both knights carried large halberds that hummed noticeably with the same purple glow as the castle. Neither guard said a word, they just pointed to the door at the end of the room and sent Vella and Aren on their way.

Aren walked more upright than before and quickened his pace further, by now Vella was practically running to keep up with him. When they reached a quiet empty hallway Aren stopped at once and turned to Vella. “Go ahead, I know you’ve been dying to ask,” he said. Vella stood dumbstruck for a moment, “Out with it girl,” Aren grumbled.

“Ok, ok,” Vella said, “So why exactly are we here? What is so important about Aegis? What is going on Aren, I’m a bit scared,” Vella said, though she was trying to put on a brave front. Her emotions began to overwhelm her as it all washed on her.

Aren rubbed his temples and cleared his throat. “This can’t leave us, understood?” he asked. Vella nodded. “That wyvern belonged to Fenir, my best knight. He was the best I’d trained, quick, cunning, one heck of a rider, but it looks like fate finally caught up to him. He’d been sent on a mission, one that only a few in the whole kingdom knew about. Aegis returning without him means he’s dead.” Aren paused for a moment, placing a hand on Vella’s shoulder. “We are about to meet with the general and the queen, they are the only other two who knew about this mission.”

“But I don’t know anything Aren,” Vella insisted.

“I know that and you know that, but they need to check,” Aren replied.

“Then why did you just tell me all that, now I know something I’m not supposed to,” Vella said frantically.

“Cause I got a feelin’ in my gut,” Aren replied, “The bad kind o feelin’ that says this won’t be over when I finish talking. I’d rather have you aware of what you stumbled into. I swear I’m looking out for you.”

Vella’s eyes were welling up with tears as she realized that there was a lot more going on than a simple lost dragon. “But… Can’t I just go back to the farm?” She pleaded.

Aren looked her directly in the eyes, “If I have any say, yes, you will,” he paused. “But I can’t promise you something I don’t have control over. You need to steel yourself now. I know you’re plenty tough. Ain’t no weak little girl that could handle what you have. Ain’t just anybody that can handle a whole farm on their own, let alone handle what you’ve been through.”

Vella wiped the tears from her eyes and set her resolve, “You’re right,” she mumbled. “If I’m in the middle of this though, I need to know it all Aren.”

Aren’s head sank, “Wish you hadn’t said that.” With a sigh he continued, “But you got every right I suppose. We sent Fenir to Sacrotia. He was supposed to go there and kill Queen Emeria.”

“But I thought she wasn’t a threat,” Vella interrupted. “That’s what we’ve been told for years. Every official that comes out my way says that. They always tell us we have no reason to worry even on the border. Why would Draeton make an unprovoked attack?”

“We had word on good authority that Emeria is plannin’ something right awful, so we were trying to stop her before it could start,” Aren replied. Aren scrunched his face and it became apparent that the attack wasn’t truly unprovoked. “There’s a whole lot that even I don’t know and I tend to be a pretty informed man. I can’t speak as to why the queen would hide it, all I know is what happened and that we need to see her now. Far as I can tell there have been secret attacks like this going on for a long time, safe to say the “peace” between our kingdoms has been tense at best.”

With all the weight of the world seemingly being placed on her shoulders Vella felt like the simple country girl others thought she was. She took a deep breath in and out, feeling the blood running through her body, trying to slow it the same way she did before she rode a dragon for the first time. “Ok, I get it, I’ll do whatever you need me to do Aren. Let’s go.”

Aren looked at Vella and smiled before he turned to keep going. As they walked down the hall Vella tried not to think about what Aren had told her for fear she’d get overwhelmed and vomit in the castle. As they reached the end of the hallway they walked into a large open room with several hallways coming off of it. Vella looked around and saw gorgeous tapestries hanging from the walls. Each one depicted one of the previous queens of Draeton. Each tapestry was stitched in magnificent gold thread that shimmered like real gold as the light hit it. At the far end of the room, there was a large golden door with two guards standing on each side. Above this door was a large stained glass window with a magical light shining through. The glass itself was arranged in the brightest hues to show Dracyr the wise, which Vella recognized from the merchant’s booth from earlier in the day.

“Like I said, steel yourself, Vella,” Aren said.

“I’ll try,” Vella replied. “Can you at least tell me how to act around them?”

Aren rubbed his chin, “Just be honest with Dracyr, she always seems to know when people are lying. Don’t I repeat do not get caught in awe of her. You get sucked up into that she’ll have you wrapped around her finger in an instant. She’s just a person, a pretty one, but still just a person.”

Aren blushed briefly and Vella knew she had to ask him about that later on. “What about the general?”

“Grayston,” Aren grumbled. Vella could hear the resentment in his voice. “Let me handle that part. As much as Dracyr thinks well of me and whatnot, well he does the opposite.”

“Why,” Vella asked quickly.

“Well ya see Vella, he’s only the general cause I turned it down. Worse, he knows that. We were rivals all through our training and during my time as a knight. I can’t stand him, arrogant, cocky, all the worst. Problem for him is that I was always better, I got all the things he wanted and I wasn’t even Presidia born or educated like him. He comes from a family that lives in the closest ring, always been a snob. He still won’t forgive me for the position, or for Dracyr,” Aren said and realized he had said a bit too much. “Like I said, let me handle him.

Before Vella could ask any more questions Aren strode up to the door and waved to the guards. Each one of them put the tip of their weapons to the door and uttered “Intrab.” As they said this the door opened. Vella caught up with Aren and walked into the room. As much as any sight in presidia had put Vella in a state of awe, this sight was a hundred times more. The sun shone beautifully down through an opening in the roof. Every piece of stone in the throne room was pristine, untouched by dirt or wear. Large ridged columns cascaded down from the domed ceiling. A lush carpet led down the middle of the room towards the throne. On the carpet small gold figures moved and fought as magic flicked through the fabric and caused motion. Vella would have spent longer marveling at this had her eyes not been transfixed by the sight at the end of the room. Atop a small set of stairs was a massive golden throne, covered in articulated depictions of scholars and queens, moving about in the dark purple glow of magic.

To the side of the throne stood a very stern man in a black and gray uniform whom Vella took to be Grayston. His name was quite fitting Vella though. He was a tall man with very sharp features. His thick gray hair was slicked back and his beard perfectly groomed. He had dark smoky eyes that locked on Aren the moment he entered the room. On the throne next to him sat the most beautiful person Vella had ever seen and suddenly she understood why Aren said depictions couldn’t do her justice. Vella quickly rubbed her eyes to make sure she was not imagining things. As she stepped to the edge of the carpet she stood mere feet away from Dracyr the wise, queen of Draeton.