As the sun rose over the horizon Runebound Grove faded into pastel colors before they completely faded from the ancient wood. As the light died so too did Danish’s hopes of seeing the man in the Grove.

He had hoped the man would appear during the sunrise as he always did the sunset. Hoping that the morning light would help him in identifying more about the mysterious stranger. Instead, he had been met with disappointment.

Dawn’s light marked the start of his next lesson with Aeric. If Danish didn’t leave the parapet soon, he would be late to his lesson. Something Gregor had warned him to never let happen. He knew he should be on his way. However, something was telling him to wait. He was unsure why, but he just knew that if he waited only a moment longer, he would witness something.

Seconds turned to minutes as he kept his focus locked on the forest.

Squinting, he found his eyes following a sudden shadow moving across the plain. Leaving from the castle. A man on horseback riding off toward the Grove. If he had not been there to witness it, he would never have believed what he had just seen. A white horse clad in golden armor. The personal horse of his father. The king’s steed.

“Father?” he questioned the still air. His own father. The very man who had spoken the law to him, had told him no one should dare step foot into the Grove was now riding off toward it. Was he just mistaken? Someone might have stolen the king’s horse. Which would be far more troubling as that would mean there was a traitor in the court. Though if it were his father, then why would he have forbidden passage into the Grove for others and not uphold the law for himself? Was that what it meant to be king? To impose your own truths onto others and disregard them when you found it to your benefit?

No, Danish shook his head. No, he’s only headed there because of what I told him. If Danish was right about someone taking refuge in the Grove, then it was the king’s duty to seek out the perpetrator, wasn’t it? But why go alone? If one person had taken up residence within the forbidden wood, there could be more. His father might be riding into a trap. Because of him. If something were to happen to Dante, it would be Danish’s fault. Do I get help?

As he turned to go and seek knights to tell them of the events that had just transpired, he gave pause. Would anyone believe him if he told them he had just seen their king going off toward land that had been outlawed by the crown? What if they already knew about the king’s trip?

Shaking off the questions, he hastened his step. If there was anyone who would listen to him now, it would be Queen Ariya. She at least needed to be told if she didn’t know. With any luck, she would have learned about the king’s trip from her husband and she would be able to tell Danish why it was that he went there. Why he had decided to travel alone. The young boy could only hope that everything was in order, and that everything would turn out fine.

Along the way he bumped into Gregor. The blood prince wore a mask of worry. “I’ve been looking for you,” Gregory exclaimed, taking hold of Danish by the wrist. He tried to pull his brother along. “We don’t have much time before our lesson starts. We need to get going.”

With some effort, Danish was able to free himself from his brother’s grasp. He had never realized just how strong Gregor was even if he was only three years older than him. “I can’t,” said Danish as he turned down the opposite corridor. “I need to talk with the queen.”

“That can wait,” urged Gregor. “Aeric is expecting us. Do you want to get in trouble on your second day?” He was right to question Danish’s choice in this situation. He had only just started learning the sword and was already planning to disobey the teacher. A stunt like this might cause the man to choose not to teach Danish. And with so few masters in the capital, this could mean he would never learn properly.

It was a risk he was willing to take. “I’m sorry.” Danish took off. Ignoring the calls from his brother as they faded in the distance.

Many of the servants greeted Danish as he made his way through the castle. Some tried to start conversations, others offered him assistance. Not one to be rude, he made sure to greet all who spoke up to him. Politely turning down their offers as he tried to keep conversation short.

He finally made it out to the garden where the queen was pruning a rose bush.

“Mother,” he spoke after clearing his throat.

Ariya turned to Danish. Putting her sheers down with a smile. “I thought you would be at your lessons now. Is something bothering you?”

“Yes,” he chose to get right to the point. “I saw someone with father’s horse. Riding off toward the Runebound Grove. Is father still in the castle, or did he head out to the Grove?” There was some panic in the young boy’s voice. Danish was holding back tears. “I told him about something I saw, and I don’t know if he’s doing something reckless. And I don’t want him to get hurt or in trouble. But if he does, it will be my fault and, and …” Danish broke down. His thoughts lost in the stifled wails.

Ariya walked over to the boy. Pulling him into a comforting embrace. Her hand tousled his hair gently. “Oh Danish, everything is alright.” She took him by the arm and walked him to a bench beneath the shade of an old oak, a small pond nearby held a family of ducks. “Your father was the one you saw ride out this morning. What you told him, it was disturbing news to say the least. Not that you did anything wrong. Telling us was the right thing to do. He will see if he can find this man.”

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

“But … no one is supposed to enter the Grove.”

“You’re right. No one is to enter the Grove. But your father is a special case. As the king, it is his duty to uphold the law, as well as to make sure people are safe. If someone has taken residence in the Grove, your father must uphold the punishment and execute those who ignore his orders. And even if he finds no one, if he finds proof enough to deem it necessary, he will have guards stationed around the Grove to protect it from those who would ignore his law.”

Hearing this helped to calm Danish. His tears had lessened from a stream to periodic drops. “Why is it forbidden to enter the Grove?”

“It’s a law as old as the kingdom,” Ariya went to explain. “Long ago, before the founding of any cities, the Grove was known as the oldest forest in the land. Said to be the birthplace of magic itself. Our ancestors tried to use the trees of the Grove to build homes, but all who ventured within were never seen again. It’s said that the first king ventured in to find those who had gone missing. Only to find them imprisoned. Turned to wood themselves. Due to angering a powerful nature spirit.

“But that same king was able to strike a deal with the spirit.” Ariya once more pulled Danish in close. “The spirit allowed the king and his men to leave with their lives, so long as our people remained out of the Grove. That we protect it with all out might.”

“Will father be all right?” Danish whispered. “He’s entering the Grove.”

“Yes. As the king, he is the only one who is allowed to enter beneath those trees. As that was another part of the deal with the spirit. One day, a member of the royal family will be called to the woods they say. Summoned by the very spirit that protects those woods. No one is sure when or how the spirit will call upon someone, but when that day comes we must surrender the chosen one to the spirit. Otherwise, darkness will fall upon Caembra.”

Her words reminded Danish of the dream he had the other night. The same night he had first seen the stranger at the edge of the Grove. He’d been told to ‘go there.’ He had been unsure where there meant. But after hearing that story, he wondered if he was the one the spirit of the Grove wanted. But he wasn’t a true member of the royal family. No royal blood flowed through his veins. But was that the key to how the spirit would choose its chosen one?

For now, he chose to keep that to himself. Feeling better, he pulled away from the queen. “Thank you. I think I will head to my class now. I’m sure Aeric has thought up a good punishment for me.”

“Allow me to accompany you,” Ariya smiled. Together, they made their way from the gardens and to the courtyard in which Aeric used for his lessons.

Gregor was locked in combat with one of the pages for the king’s army. The prince was far above the skill level of his opponent and had easily locked him in a corner to give himself an advantage.

Aeric turned from the match to see the queen and Danish approaching. “My Lady,” the instructor bowed. “I welcome you to our lesson. Are you here to watch the progress of your son?” It took him a moment to realize Danish was by her side. His face lit up the moment he realized the boy was there. “Ah! I see you have brought the other student back. The lost sheep returns. I suppose it was important business that kept him from my tutelage then?”

“Yes,” Ariya answered. “To both of your inquiries. How is Gregor doing in his studies?”

“He does well. One of the best I have trained in some time. Though he does need to keep up with training outside of the days he sees me. His stamina should be twice what it is now.”

When the group turned to watch the end of his match, Gregor landed a blow to his opponent’s head. The moment the match was called in his favor, the prince fell to the ground. Throwing off his helmet and panting as though he’d run the perimeter of the castle in full plate.

Just watching him guzzle down the water handed to him caused Danish to wince. He knew that he would be just the same as his brother in that situation. If not in a worse condition since he had trained far less than his brother had.

“Would you like to fight someone today?” Aeric turned to Danish. “After all, the blade is in your blood. Surely you must be curious to see how you stack against the others.”

Danish felt shame as he answered. “I don’t believe I have trained enough to spar. I only barely know what I’m doing.”

“But doing is the best teacher,” his instructor urged him. “Step into the ring. You can even face the same boy as your brother did. With him tired and his morale low from his loss, you may stand a chance.”

Reluctantly, Danish put on the gear for a match and joined his opponent in the ring. Faster than he could process, the match was over. Aeric had barely finished signaling to begin by the time a swift thrust to the chest had ended the exchange.

“Again,” commanded Aeric. And just as it had happened the first time, Danish faced a swift defeat. “Again.” Over and over, the two faced each other, and over and over again, Danish was beat before he could do a single thing.

Once they had shared twenty-five exchanges, the bout was called. Not once had Danish scored a blow, but in that time he had begun to learn the rhythm of a fight. He had picked up on the ways the page moved. Learned how he should hold his blade, how to go about blocking certain cuts. What he was lacking now was the reaction time to put what he was learning to use.

“Yes, now you know what it is to fight. And what it is to lose.” Aeric seemed proud of Danish for accomplishing nothing. It was certainly confusing for him. But what mattered most was that Aeric was not disappointed or angry at him.

Even Gregor came over to congratulate Danish for his bout. When his brother went on to explain how difficult it had been for him to learn some of the movements Danish had done in his fight, it all started to click in the young Vickery’s head.

It had not been about winning any of the exchanges. They had thrown him into combat to test how well he could adapt with no proper training. And from the words they spoke, he was gifted in that.

“I have trained many your age,” Aeric placed a hand on Danish’s shoulder. “There are many who would not have survived the exercise I just put you through. They would have given up. Complained that their opponent was much more talented than they are. Found any reason to not have run through every drill. But you used your warrior spirit and pushed beyond the limits of what you were capable of. And that it what it means to be a swordsman.”

“I still feel like I haven’t accomplished anything,” admitted Danish. He was not going to ignore the praise he was receiving, however, he was not going to act as though he believed he deserved the things they were saying to him.

“Humble,” Queen Ariya spoke from the sidelines. Many of those gathered had forgotten she had even been watching. When she stepped over to the crowd, she pulled both her sons close. “You are both talented, and I am proud of you both. Gregor: I know you only began your training because your father had told you a prince and a king must know the arts of war. But you have turned this into your own. The love you hold for the blade is true as any cut. And Danish, you speak as though what you have done today is an easy task. As your teacher said, many others would not have gotten as far as you did. If you continue your lessons, one day you may even surpass your birth father on the battlefield.”

Danish smiled.