The Princess And Her Aides

The flame flickered, casting long shadows against the stone walls. Silence stretched, heavy and suffocating, until Amber’s grip tightened painfully on my arm. Her breath came in sharp, uneven bursts.

“ARE YOU CRAZY!” she hissed, though in the echoing chamber it may as well have been a shout. For a fleeting moment, I thought she might bolt for the corridor.

“Now hold on just a moment,” Jaeger said, breaking the tension with a baffled expression. “You’re saying you’re the rightful ruler of all of Ur?”

Faelar exhaled through his nose, pinching the bridge of his nose as if the weight of our situation physically hurt. “No, that’s not what he said.”

“Well, I don’t think the Urians have ever had an Elven king—”

“The girl, you brute!” Faelar snapped, his voice sharp.

Jaeger blinked. “What?”

Ignoring him, Faelar turned to Amber, his eyes narrowing. “Are you Ambrose of House Ashvale?”

Amber’s gaze dropped to the floor. Her hand trembled as it clenched around my arm. When she finally spoke, her voice was low, resigned.

“I am.”

Faelar nodded slowly, as though the final piece of a puzzle had just locked into place.

“Yes,” he murmured, almost to himself. “It explains why His Highness acted as he did.”

Amber drew in a breath and lifted her chin, her posture shifting. Though her eyes still glistened with unshed tears, she forced strength into her voice.

“I hope my being from Ur doesn’t change how any of you see me,” she said firmly. “I don’t think I’m fit to rule, but—”

“No,” Faelar cut in, his tone flat but decisive. His gaze remained distant, as though calculating unseen variables. “You may not feel ready, but for now, you are our only option.”

“Well, ma’am,” Jaeger said, rubbing the back of his neck, “I’ve served plenty of royals, and not a single one ever asked me for my name. If I’m going to spend my life protecting someone, I’d rather it be a leader I choose to follow. Urian or not.”

Amber’s shoulders sagged with relief, a small smile breaking through her tension. Seeing her fears ease gave me confidence that my gamble had paid off.

I turned to Faelar. “You’re aware Fredreich is plotting war against the Urians.”

“Of course,” Faelar replied bluntly, though his eyes flickered. “That much is obvious.”

“Yes, but I believe he isn’t being fully honest with his court.”

Faelar scoffed. “Fredreich is never honest.”

I leaned forward slightly. “The attack near Blutklamm… did anything about it strike you as unusual?”

“Other than the men being charred beyond recognition?” Faelar shot back with sarcasm. “No, nothing.”

Amber’s voice cut through the room, sharp and clear. “That’s the problem, Mr. Faelar. Only those of Ashvale blood can conjure fire strong enough to burn like that.”

The air grew tense. Faelar’s eyes narrowed, and his jaw shifted as he turned toward her.

“You’re saying—”

“I’m saying the attack wasn’t Urian at all,” I interrupted. My voice was low, deliberate. “Someone staged it. Someone wants war.”

Jaeger frowned, rubbing his chin. “Could’ve been the Elven resistance. They’re known for fire magic, aren’t they?”

“Yes, but His Highness himself is…” Faelar’s voice softened and then stopped abruptly, casting glances at each one of us.

“Urian, yes,” I nodded, “but this is about getting revenge. That much he made clear to me.”

Faelar clenched his hands, shaking his head. “But I already got that kid his revenge, I helped him overthrow that brute, and now—”

Amber cleared her throat, facing a confused, distraught, and clearly angry Faelar. “This isn’t just about his father,” her words loud and clear, “his—or rather, our mother was forced to be a concubine because the current king of Ur forced us to leave our land.”

Jaeger glanced between Amber and Faelar, scratching his chin as he looked at the both of them. “So the king of Ur and our king aren’t extremely benevolent people, that much I get, but what are we going to do about it?”

I looked around at everyone, their eyes fixed on me, waiting. “I think it’s best we go with this information to Alaric.” I said, my eyes nervously darting from Amber to Faelar, perhaps worried about being rejected.

“I thought we were reinstating the missus as royalty.” Jaeger said.

“Yes, but we can’t just barge in and ask them to make her the queen.” I shook my head.

“Given Alaric’s treatment towards the rest of my family, I doubt he’d hesitate to kill me if he ever learnt who I truly am.” Amber’s gaze lingered at the floor beneath her, her hands clenched and her jaw tightened.

“But there must be people in his court who are unsatisfied with his rule, just as there are people in Fredreich’s,” I said, turning to Amber. “It’s not unlikely that they’ll support deposing him.”

She turned to me and shook her head. “I’ve been in touch with a few people in the castle over the years, and they’ve all told me how much they despise Alaric—not just people in the castle, but the people, too.”

“Getting to Ur might be the most difficult part of this all,” Faelar interjected, his voice low, his hand on his chin. “We can’t go around the Blutklamm range as it’d take too long.”

Amber turned toward me, a glint in her eye, her hands now to her chest. “There is one way that we can use. A path from within the mountains known only to the royal family—the one my mother used.”

I took a look at Amber, whose expression conveyed both a sense of fear yet determination at the same time, then at Jaeger, who stood by listening to everything as attentively as he could, and finally at Faelar, who still seemed to be lost in thought.

I took a deep breath. “Well, this is all we have as of now,” I said. “It’s definitely better than waiting here for Fredreich’s men to come here and kill us—”

“Excuse my interjection,” Jaeger raised a finger. “But there’s something about this all that doesn’t make sense.”

“What is it?”

“It’s understandable as to why His Highness would want to execute Ambrose, but why would he have imprisoned her husband?”

I sighed, glancing over to Amber, who seemed to be preoccupied with blushing over Faelar calling me her husband as opposed to worrying about the finer details.

“Well, Fredreich believes I’m some sort of Messiah, some predestined saviour sent by the All-Mother,” I responded curtly.

The three of them stood in silence before Jaeger broke out laughing hysterically, slapping me on the back with such force that it sent me falling to the floor, with Faelar quickly following with laughter.

“You have to be joking.” Faelar’s words came in-between his laughter.

Both Faelar and Jaeger seemed to enjoy the situation much more than I did, but Amber seemed to remain quiet, her gaze almost reminding me of the cold and calculating look Fredreich gave me.

“Well, then, waiting around won’t get us anywhere, will it?” I brought myself up, dusting my suit off to the best of my ability.