I rode slowly along the road. Sonese was by my side, but not on her usual horse. She was in a carriage being pulled by horses with magnificent red decorative armors with golden details and red plumage in their heads. The carriage was also red and golden, but had no plumage, thankfully. The men that surrounded us were all in red full plates, mounting warhorses dressed in red too. The one directly in front of us carried a flag of a golden profile of a bull in a red background. The flag of the Union.
The road was getting colder and colder as we advanced, nearing the great river that divided the Gran-Duchy from the east and the north. Every step we took the air seemed to freeze a bit. I just couldn’t take it anymore. I halted our advance and dismounted, leaving my horse with my aide and climbed inside the carriage before giving the order to keep advancing.
“We told you to put on something to protect you of the cold.” She was amused with my stupidity. She was wearing a simple white gown, and was braiding her long ginger hair while laughing at me. Her belly was starting to grow a bit, and I had never been so worried in my life. “How are you feeling? Anything you need?” I was putting on a fur coat to stop the freezing sensation, but it didn’t really help much. “Aren’t you cold?” I asked her, but she just shook a bit her head. I stayed in the carriage for the rest of the journey, not having the guts to face the cold and the snow that lied in front of us.
We crossed the river already late at night, but we had no time to stop to rest. We rode through the night and finally arrived at the great city of Roz late in the afternoon. I went back to my horse before we got in sight of the city, this time with a thick layer of fur between me and the snow that fell on us. The guards at the gate recognized our flag and let us through without even stopping us. The guards were extremely disciplined, not moving a muscle unless needed. They wore full plates with fur coats over the plates. Their helmets were close helms, so we couldn’t see their faces, but I’m sure I could tell what they were like. In their hands they held halberds and had tower shields in their backs.
Without us even noticing, mounted guards surrounded us as we moved towards the castle. In the castle gates, there were fewer guards, but those were different. Those also had full plates, close helm and halberds, but over the armor, they had a fine, silky, blue cape, and in their helmets they had plumages. Why do people like that so much? They also let us through, though they never said a word or moved a muscle.
Behind the gate, even more guards waited for us, but in front of them, there was a man that wasn’t a guard. His head was shaved and he had not a shadow of a beard. He wasn’t tall, but wasn’t short either, making him an overall normal man, except for his eyes. They were pure white, but he wasn’t blind. He wore a brown robe that was clearly hundreds of years old, and had a wooden staff under his palm.
He greeted us with a friendly smile, the first since we arrived. “Lord Geno, we have been waiting for you.” I dismounted and helped Sonese off the carriage. “We did not know Lady Sonese was with you. We will have the room ready for a second person very soon.” He then sent one of the guards off to tell someone to do so. “Please do come with me.” He was very polite, something that really surprised me. He led me around the corridors and rooms until we reached a room with a big table with space for about 20 persons.
In the opposite end of the table, sat an old man, dressed in silk and fur, with a golden ring shaped crown in his head. His blonde, wavy hair falling over the rest of his body, because he was sitting in the edge of his throne while resting his back in the backrest. His beard was short, but still was a bit dense. On his right, was standing a young boy, presumably his son, who was not at all confortable. In my left side of the table, sat a dwarf, with a very thick and long brown beard that was split in two, while his hair was tied in a long ponytail. The two of them were staring at me and at Sonese like we were children who just interrupted a very important meeting, which we did.
The only kind expressions came from our liege lords. Cali was sitting closer to the entrance and was just as uncomfortable as the duke’s son, giving us a shy smile that rivaled even Sonese’s beauty. Her simple gown was covered by a layer of coats that were definitely not meant to be beautiful, but they sure did do their job. Her deep black, straight hair made an incredible contrast with her pale skin and blue eyes. Kuraqh wasn’t as subtle as her wife, standing up fast, almost knocking down her chair. Her smile was wider than I thought possible, showing how a single person can break the worst of the moods. Her hair was already turning white from stress and she had very tired eyes from not sleeping properly. Her hair was loose and wasn’t really covering her burn scar in her left side of the head that didn’t allow hair to grow in a small area. She was wearing the Dress that she hated so much under her fur coat.
“It’s been so long!” She hugged us and then led us to the table. “Please, take a seat.” I sat next to Cali, who nodded a hello to me and to Sonese, who sat next to me. The dwarf said something in rhwoqhkayn and Kuraqh answered in the same language and then in ours. “I apologize for the interruption, shall we continue?” the dwarf, which, by the way, is our king, and the duke nodded and the conversation kept going, but this time with me and Sonese in it. The meeting was about an alliance between the Union and the Gran-Duchy, and the meetings kept happening for days, and I really didn’t understand half of what was said, or simply was too bored to pay attention, so Sonese and Cali were always poking me to make sure I didn’t fall asleep. Really I can’t say much more than that there was never an alliance.
“Ulfi would be proud of you. You managed to lose entire conversations with just dozing off.”
“Was it really that apparent?” Cali nodded slowly while trying to hold a wild smile. “Yup” Sonese said. “I worry that our child will have your attention span.”
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