The Broken Sigil

Chapter 6: Celvin Falls

     “Lucius…” Katrina looked towards him, as the men that surrounded him dispersed and revealed him holding the hilt. “What are you doing?”

     “Nothing, I had a lovely conversation with these gentlemen, isn’t that right fellas?” he asked and they nodded, they had no other choice but to agree with him, it wasn’t as if they would lie or disobey their queen.

     “We need to move, we shan’t waste any more time,” she looked at him.

     “Yes…” he released the blade, and started slowly walking towards the exit, he gave them an angry look as if to say this wasn’t over yet. He came out and immediately felt the breeze it had been so warm in the tavern and so cheerful until they were about to smash it to oblivion with their fighting. 

     “You need to change clothes,” Katrina stood next to the horse, as she pulled out a pair of clothes and handed them to him.

     “Change? Why?” he took the clothes.

     “Kin isn’t too fond of Protectors these days, and you dressed like that will only invite trouble we don’t want as we go along,” she explained to him.

     “But I can’t throw out these clothes,” he protested.

     “I am not saying to… Just change, and I will take care of your clothes.”

     “Fine…” he sighed out as he turned around. “But you better not throw them away,” he walked a distance, before finding a place he could at least be hidden or so he thought that he hid, Katrina turned around and saw him taking of his cape and placing carefully on a barrel nearby, he was really careful with his clothes, then he took off his shirt, Katrina couldn’t help herself by staring at him, it wasn’t the case that he had muscles or some such, on the contrary actually, he was a bit skinny, but Katrina didn’t mind. He held his old clothes in his hands as he walked with the new, as soon as he started walking towards her she looked away, pretending as if she never starred at him. He now had a black vest with a white shirt, black jeans, and a long black coat.

     “Alright I am done,” he gave her the old clothes as she tucked them in a sack attached to the horse. “Whose clothes are these?” he asked twisting around them, getting used to wearing them.

     “It’s my brothers, he never wears them…”

     “Your brother's clothes?” he asked shocked. “You mean Cristopher?” he couldn’t believe she tricked him into wearing Cristopher’s clothes. He hated wearing other’s people clothes.

     “What’s the big deal? I thought you were like brothers?”

     “I mean…” he couldn’t protest, in fact, there was no way that Cristopher was going to mind anyway. “Alright,” he walked towards the horse hoping on it, as he turned around and sprang out his arm to Katrina, as she grabbed his arm and hoped on the horse behind him and wrapped her hands around his waist. “We shouldn’t make any stops anymore, from now on we go directly to the Ashen Fields.”

     “Alright,” nodded Katrina. “I’ve got everything I need,” she placed her hand on the pack that she had attached across her body, she took the book, sighed out, and hoped to never have to use it.

JJJ

     Isidora walked the halls of the palace, she held a dagger in her hand, she had sent her daughter away from the castle and away from all the danger. It was night already and whatever she was going to do, had to wait until nightfall, so far everything was going according to her plan. She walked to the tents that were outside the walls of Celvin, those tents belonged to the soldiers of the White City, the guard that accompanied the king, but it seemed they didn’t belong to the king. She walked to one of the bigger tents and opened it. Inside there was a man waiting with a couple of soldiers and before them, there was a table with a map. Isidora walked closer to the map and looked at it, she realized it was the layouts for Celvin Castle.

     “Raoulin,” she greeted him as he bowed before her. Raoulin was the general in the White City army, he was getting orders from the king and the soldiers were getting orders from him. Isidora had managed to manipulate him like everyone else, it wasn’t really hard since king Alfred was getting older and lazier, he wasn’t the same man he used to be, now all he wants was to be with his friends and drink, he couldn’t concern himself with ruling and diplomacy anymore. What was furthermore more depressing to the people of the White City was the fact that their heir Prince Cristopher was nowhere to be seen, they would expect to take after his father, but the problem was he was always somewhere serving the Protectors, this of course was all an elaborate scheme from Isidora, she had ordered for him to be serving in the Ashen Fields and he couldn’t disobey his mother’s order, or in fact the queen’s order. By doing that Isidora could turn the people on her side, but more importantly the army of the White City would be on her side. They would need a ruler somebody to follow and to believe in, and Isidora had managed to set herself up as that figure. She now had the White City under control and had an army, soon she would have Celvin, and then she would have the Sigil.

     “Marcus has done his end of the deal,” Isidora looked at Raoulin. He was a short man with buzz-cut hair, he was short but had a big body with big muscles, his piercing blue eyes constantly starring angrily, intimidating everyone that stood in front of him. “It’s your turn now,” she looked at the map.

     “Yes… Our men are in position and awaiting for you,” he looked at her.

     “Alright…” both of them came out of the tent and looked at the walls of Celvin, as Isidora turned towards Raoulin and nodded. He picked up the horn and blew into it giving the soldiers the signal to attack.