Golden Prophecy

X L I I

THE TRAINING grounds in the Northern Mountains were secluded. Most took days to travel there by foot, which was the first initiation into the program. And if you were lucky enough to make it, it would take years for you to be able to leave.

The men that trained there understood this. Had known this for their entire lives. So, that afternoon, when there was news of an intruder, all guards stood alert. In their bunkers, they waited for the signal to attack, or to welcome.

Guards were trained to put their line of duty above themselves. For most, it was an honor to do so.

The Head of the Guard was a beast. He stalked back and forth by the gates, hands behind his back, head cast down, thinking. Pondering. Then, he turned back to the half-frozen girl standing there.

"You've come alone." It was his first sentence. The Princess looked like a scrap of a girl, too short, too thin, too young. He had heard rumors, had seen pictures in the papers, but nothing prepared him for the sight of the near child that stood in front of him.

"I had no choice." She rested her hand on Tofu's neck. "I'm here for guards."

The Head of the Guard understood that this would happen sooner or later, only he had expected the Royal Counsel to come themselves, demanding to poke and prod at every guard and they hand picked which were chosen to live in the castle. That was how it usually went.

Princesses didn't arrive alone. Princesses didn't arrive without some sort of protection. Yet this one, this child, had done just that.

"What makes you so sure I want to give you a team of guards?" The Head of the Guard stopped pacing, staring down at her with dark eyes and a crumpled mouth. "It would benefit Anlithamy greatly if there was no human princess on the throne. Without protection, our desires to have a true born leader on the throne would be within reach."

Andorra lifted her chin. "I am a true born leader. And I am here for guards." She wasn't taking no for an answer. She couldn't afford to. Glancing around the training grounds, it was obvious this was a sort of sanction. These people lived up here, and didn't seem to leave.

Where they stood, at the entrance, was like looking into a town center. There were buildings made of ice, carved into shop fronts and homes. There were animal hides strung up and blowing in the breeze. Some were laid out on the ground in front of homes like doormats. Some were used as roofing for the buildings.

Behind them were more mountains, curving around the town as if to hide it from existence. Up here, the air was clear, but it was also incredibly freezing, to the point where Andorra felt her eyelashes stiffening to the point of freezing off her face.

The Head of the Guard though wore no shirt, only a pair of pants and boots. He didn't seem bothered by the subzero temperatures, though.

"Fine. You want guards? Let's see just who would pledge their allegiance to a human Princess!" The Head of the Guard flung his arm out towards the town. "Men! Fall in line!"

This must have been code, because men seemed to pour out of every small alleyway and march their way towards the Head of the Guard. Andorra first noticed their uniforms. They were black in color, with trousers that tapered at the bottom, and tunic length shirts that were cinched with a belt. In the right corner was a symbol of some sort, and when Andorra got a closer look, she noted that she'd never seen it before.

It was a wreath, but the branches were from pine trees. Some of the branches had pinecones stitched in, some had winter berries. In the center of the winter wreath was a mountain with constellations.