The evening sun cast golden rays of light upon the man and the woman who were sparring by the riverside. The woman had a strange black mask on her face. The mask had a golden butterfly engraved on it, and it covered her face entirely, hiding whatever expression she had as they continued sparring.
The sharp clang of steel meeting steel cut through the quiet air followed by the hiss of blades sliding against each other. A dull thud rang out and everything went quiet.
"I win.. again." The woman spoke breaking the silence. She stretched out her hand to help the man up.
The man, dusting the dirt of his butt said grumpily. "No need to rub it in Aziliah. Anyway let's go again." He said as he prepared himself to spar with her again.
"Sorry Eli but we're done for today. It's getting late." Aziliah said. With that she started walking towards their horses that were tied to a tree in the corner, leaving a sulking Eli behind.
Eli sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Looking up he realized that it really was getting late. In fact it's almost sunset. He sighed again and ran after her and untied his horse.
"Hey Aziliah." Eli called, she replied with a 'hmm' while stroking her horse's mane. "Is it true that you won't be participating in the tournament this year?" He asked.
"Yeah, that's true." She replied and climbed up her horse. He followed suit climbing onto his stallion.
"Why not?" He asked curiosity.
"No reason." She responded, casually kicking her horse into motion. Eli gave her a questioning look.
"What?" She lifted a brow at him behind her mask. "I just don't want to participate this year. Let someone else win for a change." She shrugged.
"Sigh.. okay." He said hiding his disappointment. "So you're just gonna watch." He added and she nodded . He continued. "Too bad this just means that this year's tournament is going to be boring."
She laughed." Don't say that, this kingdom have some of the finest warriors in the whole land of Loriennia. I'm sure it's going to be spectacular. After all they're getting a chance to boost their egos."
Eli chuckled, "You're right it might actually be fantastic but..." He sighed ."I won't be around for the tournament since I'll be leaving."
"Why? What happened?" She asked.
"Sigh, my uncle in Vydralis called for me a few days ago. He said it was urgent, said I should come home immediately." He said tiredly. He was already feeling tired just by the thought of going back to there.
"What could be so important that you have to go immediately?" She asked curiously.
He shrugged. "Don't know, I'll find out when I get there."
"Okay so when are you leaving?" She asked.
" Tomorrow morning at earnest." He replied.
She nodded. " The Festival is starting next week right? So the road will be really busy as a lot of people would want to go to the capital tomorrow. Are you sure it'll be safe for you?" She asked.
"Yeah.... " He smiled and continued. "It means the road won't be as lonely as usual, so it's good."
"If you say so.... Safe travels then." She said with a smile he couldn't see.
"Thanks." He said still smiling.
They Kept riding together side by side. Chatting casually with each other until they reached the entrance of the village and wished each other good night and went their respective ways.
Eli went into the Village and Aziliah took her horse to the outskirts of the village where she lived.
As she approached her home, she was surprised to see two men standing in front of her house. The little cottage was situated on the outskirts of the village. It had thatched roofs and white walls and it stood alone close to a little stream. So seeing the two men she wondered what they wanted.
As she got closer to them, she quietly accessed them and judging from their attire, which was of higher quality compared to regular common folks, and the symbol on their cloaks ,she deduced they were royal guards and not just any royal guards they were definitely elites. But what would elite royal guards be doing way out here? They were quite far away from the capital. what did they want?
When she alighted from her horse, they approached her a bit hesitantly. "Greetings young miss." One of them greeted politely. "Are you Lady Aziliah by chance?" He asked.
"Greetings Mister." Aziliah spoke looking at them cautiously. "I am. Who are you?"
"Fantastic." He said looking delighted and relieved like he had found a long lost treasure. "I am Sir Aldric and this is my companion Sir Marcus. We are from the Royal capital Astheria and we've be sent by His Royal Highness."
Aziliah looked at the hazel eyed man who was smiling politely at her and his brown haired companion with a perplexed expression which they couldn't see. She was wondering why the King would send them all the way out here to Bronts village, the farthest end of his kingdom just to see her . Was there some sort of issue in the capital? Or was it something else. She was visibly wary of them.
As if sensing her hesitation and wariness, Aldric spoke. "Please we come in peace. We just have a few matters to discuss with you."
Aziliah stared at them for a moment and sighed. "Alright, let's go inside. It's almost dark now and it's best to discuss the matters inside," She said. They agreed and followed her into the house.
Once inside she told them to sit while she prepared something for them to drink. The men glanced around the room they were in, which was practically empty save for the tiny sofas and and a table, a shelf containing some books. They were seated on a small sofa and across from them was a warm fireplace which gave the room a soft and comfortable glow. It was odd to know that the infamous Battle Queen lived in such a place. They sat quietly waiting for her to return.
She returned after a while with two mugs with red content inside. She handed it over to them saying. "Please have this, it's not much but..." She trailed.
They accepted the drink gratefully. They haven't had anything to drink since the previous day. They were quite thirsty though they hid it well. They took a sip and relished the taste before finally speaking on what brought them there.
Aldric was the one who spoke. He started by saying thank you to Aziliah , for letting them in and for welcoming them despite them being strangers.
She simply nodded in response saying, "You're welcome. Now, you said you had something important to discuss with me." She said seriously.
"Ah yes, we were sent by his Royal highness, King Othniel to come find you." Aldric began. "He asked us to bring you to the palace as soon as possible." He said.
Aziliah was puzzled, "What does the king want with me?" She asked.
"We're not sure, all he said was you are to come with us to the palace immediately." Aldric said.
Aziliah's brows creased behind her mask. What does the king want with her and why the urgency? She was sure it wasn't because she's not participating in the tournament. So she asked. "Does it have something to do with the tournament?"
"We don't know , he didn't say anything." Aldric said.
Aziliah pondered seriously about it. She couldn't think of a reason for why the king would want to see her. Unless....
"Miss Aziliah please come with us to Astheria." Aldric spoke, interrupting her thoughts.
"Do I have to come with you immediately?" She asked.
"Yes." Aldric replied.
Aziliah was quiet for sometime. Though she wasn't sure... but there was only one reason she could think of as to why the king wanted to see her, and if it's really what she thought then she would need time to prepare. When she finally spoke she sounded like she had made her decision. "I'm sorry but I'll not be coming with you to the palace."
The two men looked at each other in shock. They weren't expecting her refusal. "But why?" They asked.
"I have reasons and don't wish to disclose them." She said in a calm calculated voice. With her tone of voice, they could tell that she was serious and nothing they said would change her mind.
Aldric was about to say something when Aziliah continued speaking. "Though I won't come with you... I will come to the palace to see the king, but that would be after the tournament." She said with a finality that left no room for arguments.