Page 1 of Feral Guardian
Chapter one
Alastair
Four years. Two months. Five days. Six hours.
That’s how long I’ve been away from my ward, since my princess bade me to stay behind.
The salty sea air of the Bay of Ice bites against my cheeks. It was a two-week journey from Fynren to the Seterian city of Yelensa, which is the closest port to the royal academy that Princess Lilianna has been attending for the last four years, two months, and five days.
I know the layout of the town, the exact length of the trip from here to the academy on horseback, and everything that could get in our way. I know all the places an assassin could hide, and all the possible threats.
Bandits.
Pirates.
Magical monsters of the Howling Woods.
There’re dangers aplenty, but I’m more than prepared, despite the change in my entourage. The queen wouldn’t let me bring my own men, the men who’d been preparing for this trip for months. Instead, she pickedherbest for me.
It is her choice. She is the queen and must ensure the safety of the heir apparent. I’m sure her men are…capable.
But mine areruthless. Mine are willing to do what it takes to protect my princess. I can’t say the same for the queen’s men. These lazy cocks barely lifted a finger the whole trip to Yelesna, and I expect that to be the running theme for the rest of the journey.
No matter. I’ve prepared for the worst-case scenarios, too.
I look around the dock as our ship pulls up to port. There are people scrambling about everywhere, pulling carts of offloaded goods and dragging chained slaves. I cringe as I watch the men, women, and even children shuffling off for sale.
It baffles me that the queen doesn’t demand better of Fynren’s allies. How can she be so cavalier about the sale ofpeople? I know it’s not my battle to fight. But I want to.
Heat rises in my chest and my demon stirs. Icoulddo something about their fate, but then I would likely start a war, or at least get myself executed, and execution would leave my princess to these “capable men” the queen has selected.
No.
Absolutely not.
Princess Lilianna will not travel with anyone at her side butme.I am the only one qualified to ensure her safety through these bandit-laden lands and pirate-swollen seas. I am the one who has been training since childhood to protect her.
I rub the prophetic protection medallion in my dark, twisted braid idly as I watch Trask disembark first. He’s a lanky man, with flexible leather armor and slender swords. He jumps from a rope on the side of the ship onto the docks. Not my fucking business why he has to disembark before the gangplank is lowered, but he’s moving with a speed that says, “I’m about to shit my pants.”
Trask is the leader of these “capable men” the queen has sent with me; their captain. I was taken aback by her doubt in my ability to protect Lily, something I’ve successfully done for half of her life. Even the night Belinda disappeared and the castle security was called into question, I was there, protecting Lily.
Always.
Except for the last four years that the princess banished me from her side…
Being separated from her has been torturous, but the wait is finally over. I will see her in a half-day’s time, back under my watchful eyes where she belongs. Back under the protection of the demon willing to end anyone who threatens her safety.
Wooden planks creak as we bump up against the docks and settle into our position. The gangplank is lowered and I’m first there, ready to be on my way to my princess. I need to get into town and find our royal carriage provider. He’s a statesman, someone of the Seterian court.
I approach the portman, my heavy armor thundering as I walk. He’s deep in his books, using his tiny pencil to mark off the incominggoods.I stand over him, looking down at his thinning hair and patchy skin. He has proclivities for krysanthem leaves.
While the innocuous leaf is most typically used to manage fevers, when dried and manipulated properly, it creates a potent drug that leaves the user in a manic high. The downside is hair loss, patchy skin, and a foul mood when not using.
May the god Yegress bless him, or Nol’Ther will welcome him home soon.
The portman startles when he notices me, looking up at my helm.
“Sasha Petrov,” I say.
