Page 59 of Once Upon a Crown
Elara
I opened the tent flap and stepped into the winter morning air of Norrandale.
So close to the mountains, the air felt much colder than in Everness, my fingertips numb despite my gloves. Our party had set up camp between Mistwood Palace and the mountains in the north. A few days later, Lord Burrow and his men arrived as promised by Alastor, who’d secured the alliance on behalf of Cai. The increase in our numbers brought me some comfort, but I still felt an ever-growing worry in my gut at the prospect of what was to come.
We were going to Mistwood with Cai leading the attack. There would be fighting and blood and death. And we could only hope that by the end of it, Cai would be back on his throne.
I wrapped my cloak around me in a futile attempt to keep out the cold and started making my way towards the main tent in the centre of our camp. There was a smell of smoke in the air from all the burnt-out fires from the night before. I could see my breath as I made my way past tents and soldiers sharpening their weapons.
The semi-frozen ground crunched under my riding boots, and I was grateful for wearing my breeches and a tunic again. Despite the fact that I’d grown quite fond of the beautiful dresses Anesta always put me in, they weren’t practical for what we were about to do. Though I was certainly aware that all the layering in my skirts actually helped to keep my legs warm. Being so close to the mountains meant the weather would only get worse and the soldiers more unmotivated. We were all cold and tired, and if we wanted to take back Mistwood, we would have to do it soon.
Cai was already there as I entered the main tent. So were Alastor and Rhen. There was a large table in the middle, with maps and drawings of the landscape around Mistwood and the palace itself.
“Good morning.” I tried to sound cheerful but there was a sense of dread in the air. Not just in the tent itself but all around the camp.
Cai gave me an attempt at a comforting smile, which we both knew to be fake, but I appreciated the gesture.
“Lord Burrow should be here any moment,” Rhen said as I went to stand next to Cai.
“Good.” I gazed over the maps, my eyes involuntarily going to the mountain ranges I knew to be filled with Myrgonite stones. Aries and his men were getting closer, and though it would be some time before they reached Mistwood, we needed to keep the front lines as far south as possible. Not only for the sake of the stones, but because the closer his men were to Everness, the bigger risk it was for my kingdom that they would invade.
The tent flap opened again, and Lord Burrow walked in, looking surprisingly awake and able compared to the rest of us.
“Your Majesties,” he greeted us politely, looking over the table. “Do we have a plan for how we want to proceed?”
“I’ve sent word to Mannik and Stapleton, and they are willing to send all the men they can spare, but it will be a while still before the soldiers arrive. We do not have that much time to waste if we want to overthrow Mistwood. But we will need the men, regardless, for when the battle comes,” Cai said.
“Will you be making Mistwood the fortress from where the army attacks?” Alastor asked. His long dark hair was tied up and he appeared to carry a weapon on just about every part of his body. Should I have been his enemy, I would not want to come across him in the middle of the night.
“I would prefer to keep the fighting as far away from my ancestral home as possible,” Cai replied. “But it might be a good place for us to gather before we march on the Argonian army.”
Not to mention that if Cai reclaimed his throne by taking Mistwood, it might persuade the people to turn back to their exiled king. As it was, we needed every able-bodied person to fight on our side.
“Are we to attack them directly? Force our way into the palace?” Lord Burrow questioned.
“No, I want the element of surprise. Alastor, do you have the numbers for the Argonian soldiers currently residing at Mistwood?”
“We’re looking at a few hundred, Your Majesty. Enough to keep the palace under their control against civilians or small loyalist groups.”
“With our numbers, surely, we are looking at an easy victory.”
“With all due respect, Lord Burrow,” I interjected. “You must keep in mind that Argonian soldiers are not like our men. They’ve been trained in different ways, and based on what I’ve seen of them, it would take at least two or three of our men to take an Argonian down.”
“She’s right,” Cai affirmed. “These men are ruthless, and we must be prepared for every possible outcome. Aries cannot easily be outsmarted.”
“What about civilians?” Lord Burrow asked. “Is there any risk of court members getting in the middle of it?”
“I doubt it,” Alastor responded. “The court had been sent back to their estates before the Argonians arrived. Apparently, we are not the only ones who want to fortify the palace. And then, apart from the soldiers, Lord Thatcher is there, of course, in charge of all of them.”
I felt Cai tense up next to me at the mention of Thatcher.
“Thatcher’s a puppet,” I said to no one in particular. “He has no real power. Aries is only using him for his inside knowledge of Norrandale.”
We continued the meeting, looking at all the possible entrances to the palace, where the guards were likely to be stationed and how we would go about infiltrating the building. Once we had more or less established a plan, Lord Burrow departed the tent with Rhen and Alastor following to meet with the soldiers.
I looked over the drawings of Mistwood again.
“What are these?” I asked Cai, pointing to lines drawn beneath the building.
