Page 22 of The Queen's Crown
“Where’s the princess?” the soldier asked.
“This is Her Highness Princess Sabine.” Markis gestured toward her. “We were attacked on our way to Lynk. We left the carriage behind to travel anonymously.”
Reaching up, Sabine removed her cap, allowing her hair to cascade down so they could see she was a woman.
One of the soldiers neared, his hand on his sword. “I’ll take a look at those letters.”
Markis handed them over.
The soldier took the letters and returned to the gate, speaking with one of the other soldiers. A moment later, he approached them again. “You are granted entrance. I have two men who will escort you to the palace.”
Sabine nudged her horse forward. Embedded in the wall, an iron gate swung open, granting them entrance. As she passed through the wall, she marveled at how thick it was—at least ten feet. She had no idea how such a thing had been built.
As soon as she cleared the wall, the gate swung shut, closing with a bang.
Two mounted Lynk soldiers approached. “Follow me,” the one on the right said. He steered his horse north, and Markis went after him.
“I’ll bring up the rear,” the other soldier said with a wink, gesturing for Sabine to go before him.
They traveled single file along a narrow valley between two steep mountain ranges covered with black rocks and bright green plants. Sabine had never seen anything so strange in all her life. It felt as if she were on a different continent altogether and not simply a different kingdom. Examining the two soldiers in greater detail, she observed that their skin was slightly darker than hers, somehow creamier and more beautiful. Both men had black hair and dark eyes.
“Are you doing okay?” Markis mumbled.
“Yes,” she replied. “Is all of Lynk like this?” She pointed to the mountain on her right.
“What do you mean?” the soldier behind her asked.
“Do steep mountain ranges cover most of your kingdom?”
“Yes. Why do you ask?”
“They’re beautiful,” she answered. Now she understood why Lynk needed food so desperately. It wasn’t that the king focused all his resources on his military; it was that they had no land to farm.
The first soldier led them closer to the mountain range on the left. After a bit, they reached its base, and he took them to the entrance of a cave. He dismounted and ordered everyone else to do the same.
A soldier exited the cave, taking the reins of each horse. “If you need any of your personal belongings, be sure to take them,” he instructed.
All of Sabine’s things had been left with the carriage.
“Let’s go,” the man leading them stated as he entered the cave.
“What are we doing?” she asked, nearing the entrance.
“We’re taking this tunnel to the palace.”
“Tunnel?” she asked, her voice echoing as darkness closed in around her and panic set in.
Sabine blinked as her eyes adjusted to her darkened surroundings. The soldier ahead of them held a torch, lighting the way through the narrow tunnel, revealing slick black rock with water dripping from a few places.
“Is this a lava tube from a volcano?” Markis asked.
Sabine had never heard anything about there being a volcano on the continent.
“Yes,” the soldier behind them answered. “Hundreds of years ago.”
“What about our horses?” Sabine asked. The soldier who held the animals hadn’t followed them into the tunnel.
“They’ll be taken care of,” the leader said.
