The Union

Now that she finally had a good look at him, Ash thought that Harold had a certain charm in him. His pug nose was upsetting to look at. His crooked teeth were just plain ugly. His hair was unremarkable. His stutters were annoying. But there were other redeeming qualities in Harold"s look. The shape of his face was like King Timothy"s. His ears which each have moles on them were quite cute. The way Harold smiles was like a gift of song from the Omniscient himself.

But the best thing about Harold was the way he treated Ash. Harold was kind, caring and understanding, a man every woman would like- most women anyway. If they were not fighting on different sides of this war, if their fates were only different, then Ash judged that they could have been friends.

Ash let Harold care for her. Intertwined hands and cuddling elbows, they walked. Harold had the usual pure smile on his face. Ash felt mesmerized for a moment until she reminded herself that all of these, everything between them, were fake.

"W-when I reclaim m-my Kingdom from C-castonia and V-vanadis, I will drink the wine from your cup as a symbol of m-my devotion to you. My advisors also think it would be g-good to unite t-the crown with Coldford. We w-will also s-save your father, r-ransom him from the e-enemies"

"My father is a traitor Your Majesty" Ash meant that "He betrayed our allies and dragged us to this war. If not for his foolish decisions then we would still be allies with Castonia and Vanadis. We would have been strong with the addition of Tulosa into the fold. But he betrayed them, our allies. And now we are paying the price by suffering defeat from the Union. These are all because of my father"s doing. We should just surrender and switch sides. Give up your crown if..."

Foolish. Ash was foolish. Her tongue was as loose as her head. She must have felt comfortable that she blabbered her real feelings.

"I apologize. I didn"t meant that! Believe me..."

His smile was more radiant that before. He wasn"t furious like what she expected. Harold nodded. He knelt on the gra.s.s and touched a blue Iris. The flower seemed to dance on his fingertips.

"Wars are weird, d-don"t you think?" Harold said "S-sometimes people fighting on o-opposite sides are not r-really enemies. I admire K-king Timothy. I"ve heard tales about h-him and his Queen. A match made by the O-omniscient himself, they all say. I didn"t w-want to fight him. I didn"t want to f-fight a war against the lion. He has a golden tongue and a s-sharp mind"

"Then end this" Ash again pushed. Her purpose was to sway Harold into their side. That was what she owed Queen Lucia. And now she probably could.

"T-too late" Harold said "Too late for that n-now"

"It"s never too late. I think it would be better if we join the Union in alliance. They are strong. They would triumph in the end"

Harold was just silent, still touching the blue flower.

Did she overstep? Was she too pushy? Thoughts entered Ash"s mind. Perhaps she had become desperate because of Sarah. Was this her plan? Ash felt dread.

Thankfully, Harold didn"t suspect a thing. And if he did, Harold hid it well.

Came the downing sun and Ash went to her room while Harold attended some matters regarding the supplies.

Ash locked the door, the iron bar kissing the sheath. It was a cold night- rare in early summer. The moon was well though, swelling a glow. Ash took an already burning lamp and stepped towards the table. Six candles were nested on the top and six candles she lit. The wicks burned and the tallow wax teared. The room was bathed in light.

In the corner of her eyes she saw a grin, white teeth flowing from the darkness. Ash shrieked. She stepped back.

"Don"t be like that" Sarah said. The two falconheads who were always following Sarah were standing beside the the Wismarine Princess. Their black and shiny silk robes were bulging from the armor underneath. Ash could only see their eyes from behind their helms shaped like heads of birds, with beaks of course. Those eyes were empty.

"I have news my friend" Sarah stepped forward to cup her face "The a.s.sa.s.sin probably failed or joined their side. I bet Asit would try to kill me soon"

"Good! He"s coming for you! I hope the a.s.sa.s.sin slits your throat" Ash felt satisfied with that burst. But her satisfaction was barred by Sarah"s unmoved expression.

"Asit specializes in poison so he wouldn"t have to slit my throat. An arrow or a small cut would be enough. Anyway..." Sarah sat on the bed and looked up. She sighed after "I failed again. I first sent a force through a secret path but they knew. And then my spies were captured. And now thr a.s.sa.s.sin I sent failed. I am a failure Ash"

There was sadness in her voice. Ash thought for a while that Sarah was really saddened. But she then remembered that Sarah was the one who ruined her own plans.

What was she thinking? Ash thought hard about the riddle of Sarah"s weird decisions. Why would she tell her enemies about her plans?

Sarah then leapt from the bed like a child. "I know!" The Wismarine Princess" tone was jubilant "It is time for a battle! A great battle Ash. Yes. King Timothy and I will meet in the field. A good ol" battle is what we need"

"King Timothy will never accept your invite for a battle" Ash said with her limited knowledge in the matter.

"Oh but he will have no choice if I attack Rockstuck directly. He will never allow himself being cut from Castonia"

"If you do that then you will be cut off yourself"

"Perhaps" Sarah said "But ain"t that a lovely situation? Oh I could only dream of the songs they will make of this"

"You will die. I hope" Ash sneered

"Everyone dies Ash" Sarah walked towards the door and opened it. The falconheads followed "Death is part of who we are. Death is a truth we all deny. Deny it all your life. Deny it with all your being..." Sarah started walking out. Her fading voice was chilling "Death still comes"

Ash slumped on the floor after Sarah left. The quiet sizzle of burning wax was all she could hear. She was tired of this. She wanted to rest or run away.

But no, Ash reminded herself. She had a duty. She would never give up on her duty. Sarah was going to attack Rockstuck. She must inform Queen Lucia.

Her hands moved fast to find the quill and paper. Her writting was hastened but her report was complete. She wrote everything she knew- the composition of the enemies, their numbers, the state of their weapons, their leaders- everything.

She finished the letter and immediately went to where she kept her pigeons. Down three stairs and turning two corridors and she was outside of the governor"s villa. She went beside the stables where she kept three cages of pigeons with blue ribbons tied around their necks.

She thought of her actions as futile and foolish of course. Sarah already knows about her secret. The Wismarine Princess wasn"t a halfwit who would just reveal her plans and expect everything to be alright. Sarah had a plan, Ash knew. But what can she do? She was just a spy, a trapped spy. She can"t do anything but to do her duty and inform her lieges of the enemy"s plan.

The smell of horse manure struck her nostrils. She crouched and grabbed a bird from one of the cages. Such a beauty, she thought for a while. She then tied the rolled paper on one of the pigeon"s feet.

"Go darling" She whispered to the pigeon "Go and spread the news to them"

Ash let go of the bird. It flapped its wings a few times before flying away. She hoped that the message would reach them.

Arrows then rained. Two arrows. .h.i.t the pigeon. The bird fell with a thud.

"See?" Ash heard Sarah"s voice "Told you"

With a look Ash discovered Sarah and dozens of crossbowmen standing to her back. When she turned her look a little, she saw the face she didn"t want to see the most.

"S-so what? S-sending a pigeon in the n-night does not mean she"s a spy. S-stop these lies Sarah. Ash m-my darling would never betray me. Such n-nonsense" Harold then looked at her. They met eyes. There was pain in those brown eyes. Harold was pleading with her, Ash knew- pleading for confirmation that she didn"t betray him.

Unfortunately, Ash did.