Alexei clapped his hands behind his back. General Bani had led our troops into battle, and was currently at the front. Therefore, Alexei stood in his place. “Our forces weren’t able to penetrate the wards Gabriella set up around the village. She has strong sorceresses on her side. We lost a hundred soldiers in the charge, and countless more are injured. She will remain in control of the village, at least for some time.”
“We cannot allow her to remain there,” Lord Gray insisted. “She’s ten miles from the city!”
“We have no choice but to allow her to hold it, for now,” I noted regrettably. “When our forces recover, we will try to run her out again.”
“That will take some time. Months, perhaps, to learn how to break the boundary wards around the village, and perhaps longer to enlist new soldiers and train them,” Alexei said.
“We don’t have the luxury of waiting that long,” Lord Gray hissed.
“She’s attempting to gather strongholds. She won’t mount a major offense against Dolinska until she has that baby, and we still have some time,” I insisted. “Now isn’t the moment to act. We need to be cautious, and make a solid plan.”
There were mumbles around the room, but no one else made any further objection. And how could they? There wasn’t much we could do, except learn how to break those wards and get new soldiers trained, so we could attempt to take the city again.
“In the meantime, we need to strengthen wards of our own,” Emma said. “Dolinska has to be protected.”
“I will see to it,” Lady Renia volunteered. “I have strong sorceresses under my command. They will make the wards around Dolinska stronger than they are currently, so Gabriella’s forces will not be able to penetrate them.”
I nodded. “The queen and I must go to the front,” I said. “The soldiers will gain some morale if they see us in person.”
“It’s not a pretty sight,” Alexei warned.
“I have stomached plenty of gruesome scenes in my time. We will go,” I insisted.
The servants had a carriage prepared, but I thought that would take too much time. I could get there much faster on three legs. I changed into a wolven, and Emma hoisted herself onto my back. Soon, we left the palace gates and took the main road toward Pruska. The guards barely had time to transform themselves and keep up with us. Alexei changed into a griffin and ran beside me. The general public parted out of our way, surprised that the king himself was running through the streets of Dolinska like a wild man.
This wasn’t following protocol, but fuck the rules. My soldiers needed me.
Emma could feel my guilt. She put a hand on my shoulder and stroked my fur as she said, “This wasn’t your fault.”
“I will not allow soldiers to go into battle without me ever again. I cannot sit high in my castle while good fae die for me,” I told her. “To not be there was a mistake.”
“Kings lead. They don’t always fight.”
“I should fight. I can’t allow my army to experience such a downfall without me being present again,” I said. “It’s not the kind of ruler I want to be.”
“Staying alive is more important. I can’t sit on this throne without you,” Emma said.
I bared my teeth. “I will never leave you. But yet, I cannot turn my back on these soldiers again. I have asked them to fight for me. I should have no quarrel about fighting alongside them.At the very least, I should be there.”
Emma nodded. “Let me conjure a portal. We’ll get there faster.”
She waved her hand, and one blossomed in front of me. I ran through it, followed by Alexei and my guard.
Our soldiers were stationed a ways off from Pruska, at a distance where you could still see the village on the horizon. Once I stepped through the portal, I witnessed the silvery outline of the ward around the village, and I growled lowly.
We came to the edge of the camp, and Emma slid off my back. I changed into a man, and we began our walk through the tents while the guards followed.
The ground was wet, and thick with mud. It sank up to our ankles and smelled sour. There was the scent of blood, along with the festering smell of disease rising through the air. We wound our way through the tents, and all at once, several heads looked up.
“The king! The king is here!” I heard someone cry.
Soldiers swarmed to us, desperate and wanting. They were covered in dirt and gore, which was streaked across their uniforms. The guards rushed forward to push them back, but I held up a hand, telling them it was all right.
I didn’t know what to say. WhatcouldI say, looking at all these despondent soldiers, ones who had fought and lost in my name?
Thankfully, Emma spoke for me. She always had words when I did not. “I can see you all fought very bravely,” Emma said. “No matter the outcome of this battle, I can say that the king and I are very proud to have soldiers like you fighting for us out there.”
“By my queen, we lost,” a young man voiced, and there was a mumble of shamed agreement.
