Lady Katherine Harrington of Johanne

30 September, Year 32 of King Frederick V of Monrique's reign

Bordeux Harbour, Bordeux

Monrique

Today was a day I would remember for as long as I would live. I would tuck it in an imaginary pouch of gold, and store in the forefront of my mind, to relive it on the days that I needed the comfort of home.

As I stood here, between land and water, between the skies and the earth, I prepared myself to leave everything I had ever known in this lifetime for the uncertain, for the unknown.

"You must write to me at least once a week, all right?"

Shaking myself out of my reverie, I focused on Lisa, who was gripping my hands tightly as she strived to keep her tears in check.

She was not the only one. A significant number of people around us this very moment were sniffling loudly, and holding their hankies to their eyes as they bid their loved ones farewell at Bordeux harbour.

I smiled faintly, squeezing her hands. "I will try."

Her husband, Lord Evoric, Earl of Warwick, placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Lisa, I hardly think she would have the time to write," he pointed out, "she would have her hands full adapting to the new environment there, and teaching the girls."

Lisa waved it away dismissively. "She will write to us regardless of the workload if she values her life," she pinned me with a glare, "but Kat, if anyone – anyone at all - gives you any trouble about training women in warfare, then you must inform us. All of us will sail to Amöneburg with all speed - "

Evoric continued from there. " - and castrate the wretch such that he will never be able to sire any children - "

" – or if it is a woman, I would happily gouge out her eyeballs – "

" – and then disembowel him or her - "

I burst out laughing, imagining the highly unlikely event that that peace-loving Lisa and her equally mild husband would engage in such gory violence against anyone, even the most heinous of criminals.

However, I knew that they would not hesitate to do so for my sake, if the need ever arose.

"I can clearly see the portrait you are attempting to paint," I grinned, pulling them both into a tight hug, "and I am so fortunate to have friends like you."

Lisa, especially, held me in a vice-like grip. "Anything for you, Kat," her voice was choked, "I will miss you very much. Do take care of yourself."

"I will."

I could not believe that I was truly leaving. Indeed, I had changed my mind about my departure a hundred times in the mere three days I took to pack my trunks, and tie up all loose ends here.

In these few days, I also waited, holding onto my last shred of hope, for Richard to suddenly pop out of the shadows in the Castle, and assure me that he was merely making a good fool out of me when he ran away from home. That our engagement and wedding would go forward as planned.

But nay.

Hope was of such a nature. It was like an intricate snowflake you caught in the air that always melted into water, no matter how hard you gripped it and wished that it stayed the way it was.

It was impermanent. Fickle. Unreliable.

"Kat?"

I blinked again, returning to the present world. Evoric was peering at me oddly, while Lisa offered with a sad, weak smile.

"Are you thinking of Richard?"

I shrugged, not even bothering to lie.

"Did you hear anything at all from him after that last letter he sent you?" Evoric questioned me hesitantly, "any sign that he is well?"

I could understand their concern. Richard had been their friend too. None of us could have ever imagined, or even predicted, that he would take off the way he did.

"Nay, I did not," I shook my head heavily, "I wish I had, however. Then I can leave Bordeux in peace, knowing that he was safe, wherever he is at the moment." My eyes were burning.

He nodded, stricken. "We all wish the same."

"Do not worry about any of that. If we hear anything from Richard, we will let you know first," Lisa promised, "for now, concentrate on nothing but having a safe journey to the Longbournian Nations. Bon voyage."

She offered me one last hug, before handing me over to my brothers, who were patiently waiting some distance away from us to say goodbye to me. As I strode towards them, I quickly rubbed away the tears that had unconsciously sprung up in my eyes upon thinking of Richard.

"Dare not cry," I threatened with a fierce glare, "otherwise, I swear, I will walk away this very instant."

My two brothers, Jacques and Tristan, glanced at each other in surprise, before they burst out laughing.

"Did you experience a wet farewell?" Jacques chuckled, "fear not, we do not like tears any more than you do."

"We are strong, brave men, Sister-mine," little Tristan boasted, puffing out his chest proudly, "we do not give into crying fits."

"Men? Brave?" I raised an eyebrow at the eight-year old child, "says the boy who still hugs my poppet to sleep every night in fear of roaming spirits?"

Tristan grew pink. "Papa fears the supernatural too."

"But Papa does not sleep with his sister's old poppet," Jacques sniggered, "unlike – "

"Keep your silence, Brother-mine!"

"You are a strange one, Tristan," I shrugged, "of all the things you should be afraid of, you fear mere spirits who mean you no harm."

He became alert at once. "Like what?"

I exchanged impish looks with Jacques, who recognised this routine. "Demons."

Tristan froze. "D – Demons?"

"Aye, demons," Jacques confirmed gravely, keeping a straight face, "they appear as dark, shapeless shadows at night, and they like to feed on fear. As such, most of their victims are children who fear anything and everything under the Sun."

He gulped. "Like me?"

I lowered my voice to a mysterious murmur. "Like you."

Tristan looked between me and Jacques, his frightened grey eyes wide. For a long while, we tried to keep our faces solemn, as our youngest sibling waited anxiously for one of us to tell him that we were merely jesting.

When we did not, Tristan latched himself to me, trembling. "Please do not leave, Sister-mine," he begged, burying his face in my stomach, "come back to Johanne with me, and fend off those demons and spirits like you always do – " His voice shook.

At this point of our routine back in Johanne, Jacques and I would usually burst out laughing, and Tristan would realise at once that he had been duped. In turn, he would swear revenge and chase us around the gardens. The three of us would complete a good few rounds around our home, until the child forgot his rage in his exhaustion, and pleaded us to make him some fruit juice.

At the moment, however, it was all I could do not to burst into tears.

Tristan was our family's baby. I had been sixteen when he was born, and in these eight years I had raised him like my own child, I never had to leave him for as long as I was about to.

To say nothing of Jacques, who had been by my side from the moment I was born -

My elder brother caught my expression then, and his smile faded. "Tristan, demons only hunt naughty children," he remarked quietly, "and the last I remembered, you are a very good boy. I doubt they will come after you."

Tristan raised his head. "In truth?"

"In truth."

He considered it for a while. "But what about the spirits? Only Sister-mine can send them far, far away - "

"Your Sister-mine has to go to the Longbournian Nations on a very important job. One that will bring happiness to many little girls," Jacques continued in the same, soft tone, "surely you do not wish to prevent her from leaving, and make those girls unhappy?"

The child obediently shook his head. "Nay."

"In any case, Brother-mine and our parents can help you fight against the spirits while I am away," I held him tightly to me, "and I will also return once in a while to see how you are doing. How does that sound?"

He brightened at once. "That sounds wonderful."

"Good," I ruffled his hair, feeling my vision blur, "I will miss you both terribly while I am away. Take care of yourselves, and our parents in Johanne." I glanced at Jacques, who nodded.

"I promise," he smiled faintly, "now you had best climb on board before the ship leaves without you, Kat." He took one of my hands in his, while Tristan took the other.

I nodded sadly, as I allowed my brothers to escort me to the edge of the harbour, where the ship was docked. A wooden, makeshift staircase connected the harbour to the ship. I was about to step on it, when I heard a strong voice reverberate through the air.

"Hold on!"

I paused, turning around to find a familiar, heavily pregnant woman waddling towards me with all haste. Clutching her wooden basket tightly, she pushed her way through the crowds, her cheeks red with exertion.

"Jules?" Lisa was shocked.

As Jules was in confinement, she had been forbidden by the Queen to come to the harbour to see me off, despite her repeated requests to do so. From the looks of it, however, I supposed she had given her mother-in-law the slip.

Pregnant or not, one was trained well in stealth when she enlisted in the army.

"Did you ride to the harbour by yourself?" Evoric could not believe his eyes, "if you had told us you wanted to come, we would have waited for you. Or asked Nick to accompany you - "

"Of course we could not have waited for her," Lisa rolled her eyes, "Queen Eleanor would have seen her leave otherwise, and she would not have been able to come."

"Nick is away on state matters," Jules answered tiredly, "and in any case, I had to wait for the pastries to be fully baked before I could come." She gestured to the basket that hung on her arm.

Indeed, the wonderful smell of my favourite pastries wafted through my nose, as she came to an unsteady stop in front of me.

"This is for you, Kat," she held it out towards me, "in the event that you run out of refreshments on your journey, of course."

I blinked at her in surprise, before I accepted it. "Thank you very much, poppet," I was bewildered, "I was not under the impression that you liked to cook, or were any good at it, for that matter. Your brother has always been the better baker between the two of you." I inhaled the scent from the basket deeply, falling in love with the pastries at once.

She burst out laughing. "Well, you know that Max is currently in Vantauge serving as our ambassador. I had to seek the aid of our castle staff instead," she admitted, "however, I did help them a little. Just a little." A sheepish grin spread across her face.

I chuckled, shaking my head. "Thank you all the same. It is most sweet of you."

"You are welcome," she smiled, before she became solemn, "now, I need you to remember a few things while you are in Amöneburg. First and foremost, safety. Keep all your valuables under lock and key, and always sleep beside your sword. Pickpockets can be anywhere and everywhere, even within the army quarters."

I could sense that I was no longer listening to Jules, but to the Commander General of the Monriquan army.

"All right, I will be careful."

"Next, you must assess the camaraderie between your colleagues, or lack thereof. Like any other army, there will be alliances, jealousies, and so on among their ranks," she went on seriously, "take note of them, and be wary of them. When necessary – only when necessary - use them to your advantage." There was a hard gleam in her eyes.

I knew. Even in Monrique, women training right alongside men was still a novel concept. Despite amiable appearances, prejudices and resentments were rampant between the both sexes, and Jules and I had seen for ourselves how deep they could possibly run.

I had to be careful not to involve myself in situations of such delicate nature at the Acedemy, and if I was forced to do so, then I had to ensure that my involvement did not backfire on me.

"I will."

"Good," she sighed, "lastly..." She hesitated.

"Yes?"

"Protect yourself, and your students at all costs," she murmured, "battle wounds are not the only thing all of you will be vulnerable to in the training fields." She gazed meaningfully at me.

I understood at once. Emperor Sebastian's decision to start this institution would not be wholly welcome in the Longbournian Nations, and it was from this dissatisfied group that my students would face the greatest danger.

"I promise, poppet."

"Très bon," she smiled softly, "two of our Corporals who also received this opportunity are already stationed in Amöneburg, and I have written to them to meet you at the harbour when you arrive. They are Corporals Michelle Montgomery and Arielle Baudelaire, and you can turn to them if you face any difficulties there. You remember them, do you not?"

I nodded, relieved that I did not have to find my own way around a foreign land. I vaguely remembered Corporals Baudelaire and Montgomery, who were the best of friends, from some of the physical combat classes they taught me before I became an Archery Mistress.

"All the very best, Kat," she gripped my shoulders, "and take care of yourself." Before I could say anything, she had leaned forward to pull me into a hug.

A pop of laughter left my lips, as I held her gently. Before her pregnancy had made her ten-fold more emotional, Jules had expressed quite a significant aversion to hugging.

"Stop laughing, you piece of - " she started, annoyed, before pausing in astonishment, "oh. You kept your barrette." She touched the rose head of the barrette that was sticking out of my bun.

I pulled back from her, my forehead creasing. "Why is that such a surprise?"

Her hazelnut brown eyes brimmed with compassion. "You are in pain," she whispered, "I assumed you would not want to keep anything that reminded you of him, or of your engagement."

"Aye, Richard fled. However, you and Lisa stayed by my side, like you always have, and always will," my voice was soft, "this is a token of that priceless friendship, and I will be certain to treasure it while I am away."

She broke into a faint, wobbly smile, and her eyes became glassy at that. Almost at once, she looked away from me, and rubbed furiously at her eyes.

"All right, that is quite enough. You need to leave before you make me cry," she muttered, and swiftly proceeded to push me up the first step of the stairway towards the ship.

I smiled, taking a deep breath. Gazing at Lisa, Evoric, Jules, my family and all my other friends and well-wishers for one last time, I began to ascend the stairway, feeling utterly cold and foreign all of a sudden.

Once I was safely on board, the stairway was neatly folded into the ship, and tugged away from the harbour. The ropes that held the ship in place were severed, the anchor lifted.

I raised my hand to wave to all those below, as the ship belted out a loud groan to signal its departure.

I continued to wave at them all, even as the ship began to pull away from the harbour, even as my homeland drifted further and further away from me, even as their faces became a blur, even as Monrique became a small, grey dot in the horizon.

***

9 October, Year 1 of Sebastian VI, Emperor of the Longbournian Nations' reign

Amöneburg Harbour, Amöneburg

The Longbournian Nations

It was raining heavily when my feet first touched Longbournian soil.

Despite the gloomy weather, however, hundreds of people were milling about the harbour. They were a mixture of workers and family members, waiting to receive their loved ones, or unloading ships, or transporting sacks and trunks to their respective carriages waiting by the shores.

For a moment, I simply stood there beside my ship, drenched to the bone. I held my own trunks in one hand and clutched a flimsy scarf over my head with the other, while I watched them brave the storm without a complaint or a frown.

On hindsight, this had been the first impression I formed of Longbournians. Resilience.

"Mistress Harrington!"

Startled out of my reverie, I turned around to find two familiar women attired in navy blue Longbournian army uniforms sprinting towards me, expertly dodging all the people and the trunks in their way. The petite one of the two was faster than her companion, and she was the first to reach me.

"Mistress Harrington, it is such a pleasure to meet you! Greetings, I am Corporal Baudelaire," she beamed, breathless with exertion and happiness, "welcome to - "

"Arielle!" Corporal Montgomery admonished as she caught up to her, "do not be too hasty in assuming she is Mistress Harrington." She peered at closely at me, her brown eyes suspicious.

"But her trunks bear our army crest – "

"That could be a mere imitation – "

I was amused. "Corporals, you may ask me any question to ascertain my identity."

Corporal Montgomery drew herself up. "What is your – "

"At least let us continue this conversation under shelter," Corporal Baudelaire insisted, "this wretched storm is chilling me from the inside out." With that, she grabbed me and Corporal Montgomery by the wrist, and dragged us towards the boathouse down the shore.

Once we were inside the boathouse, and the door safely bolted and shut, Corporal Montgomery turned on me.

"Your full name?"

"Katherine Eleanor Harrington."

"How many siblings do you have?"

"I have two brothers. Lord Jacques, and Lord Tristan Harrington."

"When were you offered the position of Archery Mistress in the army?"

"31 January, Year 31 of King Frederick V of Monrique's reign."

"Which group of army officers do you teach?"

"I teach Cadets the basics of archery. I also hold remedial sessions from time to time for Corporals and Captains alike, whose skills are not up to army standards."

"Oh, cease the inquisition, Michelle. She is clearly Mistress Harrington," Corporal Baudelaire hushed her, "we had her in one of our classes last year, remember?"

Corporal Montgomery frowned. "I have hundreds of students. I cannot remember them all."

"Think hard," Corporal Baudelaire coaxed her, "it was the beginning of last year – "

"We do not have time for such games," she cut her off, checking her timepiece, "we need to bring Mistress Harrington to the institution, and prepare her for an audience with His Imperial Majesty this evening – and I certainly do not want to bring back the wrong woman." She scowled, crossing her arms.

I sighed heavily. I did not want to do this, but it seemed I only had one way left to prove to Corporal Montgomery that I was indeed Mistress Harrington, and not an imposter.

I held out my hand towards her, and lifted up my ring finger. "This is my engagement ring," I explained dully, "Prince Richard had it specially made for me using the crown jewels, with my specific finger measurements. You may check its authenticity if you wish."

Corporal Montgomery went still. Her eyes flitted to my ring for the briefest of moments, and flashed in recognition.

As far as I knew, no one in Monrique except for the royal family was in possession of the red beryl stones on my ring. Any Monriquan with eyes could identify a red beryl when they saw one, considering the fact that Queen Eleanor's favourite diadem had several of these gemstones embedded in it.

The silence in the boathouse thickened as the three of us stared at my ring.

It was Corporal Baudelaire who dared to speak at last. "You still kept the ring?" she whispered, "after..."

I shrugged. "He is no longer around for me to return it."

Her eyes were filled with compassion. "I am so sorry, Mistress Harrington."

I nodded silently, looking away from her. I did not want her pity. Not here, and not now, when I had come to start a new life away from the terrible memories.

In the meanwhile, Corporal Montgomery drew herself up, and released a small huff. "Please follow me, Mistress Harrington," she instructed me gruffly, "Corporal Baudelaire and I will bring you to the institution."

That was the only indication she gave that she believed me, as she walked out.

***

A huge, dark grey structure loomed over the carriage as it approached the end of the cobbled path.

When I squinted hard enough against the downpour, I could faintly make out the five towers that stood guard over the central building of the establishment, the intricate designs on its stained-glass windows, the green ivy creeping on its sides, and the nearly overflowing moat that surrounded it.

I craned my neck to take a better look at the structure. "Is this the Emperor's Palace?"

"It used to be one of His Imperial Majesty's many residences," Corporal Baudelaire explained, "but he has now converted it to our military school. Welcome to the Longbourne Military Academy for Women, Mistress Harrington." She declared grandly, as the carriage crossed the drawbridge, and rolled past the front gates into the school grounds.

As we neared the school, the buzz of chatter and laughter grew louder and louder. The front lawns were covered with fresh grass, and there were muddy puddles here and there, across which groups of young students were leaping - and sometimes failing - as they sprinted towards the Academy for shelter.

I watched them with a small smile on my face. It must be nice to be so young and full of energy.

In the meanwhile, Corporal Baudelaire continued to speak beside me. "Do you see those five towers?" she pointed out to me, "those are our students' dormitories. Five of our colleagues live in each of the towers to supervise them, and the rest of us live in the central building. The central building also contains twenty schoolrooms for the theory classes, and close to fifty weaponry rooms that hold all kinds of weapons known to man."

My eyes almost popped out of their sockets. "Fifty weaponry rooms?"

At that moment, the carriage came to a halt in front of the porch. Instead of answering me, my companions took hold of my trunks and jumped out.

I scrambled to follow them. "I must have misheard you, Corporal Baudelaire," I insisted, falling into step with them, "surely a military institution that has just been established would not have been allotted enough weapons to fill fifty chambers?"

Corporal Montgomery merely rolled her eyes, and continued walking ahead of us, while Corporal Baudelaire paused to smile kindly at me. "The Longbournian army is one of the most advanced in the world, Mistress Harrington," she remarked, "and it is determined to ensure that it remains that way."

I blinked at her, still stunned, as I allowed her to pull me along. We followed Corporal Montgomery past the maze of students and staff milling about the corridors and the schoolrooms, and up the long flights of stairs towards our living quarters.

It seemed that it was going to take me quite a while to become accustomed to this empire.

Before I knew it, Corporal Baudelaire had pulled me to a stop in front of one of the chambers along the endless corridor, right next to the flight of stairs we had climbed mere moments ago.

"These are our quarters," she beamed, "what do you think?"

I froze on the threshold of the quarters, taken aback.

By God, it was so spacious. Three small cots were placed in each corner of the room, complete with a bedside table and a cupboard beside each. The pillows and linen covering the beds were fresh white, and each colourful quilt was of a different, intricate design.

I assumed the empty bed beside the window was meant for me.

A common dressing table and a looking-glass were set up a few steps from where I stood, and a wide desk with a stack of fresh parchment, a cup filled with quills and a bottle of ink was placed opposite it. The empty space in the middle of the room was covered with a round, woollen rug that was comfortable enough to sit on.

If I was not mistaken, there was even a bathing chamber at the end of the room.

"I am to live here?" I was stunned, "truly?"

Corporal Montgomery, who was wringing her hair dry of the rainwater by her bedside, paused in her movements. Casting her towel aside, she eyed me distastefully from where she stood.

"The three of us are to share this room," she answered stiffly, "so, yes, you will be living here. I am sorry if you were accustomed to more luxurious living conditions in Monrique as a future Princess Consort, but – "

"Nay, nay, I did not mean that, Corporal Montgomery," I shook my head, breaking into an awed beam, "this room looks and feels a lot more comfortable than the female army quarters in Monrique! Make no mistake, I am most impressed."

Corporal Baudelaire burst into laughter next to me. "When I had first arrived, I thought I reached the wrong room," she confided in me, "but I realised, as you soon will, that His Imperial Majesty will spare no expense in establishing this institution." Her eyes shone.

I raised an eyebrow, disbelieving. "Indeed?"

For the first time that day, Corporal Montgomery deigned to smile, albeit weakly. "Aye, indeed," she confirmed, "not only is he hell bent on seeing this initiative succeed, but he is also exceedingly generous by nature. You will understand what we mean when you meet him."

"When would that be?"

Corporal Montgomery glanced at her timepiece. "We have been given instructions to reach the palace by 18 00 hours," she answered, "you had best make yourself presentable quickly."

I nodded, intrigued by the Emperor already. "I believe I will."

***

I closed my eyes.

My stallion, Stanley, galloped at a steady pace across the wide, green plains. All was calm, except for the sound of his hooves hitting off the slippery ground at regular intervals. The cool air after the rain enveloped me in its peace, setting me more at ease than I had been in the past few weeks.

Indeed, I was revelling so deeply in the feeling of being able to ride again after what felt like ages, that I was only half-listening to Corporal Montgomery and Corporal Baudelaire's instructions beside me.

"...I must warn you, most of the court still disapproves of our work, and they take much pleasure in shaming us every time we have an audience with His Imperial Majesty," Corporal Montgomery was grumbling, "directly or indirectly, we are criticised about everything, from what we wear, to how we behave."

"But that is no excuse to pick a fight with them," Corporal Baudelaire added, shooting a meaningful glance at her friend, "as Michelle does every time she visits the palace. Honestly, it does nothing to help." She shook her head.

Despite myself, I was curious. "Why, what happened?"

The Corporal in question huffed under her breath. "A few weeks ago, we were walking towards the Emperor in the throne room, when I heard a noble standing by the aisle speak," she grudgingly answered, "he was telling his companion that he simply could not understand why His Imperial Majesty would think that women could possibly fare equal to men on the battlefield. And do you know what this pig replied in kind?"

"Nay, what?"

Corporal Montgomery's eyes flashed. "He said that it was only because we could bleed for a week, every month of the year, and not perish," her hands on her reins shook, "and they proceeded to laugh under their breaths as if it was the funniest jest in the world."

Indignation rose within me. "The nerve - "

Corporal Baudelaire chuckled dryly. "You will feel better after she tells you what she did next," she rolled her eyes, grinning, "go on, Michelle." She nudged her friend.

The corners of her lips twitched. "I turned around at once, and punched him and his companion. A lot of blood gushed out of their noses," Corporal Montgomery recalled in quiet satisfaction, "everyone present was shocked, even the Emperor. The Corporals stood ready to arrest me. But His Imperial Majesty stopped them, and demanded an explanation from me."

"And what did you say?"

"I looked at the injured nobles, and told them that I was simply curious to know how long they could bleed without dying," she shrugged, "eventually the whole story came to light, and the Emperor forced them to apologise to us on their knees, bleeding noses and all."

I snickered, imagining the scene. "I wish I could have been there."

At that very moment, we heard a thunder of hooves approaching us, followed by a deep voice that rang loud and clear throughout the plains, shattering the peace of environment.

"Release me!"

Before we could even blink, a black stallion crossed us at breakneck speed, almost throwing us off our own. Once I regained my balance, I could discern two men sitting astride on it – one man had control of the reins, while the other had his hands bound behind him, and his torso bound to the former's, by several ropes.

"If I had time, I would have bound your mouth as well," I heard the rider grumble, "keep your silence and stay still!" With that, he struck out at his captive's jaw carelessly with one hand.

His captive did not even wince. "I will free myself," he shot back at once, "you wait..." He was struggling for all it was worth against the tightly knotted ropes, tiring, and failing - but never giving up.

Again, I was witnessing resilience in a Longbournian, and respected it.

Corporal Baudelaire leaned forward. "Mayhap we should - "

In the meanwhile, I had grabbed my bow, and fitted an arrow from my quiver onto the string. Leaning back slightly, I fixed my gaze on the knots that bound the ropes around that man's arms, and released my arrow.

Twang!

The arrow travelled in a graceful arc through the evening sky, and sliced straight and neatly through his first few knots.

Even Corporal Montgomery looked impressed. "Nice."

The captive - a lean, young man in his mid-twenties - turned around at once to see who had shot the arrow. His round, sea-green eyes scoured the area before they landed on me.

It may have only been a moment or two, but he held my gaze, solemn and intense, for what seemed like an eternity. Despite the gravity of the situation, it felt as if he was daring me to look away first.

I did not.

A ghost of a smile graced his lips, and he inclined his head towards me in thanks, before he swiftly worked through the remaining knots to free his hands.

I released a low cheer. "Excellent," I murmured, "now - "

Corporal Baudelaire squinted. "That man looks oddly familiar - "

"We can identify him later," I cut her off, "now that he is free, he will need to escape - and he can hardly jump off a moving horse. Come, let us go."

With that, I tugged on Stanley's reins to speed up, and my colleagues followed me closely behind. In the meanwhile, the man cautiously unknotted the ropes that bound his body to his captor.

When I neared him, I snapped my fingers softly to catch his attention. He turned around at once, surprised but relieved to find me riding next to him.

"What do I do?" he mouthed at me.

"Hold on."

I nudged Stanley to ride closer to the black stallion, but remain behind his captor's line of vision. Once I was near enough to touch him, I wrapped an arm around his waist and attempted to lift him.

He understood, and endeavoured to help me. Combined with his remaining strength and mine, we managed to pull him from his captor's saddle onto mine, such that he was sitting side-saddle behind me.

"Are you all right?" I hardly dared to whisper.

"Do not worry about me," his voice was a lulling baritone, thick with a foreign accent, "I am perfectly well, thank you." Holding my shoulders for support, he adjusted himself such that he was sitting astride.

As soon as he was safely seated on my horse, a sword came flying out of nowhere, and lodged itself tightly in his captor's back. His captor released a sharp groan, as he arched back, dead even before he hit the ground.

The black stallion continued to charge off into the distance, free.

Stunned, I turned around to find Corporal Baudelaire cheering some distance away, raising her fist into the air.

"Why do you look so surprised?" she shrugged when I stared at her, "if I were you, I would like to be certain that the man I rescued has one less enemy who is likely to kill him and undo all my hard work."

"And she tells me that I am the one who is prone to violence," Corporal Montgomery muttered, rolling her eyes.

The man seated behind me chuckled. "You are correct, Corporal Baudelaire," he declared cheerfully, turning around to face her, "however, he was not the real enemy. His only instructions were to bring me alive to his master."

Both Corporal Montgomery's and Corporal Baudelaire's eyes widened at once in recognition. "Sire?"

Upon hearing that, I reined Stanley in, so that my colleagues could catch up to us. "Hold," I frowned when they reached either side of me, confused, "you both know this man?"

Corporal Montgomery opened her mouth to answer, but the man held up a hand to silence her. "My name is Sebastian. Sebastian Hohenstaufen," he turned to smile at me, "but you may better know me as the Emperor of the Longbournian Nations."

***

A/N: This is the man whom I picture the Emperor as. As always, you are free to imagine whoever you like in his place :)