Page 36 of Her Royal Blood

“We’re about ready to set sail,” Derringer said. “Glad you made it safely.”

“I am as well. Do I have time to draft a letter before we go? And can you spare a soldier to take it to Solbrook for me?” I knew I was asking a lot, but I was Derringer’s prince and this was for the war effort.

“Yes. We have a few minutes and I’ll make a man available.” Derringer was amenable and accommodating.

I remembered the prisoner that I’d ask to speak on Navarrah City’s behalf when he reached Solbrook, but I wasn’t sure if Polonius was actually sending those prisoners to Solbrook or if he had other, more nefarious plans for them, so I decided to draft a letter to the king of Solbrook asking for this aid in the war against Polonius.

To King Stephan the Oxclaw King of Solbrook,

We hope this letter finds you well. I am writing on behalf of my father King Helix and the Kingdom of Navarrah City. We are under attack by Lord Polonius, the War Lord of Brahman’s Peak. He has captured our ports and threatens our kingdom with our troops spread thin, we are unable to defend ourselves against this unprovoked attack.

Despite our having recently signed a peace accord, Lord Polonius is acting in breach of our treaty and has maliciously committed war crimes against innocents and civilians, especially in the newly resurrected kingdom of Onyx Rah. We believe his intention is to conquer every kingdom in Voltaire and he will do so with the use of heavily armed airships.

We ask for your help in defeating Polonius and his Crypt Claw warriors before he’s enlisted too many to be dispatched. While we understand that our request is presumptuous and unexpected, we believe that an alliance with Solbrook will create a formidable defense against Polonius and his warriors.

Thank you for your consideration and support as we face this dangerous threat to the safety, sanctity, and security of both Solbrook, Navarrah City, Onyx Rah, and all of Voltaire.

With deepest respect and gratitude,

Prince Lex Redveign of Navarrah City

I closed up the envelope and marked it with my seal which I carried with me in a small satchel that held an extra set of clothes, a warm cloak, socks, some dried meat, cheese, and a leather bladder of water. I stood up from the well worn wooden table situated at the center of Derringer’s kitchen to find a soldier who might take the letter to Solbrook.

Derringer’s house was a modest fishing cottage which seemed to be always teaming with people and movement. Therewas a hallway with four rooms, two on either side that each held six bunk beds. A bathroom with four stalls and two sinks was located at the end of the hallway and a great room with chairs, small tables, and several more bunk beds lining the walls occupied the living room with a small kitchen and dining table off of it.

Derringer must have been able to continue operations in the heart of the port because the men he housed didn’t wear the garb of the Royal Guard, though most were soldiers. There were buckets of fish packed with ice in the kitchen that might give the Crypt Claw the impression that the men Derringer housed were fishermen, should they ever be raided.

When I walked into the main room, two soldiers approached me with a salute.

“Derringer said that you need a messenger,” the first, a tall man in his late fifties, addressed me.

“Yes. I need to get this message to their king.” I handed the man the note and he saluted me again.

“It is a two day journey there, one or two days for the delivery, and two days to return. We shall have your answer from their king in a week. Will that be sufficient time for you?” I wished it could have been a shorter amount of time but vehicles were scarce as were men to drive them.

“That should be fine, just please impart the urgency on behalf of the crown. We can’t have him dismiss our plea.” I was desperate and he could tell by the fast clip of my voice we needed all of the help we could get.

“I won’t let you down, Your Majesty, myself and my brother in arms won’t fail you.” The two of them bowed and awaited my dismissal.

“Safe, successful journey,” I wished them as they left and Derringer walked in.

“Good, you were able to connect with the messengers. It’s time for us to go. Your guards are awaiting your orders, Your Majesty.” I walked with Derringer to the back of the house where two dozen men were assembled in the fenced off courtyard.

While the yard space could not be seen from the street, an airship would be able to spot the soldiers so we needed to move out quickly. My orders had to be brief.

“Good morning troops. The goal of this mission is stay silent, and remain unseen. We are going to board Derringer’s boat two at a time. Do not walk together, make sure you’re wearing dark colors and board silently,” I ordered as I scanned the group to make sure all of the soldiers were dressed in dark clothing.

“Will we be returning to the harbor?” One of the soldiers asked. “Or do we need to relocate?”

“We’ll be returning to Navarrah City, but only long enough to drop off the prisoners to train with Jarvis and then we’ll be going to Onyx Rah.” I needed my men to focus on the task at hand with the understanding that there was still a long war to fight ahead of us.

“Once onboard Derringer’s ship, stay down so that any soldiers patrolling the harbor will not see you. The hour is still early enough where we have the cover of darkness to keep our movements hidden. We’ll sail through the day and when night falls we’ll shift into our wolves and board to cargo barges that are near the Isle of Vitoria.

“They should be carrying prisoners to transport to Brahman’s Peak. Kill the Crypt Claw and spare the prisoners. I offered them a position in our army if they promised to join our fight. Anyone who is still loyal to Polonius, kill. Those who are willing to join us, make sure they make it back to the boat safely. Keep the barges moving. We aren't going to sink them. Polonius will expect them to be in the water sailing, so we’ll send themback empty. By the time Poloinius sees that they’ve gone off course it will be too late for him to intervene. Any questions?”

My Royal Guard remained silent and focused, no one spoke up with questions so it was time to go. We moved out two by two walking quickly toward Derringer’s boat. He was the first to leave so that he could ready the ship to sail as soon as the last soldier was on board. We only had to stop the soldiers once when two Crypt Claw guards made their rounds of the wharf.

The Crypt Claw warriors talked with one another animated and gesturing as they passed a fishing schooner with an old man mending nets. They didn’t regard him and he didn’t look up at them. As soon as they walked far enough out of sight we finished loading the troops onboard the ship and set out to find Polonius’ barges. I stayed down below deck with some of the men and drank from my water and I mentally prepared to battle the Crypt Claw again.

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