Page 96 of The Princess of Nothing
Her brown eyes glazed. “Edgar is coming.”
My throat tightened. “Sorry, what? We’re not ready.”
“He knows the ships have left to come to you. He has Xenos’s backing. They’ve sent two companies and generals to aid Edgar.”
“That’s at least three thousand men.”
“They’ve underestimated us.” She touched my shoulder, then squeezed. “Adius has done an excellent job at preparing the soldiers.”
“Half of them aren’t even trained!” I panicked, pacing in a circle. “They’re fishermen, traders... blacksmiths for goodness’ sake. We don’t have enough men to beat him. Unless...” I worked over each word. Men. Always men. “What about the women? Wives, daughters... of age, of course. If we brought them into our ranks, we’d easily outnumber Edgar with the fae on our side too.”
Her eyes widened. “Female soldiers. It is a good idea, one no one will see coming.”
“I know not everyone will agree. It’s not proper, but if we can get Adius on board, I just know there are women out there, like you and me, who are brave and smart and want to fight for their kingdom, rights, and families. Naturally, any who don’t wish to join mustn’t. Only those who want to fight. Especially if they have children. They can’t be left alone.”
“We can work out details. Now you’re thinking like a queen. Like I said before, out with the old.”
She sandwiched her hands between mine. “Many ladies are fed up sitting on the sidelines. This gives them a chance, a voice. We must tell Adius.”
Adius reached the beach. Pockets of freezing air hit us as we stood inches apart. Morgana stood by his side. They’d always been good friends, even at the castle when I was young.
He bowed at his waist. “Your Majesty.”
“Adius,” I said, my gaze flitting from his to Morgana’s. “I want you to gather all women of age.”
He stood straight. “For what reason, Majesty?”
“To ask them if they’re willing to fight. They’re not to be forced. They do not have to. But any who are willing can step forward and be trained along with the men as soldiers. As you have already heard, Edgar is coming, and we need numbers.”
Adius’s eyes bulged. Absurdity pinched his mouth into a hard line. “Women?” he asked as if I might have been mistaken.
“Yes. Women.”
“As soldiers?”
“Yes.” I slowed it down for him. “I know it’s not the proper thing, but why not? I am fighting.”
“With all due respect, Your Majesty, you are our queen. You are the exception. I believe this is a mistake. We will continue as we are. We don’t have the numbers, but we have the strength.”
“I am not asking, Adius. You will do as ordered by your queen,” I commanded, standing as tall as I could. “Bring the women together, and the ones who wish to fight, train them with the men.”
His eyes darted from me to Morgana, hesitance guiding his tone. “I believe it’s a bad idea. They’re weak, and we need them to stay behind to take care of things back in the villages for once the battle is over. As your commander, I am strongly against this.”
“If I need your advice, Adius, I will ask for it. Otherwise, you will do as I say. You came here to be the commander of my army, to stand at my side. I am asking you now to trust me, as your ruler.”
“Of course, Your Majesty. I will obey a command by my queen.” He bowed once more and walked away, his fists visibly balled at his sides.
I was shaking.
Morgana’s eyes appraised me. Pride etched onto her features. “You did a good job today.”
“He wasn’t going to accept my request.” My eyebrows furrowed. “I mean at first.”
“Just because you are queen does not mean you will immediately be respected. It is earned. Right now, they see you as a girl queen, their rightful leader but a woman and a teenager nonetheless. They think they can rule your decisions. You must show more strength than your father ever needed to. It is the world we live in. With the right counsel and guidance, you can be better than any king.”
“I feel like I did the right thing.” I moved my gaze from hers back to the ships, which grew closer.
“Let Edgar come. Let him bring his armies. We will win.” My voice charged with hope. “I can feel the scales shifting, Morgana, in our favor. Keep trying to disrupt the work being done on the dragons. Once we have fought our battle, we will rebuild. It may take years, but eventually, we will have enough resources to take down Berovia. Once Edgar has fallen, Xenos wouldn’t wage war straight away, not with our people ready to fight. He needed my cousin to take Magaelor. They knew they couldn’t turn the people to them unless their king or queen made it so. That’s why Kiros wanted to marry me. It was a clean way of taking Magaelor. If they truly thought they could have it by force and win, they would have.”
