Kai’s horse struggled to keep balance like many of the soldiers behind him, but as Alion told him: It was the only route available west of the Cortez Mountains. They traversed the foothills alongside their troops, Kai kept his eyes forward, slouching. It wouldn’t be long before they reached the Colslavic lines. Alion kept close by a canteen filled with wine, stolen from the Kaiser's desk in the early morning. Tobias and Cordelia rode close behind, the siblings chatted quietly between one another about her new fiance, Prince Tomas Kolar of Colslavia.

  Behind them the soldiers marched along sloped, rough ground filled with large white stones and patches of uneven grass. To their right was an endless lake that extended out to the horizon. To their left, the slopes continued all the way to the mountains. The Guards Corps, the personal army of the Crown Prince, was marching in five three-man wide columns. They were stretched like long snakes along the slopes, segmented into groupings of a few hundred, each with a horse-mounted officer leading them. The mounted officers leading them rode exactly as they were taught at the academy: a fist on their hip, heads held high, silently observing. Their fine dark green uniforms and sleek black tricorns with small clusters of feathers produced an unignorable contrast to the foot soldiers below them. The soldiers hauled everything and anything they were given. Large packs were stuffed full of accouterments and requisition goods from local Colslavic villages and groups of refugees they passed. Anything refugees didn’t necessarily need was bargained off to the Tykan men, who in turn gave them fine cutlery, rations, or their pay of the Kaiser’s fine Notes. The men’s black boots had been crusted to a crude muddy brown from the incessant marching, they hadn’t seen much, if any, combat since the war began. Nothing but marching, marching, and more marching back and forth, back and forth.

  Now though, on their march south, instead of the usual snarky comments and moaning complaints, the men were quiet. Perhaps, after this march south, when they reached the frontlines of King Torrent’s royal armies they would finally see their first real action. His eyes fell upon the old trusted and beloved battle flags and banners of each of the regiments of Guards Corps, flown for a century before them, and now they fly on the peninsula again. Each banner was behind the mounted officers, carried high, and it was said in the newspapers of high Tykan society of noble clubs and coffeehouses that only the old Tykan army still flew their flags in the field. Some would say they were needless relics, but the Kaiser insisted.

  So much so was the Kaiser’s insistence on tradition that behind those colorful banners of white and green were drummers, army musicians, one every few hundred men. As the columns marched they tapped a brisk left-right beat to keep the men in step. It provided some comfort to the young prince, some distant memories of early military school practice.

  Kai struggled to keep out lingering thoughts of anger toward the interference of his mother, a tutor on top of everything else he had to deal with down here. There was nothing he had liked about the south, a barren waste engulfed in gloomy weather, and petty war.

  Luckily, at least for himself, he could distract himself for long hours when no one was looking and go out to take in the vast empty landscape, something only the Crystal Prairie could rival in size and feel back home. The wind started to pick up a bit, and a sudden gust came along the massive lake of Gazon at the bottom of the slope. The wind carried a small wave of foam gliding over the shores. He took in the cold breeze, and let out a deep breath. The gust continued past him, up the great forested, almost unclimbable escarpment to his left and the massive Cortez mountains.

  They soon climbed to a small rise before Kai and Alion halted their horses. Alion raised one of his arms, and with it the whole corps stopped behind him, many of the men quickly dropping to the ground for a brief respite. Alion stared down his binoculars for a minute, before handing them to Kai, “We’re here,” and as Kai grasped them he pointed outwards, “Torrent’s front, our home for the week.”

  The front rested along a vast flat isthmus that split the two great lakes with deep fields of grass and stone. The lakes glimmered under gray skies, and great shadows crawled over the green fields below, the smoke rose in the distance. Kai pulled the binoculars down, a frown spelled on his face. The boy looked to Alion, who only took the binoculars back. Alion packed the binoculars away, and readjusted himself on his horse,“It’s cold,” Tobias said. He pulled his field coat tight around his chest.

  “Nothing to do but keep forward, I want to reach the front before dusk,” Alion said. As he lowered his arm, the corps started up again. They started down the slopes that led to the isthmus, their horses struggling over the small rocks littering the thin grass.

  Kai could see ahead on the gravel trail that a village lay off to the side in complete ruins. Homes with walls blown apart, piles of bricks thrown together as the communities tried to clean up the damage before outright abandoning the village. As their columns continued the slow march down, Kai’s eyes were locked on the ruins. He was for a moment engrossed in morbid imagination, he saw the fire, the shelling, he could hear it. When the first raindrop landed on his hand, he realized that there was no cover from the rain on the trail. The column stopped again.

  Down the slope he saw riders approaching. Alion waved to the riders, it was a trio of Colslavic officers, two dressed in black, one in a decorated royal uniform, and they rode white horses. Alion looked to Kai, “Wait here, this might take a minute.”

  Alion rode his horse over to the officers followed by a collection of his staff, “Is that Tomas?” Cordelia asked, nobody was certain. She followed Alion toward the officers.

  Tobias groaned, “Wait here, okay?” he told Kai before joining the entourage. Kai felt the raindrops fall heavy on his head, he waited for a minute before deciding to get off his horse. He passed the reins over to an orderly. He was trying to stretch his legs. As he stretched, his eyes went back to the ruins: a small overgrown garden, surrounded by a few old trees and a crumbling cobble wall. Beyond it lay a small red barn with its doors slightly agape, it had caught his attention. He wiped some of the rain from his face as he approached the house, stepping over the crumbling wall and into the quiet garden. The voices of the officers faded as he passed under some low-hanging trees for a brief moment of relief from the rain. Weeds had overgrown the garden, some smashed cabbages lay strewn about, and some tools were left on the ground.

  He came to the barn door, pulling it open wide. A workbench immediately caught his eye. There was a small wooden horse sculpture laying on its side, left behind. He heard the sound of some rain seeping in from cracks in the timber roof. He brushed away large swathes of dust as he sifted about some of the few other items still left on the rotting workbench. A soldier's helmet, a tin of stale cookies, and a framed family photo. It was a family standing in the very garden Kai had passed through. He picked up the horse sculpture, it was a project made with meticulous care, it seemed to be a horse on its hind legs, but the horse’s body from the stomach down was not completed. The tools used for the project were still on the workbench, a small carving tool, and even some wood shavings piled in a corner of the workbench. It looked to be a toy somebody was making for a child, but any opportunity for play was clearly cut short. Kai put the sculpture back, and the wood creaked and bent under him as he made his way through a door, its glass window long since smashed, and its doorknob shot off.

  As he stepped out of the barn, boots slipping on the mossy steps, he found himself in the remnants of a dirt road cutting through the ruins. Large puddles of rainwater were forming as the drainage ditches clogged, creating small swirling whirlpools in the dirt. He looked at the few remaining houses, run-down, hollow. The broken glass made the sides of the road glimmer. He felt shivers run up his spine, there was no sign of life, not even wildlife, just him and the rain. He slowly walked down the rubble-strewn road, gazing at the dilapidated homes seemingly sinking into the ever-thickening mud.

  Along his stroll, Kai came across a small bakery. It was a modest brick building with its door barely attached to its hinges. Kai pulled the door open, seeing only a small counter, old loaves of bread, and two great stone ovens in the back. He walked in, broken glass crunching beneath his feet. Behind the counter, he noticed a rosary on the ground. Black and red beads with the symbol of an ax, the symbol of Phanism, at its end. Kai kneeled down and picked up the rosary, wrapped it around his palm, and closed his fist. He stared at the ax for a moment and hoped whoever once owned this rosary was safe.

  A breeze came through the window, and Kai peered over the counter. He could see soldiers begin to step into the dirt road, some stepping into other shops and looting their contents. He watched as soldiers used the butts of their rifles to smash glass to take whatever commodities remained. They held up little trinkets in admiration, pocketing the ones they thought valuable.

  Tykan officers came into the streets on horseback, they carried leather swagger sticks and barked at the soldiers, “Put those down! You morons!” they shouted as they swung their batons.

  It didn’t take long for the Colslavic officers in black uniforms to ride into the village, and quickly the commotion escalated. Alion followed them and cursed at his men. Some soldiers were rounded up by the officers, the rest had returned to the main road. One Colslavic officer shouted something in his native language, then raised his army saber.

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  “Hold on now!” Alion shouted, “Let’s calm down! You!” Alion shouted to one of his officers, “Get the MP’s and these mens names… We’ve got this under control.”

  The apprehended soldiers pouted their lips, officers emptied their sacks and removed their contents. Kai tightened his grip on the rosary.

  The Colslavic officer shouted again, the other translated, “He says these men ought to be executed for this crime, we can no longer tolerate this sort of behavior.”

  “No!” Alion shouted, his voice trembled, “No, no. They’d be much better service to you alive than dead,” The officer snarled, he sheathed his sword. Though the man still looked unconvinced. Alion pleaded, “Hard labor, three months. They’ll dig trenches and roads, far better than making three men dig their graves, eh?”

  The translator communicated this to the first officer. The Colslavic man calmed down, though still grimacing as the officers rode off. Alion let out a sigh of relief, and the officers hauled the apprehended soldiers away.

  “Kai!” Alion shouted, noticing him in the bakery, “There you are,” he said, relieved, “Come on, we’ve got to meet with King Torrent before dark. Tomas says we aren’t far.”

  Kai stood up and came to the doorway of the bakery. He had never met another prince before, he hoped that he might find a friend in Tomas. Though before he left, he noticed a basket on the ground. There were a few coins in it, and Kai recognized them as the baskets his father had mentioned before. He looked at the rosary in his hand again and fished in his pocket. He took out a few Tykan Notes and tossed them into the basket before leaving the old village.

  ***

  They found the Castle of Yuri at the top of a pancake hill. The Colslavic officers were woefully silent throughout the ride. Alion had hoped that their first impressions of each other could be undone over the coming days, but it became clear to him after about an hour of silent riding that the Colslavics were not interested in befriending more Tykans. Alion swallowed his pride as he finished the last of his wine. He noticed that the boy was nearly slipping off his horse with tiredness, nodding his head with each hoofbeat. Cordelia rode ahead with Tomas, they had been talking and laughing the whole way.

  The Colslavics led Alion, Tobias, and Kai up to the tall iron gates of Yuri. There were more uncared for gardens on every side, and the estate itself was small with iron fencing surrounding it. It was a renovated castle with more contemporary architecture. Glass windows filled the front face of the building and heavy wooden doors domineered over the gardens, the prince of Colslavia turned around to face Alion and the two boys, “Welcome to Castle Yuri,” he said, “My father is inside, I’ll be with you after we take in Cordelia’s bags.”

  Colslavic Royal Guardsmen stood at the iron gates and made way for them. They all dismounted their horses, Alion helped Kai down. After tying their reeds to bars of the iron fencing, the two Colslavic officers each lit cigarettes and stepped into the interior gardens of the estate. The translating officer dragged on his cigarette before pointing to a heavy wooden door, “He’s just in there…” he said before they wandered away from the three Tykans. Alion patted Kai on the back, “I suppose we’re better off without them, eh?” he joked.

  Tobias and Kai followed Alion across the courtyard and through the tall wooden doors of the castle. Kai took off his gloves and unbuttoned his coat, Alion and Tobias did the same. They saw the orange glow of a fireplace down a dark wooden hallway and through a cased opening. Alion led them down the hall, the floorboards creaked as they came into the large living room.

  A Colslavic flag hung from the wall above the mantel, and on either side were racks of old hunting muskets. The living room was wide, and on the left wall were gaping windows that overlooked the gardens. The isthmus was visible far in the distance. The room was quiet, all but the murmur of the Colslavic officers outside and the crackle of the fireplace entered their ears.

  The King lay asleep on a plaid chair to the left of the mantel, one leg kicked up onto a cherrywood coffee table. His hat was tilted over his eyes, and he snored. Alion stood with the boy under the arched entrance, “Erm,” Alion announced.

  Torrent jolted awake, he lifted his hat and looked to the two, “Oh,” he said as he yawned, “You’ve made it.”

  Alion gave a curtsy and tapped his boot onto Kai’s, Kai got the cue to follow his lead. The King pushed himself upright, he gestured to a couch on the other side of the coffee table. Alion sat on the sofa and looked about the room, “This is a beautiful place…” he said. Kai moved to the mantel, taking up a fire poker to poke at the coals.

  Torrent nodded, “Yes, and who are you?” He pointed to Tobias.

  “I’m Tobias Apollo. The Kaiser is my uncle.”

  “I see,” Torrent said. He rolled up the sleeves of his turtleneck sweater. He was a thin man with a thinner mustache, short hair, and a young face. He wore thin glasses and a peaked military cap. The man got up, his limbs were long and ached with each step. The man crept over to his liquor cabinet, he poured a shot of vodka and brought it to his lips, “So, you lot are the Guard Corps? I should have known.” Torrent coughed, the shot burned his throat, and he turned between the window and the sofa. He caught his breath, “How old are you, son?” he asked of Kai.

  “Thirteen,” he said, swinging the fire poker around with him as he turned.

  “Last I seen you, you were this tall,” Torrent held his hand up to his hip, “Just a lad, look at you now.”

  A woman stepped into the living room, she carried books under her arm, “Sirs,” she said, giving a curtsy to the King, “I’m here to escort the prince to his chambers for study.”

  “Ah,” Torrent smiled, “I suppose you ought to get to it, then?”

  Kai looked to Alion with a frown, and Alion gestured to the tutor. Kai grumbled and got up from the fireplace, he followed the tutor down the hall. Torrent looked to Tobias, “I think you should meet Tomas, he can show you around.”

  Tobias watched the courtyard through the living room windows, he saw Tomas and Cordelia walking the grounds. Tobias stepped out of the living room. Alion and Torrent looked to one another, and Torrent retired to the chair again.

  The King wiped the smile from his face, “That boy shouldn’t be here…” he criticized, “Is this what that Kaiser thinks of for father and son bonding?”

  Alion held his tongue for a moment, “Well,” he started, “I suppose the boy will need to learn about the battlefield somewhere.”

  “What is Xavier thinking? If I had any children, I’d keep them as far away from this place as I could…” Alion let the silence speak for him. Torrent watched Alion sit politely and smirked, “I hear you were a senator before you came here.”

  “I was a liberal,” Alion said.

  “You lost?”

  Alion sat upright, “Well I can assure you that the Guards Corps will be up to this task.”

  “Do you even know what this task is? I fear that you and the boy don’t have the chops to get this done…” he thought for a moment, “Xavier seldom responds to my messages, we’ve been making due with minimal communication. I don’t know how he expects to win this war at this rate, he’s lost the spirit for war. Though beggars can’t be choosers. So tell me, how many men did you bring, and where are they now?”

  “Enough, about twenty-thousand. We split up beside ruined villages before the isthmus. It shouldn’t be too long before they reach the front, they’ll be there by midnight I reckon,” Alion watched Torrent, who listened carefully. The King processed the information and stared into the fireplace. Alion watched the light of the coals flicker on his glasses, “I don’t think you should have any concerns about numbers anymore.”

  Torrent chuckled, “I always have numbers to worry about, lad,” he bounced his knee, Alion could see the man was rocked with stress, “I’ll continue to worry about the numbers until this next mobilization is complete, once we have the Count on his knees I might consider rest.”

  Alion and Torrent sat in the quiet for a moment together. They heard the staff officers in the gardens talk among one another, their muffled voices made a great commotion. Torrent rubbed his temple with his fingers, “I did hear something of an assault on Hill 331, I suppose it’s safe to assume I’m not the only one without proper communication to the man. I had to send a rider who would personally make Xavier read my letter to get you here.”

  Alion recalled the letter he was ordered to write to General Graves, he wondered what became of it. He hoped that the old General would be capable of turning the tides, that he was on his way down the Doverheim river and to the front. There was no telling how much longer this war could last given the draining resources, plummeting morale, and general lack of support for the war.

  They heard the sounds of artillery roar in the distance, and footsteps race down the long hallway. The two staff officers stepped into the living room, they reported to the King in Colslavic. Alion watched Torrent’s eyes widen as the news was broken to him, he responded to the officers in a hurried tone. The officers saluted their King and ran back the way they came. Torrent fetched a pair of binoculars from the coffee table, “Come,” he said to Alion.

  Alion got up from the couch and followed the Colslavic King, they rushed up the stairs and down a hall on the second floor of the estate. They rounded a corner and came out to a marble balcony on the northwest face of the castle. There were some officers standing on the balcony, watching the assault closely. The green pastures of the isthmus sloped several miles down to the front, where explosions dotted the front and flamethrowers roared. Alion and the King looked upon the isthmus front as far as they could see. Torrent watched with his binoculars, and Alion took in the whole scene.

  “They’ve been making assaults like this regularly,” Torrent explained, “This one is larger, it seems…” one of the officers told Torrent something, Torrent translated, “I’m told it’s about three whole divisions… As you can see, Colonel, it’s going to be a rough few days.”

  Alion took a deep breath, so this is the fate I am expected to subject the Guards Corps to, Alion thought. The sun was beginning to set on the isthmus, and the clouds began to clear. Golden rays landed on the hell that was the isthmus, it’s light shined in the lake of Gazon, and Alion couldn’t help but think of the men who laid dying in the fields in that moment. The soldiers fighting in the mud, charred corpses and agonizing screams. Alion averted his eyes, and Torrent took down the binoculars when the sun pierced his view. They stood quietly on the balcony while the sun graced the isthmus with warmth before another long night.