Of Princesses and Hunters 2

Chapter 2- Bringing in the Elf

Gregory nervously wrung his kerchief in his hands as King Garon read over the contents of the scroll. The king’s face seemed to grow angrier as his eyes passed over each word. Once he was done, he placed the scroll upon his lap, crossing his arms.

“This is certainly one wonderful mess that stupid girl has gone and gotten herself into.” The king growled, his angry glare focused on Gregory.

“W-what are you p-planning to do?” Gregory stuttered out, shifting uncomfortably
under his majesty’s gaze.

“This certainly puts a damper on my plans of marrying that little wench off and strengthening my ties with another nation…” He simply stated. Gregory nodded, swallowing hard as he did so.

“This…it could work to my advantage…kill two birds with one stone, as it is.” King Garon stated, stroking his graying beard. Gregory looked at his king, confusion most obviously showing on his features.

“Think of it like this, Gregory. That stupid daughter of mine obviously has no interest in any of the princes that I arrange for her to meet and possibly marry. It’s becoming a hassle to try and find her a suitor.” The king started, Gregory
nodding in agreement.

“They say that if I don’t comply with their wishes, they’ll kill her and then move on to another one of my family members, something that would prove most problematic if it happens to be one of my nephews who I want to name as my heir. “ Again, Gregory nodded in agreement.

“If she dies, say, during the negotiations, then we could easily turn on the creatures and bring our entire force upon their heads.” Gregory stopped wringing his handkerchief in his hands and look towards the king with a look of surprise upon his face.

“My lord, what do you mean?” He asked.

“Just listen, my dear friend. If I was to send someone to rescue the princess, then she’d be killed, along with whoever was sent to rescue her.” Gregory’s round face sported a look of confusion now.

“What I am trying to say, Gregory, is that I plan to send someone with my seal of negotiation, but tell this person that I wish for them to rescue the princess. Simple as that.”

“But, my lord, all of the bounty hunters of the kingdom know what the seal of negotiation looks like. Wouldn’t they spot the trick once they were handed the seal?”

“Ordinarily, yes, but not this person I have in mind. As you know, Cale has done quite a lot of work over the years but he has recently disappeared from my sight. No one I send after him can find, rather, no one I send after him comes back.”

“But Cale knows of the seal.”

“Which is why I am going to punish him for his disobedience. I’ll send his daughter.”

“R-ryn?”

“Yes. The half-elf monstrosity. She hasn’t done any work for the crown over the years I have known her and therefore shouldn’t know any of the seals or their meanings. With her death, will come a warning blow to Cale. If he still disobeys then I’ll just send Julian to Darastrix and we’ll see how long he lasts in the burning plains of that forsaken land.” King Garon replied. Gregory dropped his handkerchief to the floor, completely taken aback by this plan.

“M-my king! This is a sinister plan!”

“I know, that is why I am king, remember?”

“Yes, my lord.” Gregory picked up his dropped kerchief before he bowed and left his king’s presence, wiping his sweaty brow as he went.
Ryn growled as she plopped onto her bed. Her mother had, as usual, had said that her father was out late and Ryn escorted her sobbing mother to bed. Her sleep was unpleasant. It consisted of the same nightmare. She, sitting on the fence, and her father telling her that it was Ryn’s fault that Granite had run away. She woke in a cold sweat. This time there had been men wearing the uniform of the king’s men dragging her father away and stabbing at the small girl. The half-elf quickly went to dressing in another forest green tunic with brown breeches and grabbed what she needed to go hunting for a day. With a heavy sigh, Ryn walked downstairs and saw that breakfast had already been prepared for her mother. Her eyes wondered around the room, resting on a familiar fat man who was sitting next to her mother, chatting happily with the sickly woman.

“Gregory? What are you doing here?” Ryn asked in surprise. He laughed, wiping
his brow and standing before the half-elf. She looked down at the man, whom she was a head taller than, with a glare upon her features.

“Your presence is requested at the castle. It’s important that you come immediately. The king has a mission for you regarding Princess Isabelle.” He replied. Ryn knitted her brow together, starring at the man.

“I’m not helping her find a husband, if that’s what you want.”

“Nothing like that…Princess Isabelle has been captured.” He replied. Ryn’s face gained a look of surprise at this news.

“What? But…wasn’t she with a huge procession of soldiers? What happened?!” She asked, grabbing the man by the shoulders, shaking him lightly.

“I am not allowed to tell you here. King Garon will instruct you when you get to the castle, but please hurry. This is of the utmost importance!” He urged her. Ryn was taken aback by his sudden waving of his sweaty piece of cloth he was holding in her general direction.

“All right! I’ll go. Just relax.” She growled. The half-elf followed him outside and saw there was an unassuming black carriage waiting for them with equally unassuming grey horses to pull it along. Gregory held out his hand to help the woman up, a hand which she ignored, as she pulled herself into the carriage, sitting on the fairly comfortable seats. Gregory attempted to follow her, trying to get in several times but failing each one. Ryn remedied the situation by grabbing the man’s hand and pulling him up, smiling when he had a slight look of surprise on his face. Sometimes having slightly-stronger-than-average strength had its advantages, at least in Ryn’s mind. She didn’t have to be the damsel in distress like other females. She sighed as she thought of damsels in distress, at least one in particular, Isabelle. Ryn’s eyes narrowed into a glare as she thought of the princess. They were both small children when they last saw each other. The half-elf tried to imagine what the princess would look like now. She had never seen any portraits of the queen so whatever Ryn imagined ended up being a female version of the king, not a very pretty sight in her opinion. Her gaze went out the window of the carriage, staring at the people as the carriage bounced by. Gregory wiped his face with his cloth again, breathing heavily as he shifted his weight.

‘Why me? Why not a prince or something like that? There has to be one that she hasn’t rejected and would want to strengthen ties with the crown. I haven’t talked to the king in a while, but there must be some reason as to why I was chosen. I must beware of treachery. The king is famous for betraying non-human creatures and I’m sure if he doesn’t already know of my origins then he will figure it out when he sees me. There must be an ulterior motive to this whole thing, but I don’t know what yet.’ She mused. She drummed her fingers upon her leg, thinking of why she was chosen and not someone with more qualifications.

‘It may be for the best if I didn’t voice these concerns with the king. I’m sure I’ll find out on my own.’ She decided as the carriage pulled into the castle courtyard. Several attendants were soon at the carriage, helping the duo out and escorted them to the throne room where King Garon was currently at.

“Announcing Ryn, the hunter, and Gregory, Princess Isabelle’s attendant.” They heard. They were bid to enter and did so. Ryn looked up with some interest at the king, his years were certainly showing in his graying beard and hair. His face also sported several wrinkles but he was more or less the same man she remembered all those years ago. He stood up from his large and ornate chair and embraced her in a strong hug which she awkwardly returned.

“Oh, Ryn! It’s been too long! You’ve grown more beautiful that I would have ever imagined possible!” He cried, fingering a lock of her auburn locks. She gave a half-smile and politely removed his hand from her hair.

“Thank you, King Garon, you are far too kind to bestow such kind words of praise unto a mere peasant such as myself.” She replied, bowing as she did.

“No need to be so civil or bow! I feel as if you’re a part of my family, almost. Please, talk to me as if I were a friend.” He happily said, clapping her on the back. She laughed, holding back the urge to slap the king for hitting her back.

“So, King Garon, what is it that you needed to talk to me about? I’ve heard that she has been captured.”

“This is not the place for that conversation.” He replied, walking away. Gregory indicated that she was to follow so she did. They eventually arrived at a comfortable sitting room, each person finding comfort in the large and extravagant chair that decorated the place. Servants soon shifted in and out of the room, carrying different trays and other items, and placed them on the table that the chairs all surrounded. Ryn didn’t take part in the food or drink, she kept her hands interlaced upon her knee, waiting for the king to tell her of the reason for her summoning.

Everyone was settled and King Garon waited until the last servant had left the room.

“Isabelle, as you’ve heard, has been captured. She was taken hostage by goblins, trolls, and ogres. They’ve threatened to kill her unless I make one of their own king, something that I can’t do. I would love to strengthen my ties with the non-humans, seeing as how our races have become so strained in their relations as of late, but placing one as king would just cause hundreds of political nightmares. Not to mention the fact that the goblin they wish to be king is a greedy and corrupt individual who would certainly use his power as king for evil.” He started. Ryn nodded, knowing that goblins often were victims to greed and corruption, just character flaw they had in the half-elf’s opinion.

“They also know of every single man in my  retrieval unit who could go against them, so once they infiltrated or even got close to their base, they’d kill Isabelle. I want to use someone who is competent but still at the same time needs to be unknown to their forces.”

“And that’s where I come in?” She asked. King Garon nodded.

“They don’t know your face so you’ll be able get to her safely. They won’t realize that a human is amongst them until it’s too late.” He finished.

“Please, Ryn, you’re the only one who can rescue Princess Isabelle!” Gregory cried. Ryn took a deep breath, looking at the king and to Gregory.

“Am I really the only person for the job?” She asked. Both men nodded.

“Fine. I accept the  mission.”
King Garon smirked while Gregory stared at her, his mouth agape.

“B-but you don’t even know the terms of the job, how much money you’re being paid, that sort of stuff.” The portly man cried, dabbing at his forehead. Ryn shrugged.

“I don’t care about money or land or any of that stuff. Sure, it’s good to have it, but this is to help Princess Isabelle. If I’m the only one who can do it then I owe it to my country to do so.” She replied. King Garon clapped his hands together with quite a bit of enthusiasm.

“Fantastic! This is amazing! You will be rewarded quite handsomely!” King Garon cried. Gregory let a smile come to his round face.

“This is a seal, it’s my Seal of the Hero. Not a very original title, I know, but if you ever meet any royal guards or anything of the sort then just show this to them and they’ll help you out in any way they can.” The king said, handing the woman a round amulet. Upon it was some symbol that Ryn guessed meant rescue or something. She placed it into her side pouch and looked up at the king.

“I’ll need info, like where they’re holding the princess.” She told the two. Gregory nodded, getting out a scroll and handing it to her.

“This holds all the details of your mission.” He explained handing it to her. Ryn took it, bowing as she did. The two men exchanged a glance that Ryn interpreted as a look of happiness.

“We are prepared to offer a substantial sum in exchange for your services.” King Garon announced, his grin growing even larger. Gregory then brought out another scroll, and handed it to the woman. She unrolled it, almost dropping the object, as she saw the amount she was to be paid.

“M-my lord, this is too much!” She cried. Both men let out a hardy laugh.

“Now you have enough to pay for your mother’s medical expenses and live comfortably for a long time.” The portly man replied. Ryn swallowed hard, not sure what to do.

“Do you indefinitely accept this job? No matter what hardships may occur on the way?” The king asked, staring hard into her eyes. Ryn nodded, dumbfounded.

“Y-yes. I accept, no matter what hardships may occur or happen on the way, I’ll rescue Princess Isabelle.” She replied. The king rang a bell and soon after a man in armor entered the room.

“Malak, my dear friend, please escort Ryn back to her home. I don’t want Isabelle’s rescuer-to-be attacked on her trek back home.” King Garon told the man. Malak bowed and moved out the way so Ryn could leave. He followed her out, shutting the door behind him.

“That was easy.” Gregory noted. The king nodded in reply.

“The girl is too trusting. Might that be a problem, King Garon?” The portly man asked.

“A problem? Yes it may, but I’m sure the goblins will kill her before they can straighten her out.” The king replied, leaning back in his chair.

“But what if they discover her heritage? They might not kill he if if they find she is half-elf.”

“Goblins aren’t so forgiving. If she kills a few of them while trying to rescue Isabelle then they might bring down capital punishment.”

“But, my king! What if she doesn’t kill one!? You know how she feels about the equality of all creatures!”

“Silence, Gregory! I grow tired of your worries. I’ve seen the Seer and she told me that great things will come of this plan!” King Garon roared, standing up with great force. The fat man winced in fear, wiping his sweaty face.