Sentria: The Knight Prince (Book 1)

Chapter Five: A Prince's Ransom

The relic and I were back to back with sharp spears pointed at us held by the copper-clad Cardoth soldiers. They expected us to kneel or to raise our hands in defeat, but I am a Colress, a high royal, and I would not acknowledge defeat.

A Cardoth soldier broke free from the ranks. He was aged well over a half-century and had a hefty weight to him, but he was no less intimidating for it. There was a scar down his face by his left eye and he was the only one wearing a black cape, signifying his elevated position as the captain of this company. There wasn't a weapon in his hand. Instead, he held the reins of his brown-spotted horse and looked down upon us like we were maggots. I loathed that more than the spears.

"You find yourself in the Cardoth Kingdom," the captain said to us, "under the ownership of the mighty King Solice. Identify yourselves."

I puffed out my chest and said, "I am High Prince Darren of the noble family Colress. Heir to the Sentria Kingdom and I would have these spears away from my person."

Every soldier belly-laughed at my order and I wanted all of them dead in that moment.

"High Prince Darren? Out for a stroll with no royal guard?" The captain continued to laugh heartily, hardly able to get his words out between them. "What would the High Prince be doing all the way up here?"

"It was...an accident," I said. "I got lost, separated from my men."

"It was my fault," said Eldwyn. "You see, he was—"

I nudged him to keep him quiet. He didn't understand how these things went. One false word and that would be your head on of their sharpened spears.

"As you can see, I bear my family's crest." I pointed to the center of my chest plate with my sigil. You could still see the silver griffin despite the mud that obscured it.

"Do you know how many pretenders there are?" asked the captain. "That is no proof."

"Then ask me anything you'd like. I know my family history more than any."

"So does any moderately accomplished historian." The captain tapped his heels against the horse's sides and she trotted closer to me and stopped. I could feel the beast's breath on my face and her black eyes looked as if she hated me too. "Do you know the price for impersonating a royal? Every limb of the guilty party will be severed by our wildest stallions and paraded all around the kingdom like a blood-streamed parade. Would you like that, prince?"

I took a step forward, unafraid of his threats. "If you do this, my family and the legions bannermen that follow us will take to war against Cardoth, the likes of which would cast Cinnai out of this land once and for all."

"Do you threaten me, boy?" snarled the captain, leaning towards me.

"That is a promise if a lowly captain such as yourself so much as lays a finger upon my person."

There was a long pause as the captain looked at me with great consternation. It was a gamble and one I had to take. Only a royal would speak so boldly to someone as powerful as a captain and he knew that.

"Fine, we will take you to Cardoth Castle. King Solice will sort you out." The captain leaned back begrudgingly, not wanting to make it appear as if he had lost in front of his men. "But if you are lying, enjoy your final moments with your limbs intact  while you have them."

Eldwyn and I traveled by open carriage that they used for transporting plants, fruits, and vegetables for their kingdom. Two soldiers sat across from us and engaged in uproarious and lewd conversation while I sat quietly. Eldwyn had tried numerous times to speak with me, but I shrugged him off. I didn't want them to hear anything they could have used against us. The relic was skilled in the ways of magic, but politics was a different world altogether.