Reaching Your Destination

You wake up early, much earlier than expected but with so much going on in your head you couldn't get back to sleep. You were as tired as could be, it was still dark outside, still cold but you lay there, staring up at the ceiling above you.

You would have got up and left about thirty minutes ago but the warm body of Zoe and her soft breathing made you stay just a little longer, not wanting to leave your Sunrider.

But alas, you eventually very carefully move yourself from the dark haired girls grasp and then push the thick wool blanket all around her body to make sure she is covered. You push the side door open, step outside and make your want to the horses one by one to get them situated back in the carriage and ready to continue your path southward.

The trip itself went just as expected, the morning air was cool, the ground was damp with dew but the horses still gallop forward as they were told. When the sun began to rise over the eastern sky it slowly bask the land in its warm glow and everything got just that much easier.

You pass right by Murnic, only second guessing just briefly as you think Zoe should at least pit stop to say hello to her mother and brother but she did say she was here for Lexie first. So with only slight hesitation you continue your drive on south.

Zoe eventually woke up, asked how long you were awake for, did some idle chat but otherwise she sat in the back the entire time watching Lexie, administering another dose of the salve and just having that careful, watchful eye on your beloved fiance.

Hours pass in what feels like minutes as you fly up another steep incline. As you reach the peak of this hill your horses come to a standstill as you pull back on their reins. There it was again, Rathkin in your sights, the great empire of the continent.

With a deep breath you mush the horses forward, making your way straight into the city.

The city itself was a lot more alive this time, mainly due to it being right around the dinner rush, but also because the army was actually here, at least a good chunk of them. You were stopped at the front gates of the city "Business in Rathkin?" the guard lets out, asking his routine words.

"I need to see Edmin, let me through."

"Hah!" he lets out a laugh "Nice try. Get lost."

You let out a breath of air, trying to hold your calm "I'm the leader of the Sunriders, I need to see King Edmin." you say again "Let me into Rathkin."

"You can go into Rathkin..." you waves you through "But good luck seeing the King, they won't let you into the inner city." he laughs.

You shake your head and mush your horses forward, annoyed at the guard who is most likely new and doesn't know anything about you.

It took much longer to go through the streets of Rathkin as you had to take it slow. With a two horse carriage being as big as it is and all the people wandering the streets, talking, buying goods and eating you basically had to move with grace the entire way through the outer city.

As you cross over that single bridge towards the Inner city, the gates heavily guarded, the doors closed with half a dozen guards standing outside.

"Oh shit!" you hear a few of them say, hoping they recognize you "It's him!"

"I need to speak with Edmin, it's an emergency." you say to the guards at the Inner Gate "And it's urgent."

"Uhh..." one stutters as he looks at his comrade.

"Well..." he pivots in his step "I, I...If you hold here, I'll send someone to check."

"I don't have time to wait." your voice goes stern "I have someone in this carriage and she needs medical attention as soon as possible. Now please, let me through."

"Umm..." the two, what you assume head guards, talk among each other for half a minute before he looks back at you "Okay, we'll allow it. Open the gate!" he raises his voice to the guards on top of the walls who slowly begin to open the front gate.

"Thank you." you say as your carriage moves its way inside.

You come to a halt at the entrance to the castle and jump down from the carriage to check inside on Lexie and Zoe "Hey, I'm going to head inside, stay here with Lexie, okay?" you ask Zoe.

"Sure thing! She's doing fine! Don't be long though!" her smile bunches up as you nod and turn back towards the castle.

Surprisingly the guards to the castle let you inside without much trouble. You assume one of them must have recognized you and that's why, or maybe it was because of your armor. You don't have your hood up but still the armor itself looks flawless, expensive and sturdy as can be.

Through out the halls you go, following a Rathkin warrior towards the throne room. Thoughts run around in your head as you just hope asking Edmin for his wife to help would work ever so gracefully. You pray Edmin wouldn't be a dick, wouldn't try to con you into something but you were unsure. You knew the two of you didn't like each other but with Lexie's potential life on the line, you would give into any of his demands, assuming they weren't too ****.

"Here we are." the guard says, assuming you've never been to the throne room.

"Thank you." you grumble out as you push the doors open and step inside.

Just the same with Karisi, you walk into the throne room and see Edmin sitting on his throne, scrolls out in front of him as he looks through them. It must be some type of King or Queen thing, to always appear busy and doing important things with scrolls.

His head tilts up as he notices you. His eyes go a little larger as you get closer and closer. "Darien?" he questions out as he stands up from his throne, quickly looking to the sides where he sees some of the Elite Rathkin soldiers. He gives them a little wave and a few of them step forward, getting closer to the King.

"King Edmin..." you come to a halt at the bottom of the steps, just below the Throne and Edmin himself "I have a favor to ask of you..."