Princess at War
Chapter One
As the transport pulled up to the old ruined farmhouse; that had been chosen the pick-up point, Cain grimaced and stretched his back in order to get at least a little more comfortable. It had been nearly eight full hours since they'd left Finaqua, only punctuated by a short pit stop along the old forest road for the men to relieve their bladders or grab a bite of food. Cain had done a quick inspection of the vehicles, sipped his cold coffee and called "ready" to resume. He ignored the grumbling of the men who thought that the earliness of the hour and the emptiness of the road meant that their passage had gone unnoticed, so a longer break was in order. He simply stared them down and made ready to continue; knowing a deserted road in the middle of the night would be perfect for a Longcoat ambush. If the Longcoat spy network was half as efficient as it was before Cain had been confined to the tin suit, they'd have known about the convoy hours ago.
A lone figure walked out from the darkness from what had once been a barn, moving forward it stopped twenty feet from the truck and waited. "Show time," thought Cain, a phrase he'd stolen from the Mystic Man, who always used it as a good luck charm before any important consult or on the few occasions when he'd demonstrated his gifts in public. Opening the truck door, Cain climbed out and walked toward the figure. He stopped, a moment passed, then another, neither figure moving. Finally, as was prearranged both figures uncapped the jars they'd been holding.
A strange, dull green light spewed forth from the jars, taking shape, like a ghostly plant, twisting and growing, spreading into long sinewy tendrils, reaching to join with their mate. Cain felt the weight of the jar in his hand change, despite the essence of the creature seeming to leave the jar and grow forward, the jar itself felt heavier and warmer as thought more changes were taking place inside. Finally, the essences touched, shone brilliant and disappeared.
The figure whistled and was joined within a moment by twenty other shapes, though Cain sensed many other eyes still hidden in the shadows were upon him as well. Quick embraces were exchanged and one figure emerged from the group and sprinted to the truck.
Cain had only been told that he was to retrieve the head of the resistance in the west and return as soon as possible to Finaqua. Curiosity and his own sense of duty made this an intriguing assignment, as he'd heard many stories about the daring and valour of the Western resistance as well as the near miraculous gift of its leader to flush out spies, resist ambushes and free captured comrades.
"Cain?" asked the voice of the shadowed figure.
"The One?" returned Cain, as he nodded in response and gestured toward the truck. The pick-up had gone well so far, but there was no use staying around longer than necessary. The figured nodded and ran around the front to climb into the passenger side of the cab. Turning back to the farm, Cain noticed everyone had disappeared, returning the farm yard scene to it's abandoned appearance.
Climbing into the cab, he turned toward his passenger, who seemed even more slight than he'd imagined in the darkness of the cab. He put his hand on the ignition and then changed his mind and extended to the newcomer.
" Wyatt Cain."
Pausing for a moment, the passenger pulled back a hood releasing a cascade of blue black hair and turned toward Cain with hand extended as well. "Kara-Gale, Princess of Asher and the Westlands."
Her grip was firm and Cain was dumbstruck. The western resistance leader was a woman and a princess as well. That she was a Gale would be obvious to anyone who saw her. She reminded him of DG, or at least how he imagined DG to look in about a decade, expect that her eyes shone emerald green and seemed to sparkle in the faint moonlight coming through the windshield. He held her hand for a moment and then released it, still staring into a face that he knew so well and yet was totally new to him.
"Cain, we must leave."
Snapping his mind back to the present he turned the key on the ignition and the truck began to move forward. Glancing again at his passenger, he was surprised that she'd turned from him to gaze into the darkness.