Medieval Era
CAST OF CHARACTERS
King Raoul: King of Eres.
Princess Layna: beautiful 18 year old princess of Eres, eldest princess, 3rd child of King Raoul. Ran away from home to escape marrage to Tauh.
Lucas Swiftblade: 26 year old mercenary, former foot soldier.
Kelanie: 20 year old companion of Princess Layna. She is Layna's personal guard.
Prince Tauh "The Terror": Eldest prince of Aldon. 31 years old.
Rai: young, talented theif. 17 years old.
Joren and Dre: two thugs who search for the Princess.
The Plot... (think of it as the back of the book)
A kingdom in turmoil…
Mystery shrouds the valley kingdom of Eres when the princess turns up missing. Those who dare to do so speculate that she has run away for it is rumored that the king was of a mind to have his daughter forced into marriage to the much older prince of a dangerous neighbor.
One year ago Eres came out of a tumultuous war with this dangerous neighbor, Aldon, leaving their once beautiful country in shambles. Now, just a year later, Aldon has threatened another war, a war that Eres does not have the resources to fight. Anxious to keep his country safe from this threat, the king of Eres has offered up a wild and desperate proposal, a marriage alliance between Eres' beautiful princess and Aldon's eldest prince.
A runaway Princess…
Unwilling to marry this terrifying man that people are calling "The Terror", young Princess Layna has run away with nothing but a horse and the clothes on her back. The king immediately sends out search parties to look for his oldest daughter, but to no avail. Frantic with worry, the king widens his search, offering a sizable bounty to whoever can find his daughter. This reward includes not only riches, but also the title of Baron and an estate with lands and tenants. In other words, power as well as money. He has sent the news to every village and town in his vast valley kingdom, even instructed posters to be put up around the country in hopes that more people will see it. The cheerless king wants no stone unturned until his daughter is found.
A penniless mercenary…
A hardened warrior, Lucas Swiftblade has seen many things. A soldier turned mercenary after the war, he has tried being choosey with his clients, the trouble is no one can afford a mercenary. So after months without work, he is desperate for anything and when he hears the rumor of great fortune on the wind, he listens. How hard can it be? The hardened warrior is about to find out just how badly Layna doesn't want to be found.
And so the question stands: was the beautiful Princess Layna kidnapped? Or did she, in fact, run away to escape an unwanted marriage?