It was near dusk, and the land was quiet save for the sound of hooves clopping on the forest ground. Jonathan sighed. While he enjoyed horseback riding, he couldn't help but feel restricted at the pace he was going, more used to neckbreaking speed instead of the sedate pace he was going. Indeed, he would have liked nothing more than to urge his horse to a gallop, but his squire would have reported him immediately to Endymion, knowing that the boy's loyalty was to his cousin than to the one he was sent to serve. A wan smile passed his lips when he thought about his liege. No doubt he sent his own blood to him to make sure he did not do any foolhardy things, knowing full well how rash Jonathan can be, while at the same time ignoring the same youthful follies he himself has committed. His lips curled into a full smile when he remembered the last mess Endymion found himself in, falling off the castle wall in his desperate attempt to escape the court ladies who dreamt of being the queen of the realm. It was Jonathan who had found him, sprawled in his back and covered in grease, his idea of the perfect disguise. The same could not be said of his pride, as his protector proceeded to laugh himself silly at seeing his king in that position, but he was thankful it was him who found him, and not the other three. Zachary would have lectured him on the proper way of acting like a king, Nathaniel would have thrown him to the ladies, and Kaelan… Endymion had mock-shuddered then, and told Jonathan that he did not even want to think about what Kaelan would have done.
Jonathan sighed. He missed them. They were closer than brothers, probably because they did not have anything like blood to keep them from being comrades and friends, but the word was as good as any to describe how they saw each other. He, Zachary, Nathaniel, and Kaelan had come to know each other on the fateful day, when they saved Endymion's life and raised him up on the throne, having lost his parents to the same rebels who attempted to end his own. They nearly succeeded too, having infiltrated the Terran Palace through bribery and deceit. It was his own mother and tutor who called for help at the cost of their own lives, but the Terran soldiers were able to make it in time to save the young prince – now king – before the traitors were able to get to him. It had not been an easy fight. The Khevas, Daynes, and Leffords had brought the best of their forces, and by the time the battle had been through, only a quarter of the royal guard survived. Out of that number, it was only Zachary, Nathaniel, Kaelan, and Jonathan who were able to reach Endymion in time to save him. In gratitude, he promoted them as his personal guard, as well as granting them slices of his own kingdom – the East to Jonathan, the West to Nathaniel, the South to Zachary, and the North to Kaelan. The four tried to protest, naturally, but Endymion would hear no complaints from them. "Besides," and here he had grinned, "When you find out what entails in ruling a kingdom, you wouldn't think this as a reward." The surviving councilors of the Elyson family had been horrified, but Endymion's stubbornness came through, so it was that four foot soldiers found themselves suddenly saddled with titles. Jonathan shook his head at the memory. It was a wonder that the advisors allowed Endymion to pull off that stunt, king or no king. Jonathan and Nathaniel were born of commoners, the former's father a baker and the latter's a fisherman. Kaelan had been worse off, being baseborn, a bastard who never knew his parents. Zachary was the only one who had any ties to royalty, but being the youngest son of a minor lordling, his rank was practically nonexistent, and he had bought his colors to try to make a name for himself and escape debtors' prison at the same time. Zachary. This time, Jonathan's mouth twisted into a grimace as he remembered the last time he saw his "brothers". Endymion had called them to court, and Zachary, who likened himself to being more of a scholar than a soldier, had excitedly presented his findings. The first was the possibility of there being intelligent life outside of their own planet. The other protectors had rolled their eyes at that, saying without words that this proposal was as flighty as Zachary himself. The other finding was more serious and thus deserved more attention. Readings from the data he's gathered seemed to indicate that there was a force on Earth that was vast and powerful, and his initial findings show that the unidentifiable energy was malevolent.
"An unidentifiable energy?" Jonathan had scoffed. "So what you're saying is that there's a magical force that may want to kill us?"
"That is what my readings say," Zachary had said gravely. Jonathan had no doubt that his machines and gadgets had picked up something, they had never been inaccurate, as far as he can remember, but maybe they detected something else, like an earthquake or some sort of natural energy, but the younger man had insisted that it was nothing like he had ever seen. Surprisingly, Nathaniel had backed him up, saying that the stars he had been reading also indicated that there was something off, and the energy Zachary detected may have something to do with that. Kaelan, on the other hand, had taken Jonathan's side.
"Magic has died in this planet a long time ago," he had quietly stated. "Unless a miracle happened, there's no way for it to come back, and especially not at the level that Zachary seems to be detecting."
"Unless of course it's being given off by the aliens you're also detecting," Jonathan had quipped, snickering. Zachary had flushed at that, and he would have retorted angrily if Endymion had not held up his hand. Wisely, their king did not attempt to pick a side, and instead tasked the youngest of his guardians to investigate more on the matter. Zachary had bowed courteously enough, but he gave off an air of injured pride that made Jonathan feel guilty about needling him. He vowed to make peace with his younger brother during the next meeting.
So intent was Jonathan in his own thoughts that he barely paid attention to his surroundings, and only got brought back to the present at his squire's yell. He shook his head to clear it, and then looked at what the boy was getting excited about. His eyes widened at what he saw, and before he knew what he was doing, he leaped off his horse and ran to where the squire was pointing. A young woman, possibly in her late teens, lay crumpled on the forest floor, apparently unconscious. Her dress's color unidentifiable because of the grime, and she was barefoot. She was covered head to toe in soot and ashes, but there was no fire around her. He pulled her to his lap, and brushing her jet-black hair from her face, he shook her gently, idly noting that she looked pretty. "My lady?" he asked, and then berated himself for addressing her with the honorary title. "Miss?" he asked instead, shaking her gently again. At this, she stirred, and directed a violet-eyed gaze at him.
Jonathan felt his throat clench when he saw the gaze directed at him. He had noticed her attractiveness in spite of being covered in soot, but the eyes had turned her from passable prettiness to full beauty. It took a few seconds before he found his tongue again, and even so, he still felt her stare. Clearing his throat, he asked, "Miss, are you alright?" In response, the girl passed out again. Cursing to himself, he picked her up, and yelling to his squire to run ahead to the castle to let them know about the situation, he hoisted himself to his horse and headed in the same direction, while cradling the mysterious young woman to his chest.