A.N.: I am back!

Disclaimer: No and No and No.

"Where are you taking me?" Alex asked as he was stuffed unceremonious but almost carefully into a carriage off the road.

"Drive." The Commander said, knocking on the roof twice before turning to Alex, crossing his arms, "Relax, young man."

"It is hard to." Alex pointed out.

The commander scrutinized him for a moment before his gaze dropped the calculating glance, "You demonstrated remarkable swordsmanship back there."

Alex remained silent.

"And I think I have the perfect job for you."

"Why do you think I am looking for a job?"

"I heard you talking with that bartender." The commander said gruffly, "You will have better pay if you work with us instead of him."

Alex shrugged.

"We work under His Majesty." The man said, "I am the commander of the army."

Alex stiffened slightly, "I am sorry, but I do not wish to join the army."

"Not the army, young man." The commander said as he massaged his temple gently, "You will see once we get to the palace."

"I preferred to be explained properly before we reached there."

"Too late." The commander said as he grabbed Alex by his should and hauled him out of the carriage, "We have arrived."

"Come on, move it." The commander said as the three soldiers behind him pushed Alex roughly alone, "I don't have all day and I want to get this done as soon as possible."

There were times when Alex would have thought 'it wouldn't hurt to go along', but now wasn't the time. He did not want to go along. But the swords that were probing his back seemed to tell him the wonderful story of the consequences of disobedience.

Alex glanced up at the castle. The walls were made of white bricks stones that were stained brown by sand and were a little weathered down on the edges, but the castle itself stood firm, towering over the small houses and the busy streets that it surrounded itself with. A long pathway connected them from the gate to the front of the palace. The path was paved with smooth white bricks and lined with blue-tinted stones that seemed to sparkle under the sun. There were trees on the side and flowers grew beneath them.

As they proceeded along the walkway, Alex took in the large circular fountain in front of the palace gate. The water sprouted out from the second layer before dropping and sliding down to the large bottom. Each drop caught the sun and reflected back. The sound of the fountain was soothing.

They walked past the fountain. Alex caught a fleeting glance of the small fishes that inhabit the peaceful fountain.

The commander pushed open the gate, revealing a large courtyard, surrounding on all three walls by tall buildings. A few large window panels covered the one on the front and Alex presumed that it was the main building. Several small panels domed the left and right buildings. The commander guided him through a small gateway under the main building, toward a slightly smaller square. A low rectangular building stood in the center, surrounding by three other slightly taller buildings.

"Where are we going?" Alex asked.

The commander turned to look at him but he did not pause, "I am taking you to our quarter first for a report and send a message to His Majesty about our arrival. Then I will be taking you to meet His Majesty."

Alex was ushered into a small gate on the side. It spilled them onto a large bright opened space, surrounding only by a rectangular ring of stones. Beyond it was a large lake, sand covered the edge of the lake and the whole thing appeared more like an ocean than anything.

"Commander, you are back!" A man greeted them warmly then his gaze traveled to Alex, "You caught someone? What did he do?"

"No," The commander said, glancing sideways at Alex before turning to the man, "Thought he would be good for that job."

"Him?" The man raised an eyebrow.

"He is pretty good at combat," The commander said, "Thought he would be suited for the job."

"Ah," The stranger nodded his head, "Well, anything is better than sending our best men. What's your name?" The last question was directed to him.

"Rider," Alex said after a moment of silence.

"Rider what?" The man asked, looking for a last name.

Alex glanced at the man, "Just Rider."

"That's fine, I guess." The man scratched his hand after exchanging a glance with the commander, "I am Merek, the second-in-command of the army. And he is Gorvenal, the commander."

"At all time, you address us by our title, understand?" Gorvenal gazed at Alex.

"But you can call me Vice." Merek smiled slightly, "Or the Vice Commander."

"Understand?"

"No," Alex stated.

Gorvenal narrowed his eyes and Merek looked slightly taken aback, "What did you say, young man?"

"No." Alex repeated, "Why do I need to address you only by your title? I would prefer to go by names."

"Titles are a sign of respect for people who deserve them," Gorvenal growled.

"I respect you," Alex said just for the sake of not angering the commander by saying otherwise, "But I do not see the need of addressing you by your title."

"Because I am your superior."

"I am not under your control." Alex shot back almost coldly.

"Why don't we have a contest?" Merek's eyes were gleaming mischievously as he said it.

"On what?" Gorvenal asked, a little irritated.

"Why, archery of course." Merek said, clasping his hand behind his back, "Archery is the most lacked talent in our army. And anyone who achieved mastery in archery is a man to be respected. And Gorvenal here,"

"It is 'commander' to you as well," Gorvenal growled.

Merek simply ignored him, "he is a master of archery. If you can beat him, well, you get to remove the title."

"I never agreed," Gorvenal said.

Merek smirked slightly at the commander, "Are you afraid, O-Great Commander?"

Gorvenal sighed deeply, "Alright, I agree. And don't go crying when you lose, young man."

Alex sometimes wondered how people seemed to take his silence as a yes every single time. He never agreed to the contest. But, he shrugged mentally, he trusted his skills in archery.

Merek gestured for the three soldiers to unchain Alex, "How can he shoot with his hand chained in front of him?"

The chain fell off and Alex massaged his wrists gently, hissing at every small movement. Those rusty chains really did cut into his flesh. It was bleeding sluggishly.

"Gorvenal, why did you chained him so tightly?" Merek asked, frowning as he saw the bleeding red marks on Alex's wrists.

"Never really used the chains a lot," Gorvenal looked a little apologetically when he saw the marks, "Didn't adjust them. He didn't complain, so I thought there wasn't a problem."

Merek looked almost astonished, "Young man, doesn't it hurt?"

Alex glanced at the man, "What's the use of complaining if you don't have a solution for it?"

The Second-In-Command looked surprised then he laughed slightly, "You could have asked Gorvenal to loosen it a little for you."

Alex just gazed at the man.

"Alright," Merek said as one of the soldiers wheeled in a stack of bows, placed neatly on a wooden block, "Gorvenal, you can take your pick."

"I will use my own." The commander said as he took the pre-offered bow off the soldier's hand, "I work the best with my own."

"Rider?" Merek gestured toward the selection of bows.

"I will use my own as well." Alex refused the offer.

"You brought you own bow?" Merek frowned, "I don't see it."

Alex unclipped the folded bow beneath the black cloak and straightened it out before stringing it on and tightening the joints to prevent it from folding in while he was using it.

Merek whistled in appreciation, "A foldable one. Never saw one myself before. We don't even have that here. Where did you get it, Rider?"

"During my travels." Alex kept it short.

"You are new to this place?" The Second-In-Command asked, surprised.

"Just arrived today."

"Gorvenal," Merek turned an accusing glance to the commander, "You should have let him get used to the city before bringing him here. I am sure he is not very comfortable. Say, how old are you, Rider?"

Alex paused then he admitted, "Seventeen."

"Seventeen!" Merek exclaimed, "You are young!"

Alex tested his string and unstrapped the small quiver on the side of his leg

"What other weapons do you have underneath your cloak?" Merek asked as Alex flipped open the quiver, revealing a well-stocked pile of arrows.

Alex glanced at the man, assessing him for a moment as to why he asked the question, "Some others."

"Like?"

"Sword."

"Holy," Merek seemed surprised but he really thought he shouldn't be, "I didn't even see it. May I see it, Rider?"

Alex glared, "No. Are we starting the contest or not?"

"Alright," Merek said, smiling slightly, "Gorvenal, are you ready?"

"Yes."

Merek pointed down toward the two targets a few hundred meters away, "Those are your targets. The rule is simple. Go for the center. You have two shots. You will take turns. Any questions, Rider, Gorvenal?"

"No." They said simultaneously.

"Alright then, Gorvernal, do the honor of going first," Merek said as he stepped a few step away.

The commander nodded and notch an arrow between his fingers. He pulled it back into a full draw and aimed. Alex noticed how the forefinger on the man's left hand that held the bow was pointing toward the target as he aimed and the man's thumb was gripping the bow tightly. He frowned. The Commander fired.

"Just a little off the center." Merek commented, "Rider, your shot."

Alex faced the target and drew his bow. It was barely a full draw before it was released. He did not need to aim. He knew where his target was and that was enough. He knew where he needed to aim and that was all he needed to know. No more, no less.

"That was right in the center, Rider." Merek said quietly, glancing at Alex with astonishment on his face, "Gorvenal, your last shot."

The commander glanced at Alex before he notched his arrow and aimed. Aiming did help with accuracy, Alex knew. But aiming took time. He preferred instinctive on matters of archery. It was faster. A simple draw and shoot, no aiming in between.

"Getting closer, Gorvenal." Merek told them, "Rider, your lost shot."

Alex notched the arrow. To make it fair, he would aim this time. He drew his bow until it reached the fullest and aimed. Then he released. The shot went home.

"Holy," Merek said, "Rider, it is home again."

"How?" The commander asked, turning toward Alex, "How did you manage that?"

Alex carefully unstrung his bow and loosened the joints before folding it back up, "I am a traveler."

"That explained nothing." The commander said as he placed his own bow down and crossed his arms, looking at Alex.

Alex didn't respond for a moment as he clipped his bow back onto his belt and slipped his quiver over the side of his leg again, "My whole life was spent mostly out there. It is necessary for survival, Gorvenal."

"You will address me as-" He paused then he shook his head, letting out a small chuckle, "I guess you won, young man. It is Gorvenal to you then."

"And Rider to you, old man." Alex shot back.

Gorvenal looked taken aback for a moment then he laughed, "Rider it is then if you dislike 'young man' that much."

Alex smiled.

"You know," Merek said, clasping Alex on the shoulder, "You should smile more."

"What?" He blinked in surprise.

"You look younger and probably more handsome when you smile," Merek elaborated, "That smile will win the ladies over, Rider. Maybe you can find yourself a nice lady and settle down."

Alex looked away, "I will be gone in a few weeks. I won't be staying long."

He missed the look of dismay and shock mirroring on both commander's face, "You are not staying?"

"I am a traveler." Alex said, looking at them as he swirled his cloak over to cover his bow, "I don't belong anywhere."

Thanks for all the reviews~~~~ I swear, I read over them twice per day haha