Damn. So this was Bright Moon. Her father had told her, but it was something else, seeing it for herself. Polished everything, way more crystals than she could even imagine a need for. Never seen so many cushions in one place.
A defense nightmare though. Way too many windows. Almost every room in this place was open to the elements in whole or part and when you figured in the floating islands, near on everything here seemed like a hell of a security problem.
Still, queen of the princesses, hub of the rebellion. Ending up a tassel head just like her old man. Worth it, no?
"So, Juliet. Have you worked around magic before?" General Sunder asked, following her eyes. Juliet cursed herself. Sloppy, gazing around her like she was a tourist. Did she want this job or not? She straightened up and pulled the front of her shirt tight.
"Yes, sir. General... Sir." Idiot. But it would call more attention to it to go back and say it again so she just kept going. "Mother teaches up at Mystacor."
"Your mother, huh?" The general raised an eyebrow at her. He held his helmet at his side, his gray hair buzzed close. There was a long scar running down the side of his otherwise kindly face. If it weren't for that, you'd think he was just somebody's grandpa, not the demon in battle he was supposed to be. She wondered how many years away he was from retirement.
Look at that, Jules! Opportunities for advancement! You toe the line, play the game, and boom! General of a whole army, in the finest kingdom on all of Etheria! Now THAT would make your pops proud.
She shook it off, that voice in her head that sounded way too much like her father. One thing at a time.
"Yes, sir. Teaches basic potions. Never had the knack myself though."
She probably shouldn't have said that. Hard to tell where people stood on magic these days. Her mother talked about it like it was going to save the universe but her father would snort and say he'd rather put his faith in sword and shield. She gripped the handle of the sword at her belt, hoping she hadn't just blown this whole interview.
"Ah, none of that magic stuff for you, eh?" The General look was mischievous and she hesitated before nodding. She was worried for a minute but then he winked at her and lowered his voice. "Truth be told, the stuff gives me the willies. No offense to her angelic majesty, of course. As fine a woman as ever you'd meet and as much an honor to serve under as her husband was. But you'll find me outside the castle walls more times than not, where the air's not so... charged."
She nodded not really sure what to say. She'd seen Queen Angella in passing, when this tour had taken them through her throne room, thronged with people waiting for an audience. The queen had looked regal and intimidating with those massive wings tucked behind her but also rather bored. Apparently, the rebellion didn't see nearly as much action as it had in her father's day. Disappointing, to have trained so hard only to end up yawning in sparkle land, far away from the action she could see in another position.
Eh. It was just a job. Some magic for mother, a title for father. The name of the place alone gave enough for both her parents to brag about. Maybe she'd end up on the same shift as Rohni, at least have someone to talk to.
"So, as I was saying, this up here is the South Entrance. Because of the floating islands, open-air plan, and whatnot, we usually keep a few guards with their eyes to the sky too, stationed up on the balconies at the East and West towers. This way, something tries to get into one of the bedrooms, you can raise the alarm. So that's going to be the majority of your duties as a mid-level. You'll cycle between guard duty at one of those locations, five stations a shift. There's also usually at least one mid-level in throne level at all times, just in case something happens, but those are mostly only for show. Now, of course, the Queen really takes a shine to you, then you can get bodyguard detail, escort her on missions, stuff like that. If it's advancement you're after, that's the way to go."
The Queen's favorite. The one she trusts above all others. That would be her. It had to be. Her parents would tolerate nothing less from her than the best and she held herself to that same standard.
General Sunder was still talking and she tuned back into his steady drone. "...but you'd still be old enough to remember what happened to King Micah."
"Of course, sir." The death of the old King at the hands of the Horde had reverberated across the planet. How could it not have after the frenzy surrounded their wedding? They still talked reverently of the love story of the angel and the sorcerer up at Mystacor.
"Well, then you understand why security at Bright Moon is paramount! The protection of Bright Moon is paramount! Nobody gets in without being fully vetted. Absolutely no weapons inside the castle proper outside of our force and that goes for those dirty blowhards from the rebellion camp too. And every room beyond the throne room is entirely off-limits to anyone but Queen Angella and her advisers. As the last line of defense before her majesty, you must be on your guard at all times!" The general was as serious as she'd seen him and Juliet nodded solemnly. "No distractions from your duty! Visitors are NOT to run in corridors and voices will be kept at a natural level except in times of emergency! There will be no fraternizing on the job and the utmost care is to be taken with the relics and displays in the corridors. If anything were to—"
The general's cut his sentence short as two kids came tearing down the hallway, shrieking with laughter. The little girl, a mess of skirts and pink, crashed into one of the hallway displays so hard it would have fallen over completely if Juliet had not reached out and grabbed it in time. She righted it, thanking the moons the only thing inside was some chunk of polished rock heavy enough it didn't do more than slide a little to the side of its satin pillow.
The girl's friend, the little boy with the bow slung over his back, at least had the decency to look abashed and might actually even have apologized except all he managed was a tiny squeak before the little girl grabbed his leg and the two of them disappeared in a shower of pink sparkles. She tensed as she heard them again a second later, giggling and whispering a little ways down the corridor they'd just come down.
She turned, her hand on the hilt of her sword automatically. "General, they're headed back towards the Queen's offices, should I—"
"Oh, no. Stand down, soldier. That's just the princess. She can go wherever she wants. As you can see, it's not like any of us could stop her anyway." General Sunder laughed, fondly. "Got one of my own about that age, not half as much trouble though!"
There was another crash farther down the hallway, something that sounded a lot more damaging than this one. Juliet tried to relax her stance against her better instincts. "I see. And the boy?"
The General waved his hand vaguely. "The princess' friend. He's here all the time."
"And he's been... fully vetted?"
"Not at all! Far as I know, nobody knows where the hell he came from. Not even the queen. But the princess doesn't have a lot of friends so..." She must have looked concerned because General Sunder patted her arm. "But he's a very polite boy, a real good kid. Just last week I caught him trying to talk her tiny highness from picking the lock to the weapons room."
"But... he is armed?" Hadn't the general specifically said…
"And not a bad shot with that thing either, I'll tell you! Anyway, let's about get you down to the armory, see about getting you fitted for a uniform and we can start with the paperwork." The general paused and looked back when she didn't follow. She hesitated, listening to what sounded distinctly like child-like voices and something smashing. "Something wrong?"
Well, yes? This is Bright Moon, head of the rebellion, tightest security of the elemental kingdoms, no weapons allowed, nobody in or out without a thorough background check… except those kids are allowed to do whatever the hell they want, go anywhere they want, while ARMED and nobody stops them? It was ludicrous and dangerous and…
She exhaled. What did it matter? It was just a job.
"No, sir. Everything's fine. I'm eager to get started."
"Great!" The general clapped her on the shoulder.
They passed what looked like a bedroom, the door open to reveal a couple of singed targets, a pile of arrows, and what looked like battle plans drawn directly on the polished floor in crayon. She exhaled and shook her head.
The general laughed and bumped her shoulder. "Just be glad there's only two of them! Imagine half a dozen of them running around like that, yelling and fighting and blasting magic who knows where. Or worse! Imagine they were teenagers! Whew! By the time that happens, I'm retiring for sure. Maybe by then, they'll be your problem."
Yes, she thought, as they made their way back into the throne room where everything at least had the illusion of order. Maybe it would be.