Chapter 2
After You
We made our way to the back of the Vestian Outpost and suddenly I felt more like a dog being led to its death rather than a guest of the ruler of the Reef. The second guard, dressed identically to the woman who had spoken earlier, had snapped to attention and they walked in perfect unison. Since I wasn't given any option other than to follow their funeral procession, I tried to enjoy the skin tight view ahead of me. Their exquisite rhythm distracted me from my impending death.
The further along we proceeded however; I couldn't help but notice more Royal Awoken Guards. A sea of slate gray and dark blue uniforms, with red metallic chest pieces greeted us; their incredibly large shoulder gauntlets reminding me of ancient football players.
Further hiding their femininity were these long heavy duty neck guards. Until I dealt more with Petra, their function had truly dumbfounded me. But with daggers as the preferred weapon of choice for the royal guard; the fastest way to defeat an opponent in hand to hand combat would be the neck.
It was hard to tell if any of them were, what we guardians would say pretty, since you couldn't see their faces; in fact only their noses showed through their helmets. What was noticeable however was the various pieces of leather straps accenting their bustline. Although not much showed of the woman under the armor, it was quite clear they were well trained, disciplined and in excellent physical shape.
I knew that not all Royal Awoken Guards were dressed alike. At first glance, it was hard to see any variation at all, but since I tend to pick up on the small details rather easily, it did not take long to see a difference in the pattern or perhaps I just spent a bit too much time admiring the Queen's Emissary.
Unlike the two in front of me, her magenta colored banner ran down her left leg. I never had the nerve to ask while she twiddled that enormous knife she played with, but it made me think Petra outranked the other Awoken Guards. She was the only one actively interacting with the guardians.
It made perfect sense: she managed all the Queen's Wrath missions and disbursed the Queen's blessings. That had to carry some weight. It was something I always wanted to know and perhaps now, I would get the opportunity to ask the Ruler herself; that is if she hadn't just sentenced me to death.
I began to speculate why I was being summoned. I had been respectful to the Awoken Guard and Petra especially. Regardless of her curvaceous magenta cleavage that flowed down her backside, I remained professionally duteous.
Over the last couple of months I completed a plethora of missions Petra had assigned me without issue. In return I have taken no more than what the Queen's Emissary gave me. I hunted down and killed more Wolves Packs than I can count and transferred my bountiful loot of Tokens of Flight, Identity and Judgment to my vault for safekeeping. A guardian doesn't get those by screwing up all the time.
Chewing on my bottom lip, I can't seem to figure it out. Reaching for my arm to consult my ghost, one of the guards suddenly looked back and scowled at me as if warning me not to activate my little light. Reluctantly, I lowered my arm and continued to follow them blindly.
Arriving at the back of the market place, I waited while my escorts spoke with another royal guard with two droids behind her. They seemed to be protecting a door that rested beneath the largest banner I have ever seen. Nearly fifty feet long, it had an enormous symbol of the Queen boldly painted on it. I guess the Queen must be really full of herself.
Eyeing up the mechanical robots one of them suddenly demanded, "Stop looking at me". I thought how strange for a robot to be conscious. But it was the glare given by the royal guards that was more bothersome. Had I just been staring at an inanimate object? Thank the stars I hadn't been caught every time I stared at something, I'd probably be a dead warlock by now.
After the trio went back to discussing whatever it was they were discussing, I tried admiring the craftsmanship and beauty of the magnificent entryway. However after a few seconds I found myself looking back over my shoulder. For a brief moment, I thought I had caught Petra's attention staring back at me, but it did not take long before a different guardian interrupted our locked gaze.
A "Who her?" ripped my focus back to the Royal Guards before me.
The woman who had spoken to me earlier frowned and answered the woman standing guard. "Yes, this is the one."
Believing I saw her eyes roll, I watched as the lead guard tapped the side of her helmet turning on her comms. It was not long before she spoke again to the person on the other side of her communicator. "Acknowledged." A heartbeat barely passed before she barked a set of orders at us, about as friendly as my escort.
Looking at me like I was worthless piece of flesh, she commanded, "Take her to the Queen's Observatory."
"Acknowledged," replied my escort.
I guess that meant they understood their orders. Inwardly I couldn't help but think, so formal; especially as I glanced at the extremely uniformed trio that blocked the entrance as I walked by.
However, what I saw next as I stepped through that sacred door immediately caused me to forget my stolen gaze with Petra. Being a resurrected guardian, I thought I had seen it all, but boy was I wrong.