Chapter 2
The Job
Morena relished the feeling of freedom that came with flight. The broomstick was as uncomfortable as ever against her crotch, but it hardly mattered with the rush of wind in her face and her hair flowing wildly behind her. The thought that she was possibly flying towards certain death was present, but the excitement of the situation and the thrill of flying overshadowed her negative thoughts.
It wasn't long before she could see the distant lights of the Kingdom of Epetor, and she began searching the treeline for any sign of her target. Normally she would be flying as low as possible, but in the moonless night she was well- hidden even in the open sky. Before long she spotted it, a dim light a hundred or so meters into the forest.
Instead of approaching it directly, Morena had one last safeguard to prevent herself from walking into a trap. She landed instead in the field just south of the light, and began carefully surveying the area. She trusted in her abilities enough to at least escape him if he was alone and things went sour, but if he had a sizable escort with him preparing an ambush it might prove too much. Even with her training she had never been in real combat before.
Her eyes strained, looking for any signs of trampled grass, cart wheel tracks, or hoof marks, but everything seemed to be pristine. After nearly half an hour she was satisfied, and mounted her broom.
"I'm thrilled that you decided to trust me." King Spruce said as she landed. "As promised, and as a token of my appreciation, here is your payment. Again, if you wish to hear nothing more of my offer you are free to leave now without any repercussion."
He tossed a large bag of coins at her. She caught it, but stumbled back from its surprising weight. She recovered, and her eyes lingered on the man in front of her as she slowly opened it and dug her hand inside. She pulled out a gold coin that shined in the white light, which she only just recognized as the same type of light that rescued her all those years ago. Could she really trust him?
"I don't know if you've earned my trust yet," She said cautiously, "but you've certainly earned my curiosity. What is your request."
He smiled broadly. The most emotion Morena had seen from him. She also noticed that he was a little more plump than she expected him to be from his face in the orb. In his own basic traveling gear, he looked far less regal than before.
"Splendid!" he exclaimed, and began, "Now, please allow me to take my time with my explanation. I fear that I may scare you from this job if I am too direct, though as I promised, it is not in the least bit dangerous."
Morena nodded, her suspicion growing as she watched the King fidget nervously.
"You see, I am actually quite proficient in the field of magic that I wish to hire you for. I learned from a spell book I paid a hefty price for, and which I have brought with me tonight. The issue is not the magic itself, but rather the target, my daughter."
Morena cocked an eyebrow at him, but he quickly addressed her obvious next question.
"Nothing to hurt her of course! She is the jewel of my world and I would never let anything happen to her. She is just going through some... problems in accepting her role as princess."
He shifted uncomfortably, and for the first time Morena saw cracks in his regal demeanor. Her suspicion grew as her mind drifted to the possible requests that would warrant such extreme measures.
No obvious explanation presented itself, and he continued, "I fear I may lose everything as I age. She is my only child and will likely stay that way, but that means she is the only one who can inherit the Epetor throne when my time is done. It's already a near-impossible task to find a reputable prince that would agree to a matrilineal marriage, but what's even more damning is that she doesn't seem the least bit interested in princes, or in anyone for that matter."
"And what in the world am I supposed to do about it?" Morena asked. She couldn't imagine what kind of angle he was going for. He paused, and seemed hesitant to continue. The air of authority he had shown in the orb was diminishing rapidly. A man of such unwavering confidence was being reduced to a mere peasant before her eyes.
"Well... To put it directly... uhm... she doesn't seem particularly... uh-"
"Sir, you can be blunt." She said with a mixture of curiosity and annoyance at his babbling.
He took a deep breath to recompose himself and sighed, "Very well. Just please acknowledge that what I'm about to ask of you is purely out of interest for my kingdom and for her, and that I have thoroughly considered
every
possible alternative."
