Chapter 1: Dravonia
The land of Dravonia lies silent under a heavy sky.
Mountains cut sharply against the horizon, their peaks covered with ice that does not melt even in summer. The wind blows coldly through the valleys, whispering over stone and pine forests, as if carrying secrets long forgotten. Villages cling to the earth like something trying to survive, their lights flickering in the early evening.
Above it all... immovable and ancient... stands the castle of Dornach.
Built of dark stone that looks almost black in certain light, it towers high and stern, windows narrow like eyes that are always watching. The walls bear the marks of centuries of wars and storms, of kings who have long since turned to dust. Inside, it is not much warmer.
The corridors are long and silent.
Every footstep echoes against the stone; every sound carries farther than it should. Torches burn along the walls, their light flickering, casting shadows that move like living things. The air smells of smoke and old wood, a place that remembers more than it lives.
And deep within these cold walls stands Julian van Dornach.
He stands tall before the great doors of the throne room, hands clasped tightly behind his back. His shoulders are straight, as he has been taught since childhood... a prince does not bend, not even under a weight that no one can see.
The guards on either side of the door say nothing. They don’t even look at him.
He is used to it.
A knock of metal on stone.
The doors begin to slide open.
The throne room lies before him, wide and cold. Tall windows let in pale light, which falls across the polished stone floor. At the end of the hall, elevated above all, sit the king and queen of Dravonia.
His parents.
Julian moves forward, every step measured, every breath controlled.
He does not kneel; he bows his head... exactly as expected.
“Your Majesties.”
For a moment, no one says anything.
But then his father broke the silence.
“You’re getting old enough, Julian.”
His father’s voice is deep, without warmth. Not loud, but it fills the entire room.
Julian raises his eyes slightly. “Yes, Father.”
The queen looks at him, her gaze sharp, calculating. “It’s decided.”
Those words land heavier than anything else.
Decided.
Not discussed. Not asked.
Decided...
Julian feels something tighten inside him, but nothing shows on his face. He learned long ago how to hide it.
“You will get married,” she continues, her voice smooth as ice. “In three months.”
The silence that follows is deafening.
Julian’s breathing remains even... but his heart doesn’t.
“With Princess Annelise Rosenwald of Alveria.”
The name means nothing… and everything at once.
An alliance... a promise... a chain.
For the first time, his fingers move slightly behind his back... just enough to betray the tension he can’t suppress.
But his voice, when he speaks, is still calm.
“…I understand.”
And that’s the moment everything starts to break.
The day moves on like any other in Dravonia.
And yet, nothing is the same.
Julian goes through the motions. He eats where he must eat, answers where he is expected to answer, and walks where the corridors lead him as they always have.
But everything feels… dull.
Far away.
The world speaks to him, and he doesn’t hear it.
Every time he closes his eyes, he hears those words again... and again.
You will be married in three months.
A stranger’s name, tied to his life.
By late afternoon, he can’t take it anymore.
The walls feel closer. The air is heavier.
He turns away from the main halls without a word, his steps quick and determined. The guards ask nothing when he reaches the stables; they just bow, as always.
“Saddle him,” he says curtly.
The horse is brought without question... a black stallion, strong and restless, like him.
Julian mounts without help.
And he rides.
The wind cuts coldly across his face as he races through the valleys. Stone and ice and dirt fly beneath the horse’s hooves; the world fades to nothing more than movement and breath and heartbeat.
For the first time that day, he could breathe.
He rides further than he should. Higher up the slopes, where the trees thin out and the world grows quieter.
Only when the sun begins to set does he tighten the reins.
The horse slows, breathing heavily, steam rising in the cold air.
Julian slides down and leads him to a lone tree, old, crooked, but still standing against the wind.
He rests his forehead against the horse’s neck, eyes closed.
For a moment… just silence.
The sound of hooves breaks it.
Julian turns sharply.
A second rider approaches through the twilight... familiar, even before the sight becomes clear.
“You ride like someone trying to escape something,” the voice says softly as it approaches.
Julian exhales slowly. “And you ride like someone who was looking for me.”
The other man smiles wryly and dismounts.
Kyle... His cousin. More like a brother than anything else.
“I was looking for you in the castle,” Kyle says, his eyes sharper than his smile. “When I heard where you were… I thought I’d find you here.”
Julian looks away, over the mountains. “I just… had to ride.”
A silence falls between them.
Not awkward. Just heavy.
Kyle folds his arms, leaning against the tree. “They told you.”
That’s not a question.
Julian nodded slightly.
“Three months,” he finally said, his voice low. “With a princess I’ve never met.”
Kyle looked at him for a long moment.
Then he laughed... softly, without humor.
“Well… then it’s probably time for me to tell you something.”
Julian frowned. “What?”
Kyle looked up at the sky, as if searching for the words there.
“My father,” he finally said, “decided that I should get married too.”
The wind blew between them.
Julian stared at him. “You’re kidding.”
“I wish.”
“With whom?”
Kyle shrugged lightly. “Does it matter? Another name. Another alliance. Another life that’s already decided for me.”
The words hung heavy between them.
Two different paths... that had suddenly become the same.
Julian looked back at the horizon. The sun is sinking lower, painting the snow a dull gold.
“I’m not staying,” he finally says.
Kyle doesn’t answer right away.
Then...
“…Neither do I.”
Julian turns to him slowly.
There’s no joke in Kyle’s eyes. No lightness.
Just the same decision… that’s already been made.
The plan
Later, they sit under the tree, and the light is fading.
“We can’t just drive and hope for the best,” Kyle says. “They’ll come looking for us. Fast.”
Julian nods. “We need money. And a way to get away that they don’t expect.”
Kyle’s lip twitches. “I’ve already started thinking.”
Julian raises an eyebrow.
“There’s a ship leaving in a few days,” Kyle continues. “A merchant ship. Not a royal one. No one would look for two ‘common men’ there.”
“And how exactly do we get on?”
Kyle looks at him, half smiling.
“I’ll pay the captain.”
Julian frowns. “He’ll ask questions.”
“Not if I pay enough.”
A silence.
“There’s no room for passengers,” Kyle adds. “Only workers.”
Julian understands immediately.
“Okay.”
“We work for our place,” Kyle says. “We disappear among them. No titles... No names.”
Julian looks down at his hands.
Not a prince.
Not anymore.
“When?” he asks.
Kyle’s answer comes without hesitation:
“Within three days.”
The wind is blowing through the mountains again.
And for the first time... the future doesn't feel like a sentence.
But like something unknown.
And free.
