Deté 1st, 994 A.D.

An arrow whistled and cut through the crisp morning air, hurtling toward its target at impressive speed. But a southern wind took the projectile off course, and it clattered onto a nearby cobblestone path with a chink.

That same breeze rustled through the archer's luscious brown hair. Princess Katherine Alder of Monterayne squinted her striking emerald eyes and pulled back her bowstring again, intent on hitting that hanging bag of grain with the red circle painted in the middle, a tiny black dot serving as her real target. In her mind, settling on anywhere else in the circle was failing already.

She released the arrow, aiming slightly off so as to account for the wind. It sped toward the bag, only to drop sooner than she'd intended. The arrow penetrated the bag right at its bottom, far below even the edge of the red circle. When the sharpened head fell out, grain began to spill from within.

Katherine sighed and walked over to hang up a new bag. Once she'd done that, she took her stance back several paces, retrieved her third arrow, and lined up her next shot.

Externally, the princess appeared determined and focused, but inside, her mind raced with thoughts, and that made her aim sloppy. In reality, her bow and arrows at this time were merely objects to occupy her hands and keep them from fidgeting, an unladylike habit she often indulged in when burdened with a busy mind.

In just over seven weeks, her 19th birthday would arrive. And while those celebratory days usually brought joy and excitement to the princess' heart, this year, it brought a certain pressure. She felt as if she'd have to earn the birthday she really wanted this time.

Since Katherine's mother had passed away two years ago in her sleep, with perfectly good health and no apparent reason for her death, the Alder family had boiled down to only Katherine and her father Maxwell. And since Maxwell had often expressed guilt on even thinking of taking another woman to be his wife, all the burden rested on Katherine's shoulders to continue their dynasty.

Maxwell had paired his daughter with nobleman after nobleman, an occasional prince, and once in a while, an artist or musician. She'd courted them all for mere days before dismissing them. They were all too soft for Katherine's liking, focused more on impressing her than being themselves, or in a few cases, it seemed more like they were courting her father than her. But she wanted a man with grit, who was unashamed to be who he was and that was final.

So finally, Maxwell had given up. He'd told his daughter she could keep an eye out and court any man of her choosing, and so long as he was a good man, Maxwell would have no objection. But he'd insisted that if by her 19th birthday, she hadn't found one who fully tickled her fancy, then she'd be paired for good, and that would be the end of the matter. That fortunate man would get to keep her for life, and she would bear his children.

Katherine squinted at the target and released the arrow finally, a slight smirk jumping to her lips when she hit right in the black dot. A feeling of accomplishment surged over her as she stepped up to remove the arrow, but then she descended back into her raging thoughts, and her smile fell.

She didn't want to make this difficult for her father, and she certainly didn't want to live a lonely life. Her only dilemma was that all the good men were gone, off defending the kingdom's borders, even though the antagonistic Innutukian Empire hadn't struck in about three years. Just then, a spirit-lifting idea struck Katherine. She tucked it away, however, when she heard the rustle of footsteps in the grass behind her.

"You left me to eat breakfast by myself, Kate." her father addressed her using the shortened form of her name she much preferred. His signature charming grin adorned his face. "Why would you do such a thing?"

"You started without me." she retorted lightheartedly, "Why would you do such a thing?"

"I have no counterargument." Maxwell said, closing the rest of the distance between them and pulling his petite daughter into his arms.

Kate let out a contented sigh at her father's loving touch, laying her head against his broad chest and wrapping her arms around his torso as much as she could. With no family besides a handful of distant in-laws of in-laws whose names were as hard to remember as they were to pronounce, she appreciated every chance she got to embrace her father. And since he was in the same predicament, she could only guess he felt much the same, if not more so.

Maxwell finally released Kate and backed away a few paces to view her face in greater detail. And from the widening of his smile, it appeared he found pleasure there. When he finally did spare a glance aside, he raised an eyebrow at her elegant shoes standing a few paces off in the grass. Then his gaze swept over to her bare feet, with blades of grass jutting up from between her toes.

"Sometimes you baffle me, darling." Maxwell remarked with a smirk.

Kate laughed. "I tell you, I feel more grounded this way. It helps me focus."

"That is fair, but you never come out to practice this early. I have observed you only pull yourself out of bed to shoot outside this early in the morning when something is bothering you."

"You know me too well."

Maxwell extended his brawny hand and took her bow. Then he offered Kate his other arm, and once she'd interlocked hers with his, they slowly strolled back to the castle. A pleasant breeze followed on their heels.

"You readily admit something is bothering you," Maxwell said, "but you have not elaborated. Do you wish to talk about it?"

Kate flashed a toothy grin at her father. "You know I never hide anything from you. I've been thinking about Innutuk."

"I see. And what has been the subject of those thoughts?"

"Well...I find myself more than a little bothered that Monterayne's last engagement with them was three years ago, but yet we've remained on edge as if they're clutching our throats."

Maxwell frowned. "Innutuk is vicious, Kate. Why would we open ourselves up to—"

"I'm not asking that we act foolishly, Father. I'm not asking that we disband the whole army or some such buffoonery. I only ask you why we need all our fighting men lining the Arorian border or manning guard stations across Monterayne. Think of all the homes where our women are forced to raise children alone! And think of the children themselves, with their fathers always absent!"

"It truly is an unfortunate state of affairs, but I fear we have few alternatives. We cannot send them all home; that much is certain. Innutuk has given us no reason to believe their antagonism has been quelled."

"That's just the thing." Kate said, "We've been at an unofficial standstill in this conflict for three years, Father. But what if we were to make it official? What if we were to make the peace binding?"

"A treaty?"

"Yes! After all, how many compelling reasons could they give forth to not sign a peace agreement? The war was never about Monterayne, but Alconte and her substantial sway in the international markets of these eastern lands. They only attacked us because we came to Alconte's aid, but if we were to present them an olive branch, I can see no good reason why they would not take it."

Maxwell opened one of the side doors to the royal castle and beckoned Kate through before entering himself. "Your proposal is agreeable, Kate, but no diplomat has the authority to ratify such an agreement. And I myself will soon have a host of representatives from the south congregating here, so it would be some time until I could depart."

"Well then, I'll go." Kate said abruptly. The words left her mouth before she'd thought them over or even been aware of them. "This thing must be done for the welfare of Monterayne."

Maxwell laughed. "Surely you jest. You cannot imperil yourself so, not you, Kate Alder, the last of her family line!"

Kate bit her lip, mind racing. Should I tell him the truth? That this is not truly for Monterayne's mothers and children, but to bring the good men home, into my grasp? That this is so I can choose my own path in life?

She snatched herself from her warring thoughts and put on a smirk. "Is that not what we pay bodyguards for?"

"That is true, but there is a difference between a secure stroll across our own countryside, and breaching enemy territory, having every single soul you cross be a potential foe."

"Fine. Knights shall accompany me as well."

Maxwell chuckled. "You are a stubborn girl. I know there is no dissuading you, so I must merely wish you the best and adjure you to accept only the best of their number."

"Of course." Kate said as she slowed to a stop, "When I return, you will see I haven't suffered a single scratch."

"I sure hope you are right about that."

****

The click of high-heeled shoes echoed through a stone-walled corridor lined with latticed windows as Kate strutted down its length. She rarely entered this building, the hall for Monterayne's Knights of the King's Table. Not as much as she had in younger days. There had been a time when every spell of boredom sent her here to listen to accounts of valorous acts past and present. She'd listened to tales of battered princesses and senators of foreign lands being saved by the strong arms of Monterayne's knights, or an Innutukian encroachment being warned off from a defenseless homestead by a handful of the masterful swordsmen.

But things had changed since then.

Kate's favorite knight had left the order almost eight years ago, soon after her 11th birthday. She had never been able to get a straight or consistent answer on why he'd departed; the only thing Kate was sure of was that he was gone, and the entire order felt different for it. She wasn't so sure she liked the change.

Nonetheless, she currently sought out the High Council chamber to arrange a knightly entourage for her trip. As Kate continued down the hallway, she encountered more activity, passing several knights who gave her barely veiled glances full of visible desire. Typically, she would feel flattered at receiving such looks, but considering even the youngest of the passing knights appeared at least ten years her senior, her appreciation quickly dwindled.

Finally, Kate reached the sturdy wooden door closing the High Council chamber off from the rest of the knights' hall. She knocked on the wide slab four times before stepping back and folding her hands in front of herself.

Only a short wait later, the door opened a crack, and the face of Juan Feliz peeked out. As he was one of the most universally respected of the knights, a high-ranking nobleman, and chief advisor to King Maxwell, Kate was well familiar with the man. She rewarded his easygoing smile with a generous grin of her own as she stepped closer.

"Your highness!" Juan exclaimed, "How may I help you?"

"If the High Council is in session, I have a word to have with them. And if they aren't, then they need to be." Kate said replied authoritatively.

His dark eyebrows elevated as his head bobbed up and down in a vigorous nod. "We were just discussing security arrangements for your father's upcoming assembly of representatives, but we shall accommodate you. Please, come in and make yourself comfortable."

Kate lifted her skirt slightly to step over the threshold before sitting down on the armchair that a balding knight had all but shoved under her hindquarters. She glanced over the ten members of the High Council, the only knights who actually bore the honor of eating a weekly meal at her father's table as their name suggested. All except Juan either had no hair, or had witnessed it undergoing a whitening, along with more or less wrinkling of their faces.

The eldest of the knights, a long-faced man with only one eye named Alden Holt, leaned forward with a warm grin on his face. "Good morning, Princess. It is always a pleasure when you show your lovely face here."

Kate smirked playfully. "It's a pleasure to be seen as well."

"Indeed. So, how may we be of service to you?"

"Well, I'm currently preparing for a trip to Innutuk, where I will be negotiating a treaty to make this unofficial standstill an official time of peace. But of course, Innutuk can never be trusted fully, so I will need knightly escorts to supplement my guard force."

Alden exchanged a glance with Juan. "I see. And did you have an approximation for how many you will require?"

Kate laughed. "Security is a matter you men should be more acquainted with than me. Four, I suppose?"

"It shall be done. We must give some thought into the selection of candidates, as we can only give you the best, your highness, but we will inform you of our decision. Will that be all?"

Kate stifled a frown at his remark. Alden seemed in a hurry for her to leave, and by the way the other old men at the table bounced their knees or twiddled their fingers, they appeared to be of the same mind. Only Juan gave her an appropriate amount of unhurried attention.

"Yes." she finally answered, "That will be all. Carry on, and may you all have a wonderful day."

Most of the knights grumbled at Kate in response while Juan rose to his feet again to open the door for her. "May you have a blessed day as well." he said with a charming smile, "And may the crown rest lightly upon your father's head."

Kate grinned. "Thank you."

With that, Princess Kate stepped through the doorway, which soon thumped shut behind her. The hallway echoed with her clicking footsteps again as she headed off to handle and oversee all the other preparations required for her trip. It was an ordeal even to arrange a ride to the mountains on the southern border, let alone the 15-day trip to Innutuk's capital. Royalty made some aspects of life easier, and others, much harder. 

**** 

A/N: Well, there we have our first chapter with Princess Kate Alder of Monterayne! I hope you thoroughly enjoyed, and if you did, please click the little star to vote, and let me know what you thought in the comments! Thanks in advance! 😁 

It's been a long while since I've written a central character of royalty, so I'm pretty happy with how this turned out, to be honest. (The Iron Skeleton does have an important princess character too, but to be fair, she's about as involved in court life as Star Wars' Princess Leia is. 😂) Anyway, it was fun to delve into a character in a class I rarely think about that deeply. 

But if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to ask some questions about what you thought about this first chapter. So first off, what did you think of Kate? Just let me know what your initial thoughts on her are. 😊 

And what about her father? Do you approve of him, disapprove, have mixed feelings? 

The last two things I wanted to ask about is how did you like the pacing and atmosphere in this first chapter? Was it a good lead-in to the story in your opinion? 

Well, if you answered all that, I love you. In fact, I love ya'll so much I'm heading over to post chapter two right now! See ya there, hopefully!