Mush Kingdom part 1

The king of Mush decided to get married. For his wife, he chose a woman who lived in the kingdom's outermost village. She didn't really want to become his wife, but she decided it was best for her village to do so. The king and his new queen had a daughter. The queen named the girl Celiko in homage to the village's chief crop of celery. When Celiko was four, however, her mother died of an illness. The king, wasting no time, married one of the courtiers and had a second daughter named Victoreena.

The land of Mush was not always peaceful. The lord of Aoumigame, the neighboring kingdom, was constantly trying to take over Mush. Gennosuke Aoumigame was very vicious. Every moment of his time was spent trying to add Mush to his list of conquests. Fortunately for Mush, Aoumigame almost always failed in his attempts. King Mush had a few talented knights in his arsenal who always managed to thwart Aoumigame. Due to Mush's sense of humanity, Aoumigame was never executed for his crimes. That didn't stop Aoumigame from doing things all over again when he had the chance.

Celiko knew much about the Aoumigame kingdom. She studied geography and warfare, and viewed Aoumigame's first assault on the castle when she was 15 as a learning experience. Studying warfare and otherwise unladylike things was Celiko's way of dealing with palace life. Since her mother died, Celiko felt like an outsider. Her stepmother didn't care one bit about her, and Victoreena always stole the court's attention. It's no surprise that Celiko could leave the castle and go days without being missed. Celiko's favorite retreat was a hot spring in the forest around her mother's hometown. It was a beautiful place, like out of a dream.

Celiko sat in the stream, thinking. Her castle was recovering from the latest siege when she left. She had a miserable look on her face, but the siege was not the cause. "You look troubled, my princess," said a voice near the trees. Celiko was startled. "Who...?" A tall man with hair the color of blood stepped into the open. Celiko's eyes grew wide as she saw who was there. "Gennosuke Aoumigame..." Celiko was surprised to see the lord of the opposing kingdom standing before her. "May I join you?" he asked as he moved toward the spring. "After the events of today a soak in the spring would be welcome." Celiko said nothing as Gennosuke removed his armor and entered the spring. "If I tell you a story, will you tell me why you look so down?" Gennosuke leaned back and started speaking, "I saw you looking at the scar on my chest. Pretty, huh? Well, you can attribute that to the good king Mush. About four years after my first 'visit' to your castle I managed to get a hold of the other princess. I think I got her in her bedroom. Hmm. Maybe it was the sewing room? Either way, 'daddy' was practically on his knees begging me to release her. When I said I was going to make her into a slave, your 'peace loving' king grabbed this big candlestick-lamp thing and slashed at me like it was a sword. When I tried to get up, he shoved me out the window. I landed in the barn and scared the crap out of a stable girl. I don't remember how I got back to my castle, but the fact that I'm still here three years later speaks wonders about your king's idiocy. Believe me, if I had that jackass in the same situation I would not have spared my sword. So, I told you a story, will you tell me one?"

Celiko was surprised that Gennosuke was being so forthright, but couldn't keep her own guise up much longer. "You call me a princess, yet I hardly feel like one," she remarked. "And why is that?" Gennosuke asked. "Your story kind of explains it. The king would do anything for his little Victoreena, even if that meant breaking from his peaceful ways. He treats her like a goddess and gives her anything she wants. Do you know what she got for her sixteenth birthday? He made her first in line for succession! When I turned sixteen all I got was a damn marriage contract." A curious Gennosuke replied, "A marriage contract? That is a political move, not a birthday present. I assume you got out of it?" "I told the man that when I was born, my mother promised me to the king who lived near her village," Celiko replied. Gennosuke was suddenly overcome with laughter. "Well, I'm sure having me as competition would put off any would-be groom!" "Indeed. Though I doubt even a husband would protect me from one of your sieges, no one ever has."

Gennosuke thought for a second and then replied, "Would you like to test that theory of yours? That no one ever protects you?" Celiko was too taken aback to answer. Gennosuke scratched his chin and spoke. "I'll kidnap you and take you to Mush in his castle, and then demand territory in return for your release. If he caves and grants me territory, I'll let it and you go free." "And if he doesn't?" "Do you not have faith in your king?" Celiko admittedly did not, but she did not want to say this to the kingdom's main enemy. "Fine, though you're looking for a weakness that the king does not have," Celiko replied. Gennosuke rose from the spring and reapplied his armor. "If you really want to do this, meet me at the castle bridge by morning."