It was raining so hard I had to keep wiping the water off my eyebrows. Slinky, my good old donkey, was struggling with the muddy ground, slipping every few steps as I urged him up the small mound. Riding on my left milady Anna remained silent, as expected of someone mute, on her mare Lilly. Lilly was a beast, all midnight black from the nose to the tail; a fierce delinquent of a horse everyone back at the manor had thought it would be impossible for her to be ridden. But then again, if anyone could tame a beast, it would be the young lady Anna. With one single slap on the hind and the wild mare had become quiet and obedient. Now she quietly trotted on this muddy ground, nostrils occasionally flaring, to the top of the mound that had seen battles these past days.

We made no sound except for the metallic clinks from milady’s armor. We didn’t need to talk. In fact, she couldn’t talk. At all. It was an excellent base material for whispered gossip among the townsfolk. A curse. A sin. An abomination. Such was this world’s view on anyone born with defects; God’s punishment. I glanced at her petite pale face; her eyes squinted and lips taut in concentration listening to the metals clashing and men screaming in the distance. A distance not far enough for my comfort. She noticed my gaze, and her head turned my ways.

‘Sounds bad,’ she made a flurry of hand signs.

“Yes, it does,” I paused a bit before continuing. “Are you really going to do this?”

‘Yes.’

Her reply made me grumble. She could have just nodded, but no, she had to go the extra mile by making the hand sign, too, for a simple single word. She gave me a playful wink and reined in Lilly to a stop; we had reached the top of the mound without me realizing it.

Anna had insisted we go up the high ground to take a better look. And she was right. We could see it very well. On the flat land about two hundred yards from us, some two hundred angry men armed with pikes, halberds, axes, maces, swords, and spears were throwing themselves against the wooden fence of Fort Montclam. A siege camp had been set up not too far from the Fort, with tents pitched and spikes raised at the perimeter. I suspected the spikes discouraged the defenders from charging out of the Fort and run the camp over.

‘Fort? What a joke,’ I scoffed. The ‘Fort’ was in its name only. It was more like a small camp with high wooden spikes arranged as its wall. That was somewhat understandable. Nobody in their right mind would bother to build a proper Fort here. I couldn’t imagine any other purpose of the so-called Fort than to serve as a rest-stop for the rare patrols who’d reluctantly come out here every blue moon. Fort, my ass.

Numerous flamboyant banners flew high over the Fort’s wall. Unfortunately, I was not well versed in the world of nobility and thus could not identify which represented whom. But even I could tell one particular banner depicting an intricate shield tangled in a thorny vain. It was the largest and the most prominent one among those of the Fort, indicating who was in command of the defense; Comte d’Armas, the count of Armas. Why he’s here, though? This is the middle of nowhere. A piece of land so insignificant almost to the extent the loss of which would be deemed irrelevant. Why is someone like Comte d’Armas risking his life defending this worthless land?

The men attacking the Fort were trying to bring up the battering ram to the gate, but the defending side rained arrows and stones and hot oil down from the high platform raised behind the wall. I could sense the frustration of the men throwing themselves at the Fort trying to mount up the fence, and I could imagine why. What could have been easy steamroll over a handful of dead countryside peasants turned out to be a multi-day siege in the rain. I spotted the commanding officer angrily shouting orders, waving his shiny sword over his helmeted head. He was easy to identify as the man in charge, for he was a knight in shiny black armor, surrounded by knights in slightly less shiny armors. All sitting on their pompous horses draped in colorful sheets, and their squires flying huge banners. Anna, too, had spotted the nobleman in charge of this particular band of soldiers. Rows of archers lined up in front of the knights, sending hails of arrows to the Fort and its defenders. I could not see their faces from this distance, but I was sure they would look miserable with their padded armors soaked in the rain; exactly how I felt.

‘He’s way too far back to lead his men,’ she commented with her hands.

“At least he’s safe where he is.”

Anna scoffed silently and reached back for her bow from the saddle. It was a simple bow we had made together back at the manor. We spent quite a good amount of time firing, soaking, curing, and strengthening the wood to get that right ‘twang.’ I tried pulling once, but it was surprisingly hard. I couldn’t even pull the bowstring an inch.

‘Announce my arrival.’

“Look, Anna. You really going to do this?” I had to ask once again. This crazy maiden is going to join the war, whether I liked it or not.

‘This is why I descended unto this world.’

“Yeah, I know.” I scratched my head. “But I don’t understand why you had to drag me into this?”‘Oh, are you still mad?’ Anna gave me a smile, but it appeared more like a smirk.

“Never mind.” I shook my head and reached around to rummage through the large sack on Slinky’s back. I soon found what I was looking for; a thick square banner with a large pink rose embroidered on white felt, which was permanently stained with discolored blood. I then dismounted the foldable metallic pole from Slinky’s side. I unfolded it to have the banner attached by the mechanism of rings and hooks. Thanks to the fact that the banner was already soaked, it drooped and draped around the pole. After some fiddling, I got it right by angling the pole to the side just enough for the banner to be hung in full display.

Anna sat up straight on her saddle; the rain droplets bouncing off of the gray-silver armor made ‘plink’ ‘plink’ sounds. Even with all that armor, you could tell this was a petite maiden, with slender limbs and a small head. Definitely, something you would not expect to see on any battlefields where limbs were chopped, and guts were spilled.

She gave me a nod as I reached for the bugle that I had hung around Slinky’s neck. Thunder cracked in the rainy sky, and Anna looked up, grinning like a maniac. She turned to me again with a smug face.

“I know. I know,” I shook my head. “Your friends are watching.”

I took a deep breath and blew hard and long into the bugle. A single loud note rolled across the plain, and for a brief moment, the fighting stopped. All heads turned this way.

The rain suddenly stopped, and there appeared a small opening among the dark clouds. This miserable afternoon’s sun that had been hidden up to now gladly shone its ray through the crack onto the armored maiden on horseback, like a bright spotlight. It was clear to me the bitches up there were joining in the fun and decided to make Anna’s arrival as dramatic as possible. And there I was by her side, wet and miserable and scared. Holding up the banner that announced to everyone on the battlefield the arrival of the young Lady Anna, the sole heiress to the La Rose family of the Roseland. There was a collective gasp, and I knew why. As far as the rest of the kingdom was concerned, the La Rose family had been extinct. Yet here we were flying the banner, just the two of us, on the wrong side of the Fort’s wall with some two hundred men of the enemy faction in front of us. Anna didn’t seem to care. She was already straining the bow. The arrowhead wobbled slightly as she steadied her aim. The wobbling stopped, and then with a loud ‘twang’ that sounded more like a ‘crack’ the arrow was on its way towards the pompous enemy leader in black armor.

And I already knew she was going to miss. The bow was wet. The string was wet. And hell, even the arrow was wet. And… yes, as I expected. The arrow completely missed its intended target and pierced the thick helmet of a knight who was a few feet to the right. The unfortunate sod slumped and slid off from his horse. Very dead. The battlefield suddenly became very quiet.

Anna grunted and readied another arrow. Alas, she was too late. The lesser knights quickly surrounded their leader with thick shields raised. I was impressed by this. I had imagined them to be typical noble cowards sitting on their horses far away from the actual fight and just posing and shouting nonsensical orders. Seeing how quickly they pulled out their shields and formed up around the leader, I changed my mind. These were veterans.

Suddenly a horrible wailing sound pierced the air from behind the shield wall. Someone definitely was very sad. The archers hurried and formed up facing our way. With another ‘twang’ Anna sent the second arrow.

Even from this distance, I could hear the ‘whack!’ The arrow traveled in an almost straight trajectory and rammed into a shield with such a force the armored man behind the shield yelped as he was knocked down from his horse. His squire and retinue hurried towards him to help the man struggling in the mud get back up on his feet. In the meantime, his fellow knights quickly shuffled and filled the vacancy in their turtle formation. An order was barked, and the archers immediately responded by sending a cloud of arrows in MY direction. The arrows arched in the humid sky and… fell short by some fifty yards.

I let out a sigh of relief and glanced sideways at Anna. She had pulled the string ready to send the third arrow, but she paused. After a brief moment of thought, she decided not to shoot and relaxed the string. Handing the bow to me, she gently nudged Lilly forward. I reluctantly followed, riding on Slinky a few yards behind the black mare. I grumbled at the sight of the sunray as it oh so kindly and dramatically shifted its angle and kept shining on Anna. The bitches up there were really having fun.

The battlefield remained silent except the horrible wailing coming from behind the shield wall. Even from this far, I could tell all eyes were on Anna, following this lone slender suit of armor nonchalantly trotting towards the Fort.

The wall of shields surrounding the leader in black armor started moving towards their camp set up not too far behind. A series of orders were barked, and the men at the front slowly backed away from the Fort’s fence. For some reason, the attackers decided they had seen enough action today. That was good. Very comforting news as far as I was concerned. The less fighting I got dragged into, the better.

My heart sank as four knights, fully armored from heads to toes, detached themselves from the shield wall and galloped across the plain towards us. Some thirty or so foot soldiers formed up and followed the horsemen; their eyes fixed on Anna. And me, oh, shit.

“Anna-”

But she just… waved at them. With a bright smile. We kept going, slowly moving towards the Fort. The bastards inside were not coming out to help us. ‘Curse you, Comte d’Armas!’

###

The horsemen and the footmen had formed a blockade in front of us. I couldn't tell what the knights' faces looked like what with the helmets and stuff, but the foot soldiers... their eyes went wide, and jaws dropped as we trotted towards them closer and closer; close enough for them to realize it was a girl riding on the black horse, basking in the ray of sunshine that traveled across the muddy field with her.

The four knights trotted forward, one leading the other three, and came to a stop some ten yards from us. We, too, stopped. The leader of the group removed his helmet, revealing a bearded man, no older than in his mid-forties; his face stern yet neutral, but the eyes twinkled with curiosity.

"Good afternoon, milady. Sieur Henry of Tyroux at your service." He bowed slightly in greeting and waited expectantly for Anna's reply.

Anna bowed slightly, raised her head, and nervously smiled a little. She turned towards me and made a series of signs.

I got off from Slinky and bowed deeply.

"Good Sieur, the Lady Anna of La Rose greets you and wishes you good health."

The Sieur threw me a quick puzzled glance before proceeding with a question.

"Thank you, milady. Would Your Ladyship mind if I asked what business brought a La Rose to this desolate land? As you can see," He gestured towards the corpses strewn across the field. "This ground is not kind. Especially not to maidens."

Anna, again, turned to me and made a flurry of hand gestures. Keeping my head low, I spoke on her behalf.

"Lady Anna wishes to enter Fort Montclam and-"

"What is this? A jest?" A knight behind Sieur Henry removed his helmet and barked. He had the face of a venomous snake and a matching voice. I cowered and lowered my head even lower.

"Does the Lady not speak for herself? Or does Her Ladyship regard us so low she does not even bother to address us?"

"Good Sieur, milady does not-"

"Silence!" The snake-faced man snapped. "I'm addressing the Lady. Know your place and do not-"

He stopped as Anna sighed. She bowed a little apologetically and made some more hand gestures. Glancing up, I could see the look of realization dawning on Henry's face. However, the snake-faced man still did not seem to get it. I cowered some more.

"Good Sieurs, milady does not speak."

There was a collective gasp. The footmen behind the knights murmured among themselves, shaking heads. Some even spat on the ground with a vile look in their eyes.

"A mute?" The snake-face turned red. "The Lady disgraces the sacred battlefield with her unholy defect? A mute! This is sacrilegious!" His hand reached for the sword as he spoke.

"Enough, Sieur Guido!" Henry got in the way. He turned and faced his fellow knights and the footmen.

"Chevaliers. Men. Her Ladyship may be a mute, but she is still a La Rose. I will not tolerate any disrespect towards the descendant of one of the founding families of the kingdom." His eyes glared, his right hand tapping on the hilt of his sword. "Have I made myself clear?"

That cooled off the rage among his men somewhat. Reluctantly they grumbled yes. 'What a gentleman,' I thought. The snake-faced man named Guido spat and put his helmet back on, refusing to directly face the impurity standing on his sacred battleground. Henry gave him a stern look then turned to face us again.

"Would the young Lady kindly accept my apology for my fellow Sieur Guido's rudeness?" He bowed apologetically. Anna nodded with a generous smile in appreciation, and Henry smiled back.

"May I inquire about the reason you wish to enter Fort Montclam? Surely you have noticed it's currently under siege."

Anna gave me a nod, a sign of 'You handle the talking.'

"Sieur Henry, the Lady wishes to-"

"Lad, raise your head! Stand up straight!" Henry barked at me. "You are speaking on behalf of your Lady. Carry her dignity fittingly."

I was taken aback a little. My respect towards the good Sieur Henry grew exponentially at this very moment. I would have gladly thrown myself at his feet and begged to be allowed to serve him if it wasn't for the fact that the moment I ditched Anna, she would be erased out of existence. Sure, I wasn't pleased with what she and the bitches had done to me, but it wasn't like I hated her THAT much.

So I stood straight, head raised, and looking directly into his eyes. There I explained what we were doing. Anna, and thereby the entire La Rose's Barony, had decided to pledge allegiance to The Royal Prince Louis, the rightful heir to the throne. We had heard the Seigneur, the lord of the manor, presiding over the Montclam area was vocally supporting Prince Louis. Anna and I had set out to join him in his endeavor and offer 'her' service. However, when we came to the area after many days of travel, we found the manor was burning, and the villages plundered. A kid dying in my arms squeezed out what little strength he had left to tell us everyone was heading to the Fort. And voila. Here we were.

Sieur Henry grimaced.

"Dear Lady Anna. I beg you to please reconsider." He once again moved his hand to point out the mangled corpses in the mud. "Battles are not meant for maidens. Besides," He pointed at the Fort. "Fort Montclam will fall. It is not long before Prince Louis and his followers will be no more. Your Ladyship wishes to join the losing side!" He clutched his chest. "I beg you, Lady Anna. For your sake. And for the sake of what remains of the great La Rose. Please return home."

Anna raised her chin and looked down on the good-hearted sir knight. The sunbeam, shining on her, intensified two folds. She raised her arm and pointed at Fort Montclam.

"May I suggest... Your Ladyship would be wiser to join the winning side and serve His Royal Highness Prince Charles, THE rightful heir to the throne." Sieur Henry was desperate to sway Anna's path from entering the Fort and joining Prince Louis' faction. Once again, Anna pointed at the Fort. This time more adamantly with a firm expression on her face.

Henry shut his eyes in inner pain and whispered prayers. His distressed face was that of a man watching a kid barreling down the path of inevitable self-destruction. Basically, my expression every day. After what felt like an eternity, he opened his eyes again.

"It pains me, but if the Lady insists, I shall humbly oblige. Lady Anna and her servant may pass."

"Thank you, my good Sieur Henry." I glanced at Anna. She made some gestures in appreciation. "Her Ladyship wishes she does not cross her sword with the good Sieur in the coming days."

"I do not wish to be the one to slay a La Rose, but alas, my duty to my commanders comes first."

'But until then,' Anna was saying with her hands, 'I wish you, the most gentleman of the gentlemen, good health.'

We exchanged bows and trotted towards the Fort. The foot soldiers and the knights let us through. The slimy Guido, however, had to make a vile comment.

"Let Comte d'Armas have them and taint his ranks with a defect." He raised his visor and spat in my direction. "Be grateful we are in mourning now. Tomorrow, once the battle resumes, I shall have the pleasure of spilling your guts. And as for The blasphemous Lady," His eyes narrowed. "The Lady may not speak a word. But she shall moan like a cheap whore she is."

###

We reached the thick wooden gate of Fort Montclam. I looked up along the fence wall and met the eyes of the men looking down from the platform with curious expressions. It was clear to me that they, too, were taken aback by the fact Anna was a girl. I cleared my throat and announced as loudly as I could.

“The Lady Anna, the daughter of and the sole heiress to the La Rose and the Barony of the Roseland, pledges her allegiance to His Royal Highness Prince Louis.” I raised the banner high in full display. “To that effect, The Lady Anna wishes to join the force at Fort Montclam immediately. Open the gate!”

In the meantime, Anna sat upright on her pitch-black mare, staring straight ahead, her eyes boring into the shut gate.

A thin man with bowl-cut dark hair, dressed in an equally dark robe, leaned over the fence.

“And who says you are not Baron Hugo’s dogs tricking us into opening up the gate?”

I looked up in anger and met his doubting eyes.

“And who are you, milord?”

“I’m Vicomte Victor, proudly serving Comte d’Armas. And as for you…” He waved his hand in the general direction of the La Rose banner. “As far as I know, the La Rose family is dying out. I’ve never heard the Baron had an offspring.”

There was a general murmur of agreement from the platform and behind the wooden fence. I grimaced. The La Rose family had been out of touch with the rest of the kingdom for too long. I gritted my teeth and raised the banner pole as high as I could.

“With all due respect, milord Vicomte, did you not see Her Ladyship dispatching Baron Hugo’s man with a single arrow? Do you not see the bloodstain on this honored banner?”

Suddenly a gray-haired head appeared next to the Vicomte. It was an older man, with a wrinkled yet wise face. The old lips tightened as he squinted his eyes and studied our banner from the platform. Within a second or two, the old man gasped and slapped the back of the Vicomte’s head.

“You fool! That’s the bloodstain of traitor Dumas! Two hundred years ago, the Marquis of the Roseland beat Dumas to death with the flagpole!”

“But Comte!-” Victor tried to protest, but the old man shut him up.

“No one,” the old man pointed down at us from the platform. “No one except a genuine La Rose carries that banner which embodies utter loyalty to the kingdom!”

The old man’s head disappeared from the view. Victor remained there, giving us an apologetic look. I nodded in the manner that said, ‘It’s alright, milord,’ and he seemed to be relieved.

There were bangs and clangs and clicks as the gate opened, just enough for Anna and I to pass through one by one.

Once inside, I surveyed the fort. There was that old man with a huge smile. I realized he was fully armored from the neck down, soot-black plate armor stained with blood and small pieces of meats. Behind him, about a dozen knights in armors, all displaying the signs of fierce battles. Then fifty or so footsoldiers and archers in the court cramped with campfires and pots and tents and carts. I ran my eyes along the fence; on the raised platform, there were some dozen archers and soldiers. And that was it. The entirety of Fort Montclam. Under siege against two hundred enemies outside. The all-male cast locked their eyes on the objectively-beautiful girl.

The old man stepped forward as Anna dismounted from Lilly. The maiden of the Roseland did her courtesy thing, and the old man bowed slightly.

“Welcome, young Lady Anna. I am Comte Marco of Armas,” he grinned boyishly and continued, “I’m dying to hear what brought a young lady such as you to Montclam.”

Anna quickly flashed a nervous smile and nudged me in the ribs with her elbow. The Comte was watching, curious yet patient. I bit and chewed my lips. Oh, where do I begin? Do I start with my previous life? About the goddesses, the bitches up there? About who Anna really was? Where do I begin?