Prince Vaskar passed beneath the towering gates of Aegis Palace, the thunder of his horse's hooves fading as the massive iron portcullis creaked shut behind him. He had returned from surveying the outlying lands with General Marcus, and though the familiar walls rose around him, the place seemed changed—grander, perhaps, yet colder than the memory he carried.
From the gates, a horse would have taken him a quarter hour to reach the palace steps, but he chose to dismount instead. Handing the reins of his stallion to a waiting knight, he lingered a moment, letting his eyes drink in the sprawling lawns and alabaster towers. Time had altered this place, and in its magnificence, he felt oddly estranged. It was far from the home that he remembered.
A soft voice interrupted his reverie.
"May I walk with you, Your Highness?"
