Ambush

Astra accepted what the man had to say. "Thank you kindly. I have been away for a while, and I am probably disoriented. If you could point me in the direction of the city centre, I will be on my way."

The man motioned toward the left side of the lake, and Astra, riding one horse and leading the other, started into town. The situation here appeared to be as bizarre as that of Camelyn and Allaria, but more menacing. She told herself that a great deal of that was due to the fact that Aqualaria was home to her whereas Allaria was not.

As she rode on the lakeshore trail, she saw a number of well-dressed people, but they were not friendly. They either stared at her as if she had committed some faux pas, or glowered with anger. (She was unaware that Aqualarians were now not allowed to own horses, and that these people either assumed that she was Hespanian, or was a native or refugee from a Ryngaerd tribe flouting the rules.) Furthermore, there were far more alien faces here than she would expect. Aqualaria, as the dominant power of the Ryngaerd for ages, was an insular country. Astra could expect to see a merchant or tradesman from one of the surrounding tribes, but these would not be common, and generally tried to fit in with the Aqualarian way of doing things. Instead, she saw all sorts of strange dress, foods, hair styles, and complexions. She told herself that it was almost as if Aqualaria had been invaded, not yet aware that this is exactly what happened.

The trail veered away from the lake, and up a hill. She told herself that soon she should be able to see the city from a height, and then she could talk to her mother. She was starting to feel antsy in this changed country, and she hoped that the familiarity of the palace would at least provide her with solid ground to get used to the changes.

She did not make it to the crest of the hill. Four figures jumped from the shadows. At least two had fired crossbow bolts at her, but missed badly, and Astra gave up the tether of the pack horse and tried to flee. One of the ambushers chased down the confused pony with Astra's baggage. Astra was able to open a gap between the two with the crossbows, but the last figure managed to interpose itself between Astra and the trail. Astra did not want to run the person down, but she did not have a choice. She lowered herself to her horse, urged the horse on, and then felt a pain on the left side of her face from a long pike as the fourth figure had sidestepped her and managed to strike her. She lost consciousness.

When she came to,

1. she was in a dark place. By candlelight, she could see three women with the features and dress of Aqualarian peasants. One of them said, "Astra, you are in great danger. The Queen wants to see you very much, but it is not going to be easy to arrange."
2. she was staring at a man in a silvery cloak, gloves, boots, and mask. After he confirmed that she was awake, he said, "Woman, we could not find your papers. What is your name and nationality?"

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