11 Trip to Swamp
'Stride' is the name of the swamp land that separates Winterland proper from the mountain and water kingdom.
Winter is milder in the water kingdom, while, as the winds from both frontier and stride clash on the mountain kingdom, creating far too many blizzards.
Winter in winterland is just cold, winter in mountain kingdom is dangerous.
Stride is ruled by lord Hendrick Gator, a bog man, as they were referred to in the rest of the continent.
The people of the stride are shorter and leaner than the rest of the continent.
It is said they descended from the forest elves, that is why their stature was so different.
Sasha did not know whether there's any truth to it, but lord Frog was supposed to be her father's staunchest supporter, as well as best friend.
Before, she had no means to visit his castle, but now that she has a dragon, it will not be a problem to visit his land and ask for his fealty, in the name of Raul.
Sooner or later, her army would have to pass through stride, and Sasha had heard it's nigh impossible to cross Stride safely without bog men's help.
Sure, her survey of the mountain kingdom is not complete, but she wanted to see something different today.
Thus, she went out searching for the Green castle, which is supposed to move all over stride.
From the sky, Stride presented a vivid and shocking picture.
In places of stride, foliage is so lush and green, it's as if winter never touched them.
Yet in some places, the landscape is so black, it's as if the very gods cursed these places to forever be dead.
If not for the small elevation of magic around Green castle, Sasha could never find the green castle on her own.
The streams were green because they are full of algae, while the trees are green because of all the lichens growing on them.
The houses built with bamboo and swamp moss are green, for the moss is used as covering all over the bamboo houses.
Had this green mass not changed its orientation as Sasha was watching, she would have never known it's a castle at all.
She looped low around the location, and finally figured the location of the elder tree.
Green castle is built atop an elder tree which has come uprooted long ago, and the castle itself is made of various bamboo shacks, and many rafts built with various kinds of wood and woven mats.
If a person did not know how the castle is formed, they probably could not even navigate properly in the castle.
Thus, while her dragon perched on the elder tree, Sasha climbed down slowly, and stood on the branch.
The dragon has taken off at her signal, and Sasha sat there waiting for the bogmen to arrive.
The branch her dragon perched on is almost as wide as a fully grown man, so she could even get up and walk if need be.
Bog men arrived soon enough.
"Stranger! State your purpose." The BogMan at the front spoke.
His face is covered entirely with his cowl, with folded openings for his nose and mouth.
The voice is androgynous. It could belong to a soft spoken man, or hard spoken woman. Neither could any other details be seen from the figure of the man.
It could be a short and lean man, or a tall and buffed woman.
Damn! The bogmen are far too good at disguise. Sasha thought for a moment, envying their ability to remain so nondescript.
" I am Sasha Winterchild, Princess of Winterland, and current regent of winter kingdom. I am here to meet your Lord, Hendrick Gator. " Sasha spoke clearly.
The guards looked taken aback.
It seems the news about her having a dragon had not yet reached here.
They must have thought her to be a Drakon.
That explains the hostility.
The nondescript man in the front froze between half a bow with indecision. He must think her to be princess Sasha, yet, the presence of the dragon could not be explained.
"If you are truly princess Sasha, tell us names of the winter wolves of Winterchild family. " The man asked after some thought.
"Ah! That is indeed good sense. Are you sure you know the names correctly, even if I were to tell them to you ? " Sasha asked.
" That is not for you to worry about. " The man grumbled at her.
Sasha smiled and answered.
" My own wolf was called Princess. She was released in the stride. Other than Princess, we have Flash, Phantom, Nysha, Sunshine and bow bow. " Sasha said.
The man in front kneeled and bowed to her immediately, along with all the guards.
"Tang Gator, Eldest daughter and heir to the Gator family greets Her Grace Sasha Winterchild.", the woman removed her cowl completely.
It wasn't a man, but a woman from the beginning.
"Well met, Lady Tang." Sasha greeted her generously.
"It would be my honor to escort the princess to my father. " Lady Tang answered back.
"Lead the way, my lady. " Sasha answered back.
The guard continent of ten split to make way for Sasha, where four walked in the front, two walked in the middle covering Sasha from either side, and four walked behind.
It's truly a well formed honor guard.
Lady Tang seemed to be wondering whether she should say something or not.
" Speak, Lady Tang. My father considered your father among his friends. I would like to do the same with you." Sasha answered.
Lady Tang lowered her voice.
" I .. heard you have suffered much in the south, My lady. My condolences for your loss." She offered respectfully.
Sasha felt bitter sweet for a moment.
When her father died, she was amongst enemies, and there was not a soul that offered their condolences with sincerity.
She is truly among her own people, to be hearing such sincerity and loss after such a long time.
" It is a balm to my heart to receive these sentiments, My lady. My father himself would have been glad to know he is remembered so fondly within the confines of your home. Thank you. " Sasha answered.
Lady Tang nodded her head, and the nervousness in the air about meeting their monarch disappeared.
They have long heard of the beauty of their princess.
Bogmen had been loyal subjects of the Winerchild family since they were subjugated five thousand years ago.
Winterchild family came to their rescue when the marsh king started his inhuman conquest, and bogmen had not forgotten the help even after these many years.
At some point, they reached a narrow set of stairs that descended from the tree, on to a wide pier made of rafts.
The entire structure is always in motion like it will break up any moment now, but it held on well.
Lady Tang offered her arm to Lady Sasha.
"There is a trick to walking on these piers, for their movement is designed to trip anyone who is not used to it. It is best if you move slowly and steadily on it rather than walk like you would on a boat." She explained.
Sasha followed her advice.
"You need to jump here. The board in front is a false board." Lady Tang advised, showing her the motion.
While the bog men jumped, for Sasha's long legs, it's just a very long stride.
Lady Tang steadied her as Sasha moved on to the next step.
Soon, the raft pier ended, and they stepped into the bamboo shack decorated on the outside with swamp moss and lichen, while on the inside, it's covered with woven mats on every side.
" We will change our shoes here, my lady. " Lady Tang offered.
A maid brought her woolen shoes, which made no sound, and felt far too soft to walk with.
Rest of the guards removed more than one armor piece, leaving themselves with only a harpoon, which is the traditional weapon of the bog men.
The harpoon is used to both catch food and fight in the swamp.
It's useful in various ways, for it's used as a claw hook to climb up the trees, spear fish, and spear low flying birds, and with a hooked leaf, even as a paddle.
They walked inside.
Unlike the outside, where humidity causes your hands to stick to one another, the insides of these residences are quite cool and dry.
They walked through an endless number of corridors to reach Lord Gator.
Just as Sasha was wondering if they were pulling her leg because she is new, they entered a clearing, where Lord Gator was waiting for her.
" Greetings, Princess Sasha. " Lord Gator said, kneeling in front of her, and bowing his head.
" Greetings, Lord Gator ! " , Sasha greeted back, looking around the clearing curiously.
" Is that an elder tree in front of me ? " Sasha asked, looking at the white bark of the tree in front of her.
Even when she lifted her head, she could not find the end of the trunk of the elder tree.
She only knows it is an elder tree because falling leaves are red, and the canopy vaguely feels like it is full of red leaves.
" Indeed, it is. " Lord Gator answered softly, looking at the elder tree fondly.
