"I am not ashamed to confess that I am ignorant of what I do not know."

-Marcus Tullius Cicero

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In the kingdom of Attra, the women rescue the men. The women also ride the horses, rescue the children, and go on long, perilous quests for items that usually aren't very useful or beautiful.

For us, this is not unusual. There had never been a large transition from male dominance to female dominance; it had always been that way, and would probably continue to be that way in the future. It's certainly that way in my family. My parents, the king and queen, both have valuable input in how the kingdom is run, but there's no denying that the populace looks up to my mother, Queen Evandra, much more than they do her husband, King Andrien. Oh, yes, my father has his fair share of power, but there is not the same strength in his walk, or the confidence in his eyes.

When you see women on the streets in Attra, you cannot help but feel impressed for all that they do. At a young age, all females in Attra are strongly encouraged to become involved with knight schools, in which they learn to battle and protect Attra. They also are the ones who go on long, thankless journeys filled with dangerous places and even more dangerous people. There is also another thing that they do.

"Excuse me?" I turned from my perch on a tree limb to see a man smiling at me. He was dressed in simple work clothes. He seemed to be a miner, or perhaps a farmer. Those threadbare, bedraggled clothes gave me a sense of comfort, in an odd way. This man seemed innocent. "How are the king and queen doing?"

"Oh, my parents are lovely," I assured the man. "Who wishes to know? Are you a friend of theirs?"

"Well," the man began, and then abruptly stopped. "Are your parents expecting you for dinner tonight?"

"Of course they are expecting me for dinner tonight," I replied, trying to keep the testiness out of my voice. "It is a royal supper, we are sending off those who quest for the Scepter of Righteousness, of course I will be needed in the grand banquet—"

My last sentence was cut short by the man thrusting an odd-smelling herb in front of my nose, and just like that, I blacked out.

-:-

If you recall, I was about to tell you something before I fainted. I planned to tell you the additional job of the knights in the kingdom. This job, arguably one of their most important jobs, is to keep me safe from harm. Being the only child of my parents, and the only heir to the throne, I was quite the valuable person in Attra. My mornings were filled with lessons from my father and my evenings were filled with important functions. Balls, banquets, any kind of royal event demanded my presence. I was, after all, the prince of Attra.

Unfortunately, neighbors do not seem to enjoy the idea of me becoming a future ruler of Attra. I have no idea why; I personally think I'll be a grand ruler. My plans for Attra are all centered around keeping happiness and love everywhere we go. Why is everyone so opposed to that?

"Wake up, brat." I opened my eyes to see that strange man grinning at me. He really needed to stop doing that; I was liable to have nightmares if he continued. "Terrified?"

"Not really," I yawned. "This is nothing compared to what the others have done. Oh, and speaking of, when do you approximate I will be released? There is a very important banquet tonight and I will be addressing my future subjects, so my parents will be very angry if I am not in attendance."

The man stared at me rather oddly. "Well, I think your parents are going to have to wait, kid."

"My name is not 'kid,'" I replied, holding myself with the dignity of the Attran royal family. "I am Prince Damian of Attra, and I will be ruling quite shortly, so show me some respect."

"Never," the man replied, leering at me unpleasantly. "The our kingdom doesn't want to have someone like you rulin' and makin' a mess of things."

I was offended, but it was necessary that I kept my composure. As a prince, I am always expected to be courteous and respectful, even to rude abductors. "I see," I replied. "It is a pity that you feel this way. As a future ruler of Attra and a future ally of your village, I hope to make all happy, but I cannot do it without your help. So, kind man, I pray that you will respect our differences and allow me to discuss this with the ruler of your kingdom at the next function. I assure you, this issue will not continue."

The man stared at me as if I had just spoken in the tongue of the imps (a language that sounds like one is blowing one's nose in rhythm). "Eh? What are you yabberin' about now?"

I was offended. I had not been "yabberin'." I had been giving him the speech that my father told me to use when an outsider was angry with the policies of Attra. He had assured me that this would work on anyone. Well, perhaps it worked better when the angry person could not tell that it was a speech I was reciting to him.

"So, kid, do you have anythin' to say? 'Cause let me tell you, you are not goin' to be happy soon."

"Yes, could you possibly finish your business?" I did not mean to be rude, but this man was not very exciting, to say the least. "The representatives from Lubelle, Treiunn, Poracia, and Barcatto all managed to scare me more than you have." I wish I could say that I was exaggerating, but it was all true. This was the fifth person to take me in the past month. I did not know why, but these kingdoms all seemed to loathe me.

This apparently angered the man even more. "Hey? I'm the one in control here, kid, so you listen to me. Quit your yabberin'." I was getting quite exhausted with hearing the word "yabberin'." Of course this man did not have instructions that were at the standards of my royal speaking lessons, but surely he knew other words, did he not? "That's better, runt." Well, at least he was not saying "kid" anymore. "So, let me introduce meself. I'm from the kingdom of Forjal." This made sense; Forjal is a rival of Attra's in the jewel industry. However, their emeralds simply do not compare to the abundance of diamonds in our mines; and this makes the Forjallians resentful. This was the first time that anyone had attempted to come into contact with me, however. Clearly there was not much of a market for emeralds these days.

"Oh," I replied. "Well, then, could you possibly hurry up with your torture or whatever it is that you have planned for me? My parents will be quite angry if I miss another function due to these dreadful kidnappings." Unfortunately, this was not an embellishment. "So, please go about it, sir."

"We'll get it goin' when I feel like it," the Forjallian grunted at me. Oh, goodness, I had one of those types. "So, runt, tell me the truth."

"About what?" I asked, already bored with this man's charades. You would think that getting kidnapped would be a terrifying experience, but after three or four times it would start to lose its effect. When the Lubellans took me, it was positively horrifying. When I was taken by the Treiunnites, at first I was afraid, but it was clear that those men knew about as much about kidnapping as they did about bathing, which was—unfortunately—not very much. The Poracians were skilled, but they clearly did not have much of a use for me, so they released me shortly. The Barcattans did not even attempt to act like they had a desire to kidnap me, so after half-heartedly threatening my kingdom, they told me to get lost. This man was admittedly enthusiastic, but his lack of experience with kidnapping and my plethora of experience with the aforementioned topic left me bored.

I do not know what is more embarrassing—the fact that I evaluate kidnappers, or the fact that I have been abducted enough to have enough of a foundation to assess them. I suppose it all depends.

"Well, kid," the Forjallian cackled, rubbing his hands together, "where do I begin?"

"Perhaps you could begin with why you have decided to snatch me?" I suggested helpfully.

"Quiet, runt!" the man snapped. "I begin where I feel like beginnin', got it?" I nodded boredly. "I think I'll start with why I needed to snatch you." Honestly, one must wonder what happened to these kidnappers to make them so utterly bizarre. "Take a look around you, kid."

I was in one of the emerald mines of Forjal. It was easily identifiable. I could not say that I envied the poor peasants that were forced to work here. The only light came from small, threatening cracks in the rocky ceiling, a blessing and a reminder that you were at the mercy of the earth. The air felt ominous as well—there was a strong, moist smell to the air that I was breathing. I—obviously—did not spend much of my time traipsing through mines, but a small, stinging feeling in my gut let me know that breathing this air was not a good idea.

"This is our best industry," the man grunted. "These emeralds might not be easy to get, but they bring the flow of capital to Forjal."

"I understand," I said, trying to smile kindly whilst trying to keep this air out of my throat. The result was considerably less comforting than what I had in mind. "Our diamond industry means the same to us in Attra."

"Your diamond industry!" my abductor roared. "Your diamond industry is what causes all our problems here in Forjal! Your precious little diamonds are the reason why our emeralds are now worthless, and your stinkin' diamonds are the reason why Forjal is now poor and hungry!" That struck me in the heart. Yes, this man was not treating me with the respect that I undoubtedly deserved, but poverty? All due to my kingdom? This could not continue.

"Forjallian," I began, "it is quite a tragedy that you feel like this. As Attra's future ruler, and as a future comrade of your rulers, it is naturally my duty to make you and all Forjallians as happy as they can be. However, this is not something that I can do alone. Please, respect Attra and set me free, free to discuss this with my parents and your rulers at a function."

"Not that yabber again," the man grumbled. Oh goodness, I had already used that speech, and clearly he had not liked it. I covered my nose and mouth with my blue sleeve, praying that this toxic air would not kill me. "Here's the bottom line, kid. I sent a message to your precious little kingdom back when you were out. I told 'em that they had two choices—stop marketin' those diamonds, or live without an heir." He smiled wickedly, and I felt fear. This man was different. This man knew what he wanted, and he was not afraid to knock a few men around. But I was not a common man. I was Prince Damian of Attra, and this was not something that I approved of.

"Excuse me?" The man's head snapped up quickly. "You have forgotten my third option."

"Eh? Are you crazy, runt? I never gave your damn parents any third option, why would you think...?"

"Well," I began, "my parents are master negotiators." The man gave me his "are-you-speaking-Impish" look that he must have been extremely well-known for back in Forjal. "And we seldom end up with something that we are unpleased with." Where were they? I did not have much longer until this man let his rage get the better of him.

"Well, your mommy and daddy aren't with you right now," the man shot back. Did he think that I could not notice? I honestly had to wonder about this man. "And I say that your mommy and daddy won't be with you ever again!" Oh, goodness.

"That's where you're wrong."

The man froze, his eyes worriedly scanning the mine, wondering what had happened just now.

"This boy will be returned to his mother and father quite quickly, 'sir.'"

Finally, the intruders showed themselves. Three long, lean figures dropped into the mine. Two immediately went to work with capturing the mysterious man, while one walked over to me.

"Forgive us for being so long, Your Highness," the knight told me, dropping to her knees in apology.

You heard me right—I said "her." The knights in Attra are all female, and they do a swell job of protecting me.

"I forgive you instantly," I told her. She chuckled and patted me on the back. Oh, why do they always chuckle at me? "How did you find me?"

One of the knights working on my captor turned to me. "It couldn't have been simpler," she drawled, sounding amused. "The Noble Gardener was nearby, working on your mother's rosebuds. When you stopped talking your mouth off, he got worried and called us out. We found an herb on the ground, which he identified as the Forjallian Bloom, the only known plant to grow in a mine environment." Where, oh where would I be in life without these brilliant knights rescuing me?

The knight next to me patted me on the back sympathetically. "You aren't to blame, Your Highness," she told me in a low voice. "It's this man who's at fault here."

"Yes, why in the world would he want to kidnap you?" put in the third knight. This caused the second knight to burst into loud peals of laughter. The knight tending to me shook her head.

"Don't listen to them, Prince," she told me. "You're always safe with us."

I could not help but wonder a slight amount. Why would this Forjallian man wish to capture me, when I clearly was not acquainted with him at all? And why would this knight tell me not to listen to the others? It was universally regarded in Attra that knights were strong and intelligent—everything that everyone should be.

I needed a nap.