Back in my quarters, I quickly stuffed my few belongings into a rucksack. It wasn’t much, just an extra grey dress and a locket made out of silver from the Ivory kingdom with a picture of my father and mother inside. I hardly remember them, even now. It had been seven years since I last saw them when the guard came to take me away.
I quietly opened the door to the slave’s quarters. All of the other girls were still working, or in the bath room, which was where Jenna was. I knew she was coming, but I just couldn’t wait. I slipped out and started for the kitchen. Luckily, there were almost no guards. Most were at supper.
I got to the kitchen quickly and I managed to slip through without anyone seeing me. When I reached the only other door in the kitchen, the one that I knew led outside, I paused. I hadn’t been out of doors since I first got here. I took a deep breath and turned the knob. The door opened smoothly on oiled hinges and a blast of fresh air blew into my face.
Oh how good it smelled! I stepped out onto the rocky ground and looked around. The book-houses stretched to the left and right for as far as I could see. They were at least three deep all the way around the palace, but directly across from the kitchen door, they were only two deep, and there was a gap between them through which I could clearly see the boulder and beyond that, Snake Forest.
I always wondered why it was called that. I didn’t even know what a snake was! Only that it was to be feared. I walked forward with sand and gravel crunching under my feet. The sun was just going down and the green of the forest seemed so beautiful in contrast to the beige and tan of the ground. I wish I could remember what the kingdom looked like before the war. When sweet water still flowed from the Ivory kingdom and the city was full of green.
“I’ll see grass again soon.” I said to myself.
For now, I was simply content to be outside. Freedom seemed so close. The sun sunk slowly below the horizon, and a light breeze came from the west. It smelled of trees and fresh, moist dirt…and of freedom. After glancing around to make sure I was alone, I made my way through the gap and to the boulder. After clearing the houses, the ground sloped downward towards the trees, and the boulder almost seemed to point the way. Once I reached the far side, I stopped and leaned against it, breathing in the clean air.
It seemed as though I waited for hours. It got darker every minute. Suddenly I heard a commotion behind me. I peeked around the boulder and saw Catherine running wide-eyed towards the boulder with a lone of soldiers chasing after her. I quickly ducked back behind the boulder, but not before she saw me.
“Run!” She screamed. “Run! Go no-“
I heard a shriek, and then nothing. I looked around the corner again and saw guards standing over a crumpled bloodied figure. I knew Catherine was dead. A few of the guards broke off and started towards my hiding spot.
“She was yelling at something down here.” One said.
“Yeah, I could have sworn I saw someone.”
“Hey!” A new voice called out.
I heard the guard’s footsteps running back up the hill, so I peeked around again. It was Jenna standing in the kitchen doorway. Our eyes locked for a moment, and she smiled sadly at me. Just before they reached her, I saw her mouth silently; “run.” And then she was blocked from my view by the guards. I didn’t hesitate. I ran. I knew they wouldn’t follow me into the forest, so I ran as hard as I could for the tree line.
“Look! Another one!” “Get her!” “Don’t let her reach the trees!”
The voices yelled after me, but I didn’t look back. I plunged into the forest. I ran until my lungs burned, but I couldn’t stop. Finally when it was too dark to even see my feet, and the air was hardly even reaching my lungs, I collapsed on the leaf-covered ground. Tears flooded my eyes as the events of the day came crashing down on me.
Catherine dead, and my best friend captured or worse. I curled up into a ball and cried.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
What now?
I couldn’t go back, and I didn’t know how to move forward. For the first time, I felt alone. All of my life, there had always been someone
with me, usually Jenna.
And now… no one. I was alone in a strange place. The night pressed in around me, but I made no effort to get up or even to move. I just cried until I had no tears left.
For the rest of the night, I laid where I fell. I slipped in and out of consciousness, waking only when the visions of Jenna and Catherine were too much for me. I kept seeing their faces, screaming at me to run. And the expression on Jenna’s beautiful face as the guards surrounded her.
It wasn’t fear. I was more…acceptance; peace.
I knew that she had sacrificed herself so I could escape. I decided right then that I would go back someday, maybe with the help of the Ivory king, and that I would free not only her, but all of the slaves in the Kingdom. I told myself that I would do whatever it took to help her.
I finally came to myself just as the light started to creep into the forest. A flood of memories came rushing into my mind. My eyes stung as they filled with tears. Something seemed different though. It wasn’t just the tears, but something else was making my eyes sting.
Smoke. I could smell smoke. I knew it was smoke because I had often smelled smoke coming from the kitchen. I sat up slowly and looked around. There was nothing but trees as far as I could see in all directions, but there was definitely smoke in the air. I stood and wiped the dirt and tears from my face with my sleeve. Perhaps it was a campfire, or even the house of the man that Jenna and I were supposed to meet. Catherine had said that he lived very deep in the forest, but who knows how far I had run the night before. I suddenly felt hopeful.
I followed the smell through the trees, moving faster and faster. Suddenly, they grey hem of my dress caught on a root, and I fell. As the ground rushed towards me, I threw my hands out to catch myself. I cried out as the bone in my wrist cracked and I felt a lightning bolt of pain shoot up my arm.
Tears flowing freely, I sat up against a tree and cradled my injured arm close to my body. I looked around to get my bearings. The smell of smoke was still overwhelming, and I knew the way I needed to go in order to find the source.
Just then, I heard a faint rustling noise above my head. I leaped to my feet, spinning to face the tree. Just inches from my face, a pair of huge red eyes stared at me. The creature was quite possibly the most horrible thing I had ever beheld. Curled endlessly around the tree was what seemed to be a giant, armored worm with red cat’s eyes. The thing’s body was as thick around as my waist, and its armor looked almost like overlapping coins covering its whole body. It was a mottled brown color that seemed to blend perfectly with the bark of the tree.
I stood frozen, unable to move as I stared into the creature’s blood red eyes. I jumped as I felt something brush against my ankle. I looked down to find myself surrounded by these terrible creatures. The one clinging to the tree let out a sound that can only be described as the hissing of a cat. It reared its head back and opened its mouth to reveal razor sharp three inch fangs. I couldn’t run. My mind was screaming at me to move, but my body wouldn’t obey. I opened my mouth to scream, but no sound came out.
I saw the creature tense its muscles, preparing to strike, when I heard voice yell, “MOVE!” and a strong arm wrapped around my waist and arms, lifting me completely off the ground. The creature launched itself at me, but I was pulled away with inches to spare.
The ground flew by underneath me as my savior ran hard and fast. Each step jarred my wrist, and the pain caused my eyes to water. Suddenly we stopped and I was dropped roughly onto the ground. I cried out as my arm hit the hard dirt, and I quickly rose to my feet.
The woods surrounded us as we stood in a small clearing with a tiny house in the middle. I saw smoke pouring from the chimney. Just to my right, breathing hard from his run, was a man.
“What in the blue blazes,” he said between gasps, “are you doing in my woods?”
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
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