Amenadiel brought me black pants and a white shirt, along with heartstopper and chaos which now hung by my sides, he also brought me bread and a waterskin, all which I devoured swiftly, how he managed to acquire all these when they were searching for him was beyond me. "How?" I asked, he knew what I meant as he answered, "Ramiel sent guards to my quarters to take me, none left alive," I smirked at that, they had it coming "I got to the baron in time and we hid in the kitchens" we stumbled upon another guard, and Amenadiel took care of him immediately.
"Where is Alice, and my cousin?"
A dozen guards came running, heading for my cell, we both hid in a corner large enough to contain the two of us and waited for them to pass. I regained a portion of my strength thanks to the bread and water, but I could only do so much.
"The others are waiting for us at the stables with supplies and horses at the ready" I breathed a sigh of relief, they were not dead thank the goddess. Two guards stepped into view, Amenadiel unsheathed his sword and smiled at me "Want to take the other one?" he asked. I smirked back "My pleasure" and rushed toward the guard.
I dodged the guard's clumsy swing, my eyes locked on his as I waited for the perfect moment to strike.
Heartstopper, felt alive in my hand, its weight and balance a comforting familiarity. The guard charged again, and I sidestepped, using his momentum against him. With a swift, precise motion, I plunged heartstopper into his heart. He gasped, eyes widening in shock, as he stumbled backward.
But it was what happened next that made Amenadiel's eyes go wide. The guard's face contorted, and he began vomiting a green, noxious substance. It splattered everywhere, the stench making my stomach turn. Amenadiel approached, his sword still trembling with the force of his last blow. He stared at the guard, awestruck "What…?"
I smirked, wiping heartstopper clean on the guard's cloak. "Poison blade," I said, sheathing my dagger. "Now let's go"
We exited the castle through the back, the cold breeze kissed my skin, making me shiver slightly, the sky was adorned with stars, but the moon was nowhere to be found, how long had I been in there? Amenadiel gave me a black cloak he removed from his satchel, I wrapped it around me and pulled the hood above my head as we made our way to the stables.
Acrisius, Alice, and Drazhan waited for us, with horses saddled and ready, I hugged my cousin first, his warmth a welcome feeling "Are you okay?" he asked, and I nodded. Alice was already tearing up when she hugged me, "I'm okay Alice" I assured her, she nodded then proceeded to hug Amenadiel, my heart warmed at the sight.
Drazhan was the last to hug me, he even slipped in a kiss but made it quick "You're okay?" he asked, I only nodded.
"I sent a letter to Sundara, Kaida will be waiting for us at the border" Acrisius said, and I thanked him.
"They'll be searching for us, we have to leave now" I said, everyone nodded and headed to their various horses. I walked to tyrant, the majestic horse neighed as I approached, I mounted him with ease and nudged him forward, the others following from behind.
We rode through the rear gate of the city, Amenadiel, Acrisius and Drazhan cut down any soldiers that tried to stop us, the border loomed before us, our escape, our freedom. Sentries rode and ran toward us before we could reach, more than a dozen of them, Amenadiel rode forward, Drazhan and Acrisius flanked him with bows and arrows at the ready, they each found their mark while Amenadiel cut the men down with his sword.
I rode forward, my cloak flowing in the wind, I stretched my hand to the sentries still running towards us and chanted "conturbo" I felt a warm sensation on my fingertips. The spell shot out, and the sentries stilled. They didn't seem to notice anything was amiss at first, but as the spell took hold, their expressions changed.
One of them looked around, bewildered, his eyes darting wildly as if searching for something. Another stumbled, his legs tangling together as he struggled to stay upright. A third simply stood there, mouth agape, staring at his own hand as if wondering how it got attached to his wrist.
Their movements became sluggish, their reactions delayed. One of them tried to draw his sword, but ended up fumbling with the hilt, unable to unsheathe it. Another attempted to speak, but his words were jumbled and incoherent.
I watched, fascinated, as they stumbled around each other "What's going on?" Alice asked, her eyes wide in surprise "Confusion spell" I answered, and rode towards where the others were fighting the sentries on horseback.
I held their bodies with my mind, and with a jerk of my chin, they flew from their horses and landed on the ground.
Drazhan looked in awe as he appeared beside me "I know Amenadiel debriefed us on everything but that was incredible" he breathed.
Amenadiel stared at the confused sentries as they clashed against each other "Let them go princess, we need to keep moving" I smiled, feeling a sense of satisfaction and with a wave of my hand, I dispelled the confusion spell and the men collapsed, confused and disoriented. We all exchanged an understanding look, and we rode away, leaving the chaos behind.
We rode for another hour, then stopped to rest. Ace gave me some food from his satchel to help me regain my strength. I didn't know where we'd go next, but that didn't matter now, we had to meet Kaida at the border and leave this kingdom.
The rustle of leaves caught our attention, and everyone with a weapon quickly had their hands on them. Hooded men emerged from the shadows, twin blades in each of their hands, they were seven of them, the air shifted, and I didn't know if it was just me, but it didn't smell right, this wasn't right at all. Herbert appeared before us wearing black armor, his pendant glowed in the darkness.
Alice quickly hid behind Amenadiel as the men drew closer. Herbert looked at me and smirked "You wanted to leave without saying goodbye? That's terribly rude princess" I met his stare, but keeping in mind the men drawing closer "Leave them out of this Herbert, I'm the one you came for" he looked to his soldiers and smiled once more "And deprive my men their kill? No, I will kill your friends, then take you"
"I'd like to see you try" I responded, then charged for him.
I gritted my teeth, sweat dripped down my face as I clashed with Herbert. His hands danced through intricate gestures, and a blast of magical wave shot towards me. I raised my hands, summoning an invisible barrier to deflect the blow. The force of the attack sent me stumbling back, my arms trembling with the effort. One of the black soldiers had Acrisius pinned to the floor, he raised his sword, ready to deliver a killing blow. I stretched my hand towards the soldier and whispered "corporis impetus" his body stilled, allowing Ace to stab him with his dagger.
Herbert strode toward me "You're no match for this princess, you can't possibly understand the power I wield" he sneered, his eyes gleaming with contempt.
I snarled, summoning a burst of flames to scorch him. But he merely waved his hand, and the flames died out immediately. I gaped, stunned.
He unleashed another blast of magic, this one a wave of crushing force that sent me stumbling back. I raised my hands, using my telekinesis to send a nearby rock hurtling at him. But he countered my spell with a flick of his wrist, the rock shattering against the ground. I stumbled back, my breath coming in ragged gasps. I was tiring, my strength waning, Herbert sensed it, his eyes gleaming with triumph.
"Is this the best you can do? Disappointing really" I snarled, "ventus" summoning a gust of air to blast him off his feet, he countered the spell with ease, his magic overwhelming mine. The air died, and I stumbled off balance. Herbert raised his hands, preparing to deliver the final blow. I knew I couldn't block it, not in my state. Desperate, I scanned my surroundings, my eyes locking onto a nearby tree.
With a Herculean effort I focused my telekinesis, feeling the familiar strain in my mind as I lifted the tree off the ground. It swayed, branches trembling, as I summoned every last ounce of strength to hurl it at Herbert.
The tree crashed down, its trunk slamming into his chest. He stumbled back, momentarily stunned. I didn't hesitate, turning to sprint away as fast as my legs could carry me. "We need to leave, now" I yelled, they obeyed immediately. There were only two soldiers left, and I flung them sideways with what little strength I had left.
Herbert's roar of rage shook the ground, but we wouldn't stop. His footsteps pounding the earth as he gave chase, we didn't dare look back as we mounted our horses and rode off before Herbert caught up to us.