I would just be Echo.
A simple woman living her life.
A cold thrill went through me as I picked up the bag of clothes and a few knickknacks I didn’t want to part with, like the necklace my governess gifted me in secret for one of my birthdays. My worldly possessions fit inside one bag.
How sad.
A long, heavy sigh left my lips, and it felt like it came from the depths of my soul.
A while ago, a hush had fallen over the castle, just an occasional scuttering of feet or a whispered conversation reaching me when I stuck my head out of the door to see if the coast was clear. The same greeted me now when I snuck through the door, clutching the heavy satchel as if I was trying to strangle it. My fingers dug into the fabric in a white-knuckled grip, mostly because I was afraid it’d slip from my sweaty hands. Closing the door with a soft click, I darted from shadow to shadow, plastering myself behind statues and hiding behind tapestries of long-fought wars. My heart almost punched a hole through my ribs when two guards marched down the extensive, marbled hallway, passing by me so close I could smell the honey scent of the armor polish they used to keep their breast plates as shiny as the sun. Lost in their conversation, they walked by, while I stood holding my breath until they turned the corner and disappeared into the belly of the castle. As soon as they were gone, I bolted like the wind down rows and rows of stairs, slipping many times on the polished floors.
Exiting through the side entrance from the servants’ wing, I froze when my eyes connected to the deep green ones of the head horse master. No one knew of my plans. This side of the castle should’ve been deserted and forgotten. Why was he here? Was he waiting to catch me running away so I could be executed?
The older male jerked up from his hunched posture, his eyes widening when he scanned me from head to toe. My hands started shaking and panic crept up, darkening the corners of my eyes. My magic swirled inside me, ready to lash out. Bile burned the back of my throat at the thoughts of taking a life. But if I didn’t? He would raise the alarm and I’d be dragged back inside where I’d be locked up and kept under guard until my wedding day. Or worse. I had no doubt what my father would do, and he would enjoy punishing me, too.
I couldn’t live with myself if I killed him, but I could incapacitate him long enough to get away. Just as I was preparing to swing the satchel at his head, he snatched my upper arm without a word, rushing into the tall trees surrounding the castle and dragging me along with him. I was tall for a female in my kingdom, where everyone was petite and pixie-like, yet I still had to jog to keep up with his stride. His long silver hair fluttered in the wind, and his shoulders were so stiff that I struggled to breathe. Head whipping around to scan our surroundings, I wondered if he would kill me himself. Honestly, I found that a much better option than facing my father. At least until the horse master abruptly stopped yanking me in front of him so he could stare down his aquiline nose at me.
“I knew this day would come.” His features softened as he gazed at my face, which startled me. “Don’t you dare use the other gates; you’ll never pass the guards and wards before the king finds you. If you follow this path for a few hours, you’ll find a portal that will lead you to the human realm. That is your only chance to escape with your life.” His deep voice still had a musical quality to it, although it was raspy and harsh like it cost him to speak.
I blinked at him owlishly.
“Not many know about it. It’s one of the oldest ones and not really stable, which is why your father leaves it unguarded and forbidden. It’s his way of telling us go ahead and die if we want to leave his rule. No guard will ever cross it. I don’t think you have the luxury to choose which portal you traverse tonight, do you Princess?”
“Why are you helping me?” The words were just a shaky breath passing my lips, mainly because I was trying to swallow down the heartbeat hammering in my throat.
“Some of us have to honor our duty and the oaths we have made for the sake of our families.” His shoulders squared and his eyes filled with tears. “You have many praying for you and the kindness you’ve shown from the time you could walk. It’s not something your father managed to accomplish in the centuries he has been alive. Now, go.” He shoved me away from him, making me stumble a few steps before I could peer over my shoulder at him. “It won’t take long for them to know you are missing. I would start running now if I were you.”
With a lump choking me and tears streaming down my face, I nodded at him, hugging the satchel to my chest. “Thank you.”
“Go. I’ll hold them back as long as I can.” With that, he turned his back on me and strode back to where I’d found him.
I bolted through the trees like a deer hoping to escape with her life from the vicious hunters breathing down her neck. Cold wind pelted my face and seared my lungs. The night blanketed the forest, turning the tall trees into terrifying monsters, bringing with it a malicious aura from predators searching for prey. I didn’t stop running. My thighs burned and the clothing was sticking to my skin because I was drenched with sweat, yet I kept going. It took a long time before I could hear anything besides my own huffing breath, but when I did, it was the booming of hooves beating the earth with urgency. It came from behind me, and not nearly far enough away.
“This way.” I recognized the voice of my father’s most trusted guard and terror had me tripping over a thick root from an ancient tree.
Sprawling over the thick foliage, branches and sharp rocks dug into my sides and limbs, sending the satchel rolling away from me. Wind whistled between the tree tops, swinging thick limbs full of leaves above me like monsters clawing at the dark night, ominously looming over my shaking form. Scrambling around, I jumped up, my head whipping around expecting them to surround me before I had time to flee. When no one pointed a spear or arrow in my face, I snatched the bag of all my possessions and bolted further into the thick trees. The horse master said it was a couple of hours away. That means I should reach the portal at any second, but all I could see were shadows and ominous black holes ready to devour my soul. Gaping darkness like the opened jaws of a beast waiting to swallow me whole. I trusted the old male, foolishly.
Could he have lied?
Did he trick me just to make a fun hunt from this?
Refusing to succumb to my depressive and scared thoughts, I continued in a mad dash, my boots thumping hard on the ground and my breath misting in front of my frozen face.
A silver glow peeked between the thick forest.
Pushing with all the strength left in me, I focused on reaching it. The horses sounded close, the gallop of their hooves shaking the floor under me and drumming in my chest. Fear had the base of my skull numb, but my feet barely touched the ground as I ran for my life. The portal came into view just as the branches a few feet behind me started snapping like crackling fire spitting flames.
“There she is!” the guard bellowed just as I reached the large swirl of colors pulsing with power in the middle of a small clearing, and I couldn’t stop the awe from overtaking my senses. “Grab her!” his yell snapped me out of my mesmerized state like a sharp stab in my chest.
I hesitated.
The sparks and pops coming from the edges of the portal were warning me I might not exit the other side in one piece. The horse master had told the truth; this portal was not stable at all. But what choice did I have? Looking over my shoulder, my gaze locked on the guard gunning for me, and the vicious smile on his face promised only pain and suffering.