I wake with a start. I don't bother to look around, as I have a bag over my head. I don't know what it's made from, but it stinks of something rotten. I'm sitting on a wooden chair. I open and close my fist. My arms are tightly tied together that it hurts. I wiggle my feet. Tied tightly there as well. I move my arms, but I can barely move them. At least I can wiggle a bit.
I try to keep my breathing under control. To calm myself. It's easier than I thought. Perhaps because there's no one in the room I'm tied in.
"I can't believe you failed!" Someone shouts in the other room. A man, sounds like he's in his late 40's. The employer of the assassins. And he is pissed. "You're supposed to be the best of the best! And you failed to kill even an infant!"
"The Prince was in the room next door to the King and Queens."
SLAP!
I jump.
"What different does it make! You could have just went in there and killed the damn thing! At least then you would have accomplished half of what I paid you for!"
"Sir, the King is well known to be fast. Several of us died just fighting him alone."
"I hear that even without armor, not a single scratch was laid."
Silence. I assume the assassin is hanging his head in shame.
"Please sir, forgive us."
"You sneaked into the castle, killed all the guards on the way... One of your men said there were 15 of them patrolling the halls. Killed them with ease. But was defeated by the King alone!!"
SLAP.
"We're sorry, sir!"
"I want my money back!"
Silence.
What I hear next is the assassin becoming confident and sly. "But we did get you something."
"And what would that be?"
"The Princess."
Silence again. My breathing quickens again.
"The Princess." I can feel the grin widening on the employers face.
"She could be of service to you. A great service."
"Oh, she most certainly will."
My breathing is out of control now. I want to get out. I want to run. I want to at least hide. But I can't!
"You can make her your bride. Produce an heir."
"Not to mention her lovely features." I can feel his eyes turning to the door that leads to my room. "And once those two nuisances are removed... I'll be King. I'll just have to bide my time till then. Looks like you weren't totally useless after all. But..."
Silence again. I can feel his gaze turn away from me, and back to the assassin.
"I hired you for two lives. Not one. Next time, you will kill the son."
"Yes sir. And we'll kill the Queen as an bonus, to prevent any future heirs. At least in the meantime."
The employer laughs, but it's more of a crackle.
"Let's go see this lovely Princess. Shall we."
I immediately gain control of my breathing and hang my head as if still unconscious. An unknown instinct I didn't know I have.
I hear their footsteps as they approach my door. Feel it even. By how long they walked, they weren't near enough to the door for a normal person to hear. A normal person? I frown. Perhaps this is part of my bloodline.
A metal turning sounds as they unlock the door. Are we in the sewer? Might explain the smell. The metal door cracks then squeals open. The two men enter. Then they close the door. I hear the bars lock in place as they turn it back. One light, the other heavy. The light one must be the assassin. The other, the over-weight employer. I resist gulping. Might make a sound.
I slow down my breathing to that of someone who was asleep.
"Look like she's still out." The employer kneels down. I can feel him examining up close. "Very nice. We'll need to untie these ropes, of course."
The man touches my shoulder softly, slowly moving it down my arm. He then moves to my collar bone. I clench my jaw and try not to clench my fist. Calm down. I need to calm down. They won't do anything if they think I'm unconscious, right?
His finger moves to my cleavage. My mouth starts trembling.
"Do you want to wait till she wakes up."
"No. The first time always hurts. I'll do her a mercy."
My face falls apart. My eyes tear up in desperation. Please. Someone. HELP ME!
Suddenly a door in the other room opens.
"Hey!" One of the men in the other room shouts. "Who the hell are-"
BANG!
The two men with me shoot up in alarm. I felt their gaze turn away and to the door. It's then I let my entire body shake.
"What the hell is going on?" The employer.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
"Check it out!" The employer shouts.
I hear the assassin draw out a gun. The employer helps him out by opening the door.
The door is completely open.
"Who are-"
BANG!
I here the employer tremble. He stumbles back. "I know you. I know you. Why are you-"
BANG!
The man's gun is lowered. He puts it back into it's holster. He walks around me, grabs out a sharp knife, and cuts my wrists free. I feel the air where I was bonded. Then he does the arms. The bag is ripped off my head.
The first thing I'm greeted to is the sudden light. I wince as my eyes adjust. And the figure before me becomes clear.
"A, Alexander?"
"Sup, Princess." He holds out his hand. "Let's get you outta here."
I grab it and he helps me up. I stumble a bit, but quickly regain my balance. I look around the room. The assassin was shot in the head, right in front of the door. And the fat employer, shot in the heart. Eyes wide in terror. By his position, he was crawling back on the floor begging.
We walk out the door and I see five bodies. Six shot in the head. I look around. It's just the two of us. And only six shots were fired.
"You... really are good with a gun." My voice is quiet.
"I told you." He grins.
I look around again. There isn't as much blood as I thought there would be. I frown and look up at him.
"How did you find me?" My voice is clear.
"I... do the occasional side jobs that aren't associated in societal affairs."
"What do you mean? And be straight about it."
"I've smuggled a few things."
My eyes widen. This guy's a smuggler! I'm attracted to a criminal.
"It's how I found you. I used my connections and was able to locate you in one of the places in the city where smuggled goods and hideouts are."
"Hideouts?!"
"Well, I'm associated with criminals. It makes sense where I would know where their hideouts are. It's how I make deals."
My eyes are still wide.
"You want me to fill you on your kidnapping?"
I nod. "Yes. I feel like that would be a better topic."
"Well, when you were kidnapped soldiers where immediately sent out to search the entire city. Obviously this alerted everyone awake to you being kidnapped. I was one of them." He places fingers on his chest. "I immediately searched every place I knew where you would be hidden, spoke with every contact I could. And within 3 hours since your kidnapping, I found you."
"It took you that long?"
"Hey, the city is big and the hideouts aren't exactly close to each other."
I nod in understandment.
"Now," he claps his hands together, "let's get you back to the castle."
We walk to the front door. But then I stop half way there.
"I don't want to go back."
Alexander looks back at me.
"This is my chance." My eyes grow distant, realizing. "I can leave this life behind."
Alexander doesn't say anything. He just watches.
A few moments of silence passes between us.
"I see." He is the first to speak. "Well, it's not going to be easy getting out of the city dressed like that."
He starts walking deeper into the room, I watch. He starts searching any storage first. Grabs out a shirt and chucks it at me. He grabs a pair of shoes and examines it. He looks at my feet and puts them back. He looks around and approaches one of the dead bodies. He strips the man of his pants and shoes. I immediately look away when he started on the pants. He chucks those at me too. I catch the shoes, but don't even bother with the pants.
"What's wrong with the pants?" Alexander frowns, confused.
"It's straight from a dead man." I cringe, looking down at it.
"Well, there's nothing else that's gonna fit. And that's the cleanest."
I look at the dead bodies. The pants he threw do look cleaner than the rest.
I sigh and reluctantly pick up the pants with as few fingers as possible. I walk back to the room where I was kept.
"You better not look!" I shout when I round the side of the door where he won't be able to see me.
"Don't worry. I won't. I'm a gentleman."
I huff. Bullshit. A gentleman wouldn't smuggle.
When I'm finally dressed, I'm surprised how well these clothes fit me. I walk out of the room.
"How did you know it was going to fit?" I eye him suspiciously.
He shrugs. "I have an eye for these things."
He bows and gestures to the door leading out. "Shall we continue."
I nod. I really can't wait to get out of here.
We walk out the door and into the sewer. And man, does it stink. I suppose it would considering it's filled with rubbish, spoiled food, pee and feces.
"By the way, why do you smuggle?"
"I get bored."
I stop and stare at him with wide eyes as he continues down the sewers. I walk on. We walk for approximately 10 minutes, taking twists and turns. It's then I ask a question.
"Do you even know your way around here."
"Of course. To be a good smuggler, you have to know how to get around places. No matter where they're are."
"You are not sounding like a noble at all."
"And you don't sound like a princess at all."
"Excuse me?"
He looks back at me. "You're wearing a dead man's clothes."
"Because I have no choice."
We continue walking.
"Yes, you did. You could have stayed in your nightgown."
"You said I should."
"That was a recommendation. You decided in the end."
"You threw it at me!"
"You could have dropped it."
"Uuugh. I did not expect you to be annoying."
He grins. "But that's part of my charm."
We reach a dead end. And by dead end, I mean we're blocked by thick bars.
"I thought you said you knew your way around."
"I do."
He walks up to the left side and grabs the second one from the end with two hands. He grips tightly and gives it a couple of pulls. On the third, the bottom half breaks out. I get closer and see that it was neatly cut. He steps back and bows, gesturing with his left to the space.
"You first."
I grab one of the bars for security and walk through. He follows, the bar still in hand. He turns around and puts the bar back in place. I guess being a smuggler as it's benefits.
We walk for a couple of minutes when we see a light. I smile appears on my face and I can't stop myself from running towards it. When I reach the end, I'm greeted by the outside world. A wide plain with a forest in the distances and a road not to far away.
I look at it all in wonder. "So what now?"
"Anything you want."
I smile. My adventure begins.