Pushing himself forward as close as he could without risking being exposed, Ethyn peeked outside into the cove. The treelike shrub that blocked the entrance to their hiding spot obscured his view, but he was able to confirm the presence of at least eight men and their horses.
He was also verified that Sir Kent was indeed among them. The arrogance of the Lakylian knight's features was not something easily forgotten. The others with him were some of the men that had ridden with the Sir Kent to capture Crispin, Silver and himself.
'How is that even possible?! We arrested them just three days ago.' Ethyn unconsciously released a low growl.
"Who are they?" Now that the two were not face to face, Rose had come up behind him to try and view the scene as well. Due to the man's height, she could only barely peek over his shoulder.
"Trouble."
The two fell silent as they watched the men in the cove. It did not take long for the soldiers to notice the two stallions grazing by the small brook which sprung from the ground not far from Ethyn's position.
"What are two horses doing in here?" One of the men asked, scratching at his bushy eyebrows.
"Maybe they are a couple," a second soldier guessed.
"Horses tend to run in herds not pairs, and anyway those are both male." Sir Kent looked warily around the cove.
"You think they belong to someone?" The first man dismounted and inspected Fireball.
The stallion snorted for him to stay away. Thankfully the man got the message before he became another of Fireball's unwilling eunuchs. He took a step back. "This fella seems a little wild."
"It's likely they got loose from a farm nearby. They don't have saddles or gear. We'll keep and eye out, but for now, leave them alone." Sir Kent came down from his horse, and brought it almost to the source of the brook.
The couple held their breath. If Ethyn had been able to get a good grip on his sword in the confined space, he would have easily been able to leap forward and finish off the knight before man even knew he was there. It was a tempting thought.
But Ethyn was unsure that he could take the rest of the men, and keeping Rose safe was far more important than recapturing the fugitive from Lakyle. He would stay put for now.
Unaware of how close he had come to death, Sir Kent released his horse and joined the rest of the men. The horse blocked their view of the cove, but it also gave them some much needed cover from prying eyes.
"Make yourself comfortable, boys. We will be here until that patrol stops looking for us." Sir Kent found a spot on the ground and stretched out.
"How long do you reckon that will be?" The soldier with the bushy eyebrows wondered.
Sir Kent scoffed. "You know how lazy these people are here in Birle. They should give up by tonight and we can be back to terrorizing the locals first thing tomorrow morning."
The other men all grunted their assent.
'Filthy soldiers.' Ethyn balled his fist. But he quickly realized they had a much bigger problem. The men were not passing through and moving on as he had initially hoped. They were planning to at least spend the night, possibly longer.
Which meant...
"We are trapped," Rose whispered in his ear. "They aren't leaving."
"I know." Ethyn was already trying to work out a plan of escape.
The most natural exit was the opening between the two largest boulders, but that meant passing through the group of men or at least going around them. Somehow he didn't think Sir Kent would just let them leave peacefully.
As he hadn't found a back exit like he hoped, that option was also off the table. That only left digging under or going over. Though he couldn't do either from the tiny crevice where the two were positioned.
Somehow in the confined space, Rose had found a way to pass in front of him and look out of the crevice. Her golden hair caught the sunlight which then the attention of Sir Kent's horse.
It lifted its head and looked through the foliage right at the two humans hidden behind. A tense moment passed.
"Good horsey," Ethyn whispered. Snaking his hand through the branches of the tall shrub, the man offered a peace treaty of a carrot. He had stowed it in his tunic to give to Courage before they left.
The gelding eyed the food suspiciously, but eventually took it. Having sensed no other danger, it went back to drinking and grazing.
'That was close,' Ethyn pulled the blonde back into their hideaway, fully prepared to scold her.
"What were you thinking?!" he hissed as quietly as he could.
"Did you see it?" Even in the darkness, the excitement was clear on the woman's face. "I thought I had seen it before and I was right."
"See what?" Ethyn was now very confused.
"The ledges. They should be easy to climb and we can go over the top. It is pretty hidden except for the last bit. What do you think?" Rose's hurried whispers were filled with excitement.
Closing his eyes, the knight envisioned the spot where she had been looking. In truth, Ethyn had spent far more time studying his lunch companion than the rock face, but he thought he knew the spot the young woman was talking about.
"I think I shall have to trust you. I don't like the alternative options anyway."
With their course of action decided, the knight emerged from the crevice and crouched within the shrub. Ethyn was glad that he was not wearing his armor just now, for he was able to keep his movements virtually silent.
To his left, one of the interlocking boulders indeed had a strange out jut which blocked the area behind it from the men in the cove. Taking a deep breath, Ethyn used all of his training to ghost along the wall the short distance, using the shadows to mask his movement.
The new hideout was more exposed but also much wider. As it was open to the elements, the sun streamed down on his face, reminding him just how late in the day it was.
Ethyn waited to see if the alarm would be raised, but Sir Kent and his men seemed content to continue to argue about nothing in particular.
Peeking around the corner, the knight motioned for Rose to follow him to his position. She nodded her understanding.
After gathering up her skirt--a motion which made Ethyn look away--the princess moved along the wall to meet her companion.
Her motions were smooth and deliberate, yet also halting and natural. From the corner of someone's eye, she would have appeared to be little more than a tree swaying in the breeze.
Rose reached the young man sooner than he was expecting, and she bumped into him as she rounded the corner. Fortunately, neither of them managed to fall.
"What? Did you run?" Ethyn accused her, peeking around the corner to make sure no one had seen.
"Of course not!" Rose rolled her eyes.
It wasn't worth arguing. However they had gotten there, neither had been spotted. It was time for the next part of the plan.
"Ladies first." The knight offered his hands and knee to give the woman a leg up to the first ledge. From then on, she would be on her own.
"But my skirt," Rose protested.
"I won't look, but tie it between your legs if you are worried." Ethyn motioned for her to hurry.
Doing as she was instructed, the lady made her skirt into makeshift trousers and placed her dainty foot into the man's palms. Rose was about to add another skill into her ever increasing arsenal: rock climbing.
She only hoped that she was a fast learner.