Future History

Chapter 11: Run to discover

Cool water engulfed me, dragging me down and trying to claim my body to its mass. Kicking hard with my feet and pulling with my arms I made the surface and broke for air. Cold wind chilled my face as I looked up the cliff to Kronos and several soldiers who looked down at me in surprise and admiration. Kronos barked orders and I began to swim away from the castle. The nearest beach was a hard, long heavy swim but I managed to get there before nature took me. The reef kept any dangerous sharks from the shore and gave plenty of large coral rocks to hide behind while I checked the shore line for any signs of Kronos or his men waiting for me. When I was satisfied no one was on the beach I swam up and trudged through the sand. The white dress was soaked, heavy and pulling me down into the sand with each step. Dry sand clung to the dress and my feet but I tried to ignore it as I kept moving up to where the forest met the beach. Sand was harder and easier to run along here. If I was lucky I could wring out the dress a bit to lose some weight in it and clear out the shoes enough for comfort. I had no idea where I would go. No one would protect me from Kronos. Jenky would only blame me for what I had done and no matter how hard Anabelle tried to convince Kronos with Tiberious' help I was still in deep trouble. I tried to kill the king, or that was what it would seem in their eyes. What was the punishment for that? Beheading no doubt, or eternal torture. Starvation while in the gaol beside Calus, listening to his taunts as they occasionally let him into my cell. That would not surprise me, I thought as I ringed the dress out and prayed I would not be found anytime soon. The dress was see through and I dislike what Kronos was doing before. What if I was caught looking like this? I moved on once the shoes were tapped out and forced myself to stop once in the tree line. I needed to think of what to do and how to do it. The villages on the other side of the castle would not be able to protect me and even if they did it would not last long. I would only endanger their lives if I went to them. I thought about hiding amongst them, cutting my hair, wearing men clothing and changing my face with the use of makeup. Maybe then I could sneak back to the docks, pass off as a deck hand and get a ship to the main land. Was I that desperate to escape Kronos and the fate I had set for myself? As it turned out I was as I heard the distant pounding of hooves and shouting. I did not wait to see who it was, I ran inside the tree line, trying to hold the dress above my breasts and above my feet at the same time. As I ran the noises grew louder and I knew they would be on me in the matter of moments. I glance behind me and saw three horses, ridden by three men in black armor. One was Kronos, holding his side and trying to hide the pain that I knew it caused him. I had even managed to damage his dignity, I realised. The moment I looked forward again I stumbled, my foot found no ground to gain and I fell, tumbling down the hill and hitting tree trunks on the way down. Rolling down the steep hill gave me the little bit of ground but it also gave me scrapes and bruises along with sore muscles. Once I came to a stop at a clearing I groaned and staggered to my feet. Before me were two options, the cliff edge and the beach. Since I saw the horses being ridden up the beach end I chose the cliff edge and began to climb. I prayed that the foot holes and supports I found would not give way with each foot I climbed higher. By the time the horses stopped in the clearing below I was about ten feet up and too scared to climb down.

"Get her." One of the soldiers shouted.

"No." Kronos called. He dismounted his horse and I kept climbing, not looking down at him.

"Get down before you fall and hurt yourself Kate." Kronos said, his voice demanding but I could hear the pain in it. Wind blew into the clearing and rolled up the cliff. It thrashed the skirt about my legs and dried me at the same time as chilled me.

"Let me fall." I said stopping at the cold chill. "It would be far less painful than your punishment." I looked up to see how much farther I had and spotted a dark opening. A cavern. I began to climb to the cavern entrance.