Panther's Last Plunder

Chapter 1: To the Mines

A/N- This is a project for school this semester called Genius Hour. That means that my other stories are not my main priority for a while. Please enjoy my story. :) check out my other stories like Prism and Reborn and please look at jspearsonaz's story called the Flower.

Panther gazed at the turreted tower as the humidity of the jungle attempted to suffocate her. Her black tunic and leather trousers stuck to her small, thin body due to her sweat. She tied her moist, black hair back and out of her face, though a few small strands still drifted into her vision. Her black eyes watched vigilantly as the guards passed by her hiding spot in the underbrush. She would wait for the watch to pass one more time. This would be when the biggest gap in the guards would take place.
She had been watching this place for weeks. As the prince would be celebrating his eighteenth birthday today, Panther knew that it would be best to steal the gems now. The royal gems and jewels were usually heavily guarded by the finest men in the castle. But today, the guards were distracted with all the nobles celebrating in the ballroom. Of course, today would be the easiest time for her to steal the precious objects, but she could easily do it another day as well. But that would be much more difficult and dangerous. And bloody. And unfortunately, she was not doing this project alone.
Panther hated variables and people were variables. The only way she could actually climb the tower would be if someone on the inside lowered her a rope. The Master, her boss and the one who wanted the jewels,  had said that this man was loyal to him, but a member of the guard as well. Panther searched the shadows of the window and saw the silhouette of a man. Good, Panther thought, he is here.
As the next watch passed around the tower and out of sight, the man threw the rope down. Quickly and easily, Panther shimmied up the rope to the window. After she climbed through, she was surprised to see a body. Well, as surprised as one could be given the nature of this mission. She looked at the armored guard and raised an eyebrow. He simply shrugged.
"He was on watch with me," the man said, "we can not have witnesses."
She subtly approached the man and gave him an impressed look. Naturally, Panther was not impressed, but she needed to approached him.
"You're right," Panther said smoothly, as she grabbed her sword leisurely with her right hand. In one quick strike, she had slit his throat and he collapsed on the ground next to the other corpse. Panther grimaced. She hated killing, though it was his life or hers. The Master had told her to kill him. He did not want any loose ends. Perhaps it would be better this way, she thought, his reputation would still be intact and would receive a great funeral. Her dark eyes caught the faint glitter of the jewels in the room. Carefully, she picked them up and placed them in the small pouch at her side. Panther knew what would  happen to her if the Master found even one chipped gem. Finally, she came across the one invaluable item the Master said he had not wanted. A long black ribbon with a single cabochon diamond on it. It was meant to be a choker necklace. Panther grabbed it a wrapped it around her neck. There were very few things that the Master did not want, so she decided from an early age to take them. Someday, when she was free of his tyranny, she could buy herself a lovely home and live as a noble woman. But for now, she did as the Master told her.
Suddenly, the heavy wooden door at the other side of the room opened. Frantically,  Panther looked at who had come through the door. A tall man, not more than a few years older than her, met her eyes with a surprised gaze. He wore a gold crown, which matched his blond hair. His blue eyes widened as he noticed the bodies of his soldiers on the ground. Panther knew who this man was. Prince Alagan of the kingdom of Dyami. He called for the guards as she turned around. Panther threw the still secured rope out the window. She grabbed the rope and jumped out the window. Her hands hurt from the burn of the rope as she pushed off the side of the tower with her legs and took large jumps down the tower.
When she reached the ground, an arrow grazed her shoulder. Not bothering to look where it had come from, she ran into the cover of the jungle. With a clap of thunder, rain began pouring down from the heavy clouds above. Mud quickly appeared beneath her feet and she could not see a thing.  She heard the barking of dogs and the shouting of men.
"Panther!" said an urgent voice from the shadows, " Give me the gems."
Panther's gaze shifted to the shadows behind her as she stopped. As when she usually met with the Master, she could only see the shadow that spoke with his voice. The Master had magic and never appeared to her in his true form. Quickly, she untied the small pouch and tossed it to him. As the shadow caught it, it too turned to shade. Then the Master vanished. Panther's heart fell. She would never outrun the dogs, not even in the rain. Her hope had been that the Master would take her with him. Why had she thought that? He only cared for himself and had never done something like that before. Knowing her fate was to be caught, she untied the ribbon on her neck and lifted up one leg of the trouser and tied it there. She would not loose that diamond. She replaced the fabric hurriedly and climbed a tree. The dogs came along not long after that and wasted no time in pointing her out the guards who then proceeded to order her down. Alagan was among them, holding a sword. His expression was furious and his hair was plastered to his face. And although, his expression sent shivers down her spine and would be something she would never forget, he was as handsome as many a young maiden had claimed. His fierce face was one that shocked her.
As his men approached, Panther drew her twin blades. She would not go down without a fight. The first man that approached her took out a long broadsword and swung down at her. She ducked and rolled out of the way, mud staining her clothing. Panther sliced at his exposed side, though she intentionally did not cut so deeply as to fatally wound him. He attempted to get to his feet, but she disarmed him and cut his leg. While doing this another man approached her from the opposite side. She parried his strike and  proceeded to make similar cuts on him. Instead of approaching her, the other two men released their dogs. While taken aback at first, Panther wounded each of the dogs, who immediately backed off. All was going well for Panther, until she realized that the dogs were a distraction. While she had been preoccupied with them, one of the two guards had knocked an arrow and released it. The pointed object hit her leg, causing her to cry out and to go on one knee. The other guard put his sword to Panther's throat.
"Don't move," he growled.
"Get a doctor down here," said the prince, gesturing to the wounded soldiers, "Help them first, then her."
"Her?" asked the guard with a bow, "Why her?"
"Because my father will want to send her to the mines and she will need all the strength she can get. Now go."
The guard left. After he did, Panther said, "I don't need your pity."
"Nor will you get it. My father likes to punish criminals severely. The healthier you are when you go there, the slower your death will come," he said and knelt down next to her, "That is, of course, unless you tell me where the jewels are."
Even if Panther wanted to, and she valued her life too much to desire such things, she could not reveal the location of the treasures she had stolen. Why? Because she did not know where the Master had gone. Except she could disclose the location of the diamond she had kept, the one that was tied to her uninjured leg.  So instead she hardened her gaze and glared at Alagan. He sighed as if it saddened him to think of Panther going to such a place. Coward, thought Panther, his guards did all the work and now he acts like he cares about me. What a fool.
After a few moments of complete silence, except the sound of the rain, Panther said, "Is that sword just for show, or are you just lazy?"
"I don't take your meaning," said the prince.
"Perhaps you just value your own life more than your men's."
"What are you saying?"
"You sat back and watched as your men and your dogs were wounded. You held a sword and did nothing. Some noble prince you are," Panther said, "Though, I suppose that is the way that the nobles are, sitting back and enjoying the fruits of other men's labors."
Alagan looked to the guard behind me and said, "Do we have a gag or at least some chains?"
"No, sir. She took us by surprise so we did not have the chance to prepare."
Panther grinned. While she hated to be under the control of the guard behind her, she loved the ability to get underneath Alagan's skin.
"How old are you? Thirteen?" Alagan said in attempt to irritate Panther.
"Fifteen," she growled. Panther was short only because she had been malnourished when she was very young. She was barely five feet and had not grown at all in the past six moons. Her delicate frame made her look younger than she really was.
"What is your name?"
Before Panther had a chance to answer, a guard came through the jungle foliage. He carried chains and shackles. A doctor soon followed after him. He had light brown hair and comforting hazel eyes. The man wore fine clothes. Panther presumed that he had come from the party. Normally, one of his status would not have been allowed to attend a social event of that caliber so he must have been close to the prince. He went immediately to the guards.
"When your done with them, Calev, take care of her too," said Alagan. His guard with the chains came toward Panther. She let out a very feral growl as he came close. Unable to move away, Panther watched as the guard secured the shackles around her wrists and ankles. The guard behind her removed his sword from my throat.
"I don't think I want to get that close," said Calev. He grinned humorously at Alagan, "Did you just hear that growl?"
Alagan laughed and said, "She is far more dangerous with her words than with any weapon she could harm you with."
"I have no doubt."
"Perhaps you haven't noticed, but we've only just met. He does not even know my name yet. For all he knows, I could have a venomous bite and the power to kill with a touch," Panther said with a grin. Perhaps it looked more sinister than intended, but Panther had attempted humor. This was a big thing for her. The last time she made a joke was five years ago. Back then, she used to be funny.
Calev's eyes flashed nervously and his smile failed a bit. Then he caught a humorous glint in her eye and soon looked more relieved than afraid. Calev approached her as Alagan watched.
"You have dark eyes and hair. Are you from Nerezza?" asked Calev as he placed a hand on the arrow in Panther's leg and another on her shoulder. I winced at the small pressure that he had applied.
"Ye- AHHH!" Panther said, getting interrupted by the arrow being pulled from her leg. It  should have seen that one coming.
Alagan looked confused. Perhaps he was wondering why she would volunteer such information so easily. Panther never hid where she came from. It was pointless. Everyone outside of the walls knew about the poor little village of Nerezza. Most of the people there, particularly the poor, had black hair, black eyes, or both.
Calev quickly stopped the bleeding by applying pressure. He wrapped several bandages around her leg and then her shoulder where the arrow had grazed it.
"If you are from Nerezza, did you know a girl named Meri?" asked Alagan.
Panther had expected this question. She knew what had happened to Meri. Why? Because she was Meri. Or at least she had been. But she could not tell them that. That would put them in danger.
"Meri? She was a small girl who lived at the edge of the village. Her mother was found dead in a puddle of blood. Meri was nowhere to be seen. She was the presumed the murderer," Panther said somberly. That was a life that she barely remembered. Both boys looked concerned and for a moment, she wanted to tell them everything. About how the Master had killed her mother and then taken her in. How she spent the last several years training. But she quickly remembered the Master, and fear for their lives consumed her.
The rest of the night did take long. As Alagan promised, his father had decreed that she would go to the mines for her punishment. If she lasted five years there, she would be set free. Unfortunately, no one who had gone to the mines had ever come back out. This was in part due to harsh taskmasters and work load, and in part due to lack of food.
The next morning, she was placed in chains and loaded onto a horse-drawn coach. The exits had been blocked by iron bars. Once she reached the mines, she was given "lighter" work than the other workers until her wounds healed. Panther had determined that she would reach the five years she needed and would earn her freedom. She could not count on the Master to free her. It is likely that he did not care what happened to her here. She was alone.