Lunars of the Caribbean

Prison Escape (5)

Cinder sat on the bench of the jail cell, grimly staring at the stone floor and waiting for her time to come. She knew she would be hanged for this, whatever crime she'd committed. She wouldn't receive a fair trial, since Levana would be the judge. And-

The look on Kai's face when he saw her being carted away. He watched her leave like she was a felon. A criminal that was no better than that Captain who had kidnapped him.

Speaking of which, that Captain was groaning and kicking around the straw in his cell. Growling at the walls and at the sky outside his window.

"There has to be someway out of here!" he shouted. "A secret tunnel, a trap door, something!"

This went on for hours. Even into the night, he was restless and slammed his fists against the stone and metal caged walls of his cell. Closer to the dawn, Cinder could have sworn he was scared. Not for himself, but for someone else. As if his death could cause harm to someone else.

As the sun was rising in the East, Thorne had a sudden realization. He turned to her and asked, "Why are you in here with me?"

Cinder groaned. "I already told you. They think I'm a Lunar, and Lunar fugitive. And apparently it's illegal for Lunars to leave Luna. Unless you're the queen, of course." Her elbows dug into her knees as her hands cupped her jaw. Even as she was feeling nothing but despair and sinking depression, Thorne now had a grin growing on his face. One that was toothless and pure evil.

"Show me your mark," he said. Cinder was momentarily surprised that he knew about Lunar Marks – since that's what they were apparently. Still, reached her arm closer to him and flatly revealed her tattoo. A series of five black circles in a line – the middle one larger than the others – with a few flourished and dots around the sides. When she was little, her guardian, Gareth Linh, told her to always keep it hidden. To never let anyone see it.

She guessed it didn't really matter now. Did it?

Thorne's eyes lit up at the sight of her mark, and his grin grew more devilish. "Alright then, Cinder. Do you have any ideas on how to get out of here?"

After a whole night of listening to him whine about finding a way out, she hadn't really thought about it.

Not even the fact that she knew a way out of this cell.

"I helped make these cells," she whispered. Her mind already calculating what she could do to escape.

"You what?" the pirate inquired. Maybe because she had been to soft to hear – something Thorne would never learn to do - , or he was too startled by her words. She repeated herself either way.

"I helped make these cells!" she smiled. She dashed to the cell door, grabbing hold of it. Her height was an advantage in this case, since it would give her just enough space to do what she was thinking. She climbed the cell door with only her hands, and used her legs to push off the door. With her hands still gripping the door, she kicked back several times, loosening the door with every strike.

Her last landing was onto the lock of the door. Busting the door wide open and forcing it to the floor with a great clang.

She swung off the top of the cell and landed on both feet. She was nearly free. But thinking forward, she saw that there was no way that she could make it out of Port Royal without a ship. And she was fresh out of one of those.

Cinder spun around, catching Thorne with a gaping mouth and wide eyes. She approached his cell, careful not to get too close. "Do you have a ship?"

He didn't respond. Knowing she was low on time, she repeated – louder this time for him to be able to hear, "Do you have a ship?!"

The Captain snapped out of his daydreaming and nodded. "Yes! Well ... I know how to commandeer one to get to mine." That would have to be good enough for today.