The Aegis of Noah Hart

4-Where Can I Go?

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Why, Kalista? Why did you have to go and get your leg stuck under a rock in this dark, creepy cave?

The fair skinned girl gives her right leg a tug beneath the big stone before her. She looks at the cyan stalactites dangling near her head. They flicker with a similar radiance to the light coming from her own body. Being an Aud, Kalista knows that were anyone else present they would quickly detect her shimmering "glaukos" within seconds in this dark tunnel. The bioluminescent glow her skin emitted was nothing short of a blue fire in absolute darkness though it didn't help but remind her she was all alone.

If I only had one of the Eidikos here with me...I bet it would only take one. Maybe this rock is so heavy, it could take a few men even!

Kalista closes her eyes as she remembers the Royal Guard, the Eidikos. An incredible fighting force tasked by her father with protecting her and the royal family, there was no one tougher than them. Trained in the art of Makhathena, the hardened fighters would practice in the arena by the castle walls with swords and shields, daggers, bows, and spears. Waking early in the morning for jogs around the hills north of the wall, they typically would swim back in the Botan River that passed just below Kalista's window just around sunrise. She secretly enjoyed observing their patterns here and there thought the day.

She had seen the soldiers lift heavy stones with ease. Some of them could leap over tall trees or even carry several comrades on their shoulders. These mighty men were white formidable indeed but always polite towards her. Even the tallest, most brutish soldier would gasp and promptly bow were she to pass him on the cattle grounds. Were any of them available to help, Kalista would have been free long ago.

Looking down at her feet. Though one is invisible under the rock, she can bend her knee on the opposite leg and bring her sole towards her eyes. Kalista spots dark places on the sole surrounding something clear and shiny. Touching the material the princess flinches once she realizes there is a tiny piece of glass embedded between her first and big toe. 

Exhaling as she closes her eyes, Kalista reaches down for the shard then quickly pulls. First time is no good so she tries again. She winces.

The glass comes right out as does a little bit of bright red blood. The hole on her foot begins sewing itself back together instantly. A few moments pass and her left foot looks good as new though her right foot lies permanently below the large stone.

How heavy is this thing? I'll go again.

The princess tries and tries but still the object refuses to budge. Thankfully the rock has fallen in just a way that her leg remains only wedged to the ground but not actually crushed. There's still hope she can keep her leg and avoid severe pain if only the rock would move. Though that didn't seem likely either. 

I don't want to sit here and starve to death. All that running away for nothing!

Kalista feels her eyes water and quickly wipes them with her hands.  Leaning her head back against the chilly wall, she startles when spiky ridge pokes her in the spine. Scooting to the side a little, Kalista presses her back into the wall and wraps her arms around her knee. The earth below her foot feels warm and damp before patting down her dress. The grey fibers marred with dark spots. Dried blood. 

This used to be white. It was perfect at the ball. Oh, the ball! We were all so beautiful. 

The princess remembers walking out onto the green marble of the dance hall. Her best friends Hilly and Baila wave to her amidst a sea of  women in rainbow colored gowns to her left. A small gathering of men in blue and white suits bow to her on the right. Her parents, dressed in white from head to toe stand in the center of the room beaming at her.  The smell of freshly baked bread treats her nose. The sound of strings instruments on the mezzanine above nourish her ears. Looking down at her body, her eyes marvel at the sparking lace covering her chest and torso down to floor by her feet.