The secret of the Moondrop

Chapter 16: Rescue mission

Cassandra's POV:

The moment had finally come.
Cassandra took a deep breath, glancing towards the chameleon resting in the head of her horse.
"I hope the frog knows what he's doing" Eugene muttered behind her, sitting in Maximus.
Cassandra could have sworn Pascal shot him a dirty look.
She shook her head.
It wasn't time for distractions, she had to concentrate in the plan:
Once the sun set, Cassandra would lead a small recognition squad directed by Pascal, who supposedly knew where Rapunzel was.
After verifying the position, the king would send reinforcements and wait until the full moon appeared.
And then we improvise, Cassandra thought.
It was true, after all, they were fighting against Gothel, who was also a sorceress. Which meant the possibilities of attack were unpredictable, they had to be prepared for everything.
She clenched her teeth.
Adira, standing at her right side, grunted.
She had been grumpy since they had told her about Rapunzel healing Varian during the full moon. It obviously didn't help her mood knowing that Quirin's amber prision was impenetrable, even by her sword.
Cassandra had been shocked when she found out about this, Varian would surely be sad when he found out. If they survived.
Being the daughter of the captain also meant having a soldiers training, meaning she had to always be psychologically prepared to lose her comrades. And as much as she hated it, she couldn't let herself be driven by hope. That would cloud her fighting skills.
"Cassandra"
She turned towards the source of the voice, her father, the captain.
"Yes?" She answered.
The captain rubbed the back of his neck, mumbling something she couldn't make.
"Sorry, what did you say?"
Her father cleared his throat. "I said, be careful"
Cassandra smiled and jumped from her horse, hugging her father, who returned the hug without hesitation.
"Who knew? Cassandra has a heart" she heard Eugene say to Adira.
Cassandra made a mental note of whacking sticky boot when she had time.
After some minutes waiting, darkness finally crept its away through the forest of Corona. They all headed towards the northeast, her horse leading the group of friends and three soldiers, the full moon shining behind some clouds.
Hang on Rapunzel, we are coming for you two she thought.

Varian's POV:

He was tired.
Very tired.
Varian had gotten into the conclusion that he had two ribs broken, that one of them had pierced through this lung and he was bleeding in the inside.
That would explain his difficulty to breath and the blood coughing, as well as the quickening of his heart beat and how his state seemed to get worst as the time passed.
The pain in his chest was agonizing, Varian gripped Rapunzels hand so that he didn't scream.
She looked at him in silence, her face twisted with worry and concern.
She still was the same princess that had made him so angry some days ago, the one he'd bowed to get revenge on as soon as he got out of prison.
But then, why wasn't he angry?
It was as if his negative feelings had been drained from his body, as if he had unconsciously forgiven everyone who had ever hurt him.
He had confessed Rapunzel his darkest thoughts, how he didn't believe himself worthy of anything, how it was all his fault.
And for some reason, it had felt good.
It was as if all that time he had been carrying a burden in his back, and in that moment, beaten and in pain, he was finally free.
He remembered something his father had said at the funeral of one guy of Old Corona, something that had shocked him and made the young alchemist think about his own mother: He died that day because his body had served its purpose. His soul had done what it came to do, learned what it came to learn, and then was free to leave.
Maybe he was ready to leave.
He had served his purposed, he had learned to forgive. And in the end, Rapunzel still wanted to be his friend...
But Varian still had something left to do.
He had to free his father.
That was his purpose, his reason to keep going and not dying in a dark cell underneath the ground.
To make his father proud...
Suddenly, he felt a jolt of pain in his chest, more painful than anything he had ever felt. Varian put his other hand over his mouth, coughing one last time, tasting the metallic taste of blood.
His vision started to blur, Rapunzel panicked, she seemed to be screaming something at him. But he couldn't hear the words.
With the last energy he had left, Varian whispered four words, his voice raspy. "Take care of him"
Varian's hand lost his grip on Rapunzel, falling lifelessly against the rock floor, the sound of the rattling of the chains inaudible for him.
He watched as Rapunzel shook him, tears streaming down her cheeks.
The last thing he saw was a white light, coming right from the hole in the ceiling.