The guards stood with their electricity flowing in their weapons. Izzy shuffled to her feet, knowing that a two on one fight was by no means fair. But it seemed like at this point they were no longer playing fair. Her anger was at an all time high. Her father was not only a tyrant and a murderer, but he was going to kill the only person she had ever felt anything important for. And so if she was going to have any chance of saving August, it was going to take everything she had left.
The dagger was loose in her hand but she refused to let it go. Even just holding it, a steady flow of energy seemed to come from it. It reminded her of August. She wondered where she was at a moment like this.
The first guard charged, bringing his weapon forward in an effortless flick of his wrist. Izzy dodged quickly out of it's reach, bringing her foot down on the prod briefly hanging in the air where her legs were just moments before. She barely had time to acknowledge her small victory when the second guard moved in, this time hitting his target.
It all happened too fast. The cattle prod connected in the center of her chest just as Izzy swung with her dagger. It never connected. The electricity flowed through her like someone had just plugged her into a socket. Everything was heightened, so much so that the princess couldn't find the space to take a breath. As the jolt stopped, she felt her knees slam to the ground followed by her hands as she lowered onto her face. The second prod came much harder than the first, directly into her shoulder blade. There was nothing left inside of Izzy to even desire to fight back. All she could think about was August. She really hoped that wherever she was, that she was safe. The jolts came, one after another until finally her vision went dark.
...
The explosion awoke August from her unintentional slumber. She jolted awake, springing to her feet as she realized where she was. Still in the forests outside of Aldham. Still in a perfect view of the palace tops. But she could sense that something was very wrong.
A second boom came, this time August could finally see where it was coming from. It looked as it the gate into Aldham was open and at it's opening stood a line of guards who were connecting small blocks of what most have been an explosive to the bridge. They had already managed to blow a fairly large chunk of it off. She watched in horror as another small explosion was set off and broke down another area, bringing with it the a large chunk of stone that fell quietly for a moment before hitting the waters below. August could see the men speaking amongst themselves before finally backing into the depths of the city.
They must have been testing the explosives before, but August knew the moment she saw the gate begin to close that they were gearing up for the real thing.
They were tearing the bridge down.
And she was on the wrong side of it.
Why did she have to be so stupid and get involved? She wondered what her dad would do if he were here. In any other circumstance she would be almost happy to watch the bridge fall. Aldham had been nothing more than a reminder of everything that she would never have or accomplish. But now, it was also the home to the woman that she loved. And there was no way they would be tearing down the bridge if the king didn't know that his daughter had returned.
Which meant one thing, Izzy was in danger.
The gate was nearly closed now when August took a step towards the bridge. She knew that this was her last shot. But back in the cabin, she promised her princess that she would always keep her safe, and that was exactly what she intended to do.
Darkness grew within her as she let the energy run in. Faster than it had ever before but she still knew her limits. Like a battery she felt herself becoming charged, fueled by her desire to save her lover. And with the energy built inside of her, August took off running across towards the bridge. Towards the gate. But most importantly towards Izzy.
