***Two months before the little Princess explodes***

"The prisoner escaped!"

"What?!"

"Quick! Sound the alarm!"

*Woooooooooo, Woooooooooo*

"Sir! There's a trail of unconscious guards."

"Scour the perimeter! He couldn't have gone far. He must be hiding somewhere."

"Yes sir."

....

As the sounds of the alarm and the shouts of restless guards rent the air, a giant being in the shape of a man, concealed in the shadows, breaks in a cold sweat.

His well-shaped, tall and gorgeous form can hardly be seen at all as he creeps around blending into dark corners; an expert at stealth.

But no matter how stealthy or how smart you are, in this place, once the alarm goes off, it's a race against time. And when your time runs out, that's it. You're caught.

No one escapes this place.

That's why they call it, 'The Hold'.

.....

'I've got to hurry!... almost at the main gates!'

The prisoner's thoughts encourage him as he makes away, hyperventilating from the immense weight of the gigantic iron boulder attached to the constricting chains all around him.

Huge as he is, this boulder is at least twice his size and is unbearably heavy. He has been forced to pull it along with him with all of his strength as he tries to escape.

Suddenly coming to a stop, our prisoner sees something ahead.

'The main gates!'

The Hold is built in such a way that within, there are several dummy gates positioned strategically to lead nowhere, so that if a prisoner ever managed to escape, these gates would confuse them, leading them into traps rather than to freedom.

Our prisoner had tried to escape several times prior, and on his two most successful attempts, he had gone through the wrong gates, falling into their traps.

Now before him were the real gates! The actual main gates. He recognises them from when he was brought in shackled, dragged on the bare ground by his feet, his shackles screeching and giving off sparks from the friction.

'So demeaning', he thought.

The flashback had brought back memories of his inglorious defeat, disgraceful capture and dehumanizing treatment.

He shook his head, shaking the terrible memories away. For now, he had to concentrate. He couldn't believe his luck! He actually found the real gates!

Funny enough, the guards called this the "West gates".

'How cunning...', he thought.

Well, too bad for them, he got it right this time. Luck was definitely on his side.

'I would make it out today!

And then, I would pay that d*mned red-head a visit.

She dare betray me? Hmph! She's got another thing coming!'

His thoughts urged him on and his blood boiled over with adrenaline as he thought of payback.

The main gates, his freedom, his revenge, and the d*mned red-head were just ahead, but between him and they lay an abyss. A deep and dark ditch laced at the bottom with a sea of poisonous, boiling, green volcanic larva.

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It was far too wide to jump across and also gave off poisonous, steamy gas.

The guards usually got across this abyss by a narrow walkway that proceeded out from beneath the gates, but only they had the controls.

He could wait in hiding, crouched and perfectly concealed behind this massive pillar, for the guards to extend the walkway, but that would do him no good as he would soon be discovered by guards within, even before the reinforcement guards outside extend the walkway to come through the gates.

Even if he was lucky and they extended the walkway right now, he would be walking right into their hands. They wore suits that protected them from the poisonous fumes and heat; a protection he didn't have.

Being so close to the fumes and the heat would kill him quicker than the guards. He wouldn't dare go across that abyss on a narrow walkway hanging just a few feet above... No.

He had to find a way to get across as safely and as far away from the abyss as possible.

*sigh*

'I could have obtained one of those impenetrable guard suits from one of those guards I disposed of, but that damn Chalding! He ensured that the chips controlling the suits were embedded skin-deep!

'Smart*ss!', he shook his head at the thought.

But this little debacle would not dissuade him.

He was at the gates! He could taste his freedom already. He had made it so far... farther than on any of his previous attempts. If he could just get out the gates...

He looks around for a way out.

The ceiling is incredibly high up and looks solid enough to bear his weight and the weight of the boulder. Also, it's far above the abyss and its fumes. He would survive for longer going across by clinging to the ceiling, that is, assuming he does not fall...

'great!'

But he would still have to hold his breath for as long as possible to reduce the amount of fumes he would inevitably inhale.

'Yes. This could work.'

This was his way out. All he needed now was to get up there.

He pulls at the chains, wrapping them once more around his chest to shorten the length so that the boulder is now off the floor and hanging off his shoulder behind his back. Then he proceeds to quickly climb up to the top of the pillar, while bearing the full weight of the boulder, to reach the ceiling, grunting all the way.

Guards come by, searching for him. Hearing their approach from afar off with his super-sharp senses he stops, holding perfectly still; holding even his breath, so that his chains and the boulder dangling behind him come to a rest; perfectly still and noiseless.

Completely concealed behind the large pillar, high up and close to the ceiling, the guards are unable to spot him. They stand still for a few seconds, carefully listening for the sound of his chains or of his breathing, just in case he isn't on the move.

A thorough search, but Gorak is smarter. He holds till his lungs are almost giving out; holding on for dear life!

Still unable to find him, they move on to search elsewhere.

Once the coast is clear, he releases his breath.

'Phew! They left.'

He was safe, for now, but he knew they would be back shortly.

He resumes his climb, taking care not to waste a second.

_____

Finally getting to the ceiling in the shortest possible time, he takes a deep breath and begins to claw his way across the abyss.

.....

The guards had only recently discovered he had sneakily left his cage... Yes. Cage. He had been kept in a cage, locked within what would be considered by earthlings as an alien hi-tech, high-security dungeon.

'They must be searching so hard around the facility, they would never imagine I made it as far as the gates.'

He had successfully caused a diversion to distract them.

"He's not here."

"He's not in his cage either, sir!"

"More disposed guards in sector 5, sir!"

"He's headed towards the West gates! Call for reinforcements!", ordered the leader.

"Yes sir!"

"Spread out further. Concentrate on all the darker corners and shadows.

Don't lower your guard, and don't stop searching!", the leader continued.

"Yes sir!"

He had them distracted, but now, they were unto him.

He had just about 20 seconds before he would be found.

____

Creeping beneath the ceiling fast as possible, the prisoner had run out of breath. It was suffocatingly hot and he was dripping with sweat.

Forced to breathe, he took in a shallow breath and inhaled some of the fumes along with it. He could feel the burn of the poison as the air hit his lungs. He had to be quick.

He lunged himself forward, using the weight of the boulder to swing himself closer towards the gates with one hand, and latching onto the ceiling with his other hand; digging into fortified titanium with his fingers like they are claws.

One more lunge and he would be on the gates. He would wait, hanging unto the ceiling by one hand for however long it would take until the guards outside opened the gates to come in from the outside to help search for him.

'Dumb*sses.'

He had to time this right.

About half a minute passed and sure enough, *Scweeeeeee...*

The heavy doors were opened a crack and the walkway extended to let only two rows of soldiers in. Little did they know that the prisoner was lying in wait, planning to escape through the unavoidable crack atop the gates...

...