Princess Estina’s heart pounded in her chest, and her throat was dry. The horses’ hooves echoed once again around Prince Yernal’s courtyard as they passed under the castle’s portcullis. It was two days later, and the sky held an ominous weight over her shoulders as her previous fears of death felt ever so tangible and real.

Her hands were shaking. Princess Estina dismounted her horse and waited for Menelt and Weldlan to join her. Three other mountain men had also accompanied them.

Six people.

That’s all there was. Six people to execute their insane rescue and escape. On the other side of the castle grounds where she hoped they would breakout of the castle’s defensive walls, Ladet and the other Talbecan scouts along with several mountain men were waiting for them.

Prince Alain had stayed behind at the lodging. He was not fast enough, strong enough or capable enough for battle if it came to it. It was Prince Alain however that they had used to buy themselves an extra day while they had schemed. Fortunately, Prince Yernal had believed them when they had sent word that Prince Alain had fallen ill and needed to rest, granting them the extra time they needed to prepare.

Prince Yernal had ordered that they arrive by midday, but they were early. And they were going to try to use that in their favour. Surely, Prince Yernal would only see it as beneath him to greet them on time, let alone earlier. It was their hope that he would keep them waiting, giving them even more time to escape the castle without being noticed.

“You’ll have to wait in the hall,” the castellan drawled. He turned, not waiting for a response and started walking towards the hall. “I will arrange for refreshments to be brought. Prince Yernal is busy with other matters at present.”

No one answered, but they humbly followed.

Princess Estina stepped over the threshold, and the dimness of the hall engulfed her, only two braziers burning to give light on this grey day. She could not stand in one spot, her nerves coursing through her veins. Instead, she walked towards the giant fireplace that stood a metre out from the wall behind it. The stone surrounding the firebox was a complex sculpture of leaves and vines similar to the ones found in the nearby forests.

Princess Estina stopped in front of the firebox, and the mantal was still above her head. Today, the firebox was dark and empty. As a consequence, without any flames, the hall was cold and damp. She looked up and saw two dark blue glass bottles and a thin hollow stick beside them. It was an obvious implementation for releasing darts. Did they contain the Ashkin poison that was being used to drug Teal?

Not wanting to draw attention to her discovery, she turned back to face the hall and hoped her facial expression maintained some kind of normalcy.

The castellan however, didn’t cast her small party another glance. Once they were all inside, he waved to a guard, and the large wooden doors were closed. A loud click was heard as a bolt was turned. They were locked inside.

Princess Estina met Menelt’s gaze.

“Let’s go,” he whispered.

She nodded in return. Two of the mountain men ran to the locked door and dropped the heavy wooden slats into their grooves that were used by the castle for extra protection. Once they were done, they ran over to the opposite side of the hall to ensure the other entrance doors were secure as well.

Princess Estina turned towards the back of the hall where they had last seen Teal and Jale. To her relief, they were still there. Teal was in his cage, vacant eyed and staring out at the long, arched windows, but Jale was kneeling in the middle of the hall.

A large lump filled her throat. His shabby threadbare clothes hung off his thin body as it swayed dangerously over the large bamboo spears that surrounded him. She sprinted to Jale as she heard Menelt and Weldlan run towards Teal’s cage. The last mountain man, a burly strong man named Eemulan, joined her.

Jale’s face bore a fresh welt and now, his left eye was swollen shut. His body leaned to one side, swaying and trembling. Her eyes swept over the spears. They were sharp. However, they probably wouldn’t have killed him if he had fallen. Instead, they would have caused significant harm. His body swayed dangerously, exhaustion putting him on the brink.

Princess Estina swore and kicked at the bamboo spears, sending them clattering around the hall. Jale jolted at the sudden sound, and she blinked back tears. He hadn’t even been aware that they were there.

She prayed to the Gods of Eternity that he would be able to hold on. What kind of sadistic sick mind did her brother have? No doubt Prince Yernal would have wanted Jale to fall on the spikes in front of his guests.

There was another worry. Jale looked far weaker than what she had originally thought the day before. She leaned forward and placed her arms around him.

“Cousin,” she said in greeting. “We’re here to rescue you. Hold still while I unbind the rope on you.”

The rope was thick and there was no time to pick at it with fingers. She retrieved her small dagger that her brother had gifted to her one year. There was no time to be delicate. They didn’t know how long they had until someone tried to enter the hall again. Roughly, she pushed the blade between the rope and Jale’s wrists, cutting his skin in the process. It would be quicker though. She gave a hard yank and then another, and the blade of her dagger cut through the rope.

Princess Estina glanced down and saw that Eemulan had freed the rope that had bound Jale’s ankles. She turned back to Jale.

“Can you stand?” she asked, holstering her dagger back into its sleeve.

He didn’t respond verbally, but he attempted to shift his weight. His knees and muscles must have been aching from the position he had been in. Eemulan stepped forward not hesitating further and scooped Jale into his arms and over his shoulder as if he was holding and protecting a child.

More fear thrummed through Princess Estina. Jale was supposed to be a full-grown man, but he held no considerable weight. He had surely been starved over the past couple of months. His weakness would dramatically slow their pace.

Princess Estina rose to her feet. A loud clang of metal hitting metal made her startle, and she turned her head to the cage that held Teal. Even though she had spent the past two years with Menelt and Weldlan and had grown to know their skills and capabilities, there was still times where she would stand and watch them with disbelief. This was one of those occasions.

Weldlan was holding the chain attached to the lock that wrapped around the cage door and metal bars of Teal’s cage. He was pulling it tight and taut. Menelt stood, legs slightly bent and shoulder width apart. He held the axe over his shoulders. With outstanding precision, he swung the blade of his axe down and it hit one of the links in the chain for the second time. Weldlan didn’t blink, his trust in Menelt’s aim so sure.

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The third hit of the axe finished the cut through the link, and the chain clanged to the ground. Menelt eased his stance, handed his axe to Weldlan, and opened the metal door to the cage. He paused.

“I’m here to help you,” he said, waiting to see if there was any response. “We’re going to help you escape.”

Teal’s eyes remained fixated on the window.

Menelt strode inside, and without any further hesitation, he scooped Teal up in his arms before he threw him over his shoulder, the act so easy with Teal’s limp drugged-filled body.

Princess Estina breathed a sigh of relief. Releasing Teal and Jale had only taken five minutes at most. She turned back to Eemulan, and from the corner of her eye, she spied a maid enter through the servant entrance. Princess Estina spun on her heel.

The maid paused on the spot, and her mouth dropped open in surprise.

Princess Estina raised her finger to warn of silence, but the young woman’s chest heaved and her mouth drew wider. Princess Estina swore, and she reached over her back and grasped the handle of one of the small axes secured in her leather vest. Without a second thought, she pulled her arm over her head, letting the axe fly free from her hand. It flew through the air covering several meters with speed and precision that she could only thank Menelt’s training for. The axe landed with a loud thud in the woman’s chest. The scream remained locked in her chest, and she fell to the floor.

“Nice throw,” Eemulan said.

Princess Estina tried to swallow the immediate guilt that engulfed her and ran across the hall to retrieve her axe from the woman’s chest. Her victim’s eyes stared vacantly towards the stone ceiling, the axe embedded deep within her chest. Princess Estina closed her eyes, placed her foot on the woman’s body and pulled the axe at the same time. It came free with a squelch of blood. She could feel the axe slide through bone. Princess Estina swallowed and stepped to the side. Unfortunately, she couldn’t spare any more time on the serving girl. She turned her attention to the servant entrance encase anyone else came through.

The handle of the doors on the courtyard side suddenly rattled as someone on the other side tried to open it. Their time was up. Now, those in the castle would suspect that something was happening.

“We need to leave now!” Princess Estina shouted to the men in the room.

The two wooden doors strained on the thick wood that crossed horizontally over them. She left the entrance to the servant passageway and sprinted to the fireplace.

Prince Yernal had only been residing at the Isola castle for two months and had never spent much time in the castle growing up. It was her hope that Prince Yernal didn’t know about what was hidden behind the fireplace. Their entire escape rested on this.

Princess Estina ran towards the fireplace, but stopped in front of the mantal. She glanced at Teal in Menelt’s arms, and then, back to the two dark bottles and tube. They were coming with her. She reached up and gathered them into her hands, also spying a small box behind the tube. The darts possibly? She shoved one of the glass bottles into the pocket on the side of her trousers and hoped it would survive any knocks along the way.

“Come on,” Menelt ordered.

Princess Estina looked at Menelt and nodded. She stepped towards him. “Here,” she said, holding out the other bottle, tube and small box. “I think this is what is being used to drug Teal,” she said. “I don’t want them to have any when they come chasing after us.” She pushed the items into the side of his trousers.

Menelt grunted in response and nodded towards the fireplace.

Princess Estina turned and took a deep breath. Each side of the mantal spread wide, but it was the righthand side that she was most interested in. Stepping behind the stone, she pushed aside the servant buckets, brooms, torches for the walls and spare braziers that had been stored there. Before her, hidden in the carved stone of the fireplace, was a secret door that she had found when she had been a child.

Her heart pounded in her ears, and she muttered a quick prayer to the Gods of Eternity.

She reached a hand out behind the stone vines of the mantal and sighed with relief. The small knob of stone that jutted out only by three centimetres, was still there. She pressed down hard. A click was heard as the lock feature released inside the fireplace, but the stone in front of her didn’t move. In her childhood the door had slid open, springing outward at the release. It must have been a long time, possibly even since those days that this door had been opened.

Panic surged through her. Adrenalin compounded her already heightened fears. She lunged forward and clasped her fingers on the edge of the heavy stone door. But all it did was sway slightly. The spring that had caused it to open must have broken over the years. If she could just get a good clasp on the edge of the stone, she may be able to pull it open. If only the door had been designed to had swing in, she could have used her full body weight to push it open.

Menelt and Weldlan stood behind her.

“The lock released, but it didn’t open,” she said quickly.

Weldlan and one of the mountain men stepped forward and leaned over her, placing their fingers around the edges of the stone door.

More rattling and loud banging of fists on the outside doors reached their ears. Panic coursed through Princess Estina’s veins.

They worked together, pulling with all the strength they could put in their fingers. The stone cut into her skin, grazing and scratching the flesh around her nails.

A loud bang echoed through the hall. Princess Estina jumped and looked over her shoulder and saw the doors to the hall buckle in. They were now being rammed. It was the only explanation for the way the doors were straining and for the loud thump that was coming every several seconds. Only Prince Yernal would make such an order. He would be too impatient to wind through the servant passageways. To him, this would give a more immediate outcome. But surely, it was only a matter of time before soldiers would flood into the hall through the servant entrance.

“We don’t have much longer,” Menelt stated simply.

Princess Estina glanced up at him. He still had Teal, hanging limp over his shoulder, but it was the calmness in his voice that amazed her. They were so close to failing their rescue attempt, but there was no sign of fear or distress in his voice.

She turned back to the stone door. “Come on!” she shouted. “We can do this!”

Weldlan and the mountain man joined her once again. They pulled. Princess Estina closed her eyes, gritted her teeth and put her foot on the stone beside the door to give her extra strength.

The door edged out a fraction.

“Keep going!” Weldlan said over her shoulder. He was so close she could feel his breath on her neck.

“One, two, three!” she cried.

They pulled on the stone door again and this time, it slid out towards them so quickly they fell back onto the stone floor.

A soft breeze of damp stale air wafted up her nostrils, and Princess Estina stared into the dark hole she had been brave enough to hide in when she had been a child.

There was no time to celebrate. She scrambled back onto her feet.

“Quick!” she gasped. “Torches.”

An unlit torch was handed over her shoulder. Without another word, Princess Estina entered first. She stopped when there would be enough room for all the men to squeeze in behind her. She ran her hand over her tied up hair pulling off the cobwebs that now covered it. Something ran up her back and over her shoulder, but she brushed it off paying it no other attention. Spiders were not poisonous here. They might bite and hurt, but there was otherwise no cause for concern. The darkness behind her engulfed the rest of the tunnel.

Menelt, still carrying Teal, entered followed by Eemulan with Jale. The other mountain man and Weldlan entered last.

“Are we all in?” she asked, unable to see clearly as all the men huddled close together.

“Yes,” Weldlan replied.

Princess Estina looked down past the men towards the entrance and saw Weldlan and one of the mountain men pulling on the stone door to close it. A loud crack and the sound of splintering wood shattering on the stone floor in the hall reached her ears. The wooden doors at the entrance must have broken inwards.

Weldlan swore as he pulled the stone door towards him. All of a sudden, they were in complete darkness, and a loud click indicated that the stone door had locked back into place. From the other side, Princess Estina heard the shouts of Prince Yernal’s men as they stampeded into the hall.

Princess Estina stood in the stillness of the space behind the fireplace. Muffled shouts and chaotic chatter, and then a rage-filled scream that Princess Estina believed to be Prince Yernal’s reached her ears, but no one approached the fireplace stone door.

“Fine them or I’ll have all of your heads!” screamed Prince Yernal from the other side of the door.

Boots echoed away.

“Let’s go,” Weldlan whispered.

A bright flame suddenly flickered in the darkness, and Princess Estina reached her torch towards it, lighting her own as well. She blinked against the light. The tunnel was much smaller than she had remembered and the mountain men were all hunched over. They had to move. They still needed to get out of the castle.

“We must be quick,” she whispered.

Princess Estina turned and started to lead the way.