The Foretold 《EDITING》

Chapter 16

That night Gart and Fie had visited Alice, and Fie had told them what time Gart was in the halls. They had put the finishing details on the plan and now it was waiting time.

Alice had woken on Thursday morning eager, one day and everything would get better. She waited for breakfast and when it came a man just a little older than her brought it. "Where's Calix?" She asked curiously.

"Calix has business this morning." He replied and left hurriedly. Alice stared at the door. Business? What could Calix possibly have business for? Alice ate her breakfast at her window, it was gone fast and there wasn't much happening, so she had a bath.

She was instantly bored afterwards. She was stuck in this room all day and all night. No one would allow her to walk around, and no one would keep her company.

Why couldn't the plan take place today? 

Finally after laying on her bed and staring at the ceiling lunch arrived and Calix was the one who brought it. "Calix!" Alice exclaimed, sitting up.

Calix scowled at her. Alice was instantly taken aback, surprised. "What's wrong?" She asked.

"Fie and his father, both men are evil."

"Why?" Calix had never spoken poorly of them.

"First Fie plans on blackmailing me, so I tell his father about it and he brushes me off!" Calix threw her hands up. "They shouldn't even have the thrown." She mumbled.

"Well, I mean yes but why?"

"Have you heard of the king before your father?"

Alice shook her head. Calix joined her on the bed. "The king was dying and he never married so he had no heirs. One day when he was having a good day he declared that a tournament would be held to decide who the next king would be. Many people attended, but only two made it to the last event." She paused. "They had to battle to the death and who ever won was king. Those two were your father and Ladomir."

"What happened?" Alice couldn't help but to interrupt.

"They fought and your father was winning, he could have killed Ladomir but he stopped and said that he would not kill a man to became king and that if that was what it took to became king he did not want to became king. The king at the time knew right away that your father was fit for the throne. Ladomir was livid, he had to leave the kingdom. He couldn't believe how your father got the throne, he would have been happier to have been killed. After the king died your father took the throne."

"And Ladomir?"

"While he was gone he planned on how he would take the throne."

"How do you know all of this about Ladomir?"

Calix's face turned to stone. "That is none of your business." She got up and give Alice her food. "I will be back later." She left the room leaving a puzzled Alice behind.

For the rest of the day Alice was alone, when Calix came back she didn't speak to Alice but Alice could feel the anger coming off her in waves.

***

It was Friday.

Alice woke up early, too nervous about the plan to sleep. She paced her room waiting. The plan wasn't to happen till four o'clock. Fie had reasoned that the later the time the less time the guards will have to look for them. Alice hated that she had to wait all day but agreed that it was smart.

She looked at the clock on the wall. nine o'clock. She sighed. Still seven hours to go, it was going to be a long day. 

***

Fie was running late. He'd said he would come get Alice five minutes before four and he was late. By a minute, but that still made Alice nervous.

She tried to look normal incase someone peeked in but she was nervous and when she was nervous she got bouncy.  She paced the room, sat on the bed, laid on the bed, sat at the window, paced again, walked into her bathroom, then her closet and repeated.

Knock Knock!

Alice jumped towards the door. Finally! Fie walked in with a worried face. "We have to hurry." He said and grabbed her hand.

He dragged her into the hall and she suddenly realized she didn't recognize the man beside her. He walked with his chest puffed out and his head held high. He looked the same but the air around him was different.

"Why were you late?" Alice asked out of the corner of her mouth.

"Got caught up darling." He said aloud. Alice cringed at the nickname.

They stopped before a corner and Fie peeked around it. He nodded and pulled Alice along. At the next corner Alice took a moment to look at him. Her eyes landed on a sword at his hip. "We're not going to have to fight? Right?" She asked, biting her lip.

Fie looked at her and followed her gaze to his sword. "Hopefully not."

"I don't know how to fight with a sword, just my fists." She admitted. Fie pulled her down the hall.

"Hopefully that won't be a problem. We have to hurry, our window of time is closing."

Fie continued to pull her down hallway after hallway. Each hallway was the same, dim with little lighting, no one around, and a little damp smelling. 

At last they came to a stop after Fie peeked down a hall. "Here they come." He let go of Alice's hand and stepped into the hallway.

"Prince Fie!" A deep voice said. Alice could only assume he was bowing.

"Ronald," Fie began, his voice went up a bit and sounded demanding. "Is this your new job?"

"Yes, your majesty."

"May I take over for tonight? I have a few words I'd like to exchange with the prisoner." Alice cringed at the word.

"I'm sorry your majesty. I'm not allowed to let him leave my sight."

"I'm sure you can make an exception" Alice could almost hear - and see him - lose his composure. The man didn't say anything but by the look on Fie's face Alice had a felling he had shook his head no. "Then I'm sorry friend, but you leave me no choice."

"Wha-?"

Fie walked down the hall and Alice had peeked around the corner just in time to see him punch the man in the jaw. The man went down like a tree and the next thing Alice knew was that Fie had his sword out. "You're not going to kill him, are you?" She asked flabbergasted, joining them.

"Of course not!" He exclaimed. "I'm cutting Gart free." He said as he brought the sword down towards the rope that had Gart's hands tied. Alice hadn't seen the rope from the wall.

Once Gart was free he hugged Alice and Fie.

"We should hurry." Fie said, and he started to jog down the hall. Alice and Gart followed him.

Fie jogged down each hall and stopped before each turn. At every turn the halls were empty. Alice couldn't believe their luck, all they had to do was get to the secret passage Fie talked about and head to Micah's and they were free again.

Fie stopped in front of a painting. The painting was of a women with raven black hair, and forest eyes. "Is that your mother?" Gart asked.

Fie nodded. "And our escape." He stepped toward the paint and played around with the edges of it. With a soft pop! The painting swung off the wall and reveled a passage-way behind it. "After you two." Fie said with a bow.

Alice went in first, then Gart, then Fie. Fie checked down the hall before closing the painting.

He didn't see the person watching.