His Redemption

|04|

Carmen

     The rumbling ship seems to go still at some point, and I nearly scream in excitement, purply thrilled at the idea of getting out of this cramped little air vent that I've been hiding in for days.

     Giant men lumber down the halls, carrying the cases and boxes that were stored away with my closest pal, Locanas.

      A part of me, and a very small part, wanted to check in on him. He may be a prisoner, but his treatment has rubbed me the wrong way. I still don't know what he's done, but I suppose it wont matter soon since I likely won't see him ever again.

     I'm going off on my own, and no one can stop me. The mountains are calling and that means that I'm on my way.

     I crawl through the vents, trying not to bang myself up too bad, which is a difficult mission in and of itself. I'm still covered in bruises from hitting my knees and elbows on the way.

     "Alright, lets get him out of this ship before I'm too tempted to end him." Someone says, followed by a chorus of laughter as they walk towards the prison cell. I hold my breath as they walk right beneath me, waiting until the sound of their footsteps has disappeared before I allow myself one more move forward.

     Ignoring the insistent guilt building in the back of my head, I carefully climb down the vents to the ground floor, shifting until I find the vent release grate that I'm looking for.

     Taking a second to listen as closely as I can, I wait for someone to show up, but it's deathly silent. Now's my chance.

     I push on the grate, clutching my small satchel to my side as the metal grate creaks slightly from disuse.

    Cringing, I slowly ease it open until I can crawl through. I look around as I sneak down the sleek hallways of the ship, knowing exactly where I need to go to escape this place before they return to the palace. Back to Aria.

     Shaking her from my head, I continue my mission. I see sunlight streaming in through a door. I quicken my pace until im right on the edge of the doorway, the air fresh as if flits over me. I gasp it into my lungs quickly, savoring the fresh taste and almost moaning.

     I can tell immediately that it's mountain air. It doesn't matter that this planet is different, mountains are mountains and I'm a mountain girl through and through.

     Looking outside I'm met with rocky terrain that looks rough and hard to manage. I squint, eyeing the sharp edges of the cliffside straight ahead. The mountains jut out in hash angles and ridges. They're covered in trees, but most of the surface area is rocky and hard. The tops are surrounded by heavy, gray clouds. I imagine myself climbing some of those cliff faces and skimming my fingers through the clouds, my hand likely coming away wet.

     This place is unforgiving and will be hard to navigate. I grin to myself as such a challenge. This is exactly what I needed. Survival is as good of a distraction as any.

     Hearing male voices trailing up behind me, I duck down, scampering down the ladder and onto the stony ground.

    My feet glide against pebbles under my heels. The feeling of real dirt and earth, or planet I suppose, under my feet sends an electric pulse of energy through me.

     I want to bend down and kiss this new place, this new found home of mine.

     I survey the surrounding mountains and trees that are taller than any trees I've ever seen. The trunks alone are twice as thick as an oak.

     It may not be the Rockies, but it'll do just fine.

     Inhaling the clean, Mountain air, i scamper behind the ship, ducking when I head voices and hiding behind trees when I see Rytarian males.

     Hidden beneath the coverage of the dense forest, I watch as they unload their passenger. Sorry, their prisoner, because that's exactly what Locanas is.

     Something new blooms like a flower inside of me as I watch his bruised body, cuffed and slung around like a rag doll. He lets it happen without a word. He's still feeling sore for himself at his mistakes, playing the part of dejected villain. It's pathetic.

     Something about seeing it play out makes my chest tighten. What am I feeling right now? Pity? Endearment? Maybe even empathy?

     I gulp the emotion down, burying it completely before it has time to grow into something bigger. That's what I've always done. Kill off the feelings. It makes everything that much easier.

     This is about survival, my survival, my happiness. That kingdom was sucking the joy out of me, and now I'm finally free to do as I wish.

     Aria's face flashes in my mind suddenly. Her smiling, her feigning giggles as countless rytartian warriors flirted with her. Her basking in the attention. Her sneaking off with one right after speaking to me.

     I grit my teeth. Shoulder my pack and moving west as the ship continues to unlock countless crates that carry the necessary supplies for whatever their scheme is with dropping Locanas here.

    I don't care. I don't care. I don't care.

    The chanted words do little to distract me as I prowl the forest for my first, and most vital, thing to check off of my list.

    Water.

   When I was trapped in the palace, I did as much digging as I could into how different this planet's resources are. It was necessary preparation to learn how to survive here. The information I was able to scrounge up was definitely useful.

     The water on Rytaria is clean to drink no matter where you find it, and that makes things so much easier for me.

     I'm not walking long across the steep, rocky terrain before I find a thin stream that winds on a down slant to the banks of a lake below.

     "Perfect." I say to myself, scooping up a handful of crystal clear water and bringing it to my lips. I take a long drink, gulping it down as I'm reminded of the days I've gone without much to sustain me.

    I packed light, barely more than enough to survive the journey here.

    I wipe my mouth and eye the lake below, marking it with my gaze as a place to bathe in the future. Glancing around warily, I decide to find shelter next, preferably somewhere close to my newfound water source.

     Not wasting much more time, I get to work.

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