The Impossible Escape - Chapter 1

Chapter One

The rude awakening

 Thirteen years later

Emma wakes to her brother shaking her. She sits up slowly, and looks out the window. She sees the fingers of dawn slowly stretching over the sky turning the it into a reddish orange color - the same color as her hair.
    “Emma! Get up. Krane and his men are coming this way! They are
at the hut at the end of the road!” Her brother is already dressed, with his bow and arrows on his back.
     “What?! Why didn't you say so? We need to get out of here. Let’s go out the back door.” Emma grabs her clothes before she sprints into the next room, the room that used to be her father's. She quickly gets dressed in dark green cotton pants, a olive green shirt, and tall brown boots with the tops folded over. Now fully dressed, Emma slips the little, fiery, orange hummingbird necklace under her shirt, the only thing her dad left for her before he abandoned them. She straps her sword onto her back as she joins Daniel next to the window.
It only took moments to get dressed but still Daniel asked nervously “What took you so long?”
“Ok, let's go,” Emma grabs Daniel’s hand, opens the door, and accidentally walks right into one of Krane’s men.
     “Good work, boys,” Krane growls as he walks around the house slowly clapping. His voice is worse than nails on a chalkboard. He has been in so many fires that he really doesn't have any features. He is just ugly, inside and out.
    “What do you want, Krane,” Daniel says calmly.
    “Do you want a fight?!” asks Emma, unsheathing her sword.
    “What is a little girl doing with a sword that she doesn't even know how to use? Girls and women don't sword fight, little girl.” says Krane’s right hand man. But as he leans in close, Emma slices his cheek.
     “Girls don't sword fight?” Emma asks.  “Then I challenge you to a duel!”
He laughs.  “I accept.” They walk away from the rest of Krane’s men. And they start dueling. With Emma glaring at her opponent, her hate drilling into his soul.
     “Anyways, as I was saying before I was interrupted by my sister. What do you want Krane?” asks Daniel.
     “You are going to be the guard for the princess, and your sister is going to stay right here.”
     “No.”
    “What do you mean by no?” Krane demands.
     “Do you like your men, Krane?”
     “Yes, what kind of idiotic question is that?” Daniel comes close to Krane for his answer.
    “Well, if my little sister doesn't get to be the maid for the princess, and I don't get to the guard, then I challenge all of your men to a duel. And We. Will. Win.” Daniel threatens. With that statement, Emma and Krane’s right hands stop dueling and look up.
    “What?!” They say at exactly the same time.
     “Don't do this sir, she is really good. I bet he is just as good if not better than her!” Kranes right hand man says.
     “He can't fighting he's hurt,” replies Krane with an evil grin.
    “What are you going to do to my brother?!” Shouts Emma.
     “Oh not much, just this,” as soon as Krane says that, he grabs Daniel and punches him in the guts. Krane lets go of Daniel. Daniel falls to the ground in pain. Emma drops her sword and clenches her hands together. She charges at Krane and tackles him; he falls over in surprise. Emma starts punching him.
     “No one hurts my brother!” Emma says angrily as she gets pulled of off him by three of his men. Daniel stands up grimacing.
    “Don't mess with my sister,” he says to Krane.
     “See sir, she's a little spitfire. If she wasn't a girl she would make a good guard. Sir, please just let her be the servant for the princess.” pleaded Kranes right hand man. Quickly realizing his mistake, he looks down knowing that his punishment will be terrible. Krane glares at his right hand man. Krane stares at Emma from head to toe. He sees her shaking in rage. He knows that if it weren’t for her brother holding her back, Krane would be bleeding laying on the ground.
“Fine,” he spits, “You disturbing little street scoundrel. You’ll have to work. Beside, they all die within a week or so anyway,” then he would complete his job in record time. He smirks a little thinking how much his leader would like that. Emma looks at Daniel and grins.
“Jonathan come here.” Krane commands. A boy no older than Emma walks out of the swarm of henchmen, his dark brown hair waving in the wind. The waves make his hair look like the ocean blowing in the gentle summer wind. He has hazel green eyes that Emma could just swim in. He stands up straight like he runs the henchmen. But his small slouch lets Emma know that he not even kind of powerful, within the henchmen. Emma brushes the hair that’s hanging in her face behind one ear, smiling a little at Jonathan.
“Come on you two,” Jonathan says roughly, walking behind Daniel and Emma. He pushes them so hard they trip. They start to walk towards the castle, silently. As soon as they get close, Jonathan turns around so abruptly that Daniel runs into him, and Emma runs into her brother.
“Sorry about earlier. I just have to be mean around Krane. He’s holding my family in the dungeon and he says that he will kill them if I don’t do exactly what l say. Again, I’m so sorry,” Jonathan says smiling a little. Daniel looks at him not really believing him. He looks at his sister hoping that she’ll read his look. Sadly, she sees him and just ignores him.
“I’m sorry. It’s alright” Emma says with a sweet smile.
Jonathan smiles back and says, “As you heard, my name is Jonathan. But I’d prefer it if you’d call me John.” He turns back around and leads the brother and sister into the castle. They stop at the first door and John says, “Daniel, this is where you will learn to become a guard.” Daniel nods, opens the wide doors and walks through. Once the doors close, Emma sweetly asks, “What about me?”
“Well the princess’s last three maids got beheaded, and the ten before that randomly dissapeared. so, you’re the newest maid. You can just go on up to her tower.” Emma raises her eyebrows in shock. Really? You tell me now? She thinks. Her thoughts are interrupted by John saying
“If you want, I can show you the way up,” he smiles a little motioning his arm up the stairs.
“That would be lovely!” Emma says trying to sound like a lady, but she figures that she just sounds like an idiot instead. John laughs as if he can read her mind.
“What’s so funny?” Emma asks following John up the stairs
“I was thinking about something that my sister once told me. You won’t get it.” John snaps. Emma thinks that he might be hiding something. She puts her hand on her sword. Then she realized that he wouldn’t hurt or lie to her. Emma takes her hand off her sword.
    “Oh, is she being held captive too?”
    “I don’t want to talk about it!” he snaps glaring at her. Before Emma can stop herself, she feels her hand on her sword and her mind whirling. Trying to figure out if this is a large enough threat to pull her sword out and use it.
    “I’m sorry, it’s just that I’m so scared for my family.” he starts to cry, at first Emma thinks that it’s fake. She convinces herself that it was real. John halts and Emma takes her hand off her sword as John turns around his tears gone.
    “Princesses Fiona won’t like the fact that you have a sword. G… please give it to me. I’ll put it somewhere safe.” he gives her a reassuring smile. Emma looks at him like he’s absurd.
“You aren’t getting my sword! I don’t care if the princesses beheads me! You are never getting my sword!!” Emma says angrily. About two seconds later, Fiona walks out of her tower. “The sound of your annoying voices woke me!” she glares at John then looks at Emma not seeing her sword.
“Oh! You must be the new maid.” Emma starts to open her mouth to say something, but before she had the chance John quickly says
“She is, I was just taking her up to your tower.” after a little he adds “Your majesty.”
“Oh, how lovely!” Fiona says courtly, Fiona sees something shiny hanging from Emma’s belt. She breaks Emma’s eye contact and look down at it.
“Why do you have a sword!!” She sheaks “You must be from our rival kingdom of Winterhallow!!! Your kingdom will fall to the mighty wrath of Castle Gray Lake!!!” Fiona shouts at Emma. Emma takes off her sword and gives it to John.
“Just take it.” she says in a hushed voice. She turns back to Fiona “excuse us for a moment.” Emma say glaring at Fiona and grabbing John’s coat sleeve and pulling him down the stairs quite a bit.
“OK. You have my trust. Why did she get like that?” Emma half questions half demands.
“She thinks that everything is a threat. It really doesn’t help that her father is always talking about how the kingdom Winterhallow will fall to the mighty wrath of Castle Gray Lake” John says in an all knowing voice. John looks into Emma’s piercing blue eyes as he looks into her eyes, he realises that they are the most beautiful things he’s seen. Emma looks away feeling a little uncomfortable. After a little John gently grabs her chin and faces it towards him. She looks into his hazel green eyes. John pulls his hand away after a little. They stand there the hall gone quite. Emma puts her hand behind his ear. He starts to lean in, closer and closer. Emma’s heart starts to race. She knows what is about to happen, but she’s not sure that she is ready. ‘Sure I think that he’s really cute, funny, nice, and he’ll stand up for his family... and me. But I don’t know……..’ Emma’s thoughts get cut off by John’s warm lips press against hers. Emma forgets her worries and thoughts. All she thinks about is how she wishes that it would never end. At that moment Emma and John both hear footsteps coming down the stairs. Emma quickly pulls away not wanting it to be seen by anyone. Really not her brother. John looks at Emma and smirks a little and walks away as a princess that looked like she’d tried to dress herself; but  since a maid had ways done this for her, she didn’t look that good. The princess looks weary at Emma to make sure that she doesn’t have her sword. Once she’s positive that she doesn’t, Fiona commands “Come down, you shall dress me, wash my face, brush my hair, braid my hair, and get me ready.” Fiona turns on her heels and heads back up to her tower. Emma glares at her back then follows her up.