Chapter 2- Escape

"Asena Aldin, you're under arrest." One guard says walking up to me. He takes the gem and my dagger. I know it's no use trying to get away so I just do nothing. The soldiers lead me down about half a dozen flights of stairs before we reach the dungeon. I stop, realizing something.

"How did you know my name?" I ask. The guard smiles.

"We got a tip." I look at him, confused. A door opens behind us and I turn around. There, in the doorway, stands the man in a fur cloak and black boots. I launch towards him, my hands clenched in fists.

"You! Why you backstabbing, double-crosser, no good, son of a-" I land a good punch on his nose, which is now bleeding. It takes three guards to hold me back and toss me into a cell. The man laughs.

"It's nothing personal, really." He says as one of the guards hands him a bag of money. "It's just business." I sit in the corner of the cell and stare at the man as they walk away. He turns around just before the door closes. I look him straight in the eyes and mouth the words, you're dead. He smirks and the guard closes the door behind him, leaving me alone. Well, not completely alone. A few minutes later, after the guard left, someone spoke from a dark corner.

"That's some punch." The girl's voice says from the shadows. "Too bad you didn't knock out a tooth." I don't say anything. "My name's Arcane." The girl steps out of the shadows and leans against her cell door. She's very pretty with long, raven black hair and dark blue eyes.

"I'm Asena." I say. "How'd you get here?" I ask.

"I was arrested for consorting with a witch." She laughs. "Kind of a dumb reason to be locked up when there are so many other criminals out there. What'd you do?"

"I tried to steal the crown jewel." I say matter of factly.

"Oh." We sit in silence for a few minutes. "How old are you?" Arcane asks.

"Sixteen. You?"

"Seventeen."

"Were you really consorting with a witch?" I ask. Arcane nods. Another minute of silence. I'm about to say something when the door opens and two guards walk in. They're laughing together and it's obvious that they're drunk. I roll my eyes and lean against the brick wall at the back of my cell. A few minutes pass and it's like we're not even there. The guards laugh and tell jokes. One of them dropped their mug still half full of beer and it shatters on the floor. They laugh and ignore it. The one who dropped his mug is pretending like it's still in his hand and is trying to drink from the invisible cup. Arcane and I look at each other and try to hold back our laughter. I never knew prison was this enjoyable. The two guards look like idiots. The fun's over when the door opens once more and this time a mean-looking man wearing full armor walks in. The drunk soldiers stand at attention but slightly wobble on their feet.

"General Oswin." One of them says, his voice is high and squeaky. The general rolls his eyes.

"Drunk idiots." He says. "Dismissed." The two salute and walk out of the prison. He turns to me. "We have been after you for years, now you're finally caught and you have nothing to say?" I shrug. The general scowls. "You are to be executed in the morning." He smiles and walks out of the room. "Good night." As soon as he closes the door I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding.

"You gotta get out of here." Arcane says. I chuckle.

"How?" I ask. "This is the most secure part of the castle, there's no way out. I might as well just give up." Arcane gasps.

"No, I don't believe that. I've heard of you. The most wanted thief in the city. No one knew your name or even what you looked like. I'd say that's pretty amazing." She stands up and looks around. I just lay down and smile to myself. About an hour later I hear a jangling of keys and a door unlocking. I look up and see that Arcane has opened her cell. She walks over to my cell with a big smile on her face. She unlocks my door and I jump to my feet, smiling.

"Good work." I say, walking out of my cell.

"Wait, did you pretend to give up so that I would find a way to get out?" Arcane asks. I shake my head.

"No. I pretended to give up so that you would do all the work." I smile and she punches me in the arm. "Hey, I'm tired." I hear voices echoing in the hallway. "Let's get out of here." We run through the castle, dodging guards and staff. "Over there." I say and point to a gate leading into the woods. It's unlocked.

"Let's go this way." Arcane says leading the way. We run for hours through the woods until we reach a small cabin with a thriving garden. "Let's ask for directions. No one here should know that we're wanted." I nod and we walk cautiously to the front door of the cabin. Arcane knocks on the door and a tall, pretty woman with blood-red lips and hair so black it looks like she dyed it in a pot of ink opens the door. She takes one look at Arcane and smiles.

"So, you made it back." The woman says and hugs Arcane. I look at her, confused. The woman laughs. "Is this her?" Arcane nods.

"Visha, this is Asena. Asena, Visha." She looks at me. "Sorry for the ruse, Asena. But it was necessary."

"Is Visha the witch you were arrested for helping?" I ask.

"Yes. She is teaching me magic and such." I can't believe it. Actually, no I can.

"Well, now that you're reunited with your friend, I should get going. The soldiers should have realized I'm gone by now." I say, looking at the sun which almost fully risen.

"Wait." Visha says, ducking inside the cottage. She returns a few minutes later with a small satchel. "You'll need some supplies." I look inside the satchel. There's a bag of money, a loaf of bread, a flask of water, and-

"My dagger?" I say, holding up the familiar blade. "How?" Visha laughs again.

"I'm a witch dear. I have my ways. Now, you go on. The soldiers could catch up at any time. There's a port due south. You'll be able to book a passage on a charter ship." I nod and turn around, heading back to the woods.

"Wait!" I hear Arcane shout behind me. "Take these as well." She runs over and hands me a dark blue cloak and a change of clothes. "I think we're about the same size." She says and gives me a hug. "Good luck." I smile and turn back around, Arcane's words ringing in my ears. Good luck.