Other Fan Fiction ❯ Reprise ❯ Getaway ( Chapter 28 )

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CHAPTER 28: Getaway

Ariel sat alone in the covered carriage, scrutinizing every inch of the thick, grimy canvas map through scrunched brows. The legend, the author's marks, the scale--there was no reason that the forest area would hide from everyone. The coachman, the guards, the peasantry passing by--no one she talked to could point out the forest.

It didn't even matter how she asked--"Can you point out the forest?", "What's the fastest way to get to the East plains?", "Point out all the paths you see."they always left out that splotch.

She had asked a well-traveled caravan "Okay, you've gone down this road before, right? You've passed this section of road, right? So what is here? What do you see?" The tinkers looked to each other, scratched their heads, and said they didn't remember. Then they showed her their most recent map. The path was not there. As if the forest had swallowed it.

What was with this map that she could see something that no one else could? Was there anything special about it? The area was a few miles south of the promontory where they had stashed Barefoot Maiden. Did that have something to do with it?

The door opened. Eric climbed in. "I hope that went better than it seemed."

Ariel scootched over to make room for him. The coachman closed the door.

The navy commanders had been amenable to everything Eric had said. But their tone was gruff and distasteful. Eric thought they might have resented him because of the war. Ariel thought it was the ban on fishing. As they finished up, Ariel had excused herself so she could study the map more.

"How old is this map, do you think?"

"Pretty old. Before I was born. It's the best one we've got though, for the total area it shows."

She leaned over. "And you're sure you don't see anything here?" She circled the spot. "Right there. Right where I'm pointing."

"I can see where you're pointing," Eric said.

"But you don't see anything."

"Nope," Eric said.

"Then what do you see?"

"There's, um... um, it's just... I don't know." His gaze wandered out the window while the carriage started off.

Ariel huffed. That was as close as she could ever get to an answer--the person either drifted off or changed the subject. She rolled up the map. "What did the commanders think of your plan?"

"They didn't like it, but they'll do it. It's mostly patrolling, so it's fairly safe. And they needed more money, of course."

"Do we have enough?" Ariel asked.

"For now. Like Jensen said, the war is boosting our economy. But it can't go on forever. They didn't like the idea of converting fishing boats into war ships, but they agreed to it. They aren't much bigger than gunboats or schooners, but the more, the better. It's not like they're using them."

Ariel looked away. "I'm sorry I put you in this position."

"It's not your fault," Eric said. "War is war."

"No, I mean, the fishing thing. I might have been... a little bit selfish about that." She took a breath. "I wasn't thinking about how it would affect everything."

"That's not your fault either. You didn't make me do it."

"But I didn't tell you not to. That's the same thing. I shouldn't be forcing my views on the people. I may not like what they're doing, but I can't force them to change it."

"If it was the other way around, I would have thought the same thing," Eric said.

"That doesn't mean it was right. I feel so ripped up inside. I saw what the sea kingdom is like now. They still think of me as their ruler. I felt like I should be back there. When I think of where my home is, I'm not sure anymore."

"Do you want to go back to being a mermaid?" Eric asked.

"No," Ariel almost shouted. "I love being human. I just... I feel like I'm letting my people down. Both my people. And since I got back I've been trying to do better, but I feel like an idiot. I've been hovering over your shoulder, interfering with your schedule, prying into your secret meetings."

"And I love it," Eric said.

"You do?"

Eric nodded. "I thought you've been handling yourself well. At first, I was afraid you'd be asking a bunch of dumb questions, but-"

"You think I ask dumb questions?" Ariel said in a weak voice.

"N-no. Well, it's understandable. But no one else knows your situation, so it comes off as..."

Ariel looked away, out the window.

"Don't get me wrong, I like it. It's part of why I fell in love with you," Eric said.

"Because it's funny to you?" Ariel asked. "To see me screw up?"

"No. Because you're curious. And confident and determined. You never let anything stop you. Remember that time you didn't know the word for grass, so you called it 'dirt fur'?" Eric smiled.

Ariel groaned at the memory. She had been talking to three diplomats from other countries at a gala.

"But you weren't embarrassed at the time. It's that sort of thing that makes you think differently. And that makes all of us think differently," Eric said.

Ariel returned his smile. Looking into his bright smoke-colored eyes, she felt an urge to kiss him.

She leaned toward him. He leaned toward her.

The carriage jolted to a sudden stop. Ariel tumbled onto the floor. Eric steadied himself, then picked her up. "What happened?" he said.

"Sorry, your highness," the coachman said from his seat above them. "Some idiots ran in front of us. Don't worry, everyone's fine." He shouted outwards. "Have you lost your minds? Running in front of the royal carriage like that?"

"You okay?" Eric asked, brushing off her dress.

The coachman's feet thudded as he leapt from his perch. The same faint voice yelled "Hey! You can't go in there!"

Suddenly, someone banged on the outside of the coach. "Ariel! Ariel!"

Eric jolted back, startled out of his wits.

Two young women wearing peasants' clothes popped into the window. One had shockingly long blond hair, the other wore a traditional headscarf. They began shouting at once.

"Ariel! Ariel! -the bottle--got lost--hundreds of years--broke--sorry--different emblem--couldn't find--smelled like beer, but--took the whole day-"

"Whoa, whoa, slow down." Ariel opened the carriage door and stepped out. Eric half-heartedly reached for her, afraid for her safety with these two maniacs.

One of the guards wrenched the hooded woman away.

"Unhand me at once," she commanded. Her voice was so fierce, the guard complied.

"Why do you washerwomen think it's appropriate to run in front of a carriage to get our attention?" Eric asked in a gruff, authoritative voice.

"Because they're not washerwomen." Ariel held one of the woman's hands. "This is Elsa, queen of Arendelle."

Elsa pulled back her head scarf, revealing white hair hanging in her people's traditional braid. The gathered crowd gasped loudly. Prince Eric's jaw dropped.

"What...? The queen... is here?" Eric stuttered.

"And the princess of Corona--Rapunzel." Ariel pushed Rapunzel forward until the three of them stood in a line.

"Her cousin?" Eric whispered. "Both of them here?"

"Yes," Ariel said.

Eric's mouth moved up and down, trying to find words. Until he finally did.

"Guards! Seize them!"

Ariel was shoved out of the way. In a split-second, the guards had Elsa's and Rapunzel's arms wrenched behind their backs. "What? I... I didn't-" Ariel said.

The lead guard handed off a whorl of twine. "Wrap that one's hands tight. She's supposed to have some kind of powers."

The one arresting Elsa coiled the rope from wrist to fingers. She winced as he tied off the knot.

"No, Eric, stop this," Ariel pleaded.

"They're enemies of the state," Eric said. "There's nothing I can do. We're literally at war with both their countries."

"But they didn't even know there was a war. They didn't start it. They never would--they're my friends. I thought that-"

"They're your friends?" the lead guard interrupted.

Ariel nodded. "I brought them here."

The lead guard paused.

"Princess Ariel, you're under arrest for treason." He seized Ariel's wrists and yanked her around. "For conspiring with the enemy and other charges to be determined."

"Hey," Eric said. Before the guard could start tying ropes, Eric pulled her away, closer to him. "Now hold on. This is your princess you're arresting."

"She admitted it herself," the guard said. "Maybe this is all a misunderstanding, but she's got to be detained at least. Please don't interfere."

"Eric, please." Ariel looked at him with pleading eyes.

"Your highness, you have a duty to your country. It could mean an end to the war." The guard's hand crept toward the hilt on his belt. His men inched closer to him.

Eric looked into Ariel's tearing eyes. He stiffened his bottom lip. "I'm sorry," he said.

Quicker than anyone could see, Eric knocked down the lead guard. The men packed behind him fell like dominos into a tangle of arms and legs. Eric grabbed Elsa and Rapunzel by their shoulders and threw them into the carriage.

"Get on!" Eric commanded.

Ariel snapped back to life and started up to the coachman's seat. Eric gave her a boost the rest of the way and followed. He grabbed the reins and shouted to the guards, "I may be a prince, but my first duty is to my wife. Hiya!"

The horses reared and whinnied. Townspeople scrambled over each other to clear the way.

"Hold on!" Eric shouted. The carriage leaned to the left as they took a sharp turn around a set of houses. Ariel clutched onto Eric, praying the cart wouldn't overturn.

Once they were straight, Ariel leaned toward the coach's front window. "Are you guys all right?"

"We're cutting our ropes," Rapunzel shouted, barely audible above the horses' hooves.

"Use the trident," she shouted back. "It's under the seat. Work back-to-back."

Two carriages appeared around the corner, both led by guardsmen.

"They're coming after us!" Eric shouted. "I don't think we can outrun them. The royal carriage wasn't meant for speed."

"And my trident's inside the coach," Ariel said. Maybe if Elsa and Rapunzel were free, they could hand it up to her. But they had bigger problems.

"Watch out!" Eric shouted. A man with a cart full of produce was crossing the street. He jumped and shuffled in place in a panic. Eric pulled the reins sharp to the left. The horses swerved as the man jumped out of their way. But cart spun into the air and overturned it.

Ariel looked back. "Sorry!"

The man shouted back "my cabbages!", but Ariel was too far to hear. The two pursuing coaches ran through the debris unslowed.

A bowstring twanged. An arrow lit with fire arced and stabbed the back of the canopy.

"They're firing on their prince? I'll wring their necks." Eric said. If their carriage started on fire, they'd be forced to abandon it--which must have been their idea. "Here, take over."

"Ooh," Ariel said, taking them.

Eric suddenly remembered the first time he handed Ariel the reins. "No, wait-"

Ariel whipped the harness. The horses jolted forward with a burst of speed.

Eric rolled back onto the canopy's roof, tumbling once before clutching the frame. At least they were going faster.

He released his death grip and crawled along the canopy's roof, keeping a low center of gravity. The canvas bounced like a trampoline. Even the roughest seas weren't as bumpy. Next year, he would have to spend some taxes on road repairs. If he was still prince by then. And survived this.

Arms and legs spread across the roof for stability, he stretched his fingers for the burning arrow. He plucked it out and tossed it off the side.

The coach launched upward as it ran over an enormous bump.

Eric hovered two feet in the air, then landed on back on the carriage. The inertia rolled him onto his side and he tumbled off the back.

"Eric!" Ariel shouted.

With one hand Eric grabbed the top of the wagon frame. "I'm okay," he shouted. Although he'd avoided a trampling, hanging off the back of the coach made him an easy target.

The closest coach drew nearer. Eric could barely see them, but could hear their booming horse hooves.

Two guards sat to the left and right of the driver. One was the archer, readying another arrow. The other spun a lasso in the air.

Below, Rapunzel and Elsa poked their heads out of each window. "Surprise!"

Each of them held an arm's worth of snowballs. They chucked them one after the other at the pursuing coach, sending billets of cold snow like shrapnel.

The man with the lasso took one square in the face. Rapunzel's quick hands pelted the driver. He held his arm in front of his eyes, accidentally yanking the reins. The carriage weaved in the road, thanks to the confused horses, and fell back.

The second coach appeared, swerving around its fallen comrade and gaining ground.

Eric hoisted himself back onto the tarp. He steadied himself, bouncing with the bumps. "Head to the East. Get us out of the city. And try and keep it steady."

"I'm trying!" she said. "These streets are so snaky."

Eric was going to have to have a talk with the city planner about that.

The guards' carriage pulled up even to theirs them. With a quick flash of the driver's wrists, it rammed into theirs. Eric held on for dear life. Below, Elsa and Rapunzel shrieked.

Eric brought himself up to a kneel, then got to his feet. His legs pressed against the roof frame.

The canvas below him ripped. The trident came shooting out, thrust between his legs. Eric winced, though he was unhurt.

The trident pulled back. Elsa and Rapunzel looked up. "Sorry. We thought you were a guard who jumped on."

Eric swallowed the breath in his throat. "S'okay," he whimpered.

The pursuing coach pulled back and rammed them again. After impact, the carriage started creaking. One more blow and the whole thing would shatter. It was a royal conveyance, not a war machine

"I got a plan," Ariel said. She wrapped the reins around her wrists and edged the horses to close the gap. They steadily squeezed the guards' carriage closer to the side. But when the pursuing coach would budge no more, neither did Ariel's horses. The guards readied to jump on.

"Go faster! Go faster!" Eric shouted.

He caught an archway ahead. An archway that narrowed the width of the road by half.

"Go slower! Go slower!"

Suddenly, Ariel yanked her reins to the side. Eric hunkered down. The driver of the other coach shouted and yanked back. The horses' back legs slid in front of their forelegs. The sudden stop sent them skidding into a pile-up. Three guardsmen lay heaped on top of horses, the carriage, and ground. Their split axle spun out and wedged itself into their wheel.

There was a terrific crack. The carriage rattled and bounced. Eric fluttered airborne. For a split-second, the carriage drifted out from under him. But he landed back on the bouncing canvas. With one wheel out, the last pursuing coach gained easy ground on them.

Ariel turned back. "What are we going to do? We can't go any faster."

"I got this," Elsa said. She leaned out the window, raised her hands, and swept them left to right.

A wide bar of slushy snow stretched from one walk to the other, making a barricade. The horses barreled through it. But their carriage sailed into the air, as far as the yokes would let it. It soared for what seemed like eternity, then crashed with tremendous force. All four wheels were crushed into splinters.

The two guards on the coachman's perch fell to the side, rolling into the streets. The horses slowed to a stop, thanks to the box dragging behind them.

Eric pumped his fist in the air. As the carriage faded into the streets, so did the rest of the city. The town entrance passed over their heads and soon shrank into the distance. Eric climbed back to his seat.

Ariel offered him the reins. He held up his hand. No need to take them, she was doing fine.

She led them down the road and into the forest. Meanwhile, she told Eric everything that had happened since the first spell was cast. Her story spanned until the trees' shadows enshrouded them and they felt hidden from the prairie.

By that time, the color had finally returned to Eric's face. He told them this would be a good place to stop. The road was too rough for horses at this point. Ariel pulled back on the reins and the incessant clip-clopping stopped. Both of them took a deep breath. As Eric helped Ariel down, Elsa and Rapunzel stepped out of the coach.

"Is it safe?" Rapunzel asked.

Eric nodded. "I'm sorry. If I'd had a clearer idea of what was going on, I never would have joined this war. As soon as I get back, I'll start withdrawing troops."

"Aren't you going to be in trouble?" Rapunzel asked.

"They could hang you for treason," Elsa said.

"I'll deal with that when I get there," Eric said.

Ariel unlatched one of the bridles from the cradle-yoke. "Take a horse," she said, leading it by the bit. "You can say that you knocked me out and escaped."

"But I'm going with you," Eric said.

Ariel shook her head. "You have to take care of the kingdom. You have end this war. Maybe they'll think that I kidnapped you. I had the reins for most of the chase."

"I'll think of something," Eric said. He turned to his wife. "Are you going to be okay?"

"I'm sorry," she said. "This is such a big mess. I promise to fix it when I come back. If... you want me back." Then she said what she had been dreading the entire trip. "If you don't, I'll understand. This would be the perfect chance. You could say since I was with the enemy-"

"Ariel, I would never lie like that."

"Well, maybe you should," she pouted. "All I've done since I became human is make things worse for your people. I just can't fit in. They hate me. And they're right--I've done nothing for them. And you should hate me too. I ruined your kingdom."

Eric took a deep sigh. Ariel couldn't tell if he was about to agree or not.

"Ariel, I have to tell you something. When we were first married, I thought maybe I'd made a mistake."

Ariel looked up at him with big eyes.

"You were sixteen. The only thing I knew about you was your voice. You didn't know what anything was. Everything distracted you. You didn't know how a door worked, or how to use the privy. It was frustrating. Some people accused you of hysteria. I wasn't sure we were going to make it."

Ariel's lower lip trembled. Her eyes watered.

"But through it all, you never stopped trying. You never stopped asking questions or worried about failing. And you were happy doing it. You never gave up on yourself, so I resolved never to give up on you."

He threaded his hand through the thick hair behind her head and pulled her in close. Their lips crushed together, warm and soft. Her mind exploded with the memory of their first kiss. The first time they could be together, free of lies and obstacles. She wasn't in the sea or the land. She was in the air.

Rapunzel giggled. Elsa looked away and felt a blush.

Eric hoisted himself up onto one of the horse's backs. Ariel handed him the reins to the other. "I'll take the horses somewhere for rest and water before heading back. That'll give the royal guards time to cool off. The farmers here on the outskirts wouldn't have heard about the scuffle, so they'll take me in. They won't..." he trailed off.

"They won't label you as a traitor." She sighed. "I just hope they'll think the same thing about me when I come back."

"Be careful," Eric said.

Ariel smiled. "You know I won't."

"That's fine. I won't either."

With a final touch of the hand, Eric loosed his reins and rode off. Ariel didn't move until she could no longer see the rustle of leaves he left behind.

"So what do we do now?" Rapunzel asked. "We found out nothing about the bottle. We have no leads. What are we going to do?"

Ariel reached into the abandoned cab. The map was still there. "I want to go see this forest path. It might be nothing, but no one seems to know about it. Not even when it's on a map."

"What path?" Elsa asked.

"The one right- oh, not you too!" She stabbed the center of the scroll. "Right HERE! HERE! It's just south of where our ship is. I can't believe you don't see it."

"I... believe you see it," Rapunzel said.

Ariel rolled her whole head.

"I believe you too," Elsa said. "This seems too strange. Ariel's the only one who can see something the rest of us can't? Sounds like magic."

"Maybe the same Arcius is using?" Rapunzel asked.

Ariel rolled up the map. "Then let's get going."

They traveled through the forest for the rest of the day. Ariel had to be the navigator, because she was the only one who could see where they were going. Once they left the beaten road, undergrowth crackled beneath their boots. Dark tree limbs bathed them in shadow. Earthy fungus and tree sap tickled their noses.

Ariel kept her finger on the map as they walked into the unknown. If some spell stopped people from seeing it, maybe there was one that would make them forget they'd been here. And then they might be searching for eternity.

After a few hundred more yards of trees, they found a small grove.

"A cemetery," Ariel said. It was tiny--maybe ten or fifteen headstones--sunken into the overgrown grasses.

"These are old," Elsa said. "Maybe centuries."

Rapunzel bent down in front of one, the soft grass cushioning her knees. "I can just make out the writing. Some of them have the same last names."

"Maybe they were a family who lived here," Ariel said. But if that was the case--a family living in the forest--where did they live? There was no farmhouse, no roads.

"Oh no," Elsa said.

"What?" Rapunzel and Ariel ran to her side.

She pointed at the gravestone in front of her. In small, faded letters read the words LOWTHER VONDE BRACKRIDGE.