Page 36 of Down from the Tower

“W-we can’t stay here long,” I gasp, glancing up. In the shimmer of the glowing wall I can barely make him out. “Which way?”

“What?”

“Which way!” I gasp, struggling back to my knees. I press my hands to my thighs and glare up at him, ignoring my dirty skirt. “To get out. Which way do we run?”

“No running, Princess,” he breathes, twisting the scythe. When he looks back at me I can’t imagine looking away from his fiery eyes. They are hypnotic, in an almost controlling sort of way. “You’re certain you want to come with me?”

“I can’t go back there,” I hiss, the reality settling over me like a veil. I think that might be true. They might be my parents, but Dorah and Midas are ruthless. I ran off with the shadow boy and killed an ally. If I go back, there will be consequences.

He nods. “Once you go over the wall, Princess, there’s no going back. You can’t unsee what you’re about to learn.”

My hands shake, reminding me of the damage I’ve done tonight. I can’t go back to the dining hall without seeing Modred’s melted face. “Just get me away from this place!”

Zarev holds out a hand, and after another moment I’ve caught my breath enough that I take it and stand. He isn’t as winded as I am. It’s frustrating, but I’m kind of proud with how far I’ve managed to run after getting such little exercise the last decade or two.

Grasping his hand, he pulls me hard against him. I gasp at the sticky feeling on his chest, and I remember it’s from Midas’ gold and his black blood. Swallowing, I press a hand to his arm and try to make myself feel less uncomfortable. “W-what are you doing?”

“Hold tighter, Princess,” he scolds, pulling me in tighter to him. His other arm throws the blade over his shoulder, and I watch as the shadows at his command twist and place the blade against his back. It’s almost too dark to see, but the small movements catch my eyes. Seeing them makes my mind wander, remembering all the places on me he’d like to explore with those shadows of his.

Zarev tugs me closer, and I can almost hear a touch of amusement in his voice. “You’ll want to have a good grip to go over the wall.”

“What-”

My voice cuts off as I scream, a weightless feeling settling over me as the shadows I’ve become familiar with encircle us. My feet leave the ground, the pressure beneath the soles of my feet disappearing as Zarev hugs me closer. When I realize we’re going up I cling to him with both arms, fear slamming into me.

We’re… lifting. Levitating. Flying.

Wide-eyed, I look in the opposite direction of the wall as we rise. There’s Tressa, the golden castle and the proud city I’ve known all my life. Except there’s chaos around the castle the higher we climb, and there are the silhouettes of frantic guards all over as I stare.

The dining hall where we just were looks to be on fire, but that can’t be right. There is a body, likely more than one now, and all of the food still in there.

Why is it burning?

Out at port, the ship Arthur sailed in on yesterday glows the same fiery red as the windows of the dining hall. His green flag catches fire as we go up, my mouth falling open as I take in the chaos of the city.

Things are burning, people are screaming. And I can’t see Midas or Dorah standing to address anyone about anything. They are just missing, and there’s madness taking over below.

Before I can ask Zarev anything, we crest the top of the wall. I know because we suddenly shift backward like we’re falling, and my head snaps around to peer at the dark woods beyond,

The ones that I didn’t even know about until days ago.

Traveling down the other side of the wall is completely different. I can’t see any flames on this side, and though I see one guard standing at the top of the wall I don’t think he can see me. The forest is dark on the other side, and the closer to the ground we get the darker things become.

When we touch down, it feels like the darkness completely swallows us up. Zarev sags, and I manage to keep him from completely falling down by breaking his fall. My knees slam into the dirt, and we sink together into the earth on the other side of Tressa.

“Welcome to the Sherwood Forest, Princess,” Zarev groans, his body slipping from mine to slam into the ground. “A special part of hell in Mystica.”

Part 2:

Into Sherwood Forest

11 Rapunzel

We make it just past the treeline before Zarev passes out. He promises to help me soon, but he’s sweating and needs to rest before we travel. I protest as much as I can, but he succumbs to sleep after only a few minutes.

Tucking my chin to my knees, I sit in a stiff ball and wait for Death to find me. We ran out of Tressa with nothing, and after kicking off the painful shoes that made me bleed, all I can do is stare into the darkness.

I don’t know how to survive out here. I’m directionally challenged and I don’t know what I should be looking for. Zarev is too heavy to drag, so I have to wait for him to wake up.

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