Insurrection [On Hold]

10 You Again?

My boots clank against slick metal. That plus the force of the fall causes me to slip and fall forward on my hands. My heart stops as my fingers sink into something akin to bony fingers and flesh. I suppress a scream and swallow down bile. My father sent me into this. How could he? But why do I even ask that anymore? He doesn't care. And his response would be, I shouldn't care either. I have to prove to him that I am worth my royal last name.

Trying to stand, I search for the wall but stick my finger on the inside of a lip; it feels squishy and at the same time dry. My stomach churns.

In a desperate attempt to pull myself to my feet, I press down with my hands onto what feels like a neck. I push myself up and scramble back to the wall, tripping over a limb. My heart pounds. My hand comes in contact with the cold metal, and I lean against it, imagining it's cooling down my burning heart.

What am I doing here? A kill mission is not me. I let out a breath. I'm here because I've been trained on how to handle these types of situations. I'm Raksana DeMartinnet, Princess of Lumiere, youngest child of King Frey, and will get through this. This is my fate in life, and it is time for me to except it. We're fighting two wars. There is no time for indecision.

But I haven't been prepared on how to land on a body. A dead, lifeless body. A dead, lifeless body I can't see.

I look up. The outlines of the men's faces aren't clear. They blur and contort. I reach up to tug on the rope to let them know I made it, but I can't feel it. I maneuver along the edge of the wall trying to find it, my hand never leaving the metal. Every time my foot finds a random body part I resist the urge to disgorge the contents of my stomach.

My hand connects with air, and I know I've found the tunnel leading into the base.

I end up making two circles, but I can't reach the rope from wherever it hangs.

"Raksana?" One man calls, his voice low. I can't distinguish the voice.

I bite my lip. Somebody could hear us.

"You alive?"

Faintly from down the tunnel I hear the thumping of boots. I look up and see one of the men starting to descend the rope.

"I thought I heard something," a voice says from down the tunnel.

I glance up once more, not sure how to stop the man above me without giving us away completely.

"It's probably nothing," a second voice answers in the darkness. Goosebumps race over my skin at how close they suddenly seem.

Down the tunnel, a flashlight beam sweeps a corner.

Please don't let me die today, God.

The beam swooshes, stopping on me. I can't make out the men I know are behind it. I hold up my hands.

"Princess Raksana? You're back?"

Great; they do recognize me. Nodding, I slide along the wall and close my eyes as Marco drops to the ground, pulling a trigger on both of them before either can retaliate. The flashlight falls to the ground, its light sweeping in an arc, blinding me.

"Really? A gunshot?" I snap, my voice low. "Do you just want everyone to come running toward us?"

Shouts travel down the tunnel.

I run my hand over my face. "Get down and act dead."

"Excuse you?"

I motion to the ground, and he notices the bodies in the shadow of the beam of the fallen flashlight.

He curses. "What is--"

"I have a plan, just do as I say."

He drops, and I turn as another beam sweeps around the corner. I hold up my hands.

"It's the Princess," a few voices shout. The beam blinds me, and I can't see how many men I'm faced with, but I know it's a lot. Each one of them utters a line of words so vile they should never be spoken in the presence of royalty. I've heard my father say every one.

They've seen their fallen comrades; the comrades' souls that weigh heavily on my heart. I never wanted anyone to die. I was the child who read fairy tales in my allotted time, while my siblings studied war.

"What happened?" One man steps in front of the wall of light.

I inhale. Hopefully my men have moved. "I and three of my soldiers were sent on a mission to kill your leader."

Now I'm the subject of their curses.

"Two of your men tried to stop us. They killed two of mine"-- I gesture to the bodies-- "and the third fell from the rope."

The man who asked me what happened tilts his head to the side. "And how have my men died?"

"The one on the rope shot them causing him to lose his balance."

"And how are you alive?"

"My men died protecting me, honoring their country to their final breath."

He's silent for a few moments, and when he speaks at last, it's with a solemn voice, "It looks like they can no longer protect you. Two of you, take the princess to Nate. We shall see if she's tried his patience yet."

What will Nate do when he finds out why Raksana's here?