Similar ideas of King Arthur, save the fact that Lancelot, Tristan and Dagonet did not die. This is not a self-insertion fiction, nor one with an almighty powerful main character. Just…give it a shot. If you don't like it, don't read it. I like it, so I'm going to keep going.

All words spoken in Gaelic will be between "/", ancient Latin will be between "\."

Synopsis:

While climbing along a cliff, Cassie Taylor loses grip and falls into the abyss below her. When she lands, she is remarkably unharmed and decides to find her way home. It's then though that she realizes that she isn't in the same world she thought she was. Somehow falling through time she landed in England, falling alongside Hadrian's wall, which seems to be recently evacuated by the Romans. Stuck in another time, with no knowledge of ancient languages? She's not your typical damsel in distress, in fact, she's quite the opposite. And when a particular knight sees this, he doesn't know whether to be intrigued or put her in her place.

A Damsel in Hiking Boots

Chapter One

"You sure you're going to be okay by yourself?" Danielle asked from behind the counter. Cassie turned to face her friend and smiled, "Hey, I've done it tons of times before. You know I'm always extra careful, especially when I do it by myself." Danielle smiled at Cassie, and Cassie waved back before exiting the store. She pushed her short bob of dark brown hair behind her ears. She seated herself in her SUV and headed up the usual mountain.

Cassie always went every weekend to the same mountain to hike and climb on the same rock cliff. It was the thrill of her boring life as a high school Geography teacher. It wasn't that she didn't like teaching, in fact teaching everyone about the wonders of what the earth held was always fun for her. It was just the daily schedule, and choked in a curriculum that was less than satisfactory. How she hated having to hold back so much information because one or two parents complained it was too much information. Their kids shouldn't be in a Geography class that has a waiting list, expecting to get no homework.

"Honestly," Cassie mumbled to herself at the thought. There was a waiting list for her class, because so many students were dying to take it. Many teachers warned the students of the homework load before they signed up for the class, but still, she had to cut back. She didn't even assign so much homework as she did outside projects. Cassie decided to push the thoughts of her life at the school in the back of her head. It was going to be her and the mountain, nobody else to tell her what to do. She smiled at the thought of having such freedom and pulled out of her parking space.

"Away away," she whispered as she came to the open road that would lead her to her destination. This was her therapy. Her rehabilitation before going back to the real world. It was her and Mother Nature now. She glanced up at the sky, wincing at the overcast. It threatened rain, and rain meant no fun for Cassie. Climbing a rock face such as the one she always did in the rain was not only dangerous, but extremely hazardous. She might be able to do it, but Cassie never trusted her equipment too much during the rain. The rock became slippery, her nails wouldn't stick as well, and when you're climbing well over a couple of hundred feet above the ground, you are already risking too much.

She could see the rock face from where she was driving now. Tall granite rock, towering majestically over the forest below. She clicked on the radio, and changed it to a random AM station to possibly catch the weather report.

"Small chance of thunderstorms," the voice came, "But more of a chance that the overcast will either remain or clear up toward the afternoon, leaving us with sunshine and warm weather." Cassie smiled, deciding to give the meteorologist the benefit of the doubt for today. As she came to her familiar parking spot, she stepped out of her car after parking it and moved to the back, unpacking her equipment. She moved from the car and walked down the same beaten path she always did and was soon at the base of the cliff. Looking up at it now, she remembered when it used to intimidate her. Now it was like greeting an old friend, and she lifted a hand, smoothing it across the rough surface.

"Ready for another go, pal?" she asked the wall alone, knowing clearly that there was no one within three miles that could hear her. Dusting off her worn gloves, she started her preparations to climb the beast again.

She was about halfway up when she felt the first drop of rain. She looked up, seeing that the overcast was now a dark shade of gray, slowly transforming into thunderstorm clouds. She groaned, wishing she had taken that small chance the meteorologist had mentioned into real consideration. She would have to propel down, and perhaps try again the next weekend. Her hands wrapped around her rope tightly, and she placed her feet firmly against the rock surface in front of her. She bent her legs, and then pushed back, catapulting her self away, and while releasing the rope a bit, she started her descent down. But before she could swing against the wall again, the pressure from her hook vanished.

Cassie's eyes shot up to see that the nail she had so firmly placed in had now come loose, and her body was plunging down toward the earth below her. You sure you're going to be okay by yourself? Danielle's words rung loudly in the walls of her head, echoing and bouncy back, letting her remember her pompous reply. Hey, I've done it tons of times before. You know I'm always extra careful, especially when I do it by myself.

"I'm going to die," she choked out as the free fall continued. Her stomach felt as if it now leapt into her throat, giving no chance for her to scream. They would find her body on Monday probably. Her body contorted from the broken bones, perhaps lying on a pool of blood. Her eyes would definitely be open, probably from the shock of instant death when her body impacted with the ground. It was all so vivid in her mind now. She had reached the tree tops now, she felt a scratch on her back, tearing through the fabric of her shirt near the bottom. She didn't know if she was bleeding. It wouldn't matter though, she was going to die in a few seconds anyway.

Lighting flashed, and the rain was falling, catching up to her, as she continued to fall past the tiny branches that stood near the top. The cold of the rain made her suddenly aware of how alive she still felt. Would that be the last thing she really felt before hitting the ground? Cold? It wasn't a very pleasant thought, but it was all that could occupy her mind. The thoughts kept coming and going so fast, it felt like an eternity was passing when in reality it was only a second.

Her body slammed against a branch, the force of her body against it, breaking the branch, and Cassie wasn't sure if the large cracking sound was the branch or her spine. She hit another branch, then another, and it was slowing her fall down. Maybe she wouldn't die. When she hit the ground with a soft thud, she breathed in deeply. It felt like life was flashing before her eyes, regardless of the fact that a few tree branches had broken her fall. They must have been quite large tree branches in order to save her like that. She was tired though. Tired from climbing. Tired from falling. Tired from fear. Her eyes dropped shut, as if two anvils were lying on the lids. It didn't occur to her that the area looked different. Or that the path she had taken down was no where to be seen.

When she opened her eyes again, it was already late into the evening, or night, it was hard to tell in a forest. The darkness only made the forest look more threatening than it probably was. She scooted back, pressing it against a tree, and sat in silence. She could hear some rustling in the trees above her, her eyes flashed up and she heard the flapping of wings. Just birds. She reached into the pocket of her backpack and pulled out her flashlight, turning it on. She studied the forest around her, and pointed the light in all directions. How far away from the wall did she fall? The forests weren't that thick, were they?

Cassie stood up, dusting off her clothing and wincing at her new pains. She was suddenly aware of the scratches all over her legs, a possible broken rib and severe bruising all on her arms. She touched her lip, feeling a scab that was newly formed there. She needed to get back to her car as soon as possible. She wasn't sure if she was going to be completely okay driving, but with her cell phone, she could easily reserve a room at a motel and probably give caution to the doctor of the town. Cassie reached into another pocket, retrieving her cell phone from it, and she looked down at it. No reception.

"Oh my gosh, of all the rotten luck," she muttered in irritation. She never had no reception out that far. There was always a tower near by, even out there. She grumbled to herself as she started to make her way through the darkened forest, her only light come from her flashlight and a compass guiding her forward. She felt like she wasn't getting anywhere. She was walking in the exact direction of the wall, why hadn't she reached it yet? She continued walking through the night, until she couldn't walk any further and she lied down on a batch of moss, falling asleep again.

She woke up again, this time to light filtering through the trees and down onto her face. Her body now ached from her previous fall, but from all the walking she did the night before. She struggled to bring herself back to her feet again, and looked around, scratching her head. The forest looked very different in daylight, and she realized she wasn't staring at the same oaks that made up the forest she was so accustomed to.

"…where the heck did I fall?" she asked nobody.