Aspen scaled the large oak tree, expertly climbing with one hand while the other held a small paintball gun. Once she decided that she was high enough, she positioned herself so she could see the forest floor, wrapping her long legs around the branch to keep herself upright. She leaned back against the trunk and waited.
Aspen was in the forest behind her house with her three brothers. Having brothers had left her forced to participate in various activities that they wanted to or risk being left at home with nothing to do. Aspen ended up learning an array of different skills.
The siblings were hunting each other, but wore no protective gear to shield them from the paintballs. Aspen was wearing a purple t-shirt, jeans, and combat boots.
Aspen spied down on her younger brother, Jacob, who was creeping across the forest floor. She waited until he was right under the branch she sat on, and she shot a paintball at the ground to the right of his foot. He jumped, startled by the sound, and looked up at his sister.
"Hey!" He yelled.
Aspen responded, "You always forget to look up Jacob. That is why I will forever beat you." She grinned and Jacob frowned. His frown morphed into a wicked smile as he remembered that by the rules of their game, Aspen had captured him and was now on her team.
"Let's find Xavier." He suggested.
Aspen laughed lightly, "I'll meet you there."
Jacob ran off to find their brother as Aspen swung her right leg over the tree branch, preparing to jump down. She leaned forward and hopped out of the tree, bending her knees for the landing. In the half second that she was in the air, the ground disappeared into a swirling black mass.
The ground started to cave in right below her, the dirt falling away like she was diving into a sinkhole. Aspen tumbled into the black void. Her voice seemed to leave her, she couldn't yell for help or even scream in terror.
Everything around her turned black and she fell at an angle, as if she were on a slide. She knew that she was moving fast, air rushed by and her blonde ponytail whipped from side to side as she twisted in the open space.
Then the forest reappeared suddenly and she slammed into something. The impact knocked her sideways and she hit the ground with her left shoulder. Years of martial arts classes had trained her to tuck in her head and roll; she used those instincts now to gain momentum and roll herself into a crouching position. The something she had hit landed with a thud beside her. No, she thought, someone. They were groaning. Aspen hoped she hadn't hurt the person, but she was too dazed to check.
Aspen lifted her paintball gun, which she had clutched to her stomach. In her peripheral vision above her glasses, which rested, miraculously, at the end of her nose, she saw someone on a horse. With her paintball gun raised as her only form of protection, she used her left hand to readjust her glasses and wipe the dirt from the front of the lenses. Now that she could see semi-clearly, her eyes widened in shock at the person on the horse. Or the six people on horses, all of whom wore chainmail, capes, and held swords pointed at her.
The man directly in front of her dismounted his horse, rather gracefully, while keeping his sword raised. He commanded her to surrender.
"You are under arrest, by the knights of Camelot. Remove your mask and drop what you're holding. I suggest you surrender now and we may have mercy on you."
The man was handsome and had long, almost shaggy blonde hair. He was obviously muscular, apparent even under the chainmail and he was quite tall.
Aspen shook her head. She realized that he thought her glasses were a mask. It faintly registered with her that she might have traveled back in time.
"First, it's not a mask; second, who are you?" she asked, still confused; she felt as if she recognized the man, but couldn't place a name to his face.
The blonde man stared at her for a moment, forgetting about her glasses. "I am the king! King Arthur of Camelot." He stated this fact as if Aspen should automatically know it.
It dawned on her where and when she was. "Oh!" Arthur smirked at her realization. Aspen smiled and then grinned. "Where's Merlin?"
Arthur's smirk faded. "You don't know who I am, but you know Merlin?" He seemed genuinely puzzled and Aspen felt pride that she had confused him. He shook his head. "Never mind, surrender now, you are outnumbered, weaponless, and surrounded." The king ordered once again.
Aspen was still crouched on the ground; her knees were starting to hurt and she had to place her left hand out in front of her to keep herself balanced. She glanced up, eyes flicking back and forth for a moment. She hoped what she was about to do would look cool and not end with her getting killed.
In one fluid motion, Aspen stood up and spun around, shooting three separate trees with her paintball gun, leaving neon green blobs dripping from the bark, before finishing the turn and facing Arthur, holding the gun steady with both hands.
"I suggest you surrender or I will use this weapon to kill you all." She hoped they wouldn't call her bluff and realize that it was mostly harmless.
All the knights' eyes went wide. Arthur glared daggers at Aspen. He hesitated before slowly lowering his sword. The other knight followed his lead and lowered their swords as well. Aspen slowly circled the group, herding them together. "Stand by the unconscious one." She ordered while flicking the end of the gun as a gesture, like they did in movies.
"You won't get away with this." Gwaine said, his voice flat.
