Meg, Queen of the Nile
Chapter 9
"Don't move a muscle!" The tall, sandy-haired guard who was holding the unconcious Antony drew his sword at Hercules and meg. "Just what do you think you're doing?" He stepped closer, and Herc saw his chance- He pushed Meg behind him as he stepped up and grabbed the guard's wrist as he raised his sword. The guard screamed as his wrist was twisted the wrong way, and he promptly dropped his sword- and Mark Antony. Meg went to Antony and tried to wake him while herc knocked out the fifth palace guard that night.
"Get him up!" Herc called to Meg as three more guards, hearing the mayham, had appeared at the door and were calling their friends. This was turning into an all out brawl.
"He's out cold!" Meg yelled back, but Herc was in the midst of the fight. She gave a low growl and smacked Antony on the cheek. "Come on, Antony. -Ugh! Why is it everytime we meet I'm smacking you around?" She shook him a bit and he finally opened his eyes groggily. "...Cleo," he grinned when he saw her. "I was having a dream about you."
"Yeah, save it for Oprah. We're in deep shit!"
"Huh?"
She turned his head towards the fight.
"Quick re-cap! I'm Meg, that's Hercules, you're Mark Antony, and now we run!"
Antony nodded and stumbled to his feet. Hercules threw two of the guards against the wall with a crash and ran back to Antony and Meg. "We've got to get out of here- in a minute there'll be too many of them!"
And he was right. The guards were swarming into the prison now, and began to surround the three of them, pushing them back towards the stairs that lead to the palace.
"Looks like we go up-" Antony shouted over the noise as Herc threw guard after guard out of the way. The three of them turned and ran through the door, slamming it shut behind them. Herc put his back to the door, holding off the guards. "Do you know a way outta here?"
"Cleo knows better than I! I have to get her out of here with me now-"
"Take Meg and hurry- I can't hold them back much-" He was cut off as an axe came crashing through the door, just missing his head.
"Herc!" Meg screamed and pulled him away from the door.
"Go! Go!" He pushed them off and Antony grabbed Meg's hand and took off in the direction of Cleopatra's room.
"Grrrrrahhh!" A crystal vase smashed into the wall of Cleo's bedroom. "I cannot sit by and watch while the fate of two countries crumbles before me!" She paced back and forth for the fifteenth time before slumping down on the bed. "Not to mention 3 innocent lives," She mumbled to herself. It had been a whole day since Megara had switched places with her in the prison cell, and all she had done since that time was lock herself in her room and check out the window for any sign of what might be happening. Gods forbid something went wrong and Hercules didn't get there in time. ...She wished she could do something to help, but any movement on her part would provoke suspicion.
Cleo was jarred out of her thoughts by a swift knock on the door. "Not again," She sighed as she got up and went to the door to unlock it. Her father had already visited her twice today to 'check in' and ask about the party last night. There was another rushed knock. "I'm coming!" As soon as the lock was lifted the door burst open and to her surprise it was Megara and Antony who came tumbling in.
"Antony!"
"Cleo!"
"Megara!" Meg gasped her own name dramatically to mock them. Then she locked the door again and pulled them both to the tapestry door. "We're running out of time! Cleo, does this go outside?"
"Yes and no..."
"What's that supposed to mean!?"
"I..well!" Cleo stammered, still in shock to see them. There was a pounding against the main door as some guards struggled to break through.
"Hurry!" Antony urged, "Someone must have saw us on the way here!"
"It leads to the courtyard! We have to get out from there the normal way, but it shouldn't be trouble..."
"Good, lets go!" Megara pulled the curtain back and ushured them through, giving one last worried look behind her as she thought of Hercules before running through herself. Once inside they let the tapestry fall and pushed the heavy wall back into place just as the guards burst through the door on the other side. They were shrouded in darkness, in a dank tunnel. "...good gods." Meg shivered.
Cleo grabbed a torch from the wall and lit it. "I keep it here for emergencies," She explained. "You're hurt!" She gasped as the light fell across a bruise on Antony's face.
He smiled. "It's nothing. I'm fine."
"And you..." she turned to Meg, having noticed a slight limp in her step. "I shouldn't have left you there..."
"No-" Meg protested, "It was my own fault. ...I don't know when to shut up. But we can't talk about that now. Hercules is supposed to meet us outside...hopefully. We've got the whole palace up in arms, so all bets are off!"
"How will he find a way out!" Cleo yelled back as she lead the way through the tunnel.
Meg and Antony didn't answer, because neither of them were very certain on that point. "...He'll find a way." Meg said, but she didn't sound too sure of herself.
"I want guards on every level! Don't let them escape! Find Cleopatra immediately and bring her to me!" The pharoah was barking orders at anyone who would listen. The commotion in the dungeon hadn't taken long to spark panic, and the word of the prisoner's escape, helped along by Antony and Hercules no less, had reached the king before Meg and Antony had even reached Cleo's room. "You're highness!" The royal advisor interjected, "I think it best that we retreat to the thrown room for security purposes. If Mark Antony should find you here..."
"Yes..." The pharoah nodded distractedly "Yes, I think we should..." He let his advisor lead the way, and out the window of the thrown room he watched the commotion outside below.
Megara, Antony, and Cleopatra had just reached the end of the winding tunnel, that seemed to go all through the palace, only to find that their exit was being guarded by about a hundred guards who had taken up residence in the courtyard. "We'd have to be invisible to make it out this way," Antony sighed.
"What about one of those doors we passed back there, Cleo?" Meg suggested, "Where do they lead?"
Cleo shrugged. "All different places really. We can get to about any level of the palace, but...-oh!" She gasped as the body of a guard was dropped from somewhere above them and landed right infront of their door. Meg reached a hand over to cover Cleo's mouth as the other guards came running to aid the one that fell. "I'm betting that was Hercules...he's a few floors up," She whispered.
"Alright...we'll go back for him." Antony nodded, turning back towards the tunnel and drawing his sword. Cleo bit her lip. "Cleo...you'll come back to Rome with me when this is all over?"
She nodded. "Of course...I can only imagin what trouble this would cause if your people found out..." Antony gave her a sad smile and pulled her into a passionate kiss before letting her go and leading the two girls back up the tunnel. Meg knit her brows as she ran after them. She couldn't help but think of Herc and wish that he was with them. She shook her head Get a hold of yourself, he'll be fine She thought.
"Stop-" Cleo pulled Antony back and stopped them at a door in the middle of the tunnel. The clashing of swords could be heard on the other side. "It's here..."
Antony nodded and pushed the girls to the other side of the door, his sword at the ready as he reached cautiously to open it. "Be careful!" Cleo whispered right before Antony opened the door and slashed through a tapestry on the other side to reveal the scene. Hercules was there, a sword in each hand, fighting off 5 armed guards. Three of them turned on Antony as soon as he appeared. The surprise attack allowed Hercules to get the better of one of the guards he was fighting. Antony joined beside him, swords clashing and Herc flashed a grin at him. "Nice to see you."
"Nice to be seen."
"This is rediculous," Meg whispered to Cleo as they watched the fight, "There's got to be another way out of here..."
"Wait...I have an idea...I just hope we can get through- the door I'm thinking of hasn't been used in years. It may be locked."
Meg gave her a sarcastic glare, "Cleo...we have Hercules. We'll get through."
"Oh...right." She blushed.
"Can I borrow that torch?"
"...um..sure."
Meg grabbed the torch and ran out behind the last guard that Herc was fighting and knocked him over the head. He fell and Meg was left standing in his place. She gave Herc a lopsided smile. "Can we go now?"
"Uh...heh. Yeah."
Chapter 9
"Don't move a muscle!" The tall, sandy-haired guard who was holding the unconcious Antony drew his sword at Hercules and meg. "Just what do you think you're doing?" He stepped closer, and Herc saw his chance- He pushed Meg behind him as he stepped up and grabbed the guard's wrist as he raised his sword. The guard screamed as his wrist was twisted the wrong way, and he promptly dropped his sword- and Mark Antony. Meg went to Antony and tried to wake him while herc knocked out the fifth palace guard that night.
"Get him up!" Herc called to Meg as three more guards, hearing the mayham, had appeared at the door and were calling their friends. This was turning into an all out brawl.
"He's out cold!" Meg yelled back, but Herc was in the midst of the fight. She gave a low growl and smacked Antony on the cheek. "Come on, Antony. -Ugh! Why is it everytime we meet I'm smacking you around?" She shook him a bit and he finally opened his eyes groggily. "...Cleo," he grinned when he saw her. "I was having a dream about you."
"Yeah, save it for Oprah. We're in deep shit!"
"Huh?"
She turned his head towards the fight.
"Quick re-cap! I'm Meg, that's Hercules, you're Mark Antony, and now we run!"
Antony nodded and stumbled to his feet. Hercules threw two of the guards against the wall with a crash and ran back to Antony and Meg. "We've got to get out of here- in a minute there'll be too many of them!"
And he was right. The guards were swarming into the prison now, and began to surround the three of them, pushing them back towards the stairs that lead to the palace.
"Looks like we go up-" Antony shouted over the noise as Herc threw guard after guard out of the way. The three of them turned and ran through the door, slamming it shut behind them. Herc put his back to the door, holding off the guards. "Do you know a way outta here?"
"Cleo knows better than I! I have to get her out of here with me now-"
"Take Meg and hurry- I can't hold them back much-" He was cut off as an axe came crashing through the door, just missing his head.
"Herc!" Meg screamed and pulled him away from the door.
"Go! Go!" He pushed them off and Antony grabbed Meg's hand and took off in the direction of Cleopatra's room.
"Grrrrrahhh!" A crystal vase smashed into the wall of Cleo's bedroom. "I cannot sit by and watch while the fate of two countries crumbles before me!" She paced back and forth for the fifteenth time before slumping down on the bed. "Not to mention 3 innocent lives," She mumbled to herself. It had been a whole day since Megara had switched places with her in the prison cell, and all she had done since that time was lock herself in her room and check out the window for any sign of what might be happening. Gods forbid something went wrong and Hercules didn't get there in time. ...She wished she could do something to help, but any movement on her part would provoke suspicion.
Cleo was jarred out of her thoughts by a swift knock on the door. "Not again," She sighed as she got up and went to the door to unlock it. Her father had already visited her twice today to 'check in' and ask about the party last night. There was another rushed knock. "I'm coming!" As soon as the lock was lifted the door burst open and to her surprise it was Megara and Antony who came tumbling in.
"Antony!"
"Cleo!"
"Megara!" Meg gasped her own name dramatically to mock them. Then she locked the door again and pulled them both to the tapestry door. "We're running out of time! Cleo, does this go outside?"
"Yes and no..."
"What's that supposed to mean!?"
"I..well!" Cleo stammered, still in shock to see them. There was a pounding against the main door as some guards struggled to break through.
"Hurry!" Antony urged, "Someone must have saw us on the way here!"
"It leads to the courtyard! We have to get out from there the normal way, but it shouldn't be trouble..."
"Good, lets go!" Megara pulled the curtain back and ushured them through, giving one last worried look behind her as she thought of Hercules before running through herself. Once inside they let the tapestry fall and pushed the heavy wall back into place just as the guards burst through the door on the other side. They were shrouded in darkness, in a dank tunnel. "...good gods." Meg shivered.
Cleo grabbed a torch from the wall and lit it. "I keep it here for emergencies," She explained. "You're hurt!" She gasped as the light fell across a bruise on Antony's face.
He smiled. "It's nothing. I'm fine."
"And you..." she turned to Meg, having noticed a slight limp in her step. "I shouldn't have left you there..."
"No-" Meg protested, "It was my own fault. ...I don't know when to shut up. But we can't talk about that now. Hercules is supposed to meet us outside...hopefully. We've got the whole palace up in arms, so all bets are off!"
"How will he find a way out!" Cleo yelled back as she lead the way through the tunnel.
Meg and Antony didn't answer, because neither of them were very certain on that point. "...He'll find a way." Meg said, but she didn't sound too sure of herself.
"I want guards on every level! Don't let them escape! Find Cleopatra immediately and bring her to me!" The pharoah was barking orders at anyone who would listen. The commotion in the dungeon hadn't taken long to spark panic, and the word of the prisoner's escape, helped along by Antony and Hercules no less, had reached the king before Meg and Antony had even reached Cleo's room. "You're highness!" The royal advisor interjected, "I think it best that we retreat to the thrown room for security purposes. If Mark Antony should find you here..."
"Yes..." The pharoah nodded distractedly "Yes, I think we should..." He let his advisor lead the way, and out the window of the thrown room he watched the commotion outside below.
Megara, Antony, and Cleopatra had just reached the end of the winding tunnel, that seemed to go all through the palace, only to find that their exit was being guarded by about a hundred guards who had taken up residence in the courtyard. "We'd have to be invisible to make it out this way," Antony sighed.
"What about one of those doors we passed back there, Cleo?" Meg suggested, "Where do they lead?"
Cleo shrugged. "All different places really. We can get to about any level of the palace, but...-oh!" She gasped as the body of a guard was dropped from somewhere above them and landed right infront of their door. Meg reached a hand over to cover Cleo's mouth as the other guards came running to aid the one that fell. "I'm betting that was Hercules...he's a few floors up," She whispered.
"Alright...we'll go back for him." Antony nodded, turning back towards the tunnel and drawing his sword. Cleo bit her lip. "Cleo...you'll come back to Rome with me when this is all over?"
She nodded. "Of course...I can only imagin what trouble this would cause if your people found out..." Antony gave her a sad smile and pulled her into a passionate kiss before letting her go and leading the two girls back up the tunnel. Meg knit her brows as she ran after them. She couldn't help but think of Herc and wish that he was with them. She shook her head Get a hold of yourself, he'll be fine She thought.
"Stop-" Cleo pulled Antony back and stopped them at a door in the middle of the tunnel. The clashing of swords could be heard on the other side. "It's here..."
Antony nodded and pushed the girls to the other side of the door, his sword at the ready as he reached cautiously to open it. "Be careful!" Cleo whispered right before Antony opened the door and slashed through a tapestry on the other side to reveal the scene. Hercules was there, a sword in each hand, fighting off 5 armed guards. Three of them turned on Antony as soon as he appeared. The surprise attack allowed Hercules to get the better of one of the guards he was fighting. Antony joined beside him, swords clashing and Herc flashed a grin at him. "Nice to see you."
"Nice to be seen."
"This is rediculous," Meg whispered to Cleo as they watched the fight, "There's got to be another way out of here..."
"Wait...I have an idea...I just hope we can get through- the door I'm thinking of hasn't been used in years. It may be locked."
Meg gave her a sarcastic glare, "Cleo...we have Hercules. We'll get through."
"Oh...right." She blushed.
"Can I borrow that torch?"
"...um..sure."
Meg grabbed the torch and ran out behind the last guard that Herc was fighting and knocked him over the head. He fell and Meg was left standing in his place. She gave Herc a lopsided smile. "Can we go now?"
"Uh...heh. Yeah."