I am neither of the East nor of the West, no boundaries exist within my breast.
It seemed endless, nothing but whiteness behind her and whiteness before her. Her eyes burned from the blinding visage of snow and the bone-chilling cold. Not a sound to be heard or an animal to be seen. She felt as if she would never feel warm again. At least she had shoes or she would have lost her toes to the cold by now. Even with shoes, it was an effort to walk as the snow was deep.
Pepper looked behind with apprehension. Have they noticed my escape? She could not hear the hounds, so even if they had noticed, they weren't on her trail.. yet. What will they do to me if they caught me?
This time, it wouldn't just be a beating or a night tied to a tree far away from the fire. It would be worse. She had been walking all night, so she had put some distance between her and the camp. But they had horses and hounds. All she had were her tired legs, shoes and a thin fur, which she had sneakily stolen from the Fat One in the camp.
The thought of him freezing his gut, come morning, made her smile and her steps became lighter. Just a little more to go, she told herself. She was at the base of a gently sloping hill and the uphill climb would be short. At least that's what she told herself. Then it started to snow gently. At first, she was happy because her tracks would be covered.
But as the snowfall increased with each step, she realized she needed to get to shelter soon or she would die here, today. She started the climb uphill and then stopped. A shiver passed through her. She had the distinct feeling, she was being watched from the forest. She peered into the snow-capped greenery but nothing moved or made a sound.
Paranoia was natural, After all you are a runway and you know they will find you if you tarry, she told herself sternly. She started climbing uphill and finally reached the top. The view pleased her. To her north, was a town. At least 2 leagues away.
She had to cross a frozen lake and a small copse of trees to reach it. She could see a barn on the outskirts of the town. Finally a place to rest my aching legs and sleep peacefully. Her stomach growled, reminding her that her last meal was 12 hours ago, gruel and a small, dry oat cake.
Slowly she looked around. To the south, surrounded by dense shrubs, she saw a black keep, small but forbidding. She wondered how anyone could reach the keep, the shrubs were so thick. Home of the Iron Knight perhaps? She recollected a conversation she overheard, between the Leader and the Fat One.
They were talking about the Iron Knight, a mythical spirit who breathed blue fire and who roamed the Dark Hills, searching for souls to feed on. The fat man was shit scared, he trembled because the camp was close to the Dark Hills. The Leader had laughed. "Nothing but a fairy tale", he growled, "a bogeyman for children". "No", the Fat One had shivered, "It is true. He has eyes and ears everywhere. He is the forest. Those who get lost in these woods, are hunted down and when he catches them, you can hear their screams in the night. It is said he rides a great black steed and commands a black beast with glowing eyes, that hunts down his prey." The Leader had walked away laughing, while the Fat One had made the sign of the Cross and shuddered.
With a start, she came back to the present. It will be dark soon. Time to move on. As she descended the hill, she felt once again, a shadow in the woods, watching her. She sternly told herself to keep moving and ignore the feelings of paranoia. As she neared the bottom of the hill, she heard the faint sound of a twig cracking from the distant trees on the left. She stopped and stared.
Slowly a shadow began to separate from the trees. A tall, hooded figure, in black. Pepper peered at the figure and then her blood froze. It was a rider on a huge black war horse. The rider was fully encased in black, with a helmet covering its face. She could feel it staring at her, pinning her with its gaze. Time seemed to stand still. Even the snow had stopped falling. The horse shifted restlessly and she let out a gasp of horror as another dark figure began to materialize alongside the rider. It was the size of a small pony, black with long limbs and a twirling tail. Its eyes glowed an unearthly amber in the fading light. Beast and rider both stood still, watching her, waiting for her to make the first move.
Whether it was the cold chilling her bones from standing still for so long or the otherworldly entities in the distance but her limbs just wouldn't cooperate. Then the beast started to creep forward. The action shocked her frozen bones into motion. She started to run towards the lake because the devil and his beast was literally behind her.
Luckily for her, the snow was thin on this side of the mountain, so she could run. The cold wind blew against her but she didn't care, she ran as fast as she could, praying for God, anyone to save her from whatever was behind her. She thought she heard a yell but ignored it as she could finally see the lake in front of her. The ice seemed thick enough and she started to run across the surface. She knew she was safe across the ice, it was too risky for the rider and she prayed its beast would feel the same.
She was nearly at the middle of the lake, when she heard another shout and stopped running. Panting, she turned to see the rider forcefully rein in his horse at the edge of the lake, who reared and whinnied loudly, tossing his great mane. The black beast had gingerly walked on to the lake and her heart thudded painfully in her chest. She had never felt such blinding fear as she felt now.
On closer glance, it seemed like a very large cat with a diamond shaped head and a long tail. It was not sure of its footing on the ice and instead, sat down on its behind. The rider whistled sharply and the great cat ran back to the horse's side obediently. She knew now, she was looking at the Iron Knight because what earthly being could control a creature like that with only a sound?
She watched as the rider gracefully dismounted and signaled the cat to stay at the horse's side. Then the rider stepped on the lake and she turned, ready to run again.
"The ice is too thin, you fool". A deep voice yelled. It seemed... human.
She turned back slightly towards the rider. She could make out he was tall and broad shouldered.
"Who, what are you?" she yelled back.
The wind was howling now and it was difficult to shout over its loudness. "Leave me alone!" she yelled again.
He said something again but she couldn't hear him. He seemed to be gesturing for her to come back towards his side of the lake.
She looked behind her. The town was just on the other side of the lake, it seemed so close. She was right in the middle, between the devil on one side and safety on the other. She shook her head at him and said to herself, I will take my chances.
She turned and stepped towards the town.
Then she heard the sound of cracking.
And then the ice gave way under her feet. She fell silently into the icy depths of the freezing lake.
It was so cold. So damn cold. Her hands and feet were numb. The blood in her veins turned to ice. She felt her heart stop as a block of ice slid into place above her, trapping her in the water.
She struggled to breathe in the ice filled water and then stopped struggling. It was too cold and she was too tired. Easier to let the lake consume her. She let the darkness surround her, her last thoughts were of her mother's smile.
