Chapter 13
Flynn and Rapunzel follow the gravelly path that weaves endlessly through a forest of tall birch trees.
Soft rays of sunlight beam through the green leaves that rustle gently overhead. A clear, shimmering river runs through the forest and trickles over fallen rocks and stones. The air is warm and smells of fresh water and dried leaves.
Neither of them mentions a thing about the night before, and what they had talked about. But ever since they woke up this morning, there's a new sense of unspoken comfort between them that hadn't been there before.
Whatever reservations they'd previously had of each other seems so far away from them now, and Rapunzel actually finds herself enjoying travelling with Flynn. She hadn't expected to, or even planned it, but somehow it all feels right.
Not to mention, this forest alone is one of the many breathtaking sights she has seen since leaving the kingdom.
She peers upward to admire the vibrant leaves while the running water hums in her ears. All of it is just another example of all the things she had no idea she was missing.
The sunlight of the early afternoon is a warm orange color that illuminates the path in front of them. Various birds are tweeting and cooing as their silhouettes dart between the branches high above.
Rapunzel hadn't realized she'd been slowing down so much, so she jogs down the hill to catch up to Flynn. He clearly isn't phased by the scenery. Though, she reminds herself he's used to it.
"You really live out here on your own?" Rapunzel asks in awe, now walking alongside him.
"Pretty much," Flynn responds. Her fascination for the outside world is rather amusing. "I do whatever I can to get by. Sometimes that means living in the woods, sometimes I just hop from town to town whenever it's most convenient. I try not to stay in one place for too long."
It all sounds so surreal to her. "Doesn't it ever get… I don't know, lonely?"
He chuckles softly. "Trust me, it isn't as bad as it sounds. I can do whatever I want without anybody else holding me down. I'd say it doesn't get any better than that. Besides, I haven't been completely alone. My buddy Lance has been with me pretty much since the beginning."
Rapunzel grins at the thought of it all, intrigued. "And where is he now?"
"There's a camp not too far from here. He's probably there by now," explains Flynn. "Speaking of, that's actually where we're headed. That is, unless you've changed your mind about all this?" He raises a challenging eyebrow, testing her.
"Me? No way," Rapunzel scoffs, raising the pitch of her voice. "I mean, it sounds way more exciting than what I'd be doing at the castle."
"Good. We should be there in a couple hours." Flynn grins over at her, satisfied with that answer. "Oh, and uh… when we get there, don't mention anything about the princess thing," Flynn leans toward her secretively. "Some of the guys there can't resist a shiny penny when they see it, if you know what I mean."
She blinks in surprise, "Oh. Right. Gotcha."
They walk in silence for a while longer after that, boots crunching softly in the dirt.
As time goes on, Rapunzel finds her mind wandering back to Cassandra.
She feels guilty about letting her stay behind. Not that Cass gave her a choice – she usually never does. There had been so much going on that morning. None of them had time to think. Then before anyone knew it, she was gone.
Cassandra didn't have to stay behind, but she did. That's just the kind of friend she is. Sometimes, Rapunzel hates that about her.
Were the guards there for Rapunzel? Did they know Flynn was there, and that's who they were looking for in the first place? Do they somehow know Rapunzel is with him?
Whatever the case, Rapunzel still feels uneasy about being on the run from the very home she grew up in. Knowing her father, he's probably driving himself mad trying to find her.
It would be easier to say she doesn't care, but a part of Rapunzel still does. It's her father, despite everything. Her mother must be worried sick too. Rapunzel misses her, but she misses Cassandra most of all.
Above it all, her own marriage is fast approaching. As much as Rapunzel chooses to ignore it and pretend that it's not happening, it is. Deep down, she knows she's going to have to face it someday. Her father won't allow anything otherwise.
Rapunzel is snapped out of her thoughts when she notices Flynn slowing down next to her, listening for something.
"What is it?" She stops too, watching him with concern.
Faintly, she hears a low thumping in the distance that makes the ground seem as if it's rumbling beneath their feet. Flynn realizes it just as she does, and suddenly Rapunzel's eyes widen in fear.
It's horse hooves. Multiples of them – and they're getting louder.
As they look back on the path they came, they immediately spot a troop of Corona guards riding in the distance, bearing weapons, and perched atop white palace horses. They're galloping directly toward the two of them, gaining speed.
"Run," Flynn breathes.
Rapunzel's stomach drops.
"Run!"
She hurriedly whips around in the opposite direction, but her legs are trembling so hard that she stumbles over her own feet.
Flynn nearly runs into her during their scuffled panic. He grabs her by the shoulders and urges her forward.
Rapunzel's heart is pounding now, pulsing throughout her entire body. Her surroundings dart past her in a blurry haze as they suddenly find themselves running for their lives through the maze of endless trees.
The pattering hooves behind them are so loud now it almost hurts their ears. They hear men shouting, and weapons rattling against metal armor.
"Don't let them escape!"
Arrows soar past them on either side, whistling through the air and plummeting into tree trunks. Rapunzel and Flynn duck their heads, somehow dodging each one.
They sprint off the path and along the river that neighbors the forest. Rapunzel is in the lead, but she has no idea where she's going. Everything looks the same.
The horses are faster than them. There's no way they can outrun the guards like this.
She's shaking more than she ever has but Rapunzel doesn't slow for a second. Despite her exhaustion, she forces herself to push harder, run faster than she's ever run before.
"Keep going, I'm right behind you!" She hears Flynn shouting from somewhere nearby, but she doesn't dare look back.
Then absolute dread flows through her veins as Rapunzel realizes that the ground in front of them ends abruptly ahead.
They're heading directly toward a cliff.
Flynn sees it too. The sound of a rushing waterfall becomes clearer in their ears, nearly drowning out the sound of the hooves.
The edge seems to stretch on for miles in both directions. There's no way around it.
"We're gonna have to jump!" shouts Flynn.
"What?!" Rapunzel shrieks.
"Just trust me!"
There's no telling how tall that cliff is, how deep the water is at the bottom, whether there are rocks. There's no guarantee they'll survive, and it's absolutely terrifying.
But there's no where else for them to go. Either they take a chance, or Rapunzel will be taken back to the castle a lot faster than she'd expected. And who knows what they'll do to Flynn. She doesn't want to find out.
The edge is getting closer. Rapunzel swallows her fear.
It's gonna be okay. Flynn is right behind her. She trusts him. They're in this together.
"Jump!"
His voice fades into nothing as Rapunzel leaps off the edge.
As she soars through the air, her heart is in her throat. It's as if the entire world has gone silent. Everything is moving in slow motion around her from the mere uncertainty of what's about to happen.
She plummets into the water below.
Sinking slowly beneath the surface, it takes her a moment to realize that she is in fact, not dead, and merely submerged in a body of water deep enough for her feet to not quite reach the bottom.
Rapunzel bursts out of the water with a strangled gasp for air.
Her body is so exhausted she feels like she might drown, and she desperately treads toward land. She coughs and water sputters from her lungs as she pulls herself up onto the nearby shore.
Relief overcomes her at the feeling of grass beneath her fingertips and a solid surface of earth to steady herself on again.
It's quieter down here. She doesn't hear the guards anymore, only the rush of the waterfall behind her that she had somehow just survived leaping off of.
Her hair and clothes are now soaked as she remains there on all fours, panting. Then her labored breathing turns into laughter as she realizes what they'd just done.
"Flynn, we did it!" Rapunzel cheers excitedly, springing to her feet. "Did you see that?! We—" She turns around, only to realize there's nobody there.
She peers around herself in confusion, but all she sees is an empty pond in the forest. "Flynn?"
Flynn peers over his shoulder as he bounds swiftly through the trees.
He sees half a dozen guards on horseback, sprinting toward him with angry scowls on their faces, demanding him to stop in the name of the king.
They're still on his trail. Good.
When he looks forward again, he notices the flat ground protruding into a sloped rock wall ahead, far in the distance. That's his exit. If he can climb up there before the horses reach him, he might be able to make it out of this alive.
He vaults over fallen logs and protruding boulders, sprinting directly toward it. All the while, he's dodging arrows and whatever useless demands the men are trying to shout at him.
He reaches the wall and begins to climb.
The galloping hooves are becoming louder as Flynn hastily pulls himself up. His boot slips momentarily, sending rubble trailing down the wall with a puff of dirt.
Regaining his footing, he manages to haul himself to the top and climb onto the ledge.
Momentarily catching his breath, Flynn rises to his feet and peers over the edge behind him.
The wall will stop the horses, but it won't stop the guards from climbing up after him. It should slow them down and provide enough time for Flynn to get away.
Having slipped away from yet another scuffle with Corona guards, Flynn chuckles to himself as he turns around.
He begins to run again, only for a sudden jolt of pain to shoot through his neck like lightning.
It flows through his veins and seeps into his muscles until he can no longer remain upright. His chest tightens and suddenly it becomes so much harder to breathe. A choked grunt escapes his lips as he drops to his knees.
Next thing he knows, he's lying on his back against the hard forest floor, numb, staring up at a canvas of green leaves, and the clear blue sky beyond it. He feels heavy, and he can't move. Then it all becomes a blur.
"Flynn!"
He hears men shouting and weapons clanging, the noise muffled beneath the ringing of his own ears.
"Hey, get up." A familiar, shadowy figure is looming over him on the ground. "Come on, man, you're gonna be okay…" Lance's deep voice is soothing beneath the distant clamour of battle nearby.
Flynn squints up at him through hazy vision as sleep begins to overtake his body.
His eyelids slowly fall closed, then everything goes back.