Aynilia had been left alone for some time since she woke up. She now sat in a chair by the window. The decorative panel that sat overtop of the window didn't seem to thick. She tapped on it a few times and listened to the hollow metallic sound. The panel seemed to be easy enough to break with some force. Aynilia was trying to calculate her escape, her eyes scanning every inch of her room for possibilities. Her eyes focused on the scene outside of her window and took note of the guards around the visible part of the palace. The courtyard was a short distance from her room and there were a few armed guards at ground level. The wall separating the courtyard from the pathway to the arena was a bit of a drop from her window. A small knock at the door pulled her out of her thoughts at that moment.
"My Lady, we have come with your medicine" Ennoa's voice was small and sounded exhausted. "Come in" Aynilia replied standing from her chair and walking back towards her bed. Ennoa and Ruwa entered the room with their heads down hiding their faces.
"Why will you not look at me?" Aynilia's hurt couldn't be hidden anymore. Ruwa's head shot up and the dark circles under her eyes did not mask the surprise at the sound of Aynilia's voice. Their eyes met and Aynilia felt her heart breaking for the girls. They had been taking care of her around the clock since she was poisoned and it didn't look like they had been sleeping. "We are ashamed at how we look in the presence of our lady" Ruwa said with sadness. The pale skinned doll approached the two girls and she wrapped her long arms around them both. The embrace took the attendants by surprise which led to Ennoa sobbing.
"You two have been the nicest people to me. Regardless of my background, you treated me with respect. You both are my friends and you need not hide your exhaustion from me" Aynilia's calm and reassuring voice made Ennoa sob harder and Ruwa's shoulders were shaking trying to fight the tears. After some time had passed the crying stopped and the two girls had some of their cheerful selves back. They placed the medicine on the table and took their leave for rest.
Aynilia eyed the medicine on the table with weary eyes. After her food had been poisoned, she did not trust anything that wasn't prepared in her eyesight. She knew that Ennoa and Ruwa would not knowingly poison her, but she has no idea who actually had a hand in preparing her medicine and she couldn't take the chance. She picked up the small bowl holding the dark green liquid and dumped it in the wash basin that was changed every morning. Even though she knew most of her strength was gone she was willing to use whatever strength she had left to try to escape. The shadows started to stretch across the courtyard and Aynilia took her chance. She summoned her strength to her arms and gripped the decorative panel. With a few strong yanks the panel came free from the window frame and the only thing between Aynilia and the outside was thin glass.
She shifted her power to her legs and feet and took some steps back. She bounced on her toes for a few seconds before taking off running at the window. She put her arms up in front of her face and leapt through the glass. The sound of shattering glass drew the attention of the guards below. Aynilia landed on her feet and with a quick shift on her heels she took off at high speed toward the wall.
"Stop there Creegin Monster!" she heard the guard yell behind her. She could feel her power starting to creep out of her and draining her. 'I need to hurry and get out of this city' she thought quickly. She took in a sharp breath and jumped up onto the wall in front her.
"Alert the Matron! The Creegin is trying to flee!" Another guard shouted from below. Aynilia took off running along the wall, the light from braziers catching her attention as she moved. The sound of running feet rang in her ears. 'Shit they are going to catch me if I don't move' her frustration was increasing with her anxiety. She caught a glimpse of the main gate to the palace in the distance. With a burst of power, she shot towards the gate like a meteor. She had to use some maneuvers to scale the gate to the top.
At the top of the gate she scanned her surroundings and spotted a dark area close by to run to. She jumped from the gate and hit the ground hard on her feet. Without wasting anymore time she took off running towards the dark street. The sound of guards running behind her was getting closer and she was breaking a sweat as her power was draining fast. Stopping for a moment to duck into a small alleyway between two buildings she tried to find an escape route. Her eyes fixed on a raised stone, 'That could be a good hiding spot' she thought listening to the sound of footsteps pass behind her. She snuck quickly to the opening and slithered her body into the hole as fast as she could. Her feet landed in something wet and cold. Her eyes couldn't adjust to the darkness around her.
Feeling around with her hands she found that the wall before her opened to a narrow walkway. Slowly and carefully she felt along the wall and moved through the walkway. She became uneasy as the space became completely silent. She no longer heard footsteps, wind or even water. She slid her hand forward and a click was heard. The floor fell from underneath her feet and she let out a scream as she tumbled into the dark void.