Will of a Prince

All it took was a single meal together for Maria and Lidia to resolve their issues. It was as if food was some magical concoction that always fixed both of their moods and problems. Jacob had never seen anything like it. As they ate, they started discussing where they wanted to go. Even though they were dozens of miles away from the kingdom, they still wanted to put some distance between them and Leo.

"Theres a few places we can go that are just beyond the mountain pass. They are smaller villages, so they wouldn’t provide us a lot, but enough to satisfy us for a while. We could also go to the domain of Paria Empire, but as you all know, I am a wanted man. That wouldn’t go too well. What do you all think we should do?"

Lidia in particular seemed to want to say something. She slowly put her bowl of soup down before speaking.

"I think we should look for my family. They have to be out there somewhere. There’s no way they would all die so easily."

Maria’s mood seemed to dampen a bit remembering what she saw happen to Emma right in front of her.

"It was strange. When those masked people touched them, they simply dissolved into darkness. However, it didn’t feel like they were dying in any sense. I believe there’s something more to it."

"What are you trying to say?"

"Well, if they weren’t trying to kill the noble clans, that means they were trying to send them somewhere else. I believe they were using some kind of special ability to teleport them someplace else."

"Do you really believe that?"

"I do. Besides, there’s no way that people with powers like us could die so easily. It just seems like the only way they were able to get rid of so many of us in such a small period of time."

Docs face darkened, remembering the fateful day that Arthur’s friend stabbed himself in the heart.

"Last time I saw those masked men, they used a similar ability on the king’s friend. When he stabbed himself in the heart, the group still surged forward and turned him into darkness, making him disappear. The group themselves disappeared just as quickly. I believe Maria is right. And if she’s right, then the nobles are still out there somewhere."

Jacob and Lidia’s heart suddenly ignited with a small hint of hope.

"If they’re still out there, we have to find them. They could be waiting for us to rescue them at this very moment!"

Slimo stood up and started stretching his arms out.

"Welp, that gives us an excuse to visit those villages across the mountains. Maybe they might know something about those masked men from being out here for so long."

"That sounds good to me. Any objections from anyone?"

Nobody seemed to argue. Slimo started walking towards a small closest by the staircase and opened it gently. He pulled out thick woolen pants and shirts before he started handing them out to each of them.

"If we’re travelling through the mountains, we’re going to need to keep ourselves warm. There’s also a monster who lives in them. Wearing these will help hide our scent. I’ve never tried walking past him with a group, so everyone stays close to me in case things get ugly."

Lidia lifted the large sweater and studied it carefully before putting it on. It was very baggy but covered her body well.

"Geez, I’m already starting to heat up in this thing. Let’s hurry up and hit the road!"

Everyone around her started putting on their thick clothes and walking out the door. Slimo remembered to put out the fire in the fireplace this time before leaving. They all walked out towards the giant cart sitting in the yard, holding all of their food. Slimo scratched his face for moment.

"Wait here for a moment everyone. I’m going to bring some stuff with us that may be useful."

He walked back inside and came out holding a large put with some firewood stored inside.

"Just so we can make some things on the road. I’d rather not eat raw vegetables for a week straight if we can help it."

Lidia smiled at him.

"Just throw it in the cart and find a seat to hold tight."

Slimo looked at her confused.

"Are you planning on carrying all of us?"

"That’s right! Unless you want to help me, of course."

"I can take the right side, you take left. How does that sound?"

Lidia smiled brightly.

"That sounds wonderful! We’ll be able to travel a lot further if you help me pull this!"

Slimo situated the right wooden stick under his arm and started pulling in-sync with Lidia. The cart glided across the terrain with ease. As they journeyed toward the mountain, the slope seemed to be getting steep, which put more pressure on them to pull the cart.

However, both of them were too strong for it to make a difference. The path eventually started to be filled with snow, which made it harder to walk on.

"How often do you travel up to these mountains?"

"Not too often. Sometimes I come up here to hunt for different animals to keep my diet unique. Beyond that, I try to stay clear."

"How dangerous is this monster that lives here?"

"Very dangerous. The only reason I haven’t killed him yet is I wasn’t willing to risk if I would be strong enough to cut through his thick hide. If I fail, I die."

"Creepy."

Slimo abruptly stopped walking and crouched down. He put a hand up to his ear as if listening for something.

"Everything okay?"

"Everyone, get down and stay quiet."

They all listened and crouched deeper in the cart. Lidia followed Slimo’s lead and sat on the ground. Slimo cleared a bit of snow and put his ear against the ground.

"Shit."

"What is it? Is it the monster?"

Slimo paled and looked at everyone with horror in his eyes.

"Theres... multiple of them. We have to hide. There’s no time to try and run. They will catch and kill us."

Panic started rising in Jacob’s chest. He held on to Maria’s hand tightly.

"What do you mean hide?! Where do we hide in these landscapes?"

Slimo looked around at his surroundings. All there was, was snow.

’Snow...’

"I have an idea, everyone. Start burying yourselves in snow as much as you can. Don’t let a single body part show. Not even your face."

The group didn’t hesitate to follow his instructions. Jacob helped bury Maria before he buried himself. As he piled more snow on his body, he heard something that made his legs weak. A large, sky-tearing roar that echoed off the peaks of the mountain. Slimo called out one last command to them, right as they were all almost completely buried.

"Put snow in your mouths as well! I’ll explain later!"

All of them shoved a small ball of ice in their mouth and kept still. Right as the last piece of snow covered all of Jacob’s face, something flashed toward the cart. Jacob allowed a small hole on one of his eyes so he could study the monsters out of curiosity.

Three massive creatures coated in long, thick fur pounced by the cart. They we so fast that it seemed like they simply appeared right next to them. They seemed to have no eyes on their head, but a freakishly large snout and mouth. It had hundreds of large, spiked teeth. They sniffed the air around them, searching for whoever had just been present at the cart.

The structure of the creature reminded Jacob of the large gorillas he would see in picture books as a kid. It’s arms and legs were thick with muscle and its coat seemed almost impenetrable. Right as he was sure they would leave, one of the creatures started sniffing the air in Jacob’s direction and started walking forward.