The Kingdom of Amandla discussion
Mod
She always was. Avalon breathed a low sigh and dropped her guard a bit. She hated to see her father like this. He was once such a powerful king, but their damn “family” had reduced him to nothing. No, not nothing. He could still come back from this. “Look,” she murmured softly, so as not to be overheard. “I don’t want you killed. You shouldn’t be here, any more than Evelyn should be on the throne. She’ll pay for her stupidity, but first, how about we get you out?”
Mod
The sound of his wife's name on his daughters lip made him cringe, but it was bittersweet. If Adrian had any doubts before, they were all gone now. Avalon truly was his daughter and she was here to help him. "How are we going to do that?" He asked, lowering his voice as well.
{ˇ - ꜱᴄʜɴɪᴘᴘᴇʀ ʀɪꜰʟᴇ - ˇ} (No More Group Invites) wrote: "oh no.OH NO.
Ugh damn it, now I have to start writing more diary entrees for the guards."
(view spoiler)
Avalon hesitated, biting her lip as thoughts raced and fell into place. It was a fairly undesirable plan on her part, to say the least, but it would work — she was sure of it. The princess leaned forward and whispered her idea to the fallen king. Then, Avalon took a step back and removed the snake from her neck, placing him away off to the side. She didn’t want Ebony to get harm’s way. Couldn’t say the same for herself. “Do you have anything sharp in there? A piece of metal or maybe glass?”
Mod
Without answering, Adrian left the bars. He grabbed a large shard of glass that has a sharp point. He walked back to Avalon, "Does this answer your question?" He questioned softly, raising an eyebrow.
Avalon gave one of her rare grins, though it was a twisted, tainted sort of look. “Perfect,” she replied with an incline of her head, and then the smile was gone. The princess took a deep breath and calmed her nerves. This was a prison break, and it was obviously clearly against the law. Everything had to go perfectly or they’d be in serious trouble. With that delightful train of thought, Avalon stepped up to the bars again, easily within Adrian’s reach. “Get on with it, then.” Her sharp voice sounded small in the echoing cavern.
Mod
He smiled sinisterly and grabbed Avalon through the bars, suddenly having the shard of glass against her throat. It was void of pressure, so she wouldn't actually get hurt, but if he wanted to, he could easily slice her throat right then and there. Good thing he actually liked her. "Guards!" he called, his voice delightfully taunting.
Avalon hadn’t quite realized what this plan would entail. Though her father’s grip was light, she already felt trapped. The sharp glass was cool on her neck, its edge nearly biting into her skin. This was King Adrian, the man who had tried to kill his own son. But she was not Will, so she had nothing to fear from her father…right? The girl was still at his complete mercy, however, and she hated the feeling. To complete the scene, Avalon masked her face into a panicked expression that was more fitting of the circumstances. They had one shot at this.
From far above in the stairwell came a sound of hurried feet. Avalon had neatly ordered the guards to vacate the premises when she had arrived, but now they didn’t dare ignore the fallen king’s shout. There was much urgent murmuring before one voice called out, “Princess?” They received no reply from her.
Mod
When there was no answer from the princess, the guards came swarming around the cage. "Halt!" Adrian yelled, gripping Avalon tighter, "Come any closer and royal blood will be spilt." The guards stopped, confused as to what they should do. "You," he pointed to one of the guards, one who he knew had a key, "Step forward and unlock my cell." He demanded. The selected guard squeaked out protests. "Now!" Adrian bellowed, pressing the shard into Avalon's skin, not realizing the sharpness of the glass had made him accidentally puncture the skin. Seeing blood, the guard scurried over to the cell.
Avalon inhaled sharply as the shard bit into her skin. Crimson blood pooled around the shallow wound before dripping down her neck. Stupid father, couldn’t he do anything right? If he ruined her life as he did his, she’d kill him. The guards looked torn. They couldn’t just let such a treasonous prisoner escape, but no one wanted to be responsible for the death of the princess. For her part, Avalon hung limply in her father’s grasp, eyes wide and quivering like a frightened puppy. She was a natural actress, and it was easy enough though her pride was stinging. Her eyes darted from guard to guard, looking every bit the frightened victim she should be. “Please…” she whispered in a small voice, begging for help.
Mod
At the sight of blood and the sound of the princess' plea, the selected guard quickly unlocked the cage, backing away quickly. Adrian smiled wider, "Now," he let go of Avalon for just a moment so he could walk out, holding the shard in front of him. He quickly grabbed his daughter again, "All of you," he began, intending the guards, "Go in," he finally demanded. "Now!" He belted, making the guards jump and scurry into the cell. When all of them were in, Adrian closed the cell door, making sure to collect all weapons and keys before doing so. When he was finished, Adrian smiled at Avalon, "Ready?"
The princess wasn’t a fighter, both in reality and in this facade. Avalon let her father direct their movements with little resistance as they seemingly danced around the jail. The guards inside seethed, but they were no threat now. Only their eyewitness accounts might pose a problem, but the true royals weren’t done with their performance. The glass was still in play; she was still a hostage. Avalon looked up at her father, eyes steely but hands quivering. “Just go,” she rasped in a low but rising voice. Then, for the guards’ sake, she added, “You got what you want. L-Leave me alone!” She tried to back away but was held in place by his ‘iron grip.’ Alone in the corner, Ebony had curled up in a tight coil upon a previous command from Avalon, but now he hissed a low warning tone.
Mod
Ignoring Avalon's requests, Adrian kept his grip on her arm. He 'pushed' her in front of him, "Let's go," he told her, loud enough for the guards to hear, "I can't risk leaving you down here, you might let them out," he lied.
“No, please!” Theatrically, Avalon stumbled on a loose stone as she was guided towards the stairs, but Adrian’s hold kept her from falling. Just before they rounded the corner out the guard’s sight, she sent them one last terrified glance. As soon as the royals were on the stairs, the princess relaxed and let out a pent up breath. They were far from in the clear, but so far so good. Avalon led him up the spiraled steps, staying close to her father in case some idiotic guard come along and she was taken hostage again.
Mod
((sorry these are so short, i have a headache))
Adrian trusted Avalon very much. Which is why he was allowing her to guide him out of the dungeons. Grimly, he thought, at least he still had that shard of glass. Just in case.
He had no clue why he was anywhere near the dungeons. William was ready to gouge his eyes out. Just being in the area was giving him the creeps…make it worse that he could hear…some kind of racket down there. Mumbling to himself, he couldn’t help but to ask, “what in the world?” In result, he glanced towards the stone door. The urge to lock it shut kicked in and he began to pace. Only did he stop when…bam. There was someone, or maybe even several someones, running up the staircase. Frantic, Will yelped and quickly retreated, not only before shouting, “guards!” As loud as he could. Hiding in the nearest spot he could find, he watched as several guards ran towards the dungeon, spears and guns pointed at the door..
Avalon heard a commotion up above, accompanied by a cry for more guards. Well wasn’t that just swell. The jail guards earlier had been pushovers, but they’d also been caught off guard (view spoiler). She wasn’t sure how the official guards and knights would react with the king out of his cage. Avalon almost laughed hollowly at the thought that her life was all that kept Adrian from losing his. Time to really test their boundaries. At the top of the stairs, she brought them to a halt before the door and quickly backed into her father’s hold once again, pulling his hand and glass to her throat where the blood glared obvious.
Oh, what fun.
Mod
Well, wasn't this just great. Adrian put the glass up to Avalon's throat as the rushed footsteps neared closer and was sure to tighten his grip on his daughter. The door burst open, to which Adrian demanded everyone to stop moving, or else the princess in his arms will take her last breath very soon.
The guards didn’t budge, put they kept their weapons raised. “Ex-King Adrian, we require for you to put down the glass and release the princess at once. If not, we will fire.” One of the main knights said calmly, facial expression unreadable from underneath the armor. Will covered his mouth to bury his gasp in the cloth shirt sleeve he wore. ‘There’s no way. He couldn’t have gotten out, and- Avalon?’ His mind raced, head hurting. Maybe they wouldn’t see him. Maybe he could just bolt for it. But his sister- he was stuck.
Oh god, this was a lot more guards than Avalon had counted on. As her eyes darted from face to masked face, the girl felt a wave of dread. They might actually go through with it. What was the life of a second princess (not even an heir to the throne) when the king’s escape or capture hung in the balance? As she had done with the weak-willed guards below, Avalon cast a pleading whimper to her ‘rescuers’. “N-No,” she choked out as the makeshift knife glinted at her skin. “Please—”
Mod
Adrian sneered and pulled Avalon so that she was covering his body. "You don't want a princess' blood on your hands, don't you? That bit-" he cleared his throat, "The queen wouldn't like it very much if you murdered her own daughter in cold blood, now wouldn't she?"
The guards all took a step forward in sync. It was robotic — horrifying, if you will. One more shout and even more guards would come running from out of nowhere. But they didn’t, not yet. Will was still rooted to the ground, eyes darting between everyone. Slowly, he crept up from behind and took a sword from one of the guards, pushing his way through. When he got to the front, his eyes were wide. “Don’t call my mother a bitch.” He nearly choked on the words. What were they supposed to do? Avalon was in Adrian’s hold and it would be just about impossible to get her out. This was foul play. “Just let my sister go.” Meanwhile, with his available hand, Will put it behind his back, doing a few quick signs to the guards. Two of them backed away and headed elsewhere.
Avalon fought the urge to snarl like the wolf she was. This was not how it should go — of course, everything had to be more complicated than it should’ve been. Pressed as she was to Adrian’s chest, Avalon felt her racing heartbeat sync to match his. Adrenaline coursed through her veins, and the girl wanted nothing more than to throw off his grip and escape the situation. But no, then he would be killed. She didn’t want him dead, not yet at least. And then Will had to show up. Oh Will. Stupid Will. He would throw a wrench in their whole plan, she just knew it. In a feat of great acting, Avalon kept from trading her terrified expression for a scowl. She waited, barely breathing, for Adrian’s response. If he messed up now, she’d kill him.
Mod
Adrian had to bite his inner lip to keep from laughing. This was too funny. Of course the pest would be there. Of course. He only bit down harder when he realized William had a sword. "And why would I do that?" He asked the boy, smirking a little.
“If you were to kill her, which you won’t be doing, we would kill you. So what would the point be in that? You wouldn’t get to sit around and enjoy the fact that you actually murdered her.” Will replied. There wasn’t much he could do except for hold the sword in his trembling hands. The simple thought of getting blood on his fingers...no. He replaced the thought with spilt red paint — that would make him feel less guilty about it all afterwards. “You won’t do it.” With that, Will raised the sword higher. A dare he didn’t want to finish.
((OR~
Funny vine ending))
(view spoiler)
Boys were hopeless. If Avalon had learned anything from her family, it was that. Couldn’t that stupid Will see? Adrian wasn’t threatening to kill her now, only if they tried to attack him first. The king wasn’t that stupid (hopefully). Unfortunately, there was nothing Avalon could except lie limp and helpless in Adrian’s arms with a shard of glass at her neck… And, maybe try to sway the boy she’d once called a brother. “Will—” she murmured in a high panicked voice, quite a contrast to her usual low tones. The guards seemed impassive, but Will… He was another story.
Mod
"I won't?" He asked, pressing the shard deeper into Avalon's skin, reopening the scar from earlier. The princess began bleeding from her throat, a thin stream of blood flowing onto the glass. "You still don't understand, William, after all these years. Your threats are about as hollow as your brain, boy. I am not afraid of you."
Will took a sharp intake of breath. His father was right. But this had to be a scheme of some kind. Adrian wouldn’t care who he killed in his way towards power. “Maybe because you never bothered to teach us shit.” He snapped at the ex-king. His eyes trailed down to the blood dripping from Avalon’s throat. Said guards behind him were still ready to shoot, fingers on their gun triggers with little to no hesitation. “..It’s not me you should be afraid of.” ‘Because mother would kick your ass again in a heartbeat.’ Then, he watched as one heavily armed guard suddenly grabbed Adrian by the arm, tugging the glass away from Avalon’s neck. Then the two guards from before ran up the last flight of stairs from the back exit they’d gone through, grabbing hold of Adrian from behind despite the struggle it brought. The shard of glass was pushed away, yet it was still a weapon. Will remained holding the sword, pointed to Avalon so she couldn’t move, no matter how much he wanted to just run and hide. “You’re not out of the picture, either. We weren’t supposed to be in the dungeons.” He said, voice shaken. The other guards looked just about ready to arrest all of them at once.
Before Avalon knew what was happening, she’d been torn out of her father’s grip. She dropped to one knee, weak with surprise and dread. Damn it. How had things gone so sideways? They’d had a plan— Curse that child. Her father should’ve killed him when he had the chance. They couldn’t fail here. But…what could be done? Avalon closed her eyes to control her heavy breathing, but also to hide her emotions and plan in secret. She lifted a willfully trembling hand to her neck, tracing the shallow cuts. Her fingers came away wet with blood. Everything was on the line here. Everything…
Despite the loud scuffling of the guards, Avalon heard a familiar trilling hiss. It was near impossible to detect unless you knew what to listen for, and the princess knew it well. Quite unnoticed by anyone, Ebony had slithered his way up the dungeon steps and through the open door. Salvation. Avalon quietly exhaled through her teeth, then raised her eyes to Will. A secret signal. As she opened her mouth to reply, a white streak zipped across the floor, taking everyone by surprise. By the time anyone realized what it was, the little mangrove snake had latched onto the prince’s ankle, fangs easily piercing through fabric to the skin. All at once, the hall descended into chaos.
Mod
All the guards holding Adrian immediately let go of him to aid the prince. Before they could realize what had happened, Adrian grabbed hold of Avalon and dragged the two of them out the dungeons, Of course, he grabbed three swords on the way out. They reached the top and Adrian shut the door once they were both out. He put one of the swords in the door through the door handles, locking the doors from the outside.
Will was silent. Then he heard it — the quiet hissing of a snake. “What-“ He started, lowering his sword…and then he felt something dig sharply into his ankle. The sword in his hands fell to the floor with a harsh CLANK. The guards were all over the place, some going frantic while others debated on running after Adrian and the second princess. Will was frozen in horror, vision blurred. What was happening? What just happened? The mangrove snake, Ebony- the one that belonged to his own sister, had sunk her fangs into his ankle. And Adrian and Avalon had escaped. One of the guards threw themselves down just as Will’s body processed the situation, tearing the snake off and throwing it across the room. There were shouts like, “someone go get them!” and “did it use its venom?” “It should only be mild!” “somebody get the doctors!” “the door is locked!” “what do we do?” All of this shouting was giving Will a headache, the nausea kicking in quickly. Falling to the floor, Will blacked out, only feeling one of the guards catch his limp body.
Another failure.
