The two women made their way partially around the castle perimeter to the north side, making sure to stay under the protection of the dense, clustered trees. The entire time they could hear shouting from far away. It seemed the whole castle had awoken in order to search for them. They knew they must ride as quickly as possible in order to avoid being found out. The trip would have only taken a minute or so at full gallop, but the thick undergrowth of the forest hindered their progress. Aliana was not sure how Iora was navigating, being able to see nothing but forest herself. They straightened their course and rode in silence until their horses started losing wind, then slowed down to a trot.

"Have you really thought this plan out?" Aliana whispered after some time.

A faint smirk appeared on Iora's lips. "Me? Plan something out properly? You must remember that I had two days to come up with this half-baked idea and then arrange for the horses to be stolen and Adlyn to let us out the back gate. I must say that I am surprised we made it this far."

Aliana gripped Avenger's reins. The emotions welling up inside her chest were difficult to explain and extremely unpleasant. Her life was rapidly spiraling out of control and she had no way of stopping it. She had been accused of murder, escaped from her prison, cornered by a knife-wielding attacker, and was now a fugitive from the law; her life certainly could not get any worse. Had she been the least bit hydrated, she certainly would have cried.

Noting her discomfort, Iora knew she had better give Aliana a better answer. "I do have a plan, your highness, I always have a plan. Sometimes the plan is better than others, sometimes it is still in the making, but I do always have a plan. We are making for the north country. I know that area well, they do not get along with your government well, and there are plenty of areas to hide out. I considered going to another country where you have friends, but I worried that would make you easier to find and target. For now, until we have a better idea of what we are dealing with, we stick to the north."

Aliana nodded. "Iora," the princess whispered after a moment, "the man who attacked us -- the one in the courtyard -- do you think he...?" She struggled to say the rest of the sentence: killed my father?

Thankfully, the bodyguard read her mind. "It would appear so, your highness."

"Lovely." She slumped forward in her saddle, her energy suddenly gone and her adrenaline drained.

Iora glanced over her shoulder at her. "On the bright side, I was correct about you; you are not a killer."

"I could have told you that."

"I like to be certain."

"Are we almost to the main road?"

Iora glanced around at their surroundings. "Yes, your highness. The trees are so dense and the moon dim enough that it makes the road difficult to see, but I am certain we are close. Of course, we must stay as far from the road as we can, and we should be very grateful the moon is not brighter, or we would more easily be spotted. Now that you are gone, the castle is certainly a hive of activity and the main road will be full of people searching for you. I am counting on them focusing on the south and on the east, thinking you would go to a neighboring country for help. That is part of the reason we are headed north."

Aliana pondered over the wisdom of her guard, and all that Iora had thought out, arranged, and sacrificed to help her escape. She would have thought it over all the more, if she were not so tired. The sleep that had evaded her since her father died was beginning to catch up to her.

The moon was just bright enough to allow them to see a path through the tree-laden forest, but dim enough to make it difficult to see. They could not have asked for a better night as far as the lighting was concerned. The trees, with autumn fast approaching, were beginning to lose their leaves. The mossy ground was littered with dead leaves that crunched softly as the horses trod over them. A midnight wind rippled through the forest, the cold wind from the north riding swiftly along it. Aliana, in her thin servant clothing, began to finally feel the cold as her adrenaline was slipping away; it nipped uncomfortably at the cut on her shoulder where the assassin had gotten her with the dagger.

The farther they rode, the heavier Aliana's eyes got. She was tired. Exhausted! She had not slept well in weeks, the adrenalin of the escape had faded, and sheer exhaustion was taking hold. A few times she caught herself nodding off, and had to shake herself awake.

"Your highness, I know you are tired, but we must ride all night and most of tomorrow to get distance between us and the castle guards. We need to do something to wake you up!"

"Talking keeps me awake," she murmured through chilled lips.

"That is doable." Iora slowed her steed so that it was beside Aliana's. "Tell me about yourself. What is your favorite color? Why?"

"I like blue because I think it to be the most calming of colors. And when I say blue, I do not mean the blanketing navy of the night or the murky waterways. I mean the perfect, clear blue of the summer sky when there are no clouds and the sun is shining."

"Even half asleep, you are still eloquent."

"I am not half asleep." Aliana sat upright and opened her eyes as wide as she could. "Sleep does not bother me."

Iora, suddenly attentive, turned her head to her right.

"What do you hear?" Aliana whispered urgently.

The guard held up a finger to her lips.

Aliana stopped talking and attempted to hear whatever Iora did. Not too far away she could hear shouting. When she focused in front of her, she could make out the glow of torches. They were near the road.

"From now on," Iora whispered under her breath, "we must be silent. The guards will be searching for us and they know we will not have gotten far. We need to stay as far from the road as possible. I would suggest we abandon it, but I know it would not be long before we became lost. These woods are immense, we cannot see the stars well through the trees, and no map would be able to guide us out of it."

The princess nodded silently. Now that they were close to the road, adrenaline had resumed pumping through her veins. Her heart began to beat loudly.

The two women directed their horses to trot parallel the road. Aliana was grateful for Avenger's strong legs that were able to easily tear through the undergrowth. They were making good time.

"I do not know if you are aware," Iora mumbled after some time, "but there is a major town about a mile ahead. It has a considerable amount of guards in it and is sure to be busy. We would be fools to risk walking through it, so we will be going around it. On the other side is a crossroad. The left road goes to the Arid Lands, the center road to the hills region, and the right road to the Frozen Lands. We will take the route to the Frozen Lands. It will be less crowded and we may be able to actually get on the road."

Aliana gripped the reins. "I have never been to the Frozen Lands. I hear it is a horrid place."

Iora rolled her eyes. "That is nonsense taught to you by councilmen. When we get there, you will see how nice of a place it actually is. Now, the town is approaching swiftly. It is important that we move as quickly as possible before a soldier decides it would be smart to search the surrounding forest." She sped up her horse to a slow run.

Aliana followed suit.

Despite riding swiftly, the trip around the town took longer than expected. They were forced to make a detour deeper into the forest when they almost crossed paths with a search team the was combing the area. Aliana was certain they would be caught, but by the grace of the gods, they escaped.

By the time they went past the town, it had been almost four hours since their original escape. Aliana was barely managing to stay awake and even the tireless Iora could feel drowsiness threatening her.

She pulled out her map in an attempt to wake up. "Your highness," she whispered, slowing her mare's speed down to a slow walk, "would you like to see the map?"

Aliana blinked slowly and shook her head to clear out the sleep. "What?"

Iora held out the rolled up paper for her. "The map. Would you like to see where we are going?"

Aliana took it and unrolled it. It was an elaborate drawing of the entire kingdom, complete with every road, mountain range, and stream. In the eastern corner, Aliana located Corrington Castle and, right next to it, the capital city of Westray; It was the city the had just avoided. Not too far past Westray, the road entered into a three-way split, like Iora had said it would.

The guard leaned over and pointed at the northern road, which would lead them to the Frozen Lands. "We will follow the road across the kingdom," her nimble finger traced the road halfway across the map and stopped at the base of a mountain range, "and take refuge in the Obsten Mountains. Few people live there, and the ones that do keep to themselves. No one will suspect us."

"How long will this trip take?"

"It has been many years since I have traveled to or from my homeland. If I must say, I would guess two to three weeks, or at least no more than a month."

Aliana shivered involuntarily. "By then, winter will be breathing down our necks. I have heard so many tales of wretched, freezing winters in the Frozen Lands."

Iora rolled her eyes. "Those stories told by the councilmen are gross exaggerations of the truth and serve only to scare people away. Although the winters where I am from can be harsh, they are not a death sentence. This region is the safest for us as the moment, thanks to the bitter relations it has with the rest of the kingdom. We shall be fine."

The Frozen Lands were the newest addition to the kingdom, having been added only a century and a half ago. The people in those lands were stubborn and independent, and hated listening to the rules set by the government. The council had decided long ago that, as long as the people in the region paid the taxes, they were to be left alone.

It wasn't long before the women reached where the crossroads were. They remained far enough away where they could barely see the torches and lanterns of the soldiers as they traveled the road.

Pointing to her right, Iora said, "We will stay in the woods for the rest of the night. The further we travel the road, the fewer people will be on it. The soldiers we see now are headed most likely for Barston." Barston was another major town along the southern route. It was where Aliana, had she not had Iora to guide her, probably would have fled; it was the most reasonable direction.

Aliana nodded. She lightly slapped her cheek to wake herself up. Gripping Avenger's reins, she steeled her nerves. "I am ready to go to the Frozen Lands."

"Good," Iora nodded. "Let us hurry." She steered her mare sharply to the right and picked up the pace. Aliana followed suit.

The two had officially begun the quest to the north.