Black Forest: Kingdoms Fall (Black Forest Trilogy)

by LaShea, Riley

  "Stop!" Rapunzel screamed, but Cinderella heard the pull of a half-dozen trained swords.

  "What did you do?" King Balten questioned, the tears in his eyes mismatched to his merciless grip.

  "I failed to obey," Cinderella confessed in a rush, breaking under the king's pain, one more person who suffered the consequence of her decision. "I was a slave in my life, and when Grimm's rescue came, I did not want his rescue. I wanted to feel and to believe and to know that something was real. So I fled, and I entered Rapunzel's story and ripped her from it, and then Snow White's and the dwarves', and Ruth's and George's and Caratasa's. Red. Christophe. Sawyer. Jack. I did this. I am why you suffer now, why he has taken your family, why he has taken everyone from these people. I have caused the stories to bleed, the kingdoms to fall. I am why Grimm comes for us."

  Staring upon her with eyes she could not read, King Balten tried to find comprehension in her sudden outburst. "This man, he is a king?"

  "No." Cinderella shook her head, tears flinging against her cheeks. "He is more of a... a creator."

  "He did all of this?" the king questioned.

  "He has done what he has done for the sake of his stories," Cinderella tried to explain. "I am sure you would have reunited with your family if it were not for me."

  "After his deceit. After I was made, for seven years, to search for her." King Balten's anger grew, but hold weakening on Cinderella's neck, it did not feel as directed toward her. "This opening of the kingdoms, you caused this?"

  As King Balten finally released her, Rapunzel rushed to Cinderella, arms wrapping around her waist to provide support Cinderella did not realize she so badly needed.

  "I was trying only to elude a prince," she replied.

  "And liberated an entire land," King Balten breathed.

  Growing weaker in Rapunzel's arms, Cinderella did not know how to respond to the absurd declaration.

  "And now..." King Balten stepped forward, coming to an abrupt stop as Rapunzel pulled Cinderella away from him. "You run from this creator?"

  "Now, we fight him," Cinderella returned weakly. "For he will never let us live free as long as he remains."

  "And this..." King Balten looked around the clearing. "This is your army?"

  "Yes," Cinderella replied. "We are all that remain."

  "Wenn." King Balten motioned the interrogator forward, and Cinderella expected another arrest, to feel chains around her wrists and ankles for upsetting the master's plan. "Send my men in all directions," King Balten ordered. "Find those you can, and tell those who are able they are called to battle at the order of the King of Bellerop."

  "Done, Your Majesty," the interrogator replied at once, and King Balten's troop scattered at an astonishing pace, disappearing back into the trees before Cinderella could even think.

  "You are helping us?" Rapunzel questioned.

  "I am a king," King Balten declared. "As a rule, we do not like to learn we are under the control of another." Eyes moving back to Cinderella, his authority faltered. "I am sorry for your treatment."

  "I am sorry for your wife and son," Cinderella returned, and, with a nod, King Balten accepted the accord.

  "Ah, if men did but know what we know." The voice carried into the clearing, and Cinderella went still in Rapunzel's arms.

  "If men did know, if men did know," a second voice called to her, and, freeing herself from Rapunzel's embrace, Cinderella followed the voices to the cliff's edge, body breaking out in chills as she neared the drop into the canyon below.

  "Grimm awaits the challenge," the voice went on, and Cinderella peered over the edge to see the feathers of two crows black against the protruding roots on which they sat. "Awaits it in the place that turns you contrary and fills you with fear. You know the one."

  "If men did but know what we know," the bird cawed again.

  "If men did but know what we know," the second echoed.

  "The queen has a plan, a most malicious plan. In the end, she will have what she wants."

  "...will have what she wants."

  "And the giant will take care of Grimm in the end."

  "...take care of Grimm, he will."

  "If men did know..."

  "If men did know what we know."

  In a whisk of dark wings, the crows lifted off the roots and flew across the canyon, and Cinderella tipped dizzily forward, until sturdy arms pulled her back from the ledge.

  "He is here," she whispered.

  "Already?" Christophe rose from the ghost of the Juniper tree.

  "Can we not wait for my men?" King Balten queried.

  "He can do much damage to us from afar," Cinderella replied, patting Jack on the chest in thanks as he ensured she could stand on her own. "We should not wait."

  "They will not know where to march," King Balten stated.

  "We can send word to them," Cinderella said. "As it was sent to us."

  Wanting to leave Grimm no time for his trickery, she went to the cart in which Snow White remained unconscious of all the changes in their world, unable to determine if her condition was curse or blessing.

  "Someone must stay with her." Rapunzel came up beside her.

  "Norco and Togo?" Cinderella requested.

  "Yes, of course." Norco solemnly nodded. "We shall protect her with our lives."

  "I do not doubt that." Cinderella managed a small smile.

  "And Angelina, will she be safe here?" Gurr asked.

  "Yes," Cinderella returned, making the uneasy bargain with Gurr. "Norco and Togo are very helpful. Would you like to stay here, Red?"

  "No, I would not like to stay here!" Stace jumped to her feet. "I would like to find my mum and gram."

  Tone less than civil, Cinderella forgave it in light of the circumstances.

  "Here," Rapunzel said, indicating a patch of weeds, tall enough to hide Snow White and Angelina from view should anyone stumble into the clearing.

  Coming at once to the task, Jack slipped his arms beneath Snow White, lifting her over the cart's edge, as, too interested in the goings on, Chauncy rushed up to watch. Tripping over the unexpected obstacle, Jack lost his balance, hefting Snow White onto his shoulder as he struggled to right himself.

  "Whoa, all right there?" Sawyer reached out to keep them from falling, but it was not Jack who responded.

  It was a cough, so small and delicate, it might well have been a trick of the wind, if not for the bit of apple that suddenly propelled past Snow White's lips to land without sound in the grass below.

  Coming to realize the girl in his arms was not as half-dead as she had been, Jack knelt upon the grass, laying Snow White at his knees, and Cinderella and Rapunzel pushed through those gathered, dropping down next to Snow White as the dwarves pushed in at their backs.

  "Snow White?" Rapunzel timidly called, and Snow White gave a most relaxed sigh as her eyes fluttered open.

  "Hello," she said softly, stretching as if she had woken from the best slumber of her life.

  "Hi," Cinderella returned in amazement.

  Scanning her surroundings, Snow White seemed rather alarmed by the number of people standing over her, clutching at her chest as if worried she was exposed. "What is going on?"

  "Well," Cinderella uttered, glancing up to ensure Gurr was nowhere in sight. "A very long story, very short. You were under a sleeping spell of your stepmother, who is now on our side. We think. We are all under the control of a man named Grimm, who wants to return us to our own lives and stories, whatever he determines those shall be, and, due to that, we are sort of... at war."

  "War?" Snow White sat up so quickly, Cinderella had to rear back to prevent collision. "How long have I been asleep?

  "Five days," Cinderella returned.

  "Five days!" Snow White cried. "And war broke out?"

  "As I said, it is a very long story," Cinderella replied. "But you need not worry about that now. You should rest. Norco and Togo, they will stay with you. They will keep you safe, I assure you."

  "Rest?" Sn
ow White laughed, her hand on Cinderella's arm pulling her to a stop as she attempted to rise. "I have been asleep for five days. I should say I have rested enough. If you are all going to war, I am going to war."

  Surprise fading quickly to a smile, Cinderella clasped Snow White's arm, and, with Jack at the other arm, they pulled Snow White to her feet.

  "Someone give the lady a weapon," Cinderella uttered, and the dwarves rushed forward to supply her with her choice of wares. Smiling, Snow White accepted their hugs at her legs, smacking Esteban's hand when it wandered into private territory, and glanced up as Christophe, Sawyer and Jack offered her more suitable weaponry.

  Though she smiled broadly at each, clearly delighted with more than just the selection of weapons they supplied, her eyes held especially long upon Sawyer as he bowed respectfully before her.

  "My Lady," he greeted.

  "Hello," Snow White returned.

  It was as Rapunzel glanced toward her with a satisfied smirk that Cinderella remembered good surprises were not the only ones waiting for Snow White.

  "Oh, Snow White..." she started.

  "Snow White," Gurr's voice interrupted, and accepting the long knife from Christophe's hand, Snow White spun at once to meet him, her blade catching Gurr's hand as she met his gaze.

  Stepping back, Gurr looked anxiously upon her, and Snow White stared back at him with a distrust Cinderella had never seen on her.

  "That is what I wanted to tell you," Cinderella rushed to say. "He too is on our side, for there is more to the story than we knew."

  "So..." Snow White's hand looked surprisingly comfortable on the knife. "I am on the side of both people who tried to kill me? This must be some enemy."

  "He is," Cinderella declared.

  "Snow White," Gurr tried again. "I am so glad you are all right. I expect no forgiveness from you, for what I did is unforgivable. But I am sorry. I am so sorry."

  Taking a step forward, Gurr accepted the knife point against his stomach as he reached out a cautious hand, smiling as it stroked down Snow White's hair. When Snow White allowed the touch, as if she had known such affection from Gurr in the past, Cinderella realized how painful must have been his betrayal.

  Tossing the knife to the ground, Snow White rushed forward into him, and Gurr's arms closed around her. "I am so sorry, Snow White," he whispered. "I am so, so sorry."

  Not exactly surprised at Snow White's willingness to forgive, Cinderella was still amazed by it, and wondered if such a tendency was wise as, with a tug, she pulled Rapunzel away from the others.

  Glancing toward King Balten, who was making fast work of readying his mount nearby, Cinderella turned to Rapunzel with a heaviness of heart she could not lift. "The crows," she said, holding tightly to Rapunzel's hand. "They said the queen has a plan."

  "What kind of plan?" Rapunzel asked.

  "They did not say."

  "To help us?"

  "They did not say that either," Cinderella replied, watching the understanding set in on Rapunzel's face.

  "So, we do not know what the queen will do," she surmised quietly.

  "We do not know what the queen will do," Cinderella acknowledged. "But, apparently, the giant will have a part."

  "Well..." Rapunzel said, and that pretty much captured Cinderella's thoughts on the matter. "Are you going to tell them?"

  "That it may be a trap, and we may all die?" Cinderella returned. "Yes, I do not feel that is something I can keep from them. They have a right to stay behind." As Rapunzel nodded her agreement, Cinderella's eyes locked on the scrape on one high cheek bone, flesh ridged and raw, edges rimmed in purple, and wondered how many more marks she would be responsible for putting on Rapunzel's face. "As do you," she whispered, and blue eyes rose swiftly to her own. "I called this fight with Grimm, I began it, I..."

  Stepping suddenly forward, Rapunzel seized Cinderella's face, so she was forced to meet the steady blue gaze. "We," Rapunzel proclaimed. "It is 'we' now. It will be 'we' from now on."

  The voice pouring so softly from her lips, Cinderella swore she heard the song in it, and, tears slipping down her face, they felt nothing like weakness, but as if they fortified her as they ran. Threading her fingers through white-blonde hair, she pulled Rapunzel closer, lips pressing to those so soft they were a balm against all else in the world.

  Pulling away before she could get lost in them forever, Cinderella turned to the clearing, Rapunzel's hand sliding into hers giving her a confidence her past had never afforded her.

  "The crows said there is a plan," Cinderella declared. "It is the plan of the queen. I do not know her intention. I do not know if she is truly with us. When we go in, we go in not knowing. I do not care to return to Grimm's plan," she continued. "I do not care to lose what I have found. I choose it over any other life. If you want only to live, I trust you will be safer staying here. So, who is staying? For I should like to say goodbye."

  The quiet upon the clearing was so deep, Cinderella swore she heard the wind blowing through the needles of the missing Juniper tree, but there were no deserters.

  "Not one?" she asked in surprise.

  Stepping forward between Jack and Snow White, Christophe looked a different man, a determined man, as his hand flexed against the thin sword he had found amongst the dwarves' supply. "We have all lost," he said quietly. "But I believe we, like you, would like to keep what we have found."

  The truth of Christophe's words gazing back at her from every face, Cinderella did not know what else to say.

  "Ladies?" King Balten said when the silence ran long.

  "Only one of them is," Esteban sniggered, and, even in the midst of the greatest uncertainty, it brought a smile to most faces, including Cinderella's as she turned to the king.

  "Shall we ride?" he asked.

  "Yes." Cinderella nodded. "Let us ride."

  CHAPTER FORTY

  A Change of Heart

  Some light remained, against all sense, as their amateur brigade rode up to the black slick, but there was still an overwhelming darkness about the ring of land that surrounded the Gulf of Broken Dreams.

  "You must have been so scared," Rapunzel whispered, voice awed as she gazed over Cinderella's shoulder at the dark fall of liquid.

  "Not nearly as scared as I am now," Cinderella confessed, but she nudged their steed toward the black curtain anyway, listening to the echo of hoof beats as the others followed as if on command.

  Horse protesting as they started through the frigid curtain, Cinderella ran a tremulous hand against its neck and pressed her knees more firmly to its sides, offering comfort even as she compelled it into danger, which was all she could do for any of them.

  She had warned them of the Gulf's effects, what they might see, what they might feel as they rode, providing enough detail so that they might truly understand its horrors, and, yet, she knew she could not prepare them for it. Even having experienced it firsthand, she felt decidedly unprepared to endure those same tortures again.

  At last beyond the wall, Cinderella was surprised by the light inside, as if it was high-sun on the brightest of days, instead of dwindling into night. It gave the Gulf a deceptively pleasant appearance, which only increased Cinderella's fears. The dread pressing down upon her with the cold, though, the other horrors did not come, and the only hallucination, if it was hallucination, was Grimm, standing alone in the Gulf's core, watching without fear as they circled around him.

  His eyes observant, they waited for something more than they saw. Their suffering, Cinderella realized, as Grimm's eyes narrowed.

  "Who combated the effects?" he demanded.

  "Come now, Grimm," Cinderella smiled, though the uncertainty still weighed heavy upon her. "You, yourself, made Rapunzel the daughter of a great sorceress. You cannot tell me you expected no continuation of power."

  "But... but..." Grimm stammered. "She is not her real daughter."

  "Oh," Cinderella feigned shock. "I guess we do feel weakened then."

  At the
sudden quaking that shook the Gulf, true weakness came. Their horses tottering into each other, there were shouts as the riders fought to hold on. The mount that Christophe and Esteban shared lost its balance and fell, and they rolled across the Gulf floor.

  "Are you all right?" Rapunzel called out to them.

  "We are fine," Christophe said, helping Esteban to his feet and pulling his sword, ready for whatever came next.

  If Christophe was truly ready, he was the only one, Cinderella thought, as countless recognizable faces appeared in the trees. Brandishing swords and bows and arrows and daggers made of steel and leather, truer weapons than any their ragtag troop carried, save for King Balten's sword and the sword of Prince Salimen that longed to draw Grimm's blood at Cinderella's hip, more and more enemies poured in. That was when Cinderella realized, Grimm was surrounded, but so were they.

  Across the way, she watched the sorceress smile in wicked delight, as Prince Salimen and his guards flanked her on one side and Prince Friedrich stepped up at her other, but Queen Ino was nowhere in sight.

  A subdued chuckle issuing forth from Grimm, Cinderella's gaze snapped to him, and she wanted nothing more than to tear the grin from his face.

  "Feeling a bit... trapped?" he asked.

  "Are you?" she countered.

  "I feel well protected," Grimm assured her. "For I know something you do not know."

  "Oh, I am sure you know many things I do not know," Cinderella returned. "Methods of torture through the ages. How to persecute and irk without even trying. Being a prick, but avoiding the gallows: a layman's guide."

  Laughing easily as the earth shook with such brutality more horses toppled and several pained cries filled the air, Grimm seemed pleased at the consequence, and Cinderella did not dare pull her eyes from him to look for the victims.

  "Defiant and cutting to the end," Grimm said when the rumbling finally ceased.

  "Well, if I am going out," Cinderella declared. "I am doing so with style."

  "Going out?" Grimm looked honestly surprised at the statement. "Why would you think I even want that? You know my motivation has always been your happy ending."