K.A. Vandlyn
Dark clouds swallowed the sun and a wind howled as snow drifted down, littering the ground. A maroon carriage with gold accents tore through the mountains as the coachman snapped the whip against the horses’ backs, forcing them to run faster and faster. The carriage’s wheels spun uncontrollably, jumping over cracks and rocks as they rode through a narrow path, with the cliff biting at the edges of the wheels. A man and a woman, dressed in fine clothes and golden crowns, held each other close as they huddled in the corner.
Behind the carriage, three riders, wearing black masks covering everything but their eyes, chased after them on horses as dark as the sky.
The coachman looked behind him. The riders, being much lighter than the luxurious carriage, were gaining on them. He snapped his whip again and the horses neighed, setting off at lightning speed. His cap flew backward off his head and fell down the cliff. Inside the carriage, the man cupped the woman’s cheeks as a tear slid down her face. Placing a kiss on her forehead, the man wrapped his arms around her as she began to sob. He muttered in her ears, his own voice betraying him as it cracked.
One rider urged his horse faster, nearing the back of the carriage. Letting go of the reins, he launched himself on top of the carriage, his fingers grasping onto the gold. The coachman’s eyes widened, looking over his shoulder as the rider crawled over the carriage towards him. The carriage swerved and the coachman was forced to turn forward. He pulled on the reins to set the horses straight, but the horses, sensing their driver’s growing panic, panicked as well. They neighed, thrusting their heads back.
A hoof stumbled in a crack, a wheel jumped over a rock, and the carriage tilted to its side over the cliff.
The other two riders reined their horses to a stop as a resounding boom echoed through the mountain range. Squinting down through the fog, they saw the carriage in splinters, its door dented and wheels sticking out of orbit. The coachman lay some feet away, his neck twisted, and the passengers’ upper bodies lay buried under the carriage. The horseback rider, who had fallen with them, had cracked his skull on a rock and laid near the still horses. Blood pooled around their bodies. The wind howled and snow drifted over the ruins. No one moved; no one stirred.
The two riders left on top of the mountain exchanged glances before setting off west, leaving behind the ruins…the tragedy…the accident.
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