He had no intention to get help, he grabbed some water from the lake and put it in his helmet before he ran to the forest. Even if someone found him, he would quickly make an excuse of getting lost while looking for the guard post and show the permission and explain the events. Luckily, nobody saw him and he sneaked behind the trees right beside the road. The road was probably leading to the capital. So he followed the road in darkness. From the information he got from Gustaw, he knew the main walls of the capital were 10 kilometers away, which would take 2 hours at this pace. He had the time until his absence was noticed; also, who would even care while everything was on fire? Not for now at least...
But there was a new problem... He was hungry, starving. The last meal he ate was the one he had this morning. And now it was late in the night, and he had to find food... But not now, his weak muscles were getting even more tired with the weight of armor and after a long run. With the addition of hunger, he didn't know how far he could go. But he had to keep going, 2 more hours at least. Then he could buy food with the money he stole... But what if people recognized him? Also, he couldn't wear this armor anymore. He was wearing the clothes he stole from the dead guard beneath the armor. Luckily, that would help him blend in, but he was still dirty. He couldn't enter anywhere with such a look and ask for food. He had to stop somewhere and clean himself quickly and get back on his way.
After an hour of walking, he noticed a pond! "Perfect" he thought. He quickly got rid of the armor and the undergarments and got into the water. He washed his entire body, scrubbing the dirt off his skin and revealing his pale tone. After that, he had to cut off his hair and get rid of the long unkempt beard and mustache. He always shaved himself before he was imprisoned; he hated having these because beards didn't fit with his face and it was itchy. Now, once again, he remembered how much he hated it. He quickly grabbed the small knife on the armor and carefully cut off his long hair, giving it a different style he had never used before, all for the sake of not being recognized. Then he turned his focus on the beard and mustache. He didn't have a razor so he had to be careful with this knife. He grabbed the long beard and cut it off, applying the same on each side of his face. Now it was time to get rid of the smaller pieces, the leftovers. He gently placed the knife on his face and hoped that it could work like a razor. And it did, like a very sharp razor. It left a few small cuts on his face, but in the end it cleaned his face. He washed off the blood with the water from the pond and got out of it. He brushed away the water from his hair and then his skin. He was still wet when he wore the clothes, sticking to his skin. He looked at his reflection on the pond. He looked so much different, he didn't know how much his face had matured in the last 12 months. His body was still skinny, but it had somehow managed to grow. He no longer had the childish, cheerful face he used to have; now he looked like a man.
The man's face on the reflection was white, with angular and pointed lines. The face reflected back from the surface of the pond was tired, half-shut eyes from exhaustion, etched with the weight of thoughts of sorrow. His dark hair fell down on his scarred face, covering his forehead. He had high cheekbones and a sharp jawline, highlight the scrawny quality of his features.
He rubbed his cheek while looking at his reflection and thought, "I have changed so much, I wonder if my mother and father would recognize me like this... If they were alive..." He was saddened once again. Every time he thought about the happy moments with his parents, he also remembered how he lost them... It was greater than any pain he had to endure during his torment. But he once again remembered that he had no time to waste. He had to keep going.
The horses in the prison were dead, but the guards on the shore still had their horses, and if they managed to put out the fire, then how long would it take them to realize "Waylen's" absence and look for him? Maybe they wouldn't even care, and they would occupy themselves with helping the survivors, if anyone survived, or saving the remaining supplies, if any supplies survived this fire. Regardless of what happened, he had to keep moving forward.
He turned his face away from the pond and looked at the armor set. He couldn't move with this, because of two reasons. First, it was too heavy and that would slow him down, especially because he was so hungry and had very little strength left. Second, if he was seen in this armor, people and men of the city watch would get suspicious about why on earth a prison guard was in the middle of the capital with his armor. With that in mind, he grabbed the armor set and threw it into the pond, but he kept the sword and the knife. The sword was a custom-crafted one, unlike the labeled ones in the army. So, no one would notice that it had been a guard's sword previously.
He drank some of the water from his helmet before throwing it away as well. But he needed a new bottle to carry water. That's when he remembered that he was in a forest full of pine trees. He quickly approached the deciduous trees first and grabbed a few leaves. When he grabbed the leaves, his eyes widened at the sight of something he craved... food... He saw apples! This was everything he could ever ask for at the moment! He missed apples so much that he quickly grabbed one, washed it, and took a bite. He moaned in satisfaction and said out loud, "Oh, it's so delicious!" He took another bite and then another, until he finished the whole apple. Then he grabbed another one and kept eating until he had four apple stalks in hand. He hid them over the tree branches, then went back to his mission.
First, he carved the pine tree and collected its rosin, then he grabbed the leaves and stuck them together with the rosin. Then, as the final touch, he grabbed a few boughs and stuck them around the leaves. He left a single hole on the top and covered it with a slice of cloth. Now he had a very primitive-style bottle to carry his water. He collected some water from the pond, making sure it wasn't dirty from his earlier bath, then covered the mouth of his bottle. He collected a few more apples and put them in a primitive pouch he prepared in a similar method. Now, he was ready to go.
He continued walking through the forest, keeping to the shadows beside the road rather than on it. After an hour, he reached a hill and finally caught sight of the capital.
The capital was the symbol of strength of the kingdom. High curtain walls, pierced by watchtowers, girded the city in a straight line, their shadows dark against the moonlight above. Inside, jostling rows of timber-framed houses occupied the lower wards, their steeped roofs and jutting upper floors leaning in over knotted cobbled streets. Lanterns flickered weakly here and there, but most of the city ruled in deep silence.
To the center, broader boulevards radiated, lined with guildhalls, manors of high borns, and a tall magnificent cathedral rising in the middle. Market squares, now vacant, showed but the bare contours of stalls which would revive with the dawn.
And above all, its greatest peak on the hill in the center of the city, stood the palace of the king. Built of white stone and capped with towers, it cast back the moonbeams from its gold-covered walls and roofs, a fortress and symbol of tyrannical authority in his eyes, visible from everywhere.
He went to the capital because he didn't know how to travel to the faraway parts of the kingdom and needed to ask for directions. He could have asked Gustaw, but it would have grown his suspicion even more. He could have tried to ask another guard or sergeant himself, but they would have brushed him off hostilely like they did earlier. The captain probably had a map in his office, but he couldn't enter there either. And since he hadn't seen a single soul since he escaped, his only choice was to go to the capital to buy a simple map or ask some merchants or mercenaries to aid him. But this was risky. First of all, how was he going to enter the capital without a permit? There were guards at the city gates. This was the kingdom's capital. How could he ever enter the most secure city in the entire kingdom without being detected? He could use the sewer system, which could be accessed through the outer walls without being seen, but how? He could get lost in those dark, disgusting tunnels and die in those filthy, piss-filled waters. Sneaking in behind a cart and entering? As if soldiers didn't check each cart… Except the ones carrying nobles, but no noble would take him in their cart, and honestly, he was still afraid of them. So, what then? Could he bribe the men guarding the city gates? What if it backfires and gets him arrested? Oh no, that's out of the question. Perhaps he could bribe a merchant to help him enter. But what if the merchant betrays him and sells him off? Every option is either risky or deadly… Either he will find a way to enter and gather enough information to complete his escape… or he will continue on his way without proper information and risk everything with ignorance.
Suddenly, he heard an unfamiliar voice behind his back. He turned his head back immediately and looked at the person. For a moment he was so scared that guards followed and found him. But luckily for him, it wasn't a guard.The man looked at him, calmly. He didn't know what to do as they both stared each other in silence for a moment.