115 A Distant Call From The Queen (1/2)

Fear is a better catalyst than motivation. That's what Karla learned as she saw the kidnapper approach her on the bridge. She knew she was nimble, quick on her feet. The kidnapper on the other hand was faster and stronger.

She had to find a way out of that predicament and quick; knowing that she was no match for him one on one. And so she jumped on the railing of the bridge and ran towards the other end of it. The kidnapper followed and tried to interject her.

Every time the beast stopped and tried to attack, she'd jump to the other railing and continue running. She knew that one attack could send her free falling off the bridge. But it was also harder for the kidnapper to attack her head on. These beasts were huge and fast, but they had no agility and could not face her standing on a railing.

As soon as Karla crossed the bridge she made her way towards the first building in sight; another tower as tall as the one she had just come out from. Inside, the building was dark and silent. She could hear the kidnapper hard on her heels and she had to make haste.

She ran upstairs towards the top of the tower. She had a plan in mind and it relied solely on her capacity to reach the top first. If she was to lose her life, she would've preferred it to be on her terms.

She assumed the stairs were aligned the same way as the ones in the previous tower. She had to make that gamble; the beast might have better eyesight than hers and could catch up with her at any moment.

She jumped on the wooden railings. As soon as her feet made contact with the old rotten wood, her feet flailed and she almost fell off. 'This is going to be a dangerous endeavor, but so be it.' She thought as she blindly jumped to the opposite side, throwing her arms forward, looking for a solid surface to hold on to.

Her hands made contact with wood and she found herself clutching the railing of the opposite staircase. Her assumption was confirmed and so she jumped again to the opposite side. She started climbing the tower one jump at a time zigzagging through the void in between the staircases.

She had gained a significant lead over her pursuer. In no time she reached the top of the tower. The conical roof stood imposing on top of her head, 'one last climb…. Come on, you can do it' she mentally screamed at herself. She could hear hurried footsteps approaching.

She had but few seconds to get her plan in motion. She saw the window on top. The stairs that used to lead to the attic on top were destroyed. She climbed and clutched every small crevice she could find on the wall and made her way towards the open window. As soon as she got out, she felt the fresh air slap her face and the wind almost blew her off balance.

She heard the kidnapper scream underneath. The beast tried hard to jump towards the window to no avail. Karla was out of breath. She was holding onto the window pane in order to keep her balance. She stood there and pricked her ears for any sign of movement inside the tower.

She didn't know for how long she hung from that window. The kidnapper had gotten bored of trying to climb towards the window and gave up. Karla chose to stay out there and wait long enough for her pursuer to be far away in order to get back inside the building.

From there, she managed to spot a road that took back towards Central Yharnam. This place was hidden from the masses sure, but from high up, one could see a way back towards the aqueducts. It didn't seem to be an easy way since the streets were crawling with monsters, possibly something worse than the kidnapper. But she had to make her way there and get back to Yharnam.

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