Axle was so absorbed in his conversation with Powder that he didn't notice the sky beginning to lighten outside the barred windows. It had turned from black to grey to a pale pink when he heard hoof-steps and the clicking of keys against armor at the top of the dungeon stairs.
"The guards!" he gasped. They both stood up and glanced at the stairs as a pony's shadow appeared at the top. "Go!" he whispered anxiously at Powder, "Don't let them catch you in here!" Axle looked back at the stairs as a second shadow appeared and two voices could be heard.
Powder nodded and her horn lit up to wink away. The she stopped and put a hoof on Axle’s muscular shoulder, attracting his attention. He held her gaze for a brief second that seemed like an hour. "Good luck," she whispered and gave him a brave smile. Her horn lit up once again and the next instant, she was gone, just as the guards rounded the corner of the stairs.
One guard quietly entered the cell and placed a yolk type of collar over his head. The collar was held on with two chains that reach under his ribcage and around his backside, making the collar fairly heavy and restricting his movement, but at least it didn't irritate his rope burns from the night before. Axle was led out of his cell and each guard took up a chain to his left and right. Two other royal guards with sashes appeared and took up flank behind him. He was led out the back entrance and up the stairwell.
He took a deep breath when the fresh air hit his lungs. It felt so good compared to the dank dungeon air. When they reached the top of the stairs, he squinted and paused a moment in the bright sunlight. The morning was far more advanced than he'd realized.
All four guards paused with him and allowed his eyes to adjust. When they continued, they walked slowly, knowing his movement was restricted. They never pulled or taunted him like the guards the night before, and they never said a word. The entire procession was done with much solemnity and ceremony.
As they came around to the front of the castle, he saw a crowd gathered around a gallows, and his heart sank. He walked with his head down and his world seemed to darken by degrees. At first he assumed it was his imagination, but he looked up and saw that dark somber clouds had moved in, blocking the bright sun. He frowned and wondered where they had come from; it was bright blue sky when he first walked out of the dungeon.
A few steps closer to the gallows and Axle began to feel cold drops on his back. He looked up once more to see the rain, and was shocked to see fluffy white snow falling. He glanced at the guards, who seemed just as surprised. One held out his hoof perplexed, and the others simply looked at each other in bewilderment.
After a moment's pause, the procession continued again towards the gallows. Presently, a chill biting wind picked up, pushing away the friendly summer breeze. The crowd began to disperse, running for shelter from the unseasonable weather. The closer the group got to the gallows, the harder the snow fell. Now instead of light fluffy flakes, it came down in torrents, surrounding them and engulfing them.
It was a full blizzard, but the guards were determined. They lowered their heads against the wind and continued to lead Axle up the wooden steps of the gallows. But as soon as Axle put a hoof on the level deck, a strong gust of wind shook them. The wooden floor beneath him trembled. One of the armored guards in front on him slipped on the sheet of ice quickly forming on the deck.
A pony in the crowd screamed as the first plank of wood snapped in two. The floor rumbled again and another gust of wind blew the entire gallows to the ground.
What was left of the crowd now ran in fear. Screams and whinnies were heard above the howl of the wind as the chaos ensued. The snow was so thick, no one could see where they were going. The noise was deafening, and the confusion escalating.
Axle picked himself up from the pile of wood that remained of the gallows. He noticed the chains attached to the collar had snapped in the fall, and he quickly pushed the collar off his neck with one hoof. Without stopping to look back, he took off at a full run, determined to get out of town.
The further he got from the vicinity of the woodpile, the wind began to die down and the snow began to clear. From behind a tree in the distance, Powder saw Axle running free among the crowd and smiled to herself at her success. She took one last look at him, unsure when she might see him again, before she winked out, unnoticed by any in the stampeding crowd.
Axle's hooves pounded as he weaved between the ponies. Some screamed and some fainted when they saw him running free. He noticed all the attention he was attracting and decided he did not want to run through town. It was much better to go through the forest incognito.
He turned his head to his right and pivoted on his back hooves, but he failed to notice the rope sailing over his head from the left. It tightened just as he took off to run the opposite direction. He was thrown off balance and landed with a thud on the hard frozen ground.
He shook his head to clear it, and was about to stand up again when a pony placed a hoof on his shoulder. He looked up at the red guard from the night before. The pony sneered at him and leaned his weight on his shoulder, forcing Axle back to the ground.
"Back to the dungeon with you," the guard said with distaste. Several other guards now ran up and surrounded the pair. Axle sighed and laid his head back on the cold ground, knowing resistance was futile.