True, I wasn't sure landing on the ground had done any great favors either, but at least I was still alive and mostly unharmed.
As I struggled to my feet, using the giant rock for support, I did a quick mental and physical assessment. My head throbbed mercilessly, a familiar sensation that I had grown accustomed to. My magic, usually a comforting presence in my chest, now felt strange and twisted, like a kicked puppy trying to find its way back home. But at least it was still there, pulsing faintly.
A sharp sting on my leg caught my attention as I noticed a jagged scratch that was partially concealed by the gaping rip in my pants. My right wrist throbbed with tenderness, likely from trying to break my fall. Every breath I took accompanied a dull ache in my chest, but it wasn't enough to make me think any of my ribs were broken.
Despite the pain coursing through my body, I was relieved to realize that I would probably live through this ordeal.
I narrowed my eyes against the fading light, turning towards the distant voices. I strained to catch their words, trying to make sense of the unfamiliar language.
The sun, which had been high in the sky when I was captured by the bird, now sank low on the horizon, casting the world in a hazy golden glow. The last remnants of the sun seeped from the sky, painting it in deep purples and oranges.
Over the last day or so, I had been unconscious for nearly all of it, something that Ehuna would never let me live down if I managed to get back to her.
No, don't think like that.
I shuffled toward the voices, hating that the only hiding place I could see was in their direction. I wanted nothing more than to turn on my heel and run, but right now, that was a terrible option. Not only was I in too much pain to move quickly, I also had no idea where I was, nor did I think my mind was up to figuring it out.
The best thing for me to do would be to hunker down here for the night and try to find my way back in the morning, or hope that my magic would settle down enough that I could try to call for help. Unfortunately, that meant I would have to shelter near whoever was out there, and I was not entirely sure I could hide from them for long.
But I had to try.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, tall trees swayed in a gentle breeze. The deciduous leaves glowed with vibrant sunset hues—saffron yellow, burnt orange, and deep sienna red. It was as if they were lit from within, ready to burst into flames at any moment. The evergreens stood stoic and dark amongst the fiery display of colors, their olive and pine branches outlined in soft gold. As the darkness crept in, the shadows at the base of the trees grew deeper and more ominous.
Two figures in shimmering blue and gold Montrose—our enemies—helmets stalked through the trees, leaving me scrambling for cover. I shuffled behind the giant rock, my scratched leg protesting. Hardly the best hiding place available in a forest as big as this, but they were already close enough that I didn't have much choice.
Their voices were not overly loud, certainly not loud enough for me to understand what they were saying, but I could tellthat they were both female. Not that that meant anything, other than my magic perking up with interest, which made me flush. Surely I was not so desperate that I would be attracted to some random woman in the forest, although I had a bad feeling that was exactly the case.
I needed more friends, or more affection, because this was getting ridiculous.
One of the figures paused, her head lifting like a wolf catching a scent. I shrank farther behind the boulder, praying that she hadn't somehow caught sight of me.
The voices started up again, much closer, but I squinted as I realized something strange about the voices. There was onlyonevoice, made to sound like two.
The crunch of leaves sounded behind me. I whirled, my vision filling with the hilt of a gleaming sword.
Once again, everything went black.
Thankfully, the blackness didn't last long, or at least not as long as the last time. It seemed like only minutes before I came to again, my arms aching as I was dragged backward. My heels scuffed the ground as I struggled to get my feet under me, weakly trying to pull away. My head lolled backward in exhaustion, my body drained from the events of the last day.
Two helmeted figures led the way, their heads held high as they confidently navigated through a dimly lit hallway. The rough, calloused hands on my arms belonged to two towering men, both far larger and bulkier than me. Even at full strength, I doubted I could take them out.
My drained state left me feeling helpless. As if mocking me, my magic once again surged out of control beneath my skin, black lines swirling and pulsating beneath my gauntlets.
Neither of the men seemed to notice my crackling magic, their attention focused solely on navigating through the maze-like corridors of their stronghold.
"Captured by the enemy. I really do have the worst luck," I mused under my breath, more for myself than anyone else.
One of the men holding my arms yanked me sharply into a cell, and I hissed in pain, pulling one foot up just enough to make him stumble. His grip tightened on my arm, yanking so hard it felt like I was in the bird's grip again, before a voice behind us snapped a command I couldn't quite understand.
Thick, rusted chains dangled from one wall, glinting in the dim light of the cell. They seemed to sway slightly, as if they were alive and waiting for their next captive.
I shuddered, the stench of despair filling my nostrils. There was a small hole in the wall, but not large enough for me to see through as I was hauled toward the wall where the chains seemed to reach for me, dirty straw curling under my boot heels.
I wrinkled my nose, but I wasn't so distracted by the smell that I couldn't yank an arm free and jab my elbow into one of the men. He shouted, and the other one lunged. More flooded in through the cell door, and the next few minutes passed in a mess of struggling before I was finally overpowered and my gauntlets removed.
The chains clamped into place on my wrists, the cold metal biting into my skin, and I pulled a few times just to see if there was any give in them. I found a little but not much.
One of the guards yanked on a chain with a vicious smile, pulling my arms out to the sides so that nearly all of my weight hung from my wrists.
