Three days later the team set up camp in a small clearing a few yards from the trail. After making a fire, they sat and considered their plan.
Skyler looked around at the trees. "Guys, I feel like we're being watched."
"Really? So do I," Arianna stood.
"We had better check the perimeter," Caleb rose to his feet and headed into the woods.
The girls followed, branching off in different directions.
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A burly man in a long hooded black cloak ducked into the bushes as a girl with long light brown hair snuck into the trees to the left of him. She appeared to be a young elf around the age of sixteen. With a mischievous smirk, he retreated to a patch of thickly clustered trees.
"Sir. There are two elvin girls encamped in this area. We must have missed them while we were in the village somehow."
"Well, it seems fate is on our side. Bring them to me. From here we'll take them to the nearest outpost. One with a dungeon that has room to spare." All eight men around him took off into the woods to apprehend their prey.
————
In the woods, Skyler found nothing and decided to head back to camp. When she reached the dying fire, she picked up an armful of wood and placed it on the smoldering embers.
Later, Caleb emerged from the trees.
"Find anything?" he asked.
"No. Did you?" Skyler replied.
"Nope," he responded.
"Hey, have you seen Arianna? She should've been back by now," Skyler pointed out.
————
"I should probably get back," Arianna thought to herself. She turned to leave when suddenly, eight men cloaked in black dropped from the trees and surrounded her.
"Keep quiet and come with us." A large hand grabbed Arianna from behind.
"Never," Arianna kicked her legs and wiggled violently, but that only made her captor squeeze tighter. The air whooshed out of her and she was left limp and breathless.
"Take her away." A grin formed across his face, somehow visible in the dark. A hand clamped over Arianna's mouth and a large man dragged her away.
————
"Arianna!" Skyler yelled into the woods.
"Arianna!" Caleb shouted.
"I don't see her and if she were near by she would've answered," Skyler pointed out. They had been searching for almost a half-hour and they hadn't found any sign of where Arianna had gone.
"I think we should call it a night," Caleb suggested, rubbing his eyes.
"No! We need to keep looking," Skyler looked genuinely exhausted.
"We need to sleep. If she's not back tonight we'll find her in the morning." Caleb wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
"Fine, we'll do it your way," Skyler agreed, allowing Caleb to turn her around. They trudged back through the foliage, defeated.
————
After awhile, the squad of strange men split up, going in opposite directions. Five men turned and started back towards the camp. The three men that remained with Arianna stopped in a cluster of tall trees. A man stood waiting for them. Four shadewing, small black dragons with powerful magic that allowed them to manipulate shadows, crept out of the darkness. Soon Arianna dangled in mid-air from the talons of a shadewing. Having given up on the thought of escape, Arianna hung almost limply from the Shadewing. She felt like she had been hanging there forever.
Suddenly, the shadewing dove, making a rather rough descent. Arianna felt her stomach in her throat as they dropped below the clouds. She greedily gulped down fresh, full air then she held her breath. On the horizon, a large dark silhouette jutted up against the dusk - one of Ronan's outposts.