Harper awoke suddenly. Her entire body felt sore; the hard ground not doing her any favors. She was momentarily confused, before the events of the previous night came to her.


    Harper had run through the night. There were many close calls. In one particular instance she had been surrounded on three sides; she barely escaped, only one of her pursuers tripping in their haste providing an opening. None were meaningfully faster than her, and neither did any of them seem to possess an Alius that could run her down or track her


    One by one, she lost them. Eventually, after running for over an hour with no sign of pursuit, Harper slumped to the ground, against a tree. She only intended on catching her breath, but her fatigue was too overwhelming. Despite her feeble attempts to resist, she had fallen asleep.


    Harper looked down at the creature that had awoken her. Briar, who had somehow gotten out of his pouch, stood on her breast. He was staring at her intently.


    She sighed. “I don’t have any food for you, Briar. All the supplies were in the saddlebags.” The thorny devil did not respond, only staring at her.


    She sat up; it was time to get moving. It was still early morning; she couldn’t have slept for much more than a couple hours. Now that it was getting light enough to reliably follow tracks, she expected her hunters to be after her. She was fortunate they hadn’t found her already, but she needed the rest.


    The courier climbed to her feet. She needed to get back to civilization and alert the Governor. Hiding her relation to her uncle was no longer an option. He had proven hostile. With the benefit of hindsight, it was obvious that this was his doing.


    The most obvious piece of evidence was the man who she saw both in her uncle’s plantation and hunting her. The next was how long she had to wait for her uncle’s letter. Keeping her there for so long ensured plenty of time for the ambushers to prepare and drastically decreased the chance of witnesses on the road.


    She still found it puzzling. Harper spent the majority of the time in a closed room. She would have seen her uncle at the same time he saw her. She supposed that someone, either the servant girl or the man, Pelman, she thought his name was, could have remarked on her appearance.


    The platinum blonde hair she and her mother possessed was not a common trait. She’d be surprised if such a description didn’t immediately remind him of his sister and niece. Still, it was not a trait exclusive to them, and it seemed silly to think that the man would send hunters after her for that alone.


    It doesn’t matter, she decided. The most important thing at the moment was getting back to Mentril. She was still in danger, if not from her ambushers, then from the forest’s fauna. The faster she was behind the stout walls of the city, the better.


    Harper climbed to her feet, setting Briar back into his pouch. He was heavy enough at this point that lugging him around would have been impractical if not for her Domain and core. He didn’t seem inclined to wander off on his own; perhaps she should let him walk alongside her more in the future.


    She put the matter out of her mind. Harper put her foot forward, before she paused. She had no idea which direction to go. All she knew was that she was somewhere northeast of Mentril. She wasn’t even sure which direction she had fled off the road.


    Finding a rough compass was a simple matter, she climbed one of the nearby trees, checking the sun’s position. With that, she began jogging in what she estimated was southwest. She’d run into a road eventually, and getting back from there would be easy.


    Stopping only to relieve herself and load her gun, Harper alternated between jogging and walking. She found a few creeks that enabled her and Briar to slake their thirst, but nothing to sate their hunger.


    Well, she did find an anthill and let Briar devour the colony, but was not hungry enough to partake herself. There were also several berry bushes along the way. She wished she paid more attention when Amelia or Vayuhn pointed out which were edible; she didn’t think it would ever matter.


    It was nearing dusk again before she found a road, and fortunately one she recognized. Harper looked at the setting sun, grimacing. The chances that her ambushers were roaming the roads were low, but not impossible. Backtracking, Harper retreated half an hour from the road. Finding a sheltered spot, she built herself a modest shelter.


    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    She debated whether or not she should sleep. The most dangerous creature she had encountered thus far was a particularly aggressive badger. She had given it a wide berth, and it let her pass without conflict.


    She turned her head back, toward where she had come from. It was also possible she was being tracked, though the uneventful day made her think the possibility unlikely. Ultimately, she decided that sleep wasn’t worth the risk. Exhausted or not, she was fit and bolstered by her Domain. She’d be fine.


    Harper settled down to wait out the night. The exiled noble sat there, completely miserable. She did her best to ignore everything. The hunger, anxiety, soreness, bruises, and lingering fits of pain from her failed duel the previous month.


    For the first time since she had smashed the primavis core her parents had given her, Harper felt regret for the action.


    Even right after doing so and facing her parent’s ire, she didn’t really regret it.


    Even when she arrived in Vanax, she didn’t regret it.


    Even when she had nearly died on her first hunt, she didn’t regret it.


    Even when she woke up humiliated and in pain after her Alius death, she didn’t regret it.


    She regretted it now.


    Harper could never recall feeling more miserable. Her hard-earned Alius was gone, needing to be regrown. Her horse was dead. She was still no closer to the Aerial Domain then she was a year ago.


    Harper just wanted to go home. In that moment, she forgot her pride. If she could, she would beg to come back home. She would promise to be content with her lot and spend the rest of her life in the background, watching over her family’s accounts. Ambition was set aside for comfort. Glory set aside for safety. Freedom set aside for stability.


    The morning did not come quickly. She had nearly dozed off a dozen time, resorting to splashing some water on her face from the nozzle on her ring. She had refilled it in one of the creeks they had stopped to drink at.


    After what felt like an eternity, Harper stood up. It was once again light enough of to see where she was going. She made her way to the road, following in the foliage alongside it. After a few hours, she felt confident enough to get on the road.


    After walking for a while, she heard the sounds of hoofbeats behind her. Harper’s heart leapt to her throat and she spun around, preparing to dash off the road. A lone rider in a cloak was making his way down. He had definitely already seen her.


    Harper calmed herself down. He didn’t look like any of those chasing her, and was making no aggressive moves. Still, Harper set one hand on the hilt of her sword and the other on her flintlock. It was long since loaded and ready to be fired at a moment''s notice. Dangerous to carry around perhaps, but she wasn’t taking any chances.


    The rider slowed as he approached. The man held up a hand and called out. “I mean no harm. Are you alright?”


    Harper realized how her own position looked. She was tensed and ready to fight at a moment’s notice; she was covered in filth and blood. Her hair looked like a rat’s nest. There were leaves and small sticks tangled within that Harper hadn''t cleaned out yet.


    Harper relaxed her stance marginally. “I’m fine. I had gotten ambushed on the way to Bornel and barely escaped. I’m one of the Governor’s couriers."


    The man nodded. “I recognize you. When you didn’t turn up two days ago at your scheduled time, we thought you must have gotten held up somewhere. When you still hadn’t arrived this morning, I was sent back.”


    The man got down from his horse, keeping his hands open. Realizing that she had slid an inch of her sword out of its sheath, Harper took her hand off her weapons and pointedly held them at her sides.


    Studying the man, she found him familiar. “Ah you work in the stables.”


    He nodded. “I’m in charge of them. My name’s Leon.” He held out his hand.


    “Harper,” she returned, and shook his hand. She gestured to his horse. “Can you take me to Mentril? I urgently need to see the Governor.”


    He nodded as if this was expected, and she supposed it was. At her request, he gave her some rations to eat on the ride there, and they were off.


    Despite the circumstances, Harper felt a bit awkward wrapping her arms around a near stranger. The saddle didn’t do any favors for her sore body either. It beat walking though.


    They arrived at Mentril in the late afternoon. A wave of relief flowed through Harper once they passed the city walls. Unlikely it may have been, the fear of being ambushed again had only grown stronger as the day wore on, not weaker.


    They went straight to the city hall. While her news couldn’t exactly be called pressing, it was still best to tell the Governor as soon as possible. The faster she alerted him, the less time those responsible for her ambush would have to cover their tracks.


    “Where is everyone?” Leon asked.


    Harper turned her attention outwards. She hadn’t noticed, too preoccupied with her own troubles. The streets were far emptier than they should have been at this time of day. Some people were still going about their business, but they walked hurriedly, not stopping to chat with others as she would expect.


    They turned a corner and a patrol of guards was making its way down the street. Noticing them, and Harper’s state in particular, they were stopped and questioned. Her uniform, tattered though it was, was enough proof that she was a courier and they were let through relatively quickly.


    Before they continued, they queried about the state of the city. The guards told them of an incident the previous night. An attack by a terrorist group. While the name meant nothing to Leon, she recognized it instantly.


    The Unshackled. They were back, and they were in Mentril.