The forest felt different now—darker, heavier. Each rustling branch seemed to whisper of something unseen, and every shadow felt like it was watching. The men in black had taken Artemis, and once again, Arterios and Maria were left in the aftermath of failure.

Arterios stood in the center of the clearing, his eyes scanning the forest as though he could still see the men who had taken his sister. His jaw clenched tight, his posture rigid with frustration. Maria watched him from a distance, her own anger simmering just beneath the surface, but there was something more. A coldness. Fear. For the first time since they’d set out on this journey, she wasn’t sure where to go next.

“We’ve lost her again,” Arterios muttered, though it wasn’t a question.

Maria nodded slowly, her heart sinking. The weight of the situation was crushing. They had barely started to close the gap between them and Artemis, and now they were back to square one. Every plan, every step they had taken, felt futile in the face of this unknown enemy.

“What now?” she asked, her voice betraying her uncertainty despite her best efforts to sound confident.

Arterios exhaled sharply. He wasn’t one for doubt, but the situation was beginning to feel hopeless. His gaze lingered on the trail that Artemis had been dragged down, but there was no sign of pursuit, no clue that could point them in the right direction.

“We follow them,” he said finally, his voice steady but edged with frustration. “We can’t wait for another opportunity. They’re getting too far ahead.”

Maria swallowed, trying to push back the fear rising in her chest. She couldn’t afford to let it show, not in front of Arterios. Not when he needed her to be strong. But there was something in his eyes—a storm building beneath the surface—and she wasn’t sure how much longer he could keep it under control.

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“But how?” she asked quietly. “They’ve covered their tracks too well.”

Arterios’s eyes flickered to hers, a rare moment of vulnerability passing between them. He was no stranger to the art of tracking, and yet even he seemed at a loss for how to proceed.

“We’ll find a way. We have no choice,” he said firmly, though the doubt in his voice was impossible to miss.

Maria nodded again, though she wasn’t sure she believed him. How long could they keep chasing shadows? How many more days would they spend searching, hoping for a break that might never come?

Arterios turned away, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword as if he were already readying himself for whatever was to come. Maria hesitated, her thoughts heavy with the weight of their task.

They had no leads. No allies. Just the two of them and the endless road ahead.

“I don’t think we’ll make it in time,” Maria said quietly, more to herself than to Arterios. But she wasn’t so sure anymore. Maybe they wouldn’t.

But there was still a flicker of hope—no matter how small. Artemis was still alive. And as long as that was true, Maria couldn’t give up.

Arterios turned back toward her, his face a mask of determination. “We will,” he said. “And we’ll uncover what’s really happening. Whoever’s behind this... they won’t get away with it.”

Maria could see the fire in his eyes, the promise in his words. She almost believed him.

But the truth was, neither of them knew how long this journey would take, or how many dangers lay ahead. For now, all they could do was keep moving forward. One step at a time.

--

Maria's Perspective:

It doesn’t feel real.

I couldn’t wrap my head around it. The men in black came, took Artemis, and vanished like ghosts. They were supposed to be closer—closer to finding her—but now, it felt like we were miles away, no closer than when we first started.

We were so close.

But those words didn’t mean anything anymore. We were close, yes, but close like someone reaching for a dream that only slips further away the more they try to grasp it. Artemis was still out there somewhere, but how could we find her when the path kept fading before our eyes?

What are we even doing here?

I wanted to scream. I wanted to shake off this overwhelming sense of helplessness. But the truth was, nothing made sense anymore. Arterios was still leading the way with his usual determination, but I could see the cracks. The tension in his shoulders, the clench of his jaw. Even he was starting to fray at the edges.

What if we don’t find her?

The thought hit me like a ton of bricks. I couldn’t ignore it. We didn’t have enough to go on. They were too careful. Too fast. What if Artemis was already beyond our reach, lost to us for good?

But I can’t give up.

The thought broke through the cloud of doubt. I couldn’t stop now. I couldn’t leave her out there, alone. No matter how uncertain the road ahead was, no matter how dark it felt, I had to keep going. I had to believe we could still find her.

I took a deep breath, trying to push aside the fear

gnawing at me. We had to keep moving forward. We had no choice.