The girl could no longer run from her chains, pulling her down as she tried to run.

She passed through countless trees, too many to count and there was no time after all. Her captors would come shortly after.

No matter where she sprinted, a wisp of fire would always follow, knowing she was already detected.

The rattling of armor soon meeting up to her ears.

Was this how she would die? Not without a fight!

She looked back astray from her path, a large trunk of a dead tree with its implanted roots created a massive blockade for her to hold out. But what could she do against two armored men with most likely murder weapons?

She shook her head and snapped out of her line of thought if she could find a way out before the mess could occur, she would use her final breath to survive.

Her surroundings began to change, a small light of hope in her eyes.

Just straight ahead was a depression where the topography changed if she got there just in time, she could potentially hide behind the trunks or in hollow logs away from their sights.

The pesky fire continues to burn within her sight, but they were dim enough if one didn't catch them within the first glance, it would be unnoticeable.

She took one final push and dashed through, slowly increasing the distance between the two groups.

How did she even get in this situation in the first place?

She was just a small town girl, the youngest of the three brothers and sisters she had running the family. Her personality was very rough and much like that of a boy that acts tough. But with the situation going on hand, she was nowhere near that. If not for the adrenaline rushing in her blood, she would grieve for her family.

Her feet blistered and tarnished from her efforts.

She managed to continue unto the depression of elevation with ease without stopping her sprint.

Just as planned, she went off into the sides where dead trees aligned and large rocks, the hollow trees almost painted out agonizing faces, the faces similar to that of her loved ones at their final moment. The screams one could imagine coming out of each their hollow.

She found a desiccated log of a cherrywood, a tree usually used during their Gold Leaf Festival every other year, smoking wide varieties of vegetables and a whole boar, which gives it a cherry fragrance once finished; Needless to say, it was the perfect match.

She crept in the log that must've taken ages to decay in its current state. The smell of dead cherries filled her nostrils and blinding her ability to smell and taste.

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She watched of what little vision she could have at the dead of night. The metallic plates of the men caused a great ruckus as they tried to catch up.

However they began to slow down, her breath became heavy as if there were anchors on top of her heart.

Am I gonna die? Is that all of what my life is worth? Her breath quickens. The sounds filled her eardrums and mind like it were the only thing in the world worth noting.

Just before the log she was sprawled in, she tried holding her breath as much as possible.

As the feet of the men was the only thing she could see, they were merely hair's length before they would touch.

"She must be close, let's go."

The seconds of suspense was gone, she let out a long sigh from her efforts.

The adrenaline was wearing off, she felt the accumulated use of her stamina on her entire body.

But before she could finish her episode, a head crept in the small peeping hole of the log.

"Thought we wouldn't see you, huh, brat?"

Her eyes trembled in despair, this was her fate.

- - -- - - -- - - --

The man who spotted her dragged her out of the log with little to no effort as her eyes seemed like a dead fish.

"What're we gonna do with her?" The man was new to this type of stuff, if not for the current financial situation they were in, maybe this wouldn't have happened in the first place. A lackey of the Society of Fallens. The insignia of a hand wrapped in dark feather shaped like a wing insignia embodies their uniforms and tattooed on their hands.

As they talked about the fate of the captive prisoner, her body did not move from the restraint of the man that could easily be latched free.

They were brothers that were caught in the government's scheme to destroy their homes of the hamlet as a construction of roads, they were without homes and jobs.

The drawn out chase has proven too much stress for one particular fellow. His eyes beading as if he was suffocating from the unknown

"Why...why don't we enjoy ourselves with her. Yeah. We need to relieve some stress"

The eyes of the man looked at the girl's body as if she was an object, losing the color of his eyes.

"What do you mean Adam? She's just a little girl!"

"So what, to further ourselves in the world, we must step over others."

He couldn't believe it, in just a mere month of what they swore, to return to their old life once they got their pay.

Adam tore through her simple woolen dress, defiling her everything with his eyes.

The other could not watch, he was able to keep his sliver of humanity from the dark. But the ties of family led him to think differently to stop the event laid behind him.

'Maybe he would become normal once he is done..'

He looked at the trees, same as before, hollow as ever. The molding of his perception saw the face of the sacrifices, each with their mouths open and eyes of desperation and pleas of help. The vision haunted him before he could not handle it anymore. He vomited, losing two day's worth of food at that moment. He felt utterly sick as he heard the thuds of armor falling on the ground.

Just before he could wander off, a grey light lit the forest with its radiance.

"What was that!?" He watched the light slowly dim away, the same direction where they headed from.

"Adam, let's go!"

"But I was just getting to the best part!"

Though they were family, he already set up his priorities straight. His eyes glaring at Adam, causing him to feel unease and flinched.

"Al-Alright! You don't have to tell me twice!"

He found his armor laying just a foot away and began rushing as he put on his armor.

As he watched his brother rush away back to their camp, he turned back to face the little girl.

"Though I do not agree with my brother's action, there is some truth to his madness."

Their lives were the example of the cruel fate. To step over others is the way to triumph.

"I'm sorry, little one."

He closed his eyes and plunged his blade down before it could reach solid ground, there was some resistance but not enough for the sharp edge of his blade.

Running to catch up to his brother, his face shed new light.