Katsumi rode hard, putting as much distance between her and the castle as possible. It was almost an hour since her escape, but she couldn’t have more than a ten minute head start. In spite of her hurry, the horse she had stolen was in need of a lot of rest. She brought the horse down slowly from a gallop, to a cantor, to a walk before finally leaving the horse near a small creek just off the road.

She knew she would be tracked down soon if she stayed with the horse, so she set off on foot through the trees into the forest. It wasn’t especially thick as far as forests went, but any group of trees large enough to be called a forest was large enough to get lost in for weeks. With any luck, she could lose them through the evening before breaking north away from the roads where she could use her powers in full and head home out west.

She took no care in covering her tracks, not really knowing any woodcraft, and trusted in herself to change directions enough to at least be difficult prey. No, speed was the only concern here, just enough distance to safely transform and fly away without being seen. So she ran, calling upon the power inside her to safely guide her steps through the trees without tripping, falling, or worse.

It was hours later when the sun began to set and Katsumi found herself too tired to keep running. She slowed down to a walk, careful not to stop and let her muscles cool and tighten, and continued through the trees. The skies were lit up in bright orange and pink hues, with many clouds stretching across the heavens. They would make ideal cover for her retreat, but for now she needed rest. She strode along looking for any good place to use for shelter, and noticed something strange about the trees; they were all evenly spaced apart now and roughly the same size laid out in neat rows. An orchard here means that there is a farm somewhere nearby.

Without knowing which way to go, she finally sat down to think. She was exhausted, as much from the day of hard travel, as from the exhaustion she felt clouding her thoughts. The ride and near capture by the princeling had left her little room to think about much more than fleeing. Now, with darkness creeping up, her fear and anger started to boil over. Power flooded over her and she drove a fist into one of the orchard trees. It obliterated an entire section of the tree, debris flying off in all directions, before the whole tree fell with a thundering crash. If they didn’t know where she was before, they’ll be able to find her now. With a sigh, she slumped down next to the fallen tree. No sooner had she settled than she closed her eyes and sleep took full hold.

Katsumi woke to rumbling, and rushed to her feet drawing one of her daggers. She scanned around, dizzy but lively. The world was all shadows and Katsumi nearly lost her balance twice as she continued looking around. No one else was here, and the rumbling had faded, but that didn’t make her feel any more secure. Scanning the area one more time finally put her at ease and she slid her dagger back under her clothes.

Stolen novel; please report.

She was now presented with a different problem: the skies were dark and she had no way of orienting herself. A thunderstorm had moved in while she was asleep, and though it didn’t rain, a streak of lightning briefly cast sinister shadows on an already shadowed land. Worst wake up call, ever.

Finally calm, Katsumi took stock of her situation. No one had found her, yet, she was famished and in desperate need of food and water, and there was firelight off in the distance. Her gaze snapped back toward the small orange light. It was faint, a firefly in a sea of dark ocean, but as conspicuous as a great lighthouse. It seemed too small to be a military fire, and Katsumi remembered that this was supposed to be a farm, after all. So, she set off towards the light.

She approached with care and precision, staying as hidden as she could manage while weaving through the orchard. The campsite was small, with three shelters made, and two horses tied up nearby. No one seemed to be tending the fire, which made sense as any sensible travelers were probably deep into sleep by now. Surely, they must have known that this is all farm land, though. What are they doing here? Desperate for answers, and to raid their supplies, she crept ever closer to the campsite.

Something snapped and Katsumi whirled toward the noise. A giant tree branch swung towards her and she had to drop down to her stomach to avoid getting hit. She rolled back up to her feet in a crouch when something tightened around her ankle. Before she could even look down, she was dragged on the ground for several feet before being lifted by her foot into the air at least ten feet off the ground. Fantastic.

Katsumi groaned in pain, strung up and surely discovered by all the noise. She tried to look around and experienced a mild sense of vertigo as she swung around with her blood rushing to her head. Well this couldn’t get much worse.

She relaxed her neck and looked toward the ground where she saw two people standing, a dark haired man with his sword drawn, and a red haired girl with her arms crossed.

“See, Harry? This is why we set traps!” The woman said.

“Yeah, yeah. I get it.” He said. “But we could have gone at least three more miles with all the time it took to set this up!”

“What are you talking about? Bridget couldn’t go another mile anyways, and how could you sleep without knowing you were safe?”

“We still aren’t safe.” He said solemnly. “Wait a minute, I know you. You’re the courtesan from the party.”

Katsumi looked at him trying to focus through being upside down. She recognized him too, the knight who helped her take out the Durvinna infiltrator. But if he was here then… Her thoughts were cutoff as the green haired princess emerged from the darkness. “Oh, merciful Magnada, no,” she groaned. “Not you.”