He looked up and right past her.
Thank the gods.
She settled on a branch and let out a relieved breath, then took a few minutes to try to get her bearings. Where was she?
Nothing looked familiar.
Surely, they couldn’t have gone far. He had a horse, but it wasn’t that much later than when she’d entered the stable. Maybe two, three hours most, given the position of the sun. It’d be dark soon.
Then she’d never be able to find her way back.
Suddenly, a blast landed on the limb above her. She looked down to see Diflyn staring up where she was concealed.
Was that a lucky shot or did he have a potion of some kind that helped him locate her?
Turning into a moth, she flittered away, hoping there was no way for him to find her in this form.
I have to go somewhere.
The sea wasn’t that far away, especially not for a falcon. Changing into a peregrine, she dipped and flew as fast as she could for the water.
To her shock, another peregrine headed toward her.
Diflyn. She knew it.
Furious, she went as fast as she could while trying to find a place to hide and escape him.
He was a crafty bastard to be so close to her now. Worse? He was gaining.
Did he know how to fight in this form?
She did not. For that matter, she wasn’t used to traveling as a bird. She’d only used this form when she had to in order to spy or escape.
I hate heights!
And she did. Her heart pounded furiously. This was a last resort, and she wanted to be anywhere but here in the sky.
This or death.
Because she had a bad feeling that if he caught her, she wouldn’t survive it.
I will not be broken by the likes of him.
Or captured, either. He was a coward who attacked from the rear when others were distracted. She had no respect for such a beast. There was no honor or decency in him.
She dove into an air current and used it to increase her speed. As she did so, Gisela saw a number of ships below. They were docked in a harbor.
If she could just make it to those, she’d have a chance of getting rid of her nuisance.
A screech sounded right behind her. He was almost on top of her now.
That left her one choice.
She turned into a squirrel and fell quickly toward the sea. Her descent was terrifying.
But what choice did she have?
Diflyn flew on as she went down. After a few seconds, she transformed again into a small fairy. At least like this, she could fight.
