Time was going too slow, or was it going too fast? Tianna took another step back, but it was clear that Jerath was not going to return in time. She quickly weighed her options. The two in front of her seemed like mercenaries of some kind. They were strong and possibly impatient. If she fought back she might get hurt. However, if she went willingly they would deliver her to the Black Wolf.

What was so bad about going to the Black Wolf anyway? It was going to happen eventually, right? Even with everything Soral said she was confident he would not harm her, besides, what other choice did she have? Jerath was gone and she couldn’t fight. Even if she did struggle it would all have the same result anyway.

“Alright,” Tianna finally answered in a shaky voice, “I will come willingly.”

The woman’s mouth instantly formed into a smirk. “Perfect choice, princess. Come closer. Just in case I am going to have to keep a hold of you, but if you don’t struggle I will be very gentle. I wouldn’t want to harm the future Queen.”

Tianna gritted her teeth but carefully stepped forward. Once she was close enough the woman pulled Tianna out the window with them and to a portal that was waiting for them on the balcony. This was Tianna’s first time seeing a portal in person. It was like a long oval window, or perhaps more like a picture.

The portal showed the inside of a dreary, windowless room. Tianna suddenly got the feeling that something was off. Why was she being taken to some kind of cellar, not the palace? Was it for some sort of secret meeting? It seemed odd that someone with as many connections as the Black Wolf would use such a crude place of confinement, but maybe she was just thinking too much.

After they led her through the portal, the man stayed on the other side to do something before following and closing the portal. “That should take care of the traces,” the man said, “Did you send the message?”

“I meant to do that before we left, but the messenger wasn’t in the usual spot and we have no other means of contact,” the woman replied.

The man walked to the only door out. “Got it. I will take care of it. How big do you think the reward will be for capturing the lost princess?”

The woman smirked. “The bigger the better.”

“What do you mean?” Tianna asked hesitantly.

“Ah, right. We lied,” the woman laughed, “There was no order from the Black Wolf. We aren’t high enough for that sort of thing. I just thought using his name would make you come easily. We didn’t want to damage the product.”

“Does it really matter?” the man pointed out, “The Black Wolf is your end destination anyway. You’ll be with him soon enough.”

Tianna looked between them with a sinking feeling. What if they failed to contact the Black Wolf and someone else offered a large reward for her? This was completely different from the situation she had been expecting.

The man appeared satisfied at the sight of Tianna frozen in fear and left the woman alone to watch her. This might be her only chance, but what could she do? As she reached up to touch her face with a shaking hand, a glimmer caught her eye. It was the necklace she had brought before all of this began.

How did it work again? Did it matter? Tianna couldn’t think straight. All she could feel was the rising panic and need to run. How could she have forgotten that the Black Wolf might not be the only one after her. Royalty. This was what it meant to be the lost princess.

Before her thoughts could sink any further, Tianna bolted for the door.

“Hey!” the woman shouted and dove for her, only to run into a wall of pure magic that surrounded Tianna completely.

This would be her only chance. Tianna managed to wrench the door open and sprinted up the stairs. She had barely gone anywhere, but she was already winded. At the top of the stairs there was a hallway that curved to the right. There were windows but all of them were too small for a person to fit through. Tianna forced herself to keep moving.

Just past the curve in the curve in the hall Tianna saw a large door. Judging from the windows it led outside! She fumbled for the doorknob quickly.

“Where do you think you are going?” the woman’s voice hissed from right behind her.

The door opened with a click and Tianna fell through it, but her protection magic had worn off and her captor was right behind her. She looked around for anything that could possibly save her from this situation, but it was night and there was no one in the streets.

“No way,” she whispered.

“That’s right,” the woman laughed, “And in an area like this, even if you scream no one will come to help you. Why don’t you come back inside before I have to drag you?”

Right as Tianna was about to answer a man turned onto the street. He was tall with dark hair and a perfectly maintained gray suit. Tianna moved without thinking. “Help me!” she called out to him.

The man turned to look at her and his eyes widened. “This is an unexpected situation,” he muttered, “You are a mercenary, yes? You should know that due to the rumors of the lost princess all ladies with blonde hair and green eyes are currently under the protection of the palace. Should I assume you have violated that law?”

The woman stumbled back. “Of course not,” she defended quickly, “She made a mistake because I was being too rough. You know how us mercenaries are.”

“Before you make the mistake of using that projectile on me, I should warn you that I am Densooth, the advisor to the Queen,” the man warned.

By this time he had reached Tianna and helped her up carefully. She stared at him in shock. “You are?” she asked.

“Indeed. You are lucky I was coming this way tonight,” Densooth replied, “If I am not mistaken, you are Tianna?”

“Yes,” she answered then paused, “How did you-?”

“Know? I have strong connections with the Saorsa,” Densooth told her and then turned back to the mercenary, “I suspect you only have a few more seconds before my guards arrive and I arrest you. What will you do?”

“What is the Queen’s advisor doing in a back alley like this?!” the woman demanded.

Densooth paused. “A wonderful question. To be perfectly honest I came because I sensed a powerful barrier magic being used by an amateur so I wanted to see what was going on.”

Three guards appeared around the corner that Densooth had come from. “Arrest her,” Densooth ordered, and pointed at the mercenary. The guards acted instantly.

“Thank you for helping me,” Tianna told Densooth, “but I should really be getting back.”

“I don’t know where you are trying to get back to, but you should stay in the capital for tonight,” Densooth told her, “I can take you somewhere safe.”

Tianna was anxious, but she accepted. “Alright, but I have to get back by morning.”

“I will do my very best, princess,” Densooth promised, “How about I take you to your mother’s house? That way you won’t feel nervous.”

“Thank you,” Tianna told him again. She felt the tension slowly draining from her.

Densooth let out a sigh of relief. “That was far too close.”

“What was?’ Tianna asked.

He paused. “The Black Wolf is as difficult to contact as he is to find,” he told her, “If I hadn’t found you, those mercenaries may have handed you over to Velcorna Alodan. She is an evil woman who will stop at nothing to get her hands on the throne.”

“Oh,” Tianna replied dimly, feeling a chill run down her spine.