Chapter 1: The Capture

Kyna smiled mischievously to herself. Another spy mission about to be completed; the Kunat army will surely win the next battle with this important strategic information she collected from the Urodat base-camp.

She had been studying the place for months, and had already brought back much useful information from creeping in and out, under the cover of the night. She knew all the poorly-lit areas and places nobody patrolled.

The meeting had adjourned in the war tent that she had positioned herself nearby. The men began to shuffle their way back to their posts and she used this activity to silently retreat. She was about to turn to exit from the camp and saw a man coming her way, seemingly on a mission to relieve himself in her dark corner.

Shit, she thought to herself. How could she move without being noticed? He was merely a few feet from discovering her if he continued on his current path. Her mind racing, she grabbed a small rock and threw it farther into the shadows.

For a moment he looked to the side, but immediately turned his gaze in her direction.

SHIT. Still attempting stealth, she began running through the shadows.

"Spy!" She heard him call out to the other soldiers, then the feet of many men rushing on her position.

Full adrenaline kicked in and she bolted, faster than she knew she could, away from the camp and into the blackness of the night woods. Almost releasing a breath of relief, she began to think she might have lost them. The Kunat can see much better in the dark than the Urodat, so she had the advantage.

"Spread out!" She heard the General command. "That spy must not get away!"

Quickly she climbed into the trees. Making her way to about midway up the giant redwoods, and with acrobatic expertise, began to swiftly maneuver through the forest.

She could feel them sweeping in behind her with bright torches, but she kept significantly ahead of the pack. She soon realized they were moving strategically to flush her out of the deep woods and into the plains, but she dare not stop or try to move between them.

As they closed in and she neared the edge of the forest, she considered climbing higher, but the branches would not likely hold, and that sort of movement would surely attract attention.

Then she tripped: a stray foot missed a branch and she stumbled downward. She managed to grab a hold of a few branches on the way, each one breaking her fall but not stopping it, and only making her position more obvious.

"There it is!" She was almost blinded by the torchlight but had landed on her feet, so she took off, into the open grassland. She might still be able to outrun them.

Something hit her legs, she was abruptly immobilized and fell, hard, to the ground. Instinctively she tried to stand, but it became obvious that her legs were bound tightly by an expertly thrown bola.