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Gone

Alanna rode on to keep up with the commander. He grinned at her.

"Maybe you should rather stay at home inbed – you an your guy."

"No."

She was already missing George and not in the mood for that kind of jokes. The commander

looked confused but decided wisely to shut up. A few minutes later they reached their post.

They had quite a good look onto the wall that surrounded the village. Raouls group was

posted on the other side, keeping both the way down to the river that flowed by and the side

of the walls, while George´s group kept the main-gate and the front side in case they dared a

frontal out-break.

Once they had settled themselves, Alanna took up a magical connection to each groups mage

to check their position. She talked to the commander then and they decided to attack as soon

as possible from the back, using the moment of surprise when they stormed the smaller gate

leading to the river. They placed men all around the wall, a gap of three feet between them,

the rest of the men including Alanna and Raoul took position at the gate.

When they got the sign that every man was on his post, they broke the gate down. Swords

drawn Alanna, Raoul and two other men threw themselves onto the first beast, aparently the

which should hold the gate in case of attack, while the other men spread out to drive the

beasts in direction of the main-gate where the other group should welcome them. The first

beast was easily slaught and so were the next ones Alanna faced.

The fact that they didn´t even try to defense properly confused her. Nevertheless they drove

them otwards the main-gate, one after one fell, while the humans were nearly unharmed. As

the last…thing fell a few feet before the gate, Alanna came over to Raoul.

"Any sign of the captives?"

"Dead bodies. But we don´t know how many it should have been. Dead are six. Awful, they

must´ve tortured them." He sighed. "Whatever. We can´t do anything for them by now, so lets

go and tell the others out there that our business here is finished."

He went over and pushed the gate open, Alanna behind him. He stopped abruptely.

"What´s wrong?"

Alanna asked starteled and came up besode him. She gasped in shock. The clearing before

them was empty.

Men came up next to them, showing similar reactions.

"W-what? Where – is everybody?", someone asked.

Alanna shock her head in disbeliving, stepping out onto the clearing. The grass was stamped

down, all over the place laid supplies and equipment, but no sign of actual human presence.

"They´re gone."

Alanna´s voice was nothing but a hoarse whisper. She cleared her throat, turned and raised her

voice.

"We need to spread out. Build search-parties, nut be careful. Go!"

The men hesitated for a moment, then parted in little groups, five men each, and went into the

forest around them.

Raoul stood next to Alanna and looked down at her.

"Can you sense them? Magically, I mean?"

The silent reply was discouraging.

"No."

She paused for a moment, then looked up, desperate hope in her face.

"But – but there are no bodies, are there? They – they are not necissarily dead, are they?"

Slowly , Raoul shook his head, smiling weakly.

When one search-party after the other returned without any news, she beagn to panic. Trying

hard not to show it, she started to give orders to collect the dead bodies, burn the beasts and

cover the humans and gather the things of use from the clearing. After no cammond was left

to give, she strode over the clearing herself. Suddenly something caught her eye, a bit of

metal, glistening in the torchlight.

Coming closer she recognized it as a dagger.

To her shock a terribly familiar one.

She knelt and took it. And nearly dropped it. She had hoped she was wrong,but to her pain she

had been right. It was the dagger George carried in one of his sleeves, the one she had given

to him last midwinter. Dry blood clung to the blade.

She rose, her hands trembeling.

What the hell had happened?