Hello There! *Gaps* Could it be? The next chapter is here! Hope you like it! And I'm also sorry, whenever I read a good story, I never liked to run into cliffhangers but whenever I'm writing I think, "Hmmmm, where can I put a cliffhanger?" I don't know why. Hehe. Anyway, here you go.

Enjoy

-Joyful Wild :)

CHAPTER 15: BETRAYAL

Sara woke up to the smell of a small campfire and cooked meat and the sound of hushed voices. When she sat up, she saw Leeli and Oskar talking trying not to wake up Sara. She yawned and stretched when they noticed her. "Good morning, Sara." Leeli said with a smile on her face.

"Good morning." Sara said while yawning again and rubbing her eyes.

"Did you sleep well last night?" Oskar asked.

"Well, for a rock floor covered in branches and leaves it was okay." Sara looked at her little bed of leaves and branches. Then Leeli giggled. "What?" Sara asked.

"Your hair has some leaves in it." Leeli said. Sara felt her hair and shook her head while trying to pull the leaves out. Right when Sara pulled the last leaf out of her hair Podo came into the entrance of the cave. "Ah, I was wondering where you went." Oskar said.

" I, uh, just went out to scout ahead." Podo said. Sara wasn't sure but she thought Podo looked a bit worried and also sad.

"Did Artham go with you?" She asked.

"Yes, he just went for a flight since he has better eyesight than I do but I'm sure he'll be back." Podo said while sitting at the fire next to Leeli.

"Grandpa are you okay?" Leeli asked.

"Yes Leeli, I'll be alright." He said with a smile, "And I'm sure Artham will be alright too. But I'm wondering where you guys got this meat."

"I was going to ask the same thing." Sara said crawling up the fire.

"Oh!" Oskar exclaimed before looking around. Then leaned forward and spoke quietly, "Leeli and I found the little hole in the ground that was had some meat but not a lot."

"We only took a little bit. At least enough to feed us a bit of breakfast." Leeli said.

"Hopefully that girl is okay with it." Sara said. "What's her name again?"

"I think it's Laylah." Podo said looking towards the wall of vines. "Has she come out of there yet?"

"No not yet." Oskar said.

"Should we wait for her to come out and then leave?" Leeli asked.

"Well, if Artham comes back before she does then we're leaving. I got a bad feeling about her." Podo said.

"But seemed fine when we first met her." Oskar said.

"Well, I didn't want her to know that I had a bad feeling about her." Podo said.

"To be honest I feel bad for her. If she was taken by the Black Carriage and then lived here for years, it must've been hard for her." Sara said sadly.

"It's okay I'm used to it." A voice came from above. They all gasped and looked up at the obstacle course to find Laylah hanging from one of the ropes. Once she climbed down in a graceful like manner, Podo stood up with his leg bone and braced himself. " Hey, calm down old man." Then everyone else stood up next to him stared at her while she looked at them until her gaze fell on Sara. " Did the Black Carriage take you away?" Sara asked.

Sara saw a mix of emotions come across Laylah until her gazed darkened and she crossed her arms. She looked at everyone else again and said, "Follow me." She walked towards the wall of vines and turned around to see if they were coming. Sara was surprised when Laylah's ears went down and sadness overtook her then she said, "Please." Finally, Podo decided to follow her with his legbone ready for anything that could happen. Behind the vines was a tunnel that went straight for a few feet then turned left. Suddenly a growl came from behind them, they turned to find two cloven behind them. "RUN!" Laylah shouted. They all followed her down the tunnel the started to go up then turn left again to reveal the exit covered in vines. They all ran through it but stopped in their tracks when they saw more cloven and fangs waiting for them. The other two cloven came out of the tunnel and growled again. Then a cloven that looked like a wolf with horse legs and antlers spoke, "Well, this is a surprise."

The cave wasn't as big as the first one, but it looked similar to it, and it was able to fit at least ten big cloven in it with a few more outside.

"Who are you?!" Podo exclaimed.

"Well, you all wouldn't remember me, but the Song Maiden might. I am Murgah." The creature said.

Leeli gasped. Sara was really confused and afraid and so was Leeli. "B...but you were dead!"

Murgah and the rest of the cloven that was there laughed at how they were all shocked. "I came back young princess and I have your oldest brother. And most importantly I know how to bring him back. So, if you come with us with no struggle, you can leave here freely but if you struggle then well, Laylah here can explain that."

"Wait you know them?" Sara asked.

Laylah turned to them with fear on her face. "Y...yes."

"I KNEW IT!" Podo exclaimed.

"Wait, please just go with them it wouldn't be as bad as it would if you struggle." Laylah begged.

"Hey look there's the human that I found!" said a creature that looked like a spider and a bird.

"That's not one that's three humans and a bear!" said another creature.

"A WHAT!?" Murgah exclaimed. Then out of nowhere a bear jumped out and pounced on the spider-bird cloven who fought back. Then a big man yelled as he swung a sword around and killed a few fangs while a woman and a boy took their weapons. Then in a second battle broke out. Sara pulled out her dagger, but it was in a matter of minutes when the big creatures overtook them all by cornering them in the cave. Sara looked at the boy and the woman and recognized them immediately, but Leeli was the first to say it, "Mamma, Kalmar!" They looked at the others and both gasped when they saw Podo. Next to them was the bear and the man who only stood there ready for the cloven to attack again. "Well, isn't this a surprise! The whole family together again. And...oh no" Murgah laughed again, "Esben Wingfeather is that you?"

"Yes." The bear spoke. Sara nearly jumped out of her skin. She was expecting the man to speak but then she remembered the stories she was told.

"Well, looks like tonight will be interesting. GET THEM!" Then the cloven and the fangs that were left attacked. Esben and the man, Sara still wondered who he was, fought back trying to make a way through as a distraction while Podo and Nia went around. Sara was to overwhelmed to notice anything else except for claws grabbing and digging into her arm and then feeling a great pain in her head before blacking out.

MWAHAHAHAHAHAAA! CLIFFHANGERS. Don't worry there will be another chapter coming soon in the next week. bye :)