Milo:

  I waited with Raven at the edge of the forest, my heart pounding in time with the steady rhythm of his hooves on the damp ground. Every crack of a branch or rustle of the leaves made me jump, but I forced myself to stay calm. Orla would be here soon. She had to be.

  The night air was thick with tension, weighing down everything around me. Raven shifted beneath me, restless, sensing the unease. I patted his side, murmuring a quiet, “Easy, boy,” though I didn’t feel at ease myself.

  Suddenly, a figure emerged from the shadows, moving swiftly toward me. My breath caught, panic flaring for a second before I recognized him.

  General Haruto.

  But he wasn’t in his usual armor or official robes. He was dressed in something plain, meant to blend in. His face, though, was as intense as ever.

  “Where’s Orla?” he demanded..

  I glanced back toward the city. “She’s not here yet. I don’t know what’s keeping her.”

  Haruto’s expression tightened, his eyes flicking toward the palace. “There’s no more time. The guards will change soon, and I think I’ve already been spotted.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked, unease creeping in.

  He exhaled sharply. “There’s been talk of an uprising. The palace suspects me. If they catch me here with you—“

  “Are you behind it?” I cut in, my voice sharper than I intended.

  Haruto didn’t answer immediately. He just waved a hand, dismissive. “That’s not your concern. You need to focus on getting Orla out.”

  Before I could press him, a hooded figure sprinted toward us from the city. I tensed, gripping Raven’s reins, ready to bolt if needed. Then I saw her face.

  I let out the soft owl call we had agreed on, and her head snapped toward me. She rushed forward, her face a mix of exhaustion and relief.

  The moment she reached me, I swung off Raven, and she ran straight into my arms, holding on tight. I wrapped my arms around her, feeling the weight of everything in that embrace—the danger, the relief, and the sheer fact that we were finally escaping together.

  “Thank God,” I whispered into her hair. “I was starting to worry.”

  But Haruto interrupted, his voice clipped. “We need to move. Take the western path out of the city. Stick to the trees for cover. There’s a fork halfway down. Go left. If you miss it, you’ll end up at the ravine.”

  Orla turned to Haruto, eyes narrowing. “Why are you helping us?”

  For the first time, his expression softened. Then, before I could react, he stepped forward—and kissed her.

  What the hell?

  Red flashed in my vision. Before I could even think, my fist clenched, ready to swing. But Haruto was already gone, vanishing into the dark before I could land a punch. I stood there, seething, watching his shadow disappear.

  “That son of a—“

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  “Milo!” Orla grabbed my face, forcing me to look at her. “We don’t have time for this. We need to go. Now.”

  I took a deep breath, shoving my anger aside. She was right. We couldn’t waste time.

  “Fine,” I muttered, throwing a glance toward the western path. “Let’s go.”

  We mounted Raven, and with a quick nudge, he galloped off into the forest, the palace lights fading behind us. The wind whipped past, and for a moment, I let myself believe we’d made it.

  Then, a shout echoed through the trees.

  “Run!” Haruto’s voice boomed behind us. I glanced over my shoulder, and my blood ran cold. Figures in dark armor—Black Lotus soldiers—spilled from the palace gates, torches flickering in the distance.

  “How the hell did they know?” Orla shouted, gripping me tighter.

  I had no answer. All I knew was that we had to move. Faster.

  I urged Raven on, his powerful legs tearing through the underbrush. We wove between the trees, the path barely visible under the moonlight.

  We had to outrun them.

  We had no other choice.

  The forest swallowed us, its dense trees towering above. The sounds of the Black Lotus soldiers grew louder. I leaned forward, urging Raven on, but the thickening trees made it harder to maneuver. Branches whipped at us, thorns snagging our clothes, the shadows closing in.

  Then, out of nowhere, a low-hanging branch slammed into my chest, knocking the wind out of me. Orla yelped as Raven stumbled, throwing us both off. I hit the ground hard, pain jolting through me as I rolled, the impact rattling my bones.

  Orla tumbled beside me, landing with a dull thud.

  “Raven!” I gasped, scrambling to my feet just in time to see the horse bolt through the trees, disappearing into the darkness. Panic surged through me as I took a step forward, ready to chase after him.

  “Milo!” Orla’s voice rang out, frantic and breathless. “Wait! Don’t leave me!”

  I stopped dead in my tracks. Every instinct told me to go after Raven—he was our best chance at escaping fast. But then I looked at Orla, her face pale, exhausted, barely holding herself up. She was the only thing that mattered. Raven was gone, and we had no time to waste.

  I rushed back, grabbing her hand and pulling her up. “Forget Raven,” I said. “You’re the only one that matters now. We have to move.”

  She nodded, fear flickering in her eyes, and we started running again, weaving through the trees. Every second felt stretched, the pounding of hooves and clanking armor getting louder behind us. The Black Lotus soldiers were closing in fast.

  “They’re going to catch up!” Orla cried as she stumbled over a root.

  “Not if we keep going!” I pulled her forward, forcing my legs to move faster despite the burn in my muscles. The forest path had long disappeared, but we had to stay off the open trails. If we stuck to the trees, we might have a chance.

  Then, suddenly, we burst through the tree line and onto the main road—the same road Haruto had told us to take. We skidded to a stop at a fork in the path.

  Orla gasped for air, her grip on my hand tightening. “Which way?” she asked, panic rising in her voice. “I can’t remember what he said!”

  Neither could I.

  The moments with Haruto were a blur, and in the heat of the chase, my mind was blank. The left path sloped into darkness. The right climbed toward the ridge.

  “Think, Milo! Think!” I muttered, but the heavy clang of armor and the thunder of hooves drowned out any rational thought.

  “Just pick one!” Orla urged.

  I grabbed her hand and bolted to the right, praying I’d made the right choice. We scrambled up the steep incline, rocks slipping beneath our feet. My lungs burned, my legs ached, but I didn’t stop. Orla stumbled, barely keeping up, her breaths ragged.

  The voices behind us grew clearer. Orders were being barked. The soldiers were closing in.

  “They’re right on us!” Orla shouted.

  “Keep running!” I shot back.

  Then, out of nowhere, arrows rained down. One whizzed past my ear. Another tore through the air between us. The soldiers weren’t just chasing us anymore—they were trying to take us down.

  “Milo, run!” Orla’s scream barely registered over the rush of adrenaline flooding my body.

  And then, my stomach dropped. We had taken the wrong path.

  The ground in front of us disappeared into an endless void—the ravine. A sheer drop-off with nothing but darkness below. We were trapped.

  I turned, scanning for another way, but the soldiers were already at the crest of the hill, their torches casting flickering shadows against the trees. There was no time. No escape.

  Orla’s fingers dug into my arm. “We have to jump,” she said, breathless.

  I looked at her, then at the drop. The wind howled through the ravine, the river below a distant, rushing blur. It was suicide.

  “On three,” I said, my voice shaking. “One... two—“

  Before I could finish, Orla yanked me forward, and we jumped.

  The wind screamed in my ears. My stomach lurched as we plummeted, the night sky twisting into darkness. I gripped Orla’s hand like a lifeline, the cold air swallowing every thought, every fear, every ounce of control I had left.

  For a brief second, I thought—this is it.

  Then everything went black.

  ??Part 4 updated on Monday, March 24th??