The Basket

"A belt buckle!" Eira waved the article in the air, attracting the attention of the others. 

Thus far they had found the compass and dagger, two buttons, a leather pouch, a hat, a shoe, and now the belt buckle. Uri had released them at regular intervals, giving the group a clear idea of when the harpies changed paths. 

Just now they had been unable to find the next item and had fanned out. It was Eira who had found success on their far left. 

Alaron examined the buckle with a frown. "The scout is going to be naked by the time we find him." 

"Better naked than dead," Nath responded as he looked off into the distance. 

"I didn't mean..." Alaron bit his tongue. 

"I know you didn't mean anything by it. I am just glad we are collecting all of his things. He will want them back when we find him." Nath clapped the Guardian on the shoulder. 

Climbing back on their mounts, the group worked their way through the forest counting their steps. Now that they knew the pattern, they did not waste time in between looking for clues. 

Only the first two items had been close together. Uri had likely been in a panic, but as he gained his wits, he had been more methodical in shedding his personal items. 

After carefully selecting their path, the group slowed to a stop once more. This time they found a comb. 

"He's getting desperate," Lilith said with a small smile. "There is no way he would part with this unless it were an actual emergency." 

"I think..." Mairwen was cut off as the trees around them rustled suddenly. A woman with bird-like feet dropped from above and took hold of the princess. 

The harpy pulled Mairwen into the air flailing like a fish out of a river. Renat had no time to react as his wife slipped from his grasp. He lunged for her only to hear a scream behind him as well. 

Eira, who had drawn her sword to face the threat in front of them, had not seen the second harpy dropping down from behind. The soldier was taken into the air even as she tried to slash at her attacker. 

The harpy was too smart to be hit so easily, and her mighty wing slapped at the flat side of the weapon, sending it to the ground. 

Eira was defenseless. 

The others were now on their guard. They not only had to save the two women but also needed to make sure that they themselves were not taken. 

In the second problem, they were lucky. Although harpies traveled in packs, it seemed these two had been out alone. As soon as the group was sure that no one else would swoop down at them, they mounted their steeds and took after their assailants. 

"We have to catch them!" Renat spurred the group forward. Alaron was so concerned for the others' safety that he didn't even give his usual sarcastic remark. 

The lack of response only worried Renat more. 

The longer they went, the farther away the harpies got. Then, without warning, the group lost sight of them entirely. Their fast flying beat ground travel when it came to speed, especially in a forest while trying to avoid other dangers. 

Lilith spoke in the ancient tongue something that made Alaron's eyes widen. Renat did not need a translation to know she had cursed at the harpies.

He felt like cursing as well. They had taken his wife!

Nath was more subdued. "I think they dove into the trees."

"Yes," Lilith threw her hands up in the air as her unicorn continued to move forward. "Blasted thieves found a way to slip by us!"

"I don't think they were trying to evade us. I think they were landing." Nath pointed to the last spot he had seen the creatures and drew a line to the ground. "That way!"

——————

Mairwen gave up thrashing after realizing that being released meant certain death. Aurora had been very fortunate to survive a fall from an insane height, but the princess was not her mother.

It was better to try and figure out what to do once she landed. Mairwen looked up at the creature holding her captive. It was as terrifying as it was beautiful.

The harpy's arms were part of its wings, meaning that the creature could only use the hands at the end of her feathery appendages when she was not flying.

That is why Mairwen hung from her taloned feet. The feet were not grotesque and wrong like Taran's had been after his transformation. They were strong and a natural extension of the lady's legs, looking like the falcon the Emperor sometimes used for hunting.

While the princess did not like the idea of dangling over the trees, she had to admit there was a beauty to it. Few humans had ever gotten such a view.

Eira did not share her sentimentality. The soldier was louder and more forceful than Mairwen had ever heard. 

When the frustrated woman finally tired herself out, Mairwen spoke. "I have to say I am glad I am not on the adventure alone." 

Eira's face changed. "I suppose I would be much more frustrated back on the ground watching you fly away, Your Highness. Our group must be very worried indeed." 

"They will be less worried knowing we have each other," Mairwen turned and smiled. "And the Harpies don't eat people, right? So...at least we don't have that to worry about." 

The women remained silent for a long time. The only reason they struggled again was to alert an eagle to their presence. The mighty bird flew overhead, casting a shadow over them with its enormous wings. 

"Eagle! Do you work with Polymedes? We are friends of his!" Mairwen tried. "Were you the one who helped my mother cross the barrier? We need help!" 

But it was no use. Either the bird could not hear them or it had no interest in their problem. It flew on without missing a wingbeat. 

After the encounter, their hope began to dwindle. They were going far from the others. There was no way for the horses to keep pace with the harpies. The female flyers were just too fast. 

"We will go over the ice barrier if they keep this up," the princess said. "And there is nothing to keep them from crossing it with us." 

While Mairwen did not think the harpies had any interest in leaving the land of magic, it did cross her mind that they might try to expel the princess and her personal guard from the area. 

Being dropped from a height would almost be worse than the harpies trying to eat them. Fighting back against an attacking monster meant they could try to fight back. If they were dropped, there was no choice but to go downwards. 

Fortunately, the barrier was still quite far off. If that ended up being the case, Mairwen would do her best to recreate the miracle of her mother's survival in the same situation. 

"Eira, I--oh!" The Harpy suddenly shifted directions and then dove. Unprepared for the movement, Mairwen's head went back and then forward. The world spun around her and then went black for a moment. At least she thought it was a moment. 

However, when she opened her eyes, the world was still black. Had she slept until night?

No, there were no stars in the sky. The world above her seemed twisted as did the ground below her. Her eyes slowly adjusted and the princess realized it was not completely dark. Little bits of light filtered in from different places covering the world in grey. 

'It looks like I'm in a basket with a lid.' Mairwen rubbed at her eyes. How big would a basket have to be to hold her like she was a sewing needle? 

"Princess?" a voice beside her said sleepily. "Are you there?"

"I'm here, Eira," Mairwen whispered. "Though I do not where 'here' is." 

"They did that dive and I passed out," the soldier reluctantly admitted. 

The princess nodded. "I did as well. It was just too steep. But at least we made it safely to the ground." 

"And they didn't eat us. That's good." Eira had clearly been less sure about that piece of information. "We will have to find a way out of here." 

"The only way out is up," another voice startled the two ladies. They searched frantically for the source, but he must have been hidden by some of the branches. "You don't want to go up," it added forlornly.

"Why not?" Mairwen asked trying to make sense of what she was hearing. 

In answer to her question, the lid suddenly came off. Light streamed in as two dozen harpies hovered overhead. Something was in their grasp. Something huge.

Mairwen squinted and then her eyes opened wide. The thing came hurtling into the basket. 

It was a monstrous beast.