Free To Claim the Elvin Princess: Apprentice by Jack Bessie

them, holding on to the terranon’s harness.
    “Mount up! We will move to another place!” she called, and all were soon in the air. The plaza below was filled with smoke, and three of the buildings were heavily damaged.
    Shocara flew on a minute, before spying another large open space, filled with Elvin, who had come outside upon hearing the loud and distant explosions. The Eridians dropped down screaming, leaping from their mounts before the terranaks were even settled. The mass of Elvin were helplessly trapped, surrounded by wild warriors, intent on inflicting a maximum number of casualties. Terrified Elvin, some clutching children, fled in all direction, trying to avoid the fatal steel of their enemy. Many fell, to bleed, their minds stunned by this assault; no attack on Alarinad had occurred in a thousand years or more.
    In spite of the screaming, Shocara kept her ears attuned for the beating of terranak wings. When she thought she heard such, she called loudly for her warriors to mount up and abandon the ground for the relative safety of the sky. She thought they might all escape, but one of her men took an Elvin arrow before he could fasten his lap belt, and fell from his mount. Another had their terranak pierced by an arrow, and the creature dropped back to the ground like a stone, which let a crowd of angry Elvin disarm the rider, and capture them. Shocara briefly noted this, but had more pressing problems, being confronted by a half dozen Elvin fliers, intent on avenging their losses.
    “Break and fly!” she screamed, before jerking the reigns of her mount, to avoid colliding with an Elf trying to aim her bow at her. The arrow missed her head by inches, and she put all of her effort into evasive flying, diving low over the buildings, before again climbing. She could see none of her warriors, and hoped they had all succeeded in shaking any pursuit.
    Shocara had flown many times, with only the stars to guide her, and she was confident that she was headed properly. Only when the moon started to rise did she note a few others here and there, and they slowly gathered together. The position of the glowing orb gave them no assistance in spotting any pursuit, so they concentrated on maintaining a steady pace. Their mounts were likely to be exhausted by the time they reached their own lands, or could find a safe place to rest.
    It was impossible to speak with anyone close, without shouting, so they rode in silence, each with their own thoughts. Shocara was hopeful that their casualties were as few as it seemed they might be, and felt like the attack had gone well. She had cut down several of the accursed Elvin, but the more she considered this, the less the fact seemed to please her. The Elvin never killed Eridian women or children, and her doing so suddenly seemed unworthy of pride.
    How can this be? They are our enemy! she thought, for the first time in her life considering that the Elvin were not just innumerable hordes of warriors, but beings with families and children. This seemed a daunting and painful new concept, that touched something deep within her.
    If the Elvin killed our children, our ones who do not fight, how horrid would we regard that? Why should we expect the Elvin to think more kindly of our doing so to them? It dawned on her that should she be captured, she would likely be given the worst possible end, for having done this. I must avoid being captured or be prepared to suffer at their hands! An even worse thought was the knowledge that none of the Eridians knew what the Elvin did to captives. None ever returned.
    Torture can only last so long, before your body breaks and you die! Imprisonment is far worse, as you can last long past madness, especially if you are kept alone. Being a slave is humiliating, and no doubt unpleasant, but one can endure it, until a chance to escape arises, she thought, bothered by the lack of knowledge regarding their captive fighters.
    Maybe they simply kill them, she