Aris froze, her eyes darting around, trying to see if anyone else was out here with Silas. No one appeared to be there, other than the young demon, but Aris wasn't about to take any chances.<br/><br/>Without warning, she ran at full speed away from there. She had no reason to fear Silas, she wanted no one to find out about her leaving, especially Nathaniel. She didn't want to think about what he would do to her if he saw she was gone. Aris was breathing heavily soon enough, she though she could hear Silas running after her, but she couldn't be sure. The moon was clear that night, lighting up the ground in between the leaves. If the stray root hadn't been covered in shadows, Aris might have seen it and perhaps what happened next would have been different.<br/><br/>Aris landed with a thud and a gasp. Her hands stung, and she was shaking. She had her head down, so it was no wonder she didn't know she had company. "What do we have here?" A man's voice was heard over her breathing, and she felt herself yanked up by her long, golden hair. She let out a cry and grabbed at her head as she was pulled up, face to face with a grinning man. He had armor on and an odd insignia on the chest. His breath reeked of alcohol.<br/><br/>"What a pretty little thing to be running around here so late" the man taunted, holding her up and showing  her to the others like she were a prize he had won. "I told you I heard something." One of the other men jaunted, looking at Aris, "Pretty little thing is right." Aris was quivering, and whispered hoarsely, "Please, let me go..." The man let out a laugh, and turned to look at the girl, "Why should we let a little blessing like you slip out of our fingers?" Aris squeezed her eyes shut, she only wished she could wake up from this nightmare.