[Arvedui III]

Rangar sighed, it was no good on horses. No tracks. There were absolutely no tracks, Rangar couldn't believe it. Groping through the ever present fog, the party searched in vain for any sign of Wren. "No Struggle" Calmir commented solemnly, more to himself then to the group after two hours of searching the gloomy land. This was galling, no man could vanish into thin air, Especially one who happened to have Wren with him. "She must have been knocked out before the battle was over." Ravenne added quietly. "Of course." Muttered Tareth. "It was a ploy." "No" Said Rangar quietly. With every new theory a stab of guilt kept hitting him. Whoever they are, they're after me. Why did they take Wren? She's innocent. It was all he could do to believe that the attack wasn't planed, but a random assault by mindless wild men. Though, he knew otherwise. It was planned in great detail, and carried out perfectly. The mercenaries were just pawns, and so was Wren. They would take what they needed from her, then use her as a bait for him. And he would walk willingly into that trap. That was the scariest part. But if I run, Wren will die. It wasn't a comforting thought.

"Rangar!" Turthol's voice brought him back to himself. "Huh?" "Let's spit up. Whoever we're after is clearly alone, and we need to cover more ground. It will be light soon." Rangar nodded. "Ok, Rave, you head with Calmir that way. Turthol and I will head left. Tareth, you go back to the others and tell them we can't find Wren anywhere, and" He hesitated, "And to stay put until we get back." "Which will probably be at dawn." Calmir added, looked pointedly at Rangar. "Yes, we'll get back at dawn." So Rangar and Turthol headed to the left, scrutinizing the ground, hoping vainly for any sign of movement.