Dance on DeadLine

Elora pinned herself against the tree, staring down at the men in the clearing below and listening to them. She had been following them for days, listening to their plans and evading their traps, watching their frustration get the better of them. A small group of men sat around a large fire, eating their food without a sound or even a glance at the fire. Elora longed to douse the fire before it went wild, but she didn’t dare show herself to the strangers. Even if she did, she wouldn’t be able to explain who she was or why she was there, since she didn’t know many words, let alone, how to string a sentence together.
Elora never showed herself to anyone, but would watch them from afar, listening to their conversations and deciding what she could do to get them out of her forest. This group had nothing that she needed, but the way they stomped through the forest, attacking animals for entertainment, and setting traps of every kind put her on edge. Elora knew that she wouldn’t be able to rest until they were gone, but that was the least of her worries. Elora knew that these men were looking for her, a girl in the forest, for some unknown reason and her curiosity got the better of her.
“Sir, we’re just following rumors!” One of the men, a lanky, pimply man, jumped to his feet, throwing the remnants of his food to the ground by the fire. “I don’t know why Mr. Valentine is so dead-set on this made-up girl, especially one that no one has-”
Another man, much larger than the first, stood and punched the other man in the face. The bear of a man towered over the other and Elora swore she saw the man’s nostrils flare, much like she had seen the hunters of the forest act before they attacked. “Why Valentine wants this girl is none of your concern, but we’re not leaving until we get her, do you understand?” The man growled threateningly, his hands clenching at his side.
Elora pressed herself closer to the tree, grateful of the large leaves that rustled between her and the men below. The first man stood up and nodded before stalking away from the fire and disappearing into one of the tents.
Elora thought of leaving them once more, returning to her den with the wolves that she lived with, but decided to stay, watching the men finish their food and resetting their traps before they slipped into their tents. Only one man, the bear sized one remained, sitting by the fire and whittling his knife.
Her hand drifted down to her leg, brushing against her own knife as she stared at the man. She thought of the wolves, how they would want the meat off those men’s bones, how it could sustain them and other animals in the forest for days, and how she would eliminate the threat that they brought. Elora lowered herself onto the branch, pulling at her bow on her back and fitting an arrow on the string. Without a sound, she pulled it back. With a breath, the arrow soared off, through the branches, the whispering of the arrow was masked by the forest’s natural sounds as it sped towards the man. With a dull thump, the bear man collapsed, Elora’s arrow protruding from his skull.
“What was that?” A voice grunted from one of the tents and the others walked out and stared in shock at the body by the fire. Quickly, Elora sent three more arrows in the air, each one taking down another man, killing them instantly. It wasn’t until the fourth arrow that a surprisingly loud crack filled the air, drowning out the men’s screams. Elora gasped as she stared at the broken bow in her hands and the arrow that was on it slid from her grip and landed on the ground beneath her.
“I heard that noise coming from over here! It’s probably that girl!”
Elora glanced down at the men before tossing her broken bow aside and jumping from her branch to another one close by. Fear flooded her body as she jumped from branch to branch, hearing the men stumbling behind her. Elora veered to the right, heading straight for the waterfall in hopes to lose her pursuers. However, because of her hasty speed and fear, Elora misjudged her jump and went crashing to the ground below and another loud crack filled the air as pain flooded up her arm. She jerked her head behind her, seeing the tall bushes rustle from the men trying to follow her and she knew that she couldn’t stay there, waiting. Ignoring her pain, Elora ran, her feet lightly thumping the ground as she mindlessly avoided the branches beneath her, hoping that, without a trail, they wouldn’t be able to follow her.
Finally the trees began to part and she saw the edge of the waterfall. Relief flooded through her and she ran faster, this time not caring about the twigs and leaves beneath her and not noticing the circular rise of the ground in front of her. The second her foot stepped on the rise, it gave way, and Elora crashed into the cold, rocky ground beneath. Panicking, she tried to climb out but, with one good arm, Elora was trapped with no where to go.
“Look what we caught.” A voice sneered above her and Elora stared up into the eyes of one of the men. He and a couple others sneered angrily as they tossed a metal net into the hole, landing on Elora who tried to take it off as quickly as she could. The men laughed at her struggle as they pulled out a couple tranquilizer guns and shot her. It felt like wasp stings, Elora thought. Her body quickly grew heavier and the struggle with the net seemed almost useless, but she tried her best until her body betrayed her and she collapsed to her knees.
“Get down there and get her out, we’re taking her in.” A man’s voice swam in the distance and Elora groaned as she fought to keep her eyes shut but, after another moment, her eyes closed and the last thing she heard was the men laughing.