--->Essence of Lydia<---

Essence of Lydia---> Chapter 25: Embryae's POV

As he climbed, I scouted the surroundings, trying to sense out whether Kam and Dev had spotted us yet. I felt the branch I had gotten Atticus to climb, making sure that he was past it so that I could begin climbing. I hissed when a spare branch nicked me, feeling blood start to well up. Forcing the pain away, I climbed. When I reached the top, where Atticus seemed to be watching from, I pushed all thoughts away and forced my hearing to amplify itself.

I heard murmuring coming from below. Tilting my head in that direction, I recognized Kam's voice.

"Knowing Embry, she probably decided to take them to higher ground. What do you think about Atticus?" I heard her asking Dev. There was a pause as Dev thought of where Atticus would want to stay.

"Atticus is better at close combat, so his senses would be more tuned on the ground. Maybe Embryae climbed up and tree to scout and left Atticus on the bottom to guard?" Dev suggested. Kam paused, seeming to find that highly unlikely. Even if I didn't like having someone tag along, I wouldn't split up with them in this type of exercise.

"Maybe. But Em doesn't really like splitting up in these types of situations. I'd bet they're both in a tree somewhere, with her being the scout since she's more used to this training." Dev seemed to disagree with her though.

"No, I don't think that Atticus would feel very stable sitting back and allowing her to do all the work." I tuned them out for a moment, trying to see if Atticus was still there.

"Atticus?" I whispered. There was no reply. I cursed, whispering his name again. I heard a twig snap, turning my head in that direction. I knew it was Atticus for some reason, but I didn't know why he hadn't answered me. I moved towards the sound, knowing that we'd have to relocate since Kam and Dev probably already heard the noise. "Damn it, Atticus, answer me!" I hissed. I heard a muffled noise and moved closer.

I then realized why he hadn't been able to answer me. The idiot is stuck in a trap set up by Kam or Dev. I shook my head in aggravation, deciding to tune back in to where Kam and Dev were.

"I think I heard something." I heard Kam whisper. Then I heard footsteps coming towards us. I held back another curse and turned back towards where Atticus was most likely trapped. I felt around, noticing that he was inside of some net-like trap. I didn't have enough time to forge another stake, so I grabbed one of the arrows I'd made previously and began cutting the ropes of the net.

Atticus was breathing heavily.

"Be quiet or they'll hear you." I murmured. I got a grunt for a response. I finished cutting through the last of the ropes when I noticed the footsteps had stopped. I listened for any sound to indicate where they were, but there was nothing. Then I heard the rustling of leaves and knew that they were below us. I had to hurry up and find an escape route before they decided to climb up.

I felt tugging on my sleeve and turned towards the source. Atticus said nothing as he led me towards where I was hoping was an escape route.

He led me to what felt like a ledge, connecting to another tree. This must have been what he was trying to feel out before he was caught in a trap. I listened again, and heard the hushed voice of Kam telling Dev to stay put as she climbed. Atticus and I hurriedly moved onto the tree the ledge connected us to and felt around again to get our bearings. We found another ledge connecting to a tree across from us. The stick didn't feel too sturdy, so I had to put more weight on it to test it. I then climbed across, deeming it sturdy enough. Atticus followed, creaking slightly as he did. There would be no way that Kam would be able to get across after we had weakened the branch with our weight. Taking deep breaths, I led Atticus further into the tree and then allowed my senses to flush out the area. I heard the soft, irritated puffs coming from Dev down below and from the sound of no more scuttling, Kam must have made it to the top of the first tree, scouting for us.

I had to calm my adrenaline, knowing that shooting an arrow would take a lot of concentration. I wouldn't be able to concentrate with blood pounding in my head. Letting out soft breaths, I tuned into where Kam would most likely be. There was a chance she hasn't seen us yet and that would be the goal for us to attack. Dev would be the most likely target since he obviously doesn't get this training as much as he should have, but I knew that if I shot at him, Kam would know where we were. I couldn't have that happening, because there was no way we would be able to move fast enough to get away. So shooting Kam was our only shot. Loading my arrow, I listened for any creaks coming from the other tree. There! Hearing slight adjustments going on, I pulled back and let it go.

"Omf!" A muffled voice let out. With that, I knew I got her and I had only a matter of seconds before she got her bearings back and told Dev where we were. Loading another arrow, I shot towards where I knew Dev was and a grunt sounded.

"Embry..?" I heard Atticus' hesitant voice calling to me, bringing my attention towards him.