Ariel Slick writes original fiction including short stories, novels, and memoirs to spread the joy of imagination and creativity. She also helps clients achieve their fiction writing goals with her ghostwriting skills on Upwork.com and Guru.com. Although she has  worked as a freelancer for three years, she has been dedicated to the craft all her life. Her fiction focuses on themes of love, justice, and magic, and her most popular works include romance and fantasy romance. 

What would make a girl, terrified of everything, go into the woods? Knights chasing after her, for starters. All Elaine wants is to stay in her small village forever, baking bread with her family. All that changes when she discovers that she is one of seven girls with the gift of magic. Elaine must leave behind her family and flee into the deep, dark woods where anything and everything can happen. Only guided by a talking fox, who may not be who he says on the surface, Elaine battles thieves, murderous plants, and magical creatures of all sorts. She will discover her powers and why they matter: to dethrone the evil king.  Will she be brave enough to embrace her powers?

Valient

It was by far the most heavily guarded fortress Elaine had seen in her life. It rose, towering into the air, with guards armed to the teeth sitting at every entrance. She and the others crouched behind bushes, as they looked from the safety of the darkness of the night. 


They went over the plan one more time: Elaine would lift a soldier into the air and bring him to them. Nicole would put him to sleep, and then they would strip him of his clothes. Maria would change appearances, put on his clothes and armor, then go to the fortress as one of the guards. She would sneak in, go to the room where they kept Jasmine, and free her. If they were stopped, they would simply say that the queen had ordered them to move Jasmine. It seemed simple and straightforward. 


Chapter 36