The Capture
The morning broke pale and cold over the northern expanse.
Snow stretched in every direction, untouched and endless.
A soft wind whispered through the pines too calm, too quiet.
Sebastian felt it before he saw it.
A shift in the air. A silence that didn't belong.
He froze. "Down," he said quietly.
Liam reacted instantly, scanning the horizon through his rifle scope.
"Nothing yet," he murmured. "But it's coming."
Isabella looked between them, fear tightening her voice.
"What is it?"
"Drones," Sebastian said. "They're close too close."
He grabbed her hand. "We move now."
They started down the ridge, snow crunching beneath their boots. But the world around them began to hum a low vibration rising through the air. Then came the sound of rotors, distant at first, then multiplying.
Liam swore under his breath. "She's found us."
Sebastian's pulse spiked. He pulled Isabella behind a rise of rocks. "Stay here."
"Sebastian"
