Alana's POV
I stood there, heart pounding, as his challenge hung in the air like a dark cloud. His eyes locked onto mine with an intensity that I couldn't escape, and I knew that the fight was inevitable. There was no turning back now.
The wind tugged at my hair, the scent of pine and earth filling my senses. My body was trembling, my nerves on edge, but I forced myself to focus. I had to fight. If I didn't, I would lose everything. Not just my freedom, but my dignity, my sense of self. The land I once knew, the people I once protected… all of it was slipping through my fingers like sand.
