Inslee did not see the point of trying to travel to someplace unfamiliar, since she would probably just get lost anyway, not knowing how to identify landmarks from the air. At least her family's fief was recognizable enough, since that was one map she had learned from an early age. Furthermore, traveling home would give her an opportunity to discover the situation in the manor, and whether she could help protect her family, given her growing understanding of the plot against them. Or were all these transformations just nightmares? Either way, seeing known places and faces might help steady her thinking.
Decisively, Inslee headed in the direction of the dukedom. Although she was worried, she unconsciously began to enjoy the feeling of flight, the freedom of being in the open air with no boundaries. Which was probably why she did not think about the message tied to her leg, or the consequences it might bring. And also why she did not anticipate the arrow which pierced through her light frame.
Too shocked to react, relentless gravity took over despite a few futile attempts to slow the plummet to earth. Inslee hit the earth with a dull thud, too dazed from the initial attack to feel the impact that probably broke the majority of her bones. As she gasped for breath, Inslee heard approaching footsteps. A hand moved her battered body slightly, then removed the paper attached to her leg. Inslee blinked, feeling the darkness closing in, but then she heard someone speak.
"The Crown Prince was right to stop all communications to the dukedom," a husky voice said. Focusing, Inslee managed to make out two figures covered in cloaks and hoods, one carrying a long-bow, the source of Inslee's pain. "Send a message to the palace immediately; the duke's men have found the tower."
Tower? What tow-- , Inslee struggled to think coherently, having the feeling that she had discovered something important, but her consciousness was fading too quickly for her to put the pieces together. With a final gasp as the cloaked stranger wrenched the arrow from her body, Inslee returned to the darkness.