Part 17: Into the Karesh Forest

Philip tugged Hauseld’s reins in the direction of the forest, trying to get him to move. The horse had other ideas, stamping the earth nervously, shaking his head slowly. Philip kicked his sides, causing him to trot forward along the upward-winding road for several feet before he stopped once more, shaking his head still.

“Hauseld, it’s our best chance!� The horse simply snorted. “Look, we don’t have time to argue about this! The sooner we get up there, the sooner we’ll be through.� Hauseld again shook his head and stomped the ground. “I’m scared too, but we don’t have the time! We have to get to Idyll!� With that, Philip gave a firm kick to Hauseld’s sides, sending the horse bolting up the hillside.

It was at that time that Philip began to feel ridiculous. He prayed that nobody had seen him in his little argument with Hauseld. It wasn’t because he was talking to the horse, but rather that he had come close to losing the argument with him. Philip shook his head and stroked Hauseld’s neck with one hand as the ride up the winding road into the hills continued.

The forest began to loom closer and closer. The trees were tall and quite old, having seen many centuries come and go in Midland. They were primarily pine trees, with thick bases and slender tops, and innumerable arms branching out in every direction. Each arm was covered in many different fingers, each covered with hundreds upon hundreds of dark green needles.

Hauseld began to slow down as he approached the forest, then came to a stop twenty feet from where the trees began. Fear was in the horse’s eyes, and it was in Philip’s eyes as well. Beneath the trees it was significantly darker, with only intermittent patches of sunlight lighting the forest floor. The sun was beginning its descent in the West, and it would only be a few hours until it was completely dark.

“Come on, Hauseld,� Philip urged. “We have to keep moving. It’ll be dark soon, and I don’t intend on spending the night in the deepest part of the forest.� Hauseld shook his head, then slowly advanced forward. After a few moments, the view of the Eastern plains was beginning to fade as the forest slowly encompassed the pair.

It was eerily quiet inside the forest. Every now and then a deer bounded away in the distance, or birds could be heard chirping and singing high above, but they were never around for very long. The forest floor was mostly covered with lush, green grass. There were ground weeds that slowly inched their way up the trunks of the trees, long leafy tendrils reaching up from the ground and toward the sky. The sight sent a chill of fear and wonder throughout Philip’s body.

They rode deeper into the forest, going at a slow but steady pace along the winding, occasionally hilly road. The sun began to sink even further toward the split between the Vanryd and Silmer Mountains, the light turning a bit more orange. Philip kicked Hauseld’s sides again, urging him to go faster, which he happily did.

Deeper into the forest, strange noises began to appear from every side, even up in the trees. Philip couldn’t see where they came from because of the quickly fading light in the dark forest, but he could make out some of the strange noises. They appeared to sound like yips, whines, barks, and even growls, though all sounds were very low. Eventually, they faded altogether, leaving the forest almost completely in silence.

Hauseld began to trot nervously forward, just as frightened by the silence as Philip was. Philip kept a tight grip on the reins, looking around him as paranoia began to seep into his mind. He knew he couldn’t prove it, but he could swear that he was being followed.

Out of nowhere, Philip was knocked swiftly out of the saddle and onto the ground. Hauseld reared and cried out in terror, bolting away into the darkness of the forest. Philip landed roughly on the forest floor and was quickly pinned by a light but very forced weight. Whatever it was that had landed on top of him, it had his body secured to the ground and a series very sharp claws pressed firmly to his throat.

Opening his eyes, he was confronted with the face of a female… or at least, he thought it was a female. All he could notice at first was the pair of incredibly luminous, amber orbs staring directly at him, eyes filled with flame and anger. That, and the elongated canines that had been bared as the creature spoke lowly.

“What are you doing here, Human? Who are you? What d’ you want?�