Before him was a shelf carved from the stone, by nature or by man he could not tell. But this was his goal, and even as he hurled his belongings up onto that shelf and reached out to pull himself up, the sea gave one mighty surge and our traveler's boat was pulled back from the dock and swamped, to disappear beneath the waves. Good enough, he said to himself my path lies before me, not behind. Looking upward he saw that the path was narrow and looked more to be natural than man made. Shaking off his fatigue he started upward without another glance behind.
Reaching the top took just about all morning but when he finally did he looked back down to the sea and was amazed at how far he had come. He was actually above the storm and here the sun was shining and the air clear. Starting down the path before him he the pangs of hunger that were becoming more and more insistent. Knowing that he had no supplies left he tightened his belt and continued his trek.
The sound of voices greeted him as he pushed open the door and the delicious odor and warmth that washed over him were like a soothing balm. As his eyes adjusted to the room he noticed that there were not more than five or six people in the room and that they all appeared to be hunters or fisherman. Feeling the eye's of everyone upon him, our traveler moved towards the back of the room and took a table that left his back to the wall. Even as he was pulling off his cloak a voice startled him. Turning, he found himself staring into a saucy smiling face. "You move most quietly miss." and so saying our traveler found himself smiling back.
"I said sir what may I get you?" You have the look of someone who has not eaten in some time, and perhaps you are thirsty as well.
"Please forgive me miss, I had not realized that you were speaking to me, yes I am very thirsty and hungry, and please do not call me sir my name is Thom.
Pulling off his sword and pack our weary and footsore traveler sat and relaxed leaning back against the wall he let the warmth of the inn wash over him. So relaxed was he that he did not notice the return of the serving girl until she plunked down the steaming platter that she carried and the large mug of black beer.
"This smells truly delicious", and indeed Theme’s mouth was watering as even as he spoke. So saying he dug into the simple fare and found that it did taste as good as it smelled. Soon Thom, found himself staring into an empty plate and feeling better than he had thought possible.
Soon he felt someone's eye's upon him once again and looked about holding up his mug he summoned her over. "This beer is very good, if you don't mind I will have another, by the way lass you are very pretty what is your name?
" My name is Ariel and if you have a moment my father would speak with you. Strangers are not common here and there have been rumors of unease across Sunder's Sea.
"Tell your father that I would speak with him if he wishes." After saying that Ariel disappeared and Thom thought to himself perhaps he had been less than wise in granting her request. Moments later Thom saw someone coming out of the kitchen and cursed silently to himself. The figure that approached him was bigger than life and indeed a great bear of a man he was he dwarfed everyone in the room. This was no cowering innkeeper, he moved like a warrior for all his bulk.
"My name is Dosan and I am the proprietor of this inn. My daughter said that someone new had come in, and since as you can see most of the people that come here are locals, strangers often bring questions and sometimes trouble. There is very little around here that is not my business and there have been troubled rumors coming from some of the local fisher folk and hunters that range far afield."
Thom was slightly taken back by the directness of Dosan and for a second considered telling him nothing. But he did sense an honesty that made him reconsider this. But his journey this far had been dangerous and to be to truthful might put these people in more danger instead of less.
"Well Dosan, in truth I am evidence of the rumors of trouble from across the sea. There is great need for help and I have come seeking it. In my own land there is a holy man who was once from Drews, he said that there might be an answer in the great wood that lies north of here. That answer is what I seek. There are those that would seek to stop me and I cannot let that happen."
"Ah well now we get down to it lad, I don't suppose that any of this trouble you refer to would be following you would it?"
The expression on Dosan's face was not so much one of anger but more of bad expectations come true. "Well I expected as much, it seems that the rumors are not far from the truth and I think that you may no much more than you are telling me. But that is of no matter, you have told me enough to confirm my fears. It would seem you have traveled far and might be needing a place to sleep. My daughter will show you to a room." So saying goodnight, Dosan rose up like mountain and moved off to speak to some other customers."
Noticing Ariel moving towards me I gathered up my belongings and prepared to follow her lead. Standing before me, I noticed the color of her eyes for the first time, and beautiful eyes they were, large and green.
"My father would have you follow me to one of our rooms. he says that you are spending the night, come along and I'll show you where.” Ariel said.
As I followed Ariel through the inn I thought that I felt hostile eye's upon me. Coming to a stairway Ariel led me up to a narrow hallway. Pushing open a door at the end of the hall she said, "This will be your room."
As I moved past Ariel I inhaled the scent of her hair, and it was of wild meadows and summer storms. Feeling my heart beating faster all that I could think of to say was thank you. Closing the door behind me I threw my gear on the bed and settled down to do some thinking. The next thing I knew the sun was creeping in through the small window in the room. Amazing what some food and rest could do for your attitude. Feeling better than he had felt in day's he rose quickly dressed and made his way downstairs to the common room.
As he entered the room he saw Ariel and she called him over "Thom I hope you rested well, my father is not here today but he told me to help you in any way that you might need."
Seeing Ariel afresh in the morning made him realize that his impression of her from the night before was no mistake. She was indeed lovely and as he sat down next to her his heart began to pound.
"Hold on a moment and I will get you something to eat, as lithe and graceful as a deer" she rose from the table and disappeared into the kitchen returning in a moment with food and drink.
As Thom ate, his thoughts began to wander, soon he would be on the road to the great forest that started far to the north. Ah well, the sooner he got started the sooner he would be done. Ariel returned with her arms full of food, Thom looked up in amazement "What's all this for?"
Ariel smiled as she spoke, and said "I am helping you prepare for your journey, it was easy to tell that you have no supplies with you and my father did say that I was to help you in any way I can."
Looking down at the bounty on the table Thom smiled, there was a large skin of wine, and enough food for several days. Pulling his pouch from his belt he reached in and pulled three silver coins forth. "This is for your kindness, and I must tell you Ariel, I wish that I had no further to go."
"My father said that you should follow the path that leads north from here and that it will lead you towards the great forest that you seek. he also said that there you might find someone who might be of some help." Still smiling Ariel said "I will be waiting for your return and I hope that your journey is a safe one. Oh and eat sparingly of the journey bread in your pack, it is plain fair but can support life for many days if used carefully."
Picking up his gear he made his way towards the door and soon found himself outside. Looking up the path he started on his way with a warm feeling in his heart that he thought he would never have again. Moving with a new enthusiasm he once more undertook his journey without a backwards glance.
His body was becoming hardened to the constant walking and he no longer felt the strain of his journey. As he traveled deeper and deeper into the wood he realized that even had he had a horse the path that he followed was becoming so overgrown that he would not have been able to ride here.
Slowly coming to the top of the hill Thom saw that the sky was turning black and there seemed to be an aura of palpable malice coming from the wood itself.
Thom sensed that something was wrong and as he looked around as he felt eyes upon him. There was a tremendous blast that made the very ground quiver and a flash of lightning that blinded Thom.
As he recovered his vision the trees started to whip back and forth as though they were alive and still the weary traveler did not stop. It was as though he could tell that those who followed were closing in for the kill. There was an almost frenzied sense of energy in his movements.
Suddenly the Thom froze and then spun on his heels, as if each motion were some sort of step in a deadly dance. Once, twice , then a third time. With each movement a slim deadly black dart whistled by the traveler, as soon as the last dart past the traveler wheeled and leaped for the cover of the wood.
"Damn, is there no way to shake these hell spawn, they have been on my trail since leaving the City of Dreams." Two more darts whistled by. I had seen the effect of these deadly missiles too many times to tell.
Pulling myself upright against the base of an old oak I tried to sense the location of my enemies, I could sense nothing.
The traveler hurled himself up the slope, his only hope was that he might lose those who were following him in the fury of the storm.
Deeper and deeper into the wood he fled, further from the path he had been following. Soon the traveler had lost all idea of where he was and his only thought was for escape.
Higher and higher the traveler climbed and suddenly the hill seemed to run out. "Gods!!" suddenly the traveler was in free fall and there did not appear to be any end to the drop. The traveler pulled his staff up above his head and tried to slow his descent. But there was nothing to for him to grab onto and it seemed that his escape from death was a joke. Suddenly the hooked end of his staff hit something and with a jolt that nearly tore his arms from the sockets and he stopped. "Well this is a fine mess." Even as he spoke he felt the staff jerk, and thought that this must be the end.
"Hey are you going to spend the night up there?" With that the traveler's staff broke free and he plummeted to the ground to land with a great thud. Realizing the fall was not to be his end. The stranger jumped to his feet and pulled his sword free. "Now, now, lets not be so hasty stranger. If it was dead I'd wanted you it was dead you'd be."
The traveler heard no menace in the voice and the point of his weapon lowered the slightest little bit.
" Are you friend or foe, answer now or defend yourself." The traveler tensed and his weapon was raised once again to the ready.
"Well now, my name is Brannog Gallows and here about I am called Gall the hunter. Now, I would know your name and what you do here?" There was a sudden tiny flicker in the darkness a red glow that slowly grew until a large figure was framed against it. The traveler knew that he faced no enemy. Sheathing his blade the traveler knew that there was no more time. Those who followed would be on his trail and the only thing that could perhaps help him was to put as much distance between himself and the dark minions as possible. "Well Gallows my name is Thom and if you would live, we should leave quickly.. " Gallows I am enemy to no man, but those that follow me are not men and will kill any one they think may have assisted me. I think you bear me no ill will, so if you value your life you will make haste to leave this place."
"Man, I appreciate your concern but none trespass here without my leave. However you make me curious so perhaps I will travel with you for awhile, just to be sure you do not mean harm to any that live here. However if what you say is true I think we would spend our time better in leaving this place."
Sheathing his sword the traveler grabbed up his pack and then suddenly froze, for at the edge of his hearing there was a sound both angry and mournful that made him shiver and put his teeth on edge." There Gallows that is a sign of those who follow, do you think I lie now?"
"Well as my sainted dad was used to saying there's a time to think and there's a time to move. I'm thinking this is a time to move!" With a speed that was amazing Gallows gathered up his gear and started moving down the path. Still shocked, the traveler picked up his staff and tried to match the breakneck speed with which the hunter hurled himself down into the blackness.
Suddenly the rain started and the path was next to impossible to see, this is certain madness the traveler thought. He had no idea who this madman was, although he seemed to be no friend of those who were pursuing him. The path that they followed seemed to be getting even more intense as they fled. After what seemed an eternity of hurtling through the dark the big hunter finally slowed down. " I don't think any one will be so foolish as to follow us down here. Now my friend why don't you tell me who you are and exactly what makes you so popular with those fellows that were following you?"
Suddenly there was a high pitched screaming that seemed to come from up the trail. The screaming seemed to continue forever, but in reality, it could not have lasted more than a minute.
The sense of being followed that had hounded my every step suddenly seemed to dissolve and it felt as if there had been a great weight lifted from my shoulders.
The place that the hunter had chosen to stop had a sense of peace about it. settling down with our backs to the storm Gallows reached under his cloak and drew out a large metal flask. Pulling out the stopper the hunter took a long draught, and passed the flask to me. The vapors that seemed to emanate from the flask were like nothing I had ever experienced. Taking a long draught from the flask I could feel a warm glow. "Well Gallows where I come from I am called Thom, and the reason that I had to leave my country is to search for a cure to the infection that slowly is devouring the land and people."
"Now my friend, that does sound right terrible and those screams we heard earlier? I take it those fellows were representative of the plague you speak." Said Gall while taking another big swig.
"Plainly that is true, and a more deadly bunch you will never see. The warrior priests of their despicable cult started showing up around the smaller towns that lay at the foot of the mountains. First it was just a few, but their numbers grew daily. The number and cruelty of the perversion they called religious ceremony grew also until, the people would not leave their homes at night. Still my father did not see the danger. Thinking that all was not right I asked my father for permission to consult the monk that lives in the mountains above our city. Well Gallows what do you think I found when I returned from the mountains? The City of Dreams had been burned to the ground, the stench of death was overpowering and maimed corpses littered the ground.
Running down the street to my fathers house I knew what I would find when I arrived. No sign of my family remained, all that I had were the food and weapons I had carried with me on my pilgrimage. If I was caught by the priests of the cult I would surely die as had the rest of my people."
All of a sudden the wood grew silent and a sense of peril pervaded what had seemed a safe haven. Gall slowly took another long drink from his flask and nodded to me " I think that we may have some company."
With that the peace of the quiet Glenn was destroyed. We were suddenly in the center of a storm of death. Gall picked up his ax and struck two of the attackers down with the flat of that broad blade.
I had no time to draw my sword, so I yanked my staff up out of the ground twisting it as I did so. This left the bottom quarter of the staff in the ground and me with two feet on glittering steel. Spinning I thrust with my staff and impaled one of the screaming creatures, pinning , it to the ground. Using the momentum from the thrust I jumped and kicked with both feet sending the next attacker reeling backwards towards Gall who was just pulling his blade from the body of the second priest, the first that he had met still standing, but a head shorter. As the priest stumbled backwards Gall's ax flew in a glittering ark and the third priest fell cut cleanly in half.
They still came, falling from the trees almost as a perverted black rain the only sounds that you could hear were the scuffling of feet in the mud and heavy breathing of the combatants. Soon there was no longer any movement and the last of the hell spawn had been dispatched.
I looked towards Gall, and as he caught my eye he nodded and said " That's a pretty handy little toy you have there, nodding towards my staff." Picking up our scattered belongings. We once again started towards what Gall had said passed for a gathering place for those who used this forest as a home.
"Well my friend, it's time we looked for a little help and there are those that live in this forest that look at it as their own. They will not be pleased at the invasion of this scum. Its my belief that they have made a great mistake coming here, and it will be one that they will pay dearly for."
So saying, Gall pulled something from his robe hurled it at the ground before us. Upon impact the ground started to shudder and jump and it seemed that a stairway was formed beneath our feet. "Come on lad don't be standing there with that vacant look on your face, we have got to get moving. I have a feeling that there will be more of our black robed friends coming soon, and they might not be to happy to find what has become of their brethren. This is the one path that I know where there will be no pursuit on."
Moving into the tunnel that had appeared we began our headlong flight from the danger that threatened above. The tunnel walls seemed to provide a light of their own, and the floor of the tunnel was extremely smooth. Gall and I ran and it seemed that he had traveled this way before. There was really no sense of time in this place and I could not tell how long we had been running or how far we had gone when he began to slow down. The one thing I did notice was that the tunnel was apparently growing larger and the light growing stronger. To my thinking this could just be my eyes adjusting to the light. Coming to a halt we stood in what appeared to be a grotto of some size, there was the sound of water and limned in the faint light was an area that looked as if it had been used as camp before.
Throwing down his gear Gall looked to me and said "Relax boy, it's time we took a break, and there is no better place than here." Sitting down Gall reached over and pulled a finely wrought goblet from his pack and dipped it into a small depression in the stone that was full of water. Handing it to me he said "Drink up Thom, this has not got the kick of what I carry in my flask but I do not think you will find it unpleasant."
Taking the goblet from Gall I sniffed the contents and could detect no odor good or bad. The rigors of our battle and flight and perhaps the after effects of the liquor that I had drunk earlier had left me with a thirst that I had not felt till this moment. I drained the goblet in one long draught and felt an instant infusion of energy, it even seemed that my perceptions were heightened. Looking again around the grotto I noticed that what I had thought were great stone columns were actually the roots of what must be the grandfather's of all trees.
I then noticed Gall was looking in my direction and said "This is a marvelous drink, what exactly is it?"
"Well now that might just take a little explaining, but I believe that we have plenty of time and we're entitled to a little rest after today’s activities." Pulling out a mug of his own Gall scooped himself a drink from the pool and refilled my goblet. "I see that you noticed our little hidey hole is actually the space around the roots of the great ones of the forest. This place where we are is but a shadow of where the true forest giants live, sort of an outpost. As for this grand elixir while not as strong here, this is the very essence of this wood and stone where we sit. Believe me if you were not true of heart or planned any malice toward those that dwell here, that would have been your last drink on this earth and not so pleasant."
Perhaps it was the heightened awareness from the drink or the fact that we were finally able to relax for a moment, but as I stared at Galls face in the dim light he began to remind me of someone I had seen before.
As my mind started to wander I tried to recall my conversation with Ariel, and even as it started to come back to me I fell into a deep dreamless sleep.
I woke to the sound of Gall's voice saying "Come on boy, we have got a lot of traveling to do and we had better get started."
Feeling much refreshed, I got up and looked around for my host. He was filling the water bottles from the pool we had drunk from earlier. All my aches and pains were gone and I could not understand why I felt so good, when earlier I did not believe I would be able to move at all after the battle and our flight.
