Grimwood Forest

Her foot got caught on a root. Falling to the ground she grunted – “ughh! Up!! Get up” her voice trembled, obviously frightened. She got back up. Covered in mud, scratches, and bruises. Her clothes were torn and dirtied from numerous falls. The rain poured, drumming on the leaves of the canopy above her. Loud enough to muffle the sounds of barking dogs that were after her. Her petrified gaze darted around the forest, and for a moment she lost the direction from which she came. 

Silenced by the rain barking still reached her ears. Her eyes widened, she leaned on the tree for a moment scanning the area, unable to see her pursuers she burst back into a sprint, dashing through the forest once more, leaping over bushes and fallen trees. Her sandals sank into the mud slowing her at every step. A bright flash blinded her for a brief moment followed by a deafening roar of thunder, echoing through the forest, the forest, she wished she had never entered. 

The barking got closer, she could hear it clearly now, catching up to her, the dogs were faster, they had her trail, she had no time to cover up her tracks. They were on to her, there was, seemingly, no escape. She remembered the barking that came behind the fence, she sighed – “ugh, damned dogs just never shut up” “what’s the matter little lass? Fear the dogs da ya?” said a short man standing beside her. 

She squinted at him and sighed – “Fear? I just can’t handle the constant yapping” she said, walking past him “Come on Jake, we got a ferry to catch” He skipped after her catching up – “ye ye whatev’s lass!” she chuckled lightheartedly – “Say Jake, why do you tag along with me for all this craziness?” He tilted his head, obviously staring at her buns… “ehh.. How da ai say this… yer ehh.. A charmer ya know? Can’t have ya getting in trouble alone”  

She looked over her shoulder grinning – “A charmer huh? Sure.. let’s go with that” Soon after they stood at the pier. Jake leaned on the rope watching the ferry slowly dock. A few people stepped off the ferry and the captain hailed “ALL ABOARD! SET SAIL IN 15 MINUTES” She nodded at Jake – “let’s go” he grinned – “after ye lass!” As the ferry sailed across the lake, Jake watched the water – “Say, Kath, why are you going to the grim-woods again?” 

She pulled out a raggedy note from the inner pocket of her jacket and unfolded it cautiously, but as she did so and began to read, a gust of wind ripped it out of her hands, leaving behind but a small chunk of the letter. On it, in handwritten but shaky handwriting, the following words remained “fountain of youth…east..cave..” She gasped as the rest of the letter got carried away by the wind and shortly after dumped into the water. She about leaped after it but a firm grip on her jacket from the short man stopped her

“Neii lass! Don’t jump in the water you’ll catch a cold! You’ve read that letter a hundred times no less!” she grunted –  “Grrr! But..” he grinned – “yes butt! Anyway, you found that letter where again?” she sighed – “Hidden in a book in the archives while I was researching local myths for a project” he nodded – “ye weird! But it promises to be fun if there is a fountain” 

Indistinct shout, there was a commotion at the bow of the ship. The few passengers aboard the ferry walked to the bow to see dense fog covering the other side of the lake, stretching far and wide, slowly moving towards them. Captain hailed 2 crewmen over and ordered them to take down all but the bow sail to slow down the ferry. The crew was experienced, and there was little to be concerned about, but the fog still made Kath feel uneasy. Something was eerie about that dense fog they were about to enter. 

And so the fog swallowed them, but nothing happened despite Kath’s uneasiness. A firm slap on her back – “Ey lass? Ye aight? You seem a little tense! Here have this” Said Jake handing her a waterskin filled with a questionably smelling liquid substance. A few sips seem to have done the trick and she relaxed. As the ferry docked the uneasy feeling returned upon realizing that the town of Wernfield was awfully quiet. Along with them disembarked 3 other people. 

A miqo’te girl, a merchant man, and another viera. Upon getting off the pier and making their way through the silent town, so silent it felt like a ghost town, Jake several times caught himself stopping and looking over his shoulder, thinking he heard footsteps, light, female footsteps, but the dense fog made it tremendously difficult to spot anyone even if they were being tailed. “Ey lass, I say we park our firm asses in the inn and wait till fog passes” 

Kath didn’t stop walking, marching onwards with surprising foolishness and outstanding ignorance “No, I don’t have that much free time! The dissertation is due in a month and if this myth too proves to be naught but a folk tale I’ll at least be able to write about it” He grunted – “ughh i really don’t recommend going into THAT forest in bad weather” She winked at him – “what is it little man? Scared?” 

Jake shook his head – “Ye listen’ here lass! I ain’t not scared just cautious!” But despite his arguments, she pressed onwards. The sound of light female footsteps seemingly following them continued but pacing seemingly matching theirs, making it hard to tell whether it was his mind playing tricks on him, or if they were actually being followed. They passed through town and only heard a distant murmur and closing doors. 

Exiting the town they were greeted by 2 gate guards “Eheh, at least it’s not a complete ghost town ey lass?” she chuckled – “yeah.. Guess that makes me feel a bit easier” behind them, chatter could be heard as they walked onwards “huh.. So there IS someone walking behind us” Kath turned and looked over her shoulder at the milky fog obstructing her vision, no longer able to see the guards having only walked no more than 20 steps away – “huh?”

Jake walked up to her and whispered – “aye, been hearing footsteps, I think we being followed” Kath shrugged – “what for? We got nothing on us, NOTHING!” She flipped her pockets outwards showing emptiness “can’t rob those who are broke” he chuckled – “ey but what ye got are some fine ears! Maybe they want to make a lucky charm out of viera ears?” she chuckled and walked onwards. 

They entered the forest. The eerie silence and the dense fog made the grim-woods forest seem even more terrifying than usual. The trees in this forest had utmost unusual shapes. Some trees and their branches looked like huts, others looked like people or dryads. Some bushes resembled animals in shape, the name was given to this forest for giving a grim feeling of being watched to those who enter it, but Kath was not to be stopped by silly things. 

A distant roar of thunder made her wince – “oh no” “what is it lass?” said jake looking around – “I ain’t got no bunny ears i can’t hear what ye can” she squinted – “uhh, thunder, in the distance”. Jake sighed a disappointing sigh – “Oh great! Now we got a storm on our hands! Aight then! Make it quick, chop chop! Where do we go?” she pulled out a simple compass – “east towards a cliff”

The 2 walked hastily through the forest when a sudden shout from Jake stopped Kath in her tracks – “AAA!!” She turned to see jake, held by the shoulder, by a man dressed in black robes – “Mhhh… travelers in this weather? Wish you to hear your destiny?” Jake took the man’s wrist in a firm grip, pulling it away from his shoulder – “Lisn here lad! If ai wanted me destiny i’d go to the crazy lady back in town!” The man grinned a strange smile – “very well then, watch your back though”

Jake rushed past Kath and walked through the forest at an accelerated pace – “ughh that lad gave me the jeepers and the creepers ya know?” Kath tried to keep up with his pace – “Slow DOWN you maniac!” she exclaimed just to be ignored – “That lad was not right! No no! This ain’t good!” his head swiveled left and right constantly, scanning the forest. 

The wind picked up, and as the fog got blown away, the rain began to pour down. Getting stronger by the minute, the 2 stood atop the cliff on the eastern side. Jake looked down – “So that cave, is it up here or down there?” Kath looked at her compass “too soon” “eh?” exclaimed Jake inching closer to her – “what did ya say?” she squinted onto the ever-expanding forest below them – “TOO SOON! The cliff was to be on the EDGE! Not in the MIDDLE of the forest” spoke Kath louder so Jake could hear her through the rain. 

Jake scratched his head – “ye realize we walked 4 hours through the fog? That plays with yer perception lass! We walked plenty far” She shook her head – “no..” in the corner of her vision, she watched Jake falling down. The time seemingly stopped for her. ‘Badum, badum’ her heartbeat echoed through her skull as her mind raced but her body completely failed to react. She watched him become smaller and smaller in her vision. 

She looked down from the cliff – “j..jake..?” her voice tremble, her eyes watered, before her gaze, at last, darted to the figure standing beside her- “OOOWWIEEE DID YOU SEE THAT?? Nice!” her face turned pale as she turned to face a young miqo’te girl standing beside her. A devilish grin on her face, her fangs showing – “Ah, ohh! Hey do you believe you can fly?” 

Kath took a step back – “w..wha..?” the miqo’te girl placed her hands on her hips and sighed – “Missy? Hello? Wanna start running or will you just tremble there and let me do as I will?” Kath, confused, terrified, her body shuddered as she slowly walked around the tree – “i.. J..ja” she stuttered. Suddenly, a claw, hand on her shoulder, claws pushing into her skin – “humm? Oh him? He went byebye… and soon you will too!”

 Kath knocked the miqo’s hand off her shoulder and turned to run, her legs without hesitation carried her through the forest as she ran and leaped over bushes and fallen trees. The fog had cleared up but the rain was only getting more intense until it eventually, turned into a downpour. The soil quickly turned to mud. Her sandals sank into it as she ran. She could still hear the miqo’s voice. The terror of her casual smile embedded itself into Kath’s mind – ‘OOOWIEEE DID YOU SEE THAT?’ she kept replaying that scene in her mind. 

Kath quickly pulled out her compass, adjusting her direction to run west, same direction she had come from, hoping she’s managing to outrun the mysterious miqo’te ‘is that the 1 jake said was following us? But why? Who?’ she shook her head – ‘no, doesn’t matter!’ Before long, she heard barking. Her instincts told her to turn and run in the other direction, but she followed them without question. 

In her peripheral vision, she saw a shape running alongside her, obstructed by the rain she thought the shape looked like someone wearing a bed sheet over them, like a make-shift ghost costume. She heard footsteps to the other side, and as her vision darted there, a body hid behind a tree. Her heart pounded, and her lungs began to burn as the adrenaline pushed her to run even faster.

Chased through the forest, she tumbled and fell on occasion. Her foot got caught on a root. Falling to the ground she grunted – “ughh! Up!! Get up” her voice trembled, obviously frightened. She got back up. Covered in mud, scratches, and bruises. Her clothes were torn and dirtied from numerous falls. The rain poured, drumming on the leaves of the canopy above her. Loud enough to muffle the sounds of barking dogs that were after her. 

A blinding flash of lightning was followed by a loud roar of thunder. Kath looked around the forest in an attempt to find her tracks, having lost for a moment the direction from which she came. The barking got closer, she could hear it clearly now, catching up to her, the dogs were faster, they had her trail, and she had no time to cover up her tracks. They were on to her, there was, seemingly, no escape. 

“And so she will be chased through the forest to her death” spoke a barely familiar to her voice. She took a nervous step forward and looked around the thick tree, on the other side of it. The man they had encountered earlier stood, grinning – “I told you to watch your back, I offered to tell you your fate. But you, ignorant, stubborn, left, and now, you’ll pay for it. Not knowing your fate you shall not escape it” she gasp – “y..you” 

She blinked in disbelief, he was gone, before her, the cliff. Jake looked down the cliff – “So that cave, is it up here or down there?” her eyes widened in disbelief. She quickly turned to see nothing but forest shrouded in the mystery of dense fog behind them – “Ey lass? What is it?” Kath tried to calm her breathing, gasping – “ah..i.. Uhh.. m..must be daydreaming or something” exclaimed the viera, pinching her forearm. A jolt of pain ran through her body. 

Something rustled in the bushes, and she instinctively grabbed Jake’s hand, pulling him away from the cliff by the sleeve, out of the bush a shape emerged, a confused, lost deer. It stared blankly at the petrified Viera, and then the short man beside her, and then walked on. “Ey what the hell are ye doing lass? What got into ye?” said jake trying to pull his arm away from her iron grip – “no.. uhh, you were right.. Let’s get out of here” 

Jake scratched his head – “Ai told ye this before we entered! But who’d ever listen to the good old Jake eh? Fine fine! We’ll return another day” As the 2 made their way out of the forest, the man from before emerged from the fog – “oh, I see, I see” said the man watching Jake closely – “and say miss, why do you drag an arm around with you?” her eyes widened as she pulled Jake closer to her, or.. His arm…the only part of his body remaining, holding his arm by the wrist firmly. 

She shrieked, dropping his bloodied arm to the ground, stumbling backward, shaking – “n..no..w..what happ..” the man grinned at her, enjoying her terrified expression – “And now, missy, wanna hear your fate?” She fell to her knees, trembling, tears rolling down her cheeks, she nodded hesitantly – “y…yes..” he took a step closer, she gasped  – “And so she will be chased through the forest to her death”

She looked up at him, her gaze petrified, her body frozen from fear – “p..please..” he grinned an amused grin – “Very well, then try again”. She blinked “Ey lass, I say we park our firm asses in the inn and wait till fog passes”. She turned, facing Jake who was cautiously looking over his shoulder – “what da ye say?” 

Kath gasped – “ah…a…yes!” He turned back to face her, head tilted to the side – “Yes? You said yes? Hah! Didn’t think i’d live to see the day you would be cautious!” A tear rolled down her cheek. Her jaw shook her voice trembled – “n..no it’s…f..fine.. Lets rest..” Jake nodded at her a confused nod. And so the 2 made their way to the inn.  

At the inn, they were greeted by a surprisingly blatant, rather ignorant, pale-skinned, statue-looking staff. He unemotionally and unenthusiastically handed them keys to room #7. Jake led her up the stairs and sat her in the chair – “Aight lass, tell me what’s troubling ye!” He gasped looking at her forearm that was bloodied – “oh my, lass, what happened ‘ere?” 

She was pretty dumbfounded from the shock. Unsure if she was dreaming, hallucinating, or being toyed with by a power beyond her comprehension, she did not even notice the gash on her forearm. She shrugged, still sobbing. Jake quickly grabbed some disinfectant from the bathroom in the inn and poured it over her wound. Ripping his sleeve off to wrap it up for her – “ah lass! Must’ve got caught on some nail on the ferry!” 

She nodded, still not speaking. He laid her down on his lap, his eyes darted between hers. Distorted by tears her vision slowly focused on Jake, his bloodied face and broken jaw slowly came into focus. Her eyes widened, and she jumped up from his lap, sharp pain made her wince – “AAGHH!” She looked with a frightened expression at the body of her companion, leaning against a cave wall. Bones broken, face mingled. 

She tried to crawl back, but sharp pain from her broken arm made her collapse onto the cold mossy floor of the cave – “Agghh!” she clenched her teeth “wha…what is happening” She struggled to get up. Upon approaching the mangled body of her friend and looking at the cave entrance, she came to the realization that she dragged his body into this cave. Her broken arm and bruises indicated that she, likely, too, fell off the cliff.

Her focus returned when she suddenly remembered “the fountain shall be found hidden in the cave down below in the eastern part of the forest. But to drink from it you’ll have to make a sacrifice” Her gaze darted back to her dead companion – “A sacrifice… has been made” a voice echoed through her head – “great, now go deeper inside and drink to your heart’s content” she grinned, her face resembled that of a demon – “heh.. Yes, I made the sacrifice, I shall now take my prize” 

As she stood before the fountain of youth, a voice in her head congratulated her excitedly – “Wonderful journey! You’ve done well, I done well” she smiled, dipping her broken arm into the fountain “I done well, and..” a moment of hesitation and a sense of guilt washed over her – “I killed my friend… I am a monster” the voice responded – “We ARE but we are now immortal” 

Her arm remained broken. She gasped, quickly scooping up some water and drinking it.. Regular water. She burst into laughter, falling to her knees beside the rumored fountain of youth “ha..hahahhaa..it..its just water” she laughed until she passed out. A month later, the foresters found a dead young man and a viera girl in a cave. The cause of death were ‘fall from the cliff’ and ‘starvation due to injuries after the fall’. Nobody ever learned the truth.