"Thou art a most cruel princess, my dear forest. Thou wouldst flaunt a most wondrous beauty before mine eyes, yet forbid me take it! What's a long-suffering explorer to do?" Asked Beruni Elendil, of no one inparticular. Looking exasperated, he continued to stare at the nearest tree unflinchingly, as if it had somehow offended him.
He wanted to enter the forest, just to look about it. Such things…placated him. Indeed, he had entered it twice now, but there was a slight…problem.
These woods seemed bursting with horrible things that had made it their home. So, twice he entered, and twice he left, a disgusting creature close behind him each time. However, this particular forest intrigued him enough that he would risk a third attempt. After all, how many people could claim to have been in a half-petrified forest full of monsters?
"This place is…evil…but I still wish to see it." He muttered, glaring death at a random tree-trunk. Seizing his staff in one hand, he trudged forwards.
Beruni was still quite young at the age of fifteen, but he had travelled the world's landscapes much already in his life. It was this experience which drove him onwards into this wood. That, and his odd amulet.
It was made of some unidentified wood, clean, but only very roughly sculpted to look like an owl, with…something, in it's mouth. Beruni liked to think of it as a twig, but he didn't know why. Sometimes, he would sit and hold it, thinking as hard as he could, but for the life of him never remembered how he came into possession of such an odd artefact.
He pulled it out of his (very dirty) black robes and examined it again. He was still yet to find a use for it, except that he would clutch it when casting a spell to make him look like he was doing something mighty. He'd carry it wherever he went.
"Dumb really…having so much affection for this amulet-thingy…" He muttered, but tucked it away anyhow. He stepped cautiously into the forest once more, glancing above nervously for the half-petrified spider he'd seen earlier. He also strongly suspected he'd on it's dinner plate if it wasn't for the fact that it had to drag along the petrified half of his body along with it!
Beruni strode forwards with false courage, brushing the loose undergrowth aside. Not looking where he was going (as usual) he tripped over a root which had been turned to stone, falling flat on his face.
"Ouch…stupid root!" He kicked out at it, and then hopped around, clutching his foot in the traditional slapstick comedy fashion. "Well, I guess I should have know better…" he muttered, still glaring at the offending root.
He ran forwards across a clearing, deftly pole-vaulting a stoned trunk with his staff, and whistled a merry tune as he strolled along. "Maybe I finally mastered this place, eh?" He grinned into the air as he made further progress. "Well, I'm normally a modest guy, but I have to say…this isn't much of a forest to me! I'd reckon I was already half way through!" He grinned smugly to himself; glad no one was around to see him like this (for he would never act such in the presence of others).
Ducking under a few branches, strewn across the path at his (rather low) head-height, he found a small clearing. He sat down upon a flat-topped boulder to think and rest.
"Well, nothing here any more! I wonder where all the monst—," He suddenly fell silent, remembering he was talking around. He didn't want to attract any attention.
A low roar emanated from close by.
"Dammit! That was too predictable! Why do I have to suffer the clichés all the time??!!!" He exploded, looking for the source of trouble.
"Wow…my anger's having a strange effect on me…I feel like I'm going up in the world!" And, indeed, he was. For he had suffered yet another long-standing tradition; the boulder he was sitting on was as inanimate as a kangaroo on an illegal substance.
He'd sat on the back of a…something.
Beruni sprang to his feet, running before he'd even touched the ground. "Arrgghh! I can't stand it! Look at it!" He shouted, risking a glance over his shoulder and wishing he hadn't. He turned to face whatever it was and grabbed the amulet in his free right hand. Brandishing the staff in his left, he bellowed "Fire!" and pointed the end at the monster. Grinning in glee, he watched a massive fireball leap forwards…about half a metre, before shrinking rapidly and disappearing from sight moments later. "Why me??!!!" He asked the world in general, before running again from the freshly enraged monster.
Already, his legs ached from fatigue; his ankles crying out from running; his back tired from carrying his heavy supplies. His face was covered in sheen of sweat, from running hard and carrying his things along with him, not to mention his rather thick robes, retaining heat.
"Mental note: never go into a dangerous forest, carrying things along that make you die of exhaustion when running."
The…thing was still close behind him, and it wasn't happy. Beruni had noticed this via two factors: an unpleasant heat and smell, getting worse, (no doubt the monster's breath) and an occasional roar or grunt, very near his unprotected behind. To emphasise this fact, it butted him with its head, sending him even faster forwards.
Vines whipped past him as he ran, leaving small cuts all over his face. Plants, jumped into and though in an attempt to lose the monster, were battering him, not to mention reducing his robes to rags. Injuries and damage where made worse by the fact that much of the forest remained petrified; as such, he had began to use his staff to deflect incoming foliage away from his unprotected skin. A vine, half made from stone, can really hurt. He continued the mad getaway until he reached a small clearing; he ran to the other side and turned upon his pursuer.
Monster and human eyed each other from either side, circling slowly. Each knew that they were in for a fight; however the poor monster obviously didn't have a very good measure of Beruni…yet. He intended to correct him upon this. Beruni was the first to make a move-he ran headlong at the monster. Very much surprised by the suicidal human, it did nothing as it attempted to work out why it's prey was giving up. Beruni jumped, landed a boot squarely in the quadruped's face, and attempted to vault over him. He soared gracefully though the air, narrowly missing yet more vines, as well as a carnivorous-looking plant. He felt exhilaration as the air rushed past him, as though he was a bird set free form it's cage. The bird had obviously not flown for some time, however, for it flew into a very sticky pool of mud and got extremely dirty.
Standing, he spat mud out of his mouth and tried to wipe himself off. There was no sign of pursuit: he'd managed to evade the monster at last. However, he was very worse for wear; mud, cuts and bruises covered him, his robes were looking decidedly tatty, and he'd dropped or lost most of his equipment.
"Well, at least I'm alive…still." He muttered, and took a step forwards-onto a slippery stone. He fell, face-first, into the mud once more. Rising, he felt a small poke. He wriggled, and then threw away the stone, which was jabbing in his leg. "I'll get out of this forest yet…" He grumbled.
Little did he know what else was in store for him…