Chapter 3: Into the Forest

They said I don't belong here…

They don't understand, they're just afraid... don't pay any mind to them.

But what if I really don't? Is there really any reason for me to be here?

There is, love. Give them time. You're here with me.

After finishing her meal at Claire's inn, Shizuru found her and recovered the naginata she had confiscated for her stay. Taking one last sit down inside her room, the knight made sure she did not leave anything behind and bade the owner, as well as Erstin, a farewell afterwards. Exiting the tavern, Shizuru prepared George for the road and soon made her way to where the road's end met the Kagean forest's start. Approaching the entrance Diana gave a loud and nervous squawk from the perch of the knight's shoulder. Even the horse was getting a little antsy. Shizuru, too, suddenly understood the sense of foreboding that Claire had mentioned, but brushed it off merely as the stories getting to her mind. Shizuru calmed her two travel companions by whispering calming words and petting their backs. It seemed to work somewhat as they were willing to go forward, but the animals still showed some anxiety as the brunette urged them onwards.

Nearing the line, George suddenly refused. "Come, now. Everything will be all right." Shizuru sighed and then dismounted, leading George by foot, tugging gently on the reigns. He followed. With a sigh, she said to herself, "My, my, what were they thinking sending me out here. I'm not sure where to begin."

Equipped with very little information or even protection, she suddenly felt the need to unravel all the questions she had in the wake of the start of her journey and Erstin's stories. She would get answers no matter what. Shizuru actually felt somewhat excited delving into the unknown and being required to survive for the chance for two parties to reconnect. Most of all she would be doing a service to Artai if it succeeded.

A different air that Shizuru could not begin to describe filled the forest as she stepped through the invisible line. Something of a chill ran down her spine and she suddenly felt fully awake. Alert. The sound of millions of insects and the distant cries of various animals rang through the forest. She felt as though the million eyes focused on her was what both Diana and George felt long before her as she walked further, leaving Rein behind.

Navigating through the forest proved a terribly difficult task for Shizuru for a number of reasons. One; she had no clear direction. No marked trail since it disappeared decades ago. She only walked blindly through unfamiliar terrain, the limits of Yuuichi's map pushed as far as it could go. The knight figured the best thing to do was to set a good camp and move about bit by bit until contact was made. Two; it was hot. The air became much warmer since she arrived, but she was from Artai—the coldest place in the world. Although Shizuru yearned for the heat after returning home, this was not what she had in mind. The humidity was awful and the wind a blessing. She was glad she chose leather armor above metal. And three; she had no water already. The combination of heat and humidity caused her to sweat and drink more than she should have. She needed to find a stream or river soon.

Jumping off of George, Shizuru lead him by the reigns and searched for a source of water. After a few minutes, she came to an abrupt stop to prioritize something else. Finding a rock, Shizuru rested on top of it and removed her sash, leather vest, bracers, and tunic. With a knife, she cut the tunic sleeves shorter and put it back on, leaving the collar open. She slipped on the leather vest and bracers once more, but did not lace it back together and kept it open as well. She gave a sigh of relief with the improved airflow and felt much better now that her body cooled down.

George, who had been waiting, began to wander downhill, carrying the gigantic bird that lazily groomed itself on his back. Shizuru stood up, stuffed the extra sash in her bag, grabbed the naginata, and pursued them. Catching up to the horse, her ears picked up the faint sound of water roaring in the distance. Instantly, she mounted and carefully rode closer.

Moving into the clearing, the brunette saw her silly steed found themselves a river. Patting his neck, she said, "Ara, good job!" Peering to her right, Shizuru saw a waterfall nearby beyond some rock formations. It did not seem too large in particular and the waters did not flow too fast. Looking at the surface, it was crystal clear. Satisfied, she looked around to see if anyone were around, which she highly doubted there was, and made her way to the moving waters.

Shizuru knelt down and scooped up the water with her hands, taking a sip. She paused, "Hmm?" She took yet another full sip with a smile. She never thought she would taste water so… different. So clean and rich. The energy returned to her body and she forgot about the heat altogether. Shizuru loved the taste greatly and pleasured herself to a few more drinks before taking out the waterskin and submerging it in the river. Looking about, her companions seemed just as pleased and no longer anxious.

The female knight smiled and laid the waterskin beside her, taking some water and splashing it on her face to cleanse it of sweat. The cold touch reinvigorated her further and she released a content sigh.

Then her crimson eyes wandered to the waterfall. Standing and tying the waterskin on her belt, Shizuru figured she needed to go over the small hill to see if she could look down and discover anything useful. Anything like a suitable campsite to set up before nightfall or a point of interest. Shizuru understood that a tribe was more likely to find her rather than the reverse. She would not yet actively seek them out, clearly in no position to do so.

Shizuru left Diana and George as they were and made it over the rise of land, closer to the wall of rocks lining the side of the river. The formations obscured the view of the falls. The knight walked closely along, her left arm almost dragging along the wall. Halfway up, she noticed a trail. Parts of the grass were flattened and rocks displaced, but almost unnoticeable. Shizuru passed it as just some animal, but unholstered her naginata nonetheless.

"Ara…" Shizuru heard a splash in the distance as she reached the end of the rock wall at the top of the hill. Stopping at the corner, she peeked around it and her eyes widened ever so slightly.

A young woman bathed in the river falls, back turned to Shizuru. A native? Her skin was unusually light for someone who spent perhaps every day in the sun. Her eyes were closed, the ice cold water not a bother as it ran down her hardened, toned body. The young woman's wet hair was such an unusual color of dark blue that Shizuru had never seen before. She was certainly beautiful.

Shizuru's mind was blank and she came to, pulling back to the cover of the wall, Wait… what am I doing? She thought, covering her face to mask a light blush. As if anyone were around to see, but Shizuru could not recall when she last saw the sight of a naked woman, "I stared too long... it's no different from peeping, now." She murmured.

The brunette was alerted by the sound of water suddenly shifting and splashing. Shizuru cautiously peered over the corner once again, but saw no woman in sight. Did she leave? No. Her hands grasped the naginata tightly as she heard growls emanating from the bottom of someone's throat nearby. Turning her face forward, the woman stood there looking unpleased, her posture hostile.

The young woman was fast, ripping the weapon out of Shizuru's hands and pinning her against the wall, giving no regard to her current nudity. Her right arm pressed against Shizuru's throat with such pressure she was gasping for breath, looking into two fierce green eyes that burned like a wildfire. Her other arm grasped Shizuru's dominant right arm and kept it firmly against the wall, lower body also pinning the knight. Her strength was incredible, not allowing Shizuru to move other than grasping the arm at her throat with her only free hand.

In a low, husky voice, the woman said, "Your kind aren't welcome here! Why are you here?!"

Shizuru could not answer. She felt lightheaded as the air coming into her lungs grew less. The pressure was loosened just enough to allow her to speak. Shizuru took a few vain breaths before speaking, but she was interrupted, "Natsuki?! Stop!" another woman called out. Shizuru felt the pressure suddenly disappear as her unknown savior threw the girl off, "Are you okay?" a soft voice asked her.

The knight keeled over, gasping for breath with a hand rubbing her throat. She looked up to see a woman with long brown hair and blue eyes, looking at her with clear concern. She only nodded, still trying to compose herself.

"Good." She smiled and turned to the one called Natsuki with a look of disapproval.

The bluenette looked away, "Tch… don't look at me like that, Aoi. You know she shouldn't be here! They're trouble."

"That doesn't mean kill her! What's gotten into you? Go get dressed." She ordered her, frowning. Natsuki walked off, murmuring under her breath. Then the other brunette turned back to the knight and sighed, "What are you doing here? You are lucky you only found her."

Shizuru breathed and straightened herself out, "I was sent here from Artai…."

Aoi's hospitable smile disappeared, "Artai?"

"Yes," Shizuru nodded, "Are—"

"Leave this place today." Aoi said simply. She picked up the naginata laying on the ground, stared at it for a few seconds, and handed it to Shizuru. "Like she said, you should not be here. Don't make me regret giving this back."

The knight accepted the naginata in her hands and just kept her eyes on Aoi who took a few steps back after returning the weapon, "Ara… wha—"

Natsuki returned and the two natives exchanged eye contact. Their mouths did not move nor did they speak, but they seemed to understand one another more clearly than Shizuru could hope to. With one side glance towards Shizuru, they walked away and disappeared.

Despite Aoi's command to leave the forest, Shizuru of course had to disregard it and pressed deeper. The knight honestly did not expect to find natives so quickly, but was pleased nonetheless to have made some contact. Despite it being pretty harsh contact with that angry-looking girl. It was more than she started off with, however, though neither party made a great impression of the other.

After her run in, Shizuru climbed the ridge of the falls and scoped out candidates for a campsite. After some searching and knocking locations off of her list, she reached a small hill not far from a small stream. It had an alcove dug into one side. After finding the last cave inhabited, thankfully by harmless badgers, she cautiously approached the alcove. There was absolutely no sign of habitation from the absence of food, droppings, and prints. Confirming it to be abandoned, she searched the surrounding area for any hazards, signs of dangerous animals, anything. And after some time she returned to the hill, unsaddling George who thanked her with neighs and whinnies to have had the burden relieve from him, "We'll be here tonight," She smiled, petting him.

At the alcove, Shizuru cleared out some rocks and set down her things. She found a long stick in the back and, not knowing what to do with it currently, stuck it into the ground in front of the alcove. Instantly, Diana swooped down and perched on it, "Hai, you can watch from there." Shizuru told her. The large bird squawked back, head turning and scanning constantly.

The knight walked to some nearby trees and began picking up smaller sticks, placing crisp leaves in a small bag. She sighed, thinking how lonely it would eventually become being in the Kagean forest. Talking to both George and Diana only did so much. They could not speak back and the knight seriously wished she had a partner accompany her for social and convenience reasons. Her mind came back to the natives she met, trying to recall their names. Aoi and Natsuki was it…?She thought as the number of sticks cradled in her arms grew. "They're quite strong. That Natsuki was aggressive… but the other, Aoi, seemed more in control." She sighed, briefly rubbing the spot on her neck. She was not sure what to make of what the people of the forest were like—if they were more like Natsuki, or as calm as Aoi, "My, I suppose they are just like people. Individuals in their own right."

Shizuru soon managed to create a small fire by digging a small hole, lining the outer edge with stones, and using the tinder she gathered. She sat in front of it, her naginata on her lap and food in hand. She kept a watchful eye out as she ate, having nothing else to do but think.

A sigh escaped her, realizing the stress that would inevitably build up. Currently, she was fine, but living in the forest without knowing when she'd leave and going through each day on edge was sure to build up tension. It was like in training where she was forced to run without knowing where or when to stop—playing with the mind and draining the body. The brunette had no family and was actually accustomed to the loneliness until she made friends like Haruka and Yukino. Though seen as perfect and composed by many people, Shizuru was only human. She got hurt the same way and needed the same things. She needed to protect her mental wellbeing, she thought.

She pulled out Yuuichi's map. The uncharted forest was slowly being filled by the knight's pen, landmarks she remember being marked on the map. Remembering the waterfall of her early confrontation, Shizuru traced a line from her campsite, there, and the path she took to get to town. Putting the map to the side, Shizuru finished off her food, "If I ever lose myself, I shall return to Rein and continue from there…" A low howl rang in the distance, soon joined by others—something she would have to get accustom to. She folded her hands in her lap and stared out.

The sun was beginning to set.

What the king wanted her to do was a difficult, but not impossible task to do. He only wanted to make a proposition of peace with them. That did not mean yes needed to be the answer, right? Yes, that was right. In a way, Shizuru felt like a mere messenger, risking her life delivering a letter. She looked at the map by her side and opened a leather tube containing a copy of the King's orders, reading over it. Still… there was that other objective to accomplish. That, she felt, would require most time even after getting the answer to the proposition.

Placing all the items back into the parchment tube and tying it back on her belt, Shizuru said quietly to herself, "I must find Aoi-san and Natsuki-san, again."

Something dripped onto her shoulder.

Ah…

Touching her shoulder, her hand was covered in a thick saliva. Shizuru looked up at the now audible rapid clicking sounds and instantly lunged over the fire, grasping her naginata. A heavy blow from the claw of an orphan pierced the ground. The clicking grew faster as the monster attempted to pry its hand from the ground.

Nearby, the horse panicked and Shizuru smacked the steed's rear, urging him to run. She concentrated on the monster, now. Observing it, the orphan was large and serpentine, supporting a torso and long arms. The entirety of its eyes were engulfed in a pale yellow and saliva continued to flow from its mouth as it looked on hungrily.

Shizuru, never seeing its type or an orphan so large, widened her stance and prepared herself. Once freeing its hand, it quickly slithered up, its large head gnashing at the knight who used the end of her polearm to swing herself away from its path, gouging out its right eye with the blade as she pulled it along. The blood that followed and landed on her arm burned.

It shrieked followed by a series of clicks and the monster's tail struck Shizuru mid-air, an involuntary action that did the creature a favor. Shizuru managed to use the length of the naginata to block the strike, but grunted. The force sent the shock into her wrists and arms, causing her a great deal of pain.

Shizuru was able to land on her feet and avoid falling, but a quick assessment of her surroundings she noticed her back was almost to a tree. She was way in over her head. She needed to run. The orphan's serpentine body and extra-long arms gave it all the reach it needed were she to choose one side or the other to run.

She decided to run into the forest and hope the trees discouraged its size, or at the very least slow it down. It closed in. Shizuru's back was now against bark and she pivoted around it to get behind.

Briefly peering behind as she ran, she saw the orphan had followed. Thankfully the trees slowed its advance as she was able to maneuver around them more agilely. Still, Shizuru was no forest ranger. The thick and bumpy forest terrain and uphill ascent posed tripping hazards, thus slowing her progress of distancing herself from camp.

The clicking behind her was a distance away, but still terribly close. As if in a desperate burst, the orphan's speed quickened and, with an arm outstretched, flung its tail past Shizuru. Her eyes widened as she met face to face with it. The orphan had flicked its tail past her and ungracefully dove using an arm to grasp its own tail, creating a fleshy ring around the knight. With the free, gruesomely clawed hand it reached out, its forked tongue flicking out of its mouth.

Growls emanating not from the orphan came into earshot and the same pitched howl that Shizuru recognized from earlier sounded. Several glowing eyes shown in the growing darkness. Wolves? She thought. From what she could count in the rapidly moving event were five large wolves, each with a shaded furry coat of its own.

Three leapt over the serpent and into the ring that encased Shizuru. One attacked its remaining eye and the other its throat. The third pinned the hand attempting to grasp the knight with powerful jaws. Outside of the fleshy circle were the two other canines, aggressively prying hand from tail until successfully breaking the serpent's grip and opening the circle for Shizuru's escape.

The orphan's writhing threw the wolves off and one landed on its back with a whimper. Recovering, the five attacked again. Growls, barks, and pained clicking filled the forest. Shizuru only stayed back, thinking it more dangerous to help. As if they needed help.

A brown coated wolf shoved its arm into the gash Shizuru had cut in its eye, whether by force or accident it worked. The monster shrieked and clicked, falling onto its back, its tail flailing dangerously. A darkly coated wolf standing on the ground jumped on the now helpless creature and attacked its throat, tearing it open. It writhed for a few seconds and then stopped limp. Like all dead orphans, it began to rapidly decay and disappear as the wolves hopped off its corpse.

Their coats were glistening with blood and the growling ceased for a short while. They approached Shizuru who loosened her grip on the naginata, feeling this was her chance to appeal to the natives approaching. She did not move but the closest one to her suddenly growled, ears folded back. The grip on her naginata tightened.

"Why are you here?" A deep, hoarse voice came from him. Shizuru was surprised to hear him speak.

Some of the wolves stood up and Shizuru realized they were not fully the wolves she was accustomed to seeing, but merely werewolves crouched over on all fours. She noticed they had dark garments on after her eyes adjusted in the dim light and the moon shown through the forest canopy. As they stood on their legs, they towered over her and stared down with softly glowing eyes. If they wished to, they could strike her down with a single blow.

Slowly though, she saw them change in front of her eyes. In an attempt to appeal to the human and have her speak without force, they stared at her with a face like her own. Their change from werewolf to human was rather chilling. Faint sounds of bones shifting and features becoming distorted was an otherworldly experience for her.

After the fur had receded, the blood remained where it was before and leather vests and cloth trousers covered the skin they had. They wore no shoes and carried nothing with them. Three males and two females. "Ah…"

Among the five, Shizuru recognized Aoi and Natsuki. Blood engulfed the entirety of Aoi's right arm from fingers to shoulder. She was the brown wolf that jabbed her arm into the orphan's wounded eye. Blood was on Natsuki's hands and mouth as she was the black wolf that delivered the killing blow. The male closest to Shizuru that just spoke was rather tan with black hair and golden eyes, a nasty scar on the side of his face. Another was extremely tall and muscular with shoulder length brown hair pulled in a ponytail. He only had one golden eye, the other permanently closed over with a scar. The last male was almost as small as Natsuki with dark blue hair and golden eyes as well. Gold only seemed to be the common eye color among the wolves, but Shizuru found them intriguing. Beautiful even.

Natsuki looked as angry as ever, eyebrows furrowed deeply into a scowl. Aoi was the only one out of the group that did not seem like she would rip Shizuru apart, "I thought I told you to leave…" She said softly to Shizuru, her voice not angry, but rather disappointed.

Shizuru reached for her side, popping open the parchment tube and handing them the king's letters. The man that previously spoke that she took as the one responsible for the group looked confused holding the letters. Shizuru tilted her head, Ara, could it be they can't read? She thought. She then spoke, "I was sent here from Artai to find a tribe and deliver this letter."

"Oi, Takeda, can you even read that?" Natsuki crossed her arms.

He looked rather embarrassed, but shook his head, "N—No," he turned to Shizuru, "We will bring it to the Guides for you. They should be able to read it."

"Ara, but I must deliver it in person and receive an answer before I return home."

The wolves muttered among themselves, reaching no immediate and clear decision until Shizuru spoke once more with a shift in tone, "Please. It is a matter of peace, I'm sure you can understand. And if you want..." She moved her naginata and the wolves' stance changed to one that was guarded. Instead of aggression from the knight, Shizuru sheathed her weapon, holstered it, and unbuckled the holster, handing it to Takeda in front of her. "I know you have no reason to trust me, but I am thankful you all saved me. I'm in debt to you all. I say I came only with good intentions and to deliver this message in hopes of establishing the peace the King wishes for with your people."

Staring at the weapon in his hands, Takeda relaxed and returned the letters to her, "Very well. We'll take you. Anyone disagree?" He turned to the others who all either nodded or responded indifferently. Though Natsuki was whom only responded indifferently. The entire time they spoke her arms were crossed and she eyed Shizuru cautiously. With the approval, Takeda buckled the naginata holster and put it on, "What is your name?"

"Shizuru Fujino." The knight smiled, glad to have landed on their good side. Or in Natsuki's case, neutral. She felt disappointed the young woman did not think well of her without a clear reason, but happy nonetheless that she would be in the company of others.

Takeda did show a small, hospitable smile, but looked around, "Did you come alone, Shizuru Fujino?"

"Ara," Shizuru looked about and brought her fingers to her mouth. She let out a high-pitched whistle, "Only my horse and a hawk. They ran when the orphan attacked." She told them, turning to release another whistle. Thankfully, George whinnied in the distance and eventually found his way towards the group, Diana flying overhead. Shizuru ran a hand through the steed's mane.

"It's good your friends are okay. They can come." Said Takeda, "There's a lot of ground to cover before getting to the village so we should go."

Natsuki's arms unfolded and she began wiping the blood on her chin before it had the chance to dry, "Idiot, if we're taking her remember the rules."

"Ah, I remember, I remember." Takeda waved a hand carelessly and grinned at Natsuki.

She wasn't pleased with it, "Like hell you do." She barked, "Aoi, you're able to. Just do it."

Shizuru tilted her head curiously.

With a sigh, Aoi walked up to Shizuru silently.

The cold night wind blew through the trees as the others began to walk off. Natsuki lagged behind for Aoi, the men paying no mind as they led, staggering their formation.

Blue eyes peered into crimson and Aoi's hands snaked up, one to cup the side of Shizuru's face and the other nestled behind her neck. The knight did not understand what was happening and could not move. Words refused to leave her mouth.

Aoi's stare seemed to have fixated her and she suddenly felt so… relaxed. It was strange, but oddly felt great. Her eyes were half-closed as if waking from a dream, rather falling into one actually, and she could no longer discern what was happening. "Sleep…" Aoi's voice whispered soothingly, the command seeming to come into her mind like a personal thought. Then lips met hers. Shizuru's eyes closed and her body fell limp as Aoi cradled her.