A/N: And Here's the next chapter! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Dungeons and Dragons. I only own my original ideas.
Chapter 45: Into the Forest
As we continued up the trail we could see that the waters of the Fehlween River turning darker, until it was pitch black. Further investigation revealed that the water felt unusually heavy, as if loaded with sediment, yet felt silky smooth... something water shouldn't feel like. We decided imbibing this water was likely a bad idea. Suddenly the sound of screams rang from the riverbank. As we rounded the corner, we saw a small boat packed with bags, tools, and similar goods resting on the shore amongst reeds and mud. A body lay sprawled beside the boat, looking curiously drained and ashen. A human male dressed in homespun clothes stood over the body, swinging a woodcutter's axe wildly. Looming over the panicked man was a patch of deep darkness that possessed a vaguely humanoid shape.
The shadow creature attacked the woodsman, striking hard and leaving him in bad shape. I could tell he wouldn't survive another blow from this creature. Narcrath reached up to the collar of his robe, and pulled one of the stars off, throwing it at the shadow creature. The star split into seven bolts of energy, each one striking true. Krisyra tried launching a flame at the shadow, but it dodged away. Lydratir rushed in, and jabbed at the shadow with his rapier, finishing it off.
"Thank you for your aid," said the woodsman, "I don't think I'd have made it without your help".
"We're glad to have been of assistance," I said, "what happened here?"
"Well, my friend and I," said the woodsman, "were travelling down the river when that thing came after us. we came ashore to attempt to escape it, but…"
"Do you want us to guide you back to town?" asked Charles.
"No, I can manage on my own," said the woodsman, "besides… my friend deserves a proper burial".
"If you insist," said Krisyra, "just… be careful, creatures like that one can leave those they slay stained by evil".
We moved on, leaving the woodsman to his grim task. Before long, the trail turned north as we enter the forest proper. A dirt path wide enough to accommodate two riders traveling side-by-side led us deeper into the forest. The branches above formed a tunnel of leaves that hung motionless in the still air. As I observed the forest, I had the sensation of something was inherently wrong in this place, something inexplicable seemed to be missing from these woods.
The trail continued along northwards, paralleling the river. After a short while, we came to a bridge across the river, leading to a town on the opposite bank. The bridge was 100 feet long and of wooden construction, crossing 20 feet above the inky waters. Fashioned from rough timbers lashed and nailed together, the bridge was wide enough to allow wagons to cross. Fragile-looking railings ran along the edges of the span, providing minimal protection against falling into the river below.
"I don't really trust that bridge," I said, "It looks like it could fail at any moment".
"We'll take the bridge," said Narcrath, "you fly across and be ready to retrieve us if the bridge does collapse".
Charles crossed the bridge first, and it held. Krisyra went next, again the bridge held. Lydratir went third, and again the bridge held, but some of the ropes holding it together fell away. Narcrath went last, and made it safely across. Just as he stepped off the bridge, there was the crack of wood splintering as the bridge collapsed.
As we looked around the town, we saw a worn sign reading 'Stillwater'. As we looked around the town, we could see something was very wrong here. The cluster of small cottages stood along the western shore of the dark river. These crude huts appeared to be dim and indistinct, their edges blurred by shadows. The structures almost seemed as if they were fashioned from gossamer scraps of gloom instead of wood and plaster. The air surrounding the hamlet is also dim and heavy with darkness as if a cloud of soot and ash clung to the village with an unrelenting grip. There didn't seem to be any signs of life.
I moved over to the nearest building, and attempted to touch the wall. Unsurprisingly, given its appearance, the building was insubstantial, like I was attempting to touch a ghost. Through the wall, I could see that whatever occurred here must have been quick. There were the shadow images of half-eaten meals, chores stopped mid task.
"They had no warning," I said, "They were completely caught off guard".
"Not completely," said Lydratir, "the buildings in the southeastern end of town show signs that the people who resided there began fleeing before… whatever happened overtook them. It must have arrived for either the west or the north."
Out from the woods six shadowy forms emerged, moving towards us. One shadow moved towards Krisya, but missed. A second shadow moved up to Lydratir, but it too missed. I knew these creatures could be quite dangerous if the made contact with us, and readied my strongest weapon. I inhaled deeply, and unleashed a jet of flame, catching the other four shadows in its spread. Some of them managed to evade the full effect, but I could see that my fire was pushing past their resistances. One of the shadows came at me, but it missed its strike. Charles charged one of the more damaged of the shadows, striking it twice with his greatsword and taking it down.
Narcrath summoned magic to both his hands, and launched two chromatic orbs at the other two shadows I'd attacked. They were badly damaged, but didn't fall. Krisyra snarled at the shadow before her as she morphed into a large bear. She tore into the shadow with tooth and claw, taking it down. Lydratir drew his rapier, and drove it into the shadow before him with two precise strikes, taking it out. One of the remaining shadows moved towards Charles, but his armor turned its strikes. The last shadow also moved up on Charles, but again his defenses proved superior. I bashed one of the shadows away with my tail, sending it flying into a tree where it dissipated. I tore into the other with my claws, finishing it off as well.
With the area clear, we prepared to continue deeper into the ever growing gloom of the forest.
A/N: And there we go! Next time, our heroes continued deeper into the forest. See you then!