Episode 24: Part 2
A few hours passed and the six travelers pushed on into treacherous murk of the Blackmoor Marshes. Black colored petrified trees lined the way, bent and contorted in several places while others reached out menacingly with low hanging branches. Old green moss hung off the skeletal trees like living burial shrouds while the occasional bleak cawing of a crow pierced the desolate air. Every once in a while, the party would catch sight of a flickering light in the distant air making them change the direction of their march.
After a long hike, the six stopped to take a break and rest upon some mounds of fallen tree logs and vegetation which formed a small island in the middle of the bog. While Stephen and Kristen stood watch and kept a vigilant lookout, the others took a moment to sit and catch their breath. From where she sat, Laura grimaced and took out a cloth to wipe away some of the mud and pondscum that had begun collecting on her boots and pants, "I must say, this has not been one of our more pleasant journeys to date."
"Tell me about it," Quinton agreed as he sat beside her and swatted away some bugs that idly buzzed around them. "If the terrain doesn't kill us first, we might have to worry about malaria or something."
Nearby, Noelle set her backpack down and tiredly leaned her head against Connor's shoulder to rest, "We should be on the lookout for that Hexus monster that Gwydion warned us about. We don't know anything about it after all."
Connor shrugged and tried to cheer his friends up, "Yeah, but we'll probably stand a better chance against it. Remember, those treasure hunters who got wiped out didn't have the benefit of magic armor and weapons like we do."
"I guess so. If worst comes to worst, we can always just try to grab one of those magic fruits off the tree and make a run for it too," Stephen added off handedly while he surveyed the rest of the area.
Kristen simply frowned to herself and gripped her staff a little tighter, "I admit, I don't know anything about this tree or this Hexus monster, but I'm still uncomfortable with chasing down an unverified rumor."
"It's not like we have much of a choice," Laura countered gently, "I don't think Gwydion would be misleading us about all this."
"Even so… it would be a little more reassuring if we got some more concrete help," Stephen sighed.
Quinton sat and took a sip of water from his canteen before handing it off to the Autumn Knight, "Hey Noelle, you're on pretty good terms with the Erlking… the lord of Autumn. Do you think he or his Huntsmen could help us out here?"
Kristen shook his head, "That might not be wise Quinton. The Erlking might be an ally of sorts, but he's got a very unpredictable nature. Considering he's the ruler of this land, he might not be too happy that we're technically trespassing, or calling him. If anything, he might be insulted that we didn't know our place. He'd expect us to make the effort to go see him and petition him in his home rather than call him like he was some servant."
"Yeah, good idea. Let's not piss the Erlking off then, "Connor gulped. "If everyone is ready, maybe we should keep going now and get a move on while we still have some light."
After breaking camp, the travelers continued slogging on following the witchlights until they came upon some imposing terrain stretching out before them. Just up ahead lay a dense thicket of dark colored brambles. The gnarled plants were thick and the sizeable thorns that jutted out were enough to give any creature pause. In the far distant mists of the bog, the next witchlight beacon flickered beyond the bramble thicket as if mocking them to cross the equivalent of a barbed wire fence in the Faerie Realm. Upon nearing the large brambles, Kristen raised a hand signaling for the knights to keep their distance while she observed the formidable hedges.
After a long minute of silence, the Druid turned around with a concerned expression, "Just as I feared… Umbral Briars."
"What's so bad about it?" Stephen asked, "Can't we just hack through it with our swords? Or maybe you could use your Druid powers to coax them aside."
Kristen stood scratching her chin, "I'm afraid it's not that simple. Umbral Briar is a certain kind of bramble with some deadly properties. For one thing, the thorns secrete a potent chemical which can immobilize you our put you to sleep if you should get cut or pierced by them."
"Okay… so we'll wear our armor to protect us," Quinton suggested, "That should be fine, right?"
"Not exactly," Kristen explained as she chewed her bottom lip, "These types of brambles have a sort of primal sentience to them. Not only are they tough to deal with, but these plants can move and encircle its victims, albeit very slowly"
Laura blinked in sudden horror as realization struck her, "Wait… you aren't saying that these briars intentionally trap and kill other things… are you?"
The Druid snorted, "What do you think keeps these things so large and well fertilized? That's why you shouldn't let their thorns touch you. If we're going to make our way through this briar patch, we have to do it carefully."
Connor nodded and used his ring to summon his Elven sword. With a flick of the wrist, he ignited it with a blazing sheath of bright warm Summer Fire, "All right. I'll start trimming the hedges. Kristen, show us the way."
After calling on their fey armor, the small party of knights pushed forward and followed behind Connor as he hacked at the dense briars obstructing their path. From the safety of the formation's center, Kristen stood directing them on their path. Despite the spirited efforts of the Summer Knight and the help of an enchanted flaming blade, it was still slow going and every once in a while, another knight would take over the cutting duties so that Connor could rest. Once they had reached the halfway point of the briar patch, the adventurers took a moment to observe a narrow path opening up into a small marshy clearing. As they observed their surroundings, the six watched in growing dread as the bog mists shifted and the Umbral Briars seemed to slowly move with it. It was difficult to perceive, but upon closer inspection, the path they had just cut through had been altered and the positioning of obstacles in the way changed positions slightly as well.
"Oh wow... that's really creepy," Laura murmured while Kristen ignited her own Druid staff to shed some more light for them.
"It's getting late," the Druid said glancing to the fading light of the skies, "We should hurry and get out of this briar patch before nightfall. Who knows how much it'll shift again after that."
"You realize we've just been given an open path through part of these hedges," Noelle pointed out, "It could be a trap. Do you want to risk this shortcut?"
Quinton surprised everyone by stepping forward, "Let's do it. I'll scout ahead slowly and keep a lookout for danger."
He handed Connor back his flaming sword before drawing his own sickle and marching forward over the open marshland ahead. Connor grimaced and stayed close by, "All right. Be careful Quin. There's no need for any heroics right now."
The Spring Knight waved it off with a small smile, "Not to worry man, I'll be fine. This looks like a shallow little stretch. What danger could there possibly be?"
His question was immediately answered as the ground gave way underneath him and Quinton dropped into a mud hole. The Spring Knight gave an alarmed cry as he suddenly found himself waist deep in an unstable pool of swampy muck. Everyone gasped in surprise as Quinton flailed for a few moments looking for a hand hold, but only found himself sinking faster. His fey armor also didn't help matters as it weighed him down even further. "Help! I'm stuck!"
Connor immediately dove to the ground at the edge of the mud and clasped hands with his friend trying to pull him free. "Hang on Quinton! I've got you! Just relax and don't move... this stuff looks like its quicksand or something."
The others rushed to the side of the mud pit in concern, hoping they could help somehow. Kristen gritted her teeth as she watched Connor desperately trying to pull Quinton free, but to no avail. Noelle turned her head and wore a fearful look through her visor, "Kristen! We have to help Quinton! Is there something we can do for him?"
The Druid tested the depth of the sinkhole trap with her staff and grimaced again, "Everyone... we have to move back now! The sinkhole is growing!"
"But what about Quinton? We can't leave him!" Noelle pleaded but Laura put a firm hand on her shoulder, "We won't, but if we don't move and get to safety, he won't have any rescuers left to save him."
The others reluctantly got up and began to withdraw back to a safe distance while Quinton looked on in dismay. Although he had ceased his struggling, he still continued to sink slowly and the mud began reaching the knight's chest. Connor growled and clenched his fists, "We have to do something for Quinton! I'm not going to let him die here like this!"
"I have an idea," Stephen said as he summoned his bow and turned to Kristen, "Kristen? I'm going to need some rope... or if you could conjure something like it."
The Druid nodded and used her magic to quickly call up a long rope made of strong vines. She handed it to Stephen and the Silver Knight tied the vine to the end of one of his arrows. He picked up his bow and aimed it near the sinking form of Quinton. "Quinton! I'm shooting you a lifeline! Grab the rope okay?"
"Oh, I'll do whatever you want right now!" the Spring Knight called back in a wavering voice.
He watched as Stephen shot the arrow high in the air and saw the projectile land in the mud nearby him. Quinton stretched and fumbled until he grabbed the arrow and began winding some of the vine rope around his wrists. On the other end, his friends grabbed the rope and began to pull together, using their combined strength to drag him free. After several long minutes of struggling, the knights finally succeeded in pulling Quinton free from the deadly sinkhole. Once free, the Spring Knight rolled over on the ground and gasped in relieved exhaustion. Between his panting, he choked out, "Wow... that was too close. Thanks everyone."
"Great work Stephen!" Connor grinned in relief as he gratefully clapped the Silver Knight on the back.
Everyone hurried over to help him and make sure he was unharmed. As Quinton sat up, his friends did their best to wipe all the mud and scum that had been caked on to his armor. Noelle gave a sigh to her friend and flicked some mud from her own gloves, "Quinton, as happy as I am that you're safe... you're completely filthy right now."
"Trust me, I feel especially gross from the waist down," Quinton sighed before Connor hauled him to his feet and Kristen pointed toward the other end of the briar thicket.
"Darkness is coming soon and we don't have a lot of time," Kristen said tiredly, "Best we save the pats on the back until we get out of here. We'll start by skirting around the edge of the marsh clearing."
Everyone else followed suit and drew their swords once they had made their way around the sinkhole traps. Without wasting any more time, the small adventuring party used their weapons to hack away at the deadly brambles in their path until they had cleared a way out of the thicket on the other side. By the time they got clear, the exhausted group slogged up a marshy embankment to slightly drier safer land just as night began to set in. Quinton gave a sigh as he and the others unsummoned their armor and dropped their traveling gear they had brought along, "Well... this is looks as good a place as any to camp out for the night."
Stephen and Kristen got busy making a campfire while Laura and Connor rationed out some dried food and water for everyone. Every so often, the group spotted the guiding light of the will o the wisp continuing to flicker in the distance, leading them to the next point in their journey, but for now, they had reached the limit of their endurance. Like even the greatest fey warriors, they needed to eat and sleep. As the darkness continued to fall over the swamp, the knights settled in and ate their meal quietly before huddling together around their modest campfire in hopes that they could get a little sleep. Amid the sounds of crickets chirping and bullfrogs giving their occasional croaks, Laura sat up taking the first watch with Kristen while the others lay down to sleep.
She glanced over near a tree and couldn't help but smile a little at the sight of Stephen sitting against the tree nodding off to sleep while keeping his bow secured in his hands in case of danger. Several feet away the original trio of friends put their bedrolls together and huddled with each other for safety and warmth. Noelle curled up next to Connor and drifted off to sleep while Quinton protected her from the other side and gave a sleepy yawn. Despite his fatigue, Connor whispered over to Quinton half jokingly, "Hey Quin... you know what this would be a perfect time for? How about I tell another ghost story, huh?"
"Don't you dare," Quinton sighed before reaching over to gently slap his roommate's head, "You remember what happened last time?"
"Hey man! What's wrong with you?" Connor chuckled, "You're going to wake up Noelle. Can't you see the poor girl is trying to sleep?"
Laura shook her head to herself listening to her friends have a petty squabble before falling silent and drifting off to sleep. From her spot across from her, Kristen placed another log on the fire, "Why don't you try to get some rest right now Laura. Things are quiet and I can manage."
The Winter Knight shook her head, "No... it's okay. I'll stay up a while. If something dangerous comes near, I'll be better equipped to fight it off first."
Her Druid mentor shrugged and shuffled some of the hot coals around to kick up the fire. "Suit yourself. I just can't wait to leave this cold wet muck... maybe get home and take a long hot shower too."
"I thought you Druids were all one with Nature and perfectly happy to commune with the great outdoors," Laura pointed out.
Kristen gave a wry smile, "Oh we are... but that doesn't mean we all have to live like complete savages either. I would think you'd feel the same way too."
"I do," Laura admitted sheepishly, "But in a strange way... all this doesn't bother me as much I think it would. At least I think it doesn't bother me like it did before... if that makes any sense."
Kristen smiled warmly, "I think you've just grown Laura. Being a knight and protector of Somerset Valley has really changed you over the course of a year, in a way that I think is for the better."
Laura smiled faintly to herself, "Yes... I suppose you're right. Thank you Kristen... I..."
She stopped and frowned as she noticed a strange fog bank begin to quickly roll in over the marshes. As it began to creep and gather along the grounds of their campsite, Laura sat up and looked around at the strange phenomenon, "This is kinda odd. What's going on here?"
Kristen blinked her eyes and shook her head as she felt her own mind becoming a bit muddled and clouded, "Sorry Laura... did you say something?"
The Winter Knight turned and saw the bright campfire begin to flicker and grow a little dimmer as the fog bank increased. It was the strangest sight and she struggled to remember what she was concerned about in the first place, "I uh... I don't know... I don't remember."
She staggered on her feet a few paces as she spied Kristen slapping her own cheeks and trying to reach for her Druid staff, "This place... isn't safe... unhoda..."
Despite her best efforts, Kristen slumped forward and sunk tiredly to the ground, falling into a deep sleep. Laura shook her head trying to make sense of everything going on, but her mind felt jumbled and cluttered and her body began feeling even more weak and fatigued. The Knight fell to one knee and stubbornly used her ring to summon her rapier, but it was no good. The mind fog completely overtook her and the exhausted knight toppled over onto her side, joining her companions in an enchanted sleep. As her eyelids struggled to stay up and her vision blurred, Laura could almost make out the sight of some strange humanoid figures emerge from the swamp and approach their campsite. Moments later, the blissful oblivion of sleep overtook her and Laura's vision faded away into blackness.