Chapter7: Dead Man's Swamp

Meanwhile elsewhere

"Millicent, get over here!" A harsh raspy voice boomed in the darkness.

"What is it my Mistress?" another mysterious figure rushed into the dark room where the first voice called.

"How do you explain this?" The first voice turned to signal at a black cauldron which showed an image of a dairy cow treading on the trail in the boiling liquid.

"Um…well I…"

"I thought you said this outsider would be eliminated the moment she enters the dark forest. Now she's just escaped from the Great Spider's cave and is on the trail again!"

"Um…well…uh…I do seem to have underestimated her strong will in making it this far my Mistress! But I'd also wager the spider didn't use her venom on this one. Usually once her victims are stung, they are as weak as helpless kittens."

"Hmm, I see. Yet the air outside is rather sensitive to their eyes as they prefer to stay underground. Still, very few newcomers from out of this world have ever escaped from the spider caves alive and lived to tell the tale. And she still has a long way to go to get here. All she has to do is pass through Phantom Valley, the Indian Burial Ground, and Shadow Cemetery. If she manages to make it here, I'll be waiting to see how strong her will is!" The dark shadow cackled in the darkness and held out her left arm for the other figure to file her hoof?

"I wonder why my sleeping spell didn't affect her."

The swamps

"PU, what a foul smell," Grace made a disgusted expression as she stuck her tongue out in disgust. She sensed she was close to stepping on a place called Dead Man's Swamp as mentioned on the map she held with her tail. It was starting to smell bad once more and Grace knew she could never take it much longer from having to breathe in the unpleasant atmosphere. Although it wasn't as bad smelling as the farmhouse or the spider caves, it was still unpleasant to be surrounded.

"Dead Man's Swamp, this is it," Grace had just come across a sign labeling the areas name. The reek of the marshes came to her nostrils, heavy, foul, and foggy even in the daytime. The rift was about twenty feet deep when she crossed over. It was not too difficult to resist crossing over them. There was running water trickling down from the hills to the moors beyond. This place had smelled of death and decay just like the spider caves. There had already been too much of that everywhere. For once, why couldn't the air smell less decaying? She had almost forgotten how fresh air smelled like. In some areas, there had been lampposts lit like candles making it a little easier for Grace to see clearly through the fog that engulfed the swamp besides her light crystal.

"Huh!" Grace gasped when she felt her front right foot slip off the edge and into the swamp. For a moment, she felt the dirty water brush against it than a low growling. Peering over the reek, she saw a trail of ripples heading toward her. Giving her foot a good tug, she moved further away not wanting to find out what it was in the marsh. Grace turned to the right, left, southwest, southeast, more or less, splashing along in the shallow streams. But the longer she splashed step by step; the stream seemed to be growing deeper from her hooves to her knees. It had also caused her to move slower. From this moment, Grace decided to climb back atop the grassy mounds. Her legs were half caked from walking too long in the slimy marshes. The last thing she would need after getting out of this world would be a nice bath to clean the mold off her beautiful hide. Soon, Grace found another wooden sign posted on a dead tree reading Beware the swamp gators.

"More predators here, that's just what I need right now; more predator trouble," Grace did not want to deal with any more dangerous situations in having to reach for Callie's mansion, but knew she had no other choice to make but to be careful. The map said to turn left of the bogs, so that's what she did. But she also noticed a few standing rocks sticking out of the swamps which meant she needed to cross over by standing over each one. At last the sky had grown faint with a few grayish clouds passing over the sky. It must have been getting close to dawn again.

"I better just make the best of it," Grace hopped over to one stone and another and another. So far each one held still without wiggling. Maybe she didn't have to worry too much about the alligators whilst crossing if she stayed on top without slipping. The banks were now moss mounds. Dry reeds rattled through a minor breeze passing by. All of this didn't seem to bother Grace too much as she still hopped on one stone to another.

Yet even as she skipped, she could have sworn her ears began to perk up at the sound of a few growls growing louder as if she was being followed which meant that she had to move faster. But now another problem followed; the fog grew thicker every moment she skipped to a different rock making it difficult to see where she was supposed to be skipping. However, looking through the misty grove, she was able to see another of the standing stones. But without warning, she suddenly slipped off the rock after an attempt to stand on it and landed in the swamp. Kicking furiously up to the surface, she could barely make out which way she had been trying to reach because of the mist covering almost everything. But now the familiar growling came to her again when she turned her head to the right where large ripples formed in the swamp followed by a few more running toward her position.

"Oh no," Grace guessed those must be the alligators and kicked her feet, churning water to get away from them as quickly as possible. A huge gator drew its head out of the water and made a beeline for her. Grace managed to move out of the way causing the gator to crash into one of the standing stones instead. She kept on moving swimming through the water in a mad frenzy. No matter how hard she swam, she could feel the gators drawing closer as she felt the swampy water vibrating around her. Soon she was able to make out a shore through the gloomy mist. But even if she reached it, the gators would still come after her. Was there no other way to make them go away?

BANG! That was when a loud blast broke through the fog. Grace ceased swimming and turned back to see the gators swimming further away from her, disappearing into the misty marshes. As she was still watching them swim away, she felt a strong hand suddenly shot out and grab her by the scruff of her neck pulling her out of the filthy bog. Shaking a few bits of the swamp off her hide, she looked up and saw the same undead farmer she encountered out in the creepy old farmhouse.

"Ye know you outsiders should watch yerselves when ye pass through these no good rotten swamp gators. Once ye fall in, they'll be chompin' after you." In his left arm, he held a Winchester rifle with a cloud of smoke trailing out the holes.

"Um, Th…thank you, I'll be on my way now," Grace could not think of any other way to react to this old loon who offered to share a revolting dish of that horrible stew he held in the tray.

"What's ye hurry outsider? Seems no one wants to share a word with Slimy Joe; who's me o'course," the farmer called out to her when she began to walk on the trail. Grace stopped walking and turned back to him. Maybe he could give her a few hints on what to watch out for on her quest.

"I'm on my way to a witch's house. Her name is Callie!"

"Callie!" Slimy Joe dropped his rifle and shuddered as if he had just seen something terrifying pass by a moment ago. "Ye are goin' to see C…CALLIE?" His croaking voice shuddered at the sound of that name.

"Well, yes; you see my two friends have been bewitched and I'm…"

"Are ye outta yer mine? No one has ever had the guts n' glory to try and reason wit' the most dangerous, most evilest witch of our world. NEVER!" As he shouted, his left eye popped out and landed on the soft moist. "Oops, let me get that there," he reached down and placed it back in his left eye socket. Grace cringed at what just happened. This situation was getting far too weird. "Well partner, if yer still thinking o' goin' over there, my advice for ye would be to stay on the track and watch for a few warning signs just like the one bout the gators. Usually I like to come here to hunt'em down and make a good meal outta them." He licked his green lips and rubbed his stomach. It may have sounded good to him but to Grace, it was completely revolting and unnatural. Making a disgusted expression, she turned back to the trail but decided to thank him once again for his small advice.

"Thanks, I'll remember what you said!" she called out and then continued on the trail. Maybe Slimy Joe wasn't as crazy as she thought he was, but still thought he seemed rather unnatural in way or two.

"Don't mention it; and come down and visit anytime ye feel like it!" as he watched her disappear, he picked up his rifle and turned his attention to the swamps. "Alright gators, here I come."

Elsewhere

"I see the outsider has managed to pull through Dead Man's Swamp. Once again I underestimate her strong will. Yet does she even believe she can reason with me that easily?" The dark mysterious figure looked to be stroking through her hair and adjusting her dark cape. Only she seemed to have hooves instead of hands. She peered into the cauldron again to see what else the outsider was heading to. It was a desert.

"The poor fool doesn't know what is beyond this world. With this form I'm using, I wonder how she'll handle it." She made a wicked chuckle and watched as the outsider entered the desert trail.