Chương 43: Misfortune in the Thornforest

We had journeyed 241 kilometers from the village when the biome began to change. The endless sand dunes and crazy heat slowly gave way to a wide river that offered us brief refuge. We refilled our pouches with its cool water before continuing. At first only small, dense trees appeared in the distance, but soon we stood before a thick wall of forest, the trees forming an almost impenetrable barrier.

A weathered shield stood at the entrance, its faded letters reading: "Please go through via Tybesti Mountains which skips this path and shows with an arrow its direction to it.

"On the back of the sign, someone had carved additional words in a hurried, almost desperate hand: "It is recommended to walk via safer means. The forest ahead is not for the weak." In our heads we both thought the same thing. Yeah, that will not work right now. So we used our weapons to cut through the branches and forced our way inside. The first thing I noticed was that the trees were grey and looked almost dead-like.

The sun barely reached the ground here, making the entire area feel like it was stuck between night and dawn. It was not dark enough to need a torch, yet not bright enough to see very far ahead. This eerie atmosphere made one truly feel how wide and mysterious Orbis Terrarum really was. The trees rose up to thirty meters tall. They were not very wide, but their branches were extremely annoying and created a dense atmosphere. Luckily cutting the branches was easy.

I tried to suggest cutting the main bodies of the trees so we could let the sun in and make our journey much easier.

"These branches are annoying, but if we cut the trunks themselves, the sunlight could reach the ground. It would make everything clearer and faster," I said, already raising my sword-axe. Galer raised an eyebrow.

"You sure about that? These don't look like normal trees." I took all my strength into one swing, putting everything I had into the blow. The blade struck the thick trunk with a loud clang, but it just bounced back as if the tree had taken literally no damage on my attack. The impact jarred my arms painfully for a second or two. Galer burst out laughing, leaning against another tree.

"Hah! Look at that, you hit it like you were trying to kill a beast and it didn't even flinch. These things are something else." I rubbed my sore wrists, scowling at the unmarked bark.

"What the hell are these trees made of? It felt like hitting something harder than solid iron." Galer stepped closer, running his hand along the trunk with clear awe in his expression.

"I have no idea, but their quality is insane. I can't even imagine what kind of power it would take to cut these down. We'd probably need Vestuto just to make a small dent. Let's stick to the branches for now... at least those give way." We continued cutting branches and took a small break to eat. We had cactus from our provisions along with mushrooms that grew abundantly under the trees. They were white, big, and around six centimeters in length.

Once boiled from the river water we took, they tasted incredible and gave the whole meal a new dimension in taste. I took another bite, chewing slowly as the earthy, slightly nutty flavor spread across my tongue.

"These mushrooms… they're actually really good. I didn't expect anything growing in a place like this to taste this fresh." Galer nodded, but before swallowing his own portion before replying with a question.

"They're not bad at all. The river water must be cleaner than it looks. Still… eating something we found under these dead-looking trees feels a bit strange. You think they're safe Erumes?" I shrugged, taking another bite.

"They haven't killed us yet. And right now I'd rather risk a weird mushroom than go hungry. Besides, after everything we've been through, a little forest fungus isn't going to stop us." Galer let out a short laugh, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

"True enough, If we can survive a mad professor turning people into gargoyles-like beasts, we can handle some mushrooms. Still… keep an eye on your stomach. The last thing we need is both of us cramping up in the middle of this forest." We sat in silence for a moment, the quiet of the dense woods pressing in around us. The faint sound of distant birds and the occasional drip of water from the branches filled the air. I glanced at Galer, then back at the trees towering above.

"You think we'll make it through this forest before nightfall?" I asked. Galer looked up at the thick canopy, his single eye narrowing slightly.

"If we keep cutting and don't run into anything worse than branches… maybe. But something about this place feels off. Too quiet. Too still. Let's not stay any longer than we have to." I nodded, finishing the last of my portion.

"Agreed. The sooner we get out of here, the better." While eating and enjoyably savoring a day's worth of food, Galer suddenly frowned. He felt an overwhelming power somewhere far ahead. He could not read it clearly. It was too powerful and it hurt his brain just to sense it. He said the Animo ahead, whether human or monster, would obliterate everything in its wake. He suggested we move in a zigzag pattern with a slight south line deeper into the dense forest. I paused mid-bite, lowering the piece of mushroom.

"You're serious? Something that strong is in this forest?" Galer rubbed his temple, his single eye still narrowed in discomfort.

"Dead serious. It's like staring into the sun with your bare eye. My head feels like it's splitting just from sensing it. Whatever it is… it's not something we should run straight into." I swallowed the rest of my bite, the pleasant taste suddenly turning heavy in my mouth.

"Then we follow your lead. Zigzag it is. South a bit… got it. The last thing we need right now is another fight we can't win." Galer gave a small, grim nod and finished his own portion quickly.

"Exactly. We've pushed hard enough today. If we can slip around whatever that is and keep heading west, we might avoid it entirely. But stay alert. If it starts moving toward us… we run. No heroics this time." I wiped my hands on my pants and stood up, gripping my sword-axe a little tighter.

"No heroics. I'm not dying in some gloomy forest because I got curious. Let's move." Galer rose as well, brushing dirt from his legs.

"Good. Stay close. And keep your Heart pumping… just in case." We packed up the last scraps and began moving again, this time following Galer's zigzag path deeper into the dense woods. The trees seemed to close in even tighter around us, as if the forest itself was listening.

"So powerful…" I muttered. After everything we had been through, I had enough of crazy fights for the foreseeable future. I wanted to rest a bit. Galer agreed. This rather gloomy location with its atmosphere of depression was currently a good change of pace for both of us and perfect to recuperate one's soul. We talked about Tharaj and Chaddore and the war. We guessed this conflict would last at least six months. We hoped Amalyi could prosper in the meantime.

Galer said even if not, the bargaining chip of having the professor would at least let them survive no matter who won. I agreed.

"True enough." Funny enough, the powerful Animo Galer had sensed was slowly catching up to us like a hurricane in the Mare Nostrum. Every time we changed direction, Galer involuntarily felt its presence getting closer. No matter how we adjusted our path to avoid it, the feeling grew stronger. The problem was that it felt inevitable.

As Galer warned that this mighty power was now only around 15 kilometers behind us, we quickly climbed a tall tree and began hopping from branch to branch, jumping on them with momentum in mind. We hoped whatever or whoever it was would simply move on and not chase after us. Eventually we jumped onto a thick branch and found a good hiding spot at the very top of another tree. The presence was now directly beneath us. A short "woosh" sound cut through the air.

A lightly sun-touched girl with mainly white-dark grey straight hair, around 15 years old, leaped up to our level of height and looked directly at us. She wore elegant clothes resembling those of a Hieratic princess. A snake-head piece made of pure osmium in a bronze-white color rested on her head. Her hardened leather outfit left her white tan-toned tummy fully visible. In one swift motion she cut the tree right below us with a scimitar.

She glanced up at us for a brief moment before turning away, as if we were nothing more than insects. In the same short time of reaction, we used our weapons to carve into the trees, unsuccessfully hitting our asses on the way down somewhat safely. We saw 10 guards, all dressed in bronze with scimitars and matching colored clothes, around her. By the time we reached the ground, the girl was already there talking with the others, totally forgetting what she had just done.

In my head I wondered if we were that insignificant to her that she could simply ignore our existence. Heat from being disrespected like that began to build inside me. Galer spoke to me telepathically with urgency.

"STOOOOP, ERUMES!" I looked at him with anger close to making a vein pop.

"Why? She just cut the damn tree we hid ourselves like it was nothing! And now we're not even worth her attention?" Galer's voice was firm in my mind.

"Her power is beyond us. Look at the tree she sliced. You couldn't even scratch it earlier, and she did it without Vestuto. If we attack now, we die. Calm down. We approach slowly." I let out a sigh and held my anger in, clenching my jaw so hard it hurt. The girl kept talking with her peers. Thanks to Galer we slowly approached.

"Seems to be a misunderstanding here," Galer said calmly.

"We do not know you nor have we any harmful ideas against you." The girl turned her head slightly, her sharp eyes scanning us for the first time. One of the guards stepped forward, hand on his scimitar.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

"Speak quickly, or we'll assume you're spies." Galer raised his hands slightly in a peaceful gesture.

"We're just travelers passing through. We didn't mean to intrude on your path. So we will move on," Galer said calmly, trying to end the encounter. We tried walking away slowly, but as we turned around, the woman with long white-dark-grey hair that reached her shoulders and curled upward at the tips stood in our way. She was 1. 70 centimeters tall, 3 centimeters shorter than me currently.

"Who are you?" she asked. Her ten guards stood ready to attack, all of them looking intimidating, hands resting on their scimitars, eyes sharp and ready, if she was even slightly pissed off. Galer answered calmly.

"We are on a journey Eastward. We went through this way because Tharaj is currently under war and did not let us through the Tybesti Mountains. We swear it." The woman ignored him completely and stared at me, focusing especially on my dark red spiked hairline, like she had never seen such a color before on a person. After twenty seconds of her looking at me as if I were an object, I finally spoke.

"Excuse me. I do not care who you are. We just want to continue our journey, so can you let us through?" She then answered, tilting her head slightly with genuine curiosity.

"Well, we thought you were the target for my yearly hunt for my daddy. It is an elusive one living in these dense trees and I felt your presence. I thought you would be it."

"And what would that be?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. She replied with a bright, almost excited smile.

"A Venomwing." I suddenly got informed by Galer as he then told me telepathically everything he knew about the creature. The Venomwing is a deadly, elegant creature that perfectly merges the grace and speed of a flying insect with the lethal venom and stealth of a 6-legged venomous insect. It measures roughly 1. 2 to 1. 8 meters long with a wingspan of up to 2. 5 meters when fully spread.

Its body has the elongated, segmented abdomen of a black widow, glossy jet-black with a striking crimson-like red hourglass marking that glows faintly when it is about to strike with a buzzing sound. The thorax is more dragonfly-like, sleek, iridescent, and armored with chitin plates that shimmer in ironcoal-like greens and deep blue depending on the given light.

It possesses four large, translucent insect-style wings with delicate black veining that allow silent hovering flight or lightning-fast dashes in a buzzing manner. When at rest, the wings fold tightly along its body like a cloak. Its head features large multifaceted compound eyes that give it 360-degree vision, combined with menacing black widow fangs and pedipalps feeler-like antennae-like near its mouth. Two long sensitive antennae twitch constantly, detecting vibrations and heat around its perimeter.

It has six long spindly yet powerful legs tipped with hooked claws, perfect for clinging to trees or prey once caught. The front pair is slightly more robust and ends in sharp blade-like tips. Its special trait is the ability to inject a potent neurotoxic venom through its fangs or via a stinger at the tip of its mouth. The venom causes paralysis on its target, reducing movement to a near halt, making victims easy to wrap in silk. It is an ambush predator that thrives in dense, hot forests.

It hovers silently in the canopy, then dives with high agility to strike. It spins strong, nearly invisible silk traps between tight branches and can deliver a venomous bite capable of dropping large prey almost instantly to a pure halt. After receiving all that information, I sat down on a nearby root and asked her directly, trying to keep my tone neutral, "So you're truly after one of those creatures?" She confidently replied, nodding with excitement in her eyes.

"Yes. They are known to be strong, but I am just stronger. I am not scared of the venom or its paralysis effect. I wanted to prove to my daddy that I could catch one and present it to him for a upcoming new festival." One of the wary guards around her started to say, "Well prin..." but quickly corrected himself, "I mean Lady, what would you like to do with these two?" She answered with a big gulp from us, her voice bright and decisive.

"Well, they wasted our time, so they have to help us now." And just like that, we were once again pulled into a new danger. Just our luck...