The mood was somber during the remainder of the trip through the marshlands, with the cubs dragging their feet through the muddy ground and the adults trudging through the muck warily searching for other possible dangers lurking in the shadows. The cubs ranged in ages from three, all of the way to eleven, with Maurus being the eldest. Few of the cubs were old enough for battle or trained with the reaper. The party of adult females was slowly diminishing from ten at the start of their travels down to eight and the journey ahead was still long and treacherous.
As they journeyed west, the marshland transformed gradually into firmer soil and the forest began to take shape. Mostly dead trunks rose up from the ground due to the salty marsh soil nearby. The dead trees were interspersed with greenery throughout, but it seemed life was struggling to have a foothold in this transitional place. The sounds of life did not exist, no birds chirping, no insects buzzing by, nothing but dead silence. The hours had crept by and daylight had begun to ease in, but the sky was overcast as if the gods themselves were still weeping from the tragedy and chaos from the night before. Maurus had somehow become the arbitrary leader of the group after the battle with the mud serpents. He had no idea where he was going, he just wanted to get to civilization quickly and save what was left of their tribe. Maurus felt as if they were being watched, but there were no sounds of life anywhere to be seen. The path they were on was known as The Death March due to the number of hazards between their outpost and the rest of civilization. Everyone knew that taking on the journey would most likely lead to death by one of the many insidious creatures lurking in the shadows. The remainder of the cubs were weary from the travels. The females also sensed a danger enveloping their surroundings. “Maurus, we need to rest for a little while. The cubs will not survive the trip if we do not rest. The rest of the mothers need to nurse their injuries and prepare for what lies ahead. There is something evil in this forest. I do not know what it is, but whatever it is, it is circling us and by nightfall we will be battling again”, said Mari. The group settled down to tend the injured and rest for a few hours, while Mari and Maurus kept watch. The last thing Maurus remembered as he passed out from exhaustion was the feeling that the forest was becoming denser as they traveled onward…
When the group finally began to stir from their rest, the sun began to set and set the sky on fire with an orange glow, whilst the moon, Stelleus, began to illuminate the dusk. There were patches of clouds here and there, but this night they would be able to face any enemy clearly with the moonlight illuminating the darkness. The element of surprise would not be available to anyone this night. There was a muffled scream a few yards to the left of Maurus, but as he turned to look, there was no one there, just an old gnarled tree, leafless and barren. As Maurus investigated the area, he noticed the soil at the base of the tree was disturbed and it seemed to be moist. He bent down to touch the soil and a nagging feeling was telling him to unsheathe his weapon. As he touched the soil with his hand, he immediately realized what the substance was, blood! Maurus immediately jumped back while reaching to his back and unholstering his reaper. Maurus screamed out, “Treants!” but it was too little, too late. The tree in front of him sprang to life. Branches reached out to grab him and crimson orbs could be seen illuminating two dark holes that seemed to be its eyes. Maurus slammed the hammer into one of the oncoming branches, crushing and splintering wood everywhere. The treant screeched in rage and all of a sudden, the ground below him began to come apart with roots attempting to grasp his legs and drag him under to the same suffocating death as the cub before him. The rest of the group scrambled to their feet and assembled a defensive ring around their camp with the cubs behind the adults. The treants were not fazed by the defensive wall, they easily switched their strategy and began to use their roots to attempt to ensnare the defenders from behind. The cubs that were huddled behind the defenders began to become entangled in the roots that the treants had sprung amongst them, while some of the defenders attempted to hack at the tree limbs in order to free the cubs before they were dragged underground. One female, was desperately trying to free her young daughter, who was embedded up to her neck in the limbs and soil, when a treant wrapped its gnarled branches around the mother’s neck and choked the life out of her while simultaneously dragging the cub beneath the soil to her death as well.
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Mari watched helplessly as the events unfolded before her and she struggled to keep the advancing creatures back. As she backed up, a root sprouted up behind her and she fell backwards into the inner circle. She scrambled to her feet and noticed an object on the ground near her feet that gave her a last-minute idea to turn the tide. She grabbed the flask and made a slit in the worn leather before she tossed it at the nearest treant. An oily liquid covered the creature, but it remained undeterred in its efforts to annihilate them all. She grabbed a burning ember from their almost exhausted campfire and tossed it at the creature. The oily liquid immediately caught fire and the treant was consumed by flames. It was hard to discern where the roaring inferno sound ended and the treant screeching in agony began. The fire quickly jumped from one treant to the next as they were closely huddled together in their attack on the group. A few were able to flee the battle, and there was a glimpse of terror in their crimson eyes, if fear was even possible with the creatures. The adults and the cubs grabbed what belongings they had and hastily trekked out of the marshlands and deeper into the forest. By dawn, with the sun slowly rising behind their backs, they found a small cave entrance alongside a hill and decided to investigate and clear it out of any inhabitants in order to rest after their recent ordeals. After a quick walk, they discovered that the cave only went back approximately fifty feet and had not been inhabited by any animals or malign creatures in quite some time. They set up camp within the cave, with two adults guarding the entrance on first watch. They rested for two uneventful days before resuming their journey, which was a welcome respite. They were able to forage some fruits and hunt some small rabbits for sustenance. They remained for an additional day to stock up on additional provisions and fresh water from a nearby stream.
The remainder of the journey was going to be full of hardships until they exited the marshy swamplands and entered the full canopy of the deciduous forest, but even then, the woodlands presented their own challenges. Goblins, orcs, and the like, inhabited the forests, but at least hunting and foraging for food would be possible and they would reach the first outpost of civilization, The End of the World Inn. The establishment was the last safe haven of the civilized world before the expanse of the wasteland. It would be another 200 miles until villages were plentiful.
Death Knell Chronicles is a dark fantasy tale of survival, loss, and vengeance — told through the eyes of a young beastfolk warrior fighting to reclaim what was taken from him.
