Vol.1/Chapter 5: Engulf

Caw! Caw! Caw!

With the path we took, we arrived at the Redwoods in less than an hour.

This place lives up to its name. Gigantic, crimson red trees cover the skies with it's darkness. As we further venture in, the sunlight fades and fades slowly until you can only see the patches of it through the leaves of the trees.

Until nothing can almost be seen, we are surrounded by wilderness. Poisonous plants, dangerous beasts, screeching, shivering, scared. The place was quiet, too quiet. No one is comfortable, everyone has their spears ready, breathing is fast, sweats all over our body.

I inspected our surroundings even though it's dark. Bright, red eyes seen through the distance, wallowing through us. Observing, inspecting, hunting us. The hunters became the hunted.

"Men! Open up your lanterns! We're not alone.", Alder ordered. "Stick to your groups, no one should be alone."

Yeah, no shit, I don't have a group. I was feeling throughout my things when I noticed something. I don't have a fucking lantern! Stingy as I was, I know something is following me. Even though I'm the last in my group...

Faint, heavy steps, slowly creeping up to where I am. Growls unheard throughout the quiet darkness.

Step, Step, Step, Step...

"Hey guys, I think something is followi-", I stopped with my deadbeat voice when I realized, I'm alone in the most dangerous place of my life. "Holy shit, I'm fucked."

The silent growls from the distance, becomes the voice of death, slowly curling up to my body. I ran as fast as I could. Stumbling, twirling, impeding in my path, I never stopped. My raspy breaths can be heard throughout the woods.

Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring!

This ringing in my head got louder and louder and louder. If my theory is right, the louder it gets, the more someone is in danger. But I'm alone, so I'm the only one in danger here. Still running, I know to myself if I stopped one step, I'll be death fodder for every creature here up to my bone.

I was losing hope, my inner self screaming but still I tried to be quiet, not wanting to attract more attention. The step of someone following me become steps. More and more and more footsteps of a group is following me. But that's not the trembling part of it, they were like laughing. Hunting me with such glee like I was the unlucky one to be on their plate, I was scared to my bones.

And then I found some hope, a crack in one of the giant trees was seen. It can be climbed upon to be reached. Luckily for me, I was great at climbing since I was a kid. One thing the wolves cannot best at versus me.

One foot in, another foot up. The adrenaline rush in my body improves my reaction time and my strength, and I climbed upon the crack flawlessly. I entered the crevice, catching my almost lost breath. Sweating, so hot, so thirsty, I almost lost consciousness.

I reached up to my knapsack to find something to drink. I still hear the footsteps and laughs under me, waiting for me to go down in their pit of death. Scratching on the trunk of the tree, they tried to reach their prey, me. I readied my spear, pointed it in the entrance, still and focused as I can be. Long breathes reverberate inside the trunk, but I noticed something.

The ring in my head is slowly fading out. The dreadful laughs of my perpetrator dwindles.

With no light, no water, no proper safety, I can't even tell if it's already nighttime. Alone, cold and scared, I huddle up, generating more heat and trying to calm myself.

Time passed by, I emancipate my courage, harden my will, with the spear in my hands, I peeked outside the crevice. I can't see shit, but thankfully, the trees were favoring me giving me enough sunlight to give more information about my situation.

A lot of tiny wolf-like feet, scattered through the ground, pointing in different direction, like someone scared them.

But I'm sure of one thing, it's not my comrades. Something bigger and scarier made this.

I tried to look more when I see my disguised savior. It's a Shadowmane. The Shadowmane is feline in appearance, and bears a strong resemblance to Lions but have a more slender built, glowing feet, spine-like features protruding in the side of it's face, longer teeth and a calmer nature. The Shadowmane also has a unique ability called "Shadow Camouflage" making them deadly stalkers but also useful because it benefits their riders. They can grow up to 7 feet tall and 12 feet long.

Still mesmerized by their majestic appearance, I tried to hide myself. It was sniffing its surrounding, but I'm not sure if it's finding the ones that chases me or it's finding me.

I was staying still and quiet as possible when something sticky and gooey dropped on me. I wiped the liquid from my face, when a screech emanates from above me. My eyes widened when a Giant Centipede, about 7 feet in length, curled up inside the trunk, drooling upon me, showed itself.

Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring! The sound grows stronger in my head as the Centipede tried to attack me!

I dodged its attack, left and right, grabbed my knapsack and tried to jump from the crevice. I just forgot one important thing: "If I climbed this crevice, then that means it's high. Then why the fuck did I jumped?" I screamed loud when I fell 15 feet from the air. The fall was so poor that I broke my right ankle in the process.

The Giant Centipede crawls out of the crevice, slithering and circling in the trunk of the tree, trying to catch me. I tried to run but the Shadowmane was in front of me. It roared in front of me and stopped me from my tracks. Great, now I'm stuck between two deadly creatures.

"If this is my last breathe, then I won't go down without a fight, you both bastards!", I screamed angrily, took my spear and made a defensive stance. "Now let's dance, y'all."

The Shadowmane roared to me while the Giant Centipede is in my back, trying to catch me with it's deadly poison. I got almost no chance of surviving this when something unexpected happen...