After getting some breakfast The trio were off again. Terrin spent most of the morning resting on the pony. Kenta had been pestering Sola about the night before asking things like, ‘What happened?!’ and ‘Why didn’t you wake me up?!’ Sola simply tried her best to ignore him, though she did hit him with her staff a few times. After about an hour of walking, slowly without talking, they saw a tunnel looming up ahead, netted with silver cobwebs. They stopped.
“We’re goin’ in there?” Kenta asked with a certain tone. The dark haired woman nodded and continued walking again, followed by Terrin.
“Darn it!” Kenta sighed, run after them to catch up. It was dark and damp. At the end it was closed by a gate of thick-set iron bars.
“Ya see? People obviously DO NOT want us in there so let’s go!” protested Kenta.
“Hold it!” Sola grabbed his shoulder. Walking forward she unlocked the gate. The giant iron door screeched as it opened. When they had all passed through, she pushed it to again. It closed with a clang and the lock slicked. The sound was ominous. Turning to face a great mass of trees, Sola sighed. “The Lost Forest...Never have I wished to pass through a place such as this...”
“Do you think the stories are true?” Kenta asked standing beside her.
Terrin blinked. “Stories?”
“Aye,” said Sola. “There be many a story about this place. Stories of wolves and goblins and things o' - of that sort. I’m no sure if the tales be true or no *cough* not but there is a strange feeling about this forest. It seems to be much more alive, more aware of what be going on, so to speak, than the lands around it. And the trees do not like strangers.”
“T-trees?” Terrin stuttered, She looked at him. “Aye, they watch you. They are usually content merely to watch you, as long as daylight lasts, and don’t do much.” She focused back onto the woods. “Occasionally, the most unfriendly ones may drop a branch or stick out a root. But at night...at night things can be most alarming, or so I be hearing. I have only passed by here once or twice after dark, and at a distance. It sounded as if all the trees were a-whispering to each other, passin news and plots along in some unintelligible language o' theirs; and the branches swayed and groped without any wind. Oh, and they do be saying the trees actually move, and can be surrounding strangers and heming them in and the like.”
Terrin gave a hard gulp.
Sola turned to him and grinned. “But these be just stories.”
Kenta grunted. “They aren’t JUST stories, missy. My cousin lives in a village not far off and he said that once, the trees attack them; got right up beside the village. But the villagers cut more than a hundred trees down and built a HUGE bon fire in the middle of the forest. They say there’s still a clearing form where the fire was.” He put his hands on his hips. “The trees are not the only things dangerous in there, ya know. There are various bizarre thing that live deep in the forest. Something makes paths. When ever anyone comes inside, one finds open tracks; but they seem to shift and change from time to time in a strange fashion.”
“Be it strange thing or no, we must be very cautious.” said Sola, “And when inside, we shan't stop but for five minutes for restin'. Now come!” The trio now left the tunnel gate and started down the path into the Lost Forest.
