WC: 2766

Warnings: A bit of descriptive violence (describing mob attacks, minor injuries)

Etho gets himself into trouble again when he tries to retrieve the soul flame in the Forest a second time. This time, though, help arrives.

-

You'd think just one time in the Forest and experiencing its horrors firsthand would be enough to deter Etho.

But he hadn't been inside the Forest just once. When he was younger, before everything changed, before the Forest was what it was today, he wandered it freely. He used to spend most of his days there, choosing it over the Keep because of its quiet, peaceful feel, exploring every inch of it and learning every secret he could.

That was why he knew the layout well...or, at least, he did. Back then, the Forest had been completely different. It had fallen far from its sunny, airy, welcome-to-all days Etho had remembered.

This was different. Very different. This forest was dark, overgrown, claustrophobic, and absolutely deadly to anyone who dared to venture into it. Trees and foliage, with no one to tend for them anymore, grew out of hand. The grass was up to Etho's knees. He could barely even see the sun because of how thick the canopy had grown, so all natural light was gone. Plants that couldn't grow tall or fast enough withered and died, unable to sustain themselves without any proper sunlight.

And, because of the darkness, monsters liked to roam around in the Forest now, too.

As Etho had learned, you couldn't walk two feet without encountering some kind of monster. Each was deadly in its own way. Giant spiders pounced on you and tackled you to the ground, sinking their fangs into you. Skeletons had bows and could hit you even if you couldn't hit them. Zombies traveled in packs and would easily overwhelm the unsuspecting person.

But did all this information--dangerous monsters, darkness in every direction, a deadly reputation, and an unknown layout--stop him from entering the newly changed Forest a second time? Even when he had seen all this happen before and was unprepared to face it again?

Absolutely not.

Etho quietly slipped into the Keep's graveyard: a dark, dismal place that no one really bothered visiting. It bordered the Forest, and even though it was protected by an iron gate, people didn't want to take any chances.

...And then there was the fact that the graveyard now held tombstones that represented people who had gone into the Forest and never came back. It wasn't exactly a hot tourist spot for the Keep.

But Etho knew that he could enter the Forest easily, without anyone noticing, through that iron gate inside. Just like the one that surrounded the entrance from the Crossroads, this gate was old and had been worn down over time. It wouldn't be hard to find a space that had been opened up, thanks to the zombies. They liked to bang on the bars from time to time, even if they couldn't come in.

Etho picked up a dim torch that lay on one of the tombstones and blew on it for a bit to strengthen the flames. He held up the torch to the gate and, after a bit of searching, easily found a hole big enough to fit through.

As he stepped foot into the Forest again, he noticed a small, decrepit tree--one that didn't stand out unless you knew it by memory. It was mostly hidden by the taller trees surrounding it.

A disjointed memory floated to the surface seeing that tree--one that Etho hadn't thought about in years.

"Come on! I have an idea for what we can do today."

"Uh, don't you have duties or something in the castle?"

"Pfft, who wants to do that? Now come on, you two. I stole--excuse me, I meant borrowed--some rope and a plank from the smithy. We can build a swing in the Forest!"

"...Did you really steal from the smithy again?"

"Hey, I can do whatever I want. You can't stop me. And, anyway, he wasn't using them. It's fine. Now, c'mon! Are we going to build this swing or not?"

Etho and his two friends had run off into the Forest, choosing the first tree they had seen when they entered through the graveyard. They'd tied the ropes they had to one of the sturdier branches, then attached a wood plank to the ends, making a basic swing. Surprisingly, it was pretty durable--it lasted months.

They'd had a lot of fun on that tree--they would take turns pushing another person on the swing. Whoever wasn't doing that climbed up into the tree and sat on one of the branches, basking in the sunlight peeking through the thin canopy while watching the other two.

They'd had to abandon the swing after the Forest changed, though.

Etho walked up to the tree, his eyes lingering on a frayed strand of thin rope before glancing elsewhere--the only thing left of the swing they had built.

He shook his head. Now wasn't the time to get lost in memories of better days. He turned away from the tree quickly, instead peering through the minuscule gaps in the trees for any sign of the mountain he was supposed to climb.

No such luck. Just darkness everywhere. It seemed like the Forest was stuck in a forever nighttime, making it hard to see, though Etho knew it couldn't be past 5PM.

He tried to scan his memory for anything that would remind him of where to go. Dammit, Etho. You should know this. How many hours did you spend here, exploring every nook and cranny and playing on that swing?

The only thing he could conjure up was that there was a small waterfall that trickled down from the mountain. It wasn't much, but at least he knew what to look for. So he headed straight into the Forest, listening for the sound of running water along the way.

Etho squinted at the trees as he walked, trying to make out the details. He couldn't see very far ahead of him, despite the torch he held. It only did so much to light up the area around him, and he knew that he was still very much in the dark--both literally and figuratively.

As he walked, he fiddled with a small gold pin attached to his vest. Even though it was thin and not very large in diameter, it was still considered a vanity--gold was rare and hard to come by nowadays. Etho had received it about two or three years ago now, so the gold metal was dulled and had lost its shine.

The small three-pointed crown pressed onto it, however, was still as prominent as the day he received it.

Etho jumped suddenly at the faint sound of rattling bones, his hand flying off of his pin, and he cursed the fact--again--that he didn't have anything to protect himself with. Armor, a shield, hell, he would have settled for a small wood dagger as a weapon. It was better than nothing.

Right now, all he could do is run. Two direct hits from a skeleton, and it was game over.

Etho made sure there was a sizable gap between him and where the skeleton's noises were coming from and continued forward, trying to ignore the fact that he had no idea how to get back to the Keep as he pushed through the tall stalks of grass.

After maneuvering his way through thick tree trunks and avoiding potential hostiles for a while longer, he finally heard the distant sound of crashing water. The waterfall. Thank god. Etho breathed a sigh of relief and immediately changed his direction to follow the sounds.

He didn't have to walk for long before he noticed the first change: Trees around here seemed to have less leaves, making the canopy thinner, and the temperature dropped as he ventured onward. Even though he was wearing a vest and a long-sleeved shirt, Etho shivered. Whether it was from the cold or the fear, though, he didn't know.

He noticed a break in the trees ahead and quickly ran towards it. He entered the open area and let out a huge breath, surveying the scene in front of him.

Finally, he had found the waterfall...and with it, the snowy mountain up ahead.

The area Etho had found had been cleared of trees. In the center was a medium-sized lake, the area around it mossy and wet because, like everything else in the Forest, this place was now overgrown.

The water in the lake was stagnant but surprisingly clear. It had a clean scent, not unlike drinking water. No muck or dirt had floated to the top over the months. The sunset was reflected clearly in the water, and Etho squinted momentarily because of the light--after being in the dark for so long, he wasn't used to sunlight, even dim rays like this.

He made no move to get close to the lake, though. He knew that there was a special kind of zombie infesting those waters--souls who had gone into the Forest and drowned in that lake. The lake was beautiful, but he knew that those Drowned were waiting in the depths.

At the other end of the lake was the waterfall Etho had been listening for. It wasn't big, but the crashing water filled his ears. His eyes followed the flow of water upwards, higher and higher...before finally stopping at the vertex of the mountain the waterfall came from.

This wasn't going to be easy.

Unlike the lake and the waterfall, the mountain was gigantic. It certainly lived up to its deadly reputation. Its rock face was sheer with no clear handholds--only sharp rocks jutting out every once in a while. Near the top, snow and ice started to gather.

A dim blue light emitted from an alcove dug into the mountain halfway up--not too far to be at the very top, but high enough to let snow land around it. That was where the soul flame was.

Only problem was the way to it.

There was a precarious wood bridge leading up the mountain, built decades ago, that was covered in cobwebs. Age had rotted and splintered the wood. One wrong step and you could plunge right through a gap in the wood and hit the ground. Hard. It wasn't much better than free-climbing the mountain.

Unfortunately, that bridge was the route Etho needed to take.

...Well. Best to get it over and done with. He'd come too far now to back out.

Etho sidestepped the lake, careful not to get close enough to slip or fall into the waters. He didn't want to take any chances. For now, he didn't hear any other monsters, but he knew it was only a matter of time before they sensed him and started searching.

He had to get this done fast.

He hurried over to the wood bridge and gingerly placed one foot onto the planks. It creaked loudly, and he flinched. It didn't break, though. He set down his other foot and let out an exhale when the bridge held his weight.

Now he just had to hope that the rest of the bridge was like this.

Etho slowly made his way up, careful to not get tangled in the cobwebs. If something did show up, those webs would slow him down a substantial amount.

He didn't get up the walkway much further when he encountered his first problem.

As he made his way up, he heard the faint whizz of an arrow passing. It embedded itself in the rock next to him, halfway in despite the tough surface of the mountain. It had been fired close enough to Etho's head that he could feel it pass by. It'd missed him, just barely.

He turned around slowly to see not one, not two, but three skeletons on the other side of the lake, aiming their bows straight at him.

And he was high up, where he couldn't attack them.

But they could attack him.

Shit.

Etho's first instinct was to bolt to the alcove and punch out that stupid soul flame--maybe he could camp there until the skeletons lost interest and left. Just his luck. Skeletons liked to travel alone, not in packs. And he'd gotten three of them.

He was about to make a move to run up the unstable walkway, but then his problem got even worse. Way worse.

Because--just his luck--a Ravager showed up.

While skeletons, zombies, and spiders were bad, they didn't compare to Ravagers. Not in the slightest. Ravagers used brute, heavy force and could kill you in one hit if you faced a head-on collision. Your body got thrown to the side carelessly, bones broken if they weren't already upon impact with the Ravager. There was a slim chance you would survive, but you'd be left to die to another smaller monster.

Etho hadn't seen a Ravager this close in person before, and he momentarily froze in fear just seeing the beast. Even for Ravager standards, this one was huge. Its horns were as sharp as the best swords in the Keep and twice as deadly. It had a tough hide, making it so it could hit you easily, but you'd have a terrible time trying to damage it.

The Ravager immediately centered on Etho, making a low growl before charging straight into the wooden bridge. Whether it was trying to go for Etho, he didn't know. Still, though, he winced at the collision, tensing up.

Then, he heard a loud snap.

He looked down to see cracks spiderweb from where the Ravager had hit the bridge. The impact sent made the bridge rattle, throwing Etho off balance. He grabbed the mountain's surface to try and steady himself and cut his palm on a sharp bit.

It wasn't trying to reach him. It was trying to crack the bridge so he had nowhere to run.

In a fit of panic and adrenaline, Etho's gut reaction was to jump down from the bridge. Although he hadn't got far up it, the impact when he hit the ground sent a shockwave through his legs.

Then, when the Ravager growled louder from next to him, he realized.

Wait. I'm on the same level as the monsters now. That's not good at all.

Etho froze, but his mind was racing. Fuck. There was no clear way out of this, if there was a way out. He had a Ravager locked onto him and three skeletons in the background with their bows primed. He probably could have had a better chance if he'd ran up to the soul flame's alcove and hid.

He started to walk backwards towards the lake slowly, keeping his eyes on the Ravager the whole time. In the back of his mind, he wondered if it was worth the risk of swimming across, despite the Drowned, to get away from the Ravager.

As he walked, he slipped on a piece of lichen that was in his path, and the Ravager bristled a bit. Still, it didn't make a move towards him.

Suddenly, Etho felt his right arm being yanked in one direction, hard.

He yelped, and the sudden noise was what made the Ravager finally charge towards him. Before it could hit him, though, the person who had yanked his arm pulled him to the right, back towards the rest of the Forest.

And they didn't stop there. Still pulling Etho along, they navigated expertly through the trees, making sharp twists and turns so the Ravager was lost amongst the trees. Etho stumbled and tripped quite a few times as he tried to keep up, but his savior didn't even slow down.

Finally, their steps slowed. Between heavy breaths, Etho looked around and realized they were back in the graveyard. He felt the hand come off of his arm, and he doubled over himself to try and catch his breath. His heart was pounding from how close of a call that was.

Whatever just happened was...insanely lucky. This person had somehow been around in the Forest to save him--which was rare enough by itself, no one dared getting close to it. Whoever this was obviously knew the new Forest well and could navigate it easily.

Much better than he had.

After another long moment, Etho finally stood up straight, his heartbeat back to its normal pace, and looked up at this person. He had so many things he wanted to say--"Thank you", at the very least.

When he saw the real identity of his savior, though, he was too caught off guard to say anything proper.

Two friends. The Forest, back in its old days. A small, forgotten tree.

...And a swing.

"Impulse?"

-

MAJOR CHARACTER REVEAL POG

Won't reveal too much about Impulse just yet; I'll leave y'all to theorize. Feel free to share em here, I love seeing the different approaches people take!

As promised, the next chapter will be a big lore dump! I'm estimating at least 3k words, though I might be wrong. It will definitely be one of the longer chapters, though. I'll try and keep the story going so people don't lose interest halfway haha

Got something special planned for art btw, hope I'll be able to execute it properly! That'll come soon too :)

Until next update!