The Approaching Shadow: The Find

[+Veritas]

Many years before the darkness...

What a beautiful night it was, thought the old blacksmith looking up to the stars in the heavens. He rubber the palms of his hands to relieve the soreness of a long day’s work, making more weapons and armor than what was typical. The king came to the blacksmith last week with four of his youngest smiths and presented them to him along with a daily rate in gold that no sane man would turn down. Hard days and long hours have found him at a time of war, and the old man was reaping the consequences of his unmatched gift.

After blowing out his lanterns and locking his tools, he grabbed his cane and locked his armory. He then began his two mile walk through the woods to his son’s house. The son’s family was known for having late dinners, and liked to cook more than what their family could eat and store for later. This, of course, attracted the children of less fortunate families to the home. The old man looked forward to spending time with his granddaughter and her village friends. He would watch her sword fight with the boys in the yard by the stable, and win every time. The boys typically left each night with new scratches and bumps on their hands from the girl disarming them with her stick. “Grandpa, I’m going to be a knight some day!” said would often say to him. He would nod and acknowledge her, but never really put much thought into it.

The night was clear, with the moon free from any overcast. These were the best nights, since the woods he traveled through had many areas where water would collect and reflect the moonlight to illuminate the path home. Leaves littered the ground and the grass became more and more muddy with every day, winter is almost here. Icicles hung from the naked branches of the trees that were first to prepare for the cold months. Light snow touched all surfaces throughout the nights, but never stayed long enough to see the sun rise.

After following the path for a couple mile, the old man lifted his head and stopped in his tracks. He was still and watchful, blinking his eyes hard to refocus his vision and make sure that what he saw was not his old mind playing tricks on him. There, about thirty paces down the path, stood a buck. This wouldn’t have been too much of a surprise considering the vastness of the wooded area the old man was walking through, however this deer acted differently then any of the others he has seen in his lifetime. Most bucks of his age would’ve stood fast and ready to escape. This old bull was standing loose and calm, like he was expecting the old man. He didn’t have his think winter fur on like the others the old man has seen the past few days; it was like the deer didn’t adhere to the natural order of things in this world. After eyes were locked between the buck and the man, the majestic animal stepped off the trail and slowly walked toward the depths of the wood. The old man walked down the trail far enough to watch the buck walk off. The deer stopped after walking a hundred paces, and turned to look at the man again. Out of nowhere, a wolf jumped out of the nearby foliage, sending the frail old man falling back into the cold mud.

Propping himself up with his arms behind him and his good leg bent and ready to kick, the man stared wide-eyed at the white wolf. After meeting eyes with the man for a few moments, the beast ran down the same path of the deer. The old man watched as the wolf stopped next to the buck, and joined it looking back at him. The perplexed the old man. Never in all his years has he seen or even heard of a hunter and his prey standing shoulder to shoulder, even when confronted by man. Such stories were never shared in the bar at the end of the week, and the old man heard some creative nonsense in his time.

The man wiped the mud off his hands with the sides of his pants, and stood there looking at the two animals standing idly. “Do you want me to follow you?” the man asked under his breath, half expecting another animal to jump out and answer him with clear voice. After this was spoken, the two animals turned and slowly continued their path into the depths of the forest. Picking up his cane, the old man surveyed the path taken by the two and took it into the dark.

The old man continued following the animals many steps from the familiar path. It was dark and cold. The moonlight didn’t touch the earth this deep into the woods for some reason. The trees this far into the woods haven’t started discarding their leaves, even though the other surrounding plants have been ready for the winter’s arrival. The old man was now the most frightened he has been in a while, now only following the sounds the buck and wolf were making on the ground below them. The ground gradually changed from cold and wet, slushy, to warm and dry, almost like the spring walks home. Suddenly, light was seen in the distance, giving him direction.

Upon reaching the source of the light, he was once again amazed. The clearing in the dense woods was teeming with fireflies, thousands of fireflies, alive and flying at a time in the year when all others were long dead. The area was covered with lively green grass, bushes, flowers, and trees. It was essentially the same as hanging a brightly colored painting of a spring hillside on the remnants of a wall from a house that was recently burnt down. The season’s quiet death and unrelenting, stinging cold was surrounding undeserving warmth. At the center of that warmth, was a freshly fallen tree.

The buck and the wolf walked to opposite sides of the clearing, laid down, and continued watching the old man’s movements. After the old blacksmith started slowly approaching the center of the clearing, other animals came from the dark to watch the event. Eyes watched from the darkness, as well as from the light. Small birds landed on the fallen tree, rabbits and squirrels followed the man from a distance. The warmth of the area lured the man to the trunk of the fallen tree.

When the man stood close to the tree trunk, he leaned over to look inside. It was hollow and full of crystal clear water. Insects swimming in the water contained by the dead tree, caught his eye. He followed them around the water until he noticed an object at the bottom of the trunk. When he leaned even further into the trunk, he identified the object as a foreign piece of wood. He thought it was foreign because it seemed out of place.

The piece of wood was shaped like a handle. It was smooth for the most part, except for one side being pitted down the length of the wood. The old man thought it looked like the hilt of a sword, or the handle of a bow or staff, but this was conflicting and confusing. The wooden piece looked untouched by man, but its formation seemed deliberate. He needed to take a closer look.

The water was warm to the touch when he reached in and grasped the wooden piece. Even though it looked foreign to the tree it was a part of, it was attached to the trunk by natural growth. With a hard tug, he pulled the wooden piece out of the tree stump and examined it closer. It was hollow through the center. It was hollow with perfect width to fit a weapon handle base. Holding it made the old man feel driven to work with it. He needed to make an edge for this handle to work with. To not act on the discovery of this wooden piece seemed like a defiance of fate. His mind was filled with all of these thoughts and drives, and he looked up to the buck and wolf for audience. However, when he looked up, the two beasts were gone, and the other animals were just briefly noticed as they left the clearing. Leaves started falling from the trees that circled the clearing, and the flies that were once circling the area started landing on nearby foliage to allow the approaching cold to complete their destiny.

After examining the wooden piece for a few more moments, the old man realized how late it must be. He thought about how his family must’ve started worrying about where he was. He wrapped the wooden piece in a cloth and stuck in into his pack. He made his way back to the known path home by tracking his footsteps, leaving his cane beside the fallen tree.

“I can’t wait to tell my granddaughter this story”

[Layfon Alseif]

Another interesting story from our resident literary master. Is this a prelude to an upcoming event? :D

[Brotherwolf]

That was exciting! I am always a sucker for good fantasy. Cant wait for the rest :)

Wolf

[SkunkDave]

*claps*

[Camerae]

Changing my forum name to my character name early to avoid confusion :P
Being the only posts I've made, this would be the only appropriate place to announce this.

Camerae
(formerly SkunkDave the verbose tactician)

[Albino]

Is this just part of a story or should I start following wild animals into the woods?

[Skywing]

Wonderfully told !

[Steve]

awesome story telling, you set the scene perfectly.

Could this be insight into a rumoured umbris related sword artefact i caught wind on some time ago?

regardless, i was captivated by the story :) makes me want to be bothered to read through the 9 other approaching shadow pages :)