Remorse of an Adventurer 2: Tangled Paths

The Ancient Evil

 Perhaps it was silly to assume everything was settled. Hilda had found her way forward, often at the side of me and David. It's hard to believe things could come unraveled so fast. It all started on a normal evening after school too. I could never have imagined this.

Remorse Of An Adventurer II

Tangled Paths

By Daring D.D. Danger
I: The Ancient Evil

***Frida***

"Don't worry! We're coming for you!" Hilda's voice echoed behind me as we rounded the corner of an alley. We spilled back into the street and all fell silent. David, Hilda, Twig and I might never have been so focused.

"Help!" A small voice cried.

"There!" David pointed as it slipped under a car, into the street, carrying away the elf house.. It jumped through a gap in a fence, us diving through right after it and sliding down a hill the fence had hid. Gaining control of my rolling, I picked up speed as David fell behind. Then jumping out of the slide I pursued the creature as it darted into the trainyard.

Rounding the corner, all movement was gone. My vision settled as I looked for any hint. Hilda jumped between two train cars yelling and pointed out of the trainyard. A rustling bush had given it away, and we sprinted into the woods beyond.

Hilda and I ran side by side as evergreen trees whipped past us on either side. We quickly approached a gap and Hilda held out her hand. I took it and we jumped over the gap together.

We stopped and looked around for where next to go.The trees obscured the light, and we strained our eyes for any track. Our heart began to settle when Twig caught up to us, sprinting forward.

"Twig's got the scent!" I yelled, following Twig down another hill. Twig slid into the crawl space under a small red house, and I followed as quick as I could crawl. I coughed a little as Twig kicked up dust in front of me. I heard some rustling and saw a shadow in the corner of my eye and crawled at the spot. Nearly there, the creature sprinted out from the crawlspace. I jumped out after it, fingers brushing the elf house on its back as it dashed away..

I caught my breath and heard a small sound as Twig approached. Looking up, I saw him sitting in front of me, the elf house held gently between his teeth.

"Call off the hound!" The little elf yelled from in his window, a bit of Twig's drool running down the side. He set the house in my hand just as a bell began ringing.

"I've got you now!" A redheaded man jumped from behind the house with a pitchfork, before quickly lowering his guard. "Oh, sorry. You're not a Troll."

"It's daytime." I noted, with a little sarcasm and a smirk.

"Again, Sorry. I'm just on edge these days, what with Trolls walkin' up to me house and such. Ate me goat, right in front of me porch last night."

"Wait, there were Trolls inside the wall?"

"We're not in the wall, little girl." He pointed at the wall, and indeed I was outside of it.

"We must've run through on the train tracks. Do the Trolls normally get this close?"

"Only lately, I'm afraid. As if the Vittra digging tunnels in me field wasn't enough." Twig suddenly began gnawing on my leg. Only then did it strike me. I'd lost David and Hilda!

"I have to go find my friends, sir!" I waved with my free hand and ran back the way I'd come. It wasn't too long before I stumbled onto Hilda, in the place we'd stopped.