A Mirage Of Milk And Honey

Chapter 12 - The Haze

Soon enough, the novelty of the Edepth wore off, and all four members of the party were getting restless, missing fresh air and sunlight.

The darkness and humidity, first unsettling, had become familiar and hung around them like a heavy cloak. They'd fallen into a new routine. Walk for the morning, Chip's pocket watch their only guidance, take a break for lunch where they'd snack on whatever edible plants scrounged up from the night before, before continuing until late afternoon. After securing a location for the night, Aedis and Zemira—the most competent hand to hand fighters—would do a perimeter check, while Honey assisted Chip with general campfire preparations. At some point Aedis would go to one of the many veins of river that ran through the forest while Zemira and Honey searched for more food and Chip collected whatever fungi and plant life piqued his interest.

The meals put together were light and digested far too quickly, the assortments of river reeds, mushrooms and berries doing little to keep anyone well fed. And to make matters worse, none of the animals would make a convenient meal. They were simply too large for the nomadic nature of their travels.

Honey had been scared half to death when she and Zemira had been bathing, only to be ambushed by a mouse larger than any mammal she'd seen before. Its beady eyes and white fur had given her such a fright, she'd bolted out of the river stark naked, Zemira's cackling successfully startling the animal.

The encounter had brought her back to that moment on the bridge, when she'd oh so stupidly looked down and come face to face with that giant deer.

Zemira, thoroughly entertained by Honey's fright, had explained that the Edepth was like a magnifying glass on animals. They were larger, but tamer than what one found in the rest of the world, and though they weren't aggressive, they still needed to be vigilant lest a giant deer step on them. If they resembled animals on the continent, they tended to be docile—but it was the other creatures one had to look out for.

Luckily, Honey had no such encounters.

It wasn't until the fifth day, just after she'd awoken from an arguably pitiful night's sleep, that she realised just how serious Zemira had been.

She'd blearily made her way to the nearby stream, intent on splashing some water on her puffy face, when the familiar trail from the night before had come away right under her feet and she tumbled into a ditch with a yelp. Confused and more than a little startled, it took Honey a second to realise that the ditch did not simply form itself, but was in fact a very large, and very new hoof print. Her startled cry, however, had attracted the attention of the other three, who'd come rushing to her aid in mere seconds. Upon their arrival and observation that there was no imminent danger—other than Honey's own obliviousness—Chip and Zemira had burst into laughter.

"I'm not a fan of this character development." Honey scowled at Chip, who she most definitely did not expect to be mocked by. Her snide comment had only elicited further laughter from Zemira and even a snort from Aedis, causing the pale haired girl to scrunch her face up in annoyance.

With a huff, she'd returned to the camp, freshening up long forgotten.

Every now and then, as the group clambered through the forest, Honey would once again be struck by awe.

She'd simply be following along, letting Aedis and Chip lead the way whilst Zemira lingered close behind, and it'd suddenly strike her how incredible the forest was.

There were no words to describe it. Aesthetically, the wood was massive. With tree's looming taller than any man made creation, and animals that should have been small wolfed the four of them in size, making it was easy to suddenly feel small.