Devotion: A Tale of Liars and Beasts

3. Summoned

Enara snatched up the nearest stone she could grab, and stood, spinning to face the intruder. Everything inside her screamed for her to run, but she was stunned by the figure standing before her; an impossible beast.

Human-faced, wolf-headed, stag-horned. It towered above her on the stilt-like legs of a steed. 

Enara watched in utter disbelief as the ink-black horse body stepped towards her. It's gait a strange one, it's hooves somehow silent. It was then she realized there were no such hooves, but rather the soft-padded paws of a lion. 

If not a God's creation, it must be of the devils making.

Enara's body was so tense, she wondered if she could run at all. If she did flee, would it entice the beast to chase her? 

At least this way she could watch it as it approached, prepare for whatever was to come...

The beast was before her now, neck sloping down to bring that ghostly human face before her own. Enara's heart pounded against her ribs relentlessly. She felt entranced. 

The creature's face looked like neither a man nor woman- its features seeming to shift with each blink of her terrified eyes. 

Except the eerie pale skin. That always remained the same.

The creature opened its mouth, and for a moment Enara thought it would speak to her; tell her what it wanted, or from whence it came. But the mouth only opened wider, and somehow wider still, maw lengthening into the fearsome jaws of a wolf, teeth extending from an impossible space. 

Enara stumbled backwards, foot catching on a rock higher than the rest, sending her tumbling with a yelp. She fell onto her backside with a pathetic little splash, right into the shallows of the creek.

Undeterred, the creature came closer. Jaws still hinged unnaturally wide. 

There on its tongue, a small scroll. Tied up neatly with twine.

Enara forced herself to breathe, staring up at the beast with wide eyes. It didn't move. The great and terrible mouth hovering a mere arms length away from her face. At least it didn't seem to want to eat her. 

She could've laughed, but suppressed the hysteria bubbling in her chest. If she hadn't known the forest realm to be a strange place, she would've thought she was dreaming. But she knew the Gods to have power beyond her wildest imagination.

There was no other explanation: the beast was here to deliver a message.

The scroll was just sitting there atop the crimson tongue. The beast as frozen as she. Enara couldn't bring herself to move at first. The thought of reaching into those jaws...

Every fiber of her being fought against her as she reached towards the strange being. 

Something in the beast's oddly human eyes seemed to reassure her. If her faith was sure, she'd take this strange visitation for what it seemed to be: A message from her Great Ones. What else could it be?

With trembling fingers, Enara slowly grabbed the scroll, careful not to touch the creature's narrow tongue. She didn't breathe as she removed the message from the great jaws, still somewhat terrified those teeth would clamp around her arm any moment. But the beast remained still as stone. 

Enara clutched the scroll to her chest, finally allowing herself to breath again. The beast's maw slowly closed, shifting back into its humanoid face as it retreated from where Enara sat in the shallows.

As quiet as it had come, the beast walked backwards until it dissipated into the mist. Mist that hadn't been there before. And that was it. It was gone without a single trace. 

Not even a paw print left behind.

Enara felt her hands begin to quiver again, adrenaline surging. The calm she'd felt in the creature's presence had vanished with the creature itself. Had her faith truly been strong enough to stay calm, or had the creature somehow influenced her? It didn't matter now. 

Utterly rattled, Enara ripped the twine from the neatly rolled scroll, unfurling it to reveal a gorgeous scrawling of ink.

She read the words once, and then once more.

She was becoming convinced that this must be a dream. Nothing about the forest felt as solid as the rest of the life she'd known, and yet she felt acutely alive here. Aware of every heartbeat, of every breath of the wind, of every hair on her head.

                  Follow the creek towards the southern most star. There you'll find the place you seek.

                  My brethren may tempt you with strange fancies, in which you're free to indulge. But only I can give you what you truly desire. Come to us before tonight's full moon. 

                  If you refuse, it may very well be your last night as you are; intact. We'd rather like you in one piece, but we can make do.

                  Pious little nymph, come and your prayers will be answered. 

                  Your Great Ones, as you call us, await your arrival.

Enara stared at the ink, something hot stirring in her blood. She couldn't deny she was curious, more than curious, completely drawn in by the promise of all she'd ever wanted: to have her prayers answered.

What had she prayed for, she wondered, suddenly feeling a haze wind around her consciousness. She'd given thanks, yes, but what was it she'd always prayed for back in the village? Every color and sound of her old life was enveloped in an opaque cloud. Unreachable.

Enara knew in her heart something wasn't right. 

She closed her eyes for a moment, hoping to calm the sudden dizziness. A horrible realization struck her like lightening, or the bite of a poisonous snake: 

She couldn't remember her home, much less how to get there. 

She scarcely remembered a thing about herself besides her own name. Everything she'd done before setting foot in the Forest seemed like a dream. A dream that was slipping away with every waking moment.

She clutched the scroll in dampening palms.

... before tonight's full moon...

As afraid as she'd suddenly become, Enara wasn't sure what choice she had. What if this realm harbored beasts less gentle than the messenger? 

She'd been wandering in the forest for days. She'd never make it out before nightfall, never escape whatever threats the moon would unleash. If the message was to be believed...

None of her paths seemed clear of danger, but there was one path that would at least be easy to follow. A path that might deliver her to her Gods, after all. 

Enara let her eyes follow the flow of the creek. It disappeared around a mossy bend, venturing deeper into the Forest.

Hanging on to her faith by a thread, Enara lifted herself from the waters, heading south. Towards a trap, her end, or the answer to all her prayers, only the Old Gods knew.