Kid Quest

Let's Save a Village!

[[Disclaimer: This chapter contains events that may be disturbing to some readers. Discretion advised.]]

The chirping of crickets and birds echoed through the wooded landscape that surrounded them, these three who would be heroes, even if only in their own minds. They stood side-by-side, staring at the fog that lay between them and their foe. They'd spent the better part of the day planning a course of attack, and now they were about to set their plan in motion.
        According to the plan, Orlan would hide in an advantageous location within the town and, using his echolocation, discover the wendigo's hiding place. Then Trixie, acting as a decoy, would lure the creature out to a spot in the center of town where Billy, with his sword at the ready, and Rattles with a crossbow they would have to borrow from Vel's shop, would strike from the shadows. It was brilliant, and Trixie had been quite a large part of the planning process, but the first step is oftentimes the most arduous.

"Alright Rattles," Orlan said, breaking the silence between the three of them. He gestured for his skeletal friend to follow before he marched forward into the fog, "we've got work to do!"

As soon as Orlan stepped through the fog, he froze. To his right, Rattles, his dear skeletal companion, began to convulse violently, rattling more than its name suggested.

"Rattles, are you ok?" Orlan was concerned, and somewhat frightened of the situation. Then suddenly, like a puppet whose strings were cut mid performance, Rattles collapsed into a pile of bones, lifelessly clattering onto the ground. Orlan panicked and began picking up Rattles' bones one at a time, until he got to the skull. He picked it up and looked into the empty sockets, and tears began to flow. He couldn't stop crying until he finally looked up from the skull and truly saw what lay in the fog.

Orlan could barely believe what he was witnessing. From outside the fog, Orlan had been able to see the village clearly, and could even make out the distance from the outer edge of the fog to the gate leading into town. But the instance that he stepped into the fog, everything had changed. The trees were now suddenly taller than he could see, even with sound. The distance to the village was much larger, so great in fact that he could barely see the small dot that now clung to the horizon. If he closed his eyes and used only echolocation, it was as though he were surrounded by the village, as though every trail, every path, every step taken led straight to the village gate, like a ring of inevitability.

Trixie and Billy did not hear Orlan's screams, just as they did not hear Rattles collapsing and Orlan crying. Instead, they gave each other a glance as Orlan and Rattles disappeared. They waited only a few seconds. Then, with a nod, they followed shortly behind. Upon entering the fog, the duo was surprised to see that Orlan was nowhere in sight, and Trixie noticed the fresh pile of bones that once made up Rattles. Red flags and alarm bells went off in Trixie's mind and anxiety began to itch the edges of her thoughts.

"Something's wrong," She blurted before charging blindly ahead, "I'm moving on to the village!"

"What!? No," Billy tried to stop her but she was much faster in her panicked state than Billy could react. She disappeared into the mist leaving Billy to finish his sentence in eerie silence, "you'll get yourself killed."

He let out an exasperated sigh and began making his way towards the village when he suddenly remembered something, an image in his mind, a flower. He pulled his helmet off and examined it quickly but thoroughly, and soon found the black rose that Trixie had tied to his helmet. He let out a chuckle and was about to remove it when he stopped, and thought instead to keep it. "It wouldn't hurt to add some life here and there." He thought to himself as he quickly slid his helmet back onto his head and charged forward.