Forever Green

~2~ A Curse for a Curse

The Azalom Mountains were a wild place, full of vibrant foliage and twisting hiking trails. When the sun rose, the mountain range was silhouetted in early morning light, and sunsets would set the jagged formations on fire with color. Game was plentiful in the forest at the base of the mountains, but no one dared to hunt higher up, where the trees grew more thickly together and the beasts were more deadly than not.

Now, in the darkness of night, the mountains loomed ominously overhead as Theiden slipped past the guards at the gate and vanished into the forest. Everything was silent—the calm before the storm, Theiden thought. No birds squawked in the branches overhead, and no small animals rustled in the underbrush. He had never heard the night this quiet before.

Crouching to the ground, Theiden thanked the spirits for the light of the full moon as he searched for footprints. There were many tracks leading to and from the city gate, but the farther away Theiden walked, the more it seemed people decided they had had enough of the forest for one day, and turned back. Almost everyone, it seemed, had stayed on one main path that Theiden knew led to a patch of berry bushes a few yards away. Since spring was coming, more people would be willing to venture outside the city and check to see if any blueberries or fiddleheads had started growing yet.

Finally, the mass of tramping feet had thinned out enough for Theiden to recognize the shape of his daughter's small footprints, accompanied by another equally small set—Helaine's, no doubt. The tracks deviated from the main path about halfway to the berry bushes, and Theiden stepped off the beaten trail to follow them.

It was more difficult traveling through parts of forest that were not so well-frequented, and several times Theiden feared he had lost the trail, only to find the footprints again after several long moments of searching. At some point, Helaine's footsteps had turned back towards the city, and Theiden was left to follow only the lone pair of his daughter's steps. Finally, he discovered what he was looking for, even if the sight of it made his heart jump to his throat.

While Em's footprints were sunken in soft, rounded outlines in the earth, the witch's tracks were the complete opposite. The creature's shoes had left sharp, pointed jabs in the ground, and the gait was irregular, as if she had been dancing—or, Theiden wished, limping. Not long after Helaine and Em's footprints had separated, the witch had come across Em's tracks, and abruptly changed course to follow the way Em had gone. The witch had been tracking his daughter, Theiden realized with dread—hunting down its prey.

Theiden's grip tightened on the strap of his quiver. Now the tables had turned, and he would be sure not to let his prey escape.

After Em and the witch's paths diverted—after the creature had cursed Em, Theiden realized with a glower—the woman's footprints continued deeper into the forest, towards Nagamora, the tallest peak in the Azaloms. The tracks were easier to follow now, winding through the trees and undergrowth with little difficulty, and Theiden picked up his speed.

Finally, through the trees, he caught his first glimpse of the monster who had cursed his daughter.

The figure was only visible as a silhouette, outlined more by a greenish-blue witchlight bobbing along beside her than by the faint moonlight from above. Theiden stilled, watching as she stepped over the roots and stones before her in graceful, lithe movements. If she continued in the direction she was heading now, he might be able to cut through the trees at an angle and ambush her a bit farther on.

Time was limited, and Theiden could think of no alternative. That plan would have to do.

Carefully, he began to pick his way through the bushes and trees, never taking his eyes off the witch for long. Once Theiden had gotten ahead of the witch to a point where he was sure their trajectories would meet, he strung his bow, nocked an arrow, and settled behind a fern to await the creature's approach.