Ruin (Series)

Chapter 14: Ll'tal

Despite the thoughts swimming through his head, Jim had eventually drifted to sleep, enervation overpowering emotion. The next morning, an awkward silence hung between them. The couple packed their bags, ate the last of their rations, and continued on.

The heat and desolation of the northern wastes was far behind them now. The cool and calm of the Black Forest was so foreign. The smell of trees and plants was otherworldly to a man who'd only ever known the desert.

OOF

His thoughts were interrupted as he bumped into Alia. "Hey, why'd you stop?"

"Shh. I heard something. There" Her finger pointed to an unseen place through the trees. Jim strained his ears but caught only the usual sounds of the forest. "I'm not hearing it. Perhaps -"

In the distance, a quiet drumming moved through the trees. An uneasiness filled him, "Sounds like music."

Alia shuddered, "Cannibals. We have to find another way."

Jim shook his head, "No, I don't think so. Cannibals live in the western caves. Believe me, I've made it my life's goal to avoid them. This is something else."

Alia grabbed his arm, "Jim, there's a reason everyone avoids the Black Forest. Nobody who's ever come in has made it back out. Most of the crew believed it was haunted. I don't subscribe to myths and superstition but, even I know to avoid it."

Jim thought about that for a moment. It was true. Even the empires of Ruin feared the Black Forest. Many adventurers had entered. None ever returned. Despite the safety of the skies, airships avoided it for fear of dragon attack. Fearsome dragons, some over twenty meters long made their homes in the deep forest canopy. A full grown dragon was a threat to any wood ship and, airmen steered well clear of their rage.

"You're right Alia but, where there's people, there's water. We're down to two days supply and I haven't seen a single creek. There's no problem with taking a look."

Alia stared ahead, resigned. He took her silence as agreement. Or, at least the closest she could come to it.

They crept quietly toward the music, both taking extra caution to avoid breaking twigs or rustling leaves. As the sound grew, so did the symphony. Flutes, strings, and voices rang out with a steady beat.

Through the trees, Jim spotted the first signs of civilization. Enormous domed huts sprung up from the ground. They seemed to grow from the very earth. As they approached, Jim caught his first glimpse of a villager. Then another, and another.

There were dozens of them in a circle. Each wore a robe of what looked to him like giant sewn together leaves. They sang and played their song, oblivious to the couple's approach. He could hear the words of the music but, it was in a language unknown to him. Not the dirty guttural language of cannibals but, something else. Something beautifully flowing.

When they approached the edge of the clearing, they looked at each other. "What should we do?" Alia whispered.

Jim shouted just loud enough to be heard over the music, "Uhh, excuse me!" The music died almost instantly. There was a gasp as the group turned to look at them. But, it wasn't from the villagers. Alia placed her hand over her mouth and Jim took a step back as they realized it at the same time.

The villagers were not human.

From beneath their earthen hoods, yellow eyes stared at the couple. Among the villagers, Jim counted dozens of shades of gray, white, and yellow. Each humanoid feline was covered in varied black spots and stripes.

The larger members of the group trotted toward Jim and Alia. Instinctively, Alia gripped her spear tighter. Seeing her reaction, Jim whispered to her, "Drop it, quick! These guys could tear us limb from limb if they wanted to. No need to aggravate them."