Pick Your Path: Book 1

61

"Um.." you glanced down the slope. It looked dangerous. " Is there another route we could take?"

" You're scared to slide the slope." Rose concluded. " Sure we'll take another route." you didn't say anything. She's probably just making fun of your insecurities. Rose leaps upwards to a tunnel that sat on the left wall. She scrambles inside and yells for you to join her. " Hurry up, before Ellie and Will get up the hill!" you dash over to the wall and fling yourself upwards. Your hands catch the floor of the tunnel while you feet kick and scrabble against the sheer rock. You feel a set of jaws close around the collar of your shirt as a light purple and white fox tugs upwards. With the fox's help, you manage to get to the tunnel just as Ellie and Will reach the top of the hill. " This way." Rose tugs your sleeve and starts walking down the tunnel, bent in a hunting position. You follow, on your hands and knees. You hear a frustrated growl outside the tunnel. The tunnel was rather small so Will couldn't get in because of his wings and size, but Ellie could still get up to the tunnel.. If she could jump high enough.

" Move Will. I'm going in." Ellie commands before the sound of hooves hitting against the rock echoed through the tunnel. You glance back to see a tips of two sharp, onyx horns before the owner of the horns fell back to the ground with a couple of clops. She tried again and, this time, she manages to get into the tunnel with a couple of kicks from her hind legs.

" Come on!" Rose growls, tugging your sleeve again, " Go!" she races away with you scrambling after her. You see her tail turn a corner, you follow only to run into a small room.. There was another exit to the left of you and an open doorway in the right corner, but there was no sign of Rose. You hear Ellie come closer and you quickly make your way to the exit. She must have gone that way. As you approach, a hand grabs your arm and pulls you into a crevice in the wall.

" Huh-?" a hand cuts off your yelp as you are pulled into a dimly lit room. The only light came from outside the room, from the crevice. The person tugs you into the darker shadows of the room, as far away from the crevice as possible.

"Quiet, (Y/n)." Rose whispers next to you. " Wait until-" she abruptly stops as Ellie enters the room. You hear her take a look around the room, checking every hiding spot there is. She passes by the hidden area you and Rose were hiding in. She stops, but doesn't check inside the crevice. Her hooves echo off the walls as she walked out of the other exit and away from you. After a couple of minutes of silence, Rose nudges you out of the room. " Let's get going before she comes back." she leads you to the open doorway. and down the hallway. You hear the sound of a water source, possibly a stream or a river, running somewhere up ahead. There was an opening at the end of the hallway, bright light streamed in from it. You dart over and peek out to see a fairly large drop into part of a forest and a river nearby. A blur of light purple and white races past you and leaps out, landing onto the top of one of the trees. The branches swayed as she landed. Rose dug her claws into the bark of the tree. Once she found her balance, she waved for you to leap down as well. " Come on, (Y/n)!" you take a deep breath. You won't just fall to the ground.. You will somehow catch the branch and it won't break.. Somehow, some way.. You won't die.. You back up a couple of feet and rush forward, leaping out of the hole. You land on the edge of the tree, a little away from Rose. Immediately it begins to bend downwards, you make a grab for the nearest branch, only to grab a handful of leaves. You tumble downwards as the branches snap. " (Y/n)!" You hear Rose  make a grab for your shirt, temporarily your fall to a stop. After a few moments, you hear the fabric tear and you continue to fall down. You spot a river was near by, maybe it was deep enough to cushion your fall.. But it was a few feet away. You'd have to get pass several trees to get to it. Maybe you could while you fell? Or you could always ignore the river and try to slow your fall before you hit the ground.. That works too.. If you could grab a branch that was sturdy enough to support your weight. 

Go for the river? Continue to page 87

Try to snag a branch? Go to page 86

Okay.. That didn't work.. I hope Kurama has been teaching her something. Hopefully something about balance or instinct? Now would be a good time to put the lessons to good use. ~Ro

I wonder how (Y/n) and Rose are doing? Rose told me earlier that she would keep (Y/n) out of trouble and meet up with me in the forest later.. I'm not sure how well she will do with Will and Ellie chasing her and (Y/n). I guess I'll find out at sunset, when Rose said she will reach the forest. In the mean time, I think I'll go bother Morphia again.. Then maybe tomorrow, (Y/n) will join me to go bother her. ~K