Life in the Dark

A New Face

Day 2:

I have learned three things since I woke up. The night will take your life if given the chance, There Is a range of monsters and there are people who will help. I met one of these people, a trader who writes on his arm with charcoal. He wears a black hooded coat. His eyes are replaced by what looks like the remains of a glass monocle. Almost like his skin, grey and thin, mutated around it. He found me half dead this morning and bandaged me. He wrote on his skin for a few minutes be for showing me, the following conversation ensued after I rested for a bit;

"How do you feel?"

"Better, thank you for helping me, if you had kept walking I would have died."

"I don't think so", he quickly wrote down some more before I could talk. "While I was bandaging you I saw that you have the mark of the woods on your back."

I looked at him confused, he wiped away the charcoal letters on his arm and showed me the back of his left hand. On it was three interlocking circles covered with roots that lead to a teardrop shape. He wrote some more and then showed me

"It is left on those who the forest has already tried to swallow."

I thought on this for a bit. That must mean that the forest has tried, but I have been awake all night, I would have seen the forest move, I would have got away from it. So when did it try to swallow me.

"So what does it mean when the forest has tried to swallow you?"

He scribbled some more. "No one knows, it is rare for someone to get swallowed, unless it is a child, but I will say this. The people around here don't take kindly to it, I would recommend keeping it covered."

After that he gave me some supplies. Gas for the generator and wood chopper, food, and a melee weapon. I asked him about the road that the doctor had wrote about.

"That road is long gone; it was the first thing that got swallowed by these dark woods."

I watched him as he wandered into the woods... but for some reason I knew better then to believe that the road was gone.

The pain had subsided thanks to the mans care but it was still risky to move on my own. The few things that I could do was just about useless. I felt useless. What little bit of food i had gathered wouldn't let a rat eat. I put one of my hands to my back, feeling the bandages under my shirt.

"Mark of the woods,huh..." I spoke low and to myself, "How did i get a mark of the woods?" I sat down on a log in front of the log pile next to the wood cutter and sighed. My head hurt from the fight and I was tired. I had no idea what I was doing.  My mind had a hard time trying to wrap around my situation when I heard a twig snap to my left. I shot up but immediately regretted it when the pain in my side flared, sending me to my hands and knees.

"Careful meat." said a gruff voice, my head shot up to where the figure of a man stood, he approached me from the shadows. I turned to run but doubled over in pain, clutching my side and yelling. A fur covered hand quickly covered my mouth, claws digging into my cheek, while another hand snaked around me. I was pulled back into the lap of who I assumed was the man. I wiggled my arm free and elbowed him in the side. He release me, I took this as a chance to try and run, but he caught my hurt foot and dragged me back,  sending a scream out my throat. He straddled me and covered my mouth again, leaning against my back and whispered in my ear, "Quiet down before the savages hear you."

He points to the tree line, I follow his finger and see the  tree line swarming with people. I laid there under the man and watched the people walk towards the left. They paid no attention to the clearing we were in. We laid there for a bit, just waiting, when the last two finally passed he got up off of me. I tried to get up but fell back down when my foot gave out. I looked up to see his hand in front of me, I reluctantly took it. He lifted me up and guided me into the house.

"Thanks." I said. We sat in two old chairs, him across from me. I could see him clearly now. The easiest way I could describe him is 'wolfman'. He wore a hood that was attached to a jean jacket with a pair of black jeans. His hood did little to cover his snout or the fangs that came from it.

"You're lucky that I came by, the savages have an excellent sense of smell, your blood," he grinned at me and pointed to my side, "would have made you and easy target." If I could have reached my axe I would have hit this man, he laughed a deep chuckle. I glared at him.

" What's funny?" I asked, he just laughed some more before he looked at me dead serious.

"You're hurt, yet you sit outside without a weapon next to you. And you're oblivious to your surroundings, if I hadn't stepped on that stick, I could've got you." I shivered and watched him get up from his seat. He looked over the room, his gaze stopping on the little bit of food I had and he sighed. " And you can't scavenge for shit," he dropped his backpack to the ground and opened it before handing me a loaf of bread, "Here."

I gazed at the man and the bread. he shakes it in front of my face, "Come on, eat it." I eye him suspiciously and slowly reach for the bread. I mutter another thanks as he sits back on his chair. We sat there, in that house, in silence as i ate the bread. I watched as his tail idled from left to right.

"It's rude to stare."

"Sorry." I quickly look down at the dusty floor. I hear the wolfman sigh and look at him.

"Relax, if I was going to eat you," He paused and got in my face; forcing me to lean back in my chair. "I would have by now." He grinned and licked one of his fangs before pulling away from me. I sighed and he picked up his things and threw a piece of paper at me with a box.

"There is a village to the south of here, my camp is to the north." He threw his bag on his back and opened the door. "There is an old woman  that smells of chicken feces in the town, give her this if you decide to go." He places a plastic chicken on the table next to the door and then leaves.

He isn't a very charming person, but he isn't an enemy either. I think.