the Forest of Emmitaenu

Completely Undone

Lienkin sang the final note of his song summoning the Immortal Moon Queen and Lara turned to face him. Lightly, he touched her forehead, tracing a symbol and gently kissing the spot where he had drawn it. Lara felt flushed as a chill ran all the way down her spine. Was that kiss for me, or just part of this ritual he's doing? She wondered.

Realizing it was now her turn, she mocked his actions verbatim, stenciling the footprint of a bird on his brow and kissing his forehead in the same spot. A faintly glowing thread of sky blue glitter outlined the symbol for the briefest moment before sinking into his skin the way a snowflake melts when caught in someone's hand. 

"Algiz, it's a rune that looks like a fork in the path. It helps promote friendships and offers protection from harm," Lienkin explained.

"And the kiss," she questioned, "what does it do?" Lienkin laughed nervously.

"I'll tell you later," he promised and Lara wondered if she saw him blush. "First, we perform the circle then we can make magic." He turned with his hand outstretched, refocusing his attention on drawing more runes into the air with his wand. Lara concentrated intensely on his every movement, memorizing each symbol by heart. She absorbed everything like a dry sponge in a fish bowl. She would never forget the first time she learned to make magic.

Jade and Zeftx spent the entire day searching for Lara. The sun was setting before they finally forced themselves to quit. The gargoyles would be flying through the forest soon in search of victims and becoming a victim had never been on their list of "things I want to do before I die." Even though Zeftx found himself restless and willing to take the risk now as he had never been willing before.

What would they really do if they did capture him? No one knew that he was aware of since no one had ever survived captivity to tell the tale. There were rumors of course. There was speculation that nomads and demons alike turned into bedtime stories to scare children out of wandering the forest at night.

The most popular theory was that anyone who got captured would be flown to the gargoyles nest in the mountains to be brutally eaten. Other stories suggested the gargoyles were hunters and guard dogs for the werewolves, built by the big dogs themselves. Though Zeftx doubted werewolves would need gargoyles to hunt for them. If they had anything to do with the stone beast, he assumed it would serve a completely different purpose all together.

Instead of tempting the truth of the gargoyle legends to find and make an example of them, they reluctantly turned back and headed home. Jade hoped out loud that Lara had found her way home hours ago. Zeftx worried that if she hadn't found home then she'd be in a much worse condition if the gargoyles found her. 

A thought occurred to Zeftx that kindled new hope in his heart. What if she had gotten lost and returned to the hut before them? With a new sense of urgency he dashed ahead of Jade and raced for the hut. 

When he arrived he shouted out her name as he ran straight through the door. There was no response and he wondered if maybe she was asleep in Jades bed. Imagining Lara lying in bed with the quilts wrapped around her in a deep, harmless, and peaceful sleep; Zeftx rushed in entirely prepared to scoop her up and hug her with fierce relief. His imaginings came completely undone as he raced into the empty room to discover she wasn't there.

Zeftx ears picked up on Jades mellow tune being hummed outside of the hut, interrupting his dour thoughts. He walked outside and noticed that night was getting into full swing. There were no clouds in the sky which allowed many tiny stars to shine down on them. 

Wordlessly, he helped Jade into the hut and helped her lock up and secure their home. Together they took extra measures to seal the gaping holes where windows should be by boarding them up on both the inside and the outside. No matter what precautions they took they were still at risk for another gargoyle encounter. Deciding not to take any chances, they didn't bother to light even a single candle.

Although Zeftx had searched the hut many times before Jade caught up to him, he was unwilling to accept the fact that Lara wasn't there. 

"Can you find Lara's aura?" He asked Jade, knowing she could use her gifts to search for Lara. Jade looked ready to tell him it had already been done but when she saw his face she changed her mind. 

"I'll give it a try," she agreed but the tone of her voice wasn't very promising. He even wondered to himself what he could possibly expect Jade to find. It wasn't likely that Lara was standing by invisible and silent, watching as he suffered. Not unless she had been turned into a ghost. He paled more than usual at the thought and suddenly he felt sick.

"I'm sorry Zeftx," Jade spoke softly with a shake of her head. He pressed his lips firmly shut and his jaw twitched as he held his emotions tightly together. At least she's not a ghost, he tried to soothe himself but he couldn't stop the thought from continuing with that one tragic word: yet.

Zeftx could feel the truth bearing down on him and the feeling of having failed her sat in the pit of his stomach like a heavy rock the size of both his fists put together. Unable to stand still any longer in fear that he might self combust, he started pacing the room. He couldn't go searching for her now during the gargoyles hunting hours and it frustrated him. 

If Lara had made it home safely before nightfall the only purpose wandering the forest now would serve is turning him into a walking target. If she hadn't though, Zeftx knew she would be more vulnerable on her own than him. 

The all too familiar sound started in the distance, a common threat that they would never cease defending against. He paused his pacing and looked to the boarded window. Jade crept up silently and briefly placed her hand on his shoulder. She tried to conSol him without words before slipping away quietly to her room in the dark. Zeftx stood alone in private listening closely to the passing gargoyles for the smallest hint of Lara's voice among them. He hoped with all his heart he would not hear it.