The Dark Forest.

Chapter 1

"Are you sure this is a good idea Ryel?" the shorter boy asked as they approached the forest's edge.

"What do we have to lose Clove?" replied the taller boy.

"Anyone who enters the Dark Forest will be banished from the village!" Clove mimicked the voice of an elderly man in a hushed tone.

Ryel's cheeks puffed out as he tried to stifle a laugh. The two boys were far enough from the village that no one would hear them, but he did not want to take the risk.

"Pfft, that was spot on to old man Theo, but you forget the 'and that's only if you don't die while you're in there' part."

The taller boy could see Clove's unamused face under his hood, illuminated by the moonlight, as he looked up at him.

"Thanks for reminding me Ryel. I still can't believe I'm going along with your crazy plan, maybe we should go back home, even being this close to the forest could have us exiled."

"I told you before Clove, this is the first step to us becoming heroes, whatever we find in this forest; a witch, wild animals or nothing at all, it doesn't matter; we will defeat whatever stands in our way and return to the village as heroes who ventured into the Dark Forest when everyone else was afraid to... And even if we are exiled, it's nothing to worry about since we already planned on going on adventures, didn't we?"

Clove smirked, "I bet we'd be called fools before they call us heroes. Also, we won't have to worry about exile if we're dead either."

Ryel's hand pushed his cloak aside and rested on the hilt of the sword on his belt and he looked squarely into Clove's eyes.

"That won't happen," Ryel declared with conviction, "I'll protect both of us, I promise."

Ryel was only 16 years old, and Clove was 15. If it were anyone else making such a claim, Clove would have thought they were hit on the head one too many times as a babe. But Clove felt convinced that Ryel would hold true to his promise.

Ryel had been training with his sword for as long as he could remember and a month ago, he won against Rodrigue, the man considered the best swordsman in their village.

Clove also trusted the older boy because Ryel was his best friend.

"Alright Ryel, I believe you. I'm ready to go in when you are," Clove groaned with resignation.

"Fantastic," Ryel cheered softly, before tilting his head upwards to look up at the sky.

The night sky was beautiful, dotted by millions of stars of all colours, each dancing a jig. Among them, the brilliant white of the full moon distinguished itself, radiating light and bathing the land in its glow.

When they planned their expedition, Ryel insisted that the boys enter the Dark Forest under a full moon; the light made it more difficult to escape from the village unseen, but it would make it easier to see in the forest. That light was valuable if they wanted to properly explore the forbidden woods.

Clove preferred to enter the forest while the sun was up, but Ryel believed that their first adventure, which would be talked about worldwide, needed to be grand. Entering the forbidden Dark Forest sounded less impressive if they went during the day, but doing so at night would make them legends.

On the night of the full moon, the boys were dressed completely in black; they wore black trousers, black shirts and black cloaks with hoods pulled over their heads. Blending into the shadows, they moved, evading the sight of the night watchmen who patrolled the perimeter of their village.

After they crept out of the village, they had to cross a grassy plain that separated the village from the Dark Forest. The boys had crouched low between the grass to avoid being seen, but Ryel knew they weren't completely invisible. Luckily, they made it to the Dark Forest without hearing any shouts from the village which would signal that they were spotted.