The Untold Forest

by Elisa Menz

  His words made him growl. “Watch it.”

  But Regn wasn’t over. “You thought of her as a toy, as a pet! She is far more wonderful than that, and you still believe she needs you? She doesn’t need you, you worthless wimp!

  Hakken had enough. He barely registered the movement when his fist hit Regn’s chin, throwing him back and breaking his lip. But the boy was still up for more. After a few stumbles, he wiped his blood and charged at him, tackling him by the waist and sending both of them to the middle of the creek.

  They struggled on the water, throwing messy punches, screaming, and cursing. The fight was rowdier than violent. After a while, it was clear they were trying to release their frustrations other than hurting each other.

  Regn managed to give Hakken a bloody nose, and both men were covered in dirt and soaked in sweat and water. Drained and irritated, they sat next to the flowing creek, trying to remember why they were so mad to begin with.

  His face throbbed, but Hakken didn’t mind. What Regn had said caused a lot more pain since it was exactly what he feared. That he wasn’t good enough for her. That there might be someone else more suitable. Exhausted, Hakken sprawled on the ground as doubts plagued his mind.

  The boy panted next to him, and Hakken sent him a glance before asking. “Do you love her?”

  Regn huffed and blinked before looking down with a deep, childish blush. “I’m not sure.”

  “Of course you do! How could you be around her and not fall madly in love with her?”

  They went silent, each lost in their thoughts. Hakken remembered all the times Regn had saved Maeve from danger. He had been there for her when she needed help, unlike him. That was the painful truth. Still laying on his back, he turned to Regn and found him fidgeting. The boy squirmed before muttering. “I’m sorry about your nose.”

  “I’m sorry about your ugly face.”

  Regn snorted. “Yeah, sure. If we are going to keep fighting for her, we might as well choose a different sport.”

  Hakken rubbed his eyelids. “You know this isn’t right. It is not like we can choose who gets to keep her. She is the one who decides.”

  Regn chuckled humorlessly. “Very mature of you.”

  Hakken frowned and threw a bunch of dirt at him. “Well, I’m older!” Both men laughed on the ground, catching their breaths after a few minutes.

  Regn was the first one to stand, walking to Hakken and offering a hand. “She’ll choose you.”

  Hakken took his hand and rose to his feet while shaking his head. “I don’t know about that.”

  “I do. She loves you. I bet you can’t tell because you are an idiot, but unfortunately for me, it’s quite obvious.”

  He stared at the young man standing in front of him. His eyes were honest and somehow resigned. His words gave him the strength to hold a bit of hope. “I’ll fight for her,” Hakken stated.

  “You better. But let’s find her first.”

  CHAPTER XXX

  PLEASANT DREAMS

  Maeve

  They rode in the back of Hua ever since leaving the cave early that morning. Maeve was impressed by how far the naga had taken her, but soon she realized Hua walked in circles. She shared a meaningful look with Flyg, who sat right behind her and caught the same absentminded route the Ancient took.

  “Hua... I don’t mean to be rude but, do you know where you are going?” Maeve asked.

  The stag scoffed. “Well, I do. We would have arrived there hours ago if those two idiots stopped changing their course and running farther away.”

  “Who?”

  “The two younger males from your group looking for you, Maeve, running around hysterically.” He stomped his hoof. “I am so very proud of every detail of my creation, but I should have made some restrictions regarding the relation between love and common sense.”

  Maeve bit her lower lip while thinking about Hakken. She had to admit she longed for him. The thought of being reunited made her heart flutter. Flyg pinched her side. “Two males are courting you? You are a tease, Maeve!”

  “No one is courting me! They are my friends!”

  Flyg laughed at her and wiggled her eyebrows playfully. “Right... friends who are running around like crazy trying to find you.”

  “They are just overprotective,” Maeve shrugged.

  “Pheromones don’t lie.” Hua chimed in, and Maeve wondered if she was allowed to ask the god to stop talking. Probably not the best idea to test her luck in her current situation, so she asked instead. “What are pheromones?” Hua explained. And Maeve knew she shouldn’t have asked.

  The stag’s pace was steady, so Maeve let her mind wander. When did she start to feel this way? At what point, sleeping curled in Hakken’s arms became the safest place in the world? When did she begin looking forward to meeting him at the end of the day to talk about this and that?

  Her trail of thoughts made her squirm.

  “What is wrong with you?” Her unease didn’t escape Flyg.

  Maeve decided to trust her doubts with her new friend. “How can you tell when you are in love, Flyg?”

  Her sudden question startled the half-breed girl, and after hesitating for a moment, she answered. “I guess... I don’t know if I’m the one to ask... but...” She cleared her throat. “I don’t think love is something you ‘know’. You know if you find someone attractive, you know when someone makes you feel special. You definitely know when you can’t keep your hands from them.”

  Sweet and troubling memories came to her. Fortunately, Maeve’s reddened cheeks passed unnoticed.

  “Love is something you do. You do it. It’s an act, not a feeling.” Flyg sounded confident.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well... y-you decide to love someone! It is not that hard to understand.” Flyg waved her arms in frustration. “Like you with this hunter who’s looking for you! When you see him smelly and sweaty at the end of a hunt. When he does something stupid when he makes you mad, do you still choose to love him?”

  Flyg was making a lot of assumptions, but she was near to the truth. “You can feel attracted to a million people, but it is love when you do it. When you decide.” Maeve let her words sink in. Somehow her explanation made everything simpler. The butterflies in her stomach morphed into a warm, fuzzy sensation in her chest. She smiled while Flyg hugged her waist, resting her chin on her shoulder. “You birdbrain. If you truly are in love, don’t forget to tell him. And you can’t do that magic-feelings thing, that’s cheating!”

  Their laughter rang in the Forest, startling the birds from their branches and adding color to the peaceful surroundings. Traveling with the Ancient, Maeve’s fears diminished, even though she was still eager to meet with the others and run to the Warlocks. Hua turned to them with a grin and winked seductively to the half-breed. “I like the way your mind works, Flyg. You’re an interesting woman.”

  Flyg raised her hand and shook her head vehemently. “No, no, sir! My heart belongs to another.”

  The Ancient gave them the most captivating smile before picking up his pace. “I can make you change your mind.”

  Hakken

  He could smell her! He had almost lost his mind since the faint trail was gone, but his nose didn’t fool him. Maeve’s pleasant scent was near. He followed it with Regn close behind.

  Just a little more! His body begged for him to stop, but he kept pushing. All his fears, his doubts, whether he was worthy of her, he didn’t care about that anymore. All it mattered was for her to be safe. His limbs grew heavier, and he couldn’t even see straight because of exhaustion.

  They arrived to a clearing, and in the distance, trailing along a rocky slope, Maeve rode in front of a half-breed girl. She looked unharmed and calm. Despite the gap of land stretching between them, as soon as their eyes met, she smiled. When he saw her beautiful smile, Hakken sighed in relief, and his body finally gave in.

  His legs refused to take another step, and he fell to his knees. If not for his remarkable stam
ina and sheer willpower, he would have passed out on the ground. He took one deep breath, two, three... his eyelids closing against his will. But as soon as Maeve knelt in front of him, his eyes looked for hers.

  She was concerned. He probably looked awful. He felt awful.

  “I’m sorry, my love. I let them take you.” The words slip out, not registering in his mind.

  But he must have said something good because it made her smile. “It’s all right, Hakken, you can rest now. I won’t leave your side.” That was exactly what he longed to hear from her, and he said to himself that was all he wanted. But that wasn’t the truth. He wanted more, much more. When Maeve took him in her arms, pressing her warm body against his and enveloping him with her sweet scent, his tired muscles relaxed, and he let himself go. And then, the most wonderful thing happened. A soft, fluttering kiss. It lasted but a second, but he hadn’t imagined it. He could never imagine such a delicious taste. He stared at her in wonder, witnessing how she slowly lost her confidence and flustered.

  “Your lips are so sweet.” He was a brute with words. But before he could say anything else, and before Maeve succumbed to her bewilderment, his body decided it had enough. He fell forward, not able to stay awake for another second.

  While he drifted into a very pleasing sleep, he heard Maeve worrying about him and an unknown male reassuring her.

  “He is just exhausted. They both are, after running for an entire day.”

  Who the hell is that? He didn’t acknowledge anyone else after he saw Maeve. Then a woman spoke. “This one passed out the moment they saw us.” Hehe... take that kid! Right before losing the battle against sleep, he rejoiced in the fact he had resisted a minute longer than Regn. He was winning this fight.

  Maeve

  The next morning, introductions were in order. Hua had departed during the night, after helping them lay both unconscious men next to a fire and make sure there were no immediate threats to their safety. He left the vial with the red dust in their care, advising them to ask the Warlock for help.

  So, while eating some roasted rabbit Flyg hunted the previous day, Regn and Hakken completely recovered from their nerve-racking race.

  They both recognized Flyg as a mountain half-breed, and Maeve couldn’t be prouder of them since neither gave her a dirty look or tried to kill her. After all, they had witnessed too much to believe their tribe was simply ‘bad’. Both men waited for an explanation.

  Since the dust had compromised Flyg’s consciousness most of the time, it was up to Maeve to tell them their story. She quickly recounted her abduction, being drugged, the weird naga, Flyg’s aggressiveness, the Ancient Hua driving away Astika.

  When she mentioned the intervention of a god, she received a couple of odd looks, but Flyg soon backed her story.

  After telling them about how she freed Flyg from the dust with her magic and the help of not one but two Ancients, it was clear their heads were spinning. Regn was the first one to snap. “Hold on... are you sure you were put to sleep by magic?”

  Maeve shrugged. “I only remember a sweet aroma, and then my body went numb. I can’t tell for certain it was magic. It could be some sort of drug.”

  “The same happened to me. The effect was so strong he put me to sleep even when I was possessed. That naga might have some loose morals, but I’m forever in his debt. Thanks to him kidnapping me, I wasn’t forced to kill anyone.” The thought still shook Flyg.

  After a moment of pondering, they raised more questions.

  “The Tree is an Ancient... and the other Ancient was a stag?” Hakken frowned, shaking his head in confusion.

  “Yes.” Maeve was losing her patience.

  “And you thought he was good-looking?” Regn grumbled.

  “Yes.” Both Maeve and Flyg agreed.

  “And you have the power to free them from the red dust and end this war without having to kill anyone?” Hakken gawked at her, utterly amazed.

  “I guess you could say that, but it’s not so simple.” Maeve shook her head, a bit self-conscious.

  Regn smiled brightly at her. “You are outstanding!”

  “She’s marvelous!” Hakken growled, pushing Regn to the side.

  “That’s what I said!”

  “Shut up!”

  They put a stop to the conversation soon after and began their journey back to meet with Kniv and the Warlocks. Maeve settled once again in Hakken’s arms while the three half-breeds ran at full speed. They traveled fast for two days, arriving on a bright morning at the Tree.

  And it was right on time, since an angry mob surrounded the Warlock’s cabin, shouting at Kniv and demanding answers.

  CHAPTER XXXI

  VALUABLE KNOWLEDGE

  Regn

  After a quick glance, he reckoned at least a hundred battered, panic-stricken half breeds surrounded the Warlock’s cabin. Most of them were elders and children, with a handful of warriors keeping guard.

  He even recognized some of them. Their village was the closest to the Red Moon Valley’s village. Not a good sign. They were still too far away to listen to their words, but Kniv argued with who appeared to be their leader. A female warrior with a nasty scar crossing her nose and a nastier scowl on her face.

  “Oh, no,” Regn muttered, and they remained hidden behind the trees. Calmness seemed to hang by a thread, and nothing positive would come of them arriving with a mountain warrior.

  “What should we do?” Flyg was the first one to ask while looking at Maeve for answers. It was endearing how a strong, capable half-breed warrior needed reassurance from gentle, frail Maeve. Both girls had become close friends in a short time.

  Maeve took Flyg’s hand and turned to appraise the crowd. “We need to tell them the truth. They need to know your tribe is being held captive. Even if we can overpower them, we will kill innocents.”

  Regn agreed, but it was easier said than done. His experience traveling around the villages proved convincing half-breeds of anything was difficult at best. “Flyg should stay hidden for now. We will talk to them and explain before letting them meet with her.” Everyone nodded in agreement.

  “You and Maeve should go. I’ll stay with Flyg until it’s safe to join you.” Hakken spoke calmly while displaying a frown. He clearly didn’t like the idea.

  Regn smirked. “Are you sure you prefer to stay behind?”

  “Of course I don’t! But I’m stronger than you. If we’re spotted, I’ll have better chances to keep Flyg safe.” Both men glowered at each other until Maeve pulled Regn’s arm.

  “Let’s go Regn, we need to give this dust to my brother.” She turned to Flyg while walking to the crowd with him in tow. “Stay with Hakken for now, he will protect you.”

  They reached the crowd and hastened to Kniv’s side, gaining many astonished looks. As soon as the old man set his eyes on Maeve, his entire body loosened up with relief. The girl jumped to his arms.

  “Oh, sweet child! You have no idea how wonderful it is to have you back safe and sound.”

  “I missed you, Kniv.”

  Her arrival turned out to be the respite he needed. With his resolve renewed, Kniv stood tall, facing the crowd once more. “We must wait for the Warlock. This is not the time to make hasty decisions.” All eyes darted between Kniv and Maeve. Most of them have never seen a human before, and Regn imagined they were having trouble figuring out what to think about her presence. “We can’t be careless and—”

  The woman leading the group held a hand to Kniv’s face, silencing him while staring down at Maeve with disgust. “Can you please explain why this filth is still alive?”

  Regn tensed at her remark, but before he jumped in her defense, Maeve moved to stand right in front of the woman. “What is your name?” she asked, staring up at her with cold eyes.

  The woman blinked, somewhat stunned to have a feeble girl facing her with such a pluck. She answered with a sneer. “I am Tyst. I fail to understand why you—”

  “My name is Maeve. I trust you will re
member next time you need to address me, Tyst.”

  The clearing fell silent. Regn held his breath, watching carefully how Tyst’s face changed colors until she was almost purple. Not giving time for the woman to explode, Maeve turned to the crowd past her and raised her voice. “We recovered a sample of the red dust affecting the mountain half-breeds. We need to take this to the Warlock, so we can free them.”

  Only the sound of the wind broke the silence. Every man, woman, and child listened to Maeve’s every word. Regn’s chest filled with pride. “I know you are afraid and in pain,” she carried on, “I’m sorry we can’t give you an answer now. We need you to give us some time.”

  One elder walked to stand next to Tyst. “It’s as we feared, I’m afraid. The mountain tribe... this is not their doing, correct?”

  “How do you know?” Regn asked.

  The elder shared a look with Tyst, who gave him a curt nod. “Our warriors... at least half of them were killed. Only a handful could lead us to safety across the lake. Those spared stand here today.”

  “What happened with the rest? Did they stay to fight?” Kniv gave the man a sad look. If their warriors stayed behind, they were most likely dead.

  “No. We saw them from the boats.” A fit of cough interrupted the old man. Regn didn’t need Maeve’s powers to feel the tension in the air. “Everyone who wasn’t dead, every warrior who stayed behind was taken.”

  “Captured?”

  “No. Taken. They march in their horde now. The red dust took them.”

  Maeve

  Kniv stayed behind to comfort the refugees while Regn and Maeve took the vial to the Warlocks. As soon as they reached the cabin, a worried Ystävä peeked through the door and rushed them inside.

  The scene welcoming them left them speechless.

  Finn sat on the floor, legs crossed, surrounded by dozens of ancient-looking books and scrolls floating around him. He seemed to control their movements with both hands, idly roaming through their pages, lifting and setting down one after the other. His eyes fluttered at an amazing speed, while his head snapped from book to book so fast they couldn’t follow the movement.