“Hopefully we’ll get to the cottage soon,” Karina said quietly. She slanted a look at Geoffrey as they made their slow progress through the twist of lush and thick vegetation. She had never been this deep in the woods, and she was at once fascinated and fearful. Only the three of them traveled by foot while the five outlaws rode their horses.
“Aye,” Geoffrey answered. “The knights are starting to get frustrated.”
A slight mist hung mid-way up the trees, causing the forest to have a strange, almost supernatural feel to it. And she sensed that someone or something watched them, even though there was no one to be seen. Her toe stubbed on a fallen log and she stumbled to the side. Reaching over, she steadied herself on a tree. She sprang back just as her hand sank into a deep, spongy layer of moss. Karina was used to seeing moss on the ground, but not growing on trees like this. Its growth was so copious that it covered the entire trunk in a green, fuzzy coat. She peered at the tree trunk, expecting to find a face staring back at her, but nothing unusual showed itself.
It’s just a regular tree, she told herself firmly. But everyone knew that forest spirits lived in trees.
As they continued further into the forest, the cheerful chirp of birds faded away until a strange stillness descended upon them, permeating the air with its pregnant silence. The mist became noticeably thicker. Suddenly the trees were no longer trees but stately, shadowy figures with long reaching limbs. The only sounds were the soft metal clink of the horse gears, and the occasional twig snapping underfoot. Hugging her arms to her chest, she rubbed at the gooseflesh that appeared there. All the while, her stomach churned with dread as she forced her legs to continue forth. Knowing that she was a part of a small troop provided little consolation.
“Do you think we’ll see the green demon?” Eli said at her side, questioning something that she didn’t want to acknowledge. He spoke just loud enough to be heard by one of the men.
The outlaw knight turned his head abruptly and looked down at them from his horse. “What do you know of the green demon?” he scoffed. “They’re just stories to scare small children like you.”
“Everyone knows that he’s real.” Eli climbed up on a small boulder. “You’ll see for yourself if you stumble upon him in these woods.”
“Don’t listen to him, Clement,” Daud said, as he caught up to them. The second in command had the fresh face of a countryside youth, although it was clear that he was a full-grown man. There was nothing memorable about his features, and if he wasn’t in such rough company, Karina would have dismissed him. The man reached for the hilt of his sword and rested his hand there. “There’s no such thing as the green demon.” He spat at the bushes to the left of him. “I’ve heard those stories when I was a lad. It never scared me then, and it doesn’t scare me now.”
“Well, you should be scared,” Eli jumped off the rock and landed on the soft ground. “For all you know, he could be watching us from there.” He pointed to an especially dense tangle of vines. The fog settled all around them, leaving only shadows and the smell of damp earth. It was remotely possible that something was there.
“I heard that he snatches bodies.” The boy jerked his chin at the men. “He’ll probably take your grotesque bodies first, since you’re both bigger than me, and I can run faster.”
Daud’s eyes bulged slightly, but he managed to get a hold of himself. He started to withdraw his sword from his scabbard when Geoffrey stepped in front of Eli.
“The boy doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” he said.
The knight paused for a moment before shoving his sword back into the scabbard. Glaring at Geoffrey, he said, “Make sure you keep his mouth shut then.”
“Daud!” Wouter called sharply, his head turned over at their direction. “What’s this delay?”
“Clement, come,” the second in command said, gritting his teeth. The two men spurred their horses forward.
“Did you see their expressions?” Eli said, his eyes twinkling gleefully.
“I don’t think ‘tis wise to taunt those men,” Karina said. “We don’t know what they’re capable of.”
“I’m not worried about those men, ma dame,” he said, sobering immediately. “I was just talking about the green demon before they interrupted me. If anything we don’t know what he’s capable of. I want to be prepared — in case we encounter the forest spirit.” He glanced cautiously at the same dense area that he had pointed. “Do you think we’re safe here?”
“Don’t think too much about it,” Geoffrey said, starting forward. “I’m sure that the tales of the green demon are greatly exaggerated.”
Eli nodded, although he didn’t appear wholly convinced. And neither was Karina. Unable to help it, she allowed her eyes to scan the thicket. While the forest spirit was responsible for the rain and good crops, he was also known to be unpredictable and malevolent. Once, when Karina was a young child, she had gone into the surrounding forest with her friends to gather blackberries. She forgot to tell her mother where she was going, and her mother came searching for her.
“There you are!” her mother exclaimed. She took Karina’s sticky hand and pulled her away from the berry bushes. “I thought the green demon took you.”
“I’m not afraid of any demon,” Karina said, yanking at her arm to loosen her mother’s grip. But she only tightened her hold.
“You should be very afraid.” Her mother glanced behind her and hastened her steps, forcing Karina to go at a half-run. “Too many people have disappeared while going into the forest. And I don’t want you to vanish either. Promise me that you won’t go near the woods again, Karina.”
When she didn’t respond right away, her mother stopped. She bent down and grabbed her chin, forcing Karina to meet her eyes.
“Promise me,” she demanded, all traces of anger and annoyance gone.
“All right, I promise,” she said, squirming away from her mother’s grasp. She wiped her hand across her mouth. Promising something like this meant that she would no longer be able to taste any more of the succulent berries. She could feel herself becoming more sullen. “I don’t even know what he looks like.”
Her mother straightened up, satisfied that she had driven home her warning. “There’s no mistaking him. His skin is as green as newly sprouted moss, and he wears no clothing other than foliage.” Her voice dropped to almost a whisper, and Karina strained to hear. She could detect real fear in her mother’s eyes and voice. “He’s an ugly creature as you’ll ever see. Except for his beady, red eyes, his face is covered with leaves. He has long vines, like snakes growing out from his mouth, nose and ears. It doesn’t matter if you’re a man, woman or child.” She paused, allowing her words to take flight in Karina’s imagination. “If you ever see him, run for your life.”
Karina turned to glance at the woods behind her, imagining that someone or something was looking back at her. A shiver ran down her spine. Later when her friends invited her to pick more berries, she didn’t dare accompany them. The forest bordered her town, and for all she knew, it spanned across the entire countryside. If she got snatched by the green demon, her parents would never be able to find her.
Yet years later, here she was, ignoring her instincts and going deeper into the woods. She propelled her feet onward. What was she thinking?
“’Tis not wise that you accompanied us,” Geoffrey said, breaking into her thoughts. He looked surreptitiously at the men on the horses before adding in a low, flat tone, “You put yourself at risk by being here.”
“I couldn’t allow you to go alone with these outlaws,” she said, glad that the conversation distracted her from the fear that crept into her chest. “Your leg —”
“I’m well aware of my leg,” he almost growled. “But you being here make things complicated.”
She fell silent. “Perhaps ‘twas not the most clever thing to involve myself in your — your plan, but I couldn’t allow you to go off on your own. ‘Tis true that I’m only a woman, but at least if these knights try to hurt you, I could somehow find a way to intervene.”
“You would intervene for me?” he asked, staring at her.
“Aye, I would.”
His gaze softened suddenly, and he said, “No one has ever cared to interfere on my behalf.”
She focused her eyes on a tree stump up ahead. “This involves a cause bigger than us. I believe that the more people that are available to assist you, the better. And besides,” she said, her voice brimming with emotion, “even though the townspeople ridiculed, insulted and imprisoned you, you still involve yourself with them. This is a display of true valor, and I don’t care what anyone says.”
“Is that all?” he asked softly.
“Aye,” she said. But she knew that there was another reason why she insisted in going with them. And that reason could no longer be ignored. She was starting to care for Geoffrey. Perhaps she cared a little too much.
***
“How much longer?” Wouter demanded.
They had been walking for nearly an hour, and the forest had gotten denser, making it near impossible for the horses to cut through the heavy underbrush.
“Yonder,” Geoffrey said, pointing beyond the crush of trees. “There’s an old cottage up ahead. That might be where they’ve headed.”
“You better be right, peasant,” Wouter said, grunting. “If not, I’ll sever your head, and leave it for the crows to peck at. And believe me, I’ll not give mercy to a cripple.” He urged his horse forward, but the quick motion caused a red squirrel to run out of its hiding place. Startled, the horse reared up, almost unseating its rider. Wouter let out a loud curse.
“Look up there, sire,” Clement said, pointing to an incline, where the roof of a small wooden building was barely visible through the trees. “I think I see something.”
“We’ll need to continue on foot,” Daud said, stating the obvious.
Irritably, Wouter dismounted. He glanced over at one of the men. “Rob, I want you to stay here with the horses.”
“But sire —”
Wouter scowled fiercely, and Rob swallowed his words.
The other three outlaws looked almost sympathetically at their companion, but none of them offered to take his place. Before they left, the second commander tugged a sack from his saddle and swung it over his shoulder.
Almost too soon, they found themselves in the heart of the forest. And even though the men wouldn’t admit it out loud, Karina knew that they were scared. It was in the way they held their shoulders, and in the tight grip they had on their swords. Every rustle in the bushes, every caw of the crows overhead made them jump.
Not that she could blame them. She was started by the same noises. As they continued on their way, their footsteps became muffled by the carpet of decayed leaves on the ground. Ever so often a twig snapped underneath a heavy boot, crackling like wood in a fire pit.
Soon, they reached an area where the uneven forest floor became littered with rocks and fallen trees. A few more steps and they were at the base of the incline. All they needed to do now was to climb the rocky cliff. The woodcutter had chosen an optimal location which overlooked a large portion of the forest, but the cottage itself was difficult to get to. In single file, the men scaled the steep incline.
Karina fought to keep up with the men, but the hurried pace caused her to tire. She put her foot on a sturdy rock, and reached for a shrub to allow herself a moment of rest. All of a sudden, something moved near her hand, rattling the leaves. Before she could blink, a long snake slithered across her line of sight. She let out a shriek and jerked back. Luckily she had the presence of mind to grab a hold of the small shrub again before she lost her balance. As she pulled herself closer to the earthen wall, she felt a moment of relief. Except that relief evaporated as soon as she realized that the plant loosened from the soil. Time seemed to slow down as she watched the plant come out of the ground, bit by bit. Fully aware of how steep the drop was, she knew it was only a matter of time that the shrub would become fully uprooted. Then she would plunge to her death.
Karina felt the tears stinging her eyes. She meant nothing to these men. There was no hope that anyone would save her. She was just an ordinary merchant, and had no business meddling in the affairs of those above her station. Closing her eyes tightly, she knew that this was the end.
But the tumble to her death never came. Strong hands closed around her wrists, pulling her up. “I’ve got you, Karina.”