REECA and RHYS TORLIN, misfit siblings of the Narfalk royal family, have to escape when Reeca is accused of murdering the Queen. On the run, the siblings dodge soldiers from city to city until one misstep leads them into another trap. Now, they have...
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For as long as Rhys was concerned, their only company was the endless line of trees and the occasional hoots ringing in the distance. Nobody dared go into the Forest of Beasts, which to Rhys, sounded like the perfect choice to hide while they figured out what to do.
He craned his neck to the sky, grateful for the lush, multi-colored canopies blocking it. That should keep them safe from being spotted by any aerial scouts. When they left the palace, they had flown for a while, keeping watch of the carpet of trees and fog until they cleared Arcole, the royal city. Once the border of Oaksham was in sight, Rhys and Reeca dove into the ground and continued on foot from there.
Oaksham, apart from what the tomes his tutors bring him say, was lively and a little bit busy for Rhys's taste. Having been shut off in the Palace for all his life, seeing the bluster of activity, the cacophony of various noises, and the calls of several cart-pulling animals gave him a headache.
Soon, they cleared the town located at the part where the forest was the thinnest, with only a sparse line of trees peeking in between houses made of wooden planks nailed and stuck together. It had only been a few hours of walking on foot but the forest was now considerably thicker, the foliage shielding most of the fading sunlight and, unfortunately, their view forward as well.
Beside him, Reeca had been silent for most of the time, just giving mum nods and shakes of head in response to Rhys's questions. It might be because she's too young to make sense of what's going on or maybe she still hasn't processed everything that has happened. Things might be too overwhelming for the girl and Rhys didn't know how to fix that. He needed Reeca back to her jovial, heaven-may-care attitude. He missed that girl.
The forest's dour air seemed to match Reeca's state. The deeper they got into the undergrowth, the more silent it became. Rhys thought it was because of the thickness of the foliage but it was not long before he noticed the animals had gone silent too. Gone were the flaps of wings of iphikis flying in colonies just earlier. Hoots, caws, and paws padding the soft earth, which were somewhat audible earlier, was replaced with a chilling curtain of nothingness.
Rhys strained his ear to pick up a sound, any sound. Footsteps, twigs snapping, leaves rustling. Anything. What came back was a harsh whisper of the wind and the soft brush of fog along the path they wove through on the ground. That wasn't a good sign if it wasn't going to tell Rhys anything about what they might be facing in this place.
The Forest of Beasts, according to varichrian folklore, was a haven of the gods. Calaris on the ground, as they say. Myths vary in terms of details but something happened that forced the gods out of Umazure and they fled to the sky, rebuilding their palaces in hardened clouds or something. There were some accounts saying it was because of the fairies' greed that they proceeded to attack the gods and take their power. Others claimed it was because the gods sensed magic was beginning to disappear from the island and saved themselves of the trouble of having to deal with it.
