The Rosewood Prophecy

Chapter 30

                                                                       Katherine

The dark woods of the Desederium Forest loomed ahead as we galloped as fast as we could towards them. Even with the Evils hot on our tails we paused before we entered, our horses pacing on the trail.

"Do we have to enter?" Rachel asked. "Can't we just go around it?"

"Yeah," I agreed. "It would be best if we didn't go in."

"It's just a forest, what's the big deal about it?" Lucian asked impatiently.

"You just don't know what's in it." Rachel shot him a glare. "People have died in there, Lucian."

"Yeah, well, we're all going to die if we don't move soon." Lucian pointed at the approaching Evils. I could hear their roars now. "So, are we going in or not?"

Everyone looked at Indigo. "I really hoped that there would be another way, but going around the forest would take too long," she said slowly. "Besides, we'd be out in the open if we go the long route. The best way for us, I think, would be to go in for a little while—just until we lose the army—and then we'll find a way out and travel in daylight. How does that sound?"

"Um..." Before we could make our decision an arrow whizzed past Indigo and buried itself in the ground beside her. The stallion that she and Aaron were riding on reared back, startled, and took off into the forest. More arrows were fired from behind as we glanced at each other and followed Indigo and Aaron deep into the Desederium Forest.

Inside, tall trees towered over us, their vast branches blocking out the sunlight. As we made our way along the winding trail, I noticed that even though not all of the trees were evergreens, they seemed to remain green and forever young. A magical charge was in the air, surrounding the trees in a hazy light.

The deeper we went, the darker it got, until the trees reached impossible heights and blocked out the sunlight altogether. Even though it should be completely dark in the forest, the area was illuminated by a mysterious source that gave it a bluish-green tint. The light seemed to be coming from everything: the trees, the air, the little firefly-like creatures that danced in the air...everything seemed so magical.

We followed the twisting path deep into the heart of the forest, often galloping down side trails, until we longer heard our pursuers. Gradually our pace slowed, and we halted in a small clearing. Around us were the sounds of various forest creatures, from the chirping of birds to the rustle of leaves from small critters. The fireflies fluttered around, giving off a throbbing luminescent light.

"It's so beautiful," Aaron murmured. "How could a place as beautiful as this kill people?"

He had a point. The Desederium Forest was beautiful. Imagine a normal forest, with tall pines and oaks reaching high into the sky, blocking out all the sunlight. Now imagine that the darkness was illuminated by swarms of fireflies, and that everything glowed with a soft teal color, as if under the ocean. There were varying shades of blue glows as you progressed into the forest, with the farthest hues being a midnight blue and the colors closest to you almost green. Everything was light up, yet it wasn't. You could practically see ripples in the air and feel the pulse of magic.

"What's that?" Lucian peered into a thicket. As we turned our heads to look, he reared back with shock. A glowing, wispy orb of light that was the color of cobalt slowly rose from behind the bushes, its tendrils soft as clouds. Before our very eyes, it seemed to transform into a shapeless blob, elongating and hanging in midair. While we looked at each other in puzzlement, unsure of what it was supposed to resemble, Lucian's eyes were fixed on something within the blob, completely enchanted.