Some Scars Never Heal

Chapter 22- Decisions

It was pitch black when she climbed down the tree. Darkness held onto the world, wrapping it in its' cloak. Only the faint light of the half moon broke through the fine threads of the cloak, shining upon the clearing and canopy. All life in the forest had lain down for rest, leaving only the faint sound of crickets and the rustling canopy. Once her feet hit the ground she felt around for what she'd tossed down moments before. A pleased hum vibrated her throat as slender fingers wrapped around the handle of the torch. She pulled the small box of matches from her jean pocket, quickly taking a single one out and dragging it along the side. Light lit up the clearing as a spark engulfed the tip and speed to the torch when it came into reach. She quickly discarded the match and slid the box into her pocket.

She didn't have many of these torches, and only used them for emergency's. Each one lasted near to 8 hours, plenty of time to get in and out of her destination. Snapping out of her thoughts she went to gather the last of the stuff brought down from the tree.

Happy that she had everything that she would need she strolled to where her horses stood. The stallion and gelding dozed where they were when she was tacking them. With the extremely long lead she had made a noose out of one end ( she got rid of the halters a long time ago ) when she was preparing, with a knot in a certain place as to prevent it from tightening to much. She unraveled the rope and slid the loop around the gentle giants neck, receiving a nicker from him as he nuzzled her face. The faintest of smiles graced her lips st the affection before mounting the younger stallion.

With the tap of her heels to his side they were off.

They walked at a brisk pace through the foliage and close growing trees. The forest still looked magical to her, even after 4 years. She lived in the thickest part of the forest, the huge trees growing extremely close together, some so close that their huge roots intertwined above ground, making the earth uneven and hard to travel over. Living here for 4 years with a lot of time on her hands she has learned how to walk over them. She's been everywhere that she could go in this forest and knows her area by heart. There are places that she dare not go due to trees growing further apart and foliage being thinner. It was just the place for titans.

There was a large path that cut straight through the forest, completely open because it was used that much. She didn't go anywhere near that.  Period.  That place must be infested, it'd be a death wish to even think about it. 

A sigh escaped her lips as she analyzed her surroundings.  Earthy tones surrounded her on all sides, engulfing her.  The light of the torch illuminating the untouched rich greens and browns.  Massive trees stood proud hundreds of feet above her.  The sight luring into a calm state of mind. 

She didn't realize the change in atmosphere when the horses moved into a quick trot.  She'd never seen any titans until a good few miles were between her and her home.

The foliage soon got even thinner and the trees further apart. She was nearing the edge of her forest, only about 15 minutes left. It was when the pace of the trot noticeably quickened.

Slowly, she slipped out of her thoughts and memories, only then realizing what was happening around her. She tugged on the horses reins successfully slowing them down. A curse slipped out of her mouth at her stupidity. Around her were unfamiliar trees and ground. They rested very far away from each other compared to her part of the forest.

She didn't know this part of the forest at all, and she wasn't thinking. A feeling of shame and fear flooded her. Never had she thought she would be this stupid! A growl met her ears as she examined her surroundings. It was a sound the woman was familiar with, and normally she'd meet the challenge head on, but now? Now she was lost and nervous.

The same sound echoed around the trees once more. She felt her fingers reach for the pistol, only to curse herself in her head. The damn revolver was loud, she couldn't draw any attention to her, from more animals, or an even worse enemy. She was in titan territory now.

Her fingers released the weapon from her grip, moving to the knife, taking it out of its sheath. Slowly she turned around, stopping halfway when a snarl ripped from the beasts throat. She could see the enemy now at least, a single wolf, extremely skinny. Bones showed through ragged and messy fur. Seeing as it was a single wolf, she started to plan.

Ever so slowly she lifted her leg over the saddle, watching as the wolf snarled and took another step forward. If any other human were in her position they would have most likely done the stupid thing and spurred their horse into a dead gallop. Which would ultimately fail and end up with both rider and horse dying because even though this wolf is nearly starved, it is still powerful and fast.

With the torch in one hand and knife in other she jumped the rest of the way to the ground, and all in the split second many things happened. As her foot hit the ground the ragged wolf jumped forward, opening its jaws wide, waiting to taste fresh blood.
In that same second Kitsune turned on her heel, thrusting her knife forward. The lone creature ran right for her, making the fatal mistake of not maneuvering around the blade, and yelped as the iron found a home in its chest. Refusing to go out without a fight the starving animal opened its jaws once more.

Kitsune knew the wolf was as good as dead when she felt the blade dig into its heart, she was sure that it was over. She was wrong. Pain shot through her arm, as she watched in horror when the beast clamped its maws around her forearm, below her elbow. Her blood mixed with the crimson life of the wolfs below her. Teeth dug into soft flesh as she did everything that she could do to not scream in pain.

Her eyes clouded in tears, the blurriness quickly taking over.  The torch in hand almost fell out of her grip.  The woman was almost to shocked to move, she just stood there, watching the life slowly leave the beasts eyes.  Blood fell fast to the forest floor, creating a noticeable puddle around her feet.  She did t need to wait long before the wolf finally released its grip and dropped dead to the forest floor. 

The sudden movement send another jolt of pain through her arm, surprising her as she yelped and stepped back. She immediately sheathed her knife and cradled her arm.   She couldn't help the hiss that escaped her mouth when she shifted the limb into a better position. 

Now that her plans had been ruined she needed to know what to do.  If she went back it would take about half an hour, and she could treat herself faster; but she knew that if she was where she thought she was that there is a little town about ten minutes away that's still in the forest.  The thing is, she's not completely sure where exactly the town is, so it might be more or less than ten. 

Should she bet it all and have a chance of not finding it, did she really need the supplies that much?