Land of Smoke and Ashes

What Waits in Darkness

Sam didn't answer, only looked at her with those glittering, tawny eyes. His grim expression was answer enough. There was a faint rustle, a snapping of twigs, and they both tensed. But it was only the wild woman, Gwedonlin, who peered out at them from behind the stump of a rotted tree, her eyes flashing in the dull light.

"I see you've got a head start." Sam started toward the forest, and after a moment of hesitation Natalie followed him. It was either that or remain beside the black mountain, waiting for the threshers to come over the top.

"This place is creepy." She kept her voice hushed. It seemed like a respectful thing to do, as if the forest really was a body. As she stepped past the husks of dead branches and shriveled leaves, it felt a little like she was trampling over bits of bone. Corpses that hadn't been buried.

The deeper they entered the more the dread settled in the bottom of Natalie's stomach, a heavy iron weight. The trees were black, gnarled shapes stretching up, their branches sharp and jagged. If trees could look desperate, these ones did, like they were bowed under the weight of the knowledge of their own deaths. Or hunched over in pain.

"What happened to this place?" Natalie whispered.

For a long moment Sam didn't answer. There was only the dry crunch of dead things under his boots, and the howl of the wind from the mountaintop. When he finally spoke his voice was bitter. "She happened to it. This is our new reality." He paused abruptly, as if he were about to say more and had stopped himself.

She stumbled over a root in the trail, and felt it crumble beneath her shoe, but she was too preoccupied. She stared at Sam's broad back. "Who is she? And this place...I mean...where is it even? Are we..." she trailed off, her mouth tasting sour. She didn't even know what she wanted to ask. Are we on earth, maybe? But that seemed like such a ludicrous question.

Sam glanced back at her. "You don't know where you are?" In the dark his voice sounded incredulous.

"I have no idea. I was being chased...I—my mother..." again she stopped, not sure how to explain. She shivered and rubbed her arms. The forest seemed to suck all the warmth away from her skin, maybe because hardly any sunlight got through. Again she stumbled over something in the path.

Sam cursed under his breath. "I forgot your eyesight isn't going to be up to this."

When he turned, she was startled to feel his hand close over her wrist. Instinctively she jerked back, but he held on firmly.

"You want to fall on your face?"

She pressed her lips together and shook her head. It was humiliating to be lead around by the hand like a child, but she didn't have much choice. The further into the dead forest they went, the harder it became to even see the path in front of her.

"Just follow me," Sam's voice was hushed. "But stay quiet. We're going to try not to attract attention."

Again she only nodded, shivering, though this time she wasn't sure if it was the temperature, or the idea of what sort of attention they might attract. And from what. The image of the threshers loomed in her mind. She didn't want to imagine what else might be in this place. Silently, she trailed after Sam, trying to figure out exactly how much she wanted to tell him. He didn't press her for more details, but several times he darted a look over his shoulder at her, eyes shining in the darkness.

She wasn't sure how much she should say about her mother. And about the pendant. She still clearly remembered the way that Pirate Pat had stared at the necklace, the greed in his eyes. And the way that the librarian had reached out toward it, the way he'd leapt at her. Somewhere deep down she was afraid that Sam might be like that too. If he saw the necklace, he might want it as well.