The night was filled with the yipping and howling of a pack of coyotes in the distance. It was late, the sun had long set and the temperature was still dropping. Ranger pulled himself to his feet. It was time to move and find shelter. He held the sword in front of him and gripped it tight in his hand. He squinted as if thinking hard about something, and then the sword’s intertwining blade structure suddenly transformed, instantly retracting down into itself. In no more than a second, the blade had shrunk down to the hilt until it only stuck about eight inches outward. Ranger then reached back and slipped the minimized relic into the harness he was wearing, where it fit perfectly into place. Giving his dark surroundings a quick look around, Ranger set off from the riverbank and up into the mountains.
The hills were steep and the darkness of the dusk sky made the venture difficult. And not to mention quite terrifying to be out navigating the wilderness alone at night. Ranger, however, was hardly concerned about the many nocturnal eyes that were surely observing him. He was armed and knew that he was more than capable of fending off any foes that came for him. He knew exactly where he was, there could be no doubt. The question was how welcome would he be?
Ranger had been hiking up the mountainside for what felt like hours, crisscrossing through mountain laurel and thorn bushes. It was dark and cold, and he was growing tired. He was not sure what it was, but something about the mountains seemed enchanting. His eyes grew heavier with every moment that passed, and he almost felt as though he could lie down and drift into a comfortable sleep.
What was he thinking? Ranger shook the thought away. It had been many years since he had a good night’s sleep. This was not the time to hallucinate, but the hike was beginning to wear him down. He made his way over to a tree and leaned against it, catching his breath. It was not just a sense of comfort that seemed to cloud around him, but also a feeling of coming down, as if gravity was pressing on him and pushing him further into exhaustion. He supposed it was not the strangest thing he had ever felt during his long exile.
Speaking of hallucinations…
The hairs on Ranger’s arms suddenly stood up, followed by a wave of goosebumps. Feeling his jaw muscles clench with anxiety, Ranger shifted his attention to the left. There, appearing suspended a few feet above the ground in the darkness, were a pair of eyes staring right back at him. They were large eyes that gave off a faint, yellowish glow as they reflected the dim starlight. Ranger felt another cold rush travel up his spine. He was growing nauseous due to fear, yet he could not bring himself to move or reach for his sword.
As the eyes continued to stare him down, they seemed to let out a quiet but menacing growl. Ranger knew by the sound of the growl that he was in the presence of a wolf, and a great wolf at that. He could hardly make out any more than the eyes, but judging by how high from the ground they were, he knew it was a wolf of large stature and possibly incredible strength. But strangely enough, that was not the sense that came over him.
It was neither fear nor despair that gripped him. The great creature continued to growl under breath, but Ranger soon felt his goose bumps fade. He relaxed his jaw and muscles, and he turned and began to walk ever so slowly toward the mysterious animal, which remained still, not taking its eyes off him.
Ranger continued to approach the eyes. He was completely calm, in fact he was feeling a strange sense of tranquility. It was a kind of tranquility that might make a man feel protected. But that same man would be stricken with fear and panic if they were to witness Ranger’s actions. He walked right up to the wolf and knelt directly in front of it. He was no more than two feet away from its eyes. At this point, he could vaguely make out the figure of the strange animal. From what he could see, it was indeed a massive wolf-like creature. He could see no farther than it’s broad shoulder bones. It was as if the dark of night was shrouding the creature, yet its eyes still glowed. The wolf never moved, and Ranger stared right into its eyes. No. There was something almost spiritual about them, angelic even.
The beast had ceased growling. Entranced by its gaze, Ranger did the most irrational thing imaginable. He reached out to gently touch the creature that stood before him. Though he could barely see it, the fur of the animal’s face seemed to wave lightly in the cool, nighttime breeze. It felt rather endearing, and Ranger managed a grin. “I must be going crazy - I mean, crazier than normal - but I feel like you know something, like you know that everything is going to be okay." There was no reaction from the creature. It only continued to peer into Ranger’s soul, but he never lost his composure. “I’m tired of running and hiding; hiding when I could be fighting. I should be fighting. I would do anything to protect the ones I love.”
In a sudden shift of atmosphere, the great wolf’s eyes blinked for the first time. For such a small action, it sent a wave of energy through Ranger’s body. The wolf then turned and walked off into the darkness. For such a massive beast, its feet hardly made a sound on the forest floor.
When Ranger was certain it was gone, he stood up. As he rose to his feet, he realized he was standing with a newfound confidence; a surge of motivation to move on.
The borders of the Dark Zone were before him. Within these territories, he would be safe from those who were pursuing him. However, something told him that a new destiny awaited him in the Dark Zone. It was time to keep moving.
Before he did, Ranger pondered a thought that was now flowing through his head. He reached back and removed his sword from its harness. Gripping it in his hand as he did before, the blade re-extended to its original length. He held the relic directly in front of him, grasping it tightly with both hands and closing his eyes.
“Eira,” he breathed the name. “My love. This might be my last chance to speak to you. With your relic gone, I don’t know if you can hear me, but I want you to know that I haven't given up. The Heart within my relic is what keeps me on my feet. You may not know it, even though you destroyed yours, the will of the Heart is still with you. I know it. It’s what protects you from our enemies as it has protected me all these years. But I promise you, I will find a way to set things straight once and for all, and I'll return to you when I do.” His thoughts were interrupted by a loud wolf’s howl in the distance. Ranger stared out toward the source of the cry. “I have to go now,” he began his brief farewell. “Aeon protect you.”
Alex spent the entire car ride with his head leaned back against the headrest and staring aimlessly out the window. It was still early in the morning, but by now the sun had illuminated the sky and the neighborhoods of North Elba were active with the life of a new day. People were pulling out of their driveways, heading to work or wherever the day would take them. The springtime dew on the blades of grass glistened in the early sunlight, as did the serene, blue water of Mirror Lake. The morning clouds cast a series of shadows all along the vast mountainside. It was one of the many beautiful sights of the great Adirondacks, but none of it swayed Alex’s mind to any sort of fascination. Nickole, on the other hand, was always interested in the sights of her home. She and her older brother had spent their entire lives in the village of Lake Placid, rarely travelling very far outside of the county, and she woul
As they shuffled their way through the halls, Seth continued talking to Alex. “So you remember the quad path, right? You know the branch that splits off and heads down toward Roger Brook?” Alex had to think back for a moment. “Yeah, I remember. That rocky path that sits on the edge of the mountains. That’s about as far as we’ve ever gone, isn’t it?” “Yeah, that’s it,” Seth replied. “Hetrick says he might have found the remains of an old express road that’s supposed to cut right through the mountains and he wants to try to get a closer look at it.” “Really?” Alex responded with interest. “What do you mean an old express road?” Seth shook his head. “I don’t know. Apparently it was closed and blocked off some twenty years ago or something like that. But Hetrick says it’
As the day pressed on, the spring sun began to penetrate the canopy of the Adirondacks. At night, the Dark Zone had the tendency to live up to its name by appearing to be a dark and dreary wilderland with a hostile vibe that instilled fear into the hearts of those who wandered near its borders. However, when the sun was high and the woods were illuminated, the Dark Zone could be seen as a beautiful and peaceful land of valleys and forests full of life, in spite of its reputation. Along the shadowy floor of the mountainous woods, a young girl wandered. Though she looked somewhat older, the girl was quite young; only fourteen years old. She had long, black hair that hung down her back and over her shoulders. Her clothes were poor; stitched primarily from leather and fur. Her face carried an expression of boldness and gallantry, yet also a sense of compassion and love. Her home was not located anywhere along
Rowan took a few steps back, staring up at her kill. By now it was just after midday. It was still early, but it was time for her to head back to her home. Her brother no doubt knew she was gone by now. “Rowan?” a male voice called out from the woods just behind her. Rowan turned swiftly around. Out of the trees, a young man stepped forth. He was about six feet tall, dressed similarly to Rowan, but instead of a bow, he carried a stone sword in a sheath on his back. On the belt around his own waist, he had sheathed a small knife on one side and a tomahawk on the other. He had long, brown hair, not nearly as long as Rowan’s, but it hung down against the back of his neck. On each side of his head, he had a section of his hair tied into a tail that hung down the side of his face. He approached Rowan and nodded as a greeting, and she nodded back to him. “Matheus,”
The school day came to an end for Alex as it always did; with dozens of students filling the hallways in crowded clusters just as they had been in the morning. Alex walked out of his last class of the day and pulled his cellphone from his pocket as soon as he entered the hall. With school hours over, Alex planned to meet up with his friend Seth in front of the school building, where ordinarily he and Nickole would be picked up by their mother. He flipped open his phone and typed a text message to Seth, “Hey Seth, I’ll meet you out front.” He made his way quickly to the nearest staircase where he would descend to the lower floor. The doors to the stairwell were being held open by the groups of students all heading down. Alex pushed his way through the hordes and down the stairs. Once at the bottom, he felt his phone vibrate. He opened it up to see a response text from Seth which r
It was about a twenty minute drive out of the Lake Placid area as they headed toward the edge of the Adirondack mountain ranges. In the back of the truck, Nickole was sitting in between Seth and her brother. She remained quiet the entire time, listening to the four boys yammering about their own interests; cars, girls and other teenage topics in which Nickole had no interest. Several times she found herself wondering why she was even there. Nickole began to analyze the choice she had made. Her relationship with Alex was becoming distant, their mother was not fond of his friends and frankly, neither was she. Come to think of it, Nickole hardly had any interest in driving around with them at all. So why did she risk lying to their mother for Alex? Maybe she thought of it as her chance to try to strengthen her relationship with her brother, by taking part in his own interests. Plus, going out with him
Alex revived from his black out to a throbbing pain in his temple. There was a sharp ringing in his ears as he struggled to open his eyes. At least, tried opening his eyes but could not tell the difference. The space around him was even darker than the closure of his eyelids. He was dazed and disoriented from the cave in. Alex’s eyes flew open and he hurried to his feet. As he tried to stand up, he bashed his head off of a low hanging beam. The incident had caused most of the mine’s structure to cripple, but he could not see a thing in the intense darkness. Alex cried out and put a hand to his head as he fell back against the wall. He was breathing heavily and beginning to panic. He brought himself down on all fours and felt around the tunnel. His hand suddenly came upon a familiar object. Alex gasped as he found the flashlight Hetrick had given him. He scrambled to find the button to turn it on and a dim
The tunnel never got any lighter as Alex crept farther down, and the beam from his tiny flashlight hardly did him any justice. The air around him was cold and moist. He could feel it coming through his thin hoodie. Worst of all were the thoughts that kept gnawing at his mind; would he be able to find a way out of here at all? No, that was morbid thinking, he told himself. The tunnels could not possibly go on forever, and even if they did, he knew where the entrance was, or what was left of it. Help would come as soon as possible. However, the thought of being buried alive had a mind-bending power over Alex, and he was simply not willing to wait for help to arrive. If this was a mine, then surely there was another access point to the surface of the mountain, whether it was an air duct, an auxiliary entrance, or the main entrance itself.