Chapter 5: Through Silfurfast Woods

Chastity awoke and her blue eyes shot open. All she could see was snowblind white. Then she remembered–sliding down the side of an icy mountain and being buried in snow. She was freezing. The slush had soaked through the garments under her heavy armor, stinging her skin with constant cold.

Ohhh, my head. Not to mention my neck, torso, arms, and legs…

Somewhere on the way down she had smacked her head. She might even be concussed. Chastity remembered an obscure safety tip from a snowboarding trip–if you were ever buried in an avalanche, you should spit. That way gravity would tell you if you were upside down or rightside up.

She did so, and the spittle dribbling down her chin was enough to orient her. She could feel the bundle of javelins still in her grasp. Claustrophobia setting in, she began jabbing upwards with the javelins, trying to break the surface.

Thankfully the snow wasn’t too packed and wasn’t too deep. With the javelins’ points she was able to breach the top and begin digging her way out. With the heavy armor it was exhausting work, but at last she collapsed on top of the snow, taking deep lungfuls of frosty air.

She shakily rose to her feet and put a hand to the side of her head, half expecting blood. There wasn’t any, but her temple throbbed with pain and was sensitive to the touch. Looking ahead, she saw a vast forest stretching out before her. Behind, she could see the crag from which she fell.

From down here there was no way of seeing the cave. And the avalanche had obscured any obvious path back to the top.

No, she needed to find that curl of smoke again–a sign of life somewhere beyond these pathless woods. Smoke also meant fire. Fire meant warmth. She shook ice chips off her cloak and shivered as she limped, hoping against hope she was going in the right direction.

Chastity stepped into the Silfurfast.

Beneath a sky the hue of frozen tears, the ancient forest slumbered, cloaked in a mantle of pristine snow. Towering pines, their bark etched with the runes of a forgotten age, stood like sentinels, their boughs heavy with frosty crowns. Every twig, every needle, glistened like a thousand captured stars, diamond dust scattered by the wind's unseen hand.

The air, crisp and sharp, stung Chastity’s lungs with a kiss of winter's breath. A hush lay upon the land, broken only by the distant whisper of wind through frozen branches, and the occasional sigh of snow settling upon the sleeping earth. A tapestry of silver and shadow stretched as far as the eye could see, a world veiled in an ethereal stillness.

But within this frozen realm, life pulsed with a quiet defiance. Beneath the snow, roots of ancient oaks, gnarled and wise, searched for sustenance in the frozen earth. Tiny creatures, cloaked in fur the color of smoke, scurried through the silent undergrowth, their tracks fleeting whispers in the snow.

This forest feels oddly poetic. How hard did I bang my head?

Chastity shivered and trudged, shivered and trudged, navigating through the tangled roots and branches of the woods. She casually inspected the trio of javelins bound in her left hand. They were shorter than the ones she practiced with for her sport, and made of wood rather than aluminum alloy or carbon fiber. The tips were leaf-shaped.

That weird message I got earlier called these Medium Javelins. They look pretty short to me. And old fashioned, just like this impractical outfit.

Up ahead, the snow shifted, a ripple in the pristine blanket, and from the forest’s gloom stepped a pair of wolves. Their fur was moon gray and their eyes shone like the first glimpses of twilight. Each step was that of a ghost, measured and purposeful, paws singing into the snow with barely a whisper.

The wolves regarded Chastity, the hackles raising defensively on their backs. The first, larger, curled back dark lips to reveal its fangs.

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That’s not good!

Chastity froze (not literally), then passed one of the javelins to her right hand. She raised her arm and took aim, testing the weight of the shaft.

I train to throw javelins for distance, not accuracy. But accuracy at closer range shouldn’t be a problem. Javelins were originally made to be weapons, after all.

She was outnumbered, battered, and on the wolves’ turf.

A thought occurred to her–something about the abilities listed on her ‘Character Record.’ But what were they again?

“Character Record,” she said quietly.

The wolves tensed at the sound of her voice. Both were growling now.

The Character Record appeared in a translucent text box before her, unfortunately obscuring much of her field of vision.

Oh no!

She quickly looked until she found the list of abilities. There were three: Identify, Recall Knowledge, and Detect Evil.

“Identify?”

There was another notification chime and the Character Record was replaced with a much smaller text box–

[Identify]

[-1 Focus Point]

–which was itself rapidly swapped out with a second box.

Silfurwolf

Level: ??

Silfurwolf

Level: ??

Silfur Wolf? Level unknown? And this ability is helpful how exactly?

She decided to try another one.

“Detect Evil.”

There was another chime, and another text box.

[Detect Evil]

[-5 Focus Points]

The wolves she was anxiously staring at glowed with faint outlines.

[You Have Not Detected Any Evil]

Chastity hesitated, lowering the pointed tip of the javelin. The wolf closest to her snarled and made a lunging motion, but did not attack.

These wolves are not evil. Most likely they view ME as a threat, she reasoned. I don’t want to hurt them. If I make myself appear larger and intimidating, maybe they’ll just run off.

Chastity took the two javelins in her left hand and the javelin in her right and raised them above her head, striking them together as loudly as she could.

“Ha! Ya! Go away! Shoo!” she yelled. “I don’t want to hurt you! Be gone!”

Staring forcefully into the larger wolf’s bright eyes, Chastity slowly stepped backwards, clanging her javelins and making as loud a commotion as she could. Clang, step. Clang, step.

The snarling and baring of fangs ceased. The wolves cocked their heads to the side and attentively watched her unusual retreat. Then the smaller wolf turned and padded off deeper into the woods.

Soon, emerging from behind a thicket of pine were several small wolf cubs. The larger wolf stood its ground, never breaking eye contact with the intruding human, until the last of the cubs passed by, following after the first wolf.

A mother and a father! Chastity realized.

As swiftly as they appeared, the pack vanished back into the winter-cloaked trees, moving like a silent symphony of predatory grace. They were not an ill-omen at all, but belonged to this icy landscape–while the human interloper did not.

Chastity breathed a sigh of relief and lowered her weapons. Seeing those adorable cubs, she was thankful she had not resorted to violence.

Ding!

[You Have Gained Experience]

[Your ‘Identify’ Proficiency Has Increased]

[Your ‘Detect Evil’ Proficiency Has Increased]