CHAPTER 8: TWILIGHT FOREST
Now that he thought about it more, it wouldn’t be that far fetched for him to believe that everything he had experienced so far had all just been him being under the effects of the drugs he consumed. Though, even if that was true, he would still need to keep himself calm. He was already very sure that the amount he consumed did not put him at risk of overdosing, and even if this was all just the effect of a really bad trip, panicking might only make it far worse for him in the end. Ultimately, however, getting attacked by a ghostly apparition consuming your very thoughts and existence was certainly not something common among bad trips.
He shook his head slightly. There is no point in thinking about this right now. If I really am in some messed up dream, I'll wake up soon anyway. His eyes trailed back toward the words outlining the ritual instructions. One thing he didn’t fully understand was why it was so important for him to focus on the incantation in the first place. There had to be a connection between his mental state and how magecraft functioned on a basic level. If he could figure out the reason, he might be able to experiment with even more magic.
Without any leads, however, he decided to explore his Soul Weapon further instead. With just a thought, The Records raced across its ethereal pages to show him the information he desired about the Blue Silver Grass he had previously recorded. He was curious as to how much information was actually stored.
Blue Silver Grass
A ubiquitous plant that grows in every part of the forest. Its texture is reminiscent of normal grass that grows on the Earth plane of existence, however, its primary source of energy does not stem from sunlight. A strange power lingers across its stems that stretches out into infinity—one that can only be perceived through the mind.
Soren blinked twice before running a hand across his chestnut hair. A strange power… That can only be perceived through the mind?
He was immediately reminded of his previous string of thoughts. Could this energy source it speaks of have something to do with why I needed to focus on my mental state when declaring the incantation of the ritual? An energy source that is commanded through willpower?
It wasn’t a far fetched idea. Though, it did confuse him as to how he was able to perceive this information and record it in his book in the first place. By the short description, he was clearly able to tell that The Records only recorded what he was able to understand himself—and yet the mention of this strange power was not something he perceived on his own. Though this was not the first time his skill had somehow recorded things he himself hadn’t done. There was some form of mystery behind it that he was still unable to understand.
He decided to move on toward the other piece of information he was able to record.
Memory Void Spirit (Malevolent Hex)
A corrupted spiritual being that exhibits the visual features of an elf. This spiritual entity has clear signs of it being once a living being with a physical body. It had been transformed into a Malevolent Hex, a being that does not naturally exist. Some form of corruption lingers within its being, causing it to forget itself. This makes it seek out the memories, senses, experiences, and emotions of other living creatures.
This surprised him. He did not expect there to be this much information present, especially when compared to what was recorded for the Blue Silver Grass. Though the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. Unlike the first time he used [Record], he was only able to see the Memory Void Spirit using his other skill, [Eyes of the Fairy]. Its description being ‘see the unseen’, had finally made sense to him. That ability allowed him to instantly absorb knowledge that was usually inaccessible, simply by perceiving an object or being with his special eyes, even if they were intangible or invisible.
He couldn’t help but smile. His [Record] and [Eyes of the Fairy] abilities were clearly meant for each other—their synchrony was a clear design choice. One allowed him to learn and perceive new things easily, while the other allowed him to record that information into words and descriptions that made it easier for him to understand. I was wrong in doubting you… My abilities are clearly far more useful than what I initially thought…
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Just when he was about to explore the rest of the recorded information, he heard a faint sound coming eastward. It was a mixture of crunched leaves, broken branches, and ruffled bushes, and the sound was only getting louder with every step. Whatever it was, it was clearly heading for him. Soren frowned slightly before commanding his Soul Weapon to dim its glow. He quickly sprinted for a nearby bush and hid inside. It only took moments for the approaching being to head into the clearing Soren was positioned in.
Although he wasn’t able to see it with his eyes completely, the glowing flora and fauna surrounding the meadow gave him a clear silhouette of the… Monster that had approached the one location he assumed was safe. Soren couldn’t help but quiver as he stared at the shape of its body—its most obvious feature being its missing head. The rest of its form gave the impression of an ogre-like creature that was around twelve feet tall—it was holding a massive wooden club in its colossal right arm that could most likely eviscerate his body into pieces with a single swing.
He held his breath. Don’t notice me, don’t notice me…
The creature continued to roam across the meadow, as if it was looking for someone—him. Beads of sweat trickled down his forehead. Could it be that it sensed the commotion from earlier? Let’s just hope it doesn’t sniff me out or something…
He spoke too soon. Soren observed the creature standing still for a few seconds before shifting its entire body faster than he could blink—It was looking at him, and even more creepy was how it was doing it. On its chest was a large singular, glowing eye that radiated in amber light. Veins of blood could be seen stretched towards its pupil as it focused on Soren’s exact location hidden within the bushes.
Fuck.
It didn’t take a genius to know that whatever he was facing was clearly an enemy. Without a moment's hesitation, Soren shifted his body and sprinted towards the woods. The creature noticed and a loud roar escaped its body as it stomped across the meadow with the desire to catch him.
Shit, shit, shit! What the actual fuck is wrong with this forest?! Can’t I at least get a good night’s sleep?! In all his 22 years of life, he had never run this fast before—the adrenaline was once again pumping all across his body. And yet, he could hear the creature catching up to him—its stomps were getting louder and louder. It didn’t help that the forest was also trying to stop him. Its twisted treeline made it difficult to navigate in a straight line. Every time he had to duck or avoid a large branch, he could feel the monster catching up to him. He couldn’t understand how it was going so fast until he looked behind him and noticed it simply breaking its way through the trees as if they were made of tissue paper.
What made the situation even worse was that he wasn’t even sure where exactly he was heading. For all he knew, an even bigger monster could be hiding away in front of him. Although he didn’t really want to, he had no choice but to try to activate [Eyes of the Fairy] again. He didn’t know whether it could help him navigate the woods, but it was still far better than roaming them blind. His Soul Weapon recognized his thoughts and levitated right next to him—the ethereal pages smoldering like flames shifted into tiny golden butterflies that swam into his eyes.
The world twisted around him—colors shifting like ripples across an endless sea. Shapes, ever so beautiful, manifested before him. They morphed infinitely, unimpeded by time and space itself. But at that moment, none of it mattered. The wonders hidden behind an unseen veil before him paled in comparison to the shimmering light reflecting in his eyes. He couldn’t tell what color it was—maybe it was something completely alien to even his own mind's interpretation of color itself. But it didn’t matter; it was there to guide him.
The light stretched on before him, twisting in countless ways to avoid the twilight forest’s corrupted treeline. Like a mindless drone powered entirely by adrenaline and a firm will to live, Soren followed its guidance without a single deviation. His vision was getting more and more narrowed—he wasn’t sure where exactly he was heading or how much time had passed. All that mattered was following the light stretching into infinity.
The roars and ruptured stomps of the monster chasing him could no longer be heard. All his senses were focused on simply chasing after the string of dazzling light guiding him toward the right path. Some undetermined time later, the world shifted once more back to what it was originally. The spell was lifted from Soren’s eyes as he snapped awake in the middle of his sprint. In the distance, he noticed a faint speck of light hidden away behind the fickle treeline.
What the hell happened to me? He looked back and noticed that the creature that had been chasing him was gone—nowhere to be seen. Even so, he still could not drop his guard. The warnings from Unknown were still ringing true in his heart.