He found himself in the familiar grass plane it's sky an endless void and still air. However his body felt lighter almost as if it had become accustomed to the environment, his clothes the same as last time however he found small strands of fur as dark as the sky. Not knowing what they were he grabbed them and stuffed it into his pocket. This time his body was no longer controlled so he was able to move at his own pace. Slowly walking he watched the area the grass was still and each step he took left a harsh print into this otherwise tranquil land. Every step he took felt deafening the sound of the grass beneath him crushing was the only noise in this empty world. Eventually he saw ahead of him a forest it's trees tall and it seemed dense. However it was the only thing in this empty place which had not seemed drained of life. As he began to approach he slowly heard noises coming from within, they were drawing him in. The only signs of life across the barren plain was within a forest he couldn't even peer into. Sighing, as he didn't even know how to escape this plate he decided to walk into the forest.
He took a step in and his body had felt the wind rush around his body. The forest gave off the smells of pine and he could hear the rustling of creatures. It felt so much more alive and as he looked up he could see the sun breaking through the leaves alongside a blue sky. Confused, he stood outside of the forest and looked up to see the endless void he became familiar with. Crim stood there for a few minutes confused as to how it was possible he looked left and right of the forest. Only to realise it stretched further than he could see. Then looking back he could see it had enclosed him. 'The hell?' He thought to himself confused as to how it could do this. Bracing himself he began to work into the forest needing answers to what this place was.
This time he paid more attention to his surroundings and slowly grew accustomed to how it looked. The forest was filled with vibrant shades of green and the ground was soft and felt warm. It was as if the forest itself was alive, each creature he heard from the insects to the birds and rabbits on the ground each living at their own pace but matched the harmony of the forest to play out like a grand orchestra. It brought tranquility to his body and he began to feel relaxed unlike the forest the one he awoke to a few days ago. Yet he didn't feel completely relaxed, reminded of the trauma of being lulled into a false sense of security by the forest just nights before. Shuddering at the thought his mind wandered as he walked around the forest eventually he looked at what could have been a small path and remembered the goblins he killed.
Swallowing dry saliva, he felt his throat burn dry. The guilt still hadn't caught upto him yet. But remembering the scene of mourning goblins in an already ravaged village being greeted by the death of the trio. Their tears had been carved into his heart and he questioned if they had only been simple monsters.
'Thud!' lost in his own thought he slammed his head into a tree.
'Ow,' rubbing his head he looked at the tree in front of him. Only to realise that that tree seemed odd. Taking a step back he inspected the tree, it took him sometime to figure out why it felt off and then he realised that the tree seemed to be duller than the forest around it. Out of all the trees it's bark felt lifeless, the leaves on the branches lost all it's vibrancy and it didn't bear fruit despite so many similar trees around it bearing crimson apples.
The tree felt like a statue and as he looked down at the roots he saw the soil was disturbed. Something may have been buried there, but in an empty mindscape like this who would you be hiding this form. Then he remembered what Dominic told him about the spirits and how a druid should be able to retain memories. Then he thought about the monster that roamed the areas before, leaving him a feeling of nostalgia but it maybe possible something suppressed his memories. So he began to claw at the softened soil with his hands despite how it looked the dirt crumbled like sand and was a burden to dig. As sweat trickled down his face, time wasted away but his determination didn't allow him to stop. He felt as if a part of him was buried deep in here. Eventually his hands struck at something hard, pulling back in pain. Looking at his fingers they were sore at whatever he struck. Deciding to scoop around it he eventually managed to see what it was. A small redwood chest, it had a rose deeply engraved with what he was left to assume was a date written in a language he couldn't read. The box was bolted and it seemed to have a jigsaw like lock. Infront was a rotary lock with sixteen different lanes. Inspecting the wheels it seemed whatever it was there were ten options for each. He assumed it was like the standard number system he could remember but they had not looked familiar. Picking up the box it had felt surprisingly light and he realised the weight came from almost entirely the actual box. At first he assumed the contents had been light but as he set it down he saw it begin to violently shake seemingly alive. 'Spirits.' He pondered on if that could be it but it would only lead him to wondering how someone trapped a spirit within his own mind.
'You found it,' a voice rang out all too familiar behind him.
Rooted to the ground he felt the cold air envelope him. The sensation of shivers running across his back like spiders reminded him of the monster. Then it began to whistle softly, the same melody as before. His heart ached not knowing where he heard it before but this time rather than embracing him the claws of the creature danced around his Adam's apple. Slowly it began piercing his neck and he couldn't breathe.
Then it spoke, in a tone so monotonous it would seem as if life itself was drained of value. As coarse as gravel and as cold as an endless abyss. In that voice that deprives you of everything it made a clicking noise and went.
'You found it.' In a sing-song voice mocking him. Its claws plunged into his throat drawing marbles of blood and as he collapsed his eyes met the creature. Tall, almost like a werewolf it's body had ribs exposed and spider-like limbs, upon its face a skull with antlers growing out. It's eyes glow a bright orange like a closing sunset on the world. It's fur black as smoke and a mane wrapped around its neck while it stood on wolf-like legs and had a coiling tail with spines piercing out his mind finally blanked. One word remained in his mind , not that of the chest nor of his own death but of it. A…
'Wendigo.'