It was getting dark when they approached Tibeth village. Jake had gotten them lost a few times while trying to find the right route. He had only been to Tibeth twice and he was quite younger at the time.
When he eventually saw a landmark that reminded him of the path to Tibeth, the sun was already setting. Liz was already too tired as she had neither eaten nor rested throughout the whole day, so she could only trudge along. Jake was considerate enough not to rush her but they were running late and Jake had heard rumors of demons roaming the forest at dark and he didn't want to risk being out in the woods to validate the rumors, especially with a tired Liz alongside him.
The sun had almost disappeared into the horizon, the only light were the fading rays of the sun that struggled to stay back as the sun sailed it's course. They were only a few minutes away from Tibeth when the sun finally set.
Less than a minute after the sun set, the cries, howls and tooting of unidentified wild creatures could be heard from the surrounding forest. Fear made Liz quicken her pace and grab Jake tightly by the wrist, they continued toward the village with determination though shaking within in fear.
Then suddenly a figure whooshed past them, it was so quick that Jake couldn't make out it's shape nor the type of animal it was. They froze for a moment looking around to make sure there was nothing out there before taking another step, one at a time.
By now the whole forest was in dead silence, the only sounds were the faint rustling of leaves and the sounds their feet made as they trod on dried branches and leaves. Taking another step forward, Liz stepped on a dry branch causing it to snap. As if on cue the creature whooshed past again, sending shivers down their spine.
Jake could make make out the look of terror on Liz's face, he turned his gaze to keep an eye on the path when something caught his eye. There were two red unblinking eyes staring at them in the distance. Jake held it's gaze as a feeling of terror washed over him, he kept staring at the eye for what seemed like forever until he felt the eyes move closer.
Turning he grabbed Liz and screamed "RUN!!!". Running faster than ever they flew through the forest dodging the trees that seemed to pop out of nowhere. His leg felt sore to his bones but one instinct overshadowed the fear and weakness in his bones and that instinct was survival.
They had only run about 20 meters when he turned back to find himself face to face with the massive beast.
"Nooooooo!!!" he screamed, overshadowing his sister's shouts as the beast brought a huge paw down towards his face.
"Plop" was the sound the now lifeless creature made as it made contact with the floor. A bloodied arrow poked from it's chest.
Jake opened his eyes to see the dead creature with an arrow sticking out it's chest. Liz was also on the ground, she was too terrified to open her eyes. Jake gulped in Surprise and raised his head to find the source of the arrow. He saw a dark figure in a hood returning it's bow to it's hook, the figure walked towards Jake and Elizabeth, a torch in it's hand. Jake and Liz edged backward still feeling frightened. The figure in black then threw back his hood.
"Uncle Mike" Jake screamed in delight.
"Jake" Liz turned her face to the light
" And Liz?" Uncle Mike exclaimed surprisingly as he captured them both in a bear hug.
"Jeez, what are you kids doing out here at a time like this"
Liz sniffled in response, with a mixed feeling of fear and happiness.
"Where's your dad" he continued.
Liz began to sob once more, she was completely drained and too tired to move. Mike scooped her up in his arms, grabbed Jake by his hand and led them home…
"Dad's home" Claire quoted excitedly as she heard the loud raps on the front door. She skipped happily to the front door.
"Welcome dad…" her speech was cut short when she saw a little figure lying in his arms. Seeing the girl's torn cloth and pale skin she immediately forgot all about the questions on her mind and stepped aside for her dad to enter the house. She was still wondering who the little girl was when she saw Jake standing in the porch, his slim figure was hidden behind his Uncle, Mike's large frame.
"Jake" she greeted
"Claire" he responded.
Jake was the same age as Claire, they were both fifteen, three years older than Elizabeth who was twelve. Claire had seen Jake enough times, so they were already as close as friends could be. Claire had a lot of questions for both her dad and Jake but she understood to restrain herself seeing the look of tiredness on Jake's face. She knew better than to make things complicated.
Uncle Mike gently let Liz down and motioned Claire
"Hey" Claire tried to comfort her.
"Lets go get you a warm bath, alright"
"Okay" she managed weakly
Claire led her toward the rooms.
Hilda who had been in the kitchen finally came out.
"Hey Darling, you back?"
"Yeah" Mike replied
" I thought, I heard Claire speak with someone"
"Yeah, that's Jake. I returned with him and Liz "
She went towards the sitting room and was quite surprised as she saw a tired looking Jake on the couch.
"Jake… You don't look so good. Come on, dinner's almost ready. Let's get you cleaned up"
"Sure Aunt Hilda"
She led him into the spare room, she handed him a towel and a change of clothes.
"You'll be okay right?"
"Yes"
"If you need anything, just call me or you can call Claire"
"Sure" he replied.
"Once you're done, you come out let's have have dinner"
Jake nodded in return.
He strolled into the bathroom and washed himself thoroughly. He didn't miss the little cakes of dirt between his toes. He doused himself with a bout of warm water before rubbing his body dry
"So where did you meet them" Hilda questioned her husband in the sitting room..
"Just at the edge of the forest"
There was a sudden look of alarm on her face.
"By this time of the night"
"Yes, they were about to become Verg food. I ran into them just before the Verg could say it's grace before meal."
"They ran into a Verg!!!" she almost fainted in shock.
"I was lucky to pass by at the moment. I saw what seemed like the figure of a Verg, I decided to ignore it until I heard pairs of footsteps running rapidly. Fearful little bunch got close to being killed."
"So, they say what they were doing in the forest by that time"
"They haven't spoken yet. Though I feel something is really wrong. I decided they should eat first as they seemed slightly disheveled".
"Yeah, that's right. They've got to eat something. I'll get the food out".
As she turned to return to the kitchen Claire showed up in the sitting room with Liz trailing behind her.