Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two figures in green cloaks jumped off a low cliff and landed near a stream. They remained crouched and looked into the distance, amongst the trees. Rather, they were looking at the trees themselves.
Maeli had brought Craig to a secret stash filled with elven wear, resources and weaponry. They both replaced their black cloaks with green ones and even masked their faces underneath. They had also packed a few edible goods to eat along the way.
"So far we've gotten through without a hitch." Maeli suddenly said in a low voice. "It's actually going much better than I expected." She then looked at Craig and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Conceal. You're good for another five hours."
Craig nodded, then the two of them dashed forward, moving through the forest quickly but quietly. Well, as quiet as they could be that is. They weren't trained ninjas so their running and jumping still made light sounds.
Along the way they had seen lots of woodlings but hadn't run into any trouble. In fact many of the woodlings had seen or noticed them but didn't pay any special attention to them since elves regularly traversed the forest. From the moment they looked and saw the green cloaks and sensed their auras they returned to their usual business.
The woodlings were born from nature; a mix of plant life and magical energy. They were humanoid with arms and legs but their heads were oddly shaped. Even so, they had eyes, a hole that served as a nostril, a mouth and two tiny branches; or more accurately sticks, poking out of the sides of their heads which served as ears. They also had two more branches coming out of the top of their heads above each eye that served as antennas for detecting things such as auras and magical energy.
Amongst themselves they spoke a strange dialect that sounded like the creaking of floorboards or bamboos. They were also capable of speaking the common tongue used by all the other races.
Apart from the woodlings there were other forms of life in the Eldenwood forest. Animals, insects and floating magical lifeforms similar to fireflies.
At this very moment, Craig and Maeli had come to a sudden halt to admire the most captivating of all the living things in the Eldenwood forest. It was standing roughly a hundred metres away near a pond, having a drink of water. As it drank from the pond, it shook its fluffy tail which created a rainbow coloured trail in the air. The single horn on its forehead glittered like a diamond in the sunlight.
It, was a unicorn. One of the rarest and most sought after creatures in existence.
As Craig looked at the Unicorn, he couldn't help but mutter to himself. "No wonder hunters from the past would seek out these creatures even in death. I thought the descriptions were beautiful but seeing one in person is a whole different story." He said as his eyes widened in surprise.
The main reason why the woodlings hated humanity was because of this very creature. The way man would hunt them down and attempt to kill them whenever they discovered them. They were ruthless and insatiable.
The woodlings and unicorns had always coexisted together. Many thought the woodlings were the protectors of the unicorns. In actuality, the woodlings existed because of the unicorn. It could be said that the unicorn was the God of the woodlings, or in other terms; their creator.
Henceforth whenever a unicorn was targeted by someone or something, they would invoke the ire of the woodlings upon them.
Maeli smiled and nodded. "They are truly remarkably beautiful. They also have intense magical prowess and sharp sensory instinct. It would be better if we circle around it, maintaining this very distance." She explained.
The two of them then circled around the mystical creature and continued with their journey.
Soon the day had turned into night and the beautiful nightlife of the Eldenwood forest came to life. Fireflies, magical lifeforms, glow-worms and glowing plants such as vines and even roots. It was an intoxicatingly beautiful atmosphere.
At this point Craig and Maeli were nearly out of the the Eldenwood forest. It wouldn't take very long before they reached the forest's edge.
Also, though night had fallen, they didn't stop to rest like in the forest the previous day. They continued walking through the brightly lit forest at a steady pace.
"Did you notice something special about this forest?" Maeli suddenly asked.
"Special? Everything about this forest is special." Craig replied. This was his first time seeing the Eldenwood forest, and unlike the regular forests he'd been to, almost everything about this forest was different. The trees, the animals, the extra living things, the nightlife, it was amazing.
"Do you feel tired?" She asked another question.
Craig thought for a bit and replied. "I don't. I feel energised and alert. I did find it strange that we'd been running for so long but I don't feel burnt out."
"That's because of the amount of mana that's concentrated here." Maeli stated as she caught a glowing lifeform in her hand. "Even you who is unable to harness mana benefit from it as well. In here, because of the high concentration of mana, our productivity and recovery is boosted." She explained.
Craig had already thought this was a possibility beforehand. Even without being able to use magic he could feel the difference in the air. Now, Maeli had just confirmed his guess. Being certain of it now he was even more amazed by the uniqueness of the Eldenwood Forest. He also caught one of the glowing lifeforms and spread his plan open to look at it.
"These glowing things then? Are they glowwisps?" He asked.
Maeli nodded. "They're born in places with a lot of mana. They're also very easy going and friendly." As she said this she was looking at Craig with a bright gaze. She noticed that close to a hundred glowwisps had gathered around him. "It is said that glowwisps are fond of those with high magical prowess. Why are they surrounding you then?"
Craig looked at the sea of lights around him and smiled at Maeli. "It is also said that they're attracted to the righteous and kind. Why aren't they surrounding you, I wonder?"
"Hmph. Righteousness and kindness can't be measured in such a simple way." She retorted. "Whatever the reason, Greymont was right about you. I wonder what makes you so special?"
"Greymont?" Craig was intrigued. "Did he mention something?" He asked.
"He said that when he used his special... Transcendent vision on you he got light headed and dizzy. Apparently, only you have ever caused such a thing to happen to him." Maeli studied Craig's reaction as she spoke. She was looking to see if he was hiding something. The blank and self curious look on Craig's face got her nowhere.
Craig lowered his head in thought as possibilities flashed through his mind. 'I wonder what could have caused such a thing?' He thought. 'Could it have something to do with my parents or this Transcendent King mystery?' Craig had entered deep contemplation.
"Hey."
"You okay?"
It wasn't until Maeli called out to him, twice, that he snapped back to reality. It was a habit of his to become so easily lost in thought. There were so many questions he needed answers to and as life went on more and more kept piling up. At this point he had an entire encyclopedia of questions without answers.
"Yeah, I'm fine." He replied and started walking away. "We should keep moving since we aren't worn out and the forest is a bit safe."
Maeli looked at Craig's back as he walked away. 'This human gives rise to many questions. I wonder what the answers are?' she thought as she followed and caught up with him.
Night turned into day and the seemingly never ending forest finally came to an end. It was already midday when the two of them exited the Eldenwood forest. Ahead of them was an endless expanse of open land with trees thinly scattered about. A dirt road snaked its way across and disappeared in the far horizon.
"This is the elf kingdom, Vaeria. Well we're at the outskirts of it, but we're here nonetheless." The comfort and familiarity could be heard from Maeli's voice as she spoke.
Clatak! Clatak! Clatak!
Craig was just about to speak when he caught onto the sounds of hooves trotting in the distance. Looking to the right, his gaze followed the dirt road until he saw a small carriage being pulled by some animals that he wasn't able to make out as yet. As the carriage drew closer he noticed that the animals looked similar to elephants. They had large flappy ears, but instead of a trunk, they had a curved mouth with tusks on each side. They were grey and had several ridges on their skin making them seem old.
"What... are those?" Craig asked in bewilderment. He had never seen this creature before, not even in the books he had read.
"These are called rock bulls. They are used the same way horses are used to steer carriages." Maeli replied.
Craig stared at the rock bulls until they came to a halt right before them. Even then he was still staring at them. He was trying to figure out how they came to be from their features. 'Did and elephant and a boar...? Nope, that's impossible. Hmmm, rock bulls. A cow and a... golemn maybe?'
As Craig pondered nonsensically, Maeli came to her senses and realised that they were so caught up in the moment, they both forgot to keep a low profile. She nudged Craig with her elbow and whispered, "They've seen us."
Only then did Craig catch on as well.
It was then the door of the carriage opened and a short man stepped out. "In need of lift do ya?" He asked suggestively as he stroked his beard.
Craig and Maeli were surprised and relieved at the same time. Relieved because it wasn't an elf and surprised because it was a dwarf. In return, the dwarf looked at them with a curious and confused gaze.
"Who are you?" Maeli asked in return.
"The name's Dwargo. My brother Rikkle and I are headed to the capital city to deliver some bows. It's been a pretty boring journey with just the two of us so your company is welcomed." He replied.
Dwargo's brother Rikkle came to the door holding a bottle gourd in his hand. His bushy face, wild hair and beady eyes made him look like a tasmanian devil. He was no more than five feet tall and a bit round. Holding up the bottle gourd he laughed. "Haha, Come on, drink with us and keep us company will ya. That is, if you're also headed to Elvenwood city?"
Craig and Maeli glanced at each other, then Maeli spoke out. "I'm sorry but we won't be able to travel with you. For certain reasons we can't reveal our identities. You can go on ahead."
Dwargo started laughing as if he was in the best of moods. "Is it because he's a human?" He asked looking at Craig, but before either of them could reply he stated, "Don't worry, the affairs between you all have nothing to do with us so you need not bother with concerns. But if you don't want to travel with us that's fine too." As he said this he stepped back into the carriage and gave them a meaningful look to get a response.
'The conceal must've already run out. It should be the only way he was able to tell who I am.' Craig had concluded that this was most likely the reason the dwarf could figure it out so easily.
Maeli quickly assessed the situation but before making a decision she looked at Craig. When she saw him nod at her she began walking to the carriage and so did Craig.
This would actually save them a bit of time and energy.