Green Mountains:
The green mountains... Majestic in their own right, a vibrant green in contrast to the wasteland that the rest of world was, full of wildlife and fascinating and one odd looking creature, covered in dried blood and sweat, a cloak in almost pristine condition, yet clothes almost torn to shreds, running through the lush green trees.
Chasing behind him was a pack of black furred monkeys, with four arms and helmets made out of bones from creatures they've hunted In their life.
The were Nightcrawler monkeys, they were one of the many inhabitants one could find in the treacherous Green Mountains as far as Astel knew, from his observations throughout his life, he knew that they had unparalleled hunting and tracking and from what he'd seen, he'd never saw a prey escape from them and now he was their next target...
Argh, how the fuck do I keep getting into these godforsaken situations?!
Astel felt like crying...
.
.
.
.
.
30 minutes earlier:
Running through the forest was a young man, sound familiar? Except this time his face was full of confidence, his footsteps making a gentle cacophony of pitter patter noises heard by no-one but himself, running throughout to tres, even resorting to climbing them, stepping on branch after branch, movements honed after years of practice, precisely knowing where to step at all times, seeing the full moon throughout the gaps of the foliage, Astel felt free, he always enjoyed his journeys to the Rejuvenating Spring, he really did, it was one of the few pleasures he had in his life, it filled him with the intoxicating felling of control and confidence.
To do something other people wouldn't even dare to attempt... Yet doing it so skillfully and easily, Astel started reminiscing on the times when he struggled to even climb the shortest of trees, yet climbing even the most daunting of tress while at ease.
What would his Mom and Dad think, seeing him now, Astel wished to know, although he never met them before as they died when he was still a young child of two or three, he couldn't help but feel a longing for their affection, would they worry? Feel happy, proud?
Astels thoughts were cut short as he reached the halfway point, the lingering stench of blood seemingly ingrained in the air alerting him of the next part of their journey.
Tightening the piece of cloth on his shoes, Astel lifted his head, his eyes scanning the terrain ahead, seeing nothing but darkness, Astel grew even more wary.
Now this is where the hard part starts...
For other people, this would just be a random stretch of land in the vast Green Mountains but Astel knew where this truly was, it was the territory of one of the leading tribes of the Green Mountains, the Nightcrawler Monkeys to be exact.
"Whooooosh" feeling a gust of wind blow against his face, Astel silently pulled out his dagger, holding it in a reverse grip, just in case of any unforeseen circumstances.
Seeing nothing but darkness ahead of him, the moons light failing to show through the foliage, singling out this single area out of them all, Astel went the same way that he'd always went, its twists and turns memorised by him long ago.
Going through the trees, hearing the rushing water and rushing waves crushing anything in its path, Astel knew he was close, pushing through the bushes expecting to see the familiar sturdy bridge that he'd gone down multiple time before, Astel stopped in his tracks so suddenly, that he resembled a deer in headlights,
Broken...
That was all Astel could see, two ends of a broken bridge and rubble poking out of the water...
ho... How...
Astel was dumbstruck by what he saw, how did it break... Why did it break... When did it break... Lowering his gaze towards the rubble, the majority of it underwater, only the head poking out, bite marks scattered all over it, almost as if it was mocking him,
Unlucky... How can I be this unlucky...
Astel turned back, his energy gone, no expression left on his face, Astel felt defeated, the only thing left on his mind was the broken bridge... "I made no mistake, I covered my tracks I did everything right yet I get screwed over by lady luck of all things..."
Smelling the familiar stench of blood Astel put his dagger away and gave one last look towards the territory of the Nightcrawler Monkeys...
"Pulse..... pulse... pulse... pulse... pulse.. pulse.. pulse.. pulse. pulse. pulse, pulse, pulse, pulse, pulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulsepulse
Feeling the Black Rose start to throb like crazy Astel instinctively grabbed it, feeling his vision becoming clearer with every waking moment, increasing by the second, no adapting would be a far better word, Astel eyes started to widen as he stared at the horror laid in front of him, although he'd been here before on numerous occasion, being able to see clearly this time gave him a new perspective on how dangerous what he'd been doing truly was.
In front of him were numerous beast bones, and multiple Nightcrawler Monkeys standing as still as a statue, unmoving throughout the gusts of wind blowing throughout the Green Mountains.
Their four muscular arms, four fingers on each hand, sharp claws evolved to rip into their prey at the slightest movement, and two thin legs resembling those of a raptors, and to top it all of a helmet of bone made of bones of the prey they've hunted throughout their life. (imagine a temple run monkey with two extra arms)
Regaining his shattered hope that he'd lost after finding out about the broken bridge, regaining the privilege of choice once again, Astel started to review his options.
Let's say I leave now, how the hell do I explain all the blood on me what am I supposed to say, that it was my blood?
With the amount on me people would be wondering how I am still alive, let alone how I'm walking around with no visible wounds on me apart from the ones I'd gained during the backlash, which are minor compared to how much blood on me, I doubt they would convince anyone.
Wash myself off in the river?
Remembering the bite marks Astel scoffed in his mind, Yeah, I might as well wash myself in a lions mouth.
Bypass the Nightcrawler Monkeys by traversing throughout the treetops rathe than on land?
One wrong move and I'd be ripped apart by their claws and eaten alive, shaking his head to clear the mental image Astel continued on.
Lie and say it was blood from someone who he met in the Labyrinth who's now deceased?
Worst case he could but inconsistencies always add up in the end, maybe not know but in a year maybe even ten, there would be moments where he would have no choice but to lie and moments like these where it's avoidable to lie, yet not doing it for a risk that could result in death when he'd done so multiple times before would be a foolish maneuver on his part.
Everybody knew that not taking risks in this world was the same as slowly stagnating, just waiting for death, yet people rarely talk about those who do take risks yet die even quicker than those who play it safe.
Risk takers think people who play it safe are foolish, and people who don't take risks think this who risk there life for meager gains are stupid.
Which one am I?
Steeling his resolve, grabbing the black rose as hard as he could, Astel silently latched onto the same branch of the same tree that he'd always went up before, finding the foothold, stepping on the foothold, reaching for a branch, grabbing the branch, Astel did what he always did everytime he ventured into the Green Mountains, memories flowing into his mind about how his Uncle Abyss taught him as child, making him practice for years on the trees on the outskirts of the Green Mountains before making sure he was ready.
The same lessons seemingly ingrained into his mind and body, Hearing Uncle Abyss's voice in his head as he climbed higher and higher, "Always and I mean ALWAYS stay silent, don't mutter a word, dont even so much as even breath loudly.
Controlling his breathing Astel went higher and higher, "It's not a race, climb at your own pace, even if it takes a while, Don't. Take. Risks."
Reciting his Uncles teachings in his head, doing what he's done multiple times before, Astel grabbed at the nearest branch ahead which was much larger than the previous ones, glad for the first time in his life that he had a small body, Astel pulled himself up and sat on the large branch, covered in sweat, Astel pulled down the hood of his cloak, and looked down.
Seeing the Nightcrawler Monkeys still unmoving, no moonlight shining through the trees, the wind still blowing as usual, no sign that he'd ever been there, unseen by all, unnoticed by anyone and everyone Astel smiled, a pure smile that he'd never let out once since he'd been brought into this world.
"Thank you Uncle Abyss"