Chapter 2: The Thief of Black Lake

Arkus continues his journey in the Blacklake Forest.

Chapter 2: The Thief of Black Lake

Arkus took the bow from his back and strung an arrow on it. He wasn’t the best of archers, but he was good enough. His talent was more focused in his use of the blade, which in this case wasn’t much help. On his person he also had a steel dagger about a foot long, which also wouldn’t be much use against such a monstrous creature. All that could really be done now was to run. Maybe get a good shot in or two.

He had to make sure that he was in the carvax’s view before making the run, as there’d be no telling where it would go if it didn’t see him. He was looking in the direction of the beast’s sounds and pointed his arrow through the trees. Perhaps he could hit it in the eye to make his break. If not, somewhere else would certainly do.

He waited, his breath visible in the night air before him. Minutes passed, and his arm never slackened on his arrow, as fear began to creep in. Where is it? he thought. It must’ve been here by now. Where else would that roar have come from?

He listened harder, but could no longer hear anything coming towards him. Am I losing my edge? he thought. He tried to use his superior eyesight to try and discern any figure within the trees in front of him, but he saw nothing. Maybe it was the fear that tricked him into believing it was around here. Still he didn’t let the bow loosen. The lives of two innocents depended on him.

The dreaded silence was broken by the crack of a twig in the shadows to his left. He immediately turned expecting to see the black figure and illuminous green eyes of the Carvax, but was startled when all he saw was a human being, with a dark green hood pulled over her face. She also had an arrow drawn, pointing at Arkus.

“What are you doing in my woods?” she said, her voice cool and easy. She continued to step towards Arkus, each footstep leaving a nice imprint in the snow. She was short, the top of her head unlikely to reach above Arkus’ shoulders.

“Better get out of here,” Arkus said, ignoring her question. If anybody owned these woods, it was him. “The carvax is around here, and you don’t wanna be caught up in this.”

“Carvax?” she asked in disbelief. “That thing would never come around this place. It hates bodies of water, even if it is frozen.” She still had her arrow pointed at Arkus. He didn’t mind it much. There were clearly other things to worry about than an arrow. “Sides, I’d be more worried of that thing in the trees there,” she said, indicating the huge figure of Skye upon his branch.

Arkus ignored her comment once again and turned away to face towards the carvax’s roar. He looked again, but still saw nothing. Skye’s eyes were trained upon this mysterious girl.

“Looks like it’s found something,” she taunted him.

Arkus looked up at Skye and noticed that his head was pointing directly at the girl in the hood. He started to realize what was happening, and the thought wasn’t too pleasing. He decided to play the fool a bit longer.

“You know you can stop pointing that at me,” he said to whatever she was. “It’s not good manners. Usually a nice handshake will do.” He had to know what she was, and why she was getting such a reaction out of Skye. More importantly, if she had anything to do with the carvax disappearing.

Suddenly a large roar sounded far to the east of where they were standing. The carvax had apparently run clear past where they were standing.

Arkus let off a sigh of relief, and the hooded girl looked towards the sound and stopped pointing her arrow at him. That meant Arkus’s plan so far had worked better than they had hoped for. Casslyn and Jenker would certainly be safe from that monster. But, there was another issue at hand here. Who or what was standing in front of him?

He put the bow back on his back and started walking towards the girl, snow crunching beneath his boots. Her shadowed face was turned towards his again, though all he could clearly see were her lips and the bottom of her nose. The rest was hidden by the hood because of his angle of looking down at her, though he did see that her skin was tan. Well, tan, with a slight greenish tinge to it. He’d never met anybody with skin like his before.

“You know who I am?” he asked her. Arkus didn’t really believe in coincidences.

“I know you’re like me,” she answered. Slowly she took her hood off of her head to reveal the rest of her face. She had piercing green eyes like his, a finely shaped nose, and a slightly pointed chin. She had a few freckles on her nose and some on her cheeks. Her brunette hair reached only to her shoulders, and she had two thin braids where her hair began. “But, I’ve never seen a man tame a falcon that big before. Are you a dêor or something?”

“Perhaps if dêors actually existed,” said Arkus, stopping a few feet in front of her, “What are you doing here?”

“Wow, straight to the point, I see. You don’t even bother to introduce yourself?” she said. Arkus could tell that she didn’t trust him as much as he didn’t trust her. To be fair, she did point her weapon at him first.

“I’m Arkus, of Whilmphor,” he said, trying to ease the tension. “And I came in here to save two fools who wanted some alone time in Blacklake Forest. Now you.”

“Whilmphor?” she said in disbelief. “In all of Calavania, what is someone like you doing in Whilmphor?”

“One step at a time.”

“Oh fine. Call me Ayella, of Glemdoor. I came to hunt. Happy?”

Arkus knew that she was lying about everything except for the hunting. But exactly what was she hunting? In a forest of spirits, what would she need to hunt for at this time? Perhaps something magic from the lake? Or was it a person she needed?

“What would someone be hunting for in the dead of night in Blacklake that you can’t find in another forest?” he asked her.

“If you want to know that,” she began, “you’d have to follow me. And leave your falcon behind.”

Arkus thought for a moment. He knew he couldn’t argue the case for Skye. This was the first time someone had managed to find out he was companions with the falcon. Now she knew something he didn’t like the idea of her or anyone else knowing. He had to agree.

“Skye, stay here,” he said. “Take me wherever we’re going.” He put his Redoak Bow on his back, hoping she didn’t know what it was. She knew more of his secrets now than most in Whilmphor after only a few short minutes. He didn’t want this “Ayella” to know any more. That Redoak was worth thousands in gold, quite the sale on the market. Arkus had owned it for as long as he could remember.

“So you’ve decided to trust me?” she asked him, slightly surprised at his willingness, a flicker of a smile going across her face.

“Not really,” he said, “but curiosity has taken me.”

She turned and began to walk towards the frozen river. He followed after her, leaving Skye alone in the woods. He could only make out what was just ahead of him, which was her flowing green cloak. She had put her hood back on her head to protect it from the cold. He did the same with his own, taking a few more deep breaths to get some energy into his system.

Arkus really began to wonder about who she was. Someone with the same skin as him all the way out here, in the middle of the forest at the same time and place he was. Was she hunting him? Or did she need him for something? He couldn’t help but feel that she meant to run into him. After all he didn’t really believe in coincidences.

“So, taking deep breaths gives you more energy, too, huh?” she said, breaking the silence. “Lucky we don’t have far to go before we reach the Blacklake.”

So that’s where they were heading. Towards the heart of the forest was the Blacklake. It was forbidden for anyone to go near, but even so, Arkus had let his curiosity get the better of him once, and he saw it. It was dark and menacing. There was a strange dark magic around it that most didn’t seem too keen to discover what exactly it was. Most who did try to find out ended up dead… or worse.

“What exactly are you hunting at the Blacklake?” Arkus asked.

“Something that shouldn’t exist,” she said back. “Something that you’ve probably never heard of, but it’ll scare you just the same.”

“Can’t be worse than the carvax,” Arkus said, still regarding how close it must have been. As he was following her, he caught a scent on the air that came from her. It was familiar, and very delightful. Made him reminisce of a life he couldn’t remember.

“If we find what I heard is in there,” she started, sounding a bit more excited, “you shouldn’t be too worried about what a carvax confined within a forest can do. Oh, I hope we find it!”

Hope we find it? he thought as they were continuing on in silence. What is she on about? They walked quietly through the forest, with moonlight dripping through the canopy. Arkus continued to wonder about this mysterious girl. Why she was now familiar.

As they were walking, Arkus noticed that the air was getting thicker, which meant that they were getting closer to the heart of the forest. He didn’t actually think she was leading him all the way there. It was forbidden for anyone to go to the Black Lake, but it wasn’t the only place in Calavania of its kind. There were others, spread throughout the kingdom, all of which were forbidden by order of King Galanva IV. They were rumored to be the causes of wars, death, and bloodshed, which is why the King banned them all of those years ago. Whilmphor was established to protect Black Lake from being misused, but it had been so long that really no one understood or cared about that duty any longer. Still, Arkus was a resident of Whilmphor, and as such he didn’t want to allow her to go on.

“I’m sorry,” said Arkus, walking quickly in front of her to block her path, “but you can’t go on any further. Black Lake is forbidden to all, including myself.” He also remembered the time that he had gone there.

“Well, I’m sorry about that,” she said, brushing him aside, “but that doesn’t matter anymore. I brought you not to keep me from going there, but to help me. If you didn’t come, I’d be there already.  Probably dead or worse, but I’d be there!”

“Doesn’t matter. I’m here now, and I can’t let you go.”

“Arkus, you need to trust me!” she exclaimed taking a rushed step towards him, so that they were only inches away. Arkus could now see her clearly under the hood. She was looking up at him with those piercing eyes. He started to believe her. Her cool persona had vanished, and she was now beginning to shiver.

“Why?” he asked simply, trying to keep her from realizing his newfound trust.

“Because if I don’t go in there, if I don’t find out what’s happening, then I have to go back home with nothing. I have to look my elders in the eyes and tell them I failed,” she said this intensely leaving no room for question. Arkus knew she wasn’t going to answer anything further, but had to go along with it.

Go…. Arkus…. whispered a spirit. This particular spirit was that of a female, with a soft voice that caused his heart to melt. He hadn’t forgotten they were there, but he was shocked by this sudden prompt from them. Never had they told him to do anything, only questions, only answers. To the Black Lake….

“What will I find?” Arkus whispered back.

“You’ll fi"“

“Not you,” he said to Ayella.

Just…. go. was the answer he heard. Ayella looked at him questioningly.

“The Departed,” he said to her look of inquiry. “They told me to go with you.”

“There you have it,” she said, satisfied. “Even the creepy ghost things in here agree with me on this…. And now I know you talk to spirits.” She started to walk around him as if interrogating him. “You’re like me, you’ve got some weird falcon that follows you around, you live in Whilmphor of all places, and now you can talk to spirits. Just what exactly are you?”

“I’ll let you know when I find out,” he said somewhat ignoring her remarks. He was still trying to figure out why the spirits were giving orders now.

She stopped behind him and touched his back with her hand, her fingers brushing his bow. Instinctively he turned, snow crunching beneath his feet, and grabbed her wrist.

“Hey,” she said, “you don’t just go grabbing people like that.” She pulled her wrist from his grasp and stepped back, now back in the shadows of the trees. “I just wanted to see it!”

“Don’t make a habit of that,” he said, not bothering to apologize.

“Fine,” said Ayella, looking defeated. “Well, I suppose you know this place better than I do, bird boy. You lead on.”

“Bird boy?” he said questioningly, knowing she must be referring to Skye. “Yeah, I’ll lead, just don’t get any ideas when you’re back there.”

Arkus took the lead and began walking, now trying to be more aware of Ayella in the back. Maybe I was just being too quick to conclusions, he thought. If she was trying to take his bow, she wouldn’t have done it there. Although, he didn’t want to take any chances if he could help it.

The air continued to grow thick around them, and a feeling of darkness began to distill within them. It felt as though they were heavier, but without feeling the physical pressure of it. Whatever this feeling was, it only grew ever so slightly the closer they got to the Black Lake. It wasn’t physically draining, but it was distracting.

They came through the last bit of thick trees and came to another clearing, feeling a complete change in atmosphere. As they were once cold, they were now feeling a humid warmth. In the midst of this clearing it was there. The Black Lake. Arkus had seen it once in person before, and the tales surrounding it seemed to be true. The water was a deep black unlike any he’d ever seen, but the strange thing wasn’t the color. It was the fact that it was glowing, which made it look as though shadow was oozing from it. It couldn’t have been more than two hundred yards around, and the depth of it was simply unknowable. It was also a complete circle. Around the edges were jagged, black rocks, the water sitting undisturbed by anything. Arkus looked to see if there was still snow falling, but any snow in sight was simply not reaching the ground. Looking around, Arkus saw that the trees lined the edges all the way around it, each being a few yards away from the rocks that circled the lake. It was easily the most awe-inspiring and dreadful sight he had ever beheld.

He started to walk towards it, but stopped when he realized that Ayella was no longer standing directly behind him. He turned to look for her, and saw her hiding behind one of the trees, beckoning to him with her hand that he should do the same.

Without question, he quickly stepped back into the sheer cold and behind a thick, barky tree adjacent to Ayella’s. He slyly placed his hands on the tree and looked around it to see what she was hiding from. The transition from cold to warm, back to cold left him a bit dreary as well, but he still only saw the Black Lake in its horror just glowing like it was before. Arkus looked at Ayella and opened his mouth to ask her what the problem was, but she placed her finger on her lips to tell him to keep quiet. She looked back out at the Black Lake, as if anticipating that something would happen.

Arkus tried to follow her gaze to see if there was something he was missing. And sure enough, there was. Across the Lake, four figures emerged from the trees, one being dragged by his arms towards the lake. The one being dragged was a man, wearing simple clothing, pushing on his thirtieth year. The two who were dragging him were well-built men, and the one following was a powerful looking woman, all dressed in the same dark robes with their hoods hiding most of their faces. The simple man looked near to death, and was making no attempt to escape his captors, probably due to the lack of energy, his face also covered with bruises underneath his blonde hair.

Arkus looked back at Ayella to see if she could explain anything to him, but she looked as surprised as he felt. She was still peering around her tree to see what was happening to the man.

Arkus turned his attention back to the four across the lake, though the simple man was now on the ground next to the black rocks. The two hooded men stepped away from him and the woman stood over the man. She took her hood off, and underneath she had a pale face with stunning features, her black hair reaching past far past her shoulders. She wore a silver crown on her head, but Arkus didn’t understand who she was. There was no royalty here, what could she be doing here?

The woman reached down to the man and grabbed his neck. With surprising strength, she lifted him by his neck and held him in the air in front of her, then she began to make signs with her free hand across his limp form. Arkus wanted to help the poor man, but knew it wasn’t worth the risk. If she was a queen of some kind, then certainly she’d be well guarded, these two men probably not being the only ones around.

As she was making these unknown signs, the Black Lake started to ripple. Black water shot towards the man and surrounded him in her hand. She continued to hold him there and was muttering something under her breath while the water was swallowing him whole. This continued for a few more seconds until the water began to find any opening in the man and entered his body.

When all of the water had dissipated, leaving him suspended in the woman’s hand, Ayella let out a barely audible gasp. He looked ghastly. His once blonde hair was now as black as the woman’s, and his skin was as pale as a sheet of paper. Though unlike the woman, he didn’t look beautiful. His appearance was scabby and mangled.

She let him drop once again to the floor and began to speak to one of the two hooded men, while replacing her hood on her head. The black water man simply lied on the ground taking deep breaths. He was still alive.

“So, it is true after all,” said Ayella, silently, “Well, most of it, anyway. That isn’t good. Not at all.”

“What just happened?” Arkus asked, turning to her.

“Well, I’m not entirely sure, but it’s part of an old legend in my village. He’s been transformed into something. Something…. evil. My elder called it a grimlow. But I don’t know what that will do to him. Normally they only perform a transformation ritual on a child, because grown men will go mad when it happens to them because they don’t understand the power. You and I have power, but we’re used to it,” Arkus lifted his eyes at her statement that he had power, “That man isn’t, and I don’t even know what they did, only that it can’t be anything good if they’re willing to sacrifice his mind for it.”

“Power?” asked Arkus, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“What, don’t you use magic?” she asked him, as if it was a normal question.

“People don’t use magic,” said Arkus in his own defense, “they use magical things. Humans aren’t magical like the stuff we know.”

“Idiot!” she said in a hushed shout, “You’ve been using it all night! What, do you think most people feel warmer when they breathe deeply? You think your bird just listens to you for nothing?”

Arkus didn’t know what to say. He thought all of that was normal. “I… don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Ayella let out a long sigh. “Well, I guess you have plenty to learn about yourself, don’t you?”

Arkus decided not to ask any more questions. He didn’t like asking too many questions as it made him feel like a fool. Arkus looked back and the black water man was standing on his own now. He walked towards the woman, and reached towards her. She grabbed his hand and placed it on her face and started speaking to him, in a language Arkus had never heard before. The man seemed to understand as he nodded and stepped back towards the Lake in a slumping form.

The woman walked back into the forest with the other two who carried the man, leaving the black water man on his own next to the Lake. Arkus tried to take in everything he had just seen, but couldn’t quite wrap his head around it. Magic can’t be used by humans, can it? That’s supposed to be impossible. Then the realization sunk in that Whilmphor had clearly failed its duty to protect the Black Lake from this kind of interaction. Arkus had failed his duty.

He stood up and looked at where Ayella was squatting, only she had disappeared. Great, he thought, Now what? He looked all around to see if she was anywhere in sight. It was still dark, so he didn’t have the advantage of light to see far off. He listened hard to see if he could hear her, but heard nothing save the coarse breathing of the black water man.

“You know,” he heard her voice say softly out of nowhere, “I’ve gotta hand it to you. For someone so special, you really don’t understand what you’re capable of.”

“Show yourself,” he said calmly, looking around for the source, seeing nothing but trees and his own breath in front of him.

“Now that you’re here, that thing’ll have somethin’ to play with while I get out of here.”

“What are you"“

WHAM!! Arkus fell to the ground after receiving a blow to the head. He was still conscious, but he was completely disoriented. He saw Ayella jump from the branches of the tree she had been crouching behind and walk towards him.

“That trick never would’ve worked on you if your falcon was around,” she said as she brandished the branch she had used to hit Arkus. “Yeah, you really don’t understand your powers too well, do you? Well, I’m gonna say that I am sorry about this, but it’s just survival. Oh, and one more thing,” she said, reaching down and grabbing his bow, looking him dead in the eyes, “I’ll be taking your Redoak, mine kinda broke, funnily enough.” She slung the Redoak bow on her back as if it had been her own.

“…why?” he managed to say as she was walking away into the darkness.

“My adventure needs to continue, that’s why. I know you can get out of here, but I wouldn’t be able to unless you’re here, if the stories are true about what I think that is.” She whistled long and high. “There. Your bird will be here soon to protect you, but I can’t stick around. Both of those would like to see me dead.”

She disappeared into the night as Arkus began to regain his ability to stand. As he was getting on his feet, he found himself face to face with the black water man. It was wrinkled in the wrong places, and his eyes were as black as coal. Arkus then felt the cold hands of the man clasp around his neck and felt his very life begin to drain away.

Author's Note

Again, if there are any grammar errors, let me know. Things are always subject to change in this story.

Reviews

[Mitchell Clarke]

Well, I'm not sure if I should keep calling it Blacklake or Black Lake. I feel like dividing the two words gives it less of a name, but more of a location type, but one word gives it a more mystical feeling.