07 – The monster and the other people

Jacob looked ahead, his eyes scanning the surrounding forest with practiced ease. He hopped from tree to tree, his silver and blue metal armor not hindering his movements in the slightest. It was made out of steel and a new metal that he found underground, that gave the pieces a bluish hue and a toughness that was almost too good to be true.

After a good while, he decided to stop for lunch, taking out a few still hot dishes and some vegetables he found. The inventory apparently stopped time, preserving things just as they were before they were stored. After lunch, he set out again.

Tyla and her daughter, Lumia, were walking through one of the many ground paths through the forest. They were still keeping quite close to their village, the fear of the last few days still fresh in their minds. The Woodland people were not so easily scared, though, so after a few days of calm and without incidents, they resumed with their daily lives. A bit more guarded, maybe, but not too different than before.

“See? These are bluetailed buds. They only grow among the red moss in the shade of the willwing trees.”

Lumia sighed audibly. “I know, mother. They are used to make medicine and restorative teas.”

Tyla smiled warmly. Her sharp canines poked slightly out of her mouth. “Good, very good. Now, what are the willwing trees known for?”

Lumia exhaled. “Their long and straight branches are good for making arrows. And their vines are perfect ropes.”

Tyla patted her daughter’s head. “That’s my girl.”

“But… mother why are you asking all these questions?”

Her mother stopped walking. “Lumia, my dear daughter. I don’t want to even think about the day when I will be gone, but still I must act upon it before it happens.”

“You—you mean that you’re gonna die? Come on, you’re barely 450.”

Tyla scoffed. “Disrespectful and adulating at the same time. I wonder who you learned to do that from. If nothing else, it’s expected of a proper member of our village to know the basics of the forest, and you my dear, can no longer be considered a child. You are a lady now, and you have to know how the world works. Our village lives off of the forest, after all.” She said, a stern but loving expression on her face. Then, she turned away and resumed walking, whispering something under her breath, her face dark for a moment. “And I fear for the times to come.”

The two walked in silence for a while, each immersed in their own thoughts. Then, they both heard something in the distance, startling them. leaves were rustling where the wind could not reach, and heavy steps were coming in their direction. Tyla looked at her daughter, and noticed that she was scanning the whole forest and had already gone for the bow on her back.

A small smile, but then her face returned serious and somber. She too took out her own bow, and pulled her daughter to one side of the road, hidden among the tall grass.

The sound of leaves grew closer, and snarls could be heard coming from that direction. The heavy breath of a labored wild beast, the heavy sound of paws that slammed the ground with enough force to break stones and fallen branches.

Tyla covered her own mouth with one hand, and her daughter’s with the other. Her eyes were wide, pupils dilated until they were large and lonely black holes, and her ears twitched in an attempt to triangulate the exact location of the beast.

Then it appeared. Not a beast, but a monster, treading the very same dirt path where the two stood not a moment ago. Lumia felt the fingers of her own mother dig into her face, desperately asking her to stay quiet, not to make a sound. But she was not scared. She knew she would no make a sound as he moved her fingers towards one of her arrows from her quill.

“No.” Her mother whispered.

She looked at her, her emerald eyes now black and scared. Tears rolling down the face of a woman that was so strong, so brave. What could even make her fear this much?”

The monster barked and snarled, sniffing the air around until a far away sound captured its attention. It jumped into the thick underbrush, and disappeared.

Tyla released the breath she didn’t even noticed she was holding. Turning towards Lumia, she embraced her daughter and broke down in tears of relief. Lumia’s arms wrapped around her, and the two held each other tightly for a while, the adrenaline only now leaving their scared bodies shaking and shivering.

Jacob heard it, again, for the third time today. A sound in the distance, ominous, guttural, monstrous. He took out his new sword, made on a 4x4 bench. It was jet black with a bright red pattern engraved onto it, made out of dark obsidian steel, redstone and one pulverized diamond. It took so long to make it, but it was in moments like this that he felt that his efforts were worth it. The safety he felt while gripping this black steel sword calmed his mind.