"What the fuck?!!"
Atop his horse, the red haired man barked out the curse as the beast beneath him reared and stamped, muscles trembling as if gripped by unseen hands. The air had shifted without warning, a shrill wind weaving through the trees, sharp enough to bite bare skin and crawl beneath armor.
"Sire, we can't go forward." One of the riders beside him yanked hard on his reins, knuckles white. His horse snorted and backed away. "Something's coming. A lot of them… or something worse."
Greenwood Forest was no ordinary stretch of land. It teemed with creatures that prowled beyond reason, beasts that could sink their fangs into a demi god and draw blood. Without the forest king's blessing or presence, crossing this place was little more than slow suicide.
And that presence had been absent for far too long.
