Chapter 14: The Watching Woods
The heavy oak doors of the training hall thudded shut behind them.
Archie took a deep breath of the cool evening air and stretched his shoulders. His muscles felt pleasantly warm and taut from the long hours spent inside; not painful, just... Heavy, with effort. A week ago, it would have made him completely exhausted. Now it just sharpened his focus.
Seraphine walked beside him in silence, her steps light, her expression serene as always. The courtyard outside the hall was hushed, lit by tall iron lamps that cast a weak, ethereal light on the stone paths.
Archie tilted his head slightly and looked at her.
"So, was that the end of the test?"
"For now," Seraphine answered, her voice soft yet firm. "Your control with the weapon is sufficient. You can defend yourself properly now and provided you go at full strength and use the weird power i feel you repressing you can probably kill me now."
Archie looked down at his hands for a brief moment. A small smile touched his lips. A week ago, he could barely keep up with her practice-blades. Now he had just battled her, steel against steel, and held his own. Then suddenly he thought of what Seraphine said and then turned to look at her suspiciously "What do yo mean by power I'm repressing?" he asked her
Suddenly, Seraphine stopped.
Archie felt the abrupt halt, and turned to her. "What's wrong?"
Before she could answer, hurried footsteps sounded on the courtyard stones. One of the patrol vampires approached rapidly from an outer pathway. His clothing was dusty and torn in places, as if he'd been running through thick undergrowth without stopping.
He bowed low when he reached them. "My Lady Seraphine."
Her gaze snapped to him, instantly alert. "Report."
"The patrols in the forest found a few hostile creatures near the estate perimeter," the vampire said breathlessly. "Three units have reported sightings within the last hour alone."
Archie frowned. "Creatures?"
Seraphine's expression remained impassive. "What kind?"
"Large ones. They attacked the patrols straight away, without warning." The vampire seemed reluctant as he spoke. "They seemed to be coming from further inside the woods."
Seraphine's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly. That was odd. The woods surrounding the estate were certainly huge and full of dangerous life, but the truly powerful creatures generally stayed well clear of vampire territory.
"Any casualties?" she asked.
"None confirmed yet. But one of the patrols hasn't checked in."
A hush fell over the courtyard, and for a moment, a subtle tension vibrated in the air. Seraphine's composure had shifted just a fraction. No one else would notice, but Archie had seen her fighting for long enough to tell the difference.
She was thinking.
Finally, her gaze flicked toward the edge of the estate, to the forest path that disappeared into the darkness. "I will go and investigate."
The patrol vampire looked startled. "Should we form a unit, my Lady?"
Seraphine shook her head. "No. That will not be necessary." Her eyes met Archie's then. "You are coming with me."
Archie blinked once, then allowed himself a small smile. "I figured you might say that."
Without another word, Seraphine turned and disappeared toward the estate's outer gate.
The woods loomed like a wall of pure darkness beyond the estate boundaries. Ancient trees, tall and gaunt, clawed at the night sky, their branches interwoven into a thick canopy that allowed little of the moonlight to penetrate the gloom beneath. The deeper into the woods, the darker it seemed to become.
Archie and Seraphine walked in silence along the outer path. The moment they crossed the threshold into the woods, the air seemed to change. The sounds of the estate receded, replaced by the rustling and whispering of the forest, by the distant snap of a branch or the faintest, unidentifiable cry from far off.
"It feels different in here," Archie murmured, his eyes darting around as they walked.
Seraphine kept her pace even. "This land is older than the estate. There is much that resides here that prefers to remain unseen."
Archie placed a hand on the hilt of the sword at his hip, the weapon's weight feeling familiar, comforting, a lingering reminder of the day's training.
They moved further into the trees.
After several minutes, Seraphine suddenly stopped. Archie halted beside her.
"What is it?"
She gestured to the ground in front of them. Archie stepped forward and looked down.
The earth had been violently torn apart. Deep claw marks, broad enough to rip small rocks from their beds, gouged through the soil. Two nearby trees had been splintered, their bark stripped away as if by an immense force. A struggle had occurred here.
Archie knelt to examine the marks more closely. "This isn't a creature I know and trust me I possess a lot of knowledge regarding creatures of the supernatural ."
"No," Seraphine said quietly.
He looked out into the impenetrable darkness between the trees. "This is what attacked the patrol?"
Seraphine surveyed the surrounding woods, her gaze sweeping slowly across the dense foliage. "Yes."
The woods had become eerily still. All the distant sounds had vanished. Archie stood slowly. "You feel it too, don't you?"
Seraphine nodded. "It's still here."
A low sound, not a roar, but something much deeper and more resonant, rumbled through the trees. It was coming from the darkness and was watching them.
Slowly Archie drew the sword from his hip.
The light scuffing of steel sliding free of leather sounded unnervingly loud in the still forest. A glint of moonlight flashed off the weapon for a second before disappearing once again.
The rumble was closer this time.
Archie altered his stance and shifted his weight. The weeks of practice came back to him, settling into his muscles as his feet found purchase. His grip on his sword relaxed, though his hand still hovered near the pommel.
"Anything?" he asked, not tearing his eyes from the blackness ahead of him.
Seraphine was a statue beside him. She made no movement and her hands were empty.
"Watch and wait," she advised, her voice a low murmur. "Only when you know what it is should you strike."
There was a pause of a few heartbeats.
Then the trees at the edge of the darkness shook violently.
A large shape thrashed through the undergrowth and a stream of leaves and branches was kicked up in its wake.
It stepped out into the moonlit clearing.
The thing was enormous. It must have been twice Archie's size when it fully stood and was covered in dark, leathery hide that was rough like bark. Its limbs, though long and thin, ended in large claws that sunk into the ground as it moved.
The beast's head was somewhat wolflike although it was far too big and was much more twisted than any natural wolf, with two dull yellow eyes glowing dimly from within the creature's shadowed skull.
Archie let out a breath slowly.
"So that's what was rattling the trees."
The monster fixed its eyes on him.
Then it moved.
Despite its sheer size, it was unnervingly fast and launched into a charge. It tore across the clearing, claws scraping against the earth as it sprinted directly towards him.
Archie jumped out of the way.
A huge claw raked across the air where his head had been a moment ago and shattered into a tree with a deafening crack. Archie spun around and brought his sword around, the steel biting into the beast's flank before he ducked away again.
The monster let out a bellow that shook the leaves high above their heads. Seraphine stood watching still. Archie danced in a slow circle, circling the monster as it turned to face him. It was fast. Faster than it had any right to be. Good. That made this a lot more interesting.
It attacked again. This time Archie ran forward instead of backward. The earth shuddered beneath the force of their collision. It was a short fight. The beast lunged and thrashed, tearing at the ground with its claws and smashing at him with its body until bark and soil were churned up into a mess all around them. He was forced to retreat multiple times under the onslaught of its attacks, but Seraphine's training had not gone to waste and with every shift he stayed out of the reach of its powerful claws and teeth. He watched, he waited, he studied. When the monster reared back and swung at him with both claws extended he moved under the attack, turning smoothly to drive his blade upward in a clean, controlled motion.
It sank deep almost splitting it's neck into half.
The beast shuddered and tried to scramble forward, its enormous limbs trembling as it attempted to remain on its feet but it was too late. The strength seeped from its body and it crashed to the ground, sending a cloud of dust and leaves flying into the air. Silence returned. Archie lowered his sword, breathing slowly. "That was... A welcoming gift." He turned to look at Seraphine. She approached the fallen beast without hesitation. She knelt and examined the leathery hide. It was marked in many places with faint dark lines. After a moment she ran a hand over its shoulder and then paused. Archie could see something in her eyes. "What is it?" he asked. Seraphine remained silent for a moment, then she pulled back the patch of thick fur on the beast's neck. On its skin, faint dark markings appeared. They were jagged and old, not natural to any living thing. Archie stepped forward. "They look... Wrong." Seraphine stood up slowly. "They do." She gazed deeper into the woods, towards the further dark. "That thing didn't just wander here on its own, a force is attracting it towards the city." A light breeze stirred the leaves. Something was waking within the woods and this time Seraphine's eyes went cold. "The seal may not last long anymore."