Chronicles of Ilandri - Volume 1

A Shadow in the Forest (Pt.3)

It was hours that the rain persisted for, numbing them all to the core as they mindlessly walked on through the woods, pushing on with stiff limbs and reduced vision. The sound of the rain hammering down around them did however help to cover the eerie silence that they had suffered the day before. It was difficult to judge the passing of the day since it was dark beneath the cover of the clouds and the forest but after a while Nathaniel caught sight of a figure to his left. It was a deer stood perfectly still, just a dark brown silhouette in the distance. This was the first living animal that he had seen upon entering the forest but it seemed that one of its antlers had been snapped off. As soon as the deer had seen the group of men it bolted and silently disappeared into the darkness beyond. The sight of the deer had made Nathaniel smile but now that it was gone the thought of its broken antler troubled him. It was not the right season for the rut and so another deer did not likely break it off in a fight. Now he was worried that whatever had injured the deer awaited them further along the path and just as quickly as he had calmed down he was once again anxious and fearful of what prospects lay ahead.

As the group pushed on, the rain stopped and Nathaniel was aware that he did not recognise the forest anymore. He used to know it so well and would be able to navigate it with ease on previous excursions but there was definitely something strange about it as he looked around. A mile or so down the road they came across an abandoned watchtower, built many years ago when the republic was still a kingdom. In its glory days it would have stood high and proud above the trees, overlooking the land around. The structure was quite ornate and would probably have been manned full time by a group of about twenty to forty guardsmen.

As it stood now the tower looked quite sad. It was in a bad state of disrepair and would be useful to provide a little shelter from the elements but was in no condition to be manned full time. A good view would still be afforded from the top, to anyone brave enough to scramble up the dilapidated masonry. In fact as he looked at it, Nathaniel could make out a path to climb fairly easily to the top. He had visited this tower before, he knew, but for some reason it felt foreign to him. Something about it was not the same as it had been the last time he visited. The captain had caught him looking up the tower and brought his horse alongside him. "Do you see a way up?" he asked, to which Nathaniel nodded. "Are you up to it?" he questioned further, but Nathaniel did not respond and instead jumped off his horse and headed inside the tower.

The base of the tower was surprisingly well intact, however the stairs had long since rotted away and a tree had grown up the centre. This gave Nathaniel his starting point and having removed any unnecessary weight in the form of his armour, hoisted himself into the tree and began to climb. The tree was quite strong and took him up the tower to where the first gash in the side was, where masonry was missing. As he looked up he still had a way to climb and it looked much harder than it had on the ground. He slid his fingers between stones, where the mortar had worn away and managed to climb up to a window ledge where he stopped to rest and observe his route up higher.

Somehow plants had taken a hold higher up also and pulling on a vine to test its strength it pulled straight out of the wall and brought some small stones crashing down below. "Careful Nathaniel!" came the call of Buron below. He was now a little shaken as adrenaline surged through his body but he calmed himself and after a few deep breaths, he continued to ascend using finger holds between the stones. Higher up part of the wall had caved in and he could use it as steps to reach the upper tier of the tower but he could see no easy way to reach it from where he was now stood. The only thought that crossed his mind would be to jump for it and pray he did not fail the distance.