🦄 Do you like fantasy?

It was very sad, Rick.Not all great stories have a happy ending.

I really liked this story

The boy’s face crumpled and a sob tore out of him. Because he didn’t want to listen to it, Marrus lifted his bow and released the arrow. He had been aiming for the soldier’s forehead, but somehow the arrow struck the boy through the right side of his chest instead. He slumped onto his side. Cursing, seeing that he wasn’t dead, Marrus bounded forward, unsheathed his dagger, and buried the point of it in the side of the soldier’s head.

The boy shuddered and went entirely limp.

Marrus knelt and cleaned his dagger on the soldier’s jerkin for longer than he needed to, refusing to look up at Alanna. “I had to do it,” he said loudly, as if to a larger audience. “You knew I had to do it. Why did you insist on giving him hope?” Marrus sheathed his dagger and pulled the arrow from the corpse, trudged back up the incline. Alanna had not moved. Her nocked bow hung loosely beside her. Tears were crawling from her bright blue eyes and sliding down her cheeks.

“Our rest is over,” Marrus said, a sudden unreasonable anger at Alanna stirring in his chest. “Let’s go.”

But as he spoke, the corpse of the soldier shifted. Marrus’s first thought was that somehow the boy had survived. His second, introduced by his addled and unrested mind, was that the soldier was back from the dead. But his body remained motionless on the ground. It was another form, translucent and weightless, that rose above the corpse. In the darkness it was shaded and indistinct, but Marrus knew already what form it took.

Then, alit by no source that Marrus could see, the silhouette burst into color. In shape, it was a perfect likeness of the boy Marrus had slain, who still lay lifeless on the ground. But the thing was shimmering, glowing blue and deep red, and the violet eyes were utterly without fear.

“So our rest is definitely over,” Alanna said, raising her bow.

“Don’t,” Marrus warned, lifting his hand. “We can’t harm it.”

They watched as the spirit turned its head slowly, its violet eyes sending shafts of otherworldly brilliance into the darkness and changing little patches of reality—a glowing clump of pine needles; a cerulean fern. It appeared to be taking its bearings. Then its eyes settled directly on Marrus. The gaze was not menacing or revengeful or even accusatory. It was mild, curious.

Floating a few inches above the ground, it drifted toward them. Alanna cursed and loosed her arrow, and the shaft plunged through the spirit’s throat without resistance, whistled bleakly into the night. The spirit did not appear to be angered or amused. It simply shook its head and frowned, and slowly it continued toward them.

Without a word, they drew their swords. Marrus knew that they were helpless, that neither blades nor arrows would save them, but the gesture was one of instinct that he couldn’t help. And somehow he found himself unafraid. An illogical but resolute voice inside him said that the spirit did not mean them harm.

Alanna was possessed of no such assurance. She was breathing quickly and muttering under her breath and she could not seem to hold still, constantly repositioning her sword and kneading its pommel.

The spirit halted five feet away and floated there for perhaps a minute, its expression placid and almost gentle. Then it raised its translucent hand to touch him. A bolt of fear shuddered through Marrus, but he couldn’t seem to find the will to move, and before he could try, the spirit touched Alanna’s check instead.

Alanna uttered a low whimper and her body went rigid. She shook her head once, as if to dispel a troubling thought. “There’s so many of them,” she murmured, while Eldred kneaded his sword and thought about slicing at the spirit, just to show it that he wasn’t afraid. “They’re everywhere.”

Marrus didn’t ask Alanna what she meant.

The spirit turned and drifted away, and Marrus thought it would leave them for good. But instead it floated back to the corpse of the boy and hovered over it, staring, a shivering kaleidoscope of unnatural color.

“Marrus,” Alanna said. “I’m seeing everybody. They’re all waiting. They’d be happy to see us.”

“I don’t know,” Marrus said, and it seemed that his voice was stretching, elongating. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

And the spirit watched them.

“Let me show you,” Alanna said, and she took his hand.

Then, in the following instant, Marrus saw.

The crater before him was suddenly filled with shimmering violet light. Thousands of spirits filled it, their red and blue hues fading eventually into oblivion, staring up him with expressions he couldn’t quite understand—were they sad? Lonely? Bored?

And suddenly directly in front of him were the lighted faces of people he recognized. The soldier was there, smiling. And the faces of other men he’d slain, of their wives who had wasted away with grief, their children who had starved. And the visages of those he had loved, the faces of his mother and father and little sister, and vividly Marrus was seeing once again the ash that had swirled up from their little house while he watched from far away and begged whatever god there was to give him more courage.

“We’re all here, son,” his father said.

“No,” Marrus croaked. He let go of Alanna’s hand and reality splashed back over him. For a moment he entertained the hope that everything had been some kind of dream, or trance. But the spirit was still there, watching them.

“They’re waiting for us,” Marrus said to Alanna, and put his arm around her. He drew them closer to the edge of the crater.

Alanna seemed barely to have heard him. She shook her head faintly but walked with him toward the crater’s edge. “Are we going to them?”

“Why not!” Marrus said, tears lancing from his eyes. “Why not go to them!”

Alanna took hold of his arm. “But we’re still here.”

“Do you think? Do you think so?”

They walked right up to the edge of the crater, and even from that distance there was no piercing the pond of blackness that filled it. Convinced for one ridiculous moment that the darkness actually was tangible, Marrus dipped his foot into it, expecting to find rock or sticky black syrup. Instead his foot dipped into nothing, and he teetered. Marrus’s balance was good, but today something went wrong—his fatigue, or some secret magnetic potency of the inky black below him. He fell.

Then Alanna was on her stomach and her fingers were locked through his, the tendons in her forearms trembling, and Marrus’s feet were standing on only air, and a great consummate terror, a mind-numbing desire not to join them, replaced his every other conscious thought.

And then finally he was lying on his back on the cold earth and his chest was heaving and Alanna was gulping back huge sobs of fear, and still the spirit was watching them.

Marrus turned his head toward it. “Go,” he said. “Please.”

And the spirit turned and floated away. Marrus watched it go. It was visible for some time, lowering with the descending escarpment, moving at the speed a man might run. Then it turned and floated over the crater as if the darkness within really were solid. Further and further it went, like some strange bioluminescent fly, blue and red and dark shimmering violet. Finally it halted and sank down into the black. Its strange light blinked out, and around Marrus and Alanna everything was dark and entirely quiet. 🦄 

That is true, Rick.  So much of the past's Science Fiction has become today's reality.  I have to believe, if one can conceive it, it can be done.  Everything started as someones' impossible dream.  Not so many years ago, the thought of sending one's voice or pictures over a wire or through the air was just someone's impossible dream that is now a reality in almost every home on earth.  We've just got to keep on dreaming our impossible dreams

Fox is brave and hopefully survives the next chapter

Hmm ... I am happy to move on to the next story

Morvah was falling behind her lover – she was heavy with child. They had been walking for hours through the dense forest looking for a suitable site to start their new life. Morvah was very young; she wore her long brown hair in plaits. She was dressed in a gown that dragged through the mud and constantly caught under her feet. The thick mud sucked at her feet and covered her sandals, making it hard to walk without slipping. She had a cloak wrapped round her shoulders; this did not shield her from the elements and her body was hunched over trying to keep herself warm from the heavy rain and constant wind. Her face was pale and raw from the rain and wind; her eyes almost shut.

Her lover Norvik, was a tall, well-built man, borne from years of hard labour. He was much older than her.

“I can’t go on anymore Norvik!” she shouted.

Norvik retraced his steps and went and held her.

“There is not much further to go my love, I am sure there is a stream up there, I can smell the water in the air.” 

“There is definitely water in the air, loads of it, will it ever stop raining!”

“There is not far to go, trust me, besides, we need to get as deep as we can into the forest, then there is less chance they will find us.”

They carried on. He walked by her side, with his arm round her trying to help her along. There were many twigs and large pieces of branch that had been blown down, strewn over the forest floor; they had to wade through the thick undergrowth, sometimes in a crouched position to be able to get through. The twisted branches pierced every part of their body and scratched their faces and hands.

Eventually the rain and wind ceased. The sun rose and warmed the forest air. The sun light pierced the thick canopy – droplets of rain sparkled on the ends of leaves.

“The sun is coming out Norvik, it is getting warmer, can we rest a while?”

“Of course my love, let’s sit here,” and he helped her down onto a large tree stump.

“Is there any water left?”

“There’s not much, that’s why we need to find the stream,” and he handed her the remainder of the water.

They both sat and were lost in the beauty of the forest. Everything now came to life: the leaves were a lush green of all different shades and sizes; the birds were singing their many different melodies that cheered the soul; a damp musty smell prevailed.

“This is beautiful, can you hear the birds singing, can we make our home here?” she asked.

“No we need to find the stream, so we can have fresh water, it won’t be far now, I can tell by the contour of the land that we will soon come to it.”

“We are going to be safe Norvik?”

“Yes my love, I promise you we will be safe and our baby will have the whole forest to run around!” He laughed and Morvah forced out a laugh, but she was exhausted, her legs ached terribly from the walking and she also had a chill.

They continued to walk. The sun soothed and warmed their cold and damp bodies. Morvah started to feel better and felt her strength come back. She took courage from the trees. They were huge and their roots went deep into the ground. They had been there for hundreds of years and had lived through the elements and suffered much hardship but they kept standing protecting the forest and protecting her she thought. She had always felt a positive energy around trees – her worries would leave her and drain down deep into the ground like the roots of the tree. She thought back to when she was a little child and being shouted at by her over-bearing father – she had ran into the forest and sat leaning against an old tree and looking up at its thick trunk which seemed to reach for miles into the sky.

She stopped and went and hugged the tree in her path.

“In the name of the divine gods I ask that all bad energy goes down into Mother Earth where it will be turned into love and light.”

She closed her eyes and felt her mind become free of bad thoughts and her body felt light.

“What are you doing, come on we need to keep moving, we need to find the stream before it gets dark!”

“I am blessing this tree and asking for positive energy and good health from the divine tree God.”

“You do talk nonsense sometimes Morvah, will you hurry up we need to the find the stream!”

He raced ahead. He always did that when he was annoyed. The gap widened between them.

“Norvik! Don’t sulk, I hate it when you do that, don’t walk so fast!”

She felt a contraction in her tummy, she stopped very briefly and looked down at her large bump and rubbed it. When she looked up Norvik was nowhere to be seen.

“Norvik! Where are you!”

She decided to stop, she was feeling tired again. She would wait here and rest. Norvik would have to come back for her, she thought. Before long she slipped into a deep sleep. She awoke and she could hear the sound of running water. She pulled herself up and went towards where the sound was coming from. Before long, she had found the source. There was a waterfall and grey slippery rocks that ascended high to the forest roof. The water cascaded over the edge of the rocks where it crashed into the little pool. She cupped her hands and drank from it. The water was so fresh. She patted her face and her head with the water, which felt invigorating. She turned to get back on the path and an old man with a long white beard and dressed in a black cloak was standing in her way.  Stay tuned.  🦄

“Oh you made me jump! Who are you?” she asked.

“I am expecting you, please come follow me.”

“Where is Norvik, he is my lover.”

“Please come with me, I have food and I will explain everything.”

The old man walked off and Morvah followed. She walked behind the figure in black, cautiously keeping her distance. The old man walked with ease through the thick undergrowth, as though he was guided by some unseen force, she thought to herself. A strong aura surrounded the outline of the man’s shape. A peace prevailed, that she had never felt before. She felt the trees were bending over – their long branches protecting the two like giant arms. In very little time they arrived in a large clearing with an old wooden shack with a straw roof. There was a large pen outside where chickens and pigs roamed. Morvah hesitated.

“Please come inside, I will not hurt you.”

She followed the old man inside. The large solid oak table was covered in food – chicken legs, pork, bread, potatoes and fruits of many different colours that she had not seen before.

“I was expecting you, please help yourself.”

Morvah picked up a chicken leg and began to ravish it, she was very hungry. At the same time, in her other hand, she grabbed a large piece of bread. The old man sat down and observed the girl. After a while when she was full she also sat down opposite the old man.

“Please tell me where Norvik is, I have to find him, he also needs food,” her mouth glistened from the grease.

“I am sorry, there is no one else in this forest. You were alone when I found you.”

“But it is impossible, I have come here with Norvik and then we got separated.”

“Listen to me Morvah, you need to know the truth. Norvik was killed by your family. They banished you.”

“But I walked through the forest with him, I spoke to him!”

“That was me my dear. The only way I could bring you here was for me to transpose myself in place of Norvik. That way you would follow me thinking that it was him.”

Morvah began to cry.

“So Norvik is dead?”

“Yes my dear.”

“Who will look after my child!”

“You will Morvah.”

“But I am very young, I can’t look after a child!”

“Listen to me Morvah and listen carefully. I had a vision that a young girl with baby would come to me and she would learn the magic of the forest and take over when I die, which is not too far away. I am very old and I have not got long left on this earth. I will teach you everything you need to know to survive in this forest and be in tune with the trees and the animals. Learn from them as well, and you will live for a very long time just like the trees and be able to help all those that come here seeking cures for their many ills. Your boy will grow up and he will be strong and healthy. At the age of sixteen you must send him on his way because he has his own destiny.”

And so the old man taught Morvah everything he knew and then he passed away. She remained in the forest with her son.

Like any new mother, she found motherhood very hard, her baby would scream constantly, even though she had just fed him with the milk from her breast. She could not understand why the baby kept crying.

“What is wrong, you can’t still be hungry, I am drained of all milk!”

She heard a voice in her head, “go to the trees,” so she wrapped the baby in a shawl and carried him deep into the forest where the large trees stood. She went and sat down at the base of the tree and rocked her baby in her hands.

“In the name of the divine gods, please take away my baby’s anguish.”

Before long, the baby was asleep – its face smooth and peaceful.

As her baby grew into a boy, the two became an inseparable bond. They were both very happy. They would go for long walks together and bless the trees and seek advice and positive energy from them.

“Mother, where do I come from?” her boy asked one day, his young, innocent face hid a mind that was thirsty for knowledge.

“We come from a proud people that owned much land.”

“Why did you end up in this forest, all on your own?”

“I was sent away, when I became pregnant. Your father was from another country that my people hated, so they killed him.”

The boy’s face was lost in thought.

“Why did they kill him just because he was from another country?”

“Like the trees in the forest, people are all different, but they are all born with the same heart which is good, it is only through fear and ignorance that people become bad.”

Eventually the day came when she had to let her son go. The love was such a strong bond between them that they were never apart. Even when her son was not with her, she could still feel him.

Her son became a great philosopher, and eventually chief advisor to the King of England. One day Morvah spoke to him inside his head and told him he needed to come back home. So he set off and was guided by her to follow the exact path that they both took many, many years ago. When he finally reached the old shack he found her laying on her bed. She looked peaceful with a faint smile fixed on her face – her eyelids gently closed. Her long grey plaited hair lay around her pillow.   The End   🦄

What you are doing is much more important than posting in here, Foxy ... saving an extra month of rent is very important