The Woodlands

It was exactly what the name suggested: a massive forest spanning miles. To the outsiders-mainly humans-it was referred to as Dolar Woods. Named after the human who discovered it... and subsequently never returned when a moving tree swatted at him as if he were a rat.

To the inhabitants it was simply known as the Woodlands. It did not need a more precise title. The one forest was the epicenter of their existence and everything else was superfluous. The strange and wondrous beings of the mighty forest assumed there was nothing of value beyond their domain. None of them had ever willingly left, nor had any of them ever tried. There was no point in leaving when everything they ever desired was there.

One such species that lived in the Woodlands were the nymphs. All beings of the forest were closely connected to the Nature Goddess, but none were as close as the two forest spirits: nymphs and dryads. These beings heard the whispers of trees as the wind blew their branches and, under the utmost of exceptional circumstances, could look upon the Goddess if she chose to show herself. Most never had that privilege, and the few who claimed they had were usually thought to be fibbing.

Nymphs bore resemblance to humans in many ways. They were shorter than humans with most reaching only just over four feet. The males were indistinguishable from the females, with both genders appearing androgynous in the eyes of the other beings in the Woodlands. All nymphs had flowing white hair and an even paler complexion. They quite easily blended into the petals of the cherry trees or mist caused by the constantly moist atmosphere.

Upon a long arm of the oldest willow tree in the Woodlands rested one such nymph. His name was Neem. Although he was like all other nymphs, future events would set him on a course that none of his kind had ever been on.

Neem, like all other nymphs, wore little. Nymphs were attuned to the cool temperature of the forest so clothes were not needed for keeping warm. The only garment Neem wore was a loincloth-woven of white string-for modesty, and even then, he sometimes did not wear that if he was just among other nymphs.

He also wore a crocheted necklace that looked like a beaded spider web as the strings ran around his neck, then draped over his shoulders, and finally interlocked with his bracelets. He had crafted the accessories himself, as was custom. All nymphs designed their own neck accessories to make them unique. All nymphs designed their own, unique neck accessories to allow other creatures of the forest to distinguish between them.

"Neem?" a low, soft voice whispered.

The little nymph's green eyes popped open and were met with a pair of dark brown eyes staring back. He smiled when he recognised the mighty dryad looming over him. Although he was high in a tree, the dryad stood at eye-level with the surrounding tree tops.

"Jaiya!" he squeaked cheerfully and wrapped his arms around her neck to draw her into a hug.

He ignored the coarse bark rubbing against his soft, little arms.

The dryad, being designed in the image of the Goddess, had beautiful, dark brown skin below even darker bark. Her antler-like branches were so large that they became tangled in the willow tree as she leaned down to hug the nymph, but she ignored that minor problem.

"Are you all right?" Neem asked in a concerned manner.

He saw the uncertainty in her eyes.

"Have you not sensed it?" she asked, cocking her head to the side with a creaking sound.

Neem imitated the movement due to his own confusion.

"Something has come from the south," she explained. "The trees have sensed it. It's something... unnatural. Something that isn't from the Woodlands."

Neem's eyes widened. The explanation only confused him more.

"The water spirits says it's been following the Nacta River. We need to warn as many other beings as possible to stay away from it until it leaves."

"If it leaves," Neem thought aloud.

"It will leave," Jaiya assured him. "Whether by choice or by the Goddess destroying it, it will leave."

Neem nodded. He hoped Jaiya was right, for everyone's sake. Foreigners did pass through the forest on rare occasion–but they were unwelcomed. What lay beyond the Woodlands did not concern the forest folk, but they did not like outsiders entering their land and tainting it.

"Is it another human?" Neem asked. He hated humans. They tried to cut down trees from the forest to use as timber, but the dryads generally were able to make them flee back to where they came from. "Or maybe a wolf?"

"I cannot stay," the dryad said. "It is dangerous regardless."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Neem asked in a panicked tone. "We must warn the other creatures to stay away!"

Before the dryad could say any more, the little nymph climbed down the willow tree and dashed deep into the forest, searching for fellow nymphs to help him get the word out about the unknown danger. Jaiya had to chuckle. Neem was well over a hundred years old yet acted so juvenile.

Alerting the other creatures in the forest about the unknown danger was an easier task than expected. If the thing continued to follow to the Nacta River it would be gone within a week. Everything would be fine providing the other beings of the forest stayed clear of that river.

"We should kill it!" a pixie squeaked upon receiving the news from Neem.

The little creature was no more than two feet-hardly a threat to a thing with unknown magical abilities.

"The Goddess would not approve. You know that," Neem warned. "She will remove it herself, should the thing become an issue.

The little pixie's pointy ears drooped before it let out a "humph" and scurried away.

"Neem!" came a familiar voice.

Neem turned to see a nymph coming toward him. It was his friend-sometimes lover-that approached.

"Fee!" he exclaimed, but not in his usual cheerful manner due to the stress he was feeling.

For the female nymph, there was no time for greetings so she got right into it: "There's an old centaur drinking from Nacta where mermaid rock is. Lilac and Numi tried to get him to leave, but he swatted them away, and the trees say the thing is heading his way!" she squealed in one breath.

Neem froze as he pondered over what to do. Centaurs were always stubborn-especially old centaurs.

"I'll go get him," he said boldly.

Fee shook her head rapidly.

"But the foreigner!"

"I'll be gone before it even reaches mermaid rock," he assured her.

There was a lovely harmony among all creatures under the Goddess' watch. Their communal values were clearly demonstrated in dangerous times like this. All of them respected the commands of the forest spirits to stay away from the Nacta River-all of them except this old centaur.

It took Neem quite a few minutes to reach the river even though he was running as fast as his legs could carry him. He was not sure how close the foreigner was to mermaid rock, but he had to assume they were extremely close if the trees were raising alert.

Oh yes, he thought as he saw the old centaur, this does look like the kind of centaur who would be stubborn. Tail full of knots, hooves full of stones. Yes, this was a stubborn centaur.

"Pardon me," Neem said politely.

The centaur did not respond; he had not heard the nymph.

Neem made the wise decision to only approach so far. He knew better than to be within kicking range of a startled centaur. The worst thing he could do was try to touch the creature as it stared out at the Nacta River.

As expected, the old centaur jumped when he saw the nymph and made a whinny sound.

"Good Goddess!" he barked. Neem watched his white beard twitch as he talked. "I've had just about enough of you young folks trying to deny me a simple drink at the river."

Neem had expected the centaur would react like this.

"You must leave," the nymph said loudly to ensure the centaur would hear. "A foreigner is coming right this way. They will kill you if you're in their path."

The centaur let out a snort and stomped his hoof.

"Foreigner, eh? Send them here. I'll show them a piece of my mind."

"The trees have said this foreigner has magical abilities, but he's not been blessed with magic by the Goddess. This foreigner uses dark magic."

The centaur stopped being haughty for a moment to think over what Neem was saying.

"Navu is only a few miles away," he continued. "Get your drink there, but please, please leave this river right now."

The centaur let out a gruff snort and, without another word, trotted slowly back into the forest. Neem sighed a breath of relief. He was worried they would be bickering right up until the foreigner arrived and killed them. The centaur had turned away the little fairies that tried to warn him, but it was harder to deny a forest spirit-downright blasphemous, actually.

Neem stood there for a few seconds to scan the area. He did not see the foreigner; no dark clouds on the horizon signalled the trespassers arrival. He just wanted to see the foreigner so he knew what he and his friends were dealing with.

He got his wish.

Neem groaned in an exasperated manner when he heard the crunching of leaves behind him. He assumed that old centaur had returned after changing his mind about leaving.

"For the love of the Godde–" he was in the middle of saying before he choked on his words.

Frozen with fear, Neem could not do anything as he stared at the tall figure in front of him.

Without a doubt it was the foreigner. For one thing: his entire body was covered from head to toe in black clothing which was something no creature of the forest did. The hood of his cloak made it impossible to see his eyes, but his mouth could just barely be seen.

"I didn't mean to frighten you," the foreigner said calmly.

The nymph wanted to speak, but when the foreigner took another step towards him he took three steps back and unwittingly fell into the river. The cool water certainly helped wake him up and bring him back to reality.

This human's going to kill me, the little nymph realised. Because he was certainly a human, but a human who had dark magic abilities? That was something unheard of.

He was surprised when a gloved hand reached into the water and grabbed his arm. Neem could swim, but he had refused to resurface out of fear for what the foreigner would do to him when he did.

"Get away, get away!" Neem shrieked as he was pulled back to shore.

The foreigner let go of him instantly, obviously startled by the nymph's shrieking.

Neem crawled away from the man before standing up and trying to regain his composure. He hoped no creatures of the forest had heard him scream or they could come running and get in as much trouble as he was.

"Would you believe me if I said I don't want to hurt you?" the foreigner chuckled.

Neem spat some water out of his mouth.

"You're a human, of course you want to hurt me," Neem muttered shakily.

The foreigner laughed again.

"You think I'm human? Interesting."

Neem's pointy ears perked up.

"Yes, and humans are not welcome here," he stated, feeling more bold.

"Well," the foreigner began while grabbing his hood with one hand, "would I be more welcome if I wasn't human?"

The man's full face was revealed. He skin was almost as dark as a dryad's but a different shade of brown. His whole complexion was dark for that matter. Peering through the strands of his black hair were equally dark eyes. These were not the traits Neem immediately took note of, however. No, his attention was initially directed toward the foreigner's curled, black horns He was definitely not just a human.

The smug look on his face suggested he thought the nymph would be more shocked, yet Neem only looked intrigued rather than fearful. He hated humans, but he had no idea what this creature was.

After ogling for a few seconds, the nymph quickly shook his head.

"You must leave," he said firmly. "You're not welcome here, whatever you are. We don't like dark magic."

"Understood," the foreigner said with a slow nod. "I am on a journey and just passing through. I will be gone soon enough. However, I must ask if I may have some fruit from the trees or any other kind of food-I have run out of my own rations."

Neem shook his head.

"No. The trees will not allow a foreigner to pick their fruit."

The man gave a disappointed nod.

"Perhaps, since I am trespassing, I should be giving you something rather than taking. May I offer you a little token with the promise that I will not take or taint anything in the forest and, in return, receive safe travel through here?"

Neem did not answer and continued to just stare at the man as he rummaged through his satchel. After a moment he pulled out a beautiful shell of many colours.

"I would assume coinage is not the currency here, so perhaps you would like this seashell for jewellery purposes," he explained while holding out the large shell. "After all, you seem like a... boy who enjoys accessorising. I can guarantee you'll be the only one in the forest wearing this."

The nymph wanted to take the beautiful shell, he really did, but he knew it would be wrong.

"I can't promise you safe travel through the Woodlands. If the Nature Goddess condemns you then there's nothing I can do."

"Then I only request that you promise the other creatures in this forest won't harm me, just as I won't harm them. If the Nature Goddess condemns me... well, so be it."

He gestured again for Neem to take the shell. This time the nymph did so.

"No forest creature will harm you, but you must leave the Woodlands as soon as possible."

"Understood."

Before anything more could be said, Neem scurried off into the forest. His heart was beating so fast that he thought it would burst through his chest.

Did I really just speak to a foreigner? he thought as he ran. How am I even alive after speaking to a foreign magical being?

He was afraid of the man, but also intrigued by him. Neem wanted the trespasser gone as soon as possible but also wanted to learn more about him-how could something that looked like a human have horns?

All the other creatures were quite shocked when Neem returned-unharmed-with a strange shell in his hand. Some feared the thing was cursed, but most just liked its beautiful colours.

"Where's he going?" Fee asked.

Night had fallen and therefore Neem and Fee, along with the other nymphs, had ventured to where they usually slept at night: mossy rocks surrounding a pond.

"It doesn't matter," Neem replied bluntly. "Providing he's going away from here, then he can go wherever he wants."

The drained female nymph watched in a lulling manner as he carefully dug a hole through the tip of the shell using a sharp rock. She and the others had prodded him to join in the fun earlier, yet he had refused. He had actually moved further from the saturnalia when one nymph had pinched his buttocks teasingly. Feeling bad, she came to sit with him afterwards.

Neem attached it via string to the rest of his neck accessory. He knew it was wrong to wear a shell from a foreign land, but it was just so pretty that he could not resist.

Fee got up onto her arms to get a better look. She stuck out her hand and stroked the shell. It was exciting how it sparkled under the light of the moon and fireflies in the air.

"He said he doesn't have any food," Neem finally said with a sigh. "And if it takes about a week to reach the end of the forest then he might not make it out at all. I told him that he couldn't take any fruit or other food from the Woodlands so I'm not sure what he'll do."

The female nymph looked up at the magenta tinted moon as she thought.

"Has the Goddess given you any signs about what to do?" she finally asked.

Neem shook his head.

"She has said nothing."

"Well, until she gives you a sign, you must go with your gut feeling."

He sighed-he did not like what his gut feeling was telling him to do.

"I don't want him to starve to death because of me," he admitted.

Fee nodded in understanding.

"Then you know what you should do."

"Yes... I do."

Neem carried seven pears in his arms as he headed for the Nacta River. He was sure he would be able to find the horned being quite quickly. It was nightfall and he would probably be resting. Yet a part of Neem wished he would not find the man-he was still quite afraid of him.

The nymph's blood boiled when he saw an orange light flickering through the trees.

He's made a fire, he thought. He cut down a tree and burned it!

"What did I say about taking from the forest?" he growled as he pushed through the bush and to the river bank.

Much to his surprise, no wood was being burned. The flame was right in the palm of the foreigner's hand as he leaned against tree. In his lap were thin white sheets bound together by a dark cover-it was something Neem had never seen before.

The little nymph gasped when he witnessed the magical fire. It was unquestionably the product of dark magic. Upon seeing the nymph's reaction, the man closed his fist, snuffing the flame instantly.

"I..." Neem squeaked before his words drifted off.

The foreigner's dark eyes met with his, but then drifted down to the pears he carried in his arms and then back up to the shell that was now attached to his neck accessory. He smiled upon seeing this.

"Good evening," he said calmly while closing the case with strange white sheets in it.

Neem just stood there for a few moments. He felt so conflicted about his decision to give the foreigner food. Was this man evil? The fact he could create fire in his hand would suggest so.

"Are you all right?" the foreigner asked, sitting up properly.

"Um," was all the little nymph could get out.

Unable to form words, he merely gestured to the pears in his arms and then looked back to the foreigner.

"Are those for me?" he asked to try and help the smaller being along.

Neem thought for a moment and then nodded. He cautiously took a step towards the other man.

"How very kind of you," the foreigner said sincerely while standing up.

Neem froze. He forgot that the other man over-towered him. Without proper lighting, he was just a giant shadow with horns.

"Thank you very much," the foreigner said as Neem dropped the pears into his sack. "I find this sort of hospitality incredibly rare."

"Why?" Neem asked before he even thought about his question in his head.

The foreigner laughed and pointed at his horns.

"What's wrong with your horns?"

The foreigner took a seat again, Neem cautiously copied his movement and sat cross-legged on the river bank.

"You really don't know what I am, do you?" the foreigner asked.

"You're a man with horns," the nymph stated simply.

"True. Say, do you know what fauns are?"

Neem shook his head.

The foreigner leaned closer to him, causing Neem to lean back.

"Part man, part goat, all powerful. You're fortunate to not know of fauns."

"You're 'all powerful'?" the nymph asked before swallowing fearfully.

"No," he assured him. "I'm a mongrel: half-faun and half-man."

"So you are a human!"

"Half-human, yes... but that's not human enough for humans."

"Why not?"

"They're sort of like the Woodland creatures: my abilities scare them. Fauns are dangerous–they love to cause chaos with their powers. Let's just say the horns don't help prove my innocence given their association with fauns."

Neem shifted back.

"Are you dangerous?"

"No. I can promise you that."

The nymph nodded even though he was not reassured. Realising this, the foreigner quickly changed the topic: "May I ask what your name is?"

Should I tell him? The nymph thought. Will he send his faun friends here to kill me?

To break the silence that followed, the foreigner spoke first.

"My name is Dacen."

He politely stuck out his hand to Neem-a gesture the nymph did not understand.

"Could you read my mind to find my name?" Neem asked. He wanted to know exactly how much power this supposed 'mongrel' had.

Dacen laughed.

"Probably not, but I wouldn't anyways."

"Why not?"

"Because it's not right for me to know your name if you don't want to tell it to me."

Are you being so charming just to break down my defence, Neem thought sceptically.

"My name is Neem," he finally muttered.

I better not regret this, he thought.

Dacen smiled, revealing his pearly white teeth... some of which looked rather sharp.

"What a lovely name."

More dead air spread between the two. However, the nymph was beginning to feel more comfortable around the foreigner. Dacen did not appear to have malevolent intentions.

He"s definitely better than a human...even if he is human,

"Dacen," Neem said, trying to taste the name. He said it wrong–pronouncing the 'e' as 'i'-but Dacen did not correct him. "Why are you travelling through the Woodlands in the first place?"

The foreigner tapped the strange thing in his hands.

"Months ago, a raven brought this book to me along with a letter. A warlock had learned of my existence... and my power. The letter read that he was looking for an apprentice, and that he"d be happy to take me under his wing." Neem now imagined that this so-called 'warlock' had massive wings. "He lives somewhere beyond the Woodlands in what's called the 'Ivy Mountains', so that is where I'm heading."

"You'd leave your home and all your friends just because of some warlock guy?" Neem asked, utterly repulsed. He could never leave the Woodlands-why would anybody ever leave home?

Dacen laughed again, but this time there was sadness in his eyes.

"Well, I had no home or friends to leave behind in the first place," he explained with a solemn manner. "You see, I'm a nomad."

"A what?"

"A wanderer. Someone who never rests anywhere too long. Always travelling."

"That sounds like a terrible life!"

The foreigner shrugged.

"Well, it's my life. Hopefully I'll have a much longer stay with the warlock."

Another silence followed. Neem wanted to know so much but he was not sure where to start. He began simple.

"What's that?" he said while gesturing to what was in Dacen's lap.

The taller man looked down before making an 'ah' sound. He held the strange thing up.

"It's a book."

"What's it do?"

"Well, it makes words last longer. It's like having a conversation with someone else, even if they're not with you or died in former times."

Dacen turned the book around and opened it up so Neem could see. The nymph could not understand what all the strange, tiny symbols were, but the picture on one of the pages intrigued him. It appeared to be a drawing of a creature, with many horns, eating humans.

"What are the words in this book about?" Neem asked, slightly concerned.

"Spells, alchemy, things that will enhance my magical abilities."

"Dark magic," the nymph said more to himself than to the stranger.

"Misunderstood magic," Dacen objected while still retaining a calm tone. "Magic that could be incredibly dangerous in the wrong hands."

"Is it in good hands with you?"

"I hope so."

That's not very reassuring, Neem thought while furrowing his brow.

He crawled closer to the foreigner and rested his shoulder against the tree so that they could continue to look at the book together.

"What's being talked about here?" he asked while pointing to the tiny symbols underneath a picture of a beast he had never seen before.

"The blood of a winged serpent," he explained. "Very rare and hard to get, but invaluable."

Neem's stomach felt funny. The idea of using a creature's blood for dark magic disturbed him.

"I don't get how you understand all those tiny drawings," he said while gesturing to the symbols on the page.

"That's the written word. Here, let me show you."

Neem flipped to the end of the book before pulling a feather and bottle filled with black liquid out of his pack.

"Neem, that's your name," he said while dipping the tip of the feather in the tiny vial. "N-E-E-M," he enunciated while writing the coinciding letter in the book. "See? That's your name. I've taken the word out of the air and put it in this book."

Neem cocked his head from side to side as he examined the funny symbols that made up his name.

"Write your name," he demanded.

The foreigner laughed and did as he was told.

"D-A-C-E-N... oh, blast," he grumbled when an ink drop splattered on his breeches. Yes, they were black as well, but the stain would still be noticeable to those who looked closely.

Neem's eyes darted between the two names.

"Wait, those symbols are the same!" he squeaked while gesturing to the E's in their names.

"Yes. That's 'E'."

"But shouldn't each name be unique? We can't share symbols."

"Names are unique, but it's not the letters that make them that way-it's the way the letters are arranged to represent sounds. If I turned the letters in your name around we'd have 'Meen'. M-E-E-N. It's the exact same letters that are in your name, but the arrangement makes it a different name."

"That's stupid," Neem said, followed by huffing.

Dacen chuckled again. He found Neem's bluntness amusing.

They continued to talk for the next hour. The nymph no longer felt uncomfortable around the foreigner. He did not seem threatening. In fact, he was quite friendly. More importantly, though, he was interesting. He had seen many things beyond the Woodlands.

"How can there be so many places?" Neem asked with a sigh after Dacen explained how many other forests he had ventured through.

"Efenta is very large," the foreigner agreed.

"What's that? Another place?"

"Efenta is this world. It encompasses all other places."

The nymph stared at him for a few seconds before flopping down and staring up at the stars through the trees.

"You've made my head hurt. Stop telling me crazy things."

Dacen followed his lead and laid on his back next to him.

"Hey, you asked."

Silence followed.

"Does hearing about all these places make you want to leave the Woodlands and explore?" the foreigner asked curiously.

Neem furiously shook his head.

"No, there's too much."

"And there's even more that I haven't explored-imagine that."

"Hush!" the nymph snapped. He wanted to sound threatening, but he could see that Dacen was suppressing a laugh.

"Well, I –"

"Hush!" he repeated, but this time it was for a different reason; he had heard rustling in the bushes.

"Stay put," he warned Dacen as he rose to a crouch and crept in the direction of the sound.

To his surprise, he found Fee sitting high up in a tree.

"What are you doing here?" he whispered as he climbed the tree to meet her.

She met him halfway down the trunk. Her expression suggested she was concerned.

"You were gone quite a while. I thought maybe the alien had killed you or something."

Neem snorted, but he was also honoured that Fee cared enough for his safety that she would come and check on him.

"I'm fine, don't worry."

"He did not try to hurt you?"

"Certainly not," he quickly objected.

"Do you think he will try to?"

Neem's mouth twitched-he was not sure how to answer that, yet.

"I haven't known him very long. He's acting very friendly, but he could be faking it. I've seen the pictures in his 'book.' They are pictures of blood and pain."

"So when our backs are turned he could burn down the whole Woodlands," Fee added.

"Which means, yes. He's still a potential threat."

"Then what are you going to do?"

Neem thought for a few seconds.

"I'm going to be his escort to the edge of the Woodlands... to make sure he doesn't do anything evil."

Fee did not like that idea: "You want to be near this threat?"

"Yes, because I don't want him being near anyone else and hurting them."

"This sounds very dangerous."

"Then I hope that he remains permanently friendly."

"I don't want you to do this, Neem."

"I know, but it's for the best."

They both climbed down from the tree.

"He acts friendly," Neem muttered once they were both on the ground, "but when I saw him tonight he had a flame in his hand."

"Was he burning a stick?"

"No. He had conjured fire with his dark magic."

Fee's ears perked up upon hearing this.

"And that's why I have to escort him through the forest: to make sure he doesn't do things like that."

The female nymph hugged him.

"Please be careful."

"The Goddess will protect me."

Fee nodded, although there was doubt in her eyes.

"Get back to the other nymphs and tell them I'll be back two weeks or so."

"Two weeks? That's a very long time."

"I'm going to the edge of the forest and back. That's about a week each way."

With one last hug, she was gone.

Neem re-joined Dacen shortly after his friend's departure.

"What was the noise?" the foreigner asked while continuing to stare at the stars.

"Just a curious creature," Neem stated simply.

He lay down a safe distance from Dacen. The leaves underneath him were not as comfortable as grass or moss, but that did not bother him.

"Rest now, we're going to be nonstop walking tomorrow," the nymph said as he rolled over to face the foreigner.

Dacen raised an eyebrow.

"We?"

"Yes. I'm escorting you to the edge of the Woodlands so I can ensure you don't cause any havoc."

The man laughed. Obviously he had not been expecting that answer.

"All right, then," he said with an amused smile. "Sleep well, Neem."

Neem said nothing more. He was exhausted seeing as his usual bedtime was hours ago.

Neem awoke as droplets of water began to speckle his body. It was spring so morning showers were expected. He was usually quite sheltered from storms when he was deep within the Woodlands, but the foliage began to dissipate near the Nacta River so he lay exposed.

He was surprised when a heavy garment was draped over his small frame. The material was nice and warm, but more importantly, it protected him from the rain.

The little nymph lifted the edge of the garment slightly so he could see what Dacen was doing. The foreigner sat back down, his cloak now absent, and took a bite out of one of the pears Neem had given him.

"You'll get wet," Neem mumbled.

Dacen looked at him.

"I thought you were asleep. Didn't want the rain to wake you."

Neem sat up, allowing the cloak to slide down his body.

"Did the rain wake you?"

Dacen shook his head.

"I've been up for an hour or so."

The nymph squinted one of his eyes suspiciously.

Just been watching me sleep and planning my death, have you?

Neem did not actually say this. The last thing he wanted was to antagonise the strange man.

"Can't you just make the rain stop with your dark magic powers?" he asked in a joking manner.

Dacen wore a smug smile as he cocked an eyebrow.

"Do you want me to use my powers to stop the rain?"

"No. The Goddess wouldn't like that. Rain is good."

The horned man nodded. He knew very little about the Nature Goddess and questioned if she was a mythical deity or actually real, yet that was not something he was about to bring up with Neem.

The nymph threw the cloak in Dacen's direction, but it was so heavy that it landed halfway between them.

"We should get moving," he then stated. "I want you to reach the end of the Woodlands within a week."

"Understood," Dacen replied as he reached for his cloak. "Are you sure you'll be all right walking out in the rain? Perhaps we should move a little deeper into the forest so that our journey is more sheltered."

"No. The rain is fine."

The foreigner was not convinced. Already the water had darkened Neem's hair. Dacen assumed his kind were slightly more adapted to the cold atmosphere seeing as the nymph had not even developed goose bumps. Still, being wet and cold was not very fun for anyone, regardless of species.

* * *

The rain continued to fall as the pair trudged on. Again Dacen offered the little nymph his cloak, but Neem refused. For all he knew the cloak had an evil charm on it.

"So now you know that I am part man and part faun," Dacen finally said. They had been walking in silence and he wanted to pierce the dead air with his words, "however, you haven't told me what you are. You are perhaps some sort of elf?"

Neem stopped hopping across the rocks on the bank and gave the foreigner a confused look. He had no idea what an elf was, but he certainly did not like being confused with one.

"I'm a nymph: one of the two breeds of forest spirits designed by the Nature Goddess."

"A nymph, you say? Funny. The other nymphs I've seen are quite different."

"What 'other nymphs'?"

"Ones from other places. The nymphs from the far west are shorter, dark skinned, and have sharp teeth like wolves."

"Whoever they are, they are not nymphs. The Goddess designed only one type of nymph and they're only here in the Woodlands!" Neem boldly stated while crossing his arms.

Dacen laughed, irritating Neem more due to the patronising manner. Dacen was young as his looks told. He would not be patronised by someone younger than him.

"And why can't the Goddess design more types of nymphs to watch over all the major forests of Efenta? Surely the Nature Goddess desires to maintain more than just one forest," the foreigner queried.

Neem opened his mouth and raised his finger as if he was going to object, but he could not think of a just argument with which to combat Dacen

"The Woodlands is special," he replied in a childish manner.

"Perhaps your supposed Goddess loves all her forests equally."

Neem glared at him.

"What do you mean by 'supposed'? Do you doubt her existence?"

"Look, I'm not saying your beliefs are wrong nor that the Goddess isn't real, I'm simply saying that I personally don't believe in your deity."

"That's not okay," Neem squeaked. Nobody in the Woodlands had ever questioned the Nature Goddess' existence. "I pray the Goddess has heard you and strikes you down!"

Dacen looked up at the sky before letting out an agitating laugh.

"I suppose there is a chance of lightning,"

Neem continued his death glare.

"Oh, I wish you could see the world I"ve seen," Dacen sighed.

"Why?"

"Because what lies beyond your sanctuary is a cold, cruel reality that will destroy your faith and make you wonder who's really in charge of Efenta."

"I think it would prove that the Goddess does truly only care about the Woodlands," Neem stated smugly as he strode. Dacen's walking pace was much quicker than his own.

"And what kind of deity pampers a few while letting an endless amount of others suffer? How heartless must one be to have no care about who lives and who dies beyond their domain?"

"Why should foreigners concern her? Her duty is to her children in the Woodlands and no one else."

"And that is why she can never be a Goddess of mine," Dacen stated coldly.

He doubts the Goddess, Neem thought. I knew I was right to be his escort. He could try to taint the minds of other creatures with his faithless beliefs.

"I was raised by nox elves in a forest very similar to this one," the foreigner stated, his tone still grim. "It was burned to the ground."

"By whom?" Neem asked. He couldn't imagine anything acting so cruel.

"Humans."

"But why?"

"Because of me–the horned demon that the nox elves were harbouring."

What if the humans come to burn down the Woodlands because of you? Neem thought fearfully.

"You have nothing to fear," Dacen said, reading the boy's mind. "No other foreigners are aware of my presence in the Woodlands. I made sure of that."

"How?"

"By travelling off the beaten path and avoiding villages," he stated simply. "The warlock made it very clear that I couldn't be followed or it could lead to his exposure as well."

Neem thought for a second.

"Do you know anything about this warlock fellow? Do you even know his name?"

Dacen shook his head.

"A very secretive man. He couldn't risk his information finding its way into the hands of an enemy, say, if I were killed and the letter and book stolen."

"Then how can you be sure he's not evil or, let alone, even real?" Neem asked. If Dacen did not even believe in the Goddess then how could he be sure that anything was real?

"Faith," he replied simply. "Utterly blind faith."

"Why? Why travel so far and have faith in this mystery warlock?"

"You guard the forest, the river provides the creatures with water and a place to bathe, some of these trees offer fruit while others offer a place for birds to build their nests. All have a purpose and that's exactly what I desire-a purpose. The warlock may be able to give me a purpose by taking me under his wing. I can absorb all his knowledge and carry on his legacy when the next wayward being with dark magic abilities comes along."

"And what will you do if he doesn't give you a purpose?"

Dacen chuckled again. Neem began to realise this laughing was the foreigner's response to feeling uncomfortable rather than amused.

"I have no idea. I haven't planned for that."

"Then, for your sake, I hope this warlock is real."

"Thank you."

For the following hours, the pair walked in silence. Getting too in-depth would challenge their different philosophies and only cause more arguments. They only spoke again when they stopped to drink from the river.

"What are nox elves?" Neem asked. Dacen had mentioned being raised by them-yet he was not an elf himself.

"Nocturnal beings of the Dark Forest, but now they reside elsewhere," he stated simply. "Their skin is a dark blue like the night sky, while their eyes are shining stars. Truly a beautiful race."

"Why did you live with them?" the nymph asked before lapping up more water. He drank like an animal, while Dacen used a small bowl-like device to retrieve water.

"Well, they found me when I was a baby."

"Where did your parents go?"

The horned man laughed.

"I've made some strong assumptions about who my parents were and what happened. I'm not sure you'd like to hear my hypothesis about them, though."

"Oh, but I would."

Dacen ran a hand through his hair. He stopped when a horn bumped his fingers.

"I believe my human mother was raped by a faun."

Neem started coughing. The water had gone down the wrong pipe upon hearing Dacen's explanation.

"I'm aware that's a bold assumption, but there has never been a happy union between human and faun, and I doubt my parents were the one exception. Anyhow, it makes sense that my mother would want to get rid of the unwanted abomination she created with said faun, so she left me alone in the forest before the elves discovered me."

"Did the elves not care that you were a mongrel?" the nymph, before biting his lips, he sounded a bit insensitive.

"They didn't know that I was a mongrel when they discovered me," Dacen said simply. "Only during adolescence, when my horns started to grow, did they realise."

"Were they scared of you?"

"More or less scared of what I would become or how outsiders would react to me." He stood up. "Shall we continue walking?"

Neem arise and trotted along beside him.

"There was a council meeting to decide my fate after a human saw me. In the end, they decided banishment was the best option for their own safety. However, news of my banishment didn't reach the nearby human kingdom in time, and they set fire to the Dark Forest-I watched this all happen from a distance as I was already exiled."

"That's so awful," Neem said sympathetically. "I don't see why the humans reacted so poorly to your discovery. I mean, killing a bunch of elves over a horned child? That's ridiculous."

"My appearance is associated with something greater that they fear-a deity in their religion."

"Eh?"

"There is a trinity of higher power in their religion. Bakadeus: Father of Man and all those who stand on two feet, Lahirca: Mother of Animals, and Daemonis: their offspring. Daemonis takes traits from both his parents and appears to be half man and half goat. He is the Father of Fauns and all things that dwell in the darkness. Therefore, they naturally see me as evil and a threat to them based on my faun horns."

"I don't like humans," Neem simply stated. "I never have."

Dacen, unsurprisingly, laughed.

"We've talked too much about me. Tell me about yourself, Neem. What is a day in the life of a nymph like?"

Neem had to think for a few seconds.

"I'm lazy," he said while giggling. "I like taking naps and just relaxing. My life's not interesting."

"But it sounds wonderful. Many would be envious of your life."

"Why? I don't do anything too exciting."

"It's hard for people to have carefree and relaxed lifestyles beyond the Woodlands. Always feel fortunate."

"Do you feel fortunate?"

"There's always somebody worse off, so I suppose I do."

There was a pause before Dacen laughed. He had to digest his own response.

"Tell me, do all beings in the Woodlands get along?" he asked in a surprise redirect.

"The Goddess ensures harmony most of the time. Foreigners are the main disturbers the peace."

"Sorry," Dacen said with an insincere smile.

"Not just you," Neem assured him even though the foreigner did not actually have any remorse. "Wolves come into the Woodlands and try to steal creatures. Sometimes they also drain the life essence of the smaller beings. Jaiya, and the other dryads, can generally scare them off, but they can cause a lot of damage."

"What kinds of wolves are these?"

"They're the size of a centaur and have red eyes, but what's really scary is their long fangs that can chomp through anything."

"Blood wolves," Dacen said. His mind seemed to be elsewhere. "Very dangerous."

"Blood wolves?" Neem asked.

"Doesn't matter," he said while waving away the question. The fact his face had become slightly paler suggested that was a lie. "Let us hope we don't encounter any during our adventure."

"Agreed."

"On an unrelated note: have you ever seen any beings with pale blue skin, black hair, red eyes, and fangs pass through the Woodlands?"

Neem had to think for a moment.

"No, why?"

Again, Dacen waved away the question.

"Just trying to get a sense of what creatures lay beyond the Woodlands."

The foreigner ignored Neem's sceptical glare.

You're not telling me something, the nymph thought.