12Ʌ – The Forlorn Forest
Throughout his life, Ember never really had much of a place to call home. As far back as his earliest memories could reach, he and his family had always been on the move. Some places they would stay in for longer than others, but in the end it was always the same. After staying in one place for too long, it would no longer feel safe. Ember's father would gather up the family, and then they would go on the move again, heading to their next unknown destination.
They visited many unusual places in their years of travel. Every time Ember thought he'd seen everything there was to see, he and his family would come to another new strange and fascinating place, unlike any of the places he'd seen before. It was such a diverse world out there. Many of the different regions were as unusual to Ember as they were beautiful.
But every time, wherever it was that they would find themselves, it would never last. Sooner or later, Ember's father would decide it was time, and then they would be on the move again. They would keep moving, for they lived in a world where it was often unsafe to linger in any one area for too long.
Ember had been born into a litter with his four sisters; Coral, Willow, Snowbell, and Starlight. They were a family of marshland wolves, who were known for their lush, colourful fur coats. Most marshland wolves had fur that was blue, green, white, or some combination of the three. Indeed, Coral's fur was blue, Willow's was green, Snowbell's was white, and Starlight had both green and white fur. Their mother had green fur as well, and their father had white.
Ember, meanwhile, had distinct bright red fur, an unusual colour for his species. Despite his fiery name and his unusual red fur, he had the calmest personality of the pups. In fact, he often felt it was his duty to keep a watchful eye on his more energetic and rambunctious sisters. Mother and Father did their best, but they had their paws full trying to manage the rest of the family, and so Ember helped his parents out in any way he could.
It was more than simply a dangerous wilderness that kept the family on the move so much. They had another reason too. It was because they were in search of a place known as the Faraway Sanctuary.
Ember and his family had never been there, and they'd never known any other wolves who had. No-one seemed to know exactly where the Faraway Sanctuary was. Only that it was said to be the most pure of all paradises. All marshland wolves knew the legend. It was a legend which had been passed down between the different families.
The legend told of a very special place. A land where it was always warm, even during the coldest winters, and where the food was always plentiful. A place where they would be able to live in comfort and peace, free from the many dangers of the rest of their world. All those who were true believers were in search of the Faraway Sanctuary. All true believers hoped that, one day, their long search would end and they would find paradise. The hope that, someday, all marshland wolves would be able to live there together in happiness and harmony.
As for Ember, he did not know what to think about the legend. He was not exactly a "true believer." To him, the legend was just that. A legend. He had no way to know if there was any truth in it. But his parents were certain the legend was true, especially his father.
As time went on, as Ember's family continued to journey from place to place, Ember began to recognize some of the same regions from his more distant past, making it seem as if the family was simply going around in very large circles. All in pursuit of a supposed sanctuary that they may never find, that might not even be real.
But Ember's father maintained his faith. It would be a long journey still to go, but they'd get there. All in due time, he would tell the rest of the family. All in due time, everything would work out.
Among the countless places the family visited, they came to an area called the Almar Canyons. It was another place Ember recognized from his past, even if his memories of it were faint.
The canyons were huge. The family spent days wandering the jagged landscape. They were slow and careful in moving around because of all the steep ledges. One wrong step could send them tumbling a long ways down. The hot sun beat down on them, adding to the exhaustion of their long days of travel.
There were a lot of cave entrances dotted throughout the landscape. Many of the caves appeared to be quite deep, although the family stayed away from them, as they worried about predators or whatever else might be lurking inside, deep within the darkness.
It was late in the evening, on their fifth day in the canyons, when they spotted two silver eagles. It was Snowbell who saw them first. The silver eagles were distant figures high up in the sky. The brief glimpse of them was more than enough to get the family running for their lives. They rushed and ran and hid behind the nearest rock formation they could find. They huddled as far down as they could into the wedge between the ground and the rock formation.
There they waited in silence. The silver eagles were huge creatures, easily the largest and most feared of all the eagles, and were natural predators to the marshland wolves. Silver eagles were a thankfully rare sight, but they always meant danger whenever they did appear.
The family waited and waited for a long time. There was complete silence all around them as they huddled and waited beneath the bright, cloudless sky. The pointed rocks jabbed painfully into their sides, but still they remained where they were.
Finally, when everything seemed as sure as it was going to get that they had not been seen by the eagles, they emerged very slowly from their hiding place. The sky remained cloudless and featureless, with no sign of the eagles. Still, an uneasy scent lingered in the air.
After another fifteen or twenty minutes of wandering around, the family found another empty cave. They decided to take the risk and so they retreated inside. Luck was on their side and the cave was empty. They did not come out again for the rest of the day and eventually they drifted off into an uneasy sleep.
From that point on, the family travelled under the cover of the night, to better hide them from the sharp eyes of any eagles who might linger in the area. They could only hope the night would indeed provide enough cover to protect them.
Another several nights of travel passed. As dawn arrived, the family had finally reached the edge of the canyons, which overlooked Kego Lake. It was a massive lake. They could not see the shore on the other side. Just a flat line of blue all across the horizon where the ocean met the sky.
But they were in luck. Not far from where they stood was the Almar Pass, a welcome sight if ever there was one. It was their way out.
It would, however, be a dangerous journey. The Almar Pass was a long and narrow stretch of land, with sharp drops on either side and little cover. It acted as a bridge of sorts; it cut through the center of Kego Lake and was the connection point between the Almar Canyons and the Forlorn Forest just beyond it. The Almar Pass, although long, was still much smaller than the rest of the Almar Canyons. Whereas the family had been wandering around inside the Canyons for many days, the Pass would only take another couple of days to get through. On the other side of the lake, the Pass opened out into the Forlorn Forest.
The family found another spot to hide and sleep through the day. The following night, they began their trek across the Almar Pass. It was an exhausting journey, even for a family such as theirs who were used to travelling long distances at a time. But they kept at it, carrying on through the rest of the night. The clouds parted, revealing a full moon, and casting bright shimmers across the large bodies of water on either side of them. The moonlight lit up the ground in front of them and would make them more easily visible to other animals. Although they did not see any eagles, nor any other creatures which might be dangerous to them, the family was tense and nervous for the whole journey.
As dawn approached again, they took cover behind an outcropping of rock and went to sleep, with the gentle sound of the waves lapping against the sides of the Pass. They continued their journey again the night after. It remained a full moon with no clouds in sight. The Pass came downward and parts of it dipped into the lake, making for a few short sections where they had to swim across the cold water. After that, the Pass began to rise back upward. Eventually, the narrow stretch of land widened out as well. The terrain was becoming much grassier and less jagged, and there were even a few trees scattered about. Not long after, they had moved beyond the borders of Kego Lake entirely. They had reached the Forlorn Forest.
The night was still pitch-black, but daybreak would only be a few hours away. And although they were tired, they wanted to make it further into the cover of the forest before they allowed themselves to rest. Only once they were a little deeper inside would they find somewhere to settle down. This would be followed by at least a couple of well-earned rest days.
Soon after, they could make out the sound of flowing water. It started off faint and slowly grew, until a river stood in front of them. Wide and deep and with a strong current. In the dark water reflected more bright, almost blinding glimmers of moonlight. On the other side of the river, a thick outline of trees was visible against the backdrop of the moon and the night sky. Just beyond the river seemed to be where they wanted to go.
They followed along the river, looking eagerly for a spot where the current was more shallow, or for some other way they could cross safely. But the river kept going and going for a long time, and it seemed they would not be able to cross it. Thick clouds came in, covering up the moon and taking away the shimmers reflecting off the river. Darkness filled the area. Marshland wolves could see well in the dark, but the lack of moonlight still made navigation tricky.
Continuing along the edge of the river, they came to a steep slope. It was a nerve-wracking climb, but with enough persistence, they made it up the slope and to the top. There they rested for a moment to catch their breath and regain their energy. Occasionally, gaps would form in the thick clouds and the moon would peek out, lighting up the ground around them and creating more shimmers on the river below, before the moon would get covered up the area would go dark again. Once their energy returned, they kept walking.
And then it happened. There was a deep rumbling sort of sound. They all came to a sudden stop, not knowing what it was at first. They waited, their ears pricked up. There was silence, save for the flowing river and a soft breeze rustling in the leaves above. Then came another low rumbling as the terrain below them shifted, and soon enough they realized. Part of the ground was splitting apart. Everything beneath their paws tilted to the side as the family scrambled to get off. Willow, the closest one to the edge, did not make it to safe ground in time and tumbled over as the terrain broke apart. She howled as she fell and landed in the river. There were other loud splashes as large chunks of ground fell in the river all around her.
Ember dashed forward, running along the ledge. He didn't see Willow surface. His heart hammered. He skidded down the next slope he found, down to the river bank. Halfway down, he tripped and tumbled forward. He rolled around and around painfully, coming to a skidding halt at the very edge of the river. The rest of his family came skidding and tumbling down behind him.
Ember let out a gasp of pain and struggled back to his feet. Then he caught a glimpse of green fur in the dark river. Willow could only be seen for a few seconds before the current pulled her back under. She surfaced again after another few seconds, paddling furiously against the current, before she was pulled under again.
Already there was a part of Ember that knew he'd likely be unable to do anything to help Willow. And yet he dived in after her anyway, hoping against hope that he could do something. The current was fast and strong. Ember was just as helpless against it as Willow was, and soon he too was swept away. He struggled frantically against the current and was pulled under. He gasped for air, only to have piercing cold water fill his lungs.
At last he broke the surface, coughing and sputtering, gasping for as much air as he could get. He spotted Willow again, much further ahead now, before she was once again pulled back under. He caught a glimpse of the rest of his family running along the shoreline. They ran and they ran in their efforts to keep up, but already they were falling further and further behind.
Ember was yanked back under. When he surfaced again, the sound of the river was stronger and more intense. The area had become slanted; the current was pulling him downhill. He could no longer see any of his family. He tried to paddle back to shore, but he was helpless against the river's grip. All he could do was struggle to keep his head above the water.
The moon and clouds disappeared behind a tall cliff formation. Walls closed in around Ember as the river pulled him into a cave. The last bits of moonlight disappeared as he was taken into a world of pure blackness. The piercing cold water was unbearable and his limbs were sore and weak from paddling for so long. The cave tunnel was steep, thrashing Ember around with many sharp drops.
He had no energy left to struggle against the current. He could only let it drag him along. His lungs screamed for air that did not come. The world around him began to fade. He only hoped he did not suffer for much longer, that it would all be over soon.
And then his head broke the surface. He gasped in huge gulps of air. The current was slowing down. He paddled as much as he could to keep his head above the surface, but he was too weak to do anything else.
Finally, he came to a stop as his paws touched solid ground. He lay there in the shallow water. The exhaustion overcame him and he passed out...
Ember awoke sometime much later, still lying in the shallow water. It was still cold and hard to see. His body hurt all over and he did not want to move. But then he thought of his family and he leapt to his feet.
He gazed all around him. It seemed the river had carried him into a massive cavern with a massive underground lake. He stood on a small piece of rocky shore at the edge of the lake. The area was dark, save for a few beams of light coming in from above, far off in the distance.
He howled and he howled, crying out for his family. But they were nowhere to be found.