Canto 17 The Pathless Woods

Keisha woke several hours later, and with a goodnight’s rest, she was feeling a lot better to travel the next morning.

Celra and Nessus were off to the side, saying their goodbyes as they promised to see one another again. Nessus stood beside Chiron, Celra to her friend’s side.

“You are always welcomed back here, you three,” Chiron said. He was at the foot of the hill to see the girl’s off. “I do hope you find your family safe and sound.”

Keisha grinned. She threw her arms around Chiron’s waist, and he embraced her. “Thank you for everything, Chiron. And when I find my papá, he’ll be more than happy to visit you and Rosetta again.”

“Your papá would be proud of you as well,” Chiron said to Verona. Her cheeks reddened, and she shrugged, yet, a smile was placed at the corners of her mouth.

“Here, take this. You all have a rough journey ahead of you from here on out.” Rosetta clopped forward and handed each of the girls a pack with food provisions, canteens of water, and spare clothing.

“Thank you, Rosetta. This means so much.” Keisha gave her a wide smile.

“Yes, this will prove sufficient on our travels,” Verona said.

Celra bowed with a ‘thank-you’ reply.

Rosetta grinned. “Good, and if you have the time, there are some people that would like to say their goodbyes.”

Behind Rosetta, there was a line of Centaur’s from the feast and those they battled with. One after the other, they came to give their thanks for saving their villa and hoped they would come again.

Once the last person left, Chiron spoke afterward, “May The First one always guide you and give you protection on your journey.”

They turned away, waving to them, and headed along the trail to the dark woodsy opening of the Pathless Woods.

***

THE PATHLESS WOODS, or otherwise known as the Wood of Thorns, shrouded them in darkness when they traversed through the mouth of the forest. The dismal woods scaled to the sky and had strange black and blue leaves with white speckles that gave a sweet aroma in the air.

“Avoid touching anything, you two, the forest and its fruits are poisonous for anyone except a Fae.”

“A Fae? You mean like fairies and stuff?” Keisha asked.

Verona shook her head. “Fairies are small, winged creatures, often mischievous, but harmless. There are two kinds of Fae, the Light Fae, and the Dark Fae. It’s the Dark Fae you need to worry about. Their magic is potent and veers you off the path if you aren’t strong enough to resist it.”

Keisha and Celra’s eyes widened at the warning. Their eyes darted around the dark edges of the shrubs and trees of the forest.

“So…where are we specifically?”

“We’re in the Dark Fae’s Empire, in the vain of the 7th level—it’ll be the longest path.”

“Which means we might get closer to my ma.” Keisha’s eyes twinkled, knowing her mother was in her reach.

“Guys, did you hear that,” Celra jumped, and her ears flickered. She frantically looked around the dark woods, smelling the area for signs of an intruder.

“If it is something, we should ignore it,” Verona instructed her. “You don’t want to follow it.”

Keisha rubbed Celra’s arm, but despite the comfort, her eyes continued to dart around.

“Hey, Verona, what did Chiron mean when he said, ‘May The First one always guide you and give you protection on your journey’?”

“Oh, The First gave birth to Shikari, Legacy, and their power. They were called The One and The First to some. It dates back before the Inferno came to be.”

Before Keisha could ask further questions, a howled cry echoed throughout the forest. The initial sound spooked Celra, and she bolted off the beaten path and through the forest with quickened speed.

“Celra!” Keisha cried out. She ran after Celra through the woods, with Verona calling after her.

Keisha lost her way after losing sight of Celra. Standing in the middle of the forest with no path and the hovered trees blocked out the sky, Keisha was settled into the dimly lit darkness.

“V-Verona! Celra!” Keisha yelled into the darkness.

Everything was silent.

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Keisha chewed on her bottom lip. She took a step forward and hoped that she was walking back to where she had come from, but she hadn’t seen anything distinct to pinpoint her direction.

There was rustling in the distance. The back of Keisha’s neck hairs stood on end. Her eyes dilated, searching for the sound. She wasn’t sure which way the noise came from. Her heart raced and, her throat tightened.

There was shadowed movement from the corner of her eye. Keisha tried to call forth her Stanza, but a hard shove caused her to lose her balance. She fell to the ground. Before she had time to process anything, the shadowed movement attacked her again. Keisha’s body propelled through the air, and her back hit the base of the tree trunk.

She cringed, hissing from the pain.

With Keisha’s mind on autopilot, she grabbed the tree trunk and found a branch. She tugged onto it and swept at the shadowed figure to get away from her.

Several pairs of eyes peered out from the brush of the forest.

“What have you done?” A voice from the forest called out.

Keisha furrowed her brows. She was confused by the statement until she looked down to where a pool of glittering gold seeped out from where she had yanked the tree branch.

Her heart tugged in her chest, and her stomach churned. “Is that…?” She didn’t finish speaking when hands gripped her arms. Two people stood in cloaked, armored gear. Their faces were dark blue, and their ears were pointed as she was in the presence of the Dark Fae.

She spied another Dark Fae approaching her. His navy blue hair was layered to the side, and he had his arms behind his back. His dark cloak swayed behind him as his footed boots crept along the grass.

“Ser Fredrick,” the voice replied to her. His lidded eyes spared no emotion as Keisha looked at him with frightened eyes. “You have assaulted and defiled one of our ancestors. You shall be held accountable with the Monarch.”

Keisha’s eyes enlarged. Her mouth agape from the shock. “I-It was an accident, I swear! Something attacked me. I-I’m a Legacy. I would have stayed on the path. Please.”

Frederick grunted. “A Legacy would have known the power of the forest. In that case, you should have known better than to cross Dark Fae territory.”

Keisha had forgotten that Verona had said it might have been an illusion from the Dark Fae’s magic.

“Please, Ser Frederick, I just started being a Legacy…y-you can ask the Centaur’s at Shen-la-ra or even Monarch Elravara to vouch for me.”

“The Monarch may hold a seat with the other twelve, but they don’t speak for us—bring her with us back to camp.” He instructed his guards, but something came running out of the forest.

“Ser Frederick, we found others.”

Verona and Celra were surrounded by the guards. Verona glared at the guards holding Keisha hostage, and Celra growled menacingly.

“Put your weapons away and stand down!” One of the guards said. They tightened their grip on Keisha’s wrist, and she squealed.

“I have a better idea; let her go, and I won’t have to fight you.” Verona threatened with her staff, eyeing the guards.

A heavy sigh came from Frederick. A silver blade was held at the base of her throat.

“Keisha!” Both of them called out. Keisha held her neck up, eyeing the sharp and glistening crafted blade an inch from her throat.

“I have a better idea...you three will come back to our camp, and you will all be tried at the council. Now, shall we act civilized?”

Verona gritted her teeth, mumbling an angry spew of words, but her armored form disappeared. She raised her hands in the air, as did Celra.

“Lead the way,” Verona grunted.

Frederick smirked and removed the sword from Keisha’s throat. A shiver rushed down Keisha’s body as a sigh of relief escaped.

The three of them trekked together to the Dark Fae’s camp.

***

THE SMOKE FROM THE Dark Fae’s camp trailed in the air. There were a couple dozen Dark Fae guards in cloaks and armors as they patrolled the camp, with tents aligning next to one another accordingly.

Ser Frederick stopped once they met in the middle of the camp. There was someone already sitting at a log bench, but they was dressed differently than the guards. Their cloak was royal blue, and underneath a dark blue and gold trench coat with gold buttons on his shirt. The golden flux of hair curved behind their pointed grayish-colored ears.

“Sire, we’ve caught a trespasser that assaulted and defiled your ancestry line,” Sir Frederick said. Keisha gawked at them and back to the person who was royalty.

“You’re Lucius Faux.” Verona pointed out. The golden hair Fae turned in their direction. They were stunned.

Lucius Faux’s baby doll eyes were crystalline bright red like a ruby. Their lashes were long and fluttered, making the Fae more enchanting with flawless features.

“That’s Arc Lucius Faux to you,” Frederick corrected them.

“No need to be harsh, Frederick,” Lucius's voice was soft and melodic. “They don’t seem like a threat at all. Why not allow them to speak for themselves.”

Arc Lucius Faux turned their attention to Keisha. Their soft gaze made her squirm nervously. She told the Arc what had happened, from chasing her friend to getting lost and finally seeing the shadowy presence and fighting in self-defense since she couldn’t call upon her Stanza.

Arc Lucius listened to Keisha’s side of the story then nodded when she was done. A small and delicate smile formed on the fae’s lips. With a flick of their manicured fingers, the guards cut loose Keisha’s bindings.

“Sire?” Frederick exclaimed. “What is the meaning of this?”

“Don’t fret, Frederick. I have a good feeling, and I do not sense bad intentions from either of my guests. I apologize for the hostility that you received. What are your names by chance?”

“Um, Keisha, and this is Verona and Celra.”

“Charmed.” Verona rolled her eyes. “I don’t take kindly to being threatened and having my friends bound against their will.”

“I hope you can forgive me. I offer you three a meal per my good graces, and we can explain the situation to His Highness, my Pater. Frederick, have the cook make three dishes, and you may retire in the meantime. We’ll be leaving at first light.”

Annoyed, Frederick collected himself and bowed, taking off to do as his Sire commanded.

“Please, please, sit.” Arc Lucius directed them to take a seat at the log bench. “It is most exciting to see Legacies near Crete.”

“Crete?” Keisha questioned.

“The Dark Fae city,” Verona replied.

“You are newly initiated, I assume? It’s been a while since there’s been one—what is your lineage?”

Keisha curled her lips. She looked around and back at the Arc, lowering her voice to reply, “Alighieri and… Earthborne, Sire, uh, Arc Lucius.”

Keisha waited for a look of disgust or uncertainty when her father’s name was mentioned, but the Arc gave none. The Fae simply leaned forward and whispered to her,

“You being an Alighieri or an Earthborne doesn’t bother me. You may call me Lucius, by the way.”

Keisha, Verona, and Celra blushed a deep shade of red.

A Dark Fae guard handed Lucius three plates of meat and bread. They assured them a tent would be set for them once they were ready to retire to rooms. Keisha kindly thanked the Arc and settled into eating her dish.