Some say Aethermoor endures because it bled first.
Others say it survives only because the forest lets it.
The truth lies somewhere in the midst.
Amara was walking behind the stranger treading carefully. She was now a lot more relaxed, as the immediate dangers had passed. She still was very aware of her surroundings as nothing could be trusted in these parts of the world, not after what she had witnessed.
"How did you get here?", the stranger inquired.
"Oh, I don't know. Honestly I saw a path ahead and was guided by a few creatures on it. I don't know why they helped me escape".
"Even within that bewitched forest, there are some that remain uncorrupted. Possessing ancient wisdom, they know how to escape the forest's wrath. What I wonder however is why you were sent on this side and not the other."
"There was another way? I couldn't find any escape anywhere no matter how further I travelled within the forest in any particular direction."
"Yes there was. Two paths exit the forest. While the path here was forced out of it, through defensive magic and deaths, the other exit always existed. Even the woods cannot close it, for it was there since it's inception and no dark magic can tread along on that path. It offered more safety, especially for someone barely walking, which is why it's peculiar you were sent here instead, Eirion pondered while offering Amara his canteen to drink from. She took it and gulped down half of the water before realising there were two people here, and a journey ahead of them, which they had to undertake on foot.
The crossroad led them down a slope below which the path narrowed, dipping. It flanked on both sides by trees that had been petrified. The stood like scorched monuments with their barks charred black and their and limbs frozen in grotesque gestures- twisted remnants of the forest that once had dominion even over here. Ahead of them Amara could see in the distance the scars the land bore from old battles. Furrows gouged into the earth, stone markers were inscribed with runes now half buried in moss, and old,decaying bones. The land seemed ancient with little valor left.
Yet life persisted. Vines with silver veined leaves grew across broken fences. There were multiple lantern stalks planted here. These were naturally luminous trees with faint glow, perfect for lighting up the streets after sunset. Although unusual for their habitat, they had anchored their roots like they belonged.
Although it was still mid-day and the sun shone it's brightest just a few steps away, the terrain carried a slight grim. However, the persevence its settlers had shown in its preservation through sheer will and dedication still made it glow despite its despair.
And then the valley opened.
It was a large settlement, not a town by any means, but a sprawling mass of interconnected hamlets, camps, and stone structures. It bore the shape of a place that grew out of necessity, and not design. Their roofs were mismatched—some thatched with dried reeds, others hammered from salvaged metal, or tiled in rough slate. Timber homes leaned into one another and small towers, likely watchposts, rose intermittently from within the clusters with their beacons not yet lit.
Smoke curled lazily from chimneys, tinged faintly green—evidence of old alchemies still at work. There were signs of magic here, yes, but not the wild, untamed sorcery of the forest. These magicks were primitive that had been harnessed by the first settlers, rigid, structured. Protective. Defensive. They didn't seek to conquer, only to hold back what once was eating away at these lands and keep humanity safe from its grasp.
"Aethermoor wasn't built", Eirion spoke, breaking the silence that had followed them through most of their trip, "it was carved out of necessity and destitution." As they passed a crumbling watchtower swallowed halfway by encroaching vines and moss, he continued, " the first defenders were hunters, seers and healers, not warriors or conquerors. They used old ways to bound the land. Then, scarring it with fire and iron,they forced the forest to retreat. Then they tried burning the black roots that still lurk underneath. They burnt, charred but never receded. Their existence meant peril. Hence, the lands still have to use these defences you see all around."
"Oh!I have heard and read on that during my research." Amara chimed in, almost excitedly, though she was limping with pain at this point, she still had a lot to say on the subject.
"Research?"
"Yes. When the creatures attacked our lands and settlements. We initially could not determine the source of their powers. It was rather strange for them to survive outside the forest. They were bound to the magic afterall."
"The forest spreads its roots where it wishes to instill its dominion. The black veins run underground giving its creatures enough magic to ambush the lands, which it would then seize. What did your people imploy to ensure their survival?"- Eirion enquired but cut the conversation short seeing how wounds were opening up through the stress and pressure this trip put on her body.
"You need treatment. Let's take you to the healers. Let me bring my horse. You shouldn't walk anymore. Wait here."
And with that he gestured for Amara to sit on the wooden circular platform around the large evergreen tree before vanishing in the distance."
Amara exhaled and sat down. She wanted to cry from the pain but she was too worried for that. Not right now. She could still feel the veinwoods in the air. That their roots did reach this far did not make things easy for her either.
She wanted to fade away. Just dissipate in the atmosphere. Probably dissolve in the lake she saw behind the gigantic tree ahead of the wooden bridge in the distance. Anything but more of this existence.
She endured a lot in a short or very long amount of time. She wasn't sure which. Her head still hurt. Her body ached. Her wounds burned. Her head still felt foggy. But she had to be there for those who were there for her. She wasn't going to desert the ones that never abandoned her. Even when they should have. She closed her eyes lost in these thoughts and without realising fell asleep on the platform, her head resting on the bark of the tree.