The Howling Dark

She crawls backwards rapidly in a panic, keeping her eyes locked on the creature as it hunches over and slowly stalks after her. She scrabbles to her feet and keeps trying to back away, only to have her back impact a tree as the beast still keeps advancing. It stops a few steps away from her, simply staring at Emmeline, and she once again feels its sunken gaze running over her defenceless and uncovered body. It looks into her eyes and she once again feels that hypnotic draw from before. She does her best to resist, trying to turn her head away and look anywhere else but those bottomless eyes, but is incapable of doing so.

Her vision begins to darken outside of the beast, with her body calming under its influence. The shadowy monster slowly spreads its arms wide, and Emmeline feels herself compelled to step towards it, walking into its waiting arms.

All she can think of are those eyes. Those intoxicating eyes, and she barely acknowledges the fact she was now within its grasp. As its arms close around her, she feels its clawed hands gliding over her skin. Both of its hands slide down to her ass and grasp it tightly. The touch of its talons against her generous backside makes her gasp and stiffen, but she soon relaxes as a warmth blossoms in her nethers.

Fully wrapped now in its embrace she begins to feel herself getting wetter as its claws continue to fondle her. They slip between her legs and she bites her lip, head swimming as the beast teases her sensitive flesh briefly. Soon however the creature's hands come to her shoulders and push her down to her knees, and Emmeline finds that enormous member right in front of her face.

She feels her body quiver at the sight of it, her excitement only heightening. Its intentions clear to her, her hands move of their own accord and she moves to take hold of it, her fingers encircling the base of the beast's manhood. As she begins to stroke it, her vision fades entirely and she feels herself falling.

Emmeline awakens with a start and a heavy thump, having fallen off the edge of her bed in the inn, the covers cast aside as if she'd been tossing in her sleep. She groans and sits up and feels that one small band of daylight that streams in through the window warming her face, chasing away the vestiges of her dream. She shudders somewhat as she remembers what had happened, feeling the echoes of the creature's touch against her rump, and wondering what had compelled her mind to make her grasp its manhood so readily. It's.. enormous... bestial.. manhood...

"Oooh... stop it, dammit." Emmeline says, chastising herself and slapping the sides of her head to try and clear the visions of the dream she had had, despite once again feeling that tingle in her lower body as she clambers back to her feet. Pulling on her tunic she then begins to re-buckle her armour to her body, feeling better once the plates are in place.

Before leaving her room she takes the desk down from where she'd propped it to block the window, and takes a moment to look over the forest that expands so far beyond it, and feeling an impulse to venture into it. She turns away from the window and pulls the chair from under the door, before leaving her room for the last time, heading downstairs to hand in her key.

Making her way outside of the tavern Emmeline looks up and down the street, still soaked from the rain the night before, and starts trudging off towards one of the village boundaries. On her way she passes by a building, the shattered remnants of what was once a wall lying strewn about the street she walks on.

She looks at the damage wrought by the creature in macabre fascination, picking her way through the debris as she stares into the destroyed building, mildly awed by the strength that the beast so clearly held. And yet the previous night it hadn't ripped her from her room. Even if it hadn't been for the intervention of the stranger, there had been plenty of time for it to break through the window to get at her.

So why didn't it? She wonders to herself quietly as she surveys the damage done. The sight of blood stained walls within, and the remains of a woman's dress lying shredded in the corner of the building breaks her out of her fascination however, and her expression turns to one of anger, with fresh resolve entering her mind. This wasn't some unique curiosity to be enthralled by, this was a beast. A dangerous one. And it had plagued this village for long enough that there would probably be a reward of some kind for taking it down. Gold, perhaps? Though, of course it would be just as well to rid these people of a menace such as this.

Thinking her reasoning solid, though tempered with a healthy dose of personal vendetta for its... ogling of her the night before, Emmeline backs out and walks down the street before sharply turning off the edge of the path and marching towards the forest, her sword held at the ready.

It didn't take long for Emmeline to find the trail the beast had carved through the trees the night before, as she soon stumbled onto a clear path of broken branches and torn bark as it had fled through the night. Looking down one side of the track she can faintly see the inn from the night before beyond the edge of the trees. When she looked up the other end she felt a brief pang of fear. The trail disappeared deep into the forest that she was standing in, the end of it enshrouded in the darkness of the canopy and hidden from view.

Upon the base of one of the nearby trees she spotted an odd substance against the bark, and looking around she found more of it in a trail along the ground itself. It looked almost like pitch, black and thick, and still partially wet from the night before. Blood from the creature? Crouching beside it she gingerly touches it with a finger and finds it to be sticky as well, clinging stubbornly to her fingers as she draws her hand back again. Against her better judgement Emmeline sniffs the substance, finding it to smell like nothing she'd encountered before.

As she rubs it between her fingers she puzzles about its nature, before looking forwards down where it lay, and then beyond to where further drops marked the path it had taken and smiles. Now she could follow it directly to where it hid. Giving silent thanks to the stranger who had wounded it the night before Emmeline stands to her feet once again and starts tracking the beast, determined to put an end to its destruction once and for all.

At first, her time following the trail left by the creature was easy enough. There were plentiful signs close to where she had seen it disappear into the undergrowth. Large claw marks gouged into the forest floor were the most obvious, as were the lacerations in the bark of the trees where its tail had lashed against them, cutting deep into the wood in some places. At one point she had come across the carcass of a bear. An impressive beast indeed, it was all the more troubling that something had torn its powerful form to shreds.

Clearly, she was on the right trail.

Interspersed through it all was that same black fluid, splattered along the path she followed. From the first time she touched it it had remained, the tip of her fingers still stained back despite her attempts to wipe it off. She daren't waste any of her water trying to wash it off, so she paid it no mind and carried on her way.

And though her progress was swift at first, soon the sun began to set, and the shadows of the forest crept closer at her back. Though she fashioned herself a makeshift torch, it was inevitable that she would soon find herself smothered by the pitch blackness amongst the trees.

The day dragged further on, and eventually it became too dark for Emmeline to continue, and she was faced with a choice. With night weighing in she could either make her way back to the village and try again in the morning, which of course meant talking to the innkeeper again. Not something she relished particularly. That, or she could remain out here. Find somewhere to camp and wait for morning. She stood for a moment with her sword slung over her shoulder, torch in hand as she cast her eyes through the dark, weighing up her options.

Worry creases her face as she taps her foot anxiously, biting her lip as she hums and haws over what to do. She decides that cantankerous though they were, the innkeeper didn't seem so bad in comparison to roughing it out in the dark. Especially with whatever that... thing was still roaming around out there. So with her mind set she begins to stomp off back in the direction of the village that she'd come from.

This forest was darker than it had any right to be. Quieter, too. Almost devoid of wildlife. Those were only two of the three thoughts that kept running through Emmeline's mind as she trudged her way through the trees towards the village.

The other more distressing one, was that she had lost the trail, and couldn't see where the lights of said village were supposed to be.

Determined not to let any panic set in, she kept her eyes set forwards and walked on with purpose. Surely she'd find her way out eventually. Or she'd find the trail she had followed already, and would then be able to retrace her footsteps and get out of the forest. The steely determination that this resolve brought into her eyes vanishes swiftly when she hears a branch snap outside of the light the torch brought her.

She yelps, jumping at the sound as she whirls around and defensively brandishes the light towards where the noise had come from. The light revealed nothing, and beyond its flickering edge the shadows were oppressively complete. She was unable to see a thing that was not more than a few feet in front of her.

The feeling of being watched crept insidiously up her spine, as if buried in the dark were thousands of eyes all watching her as she flailed the torch around her in a circle. The sound comes again, a sharp crack in the distance that sets every nerve rattling in her body as she rounds in its direction. Heart thumping in her chest, Emmeline tightens her grip on her sword as she lets it drop from her shoulders.

Though even two handed most would find the oversized blade too weighty, in her grip it effortlessly comes to a stop, its tip barely kissing the earth. Weapon at the ready, and the torch in her other hand, Emmeline settles into a defensive stance as she slowly steps backwards through the trees.

It had found her.

The forest seems to come alive in comparison to its early silence. The sound of movement, shuffling and scraping out of sight, becomes unnervingly common. Scratches against the bark of the trees sound all around her, though when she looks her glowing gaze finds nothing but fresh scores carved into the wood. It was toying with her, she felt. Was this truly a mere beast? Or was there something more sinister at work here? Was it there now, barely out of her sight amongst the dark? Or was it hanging back, several metres away and watching its quarrel panic in the meagre light she clung to.

To her right she hears another branch crack under the weight of something heavy, and when she looks the sound of something galloping unevenly through the trees thunders past her on the left. And then silence. She waves the torch from side to side a few times in search of where it had gone, and it's only when she stops that she feels it.

Breath. Warm, silent.

Slow.

It rolls down her neck and her own catches in her throat. Her instincts scream at her, and she slowly turns around and raises the torch. Revealed in the light was the creature's haunting visage, towering over her. It opens its cavernous, black maw, and howls.

Black spittle splatters her cloak and armour, and with a scream of fright she steps back, swinging her sword in a wide arc at the beast. The blade sings through the air but it surges backwards and narrowly avoids the tip of the blade. The edge of the sword bites deep into the tree beside her, and as she wrenches it free the monster swipes its clawed arm at her.

The blade blocks the blow, though barely as the creature proves to be of great strength. The impact jars her muscles, but with her other hand she thrusts the torch at its furred form, causing it to screech and leap backwards out of the way. It lands on all fours- and it was only now that Emmeline realised it had seemingly regrown the arm she witnessed be blown free from its body the night before.

Despite this revelation she has no time to think about it, as it soon springs towards her, mouth agape and claws outstretched. She drops to her knees as it sails overhead, avoiding its attack for the most part save for one flailing claw that finds purchase against her arm. The metal of her armour holds for the most part, but one of the claws severs the leather band that keeps it strapped to her body. The blow also roughly knocks Emmeline aside, and she sprawls momentarily on the floor before swiftly scrambling to her feet once again.

Standing again now she glances at her arm and sees the lack of armour, and feels the sting of pain from where the claw had cut her skin beneath her tunic. Gritting her teeth she immediately snaps her gaze back up as she hears the large creature rounding on her again. It snarls, dripping black saliva on to the forest floor as its bottomless eyes once again lock onto hers.

Not wanting to risk that strange hypnotic feeling from the previous night, Emmeline screws her eyes shut momentarily before giving a loud shout as she charges the beast. She opens her eyes again to watch where she's swinging her sword, and attempts to bring the blade down on the monster. Her efforts are in vain, however, as it once again moves with unexpected speed for its impressive bulk. Still on all fours it jerks sideways to avoid the blow, before once more lunging towards her.

This time she is more ready for its movements, and she too sidesteps the attack and slices upwards with her own sword, managing to sever a couple of the creature's fingers in the process. It bellows loudly, but much like the previous night, no blood falls from the wound it had sustained. Still, Emmeline is satisfied that she at least seemingly harmed the beast, and raises her sword to bring it down on it again. Only for the creature's lashing tail to slam into her breastplate, lifting her off her feet and sending her crashing backwards through the forest to land on her back in the fallen leaves.

Dazed, she props herself up onto her elbows, coughing and wheezing because her breath has been knocked from her body. In the impact she had dropped the torch, but gratefully finds she has managed to keep hold of her sword. She rolls over and once more stumbles to her feet, adjusting her helmet back into place. She gently massages the top of her chest with her free arm, wincing at the bruise she'll likely have from the attack she'd taken from the beast, and when running her hand over the metal finds it partially dented as well.

Not that she had much time to consider these facts as she soon heard the howls of the monster as it began storming towards her again. Her torch lay a considerable distance from her, and as such she was barely able to see where she was in the darkness, or where her foe was either. She takes off running, heading for the fading torchlight ahead of her as she hears the monster's uneven gallop and ragged, panting breath swiftly advancing on her from behind.

She dives for the torch, grabbing it in her free hand and rolling to the side as the bulk of the creature sails past her with barely a foot of clearance, claws shredding the mud beneath it as it crunches through a tree, giving out a bellow and loudly splintering the wood with the force of its leap.

The tree comes crashing down as Emmeline comes to a stop, her cloak wrapped around her as she clambers once more to her feet. With leaves being cast into the air by the falling tree she whips the flame back towards the creature as it rights itself slowly, its twisted antlers rising from behind the tree stump left.

The beast watches Emmeline intently from behind the remnants of the tree, its bottomless eye sockets locked on the warrior as she brandishes the torch towards it. It slinks on all fours round the stump, sinking its claws deep into the floor as it stalks at the edge of the torchlight. It seems that it was taking more care in its movements, and as she observes it she sees that its right foreleg was twisted at a painful looking angle, as if dislocated.

Its obsidian skin bulged at the shoulder and elbow, bones contorted beneath and its surface dotted with shards of wood that pierced its flesh. Blackness oozed from the wounds, rivulets of night welling up around the punctures before turning to mist and drifting away into the dark.

Despite all of this she watches it walk on the limb without issue, so even if it was perhaps not wounded by crashing through the tree it was at the very least slightly more wary about carelessly throwing itself headlong after the armoured woman.

Emmeline's eyes never left it in turn as it circled her, her sword raised and levelled towards it as she stepped sideways, keeping it directly ahead of her. Even though she tries to avoid making eye contact with it lest she fall under the hypnotic effect of its gaze, she finds her eyes slipping towards its own regardless, and she begins to feel that dragging sensation as it tries to lull her in.

Warmth blossoms in her body from the monster's gaze and her sword falters briefly, lowering slightly as she feels herself swaying where she stands. The beast paces closer to her, stepping slowly into the torchlight, and the effect continues to strengthen with each step it takes. The warmth spiked in her nethers, and to her shame she felt her body reacting, a familiar wetness beginning to gather.

She feels her control slip further away, and both torch and sword lower till they're pointed at the ground. It approaches her with painfully slow purpose, and once it was within a few feet it reared up on its hind legs. Now it towered over her once again, and Emmeline's sluggish sight followed after its eyes with a longing that wasn't her own, even as her every instinct and fibre screamed at her to flee from this thing.

She summons her energy to raise the torch and use the flames to fend off the beast, the small branch in her hand felt as if it weighed the same as the tallest oak, yet still she poured all her will to simply lift her arm high. She barely hauls it above her chest before the beast brings its own hand up, and through the corner of her eye she watches as the bones in its mangled right arm shift and right themselves before it swipes almost lazily and sends the torch flying from her hand.

She finds herself watching the torch sail through the air, end over end, trailing tongues of flame as it does so. It takes Emmeline a few agonising heartbeats to realise she was no longer locked onto the creature's gaze, and a surge of adrenaline rattles through her body.

Gritting her teeth and regaining control of herself she tightens her grip on the hilt of her sword and brings her arm arcing beautifully upwards from where it hangs almost falling from her hand.

The blade cleaves into the arm of the creature, severing the forearm before biting deep into its torso.

The heavy weight of the blade feels wonderful to Emmeline as it slices through the hide of the monster with ease, and black ooze splatters outwards from the wound as the creature howls in pain and recoils, limbs flailing wildly her way.

Emmeline's joy flourished at the effective attack, but it was short-lived as though she seemed to injure the creature, the blade had become lodged in its chest and during its maddened striking it managed to catch her squarely in the stomach. The blow knocks the breath from her and sends her backwards off her feet, where she lands on her back.