The Passing Ch. 02

Apologies for the delay on this chapter. I still self edit, I have to work to support myself and.. well life in general. Thanks for all the comments though, and continue to leave them, good or bad, critical or not. I'm writing this for the first time and I'm enjoying it, but I hope my readers are too.

The story is ©UnspunReality(Me), please don't use it or any of its characters. Yadayada.

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Chapter 2

I awoke to darkness again, though this time fear did not grasp me. Memories of the night returned and I merely enjoyed them in my mind for the moment. The reason was quickly evident as I rose up from my position on the floor, groaning some as my body stretched and creaked from the discomfort of having slept on the floor. It wasn't as uncomfortable as it could have been; there was carpeting and I had a pillow, but it was a poor substitute for a bed.

"Finally up I see," came the voice of that temptress, curled up around a pillow just within eyesight of me on the floor. "Hope you slept well. We leave soon." I could hear the mirth in her voice, how she simply found this all amusing despite everything that'd happened.

I still didn't notice it, but the longer and closer we were, the more I affected her. She had aimed to tease me last night, yet moments after she had felt something unusual. I could feel the sting as her nails elongated, piercing my flesh, and it was that sudden pain that shocked us from the moment.

She hissed and I found myself on the floor as she pushed herself roughly away from me. My shoulders ached slightly, the feeling ignorable as I was suddenly concerned with her. Her body having darted back to the furthest corner in the room she could get from me. It was as comedic as it was saddening, seeing this woman cowered before me. Yet something felt nice about it, there was this feeling I couldn't touch on, a part of me that thrived on the scent of fear that permeated the room.

I held my ground, sliding back into my seat as I calmed my heart. Deep breaths in and out, until finally the feeling had passed. She seemed no better though, curled as she was, eyes piercing through to me with a sense of fear and confusion. It was odd to say the least, to see her with the last few inches of her tail grasped tightly in her hands, and her ears flattened as if she had been scolded.

It was another half an hour after that before she finally unfroze, yet she was now more confused than ever. She couldn't explain the sudden feeling aside from having felt like she was on a cliff's edge while next to me and every second that passed was drawing her in, until she finally it felt as if she had jumped off. After that she barely remembered anything aside from feeling afraid and smothered.

That led to this unfortunate situation of myself and the carpet becoming good acquaintances. Luckily it seemed only close proximity was needed between us and so sleep came quickly, if not fitfully. Now it seemed she was back to herself, the hardy women who'd soon be leaving her home on a whim that no one understood.

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Luckily no ceremony or anything of the such was needed, the transfer of head passed with little fanfare. It was only then that I found out Tara had only been leading for a few months, and that their natural solidarity made it so no one truly lasted here long. I was left to think of this as a midway house, a stop in their lives that ensured safety for a time.

We were set to leave around midday, both of us simply taking one pack of some essentials to last us till we met civilization again. Without me the journey could have taken a day at most, but I wasn't a Were or shifter and so we'd leave on foot and hopefully make it before next night fall.

There were a few goodbyes as we left, most of those there coming simply to see her off; I had become somewhat invisible to them and I could almost feel relief at my parting. They did leave us well off though, proper clothing for a hike, and I even was finally given a pair of shoes that finally fit.

We set off then, following the only dirt path off the estate further into the mess of trees and foliage that awaited us.

"So... Where are we headed? I know civilization, but what exactly does that mean?" It was a bit later for this question, as I spoke up only when the path we followed began to disappear, leaving me now entirely to Tara's mercy, as I couldn't navigate worth a damn.

"The city of Kroy. The closest city to here and one of the most populated." She didn't bother to look at me as we walked, trudging ahead stalwartly as she continued to satisfy my curiosity. "I don't know how much you know, but Kroy is a technological city, much unlike where we just left. We prefer nature, and don't care for much else, but Kroy... The use of magic is astounding there, and hopefully we may find more information there. Maybe a magic user who can explain... You." She sighed at that and turned to face me for a moment, as if somehow this might spark some understanding.

The her in front of me was much different from the one before, it seemed like she had less airs here to try and flaunt. It might have something to do with how she was also dressed, a far cry from the dresses I was used to; she was now very much like myself, clad in a faded pair of jeans that failed to hide the curves of her lower body, just loose enough to let her legs breath, but tight enough to hug her thighs and ample rear. Upper half shown off even more, the smooth expanse of her tummy seen, with just the slightest tightness to show off that while she wasn't a twig, she was certainly fit. Every dip and dive exposed, from belly button to her chest, which was covered in a tan tank top, that amazed myself even, with how it managed to hold in her breasts with barely a jiggle.

She cleared her throat then, rolling her eyes at me as she turned and began walking again. "The tree back there is better known as Zildara. I don't know much about it, aside from the fact that nothing is supposed to live there and it's supposed to be perhaps the most ancient thing on this world. The roots extend for miles, it was there that you were found."

I shuddered, it was an unnatural feeling that was apparently unique to me. My Earth had skyscrapers, people trying to out do one another as the buildings went higher and higher. This dwarfed even that, miles away and it colored the backdrop like a mountain, scraping the sky with its expansive canopy. The more we walked and the more it faded did nothing to help the odd feelings I felt.

Despite my misgivings, time passed uneventfully. Some chatter filled the dead air between us, though it was mostly of the differences in our worlds. What amazed me most was the diversity in this world, a place where humans weren't the dominant species. The conversations did nothing to close the space between us though, letting our voices carry through the foliage as we each had to speak louder to be heard over the din of life around us; the chirping of the birds, the crunch beneath our feet and even the whistling of the leaves with every cool breeze.

It wasn't till dusk passed overhead that we finally decided to set up a small camp. It was barely even that, having just chosen a small clearing between a circle of trees to settle down. I felt as if I were being avoided though, each time I moved she made sure to be a certain distance away. I avoided questioning though, instead building the small fire we decided on while she worked to set up our small sleeping bags; as expected each just happened to be opposite each other across my campfire.

Finally I could sit, weary but not as much as I should have honestly been. I left the heating of the food to her, silent as I watched her work just a few feet from me physically yet it felt as if a gulf separated us otherwise. "Why are you so scared of getting closer?" I bluntly asked, not enjoying the idea of beating around the bush.

I could see her stiffen momentarily before she returned to eyeing the small heating pot. "It's not fear, it's something else. You saw last night, you saw how the others saw you. I want to sink my teeth into you, but then I get closer and it's like I just touched the sun."

At least I got some truth, I figured. I couldn't help but raise my hand though, turning it over again and again as if I might see some explanation for what was wrong with me."I don't see it or feel it, but I guess it must be true." I had no reason not to accept what she said, I wouldn't understand but I didn't believe anything she said was a lie.

The smell of our food soon filled the air though, and silently I watched her remove her portion before raising to gather my own. Some dried meat that was cooked and a side of nuts; it could have been worse. I stared away while we ate, lost in the filtered view of the moons above, the red one looking slightly brighter behind its blue brother compared to the last night.

"How do you feel about being prisoner?"

The question shook me from my reverie, "I've been prisoner once, remember? Now I'm here, no longer prisoner. I like this feeling more." I swallowed hard, my voice kept in check as I tried to take notice around myself. It felt almost impossible though, with how the trees seemed endless around me, almost like a Mirrored Funhouse, with the same reflection repeated as far as my eyes could strain,

"We're surrounded, they've been following us a while." She sounded tense, still eating from her bowl though she looked ready to flee, her eyes flicking towards her pack and then the forest, "I didn't think you'd be noticed this soon... It's also why I had to have you leave. I couldn't put them in danger."

Her voice betrayed nothing but I felt as if I were suddenly in the deep end. Something surrounded us, something she had knowledge of. I kept calm and turned to her fully, "So was this planned? Or did you hope we'd somehow evade whatever is out there?"

She shook her head, "No, not a plan. I just wanted to get as far away from the others, I knew we'd never evade them for too long in their home though." She sighed and pointed into the darkness, "The very trees themselves. The forests are their own entity, but you disrupted something. We all felt it at our home, you couldn't stay longer." She simply shrugged then and slowly placed her bowl down.

"So we left based on an assumption that something might happen if I stayed too long, and it did?" I was incredulous. The sheer amount of bad luck and coincidences that seemed to plague me apparently had no limits.

"Pretty much. If you were a Were we could have been out of here already, but our only shot was to drive through them and pray."

She was on her side then, her body tumbling through the dirt as she was struck by something. She seemed to have absorbed the blow though, the tumbling having actually been her own body moving with the momentum of being hit. I didn't fare as well, I got knocked from behind, a root having ripped through the dirt behind me to send me sprawling forward towards the fire.

The initial attacks were what threw the forest into a whirlwind of madness. I was clumsy but hardy and the pain was ignored as I rolled to my side, just barely avoiding the root slamming down where I was. The fire was smothered by the avalanch of dirt that was thrown around, so it was simply sheer nerve that kept me alive.

They were thick and heavy, the one that struck me had felt like I was hit by a pipe. The filtered moonlight let me quickly see that they weren't very maneuverable though, only having a limited range of motion to try and smack me down again. It was little consolation though, as around me other roots came to life, leaving large furrows in the ground as they slammed down with impunity.

I had no real idea of how to even keep myself safe, crouched against the base of one tree I could just make out how they seemed to work in tandem to try and keep me from having passage through them. The base of the tree I huddled against shuddered with every movement of its roots, and very quickly the thought of safety left my mind.

Smaller roots broke free just before me and these I could see were more dexterous, twisted back to grasp at my clothing. I grunted and tore myself away, feeling the corner I was being backed into. I didn't even think about it as I pushed myself off of the tree trunk, propelling myself just over the smaller roots. I let instinct guide me as it did in my last fight, and quickly I found myself scaling the back of one of the larger roots before jumping off towards the opposition of the commotion.

"This way!"

I heard Tara's voice yelling for me and I veered slightly to find her also cleared though she seemed in worse shape than I was. Her jeans were torn in multiple spots and I could see a large red spot on her abdomen from the first blow she took. I was faring better, with only a dull pain in my back.

"We have to move. The entire forest is them." She turned and began sprinting then, leaving me with no choice but to follow, even as hell seemed to explode out around us.

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The forest exploded into action with our fleeing, before and behind us it felt like an earthquake as the roots grew smarter. We were both forced to run and jump as exposed roots began lifting slightly, trying to force us to stumble now. From the smaller trees even the branches twisted down, ripping at my face and upper body, leaving me with scratches from those I couldn't duck.

Ahead of me she was shifting, and it was that that finally saw me stumble. Perhaps the reason why she wasn't so fast then was because she was shifting, but when I looked up I only caught the glimpse of her clothing being torn away as she finally hit all fours. It passed in just seconds, my body seeming to fall in slow motion as I lay witness to this creature running before me. She was slim, streamlined and yet was bigger than any feline I'd ever known on my world. Black fur blended in with the night, her paws just coming off one branch as she aimed to hurdle over the obstacles in her path. The last thing I saw was her long tail, hung low behind as she jumped.

My chest caught the brunt of the impact, followed by my face; all I knew after that was black.

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I ached, a feeling I thought I'd hopefully never become used to. My nose throbbed, twisted off kilter as I found myself still face down but unable to move. Pain flashed through my head and body and I couldn't stifle a groan of agony as I tried to move myself, unsuccessfully. My wrists and ankles were anchored down, smaller roots having slipped over each before embedding themselves back into the ground, making it more than impossible to try and leverage them off of myself. My neck suffered the same fate, it felt rough, the bark rubbing against my flesh as it held me down. I could at least turn my head, though that lost me a layer of flesh, yet provided relief to my broken nose.

"So you're awake." Came a familiar voice, sounding as if it were slightly ahead and to my right.

I winced but tried to crane my neck up, catching just the glimpse of a bare foot and ankle. "Tara?"

"Yeah. Before you ask, half a day. I saw you fall, came back, and here I am. I tried to shift back but then I was grabbed and forced down. The forest has awareness I don't understand, yet it's just keeping us here, as lunch." She sounded weary, as if this were a foregone conclusion and she'd resigned herself to this fate.

"What do you mean, lunch?" That was the only meaningful question I could even ask, given our situation nothing else really mattered.

"This is the will of the forest not some sentient being. I've never heard of anything like this before, but I assume your presence started something. Given how no one is around, we haven't been killed and I have no real options available, I think we're meant to simply die here, fertilizer for them." I pained me a little to hear her like this, there was accusation in her voice and acceptance to her fate.

"Let me guess, you won't signal to anyone either cause they could never fight this so pointless sacrifices are pointless." Her non-response spoke volumes and all talk died there, leaving us both to just lay here and contemplate our slow demise.

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Hours passed without a change and while physically I felt better, mentally was something else entirely. Being trapped like this alone would have been hard but having someone else with you compounded the weakness and disappointment I felt in myself. All these talks of power from her and the others, yet here I was, food to a planet that worked on instinct. I mentally berated myself, all while trying again and again to see if perhaps I missed something, anything.

All I could see were lights and shadows as the sun made its way around, the light turning crimson as dusk came and went, before only filtered moonlight showered the ground. I was having another talk with myself mentally, trying to reason anything I could, before my own thoughts were interrupted.

"..M..ter."And again."M..a..er"

"What?" I questioned out loud, "Did you hear that?" I asked Tara, though the only response I got was a noncommittal grunt.

"..Master."It was faint but I could hear it clearer this time, like someone was yelling down a hallway in my mind.

I didn't bother telling Tara anything just yet, instead focusing and hoping this wasn't a delusion that I was falling into."Who? Who's out there? Help!"I thought out, a hard lump in my throat swallowed down as a bit of paranoia grasped at me. I always wished to hold onto my every facility and was praying this wasn't my sanity slipping away.

"Master! I'm coming! I've found you!"The voice, it seemed like a her, continued to grow in strength. She seemed pleased though I was unsure why, and the use of master was unnerving.

"Who are you? Be careful, the forest has me and another. It's not safe!"I tried to warn her, giddy on one hand since it seems like luck was on my side, but fearful on another as thoughts to Tara's lack of response earlier reminded me why help seemed to be like a bad course of action.

"Worry not, master. The forest will burn and the ground will tremble for making such an error. You must be kept safe though, so please do this, master."Suddenly my mind was assaulted with images, a spell it seemed, but something much more primal. It felt like a shield, though it looked like a bubble that would protect me from her very essence.

I gave a mental assent and worked on what I was shown. I'd grasp at every last straw to ensure my survive on this world. My eyes closed and I focused on her, on the very feeling of her being that was in my mind. I simply had to imagine that her very core couldn't harm me, and then project that mental image into reality.

It was surprising how easy a task that proved to be, a bubble of sorts forming around myself and expanding outward. It seemed weak, the surface undulating as it passed my vision in its expansion. "Are you enclosed in it?" I asked with a bit of trepidation.

"Y..yes. What is this though?" It seemed the sight of something happening had woken her from her doldrums and spurred at least some life back. She seemed more in shock than anything though, but I could work with that.

"It means protection. I... don't know what's going to happen, but I think we won't end the night here." My hopeful voice trailed off, as I was gripped by the slight feeling that this might just be a foolish man's last grasp."Whatever it is, do it."I then mentally sent out.

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The night was suddenly shaken, my very essence trembling by what happened next. The trees around us trembled, leaves raining down as a roar pierced through the night. Long and angry, it felt like the very earth beneath me was being threatened. I was internally torn, while I felt such power from that one sound, power that shook me, I also didn't feel any fear. I was unnerving, and I tried to question why it felt like a part of myself, even as my body shivered from the awesomeness of it.