The World of Myth Magazine

Draven felt a rush of happiness and relief when Arun, the dire wolf that had become his friend and guardian, rounded the corner of the cottage. It had been five days since Kaylen, the stranger who rescued him from a band of goblins before promptly leaving him stranded on a broad island in the Shade. The plot of land was several acres in size, surrounded not by water but by a deep chasm and a high cliff that dominated the western end.

As Arun and Draven smothered each other in heartfelt greetings, Kaylen emerged from around the corner, following in the wolf's wake. He wore the same simple brown robe and carried the same long, smooth staff he had when they first met. Without saying a word, he moved to one of two chairs sitting just outside the cabin door, taking the one on the right.

"Five days," Draven commented as he sat on the other chair. Arun followed the few steps to lay comfortably at the Ranger's feet. "Do you know how boring it was, trapped here with only the plants to talk to?"

"So, I take it he never came out?" Kaylen chuckled, glancing west where a hole in the cliff face marked the entrance to a cave.

"I think he did," Draven returned, scratching his head, "Every morning, I found a bowl of dried meat, bread, and a fresh bucket of water. Twice I awoke to find new wood on the pile to replace what I used for the hearth inside."

"He's a good man, that one," Kaylen nodded. "But a bit cautious around others, more so with those he's never met."

Draven looked off towards the cliff. Several times over the past few days, he entertained the idea of going in and introducing himself, but he never worked up the nerve. Each time, he would stand near the mouth of the cave and listen to the sound of metal banging metal, which gave him the unneeded excuse to keep from disturbing whoever was inside.

"Who is he?" Draven finally asked, looking back to Kaylen.

"His name is Karag. He came here back when the dwarves still called this place home."

"He must be a blacksmith with all that hammering."

"A good one," Kaylen replied, "Taught by the two dwarves. Karag has many talents, including leatherworking."

Draven shifted his gaze to his legs and his new leather trousers. Though a bit snug, the dark brown leather was soft and surprisingly durable. He ran a hand over his thigh, then tapped his chest, now covered in a new loose-fitting off-white tunic. "Oh, yeah…I found them in a chest inside, along with this shirt."

"Good," Kaylen said succinctly, "I had rather hoped you wouldn't still be near-naked. And you bathed too."

"Yeah, I snooped around and helped myself to a few things," Draven admitted, "But I did my part to pay for the stuff."

"Oh?"

"I did what I could," Draven said, motioning towards the open land before the rock wall. "I tended to the garden as best I could, and after the storm passed the second night, I found the roof needed patching in more than a few places." Draven fell quiet momentarily, then furrowed his brow, "If this Karag lives here, why was the cabin in such poor shape?"

"Karag lives mostly in the cavern there. The last to officially occupy the cabin were the two dwarves." Kaylen offered evenly.

"What happened to them?" Draven questioned.

"Don't know. One day they were gone. Simple as that," Kaylen shrugged, "It may be that Karag knows but never said."

Silence fell between the two as Draven shifted in the old wooden chair. His mind was a hurricane of questions, and even if he wanted to, he had no idea which to start with. Several times he tried to speak, but no words came out. After more than a few minutes passed, Draven gave up and remained silent.

"Who are you?" Kaylen asked, breaking the silence. His tone was casual, even friendly, but somehow demanded an answer.

"I think my name is Draven," The Ranger told him as he looked at the other man. His face showed the confusion and anxiety he felt. "But I really don't know."

Kaylen eyed him with a look of curiosity. "I am interested in why you are here."

Draven looked guardedly at him before pointing out what he felt was obvious, "Well, you brought me here?"

"I know that" Kaylen snorted, "Here, I mean, in the forest."

"Should I not be?" Draven frowned.

"I don't know." Kaylen shrugged again.

"Truth is, I don't even know where I am," Draven offered, "A group of hunters I encountered said I was in the Shade. Whatever that means."

Kaylen motioned off to the east, over the vast chasm to the forest beyond. "You are in the ancient forest realm of Amraphel. A wilderness as old as the gods and is both wondrous and deadly."

"Why call it the Shade?" Draven asked.

"I'm not sure," Kaylen responded with a shrug, "Perhaps because the deeper into the forest you go, the darker the land seems. The growth is so thick in some places it's near impossible to get through."

"Those men seemed so nervous about being in the area," Draven said, looking down at Arun and remembering the encounter.

"I would like to hear about these men, but I have other questions that need answers."

"Like?"

"As I asked before, why are you here?"

"I'm here because I have no idea where else to be?" Draven shot him another look. "Why are you here?"

Kaylen crossed his arms over his chest, then tapped his chin. "You don't trust me."

"And you trust me?" Draven laughed darkly.

Kaylen sat in quiet contemplation for several minutes before speaking. "My name, as I told you, is Kaylen. I call this forest, or at least the surrounding area, my home.

Draven cocked an eyebrow in return. "Wizards usually have towers, is yours made out of a tree?"

"You have a strange obsession with wizards, young lad, which I am not. My purpose here is to maintain balance. To preserve and protect this ancient land."

Draven frowned, "You protect the whole forest?"

"No," Kaylen said bluntly, shaking his head. "Amraphel is incredibly vast. To travel the territory from its eastern border to the shores of the Dread Sea in the west would take more than a few fortnights. I live in just a small part of a much larger world."

"You do this alone?" Draven asked.

Again, Kaylen shrugged. "Mostly. My kind is admittedly rare. And rather secretive."

"Secrets," Draven echoed as he looked past Kaylen to the forest, then muttered in frustration. "Well, that makes two of us."

Kaylen frowned. "What do you mean?"

"My life past a few weeks ago is a secret, even from me!" The Ranger all but yelled. "I woke up in the forest without knowing how I got here or even who I am. I think my name is Draven because that was the first name that came to me!" He lifted his shirt, showing the four healing gashes on his upper left chest. "These were fresh when I woke. Something did this and left me for dead."

Kaylen sat quiet; his bushy eyebrows furrowed over a thoughtful gaze. Draven, his curiosity piqued the moment Kaylen spoke of secrets to be kept hidden, wondered what those eyes of have seen or what knowledge he might know. The man was, to his admission, a guardian of the forest, suggesting he was an actual Druid. That meant something important, but the meaning was lost to him. It was all there, just behind the fog that clouded his memories. Yet somehow, he knew the situation he found himself in held tremendous meaning, one that a select few ever experienced. But his excitement was tempered by a nagging feeling that he was heading down a dangerous path.

"I'm not safe here, am I?" Draven asked carefully.

"Hu? What do you mean?" Kaylen responded. Draven tried to read the expression on the man's face, but any emotion was hidden behind a stoic gaze.

"I'm getting this nagging sensation in the pit of my stomach, a sense of fear and caution as if I should already know I'm not where I am supposed to be." Draven offered honestly. "But also, I feel this sense of familiarity."

"As if you have been here before?"

Draven shook his head slowly and swept his gaze out around the area. "No, it's the forest that feels familiar. It's raw yet strangely calming." He frowned in slight confusion as he swung his gaze back to Kaylen. "After my experience with those hunters, it's obvious those who live outside Amraphel find it dangerous and unwelcoming."

Kaylen cocked a brow, "Is that why you think you are not safe here?"

"No," Draven said, shaking his head quickly, "Just the opposite. I feel…welcome. Invited. All this despite whatever horrors might lurk in the dark."

"So why did you ask if you were safe?" Kaylen inquired. The look the man offered Draven seemed a mix of curiosity and confusion.

Draven let loose a resigned sigh as he shifted in the chair. He could not fathom the implications of the subtle warnings his gut seemed to be issuing. Nothing Kaylen had done suggested he was a threat other than marooning him on this quaint tiny island.

"It's you," Draven stated bluntly, causing Kaylen's brows to rise in surprise. "I can't explain why, but my gut screams that I should be cautious and on guard in your presence."

"Your skepticism is well warranted," Kaylen offered candidly. "My kind has a well-earned reputation as being fanatic. Making interactions with us difficult and unpleasant."

"You don't seem like a fanatic," Draven noted, "Unless you're being false."

"Why would I do that?"

"My brain isn't functioning well enough to answer that question." Draven mused, "I get this feeling there are very few who understand the motives of wizards."

"I'm not a wizard," Kaylen said flatly.

"Yeah, you said that." Draven countered, "But the problem is that I woke up in Amraphel without remembering how or why I'm here. And I experience things as foreign to me as they are familiar every day."

"Your loss of memory could be due to any number of reasons," Kaylen suggested after a few minutes slipped by in silence, "I'd say it might be possible you took a violent crack to the head."

"Nah," Draven blurted as he ran a hand through his dirty blond hair and around the top of his skull, "I don't feel any dents."

"Well, I know there are several species of plants and fungi that release spores that alter the mind in various ways." Kaylen declared.

"Yeah," Draven commented ruefully, "I've been down that road. It didn't affect my memory but detached my sanity from reality for a while."

Kaylen chuckled, "Of course, there is the possibility that someone has placed you under a spell or curse."

"But why?" Draven growled, shaking his head.

"Maybe you saw something you shouldn't have or know something someone does not want to be known?" Kaylen listed with a shrug, "But I would risk the assumption that such a spell would be challenging to perform, if not near impossible. Imagine someone who can strip the mind of memories while leaving the victim with accumulated, learned skills. This would be a being of immense and terrifying power."

"So," Draven started, probingly glancing over Kaylen, "Have you mastered the wizardly arts enough to break said spell from the victim?"

"Perhaps, if I was a wizard."

"I know, you're not a wizard," Draven grumbled, then added quietly, "At least not a good one."

"What was that?"

"Nothing," Draven said quickly, "So what do I do?"

Sorry kid," Kaylen replied with sincere sympathy, "Such things are beyond my knowledge."

"Great, just great," Draven steamed, "I have to spend the rest of my days wondering about who I was for the first…" he paused, then snorted, "You know, I have no idea how old I am."

"Is there anything at all you can remember past waking up?" Kaylen prodded.

Draven didn't answer. He couldn't. He tried hard to concentrate and push through the blackness that shrouded his past with all his being, only to fail yet again. He let out an angry growl that prompted Arun to look up.

"It just makes no sense," Draven began, "How can I talk, or how is it I know things about the forest? I mean, really, I know which plants are what, and…." He threw his hand up, "How in the god's names do I know how to speak in the goblin tongue?"

The Druid pursed his lips, pondering some deep thought. Draven looked down at his large wolf companion in silence, suddenly feeling grateful Nyrarae, his beloved goddess of nature, sent Arun to protect him. He realized then how much he had missed the wolf over the past few days.

"Wait a minute," Draven said, looking at Kaylen suspiciously, "How come you and Arun came together?"

Kaylen looked at the Ranger, his eyes wide with surprise. "What did you say?"

"You and Arun," Draven motioned to the dire wolf. "You came here together; how's that possible?"

"He was sitting at the edge of the ravine when I got here," Kaylen replied absently, but his eyes narrowed, and his gaze bore into Draven's, "How do you know this word?"

"Um….what word?"

"Arun, you said his name was Arun."

"Yeah," Draven replied, confused, then shrugged. "It seemed a fitting name, and he didn't complain."

"Do you know what that word means?" Kaylen asked, his gaze still stern.

"Yeah, it means ghost, in…" Draven paused, snapping a look at Arun, then back to Kaylen. "wait, I know how to speak the language of the Druids?"

Kaylen frowned deeply, "Our language is a closely guarded dialect. As secret as secrets get."

Kaylen stood suddenly, stepping away from the cabin to where Draven had built an area for a campfire. He stood for a moment before looking back. With a sigh, he seemed resigned to an internal idea that played out as he looked up and blew an eerie whistle that echoed all around and varied in pitch, making it seem otherworldly.

Draven waited a few tense moments, his curiosity beginning to boil over, but just as his mouth opened to speak, the familiar sound of a hawk's scream silenced him. He stood slowly, his eyes up to the sky, and was awed by the sight of the winged predator gliding down to land gently on Kaylen's outstretched arm.

"Tell me," Kaylen started, "what do you see when you look into the forest?"

"What, besides trees?" Draven mused. Kaylen just stared, unamused. Draven decided to take the question seriously and looked out into the deeper woods, but nothing seemed unusual. For whatever reason, he felt comfort under the leafy crowns of the various trees, like a dwarf might deep in a mine.

He began to feel frustration bubble up inside; the answers he sought were hiding somewhere among the trees. But where was he supposed to look? The thought that the key to everything could be buried in some old hollowed-out tree was absurd. He would be like a child on a treasure hunt, darting from one place to another, praying to find something that was not even tangible. The only form a memory could take was an image inside the head of the one who experienced it.

With his eyes still trained out into the forest, an intriguing thought began to form. With all its wonder, secrets, and beauty, the forest pleased the eye in a relaxing, artistic way. Its lure was sensuous, seductive, and dark. It was not just some random creation of the gods. It was a kingdom unlike any in the realms of Alsyn. It was a dominion of chaos governed by the laws of nature, which supported more life forms than a mind could comprehend.

Draven realized with no small amount of awe that proper understanding of the forest realms went far beyond the tangible aspects of the physical plane into something beyond the senses of mortal beings unless you had the heart to see what your eyes couldn't and hear what few could.

"Kaylen?" Draven said softly.

"Yes?" The other responded with a curious gaze.

"Is it bad that I know the true heart of the forest lies beyond this plane?"

"Explain," Kaylen prompted.

"The song of life, the world that is Amraphel, echoes in a realm behind the physical earth. Our eyes see just the skin, a protective cover over the essence of it all."

Draven looked at Kaylen and watched as the man's face seemed to cycle through several expressions ranging from surprised curiosity and suspicion.

"Come here," He motioned to Draven as the hawk flapped its wings to launch into the air, only to land easily on the cabin roof.

"What?"

Kaylen leaned out, looking down into the black depths far below. Draven, confused, leaned out to do the same.

"This is a bizarre turn of events, wouldn't you say?" Kaylen asked as he tilted his head to look at Draven.

"It does testify to all forms of peculiar," Draven chuckled. "So, what happens now?"

Kaylen's left hand rested on Draven's right shoulder, "There is only one thing to do."

"That is?"

Kaylen's grip tightened on Draven's shoulder, "Let's see if you can fly."

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