Chapter 37: The scared and the slender

Thick grey clouds blocked out the light of the hued sky casting the forest in a soft darkness, scanty trees and ashy earth all made profound by the bone chilling silence brought about by the lifeless state of the once lively forest and in the heart of it all was Peter, shirtless, skin covered with dirt and a cloth wrapped around boths sides of his arms like the straps of a bag as he pulled Rylan's unconscious body behind him. A grunt left him with every single step he took, eyes wide with fear as he pulled through the soreness, refusing to stop because, if they remained then  it would come for them, right now it was busy chasing after Jakob and the other players but what happens when it gives up on that endeavor and decided to turn its attention to them. Rylan was unconscious, he couldn't rely on him like he had for the past month, dragging him back, being utterly and totally useless. He knew, even if Rylan didn't do as much as utter a word to solidify that idea, He could see it, every time they were In trouble and Rylan had to first check if he was ok before he could act, had to first factor his weak self into the equation before every single action, He needed to move, to get as far away from the forest as possible because even if by a stroke of luck the Golem didn't decide to return then Jakob definitely would, rendering every single thing Rylan had done, Pointless.

Tears fell from his eyes but there was no sound of sobbing or anything that could even relate as he pushed forward, determination was what kept him going through the soreness of his limb, through the pain of chaffing inflicted on him by the cloth wrapped around his shoulders. A memory flashed through his mind, one belonging to a moment from a month ago, He was in his room playing with Legos, envisioning what it would be like to live in a world like this, in his mind, it was epic, he would waft away bizarre beast with a single punch, protect powerless innocent people and be married to Emilia, the prettiest girl in his class but now that he was in such a world he could see how stupid he truly was, a sad laugh escaped him, the sound finding its way through the empty silence. He continued trudging, the weight of Rylan becoming more and more unbearable with every step he took till his knees weakened and legs gave out, he crumpled to his knees, breath heavy as he stared at his blistered feet, defeat hung heavy above him as he stared at Rylan's sleeping features, the dried blood splattered across his face, dried lips and darks circles that guarded his eyelids, his legs felt weighted beneath him but he could move, he gritted his teeth and summoned every single gram of strength available to him, he continued, pulling, slamming a firm leg into the ground before taking a flimsy step forward, One, Two, Three and on the third his legs froze and trembled, He couldn't move, he stared at his own limb like it belonged to someone else, every command sent ignored, he could do nothing but watch as his knees shook, tears welled up in his eyes and began to stream down his face but still no sounds left his mouth as he tried to push forward but all to no avail, He fell back to his knees and looked back at Rylan's unconscious face.

“I'm sorry……Rylan, I tried…” a sob left. “I really tried….I really—” A tree not far from them rustled and stopped him mid sentence, his head turned to the origin of the sound, there was nothing, He kept his eyes fixed on the trees, seconds passing without any sign of movement then something shifted from behind it, Peter's heart thumped, he shifted closer to Rylan but kept his eyes fixed on that one point, it moved again, fear shot through him as a figure came into view, He shifted closer to Rylan, it shifted into view giving Peter a better look of its freakish form. It was incredibly slender was almost 3 meters tall with black skin, a body not even 15 centimeters wide, long skinny arms that scrapped against the floor and hands three times the size of its body, there was no separation between its head, neck or shoulders just a continuous line of ghastly existence. It stepped forward slowly, every step deliberate, its enormous green eyes that shook like it wasn't properly connected refused to leave them, Peter shifted back, tears streaming down his face as this beast that looked to have been taken straight out of a child's nightmare took another step.

Peter continued shifting backwards till his body was stopped by a tree, halting his movement, the beast took another step forward then it paused, seconds passed dragging on agonizingly then it slowly began to tilt its head till it was at an unnatural angle and without transition a wide smile creeped onto its face, Peters face lost all color as uncontrollably shudders began to escape him, his heart rate sky rocketed and breathing became incredibly difficult as he watched the beast come closer and closer, He picked up a stick waving it around in a fatal attempt to keep it away but it kept coming closer and closer with every step taken his heart beat rose, the bravery he'd thought he had taken its leave, in his panic he began to frantically shake Rylan, tapping, banging against his chest, begging him to wake up, to open his eyes, to save him.

“Rylan!! Rylan!!, Rylan!!, Rylan!! Ry….la” His voice choked as the beast got mere inches away from him and leaned down to his level, its monstrous teeth dripping with saliva, the odor nauseating as it brought its face forward and mimicked with an unsettling child-like voice.

“Ry…Ryyyy…Rylannnn.”