NOVEL WEB 28. Trine forest
At the front gate of the fort, sitting on a little bench, Abigail waited for Calad. Already it had been a little over fourteen minutes, with each passing second feeling like a small eternity. Soon, it would near fifteen - fifteen tortuous minutes of stagnation. Time that could've been spent doing anything productive. She wasn't sure what exactly, but her point stood, and as she waited out the last bit of minute fifteen, Calad arrived.
He exited the fort dressed in what looked to be the fanciest clothes he owned. A dark blue vest over a lighter blue tunic, buttoned most of the way up to his neck. It even came with a little white handkerchief.
It was the sort of thing expected to be worn to a ball, or some other high brow get together, and certainly not where they were going. But Abigail held her peace, and simply joined him as he walked out through the gate, dust already marring his clothes.
Together, they started off for the capital, or at least she assumed they did. Really she was just following his lead, going where he was going, even if it seemed like he himself didn't know for a minute. But his confusion didn't last long, and within a few moments he took off running, his form a blur of movement as he propelled himself toward a lone abandoned road.
With a groan, Abigail followed, careful not to go too fast lest she smack herself upside the head with a stray boob. Which didn't help much. Her breasts, about as big as small boulders by now, were barely constrained by her dress, leaving them free to fly wherever they wanted.
Unfortunately, where they wanted to go was up, down, and every other direction the wind blew, forcing Abigail to hold them as she ran, slowing her down. Still, she managed to keep up with the assassin, something she attributed to her years of running.
But, even then, she was barely keeping up. Calad was fast, really, really fast, faster than anyone she'd ever seen before. He was almost a blur of movement, dashing down the road, too fast to accurately keep track of - and if she didn't know any better, she'd think he was trying to lose her.
He wasn't, and every once in a while he slowed down to make sure she was still behind him. She was, each and every time. Albeit, more tired than the last as her legs demanded a break.
They didn't get one.
Instead, Abigail ran harder, pushing herself to keep going, even when her lungs begged for her to stop. A feeling that only ramped in intensity, to the point that she couldn't ignore it anymore and started to slow. First to a laboured jog, then a complete standstill.
As soon as she did, Calad, who was quite a ways ahead of her, froze and sighed.
"Are you alright?" He asked, not a hint of concern in his voice.
And Abigail, maybe for the first time in years, wheezed as her body shook with exertion, and as she stood there, half hunched over, she fully realized how heavy she actually was.
Just one breast, big enough to hang a little ways past her bellybutton, felt as if weighed the same as a small boulder, maybe more. Her legs, thick as tree trunks, were like anchors keeping her in place, too weighty to move. So she didn't even try. Instead, she remained there, unmoving as Calad approached.
"No." She finally answered, too late for it to matter.
"We can wait," He said, and immediately took a seat on the nearest rock. "So please, feel free to take your time."
She did, stopping twice to catch her breath before finally standing up and stretching. Only for a wave of fatigue to hit her right as she would've declared that she was alright. The feeling sent her wobbling toward the ground, where she sat for the next two minutes, trying to catch her breath. Again.
Which, despite how normal it was, was an entirely alien feeling to her. It was the sort of thing she'd purged herself of through years of practice, of running till her legs felt like they would crumble apart, pushing her body to it's very limits via Ardin till Esbern had to step in and stop her. Now, a little heavier than normal, and all it took to leave her completely exhausted was a run?
Abigail couldn't let that stand, even if it hurt to get up, even if it made her muscles burn, still she would do it. First it was with one step, heavy and draining, then it was another, and another.
As she took them, Calad watched her from his rock, smiling a smug smile as he slowly got up, stretched, and started his run once more. This time at a noticeably slower speed. Slow enough that she could really keep up, and maybe even surpass him.
If she didn't feel like passing out at any given moment, that is. Still, she wasn't that far behind.
A position she managed to keep all the way until they reached the caverns exit. Where sunlight, radiant and pure, burst from the clouds and beamed down on them. An experience she'd almost forgotten about, and one she promised to never take for granted again. With it, came a wave of 'mostly' fresh air, and a suitably appropriate chance to catch her breath.
The enjoyment she derived from that fresh air, however, was undercut by the completely foreign forest before her. Where, as far as she could see, every tree was a leafless mutant split into three. Stranger still were the heart shaped growths attached to them, seemingly swelling fatter with every second that passed.
It was so strange that Abigail hesitated to call it a forest.
Calad did not, however.
"Welcome to Trine forest!" He announced as he casually strode past her, before suddenly switching to a more serious tone. "We'll be passing through here on our way to the capital. And there are a few things you need to know.
"One, do not leave my sight. Two, do not travel at night. Lastly, keep your eyes peeled for anything bigger than a wolf. Am I understood?"
Abigail nodded. "Yeah. Stay close, don't travel at night, and look out for anything bigger than a wolf. Easy stuff."
As soon as she finished speaking, Calad whipped around and gave her a grave look. "You say that, yet I've lost more clients to these woods than anything or anywhere else. Make sure you don't add yourself to that list."
"Yes sir." She said with mock salute, the act of which sent a jolt of motion through her chest all the way down to her legs. Which continued to wobble as she followed after Calad, who had already begun to walk away.
Together, they passed under lifeless branches and past an infinite assortment of trees. Each a different shaped trident of wood erected up toward the sky. The red hearts hanging from them were reminiscent of dried blood, and if she stared long enough, it looked like they were moving. Wriggling around, side to side, drinking as much as it could from the tree.
That was how Abigail realized that it wasn't just an ornament. It was a worm. Or something very near to it, only heart shaped and red, it's body bloated with sap. And she watched as it continued to bloat, gorging to the point that it looked as if it was only a few drops away from popping. Which is when it wisely decided to stop and crawl away, vanishing from sight within one of the nearby bushes.
And Abigail nearly followed it. Curiosity pulling on her like she was a cat, innocent and pure. But Calad's words came back to mind. Searing themselves into the front of her thoughts, and she backed off.
Instead she opted to continue onward. Keeping her hands to herself as she admired the bizarre novelty of the forests. Gawking at it's flora: the trees split into the three, the grey bushes, and the clusters of thorns masquerading as flowers. Above her, lifeless branches intertwined, spiraling around each other into a network of gnarled wood. Atop this roof flew a flock of birds dark in color, and not once did they stop or land.
It almost seemed like they were giving the forest as wide a berth as possible.
Abigail followed their lead and quickened her pace, closing the distance between her and Calad. Who, as far as she could tell, seemed ever so slightly on edge. As if he was expecting something terrible to happen any minute. His eyes sweeping back and forth for any sign of danger, never resting on one spot for all too long.
And as he was staring at a particularly scaly looking rock, a beast bigger than a bear broke through the foliage behind them.
With a single paw it shattered a tree into splinters. Wood crunching beneath it's feet as it ran at them, monstrous mouth open, its teeth bared.
Abigail jumped at it, fist hastily coated in a weak flame. And the beast, with a charge, knocked her aside. It's head slamming into her gut and sending her flying into a tree behind her. Wood holding firm and steady when she hit it.
"Run!" Calad shouted as he put himself in between her and the beast. "There's an abandoned fort not far from here. Go there."
Abigail ignored him as she got up. And with a roar of her own she charged past him. Each step taken followed with a rising tide of Ardin running through her system. Spreading like a virus through her blood. Making the world seem slow and fragile as her strength, speed, and reflexes increased.
Even then, she barely managed to react to the paw that struck out at her. It's claws passing inches away from her face.
And just as quick, another strike came. This time less a deadly swipe and more a violent backhand. Fur, white as snow, soft as pillow, and carrying all the power of drake slammed into her chest. A blow that her breasts lightened, somewhat.
So instead of it caving in her chest and turning her into a bloody mess, it just flung he'd back. Again.
"Didn't you hear me? I said run." Calad reprimanded her, once again getting in the way.
And this time, she actually considered it.
"What about you?"
"Not my first time escaping a Thuln. Now go!"
This time, Abigail listened.