Veil Of The Wild

Aiden and Elena kept pace with the leopard-man, their footsteps hesitant as they traversed the thick jungle. The air grew thick with every second, as though the air itself bore the brunt of something old and hidden. The trees seemed to rise higher, their branches weaving like bony fingers, obscuring most of the moonlight.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, the jungle gave way to a huge stone wall that went high into the air. Vines wrapped around its edges, and cracks scored its surface, testifying to centuries of erosion. But it was the giant painting in the middle that grabbed Aiden's attention.

It showed a stunning village—a paradise of colorful flowers, pristine rivers running through green fields, and houses that seemed to give off warmth. Birds flew overhead, and the villagers in the painting appeared to be laughing, suspended in time.

"Wow," Aiden breathed, enchanted.

Elena inched closer, her hand running along the rim of the stone. "This spot… it's heaven. I could die here forever," she whispered, her eyes shining with the loveliness of the view in front of her.

Aiden went to the leopard-man. "Where are we?"

The beast, now revealed as Tenwa, lowered his head. His blue eyes clouded, his face filled with an emotion Aiden couldn't identify. Then, in a low, serious tone, he spoke, "You are standing in it."

Aiden shivered. He glanced around—the huge, broken wall, the dead jungle, the unsettling quiet. "That's not possible," he grumbled. "This—this world is nothing like the painting."

Tenwa breathed deeply, taking a step forward. "Many years ago, this village was as you have it in the painting—beautiful, rich, full of vitality. People from far-off places yearned to come, captivated by its beauty." His voice bore the weight of ancient sorrow.

Elena's gaze turned to him, her look a mix of curiosity and trepidation. "Then what?"

Tenwa's claws followed the stone as he continued. "The people here were not only beautiful in their environment; they were strong. But with being strong came pride. They regarded themselves as greater than the rest in the other villages, subjecting them as nothing more than beasts."

He hesitated, his tail lashing. "Whenever a visitor from another village came, they humiliated them. Made them behave like animals—barking like dogs, howling like wolves—before they would give them food or water. It was a game to them, a form of entertainment."

Aiden's fists clenched. "That's awful."

Tenwa's voice fell to a whisper, like remembering a faraway nightmare. "One evening, an old man came to a villager's door, pleading for water. He was frail, his voice shaking with fatigue. But the villager mocked and refused, insisting that the old man amuse him first."

Elena's breath caught. "What did he make him do?"

Tenwa's jaw clenched. "First, he was told to be a dog. Then a wolf. Then a lion. The villager laughed while the old man struggled to comply, his body frail, his pride broken. Even when he'd performed for their entertainment, they wouldn't give him water."

A heavy silence settled between them.

"The old man gripped his chest, his breathing shallow," Tenwa went on. "And there, on the doorstep of the villager, he fell over and died."

Elena gasped. Aiden had a lump in his throat.

"But death was not the end for him." Tenwa's eyes rose to the painting. "As his soul departed his body, a radiant light appeared, and in that instant, he was changed—into something much more. The villagers had ridiculed a helpless man, but they had unwittingly played with a sorcerer."

Aiden's eyes grew wide. "He was a magician?"

Tenwa gestured. "One much more powerful than everyone had ever understood. With his last breath, he put a curse upon the village. Their beauty, which they had so proudly taken ownership of, would be stripped away. Their heaven, which they boasted, would be devoured by shadows. And worst of all… they themselves would be the very ones they had scorned."

Elena covered her mouth, glancing to Tenwa's feline visage. "You mean… your people…?"

Tenwa let out a breath. "Yes. We became half-man, half-animal. Caught forever between who we once were and who we had made everyone else. After that night, the village disappeared from view, lost among the shadows of the jungle. Now all that exists is only remnants and phantasms of what once was."

Aiden looked at the painting once more, his head reeling. "So this is not merely a painting… but a remembrance of what used to exist here."

Tenwa nodded solemnly. "And a reminder of what was lost."

For a long time, none of them spoke. The weight of the story lingered in the air, pressing down on them like an invisible force.

Elena finally broke the silence. "Is there a way to break the curse?"

Tenwa paused. "Maybe. But it won't be simple. The curse was spun with anguish, with rage, with millennia of torment. To unravel it would take something equally as strong."

Aiden set his shoulders. "Then we have to attempt it."

Tenwa looked at him for a moment, as though he was looking for something. Then, without speaking, he turned and moved towards an archway shrouded in darkness. "Come," he said. "If you want to learn more… you need to see what is left."

Aiden looked at Elena.

Then, with reluctant but firm steps, they followed him into the ruins of the accursed village.