The Bridge Home
Pale moonlight filtered thinly through the thick canopy of the forest as the party made their way back in the direction of home. Fog crept in lightly, approaching slowly from the direction of the river.
“Do you think we’ve gone far enough?” Leon whispered as they carefully stepped into a clearing where the forest was broken by some ruins. “We should keep going,” Sam replied simply.
“We’ve put enough distance between us and the necromancer. This is a good place to camp,” Max argued in a hushed voice.
“It just doesn’t feel safe,” Sam squinted through the accumulating fog. “We’ve had a lot of close calls today, and I don’t want to risk-”
“What’s this about safe? We are in the wilderness, we are never safe. It wouldn’t make a difference if we stayed here or walked all through to morning and the day after!”
“Not now Max,” Leon interjected. For once Max didn’t offer a retort.
Trudging tiredly forward, the three struggled to make their way through the ever-growing mist, which compounded the darkness of the wood. “Perhaps we should light the lantern?” Leon suggested. There was a moment of silence before there was a response. “No…I guess we could stop for the night.” Sam finally relented in a tired voice.
They found a spot on sandy ground under a rocky outcropping, and began unpacking when Leon stood up and pointed off into the darkness. “What is that?” he pointed at a blurry white light fading in and out in the distance.
“Seems like…a signal,” Max said, intrigued.
“I think we should keep going and camp somewhere else,” Leon felt uneasy at the distant glow.
“You’re being ridiculous. I just set everything up!…Maybe we should investigate,” Max replied, suddenly without tone. “If it’s a threat, we need to deal with it.”
“It might also be a person. It couldn’t hurt to check,” Sam admitted.
“I have a bad feeling about this. I really think we should ignore it,” Leon’s suspicion was high, but the other two chose to stumble forward through the fog. Nearer and nearer they stepped, no longer caring about snapping twigs or crushing leaves underfoot. They followed the allure of the white blur in the open, as if entranced by its rhythmic fade. Leon crept closely behind, trying to urge his companions to turn back, but his pleas fell on deaf ears. As they got close enough to see the light more clearly, they were taken by its beauty. A soft, ethereal orb like a glowing cloud with a flaming core. It danced, and their eyes followed. Circling, looping, as if performing some sort of ballet. Even Leon was beginning to see its appeal, as he caught up with Max and Sam, just as they began to reach out to the light. Fingers barely within the orb’s glow, a sudden snap of cold shattered the spell they were under. The white orb instantly fizzled out, and the black of the forest engulfed them. Suddenly, the forest became illuminated by an intense red, as an inky shadow spilled onto the earth and a figure began to rise from its pool. An immense suit of dark armor materialized, mounted on plates and sheets in the shape of a horse. Tiny, spiteful red dots peered down from inside its helm, and the armor drew a lance.
“It’s the Wight!” Leon shouted at last. “Scatter!”
“Head for the bridge!” Max yelled. Sam flew east, Leon bolted north, and Max leapt to the west. They weaved inexhaustibly through the trees and brush, straining to see through the red mist. Knowing the river would be in the direction where the fog was thicker, Sam, Leon, and Max all made respective reversals in that direction. The Wight was privy to their plan, and ignored their attempted diversion, letting out loose, cackling howls as he rode his phantom steed through the wood.
Eventually the party reunited as the forest thinned, giving way to the river and the bridge they would use to cross it.
“Do you think we shook him?” Sam panted while they continued to run. They scaled the bridge stairs and within moments were nearing its middle. Just then though, a chilling laughter broke through the air. The Wight’s black figure loomed ahead of them, silhouetted against the moon on the opposite side. It had made it across first, and was now in the perfect position to fulfill his purpose. They were much too far across the bridge to turn back in time, and its great height made leaping undesirable. Frozen in fear, the boys did not know what to do as it charged towards them, the sound of hooves thundering across the stone as it lowered its piercing lance, its cackle echoing unnaturally. Then, another noise joined the cacophony of horror, though neither party noticed. It was the sound of something emerging from the water below, wading up to the bridge. Snatcher immediately sprang out from the bridge’s side, striking the Wight, who was too focused to notice, into the water.
“Finally got ya you worms! Every day you- huh?” Snatcher looked shocked. “Trying to fool me again, yeah?” the Troll said, offended, “I won’t take it any longer! I want you humans gone!”. Snatcher wound up his right arm, and prepared a strike like the one he delivered to the Wight.
The frigid, biting water was the only thing that shook the three boys from the state of awe they were in from what had just happened. The party had gone from being chased by the determined apparition, to being safe, to being skipped into the river’s churning waters like stones in a matter of moments. They had gotten help in evading death in a very unlikely place, but there was still much to worry about.
“Find…d-driftwood!” Sam sputtered.
“We need to- get to shore!” choked Max, who was struggling to stay above water due to his heavy equipment. “Grab my hand!” Leon coughed, as the current pushed them quickly along. Up ahead, a fallen tree dipped into the edge of the river, and the boys weren’t too far away.
“Get a hold of the tree!”
Sam and Leon dug their nails into its soft, rotting bark, closer to the shoreline. Max was swept farther out however, and could only grip its branches. When the other two made it to shore, they immediately noticed this. “Get Max, I’ll find something that floats!” Sam ordered urgently.
Leon carefully sidled along the slippery trunk, while Sam assessed the area. There was a vacant fishing shack, and a stack of timbers leaning against its side. Grabbing the thickest one, Sam rushed back to the fallen tree.
“He’s too far out!” Leon cried. Sam hurriedly crawled up to him, and produced the timber from under his arm. “Grab this!” he shouted to the half-drowned Max. The young fighter grabbed hold, but was immediately tugged at by the current once more. This unexpected pull caused Sam to slip on the tree’s wet surface, falling back into the water with Max. As he fell, Leon grabbed Sam’s sleeve, causing him to go over as well. The three were now back at the river’s mercy, held above water only by a wooden board. The current was too strong for them to escape, so the only choice they had was to wait until they reached a spot where the rapids calmed down.
After what seemed like hours of fighting to stay afloat, the sun was beginning to rise, and the waters were growing calmer. With what little energy they had left, the boys swam to the muddy shore, and observed their surroundings. The fog still hung thicker than ever before, but it appeared they were in a marsh. “Are we set to make camp and rest yet?” Max heaved.
“Well, we left most of our supplies back in the forest. And what we do have is sopping wet,” Leon announced.
“I’ll take it,” Max collapsed in the mud. The other two quickly followed suit.
Here's a little excerpt from that unnamed fantasy story that goes along with this picture. I may finish this drawing, but in case I don't, consider the story consolation. I should really draw the Wight sometime. The design I had in mind was pretty cool I think.
3/1/22
“Do you think we’ve gone far enough?” Leon whispered as they carefully stepped into a clearing where the forest was broken by some ruins. “We should keep going,” Sam replied simply.
“We’ve put enough distance between us and the necromancer. This is a good place to camp,” Max argued in a hushed voice.
“It just doesn’t feel safe,” Sam squinted through the accumulating fog. “We’ve had a lot of close calls today, and I don’t want to risk-”
“What’s this about safe? We are in the wilderness, we are never safe. It wouldn’t make a difference if we stayed here or walked all through to morning and the day after!”
“Not now Max,” Leon interjected. For once Max didn’t offer a retort.
Trudging tiredly forward, the three struggled to make their way through the ever-growing mist, which compounded the darkness of the wood. “Perhaps we should light the lantern?” Leon suggested. There was a moment of silence before there was a response. “No…I guess we could stop for the night.” Sam finally relented in a tired voice.
They found a spot on sandy ground under a rocky outcropping, and began unpacking when Leon stood up and pointed off into the darkness. “What is that?” he pointed at a blurry white light fading in and out in the distance.
“Seems like…a signal,” Max said, intrigued.
“I think we should keep going and camp somewhere else,” Leon felt uneasy at the distant glow.
“You’re being ridiculous. I just set everything up!…Maybe we should investigate,” Max replied, suddenly without tone. “If it’s a threat, we need to deal with it.”
“It might also be a person. It couldn’t hurt to check,” Sam admitted.
“I have a bad feeling about this. I really think we should ignore it,” Leon’s suspicion was high, but the other two chose to stumble forward through the fog. Nearer and nearer they stepped, no longer caring about snapping twigs or crushing leaves underfoot. They followed the allure of the white blur in the open, as if entranced by its rhythmic fade. Leon crept closely behind, trying to urge his companions to turn back, but his pleas fell on deaf ears. As they got close enough to see the light more clearly, they were taken by its beauty. A soft, ethereal orb like a glowing cloud with a flaming core. It danced, and their eyes followed. Circling, looping, as if performing some sort of ballet. Even Leon was beginning to see its appeal, as he caught up with Max and Sam, just as they began to reach out to the light. Fingers barely within the orb’s glow, a sudden snap of cold shattered the spell they were under. The white orb instantly fizzled out, and the black of the forest engulfed them. Suddenly, the forest became illuminated by an intense red, as an inky shadow spilled onto the earth and a figure began to rise from its pool. An immense suit of dark armor materialized, mounted on plates and sheets in the shape of a horse. Tiny, spiteful red dots peered down from inside its helm, and the armor drew a lance.
“It’s the Wight!” Leon shouted at last. “Scatter!”
“Head for the bridge!” Max yelled. Sam flew east, Leon bolted north, and Max leapt to the west. They weaved inexhaustibly through the trees and brush, straining to see through the red mist. Knowing the river would be in the direction where the fog was thicker, Sam, Leon, and Max all made respective reversals in that direction. The Wight was privy to their plan, and ignored their attempted diversion, letting out loose, cackling howls as he rode his phantom steed through the wood.
Eventually the party reunited as the forest thinned, giving way to the river and the bridge they would use to cross it.
“Do you think we shook him?” Sam panted while they continued to run. They scaled the bridge stairs and within moments were nearing its middle. Just then though, a chilling laughter broke through the air. The Wight’s black figure loomed ahead of them, silhouetted against the moon on the opposite side. It had made it across first, and was now in the perfect position to fulfill his purpose. They were much too far across the bridge to turn back in time, and its great height made leaping undesirable. Frozen in fear, the boys did not know what to do as it charged towards them, the sound of hooves thundering across the stone as it lowered its piercing lance, its cackle echoing unnaturally. Then, another noise joined the cacophony of horror, though neither party noticed. It was the sound of something emerging from the water below, wading up to the bridge. Snatcher immediately sprang out from the bridge’s side, striking the Wight, who was too focused to notice, into the water.
“Finally got ya you worms! Every day you- huh?” Snatcher looked shocked. “Trying to fool me again, yeah?” the Troll said, offended, “I won’t take it any longer! I want you humans gone!”. Snatcher wound up his right arm, and prepared a strike like the one he delivered to the Wight.
The frigid, biting water was the only thing that shook the three boys from the state of awe they were in from what had just happened. The party had gone from being chased by the determined apparition, to being safe, to being skipped into the river’s churning waters like stones in a matter of moments. They had gotten help in evading death in a very unlikely place, but there was still much to worry about.
“Find…d-driftwood!” Sam sputtered.
“We need to- get to shore!” choked Max, who was struggling to stay above water due to his heavy equipment. “Grab my hand!” Leon coughed, as the current pushed them quickly along. Up ahead, a fallen tree dipped into the edge of the river, and the boys weren’t too far away.
“Get a hold of the tree!”
Sam and Leon dug their nails into its soft, rotting bark, closer to the shoreline. Max was swept farther out however, and could only grip its branches. When the other two made it to shore, they immediately noticed this. “Get Max, I’ll find something that floats!” Sam ordered urgently.
Leon carefully sidled along the slippery trunk, while Sam assessed the area. There was a vacant fishing shack, and a stack of timbers leaning against its side. Grabbing the thickest one, Sam rushed back to the fallen tree.
“He’s too far out!” Leon cried. Sam hurriedly crawled up to him, and produced the timber from under his arm. “Grab this!” he shouted to the half-drowned Max. The young fighter grabbed hold, but was immediately tugged at by the current once more. This unexpected pull caused Sam to slip on the tree’s wet surface, falling back into the water with Max. As he fell, Leon grabbed Sam’s sleeve, causing him to go over as well. The three were now back at the river’s mercy, held above water only by a wooden board. The current was too strong for them to escape, so the only choice they had was to wait until they reached a spot where the rapids calmed down.
After what seemed like hours of fighting to stay afloat, the sun was beginning to rise, and the waters were growing calmer. With what little energy they had left, the boys swam to the muddy shore, and observed their surroundings. The fog still hung thicker than ever before, but it appeared they were in a marsh. “Are we set to make camp and rest yet?” Max heaved.
“Well, we left most of our supplies back in the forest. And what we do have is sopping wet,” Leon announced.
“I’ll take it,” Max collapsed in the mud. The other two quickly followed suit.
Here's a little excerpt from that unnamed fantasy story that goes along with this picture. I may finish this drawing, but in case I don't, consider the story consolation. I should really draw the Wight sometime. The design I had in mind was pretty cool I think.
3/1/22
3 years ago
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