"What was that sound?"
"I don't know, it sounded like... wolves?"
"Wolves? But those haven't been seen in years. Why would they be here?"
"Maybe it was something else then?"
The silence in the carriage had been overtaken by turmoil. Everyone had heard the nearby howling sound, but none of them was sure what it meant. Wolves had been deemed extinct in the area for about twenty years. There had been some sightings of them closer to the border of the Human Realm, but that was at least days away from the Forest of Mist.
"If anyone has fire magic, turn off the lanterns. Just as a precaution."
Two men stood up and waved their hands past the dimly lit lanterns, extinguishing the flames. The group tried to listen if there were any more noises, but nobody heard anything.
"I-it must've been our imagination, right? Right?" A smaller girl nervously asked.
Nobody dared to answer the question, since they were all contemplating whether it had been real or not. After a few minutes of silence had past, a lightly dressed, muscular man confirmed the girl's thoughts.
"Dun' worry missy, there ain't wolves in this area. An' even if there were, I'd easily kill a pack or two with my naked hands." He laughed deeply. "Besides, they ain't touching us here, this carriage is protected by a strong barrier. No animal can break it in a thousand yea-"
An earthquake interrupted his sentence midway. The whole carriage shook heavily. Rose managed to hold her balance just in time, but others were in less luck. The nervous girl ended up in the muscular man's arms, who gently caught her and put her back into place. He smiled at her to reassure she was safe, but quickly stood up and knocked on the wall between them and the driver.
"'Oy, what was that? 'Ello?"
He tried calling the driver a few times, but there was no response. Only then Rose noticed the carriage had stopped. The man realized the same not much later.
"..."
Everyone was silent again. Nobody knew what was happening, but all of them were already creating the worst imaginable scenarios in their heads. The girl started crying softly.
"I'm going to take a look." One of the two men who had taken care of the lanterns, stood up and moved towards the exit in the back.
"I'll come with you." The other man said, following the first. The muscular man, trying to calm down the anxious girl, nodded.
The two men first stuck their heads to scout the area. "It's really misty, we barely can see anything. We'll just go around to check on the driver and get back. Maybe he bounced his head on something when the carriage shook earlier."
"Be careful! We have no clue what's out there." The muscular man answered, just before the two men left the carriage. "Don't worry, everything will be fine. Here, here... Mister Sam is here." He was still trying to calm down the girl by patting her on her head, but it had little effect. She would probably not rest until the men came back and the carriage was continuing as usual.
There were a few strange things about all this, Rose thought. For beginners, the carriage had been covered with single-way protection magic like the muscular man, Sam, had said. While the barrier was not as powerful as he'd said, it couldn't have been broken without any form of magic. Any animal would've gotten paralyzed by simply touching it. So it most likely the driver had stopped the carriage on his own. But why was he not answering then? Did he actually get out of the vehicle? And why?
While Rose was pondering on the questions, an older woman raised an alarming question: "Don't you think those two gentlemen are taking too long...?" She was right. They had been out there for more than five minutes, but there was no single sound to be heard. But not long after that, something hit the carriage. One of the walls was colored in crimson red. Blood? No, this was...
"GET DOWN!" Rose yelled. Everyone reacted instinctively. And just in time, because a red fire beam bore a hole through the wall and left the carriage through the opposite one. Rose had no time to concentrate in order to check it, but she was sure the magic barrier had been nullified by the impact. They were completely vulnerable. The girl started crying loudly, everyone else was too devastated to even lift a finger. Somehow, instinctively, Rose knew this was only going to get worse if they didn't do anything.
"We should go outside." Rose proclaimed.
"Wait, it's clearly dangerous outsi-" Another beam shot through one of the walls, luckily too high to hit anyone. A few frightened screams followed the sudden second blast.
"We should all move, whoever or whatever is doing this clearly is not friendly. No matter what's outside, if we stay inside we're just a firing range."
"She's right." Sam agreed with her. "I'm not gonna sit here until I b'come some ashes, an' neither of you wants to become that either, I'm sure. I'll take care of missy here, so go, move!" He commanded the group. They obediently followed after Rose, who had already reached the exit.
Rose looked outside. Just like the men had said, there was only mist. Some nearby trees were vaguely visible, but the ones further away had been completely swallowed by the white. Dark stones on the ground formed the road they had been traveling on. At least they didn't stray from the path, that was one positive. Rose nodded to the ones behind her to let them know it was clear, then climbed outside. One by one the members of the group followed, joined last by Sam and the girl.
"Everyone, stay together. The mist is thick so if you get lost, we might not find you again. Also, try to make the least sound as possible." Rose whispered. "Does anyone here know protective magic? Like barriers or walls or something?" Nobody answered. Another flash cut through the mist, hitting the carriage. The size was threefold the previous ones, burning away a good part of the front. If they'd still been in there, they would've been toast. Rose tried to think what action to take next, but the next event cause her to stop her thoughts immediately. From all directions, wolves appeared from the mist, growling viciously at the group.
"H-hey, those are...!"
"Wolves." Rose's head turned towards the direction of the familiar male voice. It came from the other side of the carriage. The wolves' growling grew louder because of the sudden voice, and a few of them disappeared into the mist. Rose did not recall where she'd heard this voice before, but she was entirely sure it was not someone who was supposed to be in this carriage. "A-are we... G-going to be okay?" Another familiar female voice asked, very slow and weak.
"..." The boy didn't answer.
"Look out, there are more comin' towards you!" Sam shouted. There was no answer, but Rose was sure the boy had heard it.
"We have to break through and go to the front. Anyone who has magic, cast it behind and besides us, so the wolves can't get closer. It doesn't need to be offensive or strong, just keep it up while we're moving. I'll clear a path for us. Follow behind me as close as possible."
A few people started casting basic magic: a mix of weak fire and earth magic. It was enough to keep the wolves at a distance. Rose then dashed forward towards the wolves near the carriage, taking off her right glove while moving. Three wolves simultaneously jumped at her with their fangs. They were fast...
Just before their bodies impacted, she slammed her clamped fist forward. Out of the top of her knuckles a fiery blaze shot forward through the air, hitting all three of the wolves straight in the face. The blast flung the bodies backwards at a tremendous speed, smashing them against nearby trees. The air was filled with the fragrance of burning flesh. A few people behind her gasped. She signaled the group to follow her. They circled around the carriage towards the front. The smoldering gaps were still present in the carriage, reminding them of the fate that would've awaited them if they would've stayed inside. After the big attack Rose had pulled, all the wolves in front of them carefully kept their distance.
It did not take them long to get to the front. Contrary to what Rose had expected, the driver's cabin was completely untouched. No sign of a battle or a forced entry. What did that mean...? In the distance she saw two silhouettes: one sitting on the ground and one standing in front of that one, wielding some kind of sword-like weapon.
"H-hey!" Someone behind her yelled. The figure seemed to turn his head.
"Watch out!" Rose yelled, when she saw a silhouette of a wolf moving towards the distracted person. They instantly reacted, holding their sword between them and the wolf. Due to the force of the impact, they lost heir balance and landed on the ground, barely holding off the sharp teeth of the wolf. The other person didn't move from their spot, even though the surrounding wolves were closing in on them.
At this tempo, they were going to be too late!
Rose took a deep breath, and focused her attention on her left foot. A sudden gust of wind formed beneath her left foot which she used to launch herself, propelling her forward at high speed. She flew in one straight line towards both figures, surprising both the people behind her and the wolves in front of her. They did not have time to react. Rose clenched her right fist, and hit the whole area in above the boy who had been struggling with the wolf. It flew away into the mist, making a crashing sound a few hundred meters further.
The sound was different than the previous impacts, as if it had hit a wooden construct instead of a tree. Rose did not have time to pay attention to it, because there was one more person to save. She launched herself again, this time in the immobile person's direction. The wolves backed off in time, dodging the huge burst of flames. They vanished in the cover of the mist, taking a safe distance from the danger that had been meddling in their attacks.
"Are you okay?" Rose asked the girl on the ground. She tried to answer, but only a weak unrecognizable sound escaped her lips. Now that Rose had a better view on the girl, she finally recognized her. Her hair was messy, her clothes were ripped and her legs were dirtied with mud, but she clearly remembered the blonde, curly hear. This girl was no doubt Liss, one of the four friends she'd met earlier in the bar. The other person, a boy, stood up, grabbed his weapon and walked cautiously towards her. Rose also recognized him. He was the boy that had been sitting a few tables apart from the group, at the opposite side of her. She recalled his name was... Taro? That was what the butler had approached him with. But why were these two here? They should've been in the other carriage, that had departed hours before hers.
"You are... Flori?" The boy probably recognized her from when she had encountered Liss. "Is this the second carriage?"
"Yes, what's left of it at least... What are you guys doing here? What happened to your carriage? What is happening with Liss? And where are the others?" Rose fired a barrage of questions at Taro, but he interrupted her abruptly.
"I'll answer you later, but we got other issues right now..." He pointed towards Rose's carriage. She immediately understood what he meant. A group of wolves had closed in on them while she'd been gone, no longer afraid of the weak magic that had been holding them off until then.
"Oh no, we gotta save them!" Rose yelled. She wanted to dash in like before, but she couldn't. The angle was completely wrong! Taro and Liss had been lying on the ground when she acted, which had given her a safe blast radius so she wouldn't hurt them. But now, everyone was standing up and in the same line as the wolves. If she were close, she would've been able to move around them, but she had no time to close the gap. Again, there was no time! She had to go and try to control her power as good as possible, it was the only option!
"Hey, catch. I hope you're good with swords." Taro threw Rose his sword. Miraculously she managed to catch it, partly because it was way lighter than it looked. What did he mea-...
Oh, I get it. Fire magic won't do, but a normal sword does not have the blast radius of that magic. This might work!
Without waiting a second longer, she blasted herself forward with a gust of wind towards the group. However, she never reached her destination.
*BOOM*
A fire blast hit the ground next to her, throwing her off her initial course. She landed on the cold, hard stones of the road, meters away from the group. It had come from somewhere inside the mist, but whoever or whatever was shooting it, did not want to show itself. Instead, it was waiting for the wolves to do the dirty work while watching them from a distance. Its aim was not perfect, but it was scarily accurate for not having a clear view on them. Also, it seemed to know that she was the most dangerous one and tried to keep her off. Rose stood up and looked at the situation around her. A few wolves had started their attack, and one had completely closed the distance on them. At this rate they would be...
"Missy, I'mma have to put you down fo' a second. Don't worry, this old man will keep you save, promise!" Sam put down the girl, then balled his fists. One of the wolves entered melee range and jumped towards the man. He blocked the attack with his arm, letting the teeth of the wolf sink deep into his flesh. He put all strength in his other arm and swung his fist forward, hitting the wolf straight between the eyes. From the tops of hit knuckles, small earthen spikes had formed, drilling into the head of the animal. It immediately loosened its grip and flew down on the ground, squirming from the pain.
He continued towards the next closest one, smashing the ground upon which is was standing. The wolf barely dodged the hit, but some of the broken stones flew in its face, hindering its sight. It backed off in the mist. Behind the man, another wolf jumped on his back and ripped it open with his sharp claws. Sam groaned deeply, after which he grabbed the beast by its neck and threw it off him, smashing it against the ground. One of his arms and his back were heavily bleeding, yet the man did not falter one bit.
However, more wolves closed in on them. They were completely ignoring Rose, solely aiming for the group. Were they going after the weakest first? Another scream followed through the air. On the other side of the group, a wolf had jumped forward and successfully targeted a man's leg, causing the man to lose his balance. Rose instantly shot herself forward, but again her trajectory was interrupted by the impact of a blast next to her. She landed close to her initial position, near Taro who was taking care of Liss.
"Th-that! Something is trying to keep me away from them! Tch!" Rose was clearly irritated, and a hint of despair sounded in her voice.
"..."
The man that had fallen earlier, was being dragged out by the wolves while desperately screaming for help. Other wolves were keeping the group off, so nobody could reach his begging hands. She heard a desperate war cry from Sam, but he couldn't move since he got assaulted by swift, superficial attacks.
"How many of these damn beasts are there? I've never seen this before! Is this the end for us?" Almost everyone in the group seemed to have given up on their dire situation. The other man had been completely vanished from sight.
"Hey... Can you shoot me towards them?" Taro asked Rose.
"I... I could do that, but it's not gonna be comfortable. Moreover, you will just get blasted awa-"
"Do it."
"What?"
"Do it! Shoot me! And take care of Liss! If anything happens to her, you'd wish I were a wolf!"
"O-okay." Rose had no choice. "Turn your back towards me."
"Okay. Also, give me my sword." Rose did as he asked, after which Taro turned around, facing the group.
"I-I'm so sorry!" Rose suddenly apologized, after which she kicked Taro fully in the back with her left foot, blasting Taro forward. She could've sworn she heard something crack, but she hoped it was just her imagination. Taro had no time to recover from the surprise kick, because a fiery red fireball was flying towards his location, just like what had happened with Rose. In mid-air, Taro quickly threw his sword towards the beam. Its side perfectly aligned with the beam, deflecting on the surface of it, back into the mist. An impact followed by a deep growl sounded through the area. Taro pulled some kind of string, which flung the sword back into his hands. When did he attach that...?
In a blink, he landed next to one of the wolves, and forcefully smashed it away from the group. He then dashed towards another one and dug the point of the sword deep into its chest. Quickly casting the body aside, he then dashed to the next and pulverized its head. Deep crimson blood colored the black stones like spilled paint.
Sam, already covered in countless wounds, regained his composure by the rescue and dashed forward, smashing one of the wolves into the air. A wolf made another attempt at his back, but Sam did not make the same mistake twice. He quickly crouched, grabbed the body of the beast and smashed it on the cold stones.
A deep howl sounded through the forest. The remaining wolves pricked their ears, then quietly vanished into the mist. After a short while, none of them could be heard anymore. The only sound remaining was the crying noise of the little girl.
"I-is it finally over?" Sam puffed.
For sure, the assault seemed to be over for then, but there was no saying when they would come back. They needed to find a safe place as soon as possible. Their carriage had been completely destroyed, so they couldn't continue with that. What about the other one? Was that one still intact? And what happened with the passengers?
Liss softly coughed. Rose knelt and put Liss' head on her lap. She felt Liss' body was getting weaker by the moment. If they weren't quick, she might not make it... What were they supposed to do? There were so many questions, yet she was getting no answers. But she knew one thing for sure. Whatever they did, they had to get out of there. And the second carriage was their only option.
Rose stood up, put Liss on her back, and made eye contact with Taro. He nodded. Quickly he explained the situation to the group and pointed towards Rose's direction, indication they were going to find the second carriage. One man asked if they could go look for the lost people first, but Taro shook his head in response. It was harsh, but there was no time, and the chance they were still alive was as good as zero. The group then followed him obediently, all still in shock from what they'd experienced. Someone had burned Sam's deepest wounds, closing them off to make sure he didn't lose any more blood. It was a miracle in itself that he was still standing, considering the wounds he'd suffered. When he noticed Rose was looking at him in concern, he put up him thumb as an answer. He was pushing himself, but he would definitely not fall here, she was sure of that.
Nine people walked on the desolated road in the middle of the night. The ominous mist was covering their surroundings, not even giving them the freedom to see. The silence was deafening, yet their thoughts were in full orchestra. Everyone had a lot of unanswered questions. But there was only one question that took the foreground in everyone's head:
"Will we survive this nightmare?"
