Finally... The ride over here had me feeling a tad bit sick, and man oh man, the most sleep I managed to get was only around 5 hours, so naturally, I awoke groggy and dissatisfied. Uncle led us inside the inn, where he mentioned that we would be staying a week while he started work in the area. Of course, I tried to ask about what kind of 'work' he was doing, but he lightly brushed it off not without warning us, though. "Don't go into the forest; there are things you don't want to see."
Back in my own world, I always thought about how cool it would be to see mythical beasts only spoken about in Greek mythology and visualized in RPG games. So I made up my mind and decided that I would defy Uncle's orders, wait for his early drinking sessions, and then go out and explore. I asked Darius to come along, but he just said it wasn't a good idea and shut me down. So I waited, and when I saw my opportunity, I snuck out of the inn and put on my robe.
I had managed to steal Father's old sword before I left, concealing it inside my rucksack. It was a piece of work, but I persevered and pulled it off. A brown auburn-haired, physically built, well-prepared man with equipment was just setting off to the forest, so being the clear dumbass I am, I asked him politely for directions.
"These forests ain't for kids like you," he replied with annoyance in his tone.
Irritation loomed over my face, and with my high-pitched voice, I responded, "Trust me, old man, I may look short and weak, but I'm just as strong as you."
He shrugged and claimed that it wasn't his responsibility to look after me, so if I wound up dead, it wouldn't be on him. Talk about inconsiderate, turns out the people of this world have hearts as cold as ice. I followed him around and instantly heard a sound it resembled a woman crying for help, but there was this uneasiness inside of nonetheless I couldn't ignore it.
"Save me, please!" she screamed, her voice cracking with sheer desperation, echoing throughout the trees.
I tried to rush in, but the man held me back, telling me to quiet down.
"We need to save her right now." I gruntled
He shushed me and whispered in my ear, "That's not a human. If you want to live, stay quiet."
It wasn't a human? That's crazy. I mean, it literally sounded like a woman crying for help. If it's what I think it is, then I guess my nightmares have come true. The man and I crouched, slowly moving around and making as little noise as possible to avoid being spotted. I unsheathed my father's sword. It was heavy, but the training had really paid off. Back in my old world, a child like me wouldn't be able to lift this, but there's something about this world that enhances your working muscles. If I were naive, I'd call this my blessing, but seeing as I have no mana, there's no way it could be. Speaking of mana, the man seemed to be hiding us with his blessing. I think it's something to do with masking our physical appearance so we can't be traced. We moved around for a good 18 minutes before my nerves got the best of me, and I asked the man with a trembling voice, "Can you help me get back now? I'm scared."
"There's no getting out, kid. We need to kill this thing before it kills us."
Just as he said that, I could sense something creeping up on us. It felt like we were being stalked, like an animal does to its unfortunate prey. Sweat ran down my neck like a cold droplet, and I could hear myself breathing continuously. All of my senses were heightened to a certain degree, and it felt incredibly eerie. It was a close call it looked like whatever it was didn't pick up our scent. Instead, it relied on sound, ruling out the possibility that it was an animal. So, what I was thinking was right.
"Excuse me, sir, what kind of beast is this?" I whispered.
With a quizzical gaze and a puzzled expression, he replied, "Beast? You are confused, my boy. This is what we call a skinwalker. It imitates animals and humans; it can even take the form of a beast, but what it really feeds on is the flesh of what it pretends to be."
"So, humans and animals?" I asked.
He nodded at me. Now that I knew my speculations were right, I realized these creatures are straight out of evil folklore or so I think. Damn, why did I have to be placed into such a hellish reality? Family and everything aside, this is one dark world. If I knew the terms, I would have stuck with my... No, that's a lie. Be that as it may, anything is better than back there.
The man stared at me with furrowed brows. "Something wrong, kiddo?" he asked.
I gave him a single nod of the head but not enough to signify that anything was wrong, and we continued moving. I could make out its figure, taking on the form of a large white wolf. It would be easy to spot in these parts, but then again, it probably ate such a creature to take on its appearance. Am I even sure that's a wolf? I peered at it again, and it sort of looked like one, but not exactly. It had white fur, which would allow it to blend in with its surroundings in harsh climates, and a long silky coat with soft, thick underfur. But its tail was long, dark, and narrow, different from the lengthy, bushy tail that contrasted with the color of its fur. It appeared to have four eyes instead of two, and a jaw closer to a feline than a canine. All in all, it freaked me the hell out, knowing that thing exists and is not just a result of the skinwalker.
Night began to draw in. We hadn't attracted its attention yet, but something deep in my gut told me it would become even more formidable in the moonlight. I tapped the man protecting me and asked if we could make a run for it, but he adamantly refused, repeating that it was far too late and the thing would get us before we could even make it to the other side.
Agitation began to crawl under my skin. I had enough of this silly cat-and-mouse game we were playing, so I dived in headfirst, telling myself that if I died, it would be more honorable than becoming a sitting duck and waiting for it to maul me into bite-sized pieces. I jumped, improvising that I was going to place the blade right on top of its head and twist and turn it until it died. But some things are just better in your head. The skinwalker grabbed me midair with its claws and tossed me to the floor, pinning me down so it could feast on my flesh in the most ravishing way. I thought the man would come to my rescue, but he muttered "idiot" under his breath and then ran, screaming, back to the other side we had come from.
I began to accept my fate. Of course, I didn't want to die, but deep down, I knew there was nothing that could save me. Its jaw, wide open, was practically near my face. You could call it life flashing before your eyes, but memories not of my previous life came to me. They were of Father teaching me how to train and a conversation I had with my brother earlier before I asked him to accompany me.
"I know that I look like I don't want any hand in helping Father, but I do. I feel guilty. All this time I was blaming you for your attitude, but I never imagined myself in your shoes to see how I was really acting."
Darius laughed at me and began to ruffle my hair like he used to do when we were 5. "Nah, I was just the idiot, Lucius. I should have been carrying the weight myself as your older twin, but instead, I blamed you for problems that you didn't even cause."
Tears came down my face, and all my emotions poured out at once. I leaned in for a hug, which was promptly shut down by Darius.
"Let's handshake like men instead. I don't know about all that hugging stuff."
I chortled back then and also now, and there, I finally felt solace, accepting the death that was in front of me. I began to shut my eyes and let the thing devour my flesh. Its hot breath, stinking of rotting flesh, hit my face. But before it could tear into me, a large splash of blood hit against my face. At first, I thought it was mine, but then more came, and it became quite evident that it wasn't—it was the putrid skinwalker's. Its head, body, and organs were all over the place. Drenched in blood, I wiped it's insides from my face, a large residue of it on my upper third, and feeling short of breath, I began to gasp for air, intensely.
"You moron, I warned you!" shouted Uncle, with the meanest look I had seen from him yet.
Darius stood next to him with a relaxed expression. "Man, you are so dead when you get back."
Relief washed over me. I had been saved, although it could have made a pretty grand end to my life. But to perfectly frank at the same time, I prayed that thing wouldn't eat me alive, and not bear the sight of it forcing me to witness tearing into me like a piece of meat on a dinner plate."