Sunday, October 1, 2023

Day 274 - Captain Hawkins II

 Captain Hawkins II
Matthew Ryan Fischer
 
The night seemed to never end and Captain Hawkins had begun to think himself mad when Lady Hanbrook finally arrived. She brought materials to add to his notes. She had stolen a set of ancient scrolls from her husband’s library and pages of a diary from three years prior.
The journal told the story of James and Calhoun as they discovered what they called forest people.
The fire died down and Captain Hawkins stopped reading. He turned to Lady Hanbrook. It looked as though the trees had come closer. The branches were reaching for them. As though the forest itself was trying to stop them.
Something had come to life; nature its domain. The trees attacked.
Hawkins grabbed Hanbook’s hand and pulled her with him, leaving several pages of text beside the fire. They ran through the forest; dodging attacks form the branches.
Hawkins took blow after blow, the branches ripping into his skin.
The echoing winds kicked up. There were cries of pain and shrieks of terror in the night sky. Screams of terror came from the monastery. The caw of crows up above.
They were lost and frightened, but Lady Hanbrook’s hand gripped his tight, and gave him strength to continue. He would go on, determined to defeat these terrors of the night.

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