Post by Keena on Nov 13, 2005 16:57:04 GMT -5
In 1938, six young men discovered the Deadwood, a secluded stretch of forestry. When they told their mayor, he passed the message on to the governor, who had never heard of such a forest; it wasn't on any maps. Thinking of money alone, the governor ordered men to go into the forest and clear a large enough stretch of land for a small town to be built.
The men arrived, and found a tacky red substance spattered on all of the trees, dotted with foam. They noticed that one of their fellows was missing, and thought he had spattered paint over the trees as a joke. They called out into the forest and didn't notice that it had gone silent. Then one of them climbed over a fallen tree and found their troublemaker. He was dead, covered in blood.
The men screamed, then dropped their axes and left without a word.
At first no one believed them, but as time passed and people began to venture into the forest, some noticed that many of them didn't come back. Those that did return said they felt something, something watching them from between the trees. The idea to settle a town was abandoned, as was the forest.
- - - - - -
Humans were the first to leave the Deadwood alone. Then the prey left, also stalked by the evil presence. Then the predators left, too. And the birds. The Void was left empty. Things stirred there, out of sight and out of mind. And soon enough, looking for a safe haven, the prey ventured back into the forest to escape their hunters, and the hunters followed. The forest had lost its hold over the animals in their short generations, but someday it would return to their legends.
Soon enough, it did.
The men arrived, and found a tacky red substance spattered on all of the trees, dotted with foam. They noticed that one of their fellows was missing, and thought he had spattered paint over the trees as a joke. They called out into the forest and didn't notice that it had gone silent. Then one of them climbed over a fallen tree and found their troublemaker. He was dead, covered in blood.
The men screamed, then dropped their axes and left without a word.
At first no one believed them, but as time passed and people began to venture into the forest, some noticed that many of them didn't come back. Those that did return said they felt something, something watching them from between the trees. The idea to settle a town was abandoned, as was the forest.
- - - - - -
Humans were the first to leave the Deadwood alone. Then the prey left, also stalked by the evil presence. Then the predators left, too. And the birds. The Void was left empty. Things stirred there, out of sight and out of mind. And soon enough, looking for a safe haven, the prey ventured back into the forest to escape their hunters, and the hunters followed. The forest had lost its hold over the animals in their short generations, but someday it would return to their legends.
Soon enough, it did.