Jocelyn sighed, let her hands slide to her sides. "I'm going to pee," she said, dropping her pack to the ground. "You really need to relax, babe. I love you. Just, be happy."
Cameron winced, the words stinging as Jocelyn walked away and disappeared behind the trees. Alone, she stepped over to a fallen tree, sat, and clasped her hands, doubtful that this would be the last time she would feel so hurt, and uncertain if she could endure it.
Sancho followed after her, standing at her feet.
"Just relax, huh? How am I supposed to do that when everyone keeps telling me to relax? I mean, right?"
Sancho harrumphed and scampered off then, to the crook of a nearby tree. It whimpered as it sniffed and pawed at something.
"What have you got there?"
Cameron skipped after the Labrador, grateful for the distraction, and crouched at its side. Sancho had found a patch of mushrooms, like the kind found at any grocery store, white spotted with gray and yellow, and thick and bulbous.
She picked one and smirked. "Sure, I'll relax. I'll show you I can get into it and be more spontaneous." She bit into it and chewed, chuckling. "Ha! Take that, Jocelyn! Nom, nom!"
"Cameron!"
She swallowed hard, nearly choking as she stood and turned. Jocelyn raced up to her, alarm written across her face.
"What are you doing? Don't eat that!"
Cameron gulped. "What? Why?"
"You don't know if that's safe to eat or not!"
"Is it?" Cameron asked.
"Yes. But you didn't know that!"
Cameron tossed the stem to the side and shrugged. "Sorry," she said. "I was just trying to relax."
For a long moment, they stood in silence, calming as they looked into each other's eyes and forgot their animosities.
"So. I guess that was our first fight?" Jocelyn said.
"I don't think so," Cameron said. "We're just two different people and not used to sharing our lives with someone else yet. That's all."
"It's kind of scary, isn't it?"
"There are worse hells," Cameron said. "I'm still excited about us."
She held out her hand, and Jocelyn took it. They smiled together.
"Come on," Jocelyn said. "We're only a few miles away from the peak."
"Right!"
*~*~*
They continued their trek, side-by-side, with Sancho ahead of them. As they neared the base of the peak, Sancho turned, and they walked away from it, following the dog deeper into the woods instead.
The minutes passed, and they were no more concerned about the deviation than they were with time, their location, the rising heat, eating. Anything.
Cameron heard a prolonged rumble then, soft and far away, different from the crack of a tree, and slowed. And as she looked around, had an epiphany.
"Hey, you know what? I haven't seen any animals today. Not even an insect," she said. "Have you?"
"No. I haven't," Jocelyn said, searching. "I thought for sure we'd be neck-deep in all sorts of lovable critters. That's so strange."
She checked her compass then, and, waving it around, began to despair. "Oh, no!"
"What is it?" Cameron asked.
"It's not working," Jocelyn said. "Here, look."
They stopped, and Cameron watched as the compass needle swayed but never pointed to north. "How long has it been like that?"
"I don't know! It was working all the way up to the peak." Jocelyn looked upward, behind her. "Oh, man. I can't even see the peak anymore. But weren't we just there?"
Cameron bit her lip. She didn't want to say it, but knew she had to offer the suggestion. "Do you think we should start heading back the way we came?"
Jocelyn scowled. "We'll have to, won't we?"
They turned and started walking back. Jocelyn gave up on her compass and pocketed it, instead examining the verdant surroundings.
"Come on, Sancho," Cameron called.
The Labrador, with seeming reluctance, caught up to them and followed.
After an hour, they were still wandering through the forest, unable to find the peak. The ground soon flattened, and the grass thinned until there was only the soft black soil. The trees became more numerous, forming slender rows around them.
Cameron wiped the sweat from her brow, brushed it off her lip with her thumb, amazed it was so hot even under the continuous shade. She glanced to her side. As always, Jocelyn looked cool and composed.
"Are we lost?" Cameron asked.
"That's the thing. I can't tell," Jocelyn said. "We've been going in the right direction, but it's like everything got moved around." She looked up, but the thick foliage offered only spots of blinding white. "I can't even find the sun."
"The peak didn't just disappear."
"I know!" Jocelyn shouted. She took out her compass, but it was no less broken, and she groaned in frustration. "I just don't get how we could be lost."
They slowed, tiring. Cameron heard more distant rumblings, as though the forest had an upset stomach. As she searched for its cause, she spotted dozens of large black beetles swarming from beneath the soil across from them. And with each step forward, more seemed to appear, following them from a distance like a living shadow, never moving nearer.
She looked ahead then, and discovered that the trees were bent, their massive trunks curving at them, with their long branches reaching out like fingers.
"Um, Joey," she said. "Those mushrooms, they weren't, like, hallucinogenic or anything, were they?"
"No, Cameron," Jocelyn said.
"It's just, I don't want to be sick or get into trouble."
"Don't be a silly girl. You're talking about the trees, right? Well, I see it, too. And I didn't eat anything off the forest floor."
"Okay, fine," Cameron said, pouting some. "So, what is this? Are the trees supposed to be like that?"
Jocelyn rubbed her face with her hands, and then took out her nature guide. While she flipped through its pages, seeking out any comfort, Cameron heard another deep rumble, this time much closer than before, and spun in place.
At that moment, she realized they were alone.
"Sancho?" she called. "Sancho, where are you?"
The dog barked and she found it, standing far away between the rows of trees. It took off, dodging from her sight, and she chased after it.
"Cameron, where are you going?" Jocelyn said.
"I have to get Sancho," she shouted back. "Just, wait here!"
Jocelyn crossed her arms, shook her head. "You're lucky you're so damn cute."
Cameron raced after Sancho, unable to find the dog as she jogged and darted between the trees, each step taking her further away from Jocelyn, when the ground suddenly became very wet, and splashed and squished under foot.
"What? What is this?" she muttered between breaths. "It didn't rain, did it?"
She stopped and lifted her foot. Darkest red dripped from under her boot. Blood. She trembled, looking around to find there were pools of red-black all around her.
Then she heard the rumble again, louder than ever, this time coming from nearby, and watched as the ground rippled toward her, bursting in a straight line. As the long tear passed, it gushed blood and spewed large black beetles and the bones of all the absent animals.
Cameron backed away from the chattering insects and turned to run, but halted as several figures in dark, hooded robes emerged from behind the trees and slowly approached her.
"I saw you!" she exclaimed. "You were there, outside the cabin! I saw you!"
The nearest pointed a finger at her and in a booming voice, said, "And the forest, it saw you!"
As they advanced, Cameron suddenly felt very weak. She staggered and swayed, her eyes fluttering, and finally collapsed.
The world darkened, and everything silenced. She couldn't hear their nearing steps or the earth being torn apart around her. She couldn't hear Sancho barking to protect her or to summon Jocelyn for help.
In fact, the dog was nowhere to be seen.
*~*~*
Jocelyn waited, alone and growing impatient. Her arms were crossed, and her foot tapped the ground.
She was annoyed by their situation and worried they were truly lost, blaming herself for it all. More than anything, though, she was surprised by how much she missed Cameron after only a few moments without her.
Someone shouted to her from behind. "Hey, there!"
Jocelyn jolted and turned, exhaling as she put a hand to her chest. "Oh, thank God."
Ranger James, wearing the same crisp, pine-green uniform as before, casually strode up to her with a cheery smile. "Hello, again," he said. "You're Jo Ellen, right?"
"Jocelyn," she said. She was too grateful for his presence to be irritated by the surprise, or his face. "What brings you out here, Ranger James?"
"My truck. Ha!" he said. "No, it's all part of the job. I keep an eye on the forest, and it keeps an eye on me. How's your trip going?"
She glanced around him, into the distance, but did not see any sign of a truck, and was certain she had not heard one.
"Actually we're lost," she said. "My compass isn't working for some reason, and we can't find the peak. I don't know how long we would have been wandering around out here if you hadn't showed up."
"Where is your, um, your friend, anyway?"
Jocelyn struggled to remain pleasant. She hated everything about him, especially his smile, and really wanted him to go away. But for Cameron, she was willing to swallow her pride and admit she needed his help.
"She'll be back. She just went after the dog," she said. "You can help us, right?"
Ranger James scanned the forest beyond her. She waited for him to make eye contact but sensed it was not forthcoming. "Oh, yeah," he said. "It sure is something, isn't it? The forest. It's a magical place, as alive as you or me. But so much more pure!" He looked at Jocelyn, into her eyes. "You know about the Three Oaks, don't you?"
She shook her head, unable to look away, transfixed by his penetrating gaze.
"It's a great story," he said. "In the mid-eighteenth century, settlers ventured into these same woods we find ourselves in today. They were modest people, determined to live simply and quietly. Not too far from here, they made a wonderful discovery. A tribe. Or so they thought! In truth, they were an isolated sect of native mystics."
Jocelyn suddenly became very weary. His voice had a lulling effect on her, and she wondered why he was talking so much and hadn't offered his assistance yet.
"Now, these were not evil people by any means," he said. "They worshiped the Three Oaks, and shared with the settlers the truth, that this forest is alive. Listen, and you can hear its heartbeat!" He raised a hand to his ear and smiled. "They embraced the settlers, and the two communities became one. And as the natives died out, the settlers and their descendants after continued the worship of the forest."
"Cool story, bro," Jocelyn said sleepily. "But I have to, um, find my... Cameron."
"Your partner? She's fine. I saw her only a minute ago," he said. "She's that way, straight ahead. Waiting for you."
"Oh. This way?" She pointed weakly.
Ranger James nodded. "Just follow the path of the Three Oaks."
Jocelyn ventured ahead in a daze, unable to concentrate but determined to find Cameron. With each step she became weaker, slowing until finally she came to a stop. She tugged at her shirt. It felt like she was in a furnace. As she fought to catch her breath, she became dizzy, the world spinning around her.
"I must be getting heatstroke," she muttered. "I need some water."
No matter how hard she tried, though, she could not will her arm to rise to her backpack. And for the first time in her life, she felt truly helpless.
She heard a low rumble then and glanced to her side. A tall tree was sliding toward her, making the black soil ripple around its broad base. The tree at her other side was doing the same. She looked up, and her eyes widened in horror. All of the trees were creeping toward her, cracking and rustling noisily.
Above it all, she heard a loud snap, glanced back, and watched as a large branch came down and swatted her in the head, knocking her out and bringing her to the ground in a single blow.
Part IV: The Ceremony
Cameron woke first, in time to look up and see Jocelyn lift her head from the ground. The day had gone, replaced by night. A large fire crackling at the center of the clearing illuminated them in flickering white-orange.
They crawled toward each other, unconcerned with their own pain as they pushed along the ground. They touched hands, desperate to be closer, only to be halted by a sharp tug. They looked back sharply and realized something was wrapped around their ankles.
Cameron despaired; Jocelyn reached back and grabbed the thick rope preventing her from moving any further. Only it wasn't a rope. It was a vine, soft and pliant. It pulsed in her grip, and she winced as it tightened around her ankle. She followed its length along the ground and saw that it emerged from the earth.
"That doesn't make sense," she muttered. "It's impossible!"
"It is the will of the trees!" a man announced.
Jocelyn and Cameron looked ahead and discovered their captors. There were a dozen of them, and maybe more hiding in the dark beyond the reach of the fire's light. Men, women, and children, all naked, their bodies covered in mud and grass. Among them, they could see Ranger James and the service station owner.
Standing before the group was a man, tall and muscled, his long beard filled with twigs, eyes covered in pitch, and wearing a crown of brambles on his head. Drawn in blood on his mud-stained torso was the symbol they had seen before, a circle and three not-quite vertical lines.
His expression was stern and fierce. The rest of the group, though, looked contented, even delighted, as if this was a normal gathering.
"Who are you?" Jocelyn shouted.
"My name is Rowan," he said, his voice inhumanly deep. "This is my family. My brothers and sisters, who are my sons and daughters. And I am their priest. We who are the servants of the living forest are called the Community."
Cameron whimpered as she looked around her. "The forest, it's alive?"
"It gives us everything," Rowan said. "It nourishes us and protects us from harm, and in return, only asks of us our unquestioning devotion." He clapped his hands, creating a loud pop. "Come, Demetri!"
A dog barked. Cameron gasped, and Jocelyn looked behind them as the black Labrador raced around the fire and between them and trotted to Rowan's side. It sat and received a loving scratch behind its ear.
"But his name is Sancho," Cameron muttered. "It's not Demetri."
"Follower of Demeter!" Rowan announced.
And the community raised their hands behind him and moaned as one in a harmonious low pitch, their faces a portrait of rapture.
"What do you want with us?" Jocelyn screamed.
Rowan answered, "Your essence."
He raised his hands, and Jocelyn and Cameron were willed to stand and face each other. They could not move, could not speak. The fear growing in them as they silently looked to each other, half in light and half in dark, was not for their own lives, but for the other's life.
"You chose your roles, guided, though you were, by a greater destiny! It was you who ate from the forest soil," he said, pointing at Cameron. His digit then swung to Jocelyn. "And it was you who drank of its lake." The Community began to moan in a deeper tone. "The dionomy is realized! And now, under the new moon, you will give back to the forest what you have taken from her! You will give back to her tenfold!"
Their moaning deepened even more, creating a vibration that traveled through the air, the ground, and into Cameron and Jocelyn, seizing them.
"We give praise to the Three Oaks," Rowan howled. "Wisdom! Prosperity! Security! With these things you have given us, our lives are without want. And in return, we give you these bodies, to serve as a vessel for your renewal!"
Suddenly, Cameron belched. And with a horrified expression, she belched again, over and over, unable to control her
self and stopping only when she began to spew black-brown putrescence onto the ground. It steamed and bubbled before her, already forming a sizable mound.
The Community's moans intensified.
At the same moment, Jocelyn groaned as the contents of her stomach shifted, and she heaved violently, thrusting her face downward, toward the gathering sludge. Her throat swelled as it ascended. And with an eruption of milky slime, it pushed into her mouth, an object so large it made her jaw crack and stretched her lips as it slowly and finally disgorged, followed by a torrent of the thick slime.
She gazed down and through her tears, saw that she had expelled a round stone, about the size of a softball, so bright blue it almost glowed in the dark. Cameron vomited more dark sludge, allowed to stop only after the stone was completely covered. She panted, quaking in place after.
The collective moaning ended, and the Community cheered as one.
Both Jocelyn and Cameron trembled amid the reverie, and once released from Rowan's grip, fell to their knees before the mound of waste.
A crack of thunder made them gasp and whimper. The leaves around the clearing rustled, and from the vacant black sky, the first drops of warm rain struck them. Looking at each other, they saw what the other could not, the dark beads streaking red down their faces.
It was raining blood.
The Community howled and wailed, raising their arms to the sky and rejoicing in the downpour. The blood cascaded over their dirty bodies as they stomped in the red mud, dancing in place as they yelped and chanted alien words.
"The arrival is complete!" Rowan cheered. "The rain is upon us! Sing to her! For mankind will soon be devoured and its cities razed, and the earth shall be reclaimed!"
Jocelyn looked away from The Community, to the mound before her. Already, a bright green sprout was pushing through the muck, thirsty for the rain. She and Cameron understood it was the beginning of a new life form, though what sort, neither could imagine.
She looked beyond it then, to Cameron, lying on the ground and curled inward, and noticed the vine was gone from her ankle. Jocelyn glanced behind herself. The vine that had been holding her had become dark green mush and dissolved into the grass and black-red mud.
Servants of the Living Forest Page 3
