Final Breath of the Stars — Part 2
The stars rage at the noble knight’s quest to find the Cave of Manifestations, and prepare for his first trial as they pray for his demise.
To read part 1, click here.
It was at first light that Sir Alexander the Noble Knight took his strong steed and started his journey towards the Cave of Manifestations. He would travel through the Forest of Enchantments first, where he would face his first trial.
Alexander was a quiet man. He was not one to speak much, and preferred to listen to those spending his company. He liked to hear soulful stories of wise men, journeys that adventurous travelers have been on, heartfelt moments which families shared — it all accumulated into something so pure within his heavy heart. Alexander was raised to become a fierce warrior, not a man who used his luxury of time to indulge in life’s wonders and beauty. He did not know what love meant, nor did he stop to take a moment and admire his surroundings. He was trained to fight in the name of peace, to be fair, kind, loyal, and to defend his people. He did not have time to focus on himself and his personal life.
Perhaps other knights did. Perhaps they knew how to balance their personal life and their oath taken to defend their home. But not Sir Alexander. Sir Alexander was destined to be the mightiest knight to ever exist, and with that came a great responsibility, and tremendous pressure to pair it with.
His horse whinnied, protesting as they approached a narrow path in the Forest of Enchantments, and Alexander scrutinised it with his alert vision. He needed to cross the path to proceed forward, but it was too narrow for his horse to trot across, and on either side of the path was a dip into the ruthless river endless feet below. A tiny slip could end his life. Alexander squared his jaw, and jumped off his horse. He pet his loyal companion, offered it a carrot from his bag he carried with him, and then he set his focus back on the path before him.
This was a deliberate move set by the conniving stars; isolate him so that not even his horse would be by his side for his trials.
Alexander walked slowly, until he was on the edge of the cliff they were on, and he eyed the forest ahead of him, waiting for him on the other side. He sighed, his breath containing his weighty emotions lingering within his very core. Was he afraid? His bones were not rattling in fear, and his heart was not racing. He was calm and steady, but he did feel a slight hint of worry towards how he would cross the narrow path without falling to his death.
Taking a deep breath, he slung his essentials rucksack over his shoulder, and he cautiously moved forward onto the narrow path, beneath which was a long drop to a callous river. He believed this was his first trial to test his bravery — and although this might have been true, it was only the commencement of his first trial.
Sir Alexander dared not look down; he kept his gaze focused on the path before him, and took slow, steady steps along the narrow path, his horse protesting behind him, urging him to come back to him. Alexander shuddered as he felt the breeze pick up its pace, dizzying him for a moment and losing his balance, before quickly regaining it. His heartbeat was erratic, terrified for his fate, but Alexander had made it halfway through the path. It was too late to back down and surrender now.
Onwards he went — slow, steady, silent. The stars observed in boredom, far from being excited. This was no entertaining show like it had been with past adventurers wandering through the trials so naively and recklessly. This was a legendary knight. He would not rush, and he certainly wouldn’t make any rash decisions. He maintained a steady pace, until he finally made it to the other side, on solid ground, and entirely safe.
Alexander exhaled a long breath dripping with sheer relief, and he swiftly pushed his hair back, easing the stress his body had experienced in the past few minutes. His ice-blue eyes traveled across the forestscape tensely, for he did not know what awaited him beyond the foggy air around him. He could see faint silhouettes of forest trees, but he also occasionally heard the faint cries of a creature in the distance. Robbed of his sense of sight due to the dense fog around him, Alexander was left to depend on his other senses to proceed in this quest, and pass his first trial set by the cunning stars.
He trudged against the thick soil, leaves crunching beneath him on dry sections, while his boots sinking beneath the mud in drenched areas. Alexander was uncertain where he was going, but the stars knew his exact location, and soon enough, they decided to halt tormenting him, and deliver his first real trial.
The ground beneath him rumbled, and he heard a loud cry of an unfamiliar beast in the distance. Alexander whipped out his sharp sword, ready for attack, but he could hardly see anything a few feet ahead of him from the dense fog. Would he be brave enough to follow the cries of whatever ghastly beast awaited him? Clenching his jaw irately, Alexander slowly moved towards the source of the cries, his other senses on high alert as he gripped his sword tightly. Testing his bravery was almost redundant at this point, as the stars could see that he was not afraid to move closer to the monster in the heart of the Forest of Enchantments. Alexander felt the ground beneath him shake again, this time with a lot more force, indicating that he was getting closer, and once again, he heard a loud roar.
The first thing he saw was a massive foot belonging to a mysterious creature. The foot was twice his height, and about eight versions of himself combined in width. He glanced warily at its sharp claws; one prick of them and it could skewer him on the spot. Gulping uneasily, Alexander realigned his sword, and stepped a little closer, and that’s when he started to see the rest of the creature a little clearer.
It was a massive, supernatural beast, covered in a thick layer of grey fur, a snout for a nose, and its glowing, green eyes glossed over with a sheer layer of liquid, and the beast cried loudly once again, causing Alexander to duck and take cover as a precaution, but the beast did not even notice his presence. It was laying on the ground, heaving and crying loudly, and Alexander’s face flickered in recognition. It was whimpering in pain. The creature was hurt — a sharp spear wedged into one of its paws, and it was sending the poor beast into a deep pit of agony. Alexander gulped, and very slowly, he lowered his sword. The creature’s gaze finally landed on him, and it growled defensively, but Alexander immediately dropped his sword, and slowly raised his hands in peace.
“It’s okay.” He spoke softly as the creature observed him warily. “It’s okay, I won’t hurt you.”
He slowly approached the beast, very carefully, causing it to growl once again, so Alexander stopped in his place, his bravery intact, but wishing to express his good intentions to the creature. “It’s alright, I want to help you.”
The creature stopped growling when he stopped moving, and it sniffled, before whimpering in pain again. Alexander inhaled nervously, and took very small, and careful steps towards the wounded monster. Once he was close enough to its paw, the supernatural animal growled, but Alexander slowly kneeled, bowing his head down to indicate his harmless intentions, and the beast hesitantly relented, resting its head on the ground and crying out in pain.
Alexander glanced at the spear wedged into its paw, and he slowly stood back up, and his arms reached for the spear. “Now, I’m going to pull this nasty thing out of your palm, and it will hurt a little, but remember — it’s so that you don’t keep writhing in pain, alright?”
The beast whimpered, as though comprehending his warning, but in reality, it did not. Alexander took a deep breath, “Alright, here we go.”
Abruptly and suddenly, Alexander gripped the spear and yanked it out of the beast’s palm, causing it to roar so excruciatingly loud that the trees around them shook violently. The beast rolled onto its side, cradling its paw, before it slowly calmed down, and acknowledged Alexander’s presence once again, with the spear on the ground next to him. Alexander’s heartbeat was accelerating in fear, and he took a small step back, but he was gazing right into the creature’s eyes, urging it to understand what he had just done for it.
Slowly, the creature’s furious face morphed into a relieved expression, before it huffed, grunting as it sat back down on the ground. Slowly, it brought its face close to Alexander’s figure, and the knight’s breath hitched in his throat, in fear that the beast would bite his head off. He was utterly vulnerable in this moment, but he was adamant on not running off for his sword. He wanted to prove to it that he was a friend, not an enemy.
The creature huffed a breath at Alexander’s face, before it opened its mouth and licked his face in gratitude. Alexander scrunched up his face in disgust, feeling himself getting drenched in mystical beast saliva, and he gasped in shock. Pulling his arm up, he wiped his face with the sleeve of his shirt, and he blinked his eyes open, gazing up at the creature, which bowed its head to him gratitude and respect. Alexander laughed in disbelief, his body weakening after the severe adrenaline rush he’d endured, and he shook his head with the broadest grin, when his hand reached out and pet the creature’s fur affectionately.
The stars above screamed in frustration, livid with Alexander’s victory in passing his first trial to test his bravery. He was a force to be reckoned with, and the stars vowed to create an even more difficult trial for his strength, promising Alexander that he would miserably fail, and seal his fate of demise.
To be continued …
Part 3 coming soon!
