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Sync’s voice boomed over the nervous chatter.
“If you’re scared, close your eyes. Do not and I repeat, do NOT let go of anyone. Just keep walking. They mean no harm. They’re just as scared of you as you are of them.”
Our caravan of chicks began to move forward. This was going to be a long walk. Vivica gripped my hand tighter and tightened her stride. I was half out of breath from trying to keep up with her long legs. It seems as if half of our group was model height, only a few petite pixies were sprinkled within the line. Of course, I felt as if I was a marshmallow squeezed in between a bunch of fence posts. I really hoped that shapeshifters dug curvier girls. We continued on past the mysterious wolf and bear sightings and deeper into the forest. The air around us began to cool and less light filtered in through the gaps in the canopy. The deep dark green of the underbrush and the light green underside of the canopy swayed gently. “Do you feel a breeze?” Vivica either didn’t hear me or she didn’t want to know why I was asking. The cinnamon colored bark almost appeared as if it were shimmering. Knots of various sizes peppered each tree. Each knot was twisted into a different shape. I spotted a few faces, a turtle, and a bird. Birds. Where were the birds? The forest was completely silent except for the sound of our footsteps and an occasional twig cracking. That was certainly not normal. I was hit with the sudden feeling of being watched. I could feel eyes boring holes in the back of my neck. I craned my neck to peek behind me without breaking my grip on Vivica. The large figure behind me knocked the wind from my lungs. A gigantic bear walked on the path behind us. Its paws were the size of dinner plates. Shaggy black fur covered the animal. When its yellow green eyes met mine, I felt a jolt of electricity. They were emerald green and sparkling. One iris was dotted with yellow. I tugged on Vivica’s arm. When I opened my mouth, nothing came out. Fear overwhelmed my senses. The bear seemed calm and I didn’t sense a threat of violence. It was those eyes. They looked completely through me. Could he read my thoughts? When Vivica turned back, the bear halted in its tracks. “What? Do you see something?”
“You…you…don’t see that?” The bear stood completely motionless. Its mouth turned up at the corners, almost in a smile. Do bears smile? He sat back on his haunches and placed his paws on his belly. If you added a pot of honey, he could have been a cartoon character. A pinprick of recognition grew in the corner of my mind. I’d heard something about shapeshifters. Weren’t bears the original form? Could I be mistaken? Wolves were the most well-known, but I think they’d been bears originally. They’d only switched for survival. Because humans caught on and began to kill them all. Until they eradicated most of the wolves too. Barbaric creatures. Humans could really suck sometimes. “What is it? What do you see?”
“Nothing. It was nothing. I thought I saw something, but it was just the shadows.” One of the bear’s eyes closed, almost as if he was winking. I blinked, and he was gone. The empty path stretched out behind us into the black edges of the forest. That had to be one. Vivica put her hand on my shoulder. “Cut the bullshit. You’re shaking. What was it out there?”
“I think I just saw a shapeshifter. There was a bear and he seemed…off. Knowing.”
“A bear? Don’t they usually choose more subtle creatures as their animal forms? A bear is pretty indiscreet.”
“One of the other girls saw a bear. And a wolf.”
“I believe you. These woods are creepy. Why isn’t there a better way to get to their damn camp?”
“Come on. They wouldn’t take us out here if it was so dangerous. It isn’t like they have endless breeder recruits to feed to the woodland creatures.” We spun around back towards the group.
“Fuck!”
The path was completely empty in front of us. Vivica had let go. The group had left us. We were all alone with nothing but the dark forest.
-4-
“They can’t have gone far. We were only looking back for a minute or so.” Vivica’s voice trembled. The volume of her voice was eerily amplified by the trees surrounding us.
“Let’s run a bit and see if we can catch up.” She nodded and began to jog. I sprinted to catch up with her and grabbed her hand. “Don’t let go this time.”
She flashed me a smile, but I could tell her heart wasn’t in it. We jogged in silence together for a couple minutes. I crossed my left arm over my chest to stop my boobs from bouncing. Well, tried at least. There wasn’t much activity that didn’t cause my breasts to jiggle. Curse of being full-chested. The path in front of us continued to stretch out in the darkness, winding back and forth through the trees. It wasn’t pitch black yet, but night was approaching. We had to find them and fast.
“Where in the hell could they have gone?” Vivica wheezed.
“Maybe they made a turn somewhere?” I really hope they hadn’t. If they turned into the forest, we’d never find them.
“Where in the hell would they go? This is the only path.” Vivica vocalized my only hope.
Please let them be close. My right side was starting t
o cramp. How long had we been running? The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. Something was watching us. I could feel it. I swiveled around. The path behind us was empty. Darkness around us thickened. If we didn’t find the others soon, we were going to be lost in a shapeshifting forest with nothing to protect us but my magic. A twig snapped loudly to the left. I dug my heels into the ground and pulled back on Vivica’s arm. “Stop.” Vivica’s eyes grew wide.
“Did you hear that?”
I put my finger to my lips and nodded. We began to creep forward, keeping our eyes on the woods to the left of us. Shadows danced in between the trees. My chest burned from running. My heart thumped against my chest. Could whatever that’s out in the woods hear it? Another crack rang through the twilight. It was coming. Grabbing Vivica’s wrist, I burst into a sprint back the way we came. Another crack echoed in our ears and leaves rustled behind us. Vivica’s fingertips dug into my arm. I pumped my legs faster. Vivica’s long legs powered effortlessly. My short chubby legs burned, attempting to keep up. My neck began to tingle again. I felt eyes on my back. Heavy footsteps thudded behind us. They were slow, but heavy. Something was big. Could it be the bear? My lungs burned and thighs were on fire. Every breath scorched. A little bit more of the daylight faded away behind the trees. No more than twenty minutes remained before we’d be in complete darkness. The trees on either side of us swayed in a cool breeze. Sweat poured down my forehead, stinging my eyes. My legs wobbled. I wasn’t going to last much longer. The footsteps behind us got closer. A large shape burst through the trees in front of us. We both screamed. I went left and she went right. Our arms pulled and I fell backwards. I hit the ground hard. Scrambling to my feet, I readied for a fight.
“Where have you guys been?” Wait…what? Sync. Of course. He’d probably been chasing us to try and catch up.
“Thank the Goddess you found us! We were so worried. There was something following us.”
Sync’s face didn’t betray any emotion. “Everyone is waiting for you. Follow me.”
He walked directly back into the woods. Vivica looked at me and grimaced. I shrugged in response. Shit happens, right? How were we supposed to know where the camp was? This was a pretty terrible plan actually. “You know, this was a stupid fucking idea. Why didn’t you guys tell us the location of the camp in advance if this forest is so dangerous? We also could have left earlier where there wasn’t any daylight.” He mumbled something but didn’t turn around. “The least you could do is look at me.”
Sync turned and walked towards me and stopped about six inches away from my face. “We don’t have time for this. You think you’re so special? We’ve got ninety other girls desperate to mate with our warriors. Nobody will notice if you go home now. Your job is to obey. Show me you can do it, or I’ll leave you here to find your own way out. Witch.” He turned back around and marched into the brush. Vivica met my eyes and grimaced. What an asshole. I bit my lip to keep from screaming. Why had I come here? I wanted to make a difference in the world, not be a slave to an unappreciative asshole representing a tribe that can’t even handle a recruiting event. What do they expect from a disorganized traipsing through an allegedly enchanted forest? I crossed my arms over my chest and ran my fingers over the goosebumps on my arms. Looking around into the near blackness, I weighed my options. Head back to the trail and walk the unknown or continue on to the camp and see what I’d gotten myself into. There was no way I was going to brave the woods alone or let Vivica be alone with this creep. I’d committed to trying out for a breeding position and damnit I wasn’t going to leave until I did. Sprinting to close the distance between Vivica and I, I caught up to her and grabbed her hand. We followed him in silence. She traced circles on my palm with her thumb. It was nice to have an ally already. After about fifteen minutes of strolling through the woods, we came to a small clearing with a fire pit in the middle. A man crouched over the pit and stoked a small flame.
“Found the stragglers. Where are the others?”
“They’ve already started.” The young man stood and nodded in our direction. The flame’s shadow danced on his chiseled abs. His dark waves fell across his eyes. He smiled shyly. “Welcome.”
