Genesis
One had to admit, the forest was a beautiful place in the summertime; the winds came and blew a wave of air through the trees that made them sway back and forth, as if the forest was alive. In fact, it actually was alive, but not many people had come to realize this. It was because of things like this Arcadius Llynch liked to take a stroll through this place every day.
A few birds could be heard chirping their happy songs nearby. Leaves could be heard rustling just before a gust of wind blew through Arcadius’ short brown hair. The smell of honey was in the air, with a few hints of maple.
Taking care not to get too close to the edge of the realm, he peered into the deeper part of the forest, where it was said the gods resided. Although there was nothing there that set it apart from the section of the forest he was used to, it fascinated him to no end. There was something special about the realm, and Arcadius could only imagine what was in there. If only I could step inside and look…
He chuckled, that would enrage the god-creatures; he would not be able to contain nor repair the damage they would do, if they were as angry as he thought they would be. Still, one could only wonder what happened behind the endless curtain of trees.
Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a boar that had appeared from behind a tree. The boar was very large compared to one of normal size, and this one was colored different too. Arcadius could tell this one had lived a very long time; it was obvious the skin had lost its bluer tones.
And then Arcadius remembered that many all-powerful creatures desired to stand out amongst their brethren. They often made their differences so obvious and fantastic they border-lined on an entirely different species altogether.
This one was easy. Marajin, the boar god, had already made his place in the legends of old. Arcadius could not help but feel tense; there was something about it that tugged at the strings in the back of his mind. It was as if there was something he was supposed to know, but could not remember. He did know, however, that it was something bad.
The giant blue boar looked upwards, toward a hole in the tops of the trees in which a beam of light poked through the relatively dark forest and shone itself on the floor below. The sight was very pretty to behold; even Arcadius felt his attention grabbed by it for a split second before it returned to the god.
Suddenly the boar turned his head in Arcadius’ direction, and almost on cue, the human placed himself out of Marajin’s line of sight.
The maneuver had done him no good; the beast had already sensed his presence before he had shot the glance. He did not need to actually see Arcadius to know he was there, though had he needed to see, Arcadius would not have had to hide.
I hope he doesn’t attack… I hope he doesn’t attack, I hope he doesn’t attack… Arcadius muttered over and over again in his mind, trying to keep the possibility from occurring. His hand gripped the bark of the tree tightly; he was very tense.
It was no use, the boar let out a large roar, and then the rapid stamping of feet was heard. Arcadius nearly froze, but instinct took over; he knew Marajin was charging.
Arcadius immediately ran away from the tree he had been hiding behind. A few seconds later the tree was knocked over by Marajin, who in his blind fury didn’t really care about the forest around him.
I picked a great day to leave my sword at home! Arcadius could not help but think as he heard the crash of the fallen tree behind him, which was soon drowned by the sound of Marajin’s feet bouncing across the ground. The thick vegetation crackled and rustled as Arcadius fled from the beast.
Arcadius was hoping he would get lucky somehow. After all, he himself had been prone to strange occurrences of sudden power. When he least expected it, Arcadius would suddenly gain inhuman strength and be able to lift over a ton in weight. He didn’t have any control over this, and he did not have any explanation for it; he didn’t know it was hereditary.
The boar behind him let out a great squeal, calling to the other creatures to aid him. There were none around, however, that could give him aid. It did have an affect on Arcadius though, he jumped at the sound, and his sense of dread was heightened.
They came to run along a cliff one hundred feet high. During this time Marajin began to close the gap as Arcadius began to fatigue.
Arcadius stumbled for a moment, and that was all Marajin needed to completely close the gap. Arcadius looked back for only a moment to see Marajin rearing his head to push him off the cliff.
The only thing Arcadius could do was fall away from the attack, the last thing he wanted was for it to hit him. Unfortunately the momentum sent him over the edge of the cliff.
His scream pierced the air as he fell down the face of the cliff. At the same time Marajin stopped in his tracks on the top cliff.
Arcadius flipped over twice in his short trip toward the ground. It was during this time a strange feeling came over him. He recognized it right away, though it wasn’t in the place he had wanted it to be in; his legs. He would have preferred the strength to be in his arms, where he could fight back, but that was irrelevant anyways.
But it ended up saving him. He landed squarely on his feet, thanks to the power of his lower body. He was spared to what would have been a fatal fall to a normal human.
Arcadius looked back up toward Marajin, who was still at the top of the cliff. A squeal was sounded toward him. For a moment it seemed like Marajin eyed Arcadius for almost fifteen seconds.
At the same time, Arcadius and Marajin turned away from each other. Marajin slowly walked away from the cliff back into the thick forest. Arcadius began to run in opposite direction.
Arcadius didn’t stop until he was sure he was well out of range, which was at least a good minute of further running. He stopped, and laid a hand on the nearest tree and bent over in exhaustion. His brow was sweating, and he took a moment to wipe it off.
He looked back behind him to where he had just come from. Aside from a few moans and groans that sounded in the distance, there were no signs that he was being followed.
Now he didn’t know where he was, for he had run past the area he was familiar with. He knew he could go back that way, but that would mean going back toward Marajin, and he didn’t want to do that.
He did know what the time was though. He immediately looked at his shadow, which he could barely see through the shadow of all the other trees around him. He did this to gather his bearings, and soon he ran toward the south.
I have to get out of here before something else happens! He thought to himself. Arcadius didn’t know if something else was going to jump out at him.
He ran until he reached the edge of the forest, and to his surprise, he emerged on the hill over looking his village.
Arcadius looked the village below for a moment, and then looked back at the forest behind him. For the first time, he began to fully reflect on what had just happened. That was Marajin that attacked me… Oh creator. That was when he realized the full extent of the danger he had been in. After that he realized something else, what could have also happened, or still could happen… he thought.
He broke into a frenzied run as the revelation overtook him. Now he was even more afraid. If being chased by the boar was bad, this feeling of dread was far worse. He might come back and attack the village again! He reflected on the stories he had heard about the attack twelve years before.
It had been many years since it had happened. There had been a point where their village angered the boar god, so much so that Marajin came and attacked their little village. While they were eventually able to drive him out, the victory had been costly. Arcadius had realized that the same thing could possibly happen then.
He quickly made his way down the hill, past the fields filled with a variety of fruits and vegetables. He ran through the village with great speed. Arcadius didn’t stop even as his neighbors and friends gave him friendly waves.
He eventually reached a small house, though by comparison it was larger than the other building in the area. It was the one place he needed to be, for it was the chief’s house.
Out of breath, he laid his hand on the doorframe and rested for a moment. The exhaustion completely distracted him from the situation at hand.
Once he was done, he did his best to compose himself. Standing straight, he gave a knock. “Enter.” was the response he heard faintly from inside. Arcadius opened the door.
He was introduced to a familiar scene. In the back of the room sat a short stout man, the chief of the village named Yosef. Around him was an arc of villagers, who had come simply asking for company, to which the chief would always oblige; he liked company as well. At almost the same time, they all looked up at him.
Arcadius barely noticed them as he approached, stopping on the outside of the form.
“Hello chief.”
“Hello Arcadius!” The chief replied happily, the variable of which was then repeated by everyone else. “Boy, do you look tired, do you want some tea?” Yosef started to reach for his pot.
“No thanks, I’m fine.” Arcadius replied a bit darkly, but Yosef had already poured the cup.
Yosef looked up in surprise. “No?” He looked back down at the already full cup. “Ah… well if you change your mind…” He slid the cup off to the side. Yosef looked back up at Arcadius with a look of concern. “But… you don’t usually refuse tea… is something wrong?”
Arcadius sucked in a breath. “I was attacked.” A collective gasp sounded through the room. “In the forest just north of here, I was walking and…”
Yosef nearly jumped up. “What?!?”
“I’m all right, but I could have died out there.” Arcadius quickly dispelled the reaction.
A collective sigh was heard, topped by a few variations of “That’s good.” Everyone looked at each other with relieved looks on their faces.
Yosef was thinking in a different direction however. “Tell me Arcadius, who attacked you?”
Arcadius was silent for a moment. “You won’t like it chief.” Every head turned back toward Arcadius at this.
Yosef thought deeply for a moment as the smell of the tea in his lap went through his nostrils. “Well… it’s my job to know.”
Arcadius looked around for a moment, still unsure. He bit his lip for a moment then uttered, “Marajin.”
The sound of breaking glass as two cups hit the floor violently was muffled by the protest that erupted.
“Is that the same one that destroyed the village twelve years ago!?” one villager asked.
“Marajin? What the hell is he doing back in this part of the forest?” another villager shouted.
“And I don’t know,” Arcadius continued, “but he looked very mad. I think…”
A woman to Arcadius’ right started to panic. “W-what if he’s come back to finish the job?” She finished what Arcadius was about to say.
Variations of “No!” and “Don’t say that!” filled the room.
“B-but.”
“No! Don’t say he’s come back to kill us! You’ll cause a panic!” Another woman said.
“I’m already panicking!” The first woman rocked back and forth, her legs brought to her stomach, and her arms crossed on top of them.
“Settle down!” The second woman scolded. “Listen, we all know what you lost then, but we must not bring back those painful memories!” She turned to Yosef, “Chief?”
Every head in the room turned toward the man sitting in the middle of the room.
“Well, if what you said is true, that Marajin has indeed returned…” he paused, thinking. Then after a few seconds, he stood up in a huff. “We must let the villagers know at once. No one is to enter the forest until further notice.” He started toward the door as the other members of the conversation stood up one by one. “In the meantime I will assemble the guard. We cannot have a repeat of last time.”
It had been many years since it had happened. There had been a point where their village angered the boar god, so much so that Marajin came and attacked their little village. While they were eventually able to drive him out, the victory had been costly.
Arcadius did not remember a single moment of that day, for he was only the age of three. In-fact, he had lost all memory of that time, which wasn’t unnatural, most people couldn’t remember when they were three either.
That didn’t matter now, the decree had been issued. It was time to let everyone know. Though… it won’t hurt to have some tea first, will it?
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