What Lies Beyond the Path

The forest was eerily silent as the new brides made their way deeper into it. They heard nothing but the dirt crunching beneath their feet and their quick ragged breaths as they continued to press forward. None of them had spoken a word since they first entered the forest, focusing instead on the path in front of them and desperately trying to fight the urge to turn back. Leading the trio was Elaine, her steps steady and sure; timid Ivy was not far behind, jumping and whimpering at every shadow they passed. Rieka brought up the rear, glancing back every now and then at the path behind them.

They all felt eyes on them the deeper they walked, like animals being hunted by prey. 'And who says we aren't?' Rieka thought. 'Our husband is, after all, a wolf.' Could this all be a game? A means for him to stalk them in the night as they walked helplessly through the forest?

Rieka shook her head. There was no point in her thinking that way, even if it was true. She had no idea what they were walking into, but scaring herself with "what-ifs" wouldn't make the situation any easier.

They walked for hours with no sign of wherever they were heading. The moon had risen high in the night, its rays gently falling down between the canopies of the trees. It was almost peaceful.

"EEEEEEKKK!!!!" Ivy squealed, racing behind Rieka, her body trembling.

"What? What is it?!" Elaine whispered, searching the trees for whatever had scared Ivy.

"I-I-in the sh-shadow of that t-t-tree!" she whimpered, pointing to a tree just off the path. Rieka moved towards the edge of the path and glanced at a dark blob tangled around the roots of the large tree. She gasped when she saw what it was. A red cloak, exactly like their own, was wrapped around the roots stained with something dark and crusty. The wind rustled through the trees, blowing a corner of the cloak away to reveal a skeletal hand.

Rieka paled and stepped back, her hand over her mouth in horror. "Oh god," she whispered, bile rising in her throat.

"What is it?" Elaina demanded, still being clutched by Ivy.

"I-its a red cloak." Rieka managed to say, turning away from the tree in disgust. "Just like ours. Underneath there's a....a skeleton."

Ivy sobbed even harder now that her suspicions were confirmed. "W-we're going to DIE in here!" She cried, falling to the ground in an inconsolable heap."

"No!" Rieka growled. She refused to believe that she was sent here to die. That any of them were. There had to be an explanation! Could it be a test? Something Ostrythe made to test their resolve? It was then that the Prophet's stupid poem rang in her ears again.

"Follow the path straight and true,

your husband there waits for you.

But should you stray from the path,

you will invoke His vengeful wrath."

"We have to stay on the path," she whispered to herself. Then more urgently to the others, "We have to stay on the path! Like the Prophet said!"

"What are you talking about?" Elaine asked, helping Ivy to her feet.

"The stupid rhyme he told us before we left said that we needed to follow the path straight and true otherwise we'll invoke Ostrythe's wrath. Who-" she paused, glancing once more at the body beneath the tree, "Whoever that was didn't stay on the path. That must be what happened to them. We just need to keep moving."

Rieka picked up her lantern and continued forward, determined to reach the end of the path. She wasn't sure what had happened to that person beyond the path, but she refused to end up the same way. If she really did meet Ostrythe by the end of this, she had a thing or two to say to him about his psychological mind play with his brides.

'I don't care if he kills me for speaking my mind,' she thought, 'I refuse to be bullied by anyone anymore.'

"Jinx, slow down!" Elaine cried, pulling Ivy along with her. Rieka paused for a moment and waited for them to catch up. "What's your problem?" Elaine growled. "You were just going to abandon us back there? Like I would allow you to do that!" Rieka ignored her and continued forward.

As the night slowly began to end, they were ushered forward by the howling of a pack of wolves somewhere in the forest around them. The girls hurried forward, pursued by the sounds of paws racing around them, just out of their line of sight. The rushed down the path faster and faster, the sound of footsteps and howling increasing around them. They panted as they continued on, searching just beyond the path for the animals they knew lurked there, but seeing nothing beyond the first line of trees. They dared not walk, dared not talk, dare not stop for fear of being caught by the invisible wolves that pursued them. There was nothing but reaching the end of the path on their minds.

Finally, just when it felt like their lungs would collapse and their feet would break, a light appeared on the path ahead. The closer they got to the light, the quieter their pursuers became until they finally reached a large wooden gate and the footsteps disappeared completely. The light had come from two enormous bonfires on either side of the gate, illuminating a large stone wall that stretched on deeper into the forest in both directions.

On the huge wooden gate was a beautifully carved scene. The sun and moon were both risen in the sky, shining down on the creatures below them. In the day side of the scene were human figures nestled in a village, just like their own, going about their daily lives. Just outside the village a handful of them wore cloaks and walked across to the night scene, where a large castle was nestled deep in the woods. A large figure with the head of a wolf and the body of a man stood atop the castle walls, arms open in welcome as the hooded figures entered the castle.

"This is it," Rieka whispered, lightly touching the carving of one of the hooded figures. One of brides, she quickly realized, who had come to marry him before. Just like her.

"We've made it to Ostrythe's kingdom."