Those unsettling words kept popping up in my head over and over after I had narrated to both Pisces and Zak what I had witnessed as we trudged through the woods which were shrouded in a pale orange highlight.

  "You were able to see into the cosmic plane," Pisces said while Zak walked on ahead of us, still feeling his core where he had received a wave of the energy blast from Despyon's shield after I had successfully channeled Sage's power.

  "It's a supernatural realm where only beings like us or the gods can traverse, connecting us to other mortal worlds across the universe," Pisces added, "and if that is indeed what you saw, things are worse than I thought."

  I recounted how I saw that tall silhouetted figure with the curved horns breathing fire all over Abinor and wiping it out of existence, then there was the other figure before it—the one resembling a horse. From Pisces's elaboration, I deduced it had to be Sage.

  "But what was he trying to tell me?" I asked, "he didn't say anything, except try to hand me something."

  Pursing her lips, Pisces said, "Now that you can see him, expect to have more occurrences of the same. You have the vision now. Do not ignore anything you see."

  I tensed as she said that, a wave of anxiety washing over me.

  "Hey, magic folk!" Zak called, getting our attention, "best be on high alert from now on."

  "What?" I asked as Pisces scanned the vicinity which had shifted from the occasional scattered trees to thick congested vegetation and even more trees.

  "We're now entering the Dark Forest," Zak said and as we followed him into the thick mass of trees, I noticed how it actually became darker. I even turned and I could make out the difference, almost as if an invisible line was separating the Hunting Grounds from this place.

  "There's all kinds of. . ." Zak paused and I caught him briefly look at his right arm; the metallic one, ". . .nasty things out here."

  "The air feels different here," Pisces whispered, her eyes glowing in the darkened environment.

  I swallowed, trying to fight off my anxiety. I glanced at my arm. No electrical sparks were coming off it, which I guessed was a good sign. I turned to Despyon's shield and observed its reflective surface. I thought I could see him with my newly acquired "sight" but it was still a plain reflection.

  Pisces continued scanning the area and I assumed she was using her abilities to check whether there were any signs of danger out there, so, I left her and hurried over to Zak's side.

  "What happened to your arm?" I asked as he swung one of his axes and cut through overgrown bushes, clearing the way.

  "Haven't you had enough harrowing experiences, lad," he said, "now you want to know how I lost my arm?"

  "Well, we're already in the Dark Forest and super-powered beings from another world are coming after us," I levelled, "I don't think it could get any worse."

  "Alright then," Zak sighed, swinging his axe and falling more bushes. "I was a wee lad, about your age and just as scrawny and stupid."

  "I'm gonna let that one slide," I muttered, offended, "go on."

  "The Harvest period had just passed, twenty summers ago. I was regathering the Chieftain's horses when some of them wandered off. I chased them down into the Hunting Grounds but I lost them. I knew I was a dead man if I returned without those horses, so, I searched deeper and didn't even realize I was already in here."

  That's when the nasties of this place decided to pop out, especially one certain beast I had only heard tales about at the village bonfire. It was getting dark. I had lost my way. The beast had caught my scent. I could hear it howl through the trees, howling into the sky and the moon."

  "What was it?" I asked, "a wolf?"

  "Oh no," Zak chuckled, biting his lower lip, "I'd come to the same assumption but it was no wolf. I ran through the trees like the scared little shit that I was. The beast was faster, catching up to me in seconds then knocking me to the ground."

  I don't know whether it was how he explained the whole thing or maybe it had something to do with "the vision", I wasn't sure, but I got an unsettlingly vivid picture of the ordeal as Zak went on.

  "It grabbed me by the leg and tossed me across the forest. It came at me, picked me up with both of its limbs and I could see its eyes—two black holes boring into my own. I tried to break free and kicked the beast. It did not like that and thus I kicked it again and something dislodged from its body. The beast growled and bore its teeth at me." Zak glanced at his metal arm which glinted in the dimming light.

  "Holy shit. . ." I muttered, unable to imagine what it must have felt like. "What about this beast? How did you escape?"

  "I didn't," Zak said shortly, "I used this." I looked at his arm.

  "I don't understand."

  "Well, turns out I'd managed to knock off a loose piece of its skin. It was as hard as metal and pointed like the horn from that other beast we slayed."

  I felt my side where a tiny bag was attached. Pisces had conjured it for me so I could store Tauros's fallen horn. I had forgotten all about it.

  "The beast had a lot of them on its body, like spines, sticking out of its back. So, I grabbed the fallen piece and stabbed the beast in its neck as it came down to devour me. I killed it on the spot." Zak flexed his metal arm. "I carried the beast with me, using it to fend off other creatures of the night that would try to come at me, all the way back to Abinor. The Chieftain was so taken by my valiant deeds he had the beast's hide molted and crafted me this out of it."

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  "Whoa. . ." was all I could bring myself to say.

  "I was recruited into the Order after that, and have served as Abinor's army and later General ever since. I even have the beast's blood on me right here," Zak pointed at his right breast plate where three streaks of what I had earlier assumed was red paint, splashed across the silvery metal. "Amarok is its name."

  "It's kinda like Vibranium!" I marveled, still staring at the arm.

  "What?" Zak asked.

  "You know, like the Winter Soldier who loses his arm and gets a new one in Wakanda and. . .you have no idea what I'm talking about," I stopped upon catching Zak's puzzled expression. "It's awesome, though."

  "Awesome?" Zak reiterated.

  "Yeah, awesome. It's when something really good happens."

  Grunting, Zak regarded me with an amused expression. "You really aren't from around here, are you?"

  "Been trying to find my way back ever since," I sighed.

  "Well then, let's not waste any more time and be done with all of this," Zak patted me on the shoulder with his metal arm and it hurt.

  "Guys!" Pisces called when my arm lit up with green electrical sparks.

  "What is it?" I asked as both Zak and me turned around. Then we all heard it.

  It was a low baying sound, almost like the howling of a wolf but this one felt different. It was louder and deeper.

  "Something knows we're here," Pisces whispered.

  The baying intensified and from Zak's face, I could already tell what he was thinking. "No," I started, "it can't be."

  "What?" Pisces looked from Zak to me.

  Heavy loud steps followed and the creature emerged from the trees.

  "Hide!" Zak shot and we all rushed to crouch behind a mass of bushes.

  The baying then turned into deep guttural grunts as I heard the beast prowl, looking for its prey. Zak had pulled out both of his axes and was ready to attack. I turned to Pisces. She was—wait, where was she?

  "What is she doing?" I heard Zak say and followed the direction of his gaze, only to find Pisces standing right in front of it.

  It was exactly as Zak had described it, only it was more terrifying in the flesh. "Get back!" Zak called in a low voice and he sounded more on edge than he had been while fighting Tauros.

  Pisces ignored him and I watched her approach the creature. It was nearly seven feet tall, towering over Pisces's small form. It had a striking resemblance to a wolf, especially its head, but that was it. The rest of its body was covered in black fur with what appeared to be sharp silvery spines aligned on its back, from its head, all the way to its thick bushy tail. It stood on its hind legs like a werewolf and my heart sunk when it lashed out at Pisces with its forelimbs that were almost as thick as Tauros's arms and ended with curved claws.

  Unfazed, Pisces stood her ground as the creature tried to scare her by baring its teeth where thick saliva was drooling. It would charge at her then back away as fast.

  "It's okay," Pisces whispered to it and I swallowed when she extended a hand. "You're just a big beautiful boy, aren't you?"

  I lost it at that. She was trying to pet it! And to my bewilderment, it actually worked. The creature gradually narrowed its jaws and was no longer baring its teeth. It even went ahead to approach Pisces who let her rest the palm of her hand on its broad head.

  Pisces stroke its fur with her tiny hand as the sapphire radiance of her body contrasted greatly with the creature's. The creature was even enjoying it, letting out a deep humming sound and closing its eyes.

  "Well I'll be. . ." Zak muttered, just as petrified as I was.

  Pisces observed the creature and spotted something on one of its hairy arms. "Oh, you poor thing," she said softly, gently lifting up the arm. There was something wedged in there, in between some of its spines. She reached with her hand and plucked it out, to which the creature responded by snarling but Pisces petted it some more and it calmed down.

  "There, there," she whispered to it, "it was only a thorn." I watched her place her hand over its arm again and appeared to heal the creature. "Much better now."

  "You can come out now," she said to Zak and me and we were reluctant but she persisted. "He won't hurt you. He's a good boy."

  I came out first, with Zak following far behind. "Come on," Pisces insisted.

  The creature directed its eyes at me. They were so black I could see my own reflection in them. It did not bare its teeth or try to slice my head off with its massive claws but even then, my hand shook and Pisces grabbed it, gently directing it towards the creature's fur.

  "He's an Amarok," she said as I felt the creature's warm fur.

  "It's a he now, huh. . ." I swallowed, still shaking.

  "Relax. . ." Pisces held on to my hand and I found myself looking into her eyes. They had become insanely pretty. How was she doing that?

  Realizing I was staring, I looked away, refocusing on the terrifying not-so-terrifying creature. It wasn't that bad actually. It was like petting a really big dog.

  I caught Pisces brushing back her blue hair over her ear from the corner of my eye before turning around to call Zak. "Even you. Get over here."

  "I think I'm fine. You two go on ahead and have at it," Zak nervously replied, subtly hiding his right arm behind his back.

  "Dude, it's okay," I found myself saying, "it's not the same one that attacked you."

  "Three people petting it all at once. I don't want to scare him off," Zak added defensively.

  "We'll step back and let you pet him then," Pisces countered.

  "Right. . ." Zak muttered, giving in.

  Pisces and me stepped away from the creature and Zak advanced towards it. The Amarok regarded him, not at all showing any signs of ferocity and Zak was about to extend his hand when everything took a turn. The Amarok snarled.

  "Shit!" Zak cursed, regretting his actions but the creature did not charge. It did the opposite.

  "See," Zak added, retreating, "what did I tell you? I scared him off."

  "I don't think you scared him off," I said, watching the creature growl at something in the trees, give a high-pitched howl then dash into the opposite direction and was gone.

  "Something now definitely knows we're here," Pisces warned and the electrified glowing on my arm had returned.

  We did not have long to find out. It started with a distinct snapping. The snapping would come at intervals, like gunshots.

  "I know that sound. . ." Pisces muttered, high on alert. "They've found us."

  "Who's found us?" I asked, brandishing Despyon's shield while Zak readied his axes.

  The forest fell deadly silent. Deadlier than it already was then the chaos erupted all at once. Something big came hurtling out of the trees, knocking them aside until it was standing before us and I finally discovered where the snapping was coming from.

  I would have passed out had I not seen enough weird stuff already, but they all kept getting weirder, especially what I was currently looking at. It stood taller than the Amarok with its multiple set of appendage legs and had two large curved claws—pincers—that would repeatedly clap against each other, creating that chilling sound.

  That was not all. There was more. Behind us, opposite the first being, another appeared in a most supernatural fashion by materializing out of the earth with its horns cutting through to the surface until it was standing before us.

  "How should we kill them?" the horned being spoke, regarding all three of us, after which the other being replied, snapping its pincers, "how about we tear the skin from their flesh!"