Chapter 112 To The Tracks

Chapter 112 To The Tracks

Once everyone had their loot safely stowed away in one of the many pockets of their packs, Karl ordered Hawk to find them a good route back to the train tracks. They had a long journey ahead of them, since they had gotten so off track, but they could likely make it to the tracks before dark, which meant they could catch a train in the morning.

At least Karl hoped there was one coming the other way in the morning. He didn't know how busy that track was, but it should be the route that the daily supply delivery for the Academy took. That one was going the wrong way, but in the worst-case scenario, they could take it to the next town and then switch to go back.

Their rations were still holding out, so Karl wasn't worried about staying an extra day to wait for the right train, but it would be nice to get back to civilization and get a proper shower.

Maybe they would have the good pumice soap. It didn't smell as nice as the stuff the Academy had, and normally, he didn't need it there, but after a few days in the wilderness, he felt like he could use a good scrub and a cup of thick black miner's coffee.

He could see the squirrel type beasts as they walked through the dense mass of ash trees, just watching the group silently from their perch in the branches, and trying to avoid attracting the attention of the humans. But something told him that there was more here. Something that Hawk couldn't see from the sky.

The woods just had a feeling like that, as if he was being watched, and Rae agreed, though she hadn't found the source either.

The others seemed unaware, so it might be a creature with its attention directly on Karl, but it could just be his heightened senses giving him an advance warning of danger.

The beasts couldn't always explain how they knew that there was a threat. They just sensed it, and now Karl did too. Then, a kilometre from the memory fruit tree, he found the first signs that there was something large enough to threaten them.

There were claw marks on a tree trunk, over a metre above his head.

Anything that could leave claw marks up there was bad news, even if it was something that could fly. Karl would have said, especially if it was something that could fly, but they had Hawk with them to help with flying predators.

He didn't need to warn the others about the chance to be attacked, the claw marks were enough of a warning, and their progress slowed even further as the group did their best to move in a defensive formation, so they weren't ambushed.

But there was no sign of whatever made those marks.

"Then he was forced back, and there are those slices in the branches. My guess is that he was knocked over and attacked upward at the beast. It matches with the torn up earth right there. Then, a few more attacks, and he sent the beast flying into that tree." She explained.

"Never underestimate a detective drama nerd when they say that they can recreate a crime scene." One of the other mages laughed.

Karl smiled and nodded. "I believe she's right. It matches, and if Thor was bigger, I think that we could see just how close it would be. The creature was likely fighting in a bipedal manner though, a bear or something similar."

"Yeah, I was happier not knowing that." The warrior who did the reenactment commented.

"Well, at least now you know what to look for. We're halfway to the railroad tracks, so just keep moving and stay alert. Once we're there, we can rest and wait for the train to come." Karl reminded him.

"The sooner, the better." The warrior agreed as he got back in line and everyone prepared to move again.

Now they were barely making any progress, as everyone was so nervous, but Karl and Dana kept pushing them forward, preventing them from stopping for every noise in the forest. If there was something the size of whatever broke the trees, Hawk would have seen it, and he was only reporting fun facts about the tree monkeys and other small random creatures he was seeing.

But as they got closer to the tracks, the strange sense of being watched continued to grow, making Karl increasingly nervous, despite the forest seeming otherwise peaceful.

The reason for that eerie feeling became obvious when Hawk finally expanded his search far enough to reach the railroad.

[There are people here. Lots of people in white. They look very angry about something, and they're just standing around the metal road.]

That didn't sound good, but they might be the rescue party that had come for the High Priest.

[Stay out of their range, but return to the beast space if they've seen you. They might be looking for the beetle, or any other monster in the area. I will call Thor back in as well.] Karl replied.

[I am on my way back. They definitely see me up here, they just can't reach me.]