Nova Cove: The Portal of Arx (chapter 3)

Chapter Three: The Curriculum1

The crowd around Annali drew silent as the moments before the race passed. Then suddenly the eldest horse in the herd nodded his head and whinnied loudly signifying the race has begun. Annali leapt without hesitation higher and farther then anyone had seen a horse jump. In just a few seconds she had bound out of sight. 2

Annali had jumped so high to give the crowd a good show but now that she was alone she knew she needed to conserve her energy during the day. Her and Sasha had practiced running many times in this direction but coming up soon was the farthest they had gone. The wind was cool and uplifting and the smell of the air was sweet with the spring flowers. Annali was becoming more at ease with the idea of going farther then she had gone before and decided to quicken her pace. The sun was so warm on her back that the brief moments under tree shade were like brief chills. She looked forward to each one because she was already beginning to feel her muscles start to burn. She decided to slow back to a conservative pace and take in some of the scenery.3

Every few minutes she was seeing unfamiliar and therefore exciting differences in the forests progression. The rocks were different colors and the trees were different shapes and sizes. She had gotten so wrapped up in the majesty of Nova Cove that she had not realized she now could not even see the familiar part of the forest. 4

Just as time passes by the quickest when one is having fun, hours seemed to pass like seconds to Annali who was now noticing that the sun was setting. Remembering her fathers words she decided to take a break while there was still sunlight. The river Illis which she had been using as a guide had never looked so clear and undisturbed. Her herd lived closer to Mount Procella then any other creature in Nova Cove so this area of the river had not been used by many. 5

As she bent down to drink some of the cool trickling water she noticed fish that she had never seen either. As her eyes were following a particularly pretty orange fish she noticed a moving reflection in the water that looked like the strange black horse she saw near the Scouting Tree. She quickly looked up but when she focused on the spot where the reflection came from she saw nothing. She wondered if she should chase after and see if she could find the strange horse but was quickly dissuaded by a pinching pain in her forehead. This odd sensation was like before but instead of tingling it was accompanied by a feeling of pressure. Annali shook her head and dipped it into the river. The cool feeling of the water made the pressure more bearable. She started to worry about the night coming and her getting caught off guard. One last time Annali dunked her head into the river and then with a large splash of water she leapt back on to the path in a sprint. The sun was now behind the mountain and the only light was that reflecting off the dimming blue sky. 6

“This is the scary part” She said to herself. “If I can just make it through the night I know I will be fine.”7

Keeping a quick pace Annali galloped on into the darkening path. It is an eerie feeling to watch the world go from safe to treacherous with only the passing of light Annali thought to herself. Soon the stars were visible in the sky and it was now much harder to make out the river then it was during the day time. Annali is burdened with the gnawing distraction of pressure on her forehead that has persisted since her stop at the river. Stout and fearless she keeps her head up and continues forging. The night hours do not pass like the day hours did. Each rock and tree was now scary and un inviting. Every now and then Annali hears a noise like someone is running with her but when she tries to focus on it she loses the noise in the sound of her own clunking hooves. While having to get particularly close to the river to avoid the foliage Annali hears a splash coming from behind her. Rather than stopping to investigate she decides to run faster and move away from the river. 8

Annali pushes her self harder each moment in the fear that whatever is behind her might catch up. The beating of her heart was now thumping in such a thunderous way that she could actually hear it. Annali had never pushed herself this hard for this long before and was beginning to wonder if she could handle it. Annali’s right thigh muscle begins to seize as though it is about to cramp up so she leans as much as she can to her left side to dispense some of the weight to her other side. After a few moments the seizing fades away and along with it the throbbing in her head. It has been a while now since she heard noises behind her so Annali decides to pace herself a little. Her muscles could not agree more. The pace of her run was slow now and Annali was getting very tired. Gazing up at the sky for signs of daylight she notices a pink hue to the clouds.9

Annali had never been so relieved to see the first signs of the sun coming over the distant tree tops. She had made such a great distance in her evening run that she was now seeing the sun rise in what seemed like a whole new direction. Even though it was strange it was the first feeling of safety she had had in hours. 10

When the sun was fully visible she decided one of those daytime breaks was in order. Her muscles had grown very sore and without a break she didn’t think she could go on. She slowed down to a walking pace and began to sniff the ground for food. She picked up the sent of something sweet and follows it toward the river. With each walking step her muscles got more sore. It was only now in her rest that she was feeling the full magnitude of the nights run. Close to the river in a bit of a mossy clearing was a green apple tree. The apples on it were ripe and large. Many of them had fallen on the soft mossy ground near the river bed. This seemed like the ideal spot to take her break so Annali gently laid down in exhaustion. She ate a few apples noticing the few warm spots peering through the leaves on her body. It was comfortable and perfect for a short nap. 11

What seemed like only a few moments later Annali awoke to the sound of splashing. She was disoriented for a moment because it was now dark again. In a panic she jumped to her feet and looked around in disbelief. What was only going to be a short nap apparently took the whole day and she was now in the starlit black of night again. Without thinking to stop and eat some more apples she immediately starts into a dead sprint down the trail. She is also noticing that the pain in her head seems to have gone and now all she feels is a little bit of pressure and a slightly dizzy sensation.12

These things were only passing thoughts as all her attention was now focused on the poorly lit path. Even though the stars shine bright at this time of night the forest had gotten thicker and tonight was doing a better job of hiding the starlight.13

Annali was angry that she had let herself fall asleep. Rather then concern for her safety she was upset that she had lost so much time. She was determined to make it back in extra effort tonight. Running at full speed is enough to wear out even the strongest of creatures but nothing is more powerful then will. Annali’s will was focused and determined so much so that she took no notice to the noises which had continued from the night before. She did not look at the trees or rocks, only the trail ahead. She did not even notice that the splashing noises had become more frequent and louder with each passing moment. Her focus on the trail below became her weakness. She did not see a branch hanging in the air above one the large rocks she was leaping over. The branch hit her harder then she had ever been hit before. Annali fell to the ground with a thud and lost her breath.14

Panting in distress and trying to get back her breath, she now began to notice the splashing noises getting closer. It was not long however before they stopped all together and the air drew still. It was silent now not even the hoots of owls or the chirps of crickets could be heard. Annali was regaining her composure when she saw motion out of the corner of her eye. She stands up and spins around to see what is there. Nothing is visible but she hears the rustling of branches.15

“Who is there?” She inquires softly. The only response is a low pitched grumble. She has never heard this sound before but knows right away it’s a wolf. In a panic she darts her head around for an exit plan. It was apparent that the wolf was waiting to strike on the route of her path, but if she doubled back she would lose even more time on the race. Annali stomps her hove on the ground and kicks up some dirt before bounding forward, sprinting in the direction of the wolfs growl. The wolf must have been caught off guard by this attempt because instead of pouncing from stealth it simply leapt onto the path in front of Annali, postured to strike. It was an older wolf with matted gray hair, red glowing eyes and shiny white teeth snarling at her. Annali bucked up on her two hind legs whinnying loudly. The wolf did not scare off but instead began to howl at the sky. It seemed the wolf was calling for help. Annali made the hasty decision to charge down the path anyway. The wolf did not however wait for back up and instead jumped at Annali with his claws stretched out to strike.16

In a gut reaction Annali shouted as loud as she could and when she did so a bright purple light appeared in front of her head. It was so bright that she had to close her eyes for a second. She heard a yelp come from the wolf and when she opened her eyes to see, the wolf was lying on the ground. The wolf was only shaken for a second before it regained its stance and prepared to pounce again. Annali was not sure what had just happened and was frozen with fear. The wolf did not waste any time. It jumped into the air and for a moment time seemed to be in slow motion. While in mid bound the wolf was cast aside by a jet of blue light that appeared to have come from the river. The wolf let out a much louder yelp then before and landed somewhere in the foliage off the path. Annali did not wait around to find out where the lights had come from but instead ran at full speed down the path. She was still being careless in her speed and disregard for the forest. Luckily she did not fall again while she put as much distance as she could between her and the wolf.17

The funny thing about time is that it passes quickly when your having fun but when your running for your life it passes surprisingly fast as well. The noises which she was now looking for much more tentatively had stopped since the wolf. Due to her running as fast as she could motivated by fear of death Annali managed to make up the time from the lost day entirely as the sun came up from behind the mountain now she regaining her nostalgia for sunrises at home. If she was right about her calculations of the position of the sun to the mountain then she was very much ahead of schedule. Annali decided to take a break and find some food. This time however she would not be taking a nap.18