The Long Road To... - Prologue. Lost

The forest was dark, very dark. No stars glimmered between the trees, perhaps branches blocked the entire sky. I rode slowly, walking my horse farther and farther away.

Night sounds, familiar and unfamiliar, surrounded me. There was no reason the stop.

My head slowed, numbness flooded through my body. The horse’s steps were the only movement.

The trees seemed gray, the forest covered in a haze. The sun must have been rising. Branches covered the horizon.
I dismounted next to a old fallen tree. It had been there a long time, partially rotted into the ground. It felt tired, worn, and old.

The first birds began to sing. The horse leaned down chew on a bush. I removed the bit and pulled my gear off him before sinking down next to the broken limbs of the tree. I leaned back and closed my eyes. My body took over and I lost my fight to stay awake.

Warmth and light disturbed me. The sun had shifted and cast a bright beam of whiteness on my face. I blinked several times and shifted my brow into shadow. A breeze rustled the brush.

I was alone.

The horse must have begun its long walk home. It was just as well. I did not know where I was going anyway. I stretched, reworked the gear onto my back alone, buried what I could live without, and started off again.

The dusty grays returned to the canopy of leaves way to soon. In the distance I could hear the trickle of water on rock. I followed the sound to a brook. I started a fire in the fading light. It was warm enough, but the light and crackle gave me comfort. Fresh water cleansed my mouth. I settled in for the night, and the next, and the next.

My eventual need for food overcame my lethargy. Since coming to this forest, I had seen only a handful of animals other than birds. If there were any, they would have to come for water. I followed the flow of the water looking for signs of tracks or paths. Eventually, I came to where the brook entered a modest stream. Small fish congregated in the shallows, although they were not large enough to eat, the fruit hanging from the tree above them was.

I could not live on fruit forever, so I followed the stream and was rewarded to find it flowed into a larger, fast running one, one with bigger fish.

I constructed a crude shelter against a tree, little more than a lean-to, it would keep the rain off when the time came.

I was able to catch a pair of rabbits.

Life was good, simple.

No thoughts other than to survive.

There was nothing else.

Food, water, shelter, and fire.

I don’t know how many days it was before they came for me.