Chapter 179
The portal pulsated with bluish energy, seemingly drawing me in to look through it.
Or, was that the forest of the ancients speaking from the other end?
“Well?” Sir Alan spoke up just then, using his hand to shield his eyes from the light of the portal. “What are we waiting for? That’s the forest right there p>
Yeah, no shit, Sherlock.
I glanced at Phoebe who stared at the vast forest in awe.
She glanced at me as well but didn’t say anything. She didn’t have to… Her eyes already told me enough.
She was ready to go.
“Is there anything we need to know before leaving, Freya?” Elder Gita turned to the witch and asked with dimmed eyes.
The latter nodded her head with a solemn expression. “The ancients are said to be very cryptic. Their disconnection from the rest of the world makes their views on ’morals’ far different from ours p>
Every one of us was silent, nodding our heads and listening to her.
Seeing this, Freya added. “If you survive the forest and they see you as worthy, then you might get what you desire from them. However, be warned. The ancients hate liars. If they ask you questions, please answer with sincerity p>
Wow… It sounds like this lady has visited this forest of the Ancients before.
The question is… What did she go there for and what was her wish?
“Well, y’all heard the lady,” Negan muttered just then, rubbing his palms together. “See you at the other side p>
Before anyone could say anything, the Beta took the lead and hopped through the portal.
“You might want to follow after him quickly before the portal closes,” Freya remarked with a slight smirk on her face.
Soon, Elder Gita followed after the Beta and then Lycan Davos. When everyone in our group had left, Phoebe glanced at me, giving me a curt nod before she walked through the portal.
Just when I was about to step through, however, Freya spoke up from behind.
“Be careful, Alpha Kaene. There are forces and powers at play that may not be vanquished even if you succeed in traveling through time p>
Huh?
Before I could make sense of what she said, she waved her hand at me, causing me to get pushed through the portal by an invisible force.
“Ugh I grunted when I landed on the ground but was quick to get on my feet when I realized that the group stood around me.
I glanced back at the portal just in time to see it disappearing without a trace.
“Did we really just jump through a portal leading into a magic forest isolated away from space-time?” Negan asked with a dumbfounded expression as he scanned his gaze around the place.
There were trees… Hundreds upon hundreds of trees that stood tall at possibly hundreds of meters.
It was unlike anything I’ve ever seen.
“A land lost to time.” Elder Gita mumbled to herself just then, squatting on the ground and picking up a bug.
She stared at it with dimmed eyes as it wriggled in her hands… Until she squashed it for whatever reason.
“This will be a good item for a potion.” She muttered, ignoring the weird looks we gave her.
“Well, does anyone have a map to navigate this place or to safely lead us to the ancients?” Beta Negan asked with a somewhat playful tone.
However, before he could say anything else, Elder Gita commented. “The forest of the Ancients is separated from the rest of the world. Separated from the rest of space and time. I don’t think there’s any fixed location for anything. In fact, I have a feeling that the forest is constantly shifting and evolving p>
She paused, scanning her gaze around the forest around us.
Great! She just had to make it seem even more terrifying.
“So, a magic forest capable of shifting and constantly changing because of its separation from the fabric of space and time.” Lycan Davos repeated her words with a chuckle, scratching the back of his head. “What’s next? Dinosaurs p>
The sarcasm and frustration weren’t lost in his tone.
Drawing in a deep breath, I glanced back at him, letting my gaze linger on him for a bit before scanning my gaze around the faces of everyone present.
“Let’s move forward for now. Remember what Freya said I blurted, pausing for a few seconds before I continued. “She said the Ancients have total control over the forest. I believe beings as powerful as that will be able to sense that we’re here p>
Everyone seemed to visibly tense up, except for Elder Gita who had a calm expression on her face.
Without another word, I turned around, taking the lead and following a path that led through the forest.
The path was wide, the soil underneath my feet wet with moss growing at the side.
While it had been nighttime before we left the Morrigan sisters, it seemed to be early in the evening here, the light of the setting sun filtering through the thick foliage of leaves.
“Hey, maybe this path will lead us to the ancients,” Phoebe spoke up from beside me just then, causing me to swerve my head to her. “I mean, I doubt a forest would make a path on its own now, would it p>
I remained silent, unsure of how to answer that until Negan coughed from my left, forcing me to swerve my head to him.
“Well, a forest can naturally form a path due to certain factors, the most common being ’Game trails’.” He explained, a plain expression on his face. “Bigger creatures can begin using a particular path, and then when it gets used over time by other creatures probably looking for food or other things, the path becomes more defined just like it is right now p>
Bigger creatures p>
What sort of creatures could exist within a forest controlled by the first witches in existence?
Suddenly, as if the forest was in sync with my thoughts, my instincts sensed something, causing me to raise my hand, bringing the group to an abrupt halt.
“Shhh.” I shushed them even though none of them were talking. “Something’s watching us p>