The Barter Novel Sierra and Xavier

---- chest.

It was just like my dream! The figure that stood beside my cot.

And that drawing! Could it be the one who saved me from those men that day? Its limbs were long, ending in clawed hands that seemed too delicate for the lantern it held.

Its eyes glowed faintly, as though reflecting the light, and its skin looked like it had been burned and charred.

The figure stops suddenly as if sensing my presence and while my heart screamed at me to go rushing to him, my mind stopped me.

Its red eyes scanned the area and my breath hitched as I instinctively crouched low, pressing myself against a gnarled tree trunk.

The creature's head turned, scanning the darkness further , and I held my breath, willing myself to be invisible.

---- Finally, after what felt like forever the monster began to move, the soft crunch of its footsteps the only sound in the suffocating silence.

My heart raced as I watched it, frozen between fear and curiosity.

It was walking with purpose, as if it knew exactly where it was going.

Unlike me.

Could it be that it resided here? I followed, keeping my steps light and my distance far enough to avoid detection.

It led me deeper into the forest, past countless dead trees and barren ground, until another faint glow appeared ahead I slowed, peering through the gloom, and my breath caught when I saw it.

The light wasn't alone Another creature stood there, equally monstrous, its hulking form hunched as it held a crude staff.

They exchanged guttural, low growlslanguage, but one I couldn't understand.

Linched closer, desperate to remain hidden, but my ---- ee foot caught on a branch.

The soft snap echoed louder than it should have, and I froze as one of the monsters turned, its glowing eyes narrowing as it scanned the area.

Shit! I shrank back, holding my breath, my heart was pounding so loudly that I was sure they could hear it.

After a tense moment, the creatures resumed their exchange.

And I sighed in relief.

This was the second time I was saved They may be the only living beings here but I cant trust them.

I shifted to peer again when to to my shock, one of them began to shift Its grotesque form rippled, shrinking and twisting as its monstrous features melted away.

In its place stood a man.noveldrama

A human figure.

I stared, unable to process what I was seeing.

The ---- human figure adjusted the lantern, the light now reflecting a sharp, angular face.

Without a word, he turned and walked into the shadows, his steps purposeful What the hell is going on here? How are they alive? What are they? And how long have they been living here? I followed him with my eyes, and thats when I saw it.

Acastle.

It rose out of the darkness like a specter, its towering spires jagged and uneven, as if the structure itself had been torn from the world above and thrust into this forsaken land.

It wasn't beautiful, not in the way castles in stories are, but it was imposing, its dark stone shimmering faintly.

Someone lived here.

In this land of death and nothingness, there was life: My knees felt weak as I stared, trying to reconcile the impossibility of what I was seeing.

All the stories, the