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Prompt 3: Trees stretch in every direction, tall and dark and full of unfriendly shadows. Nothing about the area seems safe, and there is a darkness in the forest. If you travel into the forest, you will find that no matter what path you take, the village is always within sight behind you. Any direction, any distance, any time you spend--the village will always be within sight. There is no barrier to stop you, just a strange, infinitely looping forest. Within the forest you find no recognizable trees or landmarks.
Eventually they'd been found and while the walls had held that didn't mean that the godforsaken beast hadn't done some considerable damage. That morning he had woken up, inspected the regions that had been subjected to the wrath of their visitor, and conceded that while they were still standing it was unlikely they would remain safe without a little more help. All things considered they'd come out of it well, but when his fingertips had grazed over some parts of the wall it had begun to crumble, reinforcing the idea that he needed to seek out several materials to remedy it.
It was for this reason that the man was not traipsing around in the depths of the forest; credit where it was due to Cybele when he had bumped into before, there had been old tools he'd been able to use back in town to make much more sturdy repairs to their home... But now he needed something else. The planks may have sealed off holes and reinforced the walls a little, bit mist and fog could still seep in and he knew better than to let this happen. His own experiences had not been pleasant with that fog and if he were to let it touch anyone else in his household then he would consider that to be his failure.
Not to say that they all hadn't experienced it at least once, but he would prefer to avoid it again. Exposure led to poor judgement as well as several other unpleasant experiences, and when all of that remained concentrated in one person's head it ended up in disaster.
Thus, slung over his shoulder he had wandered deeper into the forest that he had now become so familiar with. He couldn't tell you how to navigate it, or roughly where he was either, but he was always afforded some manner of supply when he sought it. The dead silence had become a natural part of his day as well and with it, the sound of his own company had become routine. It certainly wasn't his preference but this wasn't something that held sway on him any longer and he had adjusted to it, it was just the mist he still hadn't managed to defeat.
His intention this morning was to locate a certain type of soil, light enough to form cement that he could mix and cut into the right consistency to seal off the parts of the wall that had been torn away and scored. It wouldn't take long of course, this world had a way of handing things to its denizens and sure enough it didn't take him long to spot what he needed beneath the roots of an aged tree. He'd be grateful for small favours, even if he had reason to suspect this willingness to provide was part of a much bigger game by an unseen maker.
Kneeling down he began to gather what he needed, head bowed until he was sure that he had enough.
Satisfied, he then straightened and cast his gaze towards the talismans that lay above his head. He hadn't really understood what they were for, he had a few of course and had taken them back with him previously...but he still recalled the moment when something had happened when he had disturbed them the last time. More mysteries with no answers, but yet another feature of an otherwise strange world.
They remained silent, unwilling to provide any answers or hints of their own and after a while he merely turned on his heel and returned home with his bucket in tow. He had work to do and while he had ample time to do it in, he was mindful that it was best not to take anything for granted.
