The Fawn

I awaken, next to some huge stones. Light is burning into my brain, but mist is shifting across the whole forest.

My head is pounding painfully. It's like some horrible headache times ten.

Mommy...Where's mommy?

And why am I in this forest?

It looks like my dream forest...

I wonder.

Pain brings me back to the present, before I can think about that anymore.

My skull feels like it was split in half. The blood is still flowing from the wound and scrapes. My legs feel wobbly... It almost feels like my body has gone through a blender. But I can't remember how this could have happened.

But I'm alive. Definitely alive. Is this how I got here? No...can't be. My memories are vague, but they're telling me that these injuries did not..bring me here.

I try to stand, but instantly fall over. My world is spinning like crazy and I can't keep my balance. I fall down in an ungainly heap, feeling sick. Stupid spinning world. You really need to stop before...

The nausea doesn't go away. It's killing me, along with the major headache I have. And the dizziness. Ugh.

This is all so strange.

I roll over, placing my huge ears over my eyes. That light is hurting me. Luckily, I can still move a bit. Enough to do that much. I can feel myself getting stronger.

I search my mind for something about what happened. But nothing seems to be there. Just then, a fawn runs by me, bleating loudly. I remove my ears from over my eyes. It stops and tries to get me to play with it.

I snap at its leg and it runs off, crying in surprise. Still roaring, great.

Stupid fawn. Stop making people angry.

I groan and finally get up. Everything hurts, but it's better now. I walk slowly towards the pond, stopping to pick up purple flowers.

“Pretty.” I say aloud. There's still beauty in my dream forest after all and I can still appreciate it.

Today, I came into a forest filled with rolling fog and bats, along with wolf howls. I've always loved when the weather changes in the forest.

So went to the ruins, planning on playing The Priest for a tiny bit. Then I'd play as my little fawn.

Suddenly, there's a fawn. He or she casts a spell on me. I cast aside my plans for now, and go and play with the fawn.

I start dancing. So does the fawn. We do this for a few minutes, and then he/she runs off.

Okay, I can go back to my plans now. However, The fawn comes back and casts a mask spell on me. I smile, find the tree with the mushrooms, and cast one on him/her. Then he/she runs off.

That was really fun and really sweet. Thank you, little fawn.

Next, I go in as my characters. I give them a little bit of time, guide them both to the pond, then log back on as my main picto.

I'm walking to the crying idol to pick up some poppies. It's what my deer always wears, ever since she (I?) was a fawn in the forest. Suddenly, a deer in a normal pelt, normal antlers, and skull mask comes zooming up and hits me with a pelt spell.

I bow. He (?) bows back. I hit HIM with a pelt spell. Then we start running around like mad beasts, jumping around the crying idol (I jumped through it accidentally. Got the red pelt and looked kinda funny doing so) and the surrounding trees.

I lose the deer and bellow. He bellows back and I follow. We continue jumping around like mad and just having fun. We start mask spelling each other too. I come out with an orca mask. The deer teaches me how to laugh-sit, though I'm not sure he knows that he did. Thanks for that! He runs off again. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to follow, but I do.

I'm dreaming again. It's that same one I always have, the one where I'm a deer with a human face.

But this time...

The deer could see me...They seemed so...afraid of me. So frightened. I was just a tiny fawn. So small, so slow.

How can they be frightened of me? Did they...think I was someone else? Did they not see me as a fawn?

But...that deer...with the skull mask...Those huge brown antlers...that horrible pelt...He was really scary...He didn't belong in my dream. Mommy told me once that you can sometimes change your own dreams. So I tried to make him go away. He was scaring me...But...He looked confused. Maybe he didn't understand me. I just don't want my dream to turn into a nightmare, Mr. Stag. Can't you understand me? But I...guess I'm sorry. I reacted, and I didn't mean to. Maybe you're actually nice.

My dream always goes the same way. I wake up in a forest. It's peaceful, but I can only walk really, really slow. All the deer are nice; they prance around, but they don't see me. I love going there. It's how I get away...But this time...was a nightmare.

This time it was foggy. This time, deer were fighting.

This time, I could run.

I could feel.

I try to wake up.

I can't.

I'm scared.

What if I can't ever go back?

---
Somehow, I'm awake again. Awake in the forest.

I trot towards a deer. He's got a crying mask. Ram horns. Autumn pelt. He's handsome to me, but I don't...I don't know. But I need to ask somebody...I need to know if this is...real.

I walk closer. I nuzzle him, try to ask him if he's dreaming too. He's sad, so sad, and exhausted. I nuzzle him more. I try to tell him, it'll be alright. Whatever is happening to you will be alright...

Antlers crash into my skull.

Hooves follow.

I cry out, bellowing in pain. The world is spinning, crashing and burning. My head is flaming.

I try to tell this thing to go away.

((Written from a random deer's perspective. ))

The doe is sitting, contemplating, on a large rock.

"Have we forgotten who we are?

Have we become nothing but animals, who thirst for blood?

Have we forgotten how to forgive?

Have we forgotten that death does not end everything?

Or are we so caught up in this whirlwind of madness, that we cannot see what we are doing?

Can we not see what our actions are doing to The Forest?

It's dangerous and dark.

Fawns are fearful, does are worried, stags on constant alert.

Fights break out, bloody and dangerous fights.

Stags, does, and fawns are all caught up in the misery...

If we want to end this, we must remember that justice, too, can be tempered with mercy.

We must remember that vicious cycles can start...and never end.

One death may lead to another.

And another. And another.

We must remember this...

Or something worse may come from the mistakes that we pushed away...

The mistakes that we once called justice."


She stands and walks into the forest.

((Now that you've read that, don't kill me. >>))

His mind drifts in the blankness. There's nothing, just black. Drifting, no rope to hold. He's letting go.

“Is this what death feels like?” He asks himself.

The mutter sounds loud in the darkness. He hopes this isn't what death is like. It's too blank. He'd hoped that it would be lighter, more comfortable. Not dark...not blank. His doubts are resurfacing, but he pushes them away.

Then he is falling again, crying out as he tumbles, faster and faster. Then everything goes blank again. No thoughts either...

“It's been awhile...” comes the murmur. “Too long.” It's the same nightmare he has every night.

He looks up. For some reason, he can't feel anything. His frail body no longer feels the wind. No longer feels the forest. It's like he's floating. No feeling...? He thinks. But-

“Of course you can't feel anything. Come on.” He stands and follows.

The scene gives way to dark dreams; the dream .

Pain, yelling, screaming, fire. A scornfully said name. Light, too bright. Darkness, too dark. And change.

Then quiet.

But he still screams in that quiet. It echoes in his mind and doesn't fade away.

The past is haunting him.
---

There is a rush and my vision clears. The darkness has evaded me. The pain, searing my whole body, has returned in its place. The blood is dry now, but I am in so much pain. How long have I been out? That demon had nearly killed me. I'll find him...

...But...What can I do? I lost.

I failed my forest. I failed my Gods. History is repeating itself. Dear Gods, this cannot happen again. I cannot fail my brothers again...

I lift my head, slowly, and groan in pain. My body refuses to lift itself up, so I stay. I'm going to be in pain for awhile. I can hardly move now.

The darkness returns and I lose myself again.

-The Priest

I woke up late this morning. My wounds were still aching from that stag's attack on me. I suppose he loathes me, though I cannot be sure why. Any brother of the forest is a brother to me...though I can sense some echos of dark deeds within that deer. I wonder what I could have done to anger him so.

My morning routine was carried out with precision. First to the crying idol to wear the pelt (I still remember you). Second to the ruins, to bow. Those wretched idols are still there, of course. I detest them. Perhaps some day I shall gain enough strength to eliminate them. Next, to the crying idol, again. I become lost in memories. Death. Destruction...So much fear. I still remember you. To forget would be to lose myself. Next to the Idols, renewing my faith. The darkness has ebbed ever so slightly, but it is still sticking to The Forest. My forest...The God's forest...

"I shall rid this forest of this evil. My brothers and I, for I sense allies here. Of course they would still be here. We will rid this forest of darkness, together, Gods."

I stand and trot through the forest a while. Nothing threatens directly, yet. It's peaceful. Brothers walk past, I bow curtly. Same old, same old, see. I nap in the cool shade of the ruins. My memories flash darkly through my mind. Running. Darkness. Powerful light. Pain. Death, so much death. Blood flowing...Change.

I awaken some time later. Darkness pummels me back and I gasp for breath. The best way to describe it is horns, sticking everywhere into my pelt. But the dark pulls me on, and I find it. A stag is laying there. I shiver in the darkness and back away, slowly. Too slowly. He's awake. He comes forward, a polite bow. Never again will I trust that. This was the stag I had sensed, earlier, the one who sat with the fawn and I. He's darker than I could have ever imagined. I cower, breath catching in my lungs. He advances.

((I'm really sorry about posting so much today. How much do you guys post per day, so I can match that? >>'))

I am a fool. I let my emotions take me away. I am a complete and utter fool.

I let my emotions take away my one love: that of fawns. I let my feelings make me hide from them. They made me run, they made me panic. They will not do it again.

It took a fawn to bring me back. A fawn's persistence...I thank you. You snapped me from my irrational fear, made me see that the Gods need somebody to cleanse the forest. I romped with you, conquered my fears. You made my reality come back. Dear fawn, I will do whatever it takes to cleanse this forest...for you. You and the Gods. When you left, I was sorry to see you go. Someday, I will find you again, fawn.

After you left, fawn, I knew my mission. There had been a dark presence in the Forest for awhile now. I heard war bellows, saw and heard deer. I followed.

However, there was one thing to do first...

Little fawn-ghost. I am sorry. I am afraid of you no longer. Though you are a ghost, you are still a fawn. I will protect you at all costs, little fawn. I swear. That is why I had to find you, one last time. Why I had to apologize. I hope you understand the foolishness of an old deer. Somehow, I know you will...

I followed the trail. It wasn't very hard to see. Crushed grass, scrapes in the earth, so much anger. And blood...Blood. Then I saw it. That deer. The darkness hit me like a wall. I gasped for breath under its pressure. I succumbed...

"You won't hurt her! Not again! I'll kill you, beast! Kill you..."
"...but perhaps you're already dead..."

It was supposed to be a relaxing day. A normal day. By the Gods, I cannot shake this feeling. This feeling of death...despair...darkness...

It started out fine. The normal morning routine. Nothing special. Then it all started to slide downhill.

I slipped. I admit it, I slipped. I allowed myself to be taken by those silly adults, dancing with such joy. Fools. How can they, when there is so much pain and sorrow in the forest? So much pain. I tore myself away from them, rejecting their games. Too late, I'd already slipped. I'm supposed to be pure, an example to other dwellers. What will happen if I fall even deeper? What will happen if I make a more grievous mistake?

I ran. I never run, but I couldn't stand it. I fled from them, to the Gods...I needed to beg their forgiveness. Or was I begging my own? But...it didn't work. I couldn't forgive myself. Then a fawn appeared. They brought me back, prayed with me. I was saved by a fawn, his purity. That fawn saved me...from the wrath of the Gods? Or myself...

I was calmer now. The fawn had brought me back. I walked briskly towards the Crying idol, not sure exactly why I was going there. One does not question the pulls of the Forest. Suddenly, there was a fawn in front of me. Another one, quietly curled up against the rain, looking frail and vulnerable. My heart warmed and I sat next to it. "I'll warm you, little child..." I whispered silently in its ear, though it came out as a soft snort. It did not awaken, but warmed up. I lowered my head over it, shielding it with my bulk, frail though I am as well.

My screenshots aren't saving as of late. I think it started today, but every screenshot I take, I can't find. I look in 'compatibility files' in the screenshot folder and all it shows are ones from yesterday or the day before. Help? xD

I can sense something. I know it's here now, and I can feel it.

It truly started today, though yesterday was when I first awoke. I wasn't really connected then. It was my first time awakening in...days? Years? ...Centuries?

I sigh and get to my feet, shakily at first, then more confident. It's raining. The cold drops patter down to my fur, making thin lines and patterns through it. The gloomy day matches me, my feeling of foreboding.

I bow to the ruins, saying I remember you. However, I soon realize that I cannot speak. Only bellow. I walk around to the other side. Idols. I crash down upon them, scrape them with my hooves, my antlers. They profane the beauty of this place. But my hooves do no good. They still stand. I circle the ruins, bowing on all sides. I remember you.

I run and bow to the crying idol, again on all sides. I remember you.

I bow to the Twin Gods last. Of course, I remember you. I can feel their blessing course through me as I bow before their statues. I will rid your forest of this darkness. I think.

I cast about the forest, aimlessly, searching for that darkness. I suppose it lingers here, because I cannot seem to trace it. The darkness clings to the forest itself, thick and black, but it comes from nothing. No scent. No trace.

Suddenly, there is a fawn. Then two. I find myself caught up in their games as they show them to me. How to eat the mushrooms that give me powers. How to rub a tree for pine cones. I dance and romp with them. I suppose I always had a soft spot for fawns. Then they run off, one by one. I lay down for a nap, quietly and peacefully. The forest is more beautiful than I remember.