Eviscerate - End | The Endless Forest

Bartleby didn't know what to feel when he saw the wearied, tattered trio on the distant horizon. His initial reaction was happiness, or a least a small spark thereof, upon seeing the massive red caribou front and center.

Then there was disappointment, and even anger, that welled within him when he saw the small lavender doe pressed closely to his side.

And finally, worry.

The three deer, even from their vast distance, were obviously worse for wear. Their once vibrant coats were heavy with filth and dried mud. Their steps fell heavy, their progress slow. An unfamiliar stag, one that Bartleby had never seen thus far, was entirely hairless. His thick, leathery skin coated in scabbed cuts and sickly purple bruises.

Though strangest of all, by far, was their expressions. They were bitter, washed out and devoid of life. Their eyes were wide, perpetually staring at a headlight that did not exist.

And yet despite this, there was the faintest smile on their faces. They weren't mad smiles, tainted with rotting insanity. Rather, they were pleasant, almost normal.

Bartleby glanced up at Pert, whose eyes were specifically locked onto the red buck himself, his expression a curious mixture of shock, relief, and even fear. He stood rooted to the spot, hardly breathing, his head instinctively lowered... almost in submission.

The groups' glazed over eyes widened in surprise as they caught sight of the servants and company, most notably Jergens and Peony. Upon recognizing the ashen grey buck, they quickened their pace to a fast gallop, leaving the bald deer far behind.

"Mister Bartleby!" Peony cried. Being the smaller of the two, she sprinted far ahead of her father, racing up to meet the ashen buck with a bright, delighted smile. Even if she didn't know Bartleby well, he was a forest deer. Someone new to talk to.

Bartleby winced, but put on a polite smile and offered the doe a small nod of the head. "Uhm... Hello." he mumbled softly, glancing over her head to look at the approaching caribou.

At a closer look, Jergens seemed to be the worst of all. He had large, black circles bagged under his dulled hazel eyes. His steps were rickety and uneven, much like a marionette.

He regarded Bartleby with a surprised cock of the head. "...Faith?" he mumbled, stepping forward. His eyes cast themselves down to the jagged scar on the ashen buck's neck, lips tightening in a small frown. "What are ya doin' out here?"

"I... I..." the buck stammered, his embarrassing stutters cut off as Pert finally stepped forward.

"Jergens... is that you?" the piebald spoke up, his voice a tiny whisper. "Um... It's me, Pert." he forced his eyes shut, preparing himself against an expected onslaught of angry curses.

The crimson buck just stared at him.

"Pert who?"

He sounded drugged, his words occasionally stumbling over one another.

The piebald stared back at him, disbelievingly, and had opened his mouth to say something... anything until Jergens interrupted him. "Hey, Faith?" he turned to Bartleby, eyes ever locked on that terrible, terrible scar.

Bartleby looked up, awkwardly shuffling from side to side with a questioning expression on his face.

Maybe it was a herd mentality kicking in, or maybe it was just a mild eagerness to group together, but they had all started to walk back the way they had all come. Bartleby didn't even really notice, or care. He probably wouldn't have otherwise. The fact that Jergens hadn't recognized Pert deeply concerned him, and no matter how much he hated the forest they were going back to, he wouldn't leave the stag's side in such a condition.

And he had friends there was well...

"Did I ever say that I was sorry fer... y'know..." he faltered, his voice slurring slightly. From what Bartleby saw, it almost seemed like Jergens was heavily sleep deprived. Even so, Bartleby just nodded. He didn't know what else there was for him to say, and it didn't seem like Jergens even wanted to talk in the first place.

The hairless buck eventually caught up with them, loudly introduced himself and proceeded to fall in the back of the line.

Occasionally, Jergens would flinch and whip his head to look behind himself, eyes wide and ears pressed against his skull. Peony and Christof would do the same, but not as frequently or with as much intensity. It almost looked as if he was paranoid of being followed.

He can't though... We made sure of that.

Pert ventured back up to the caribou's side, deeply wounded, but still persistent. "Jergs?"

Jergens snapped his neck back and looked down at the piebald. He opened his mouth to say something, closed it, and shook his head.

There was nothing for him to say.

The group traveled in a heavy, awkward silence. The only sounds an occasional annoyed squawk from the crows or a small tuneless hum that Turkey would carry on until Faith scolded him.

It wasn't until they reached the forest that Jergens' spirits began to rise, almost to the point of chaotic euphoria. He rambled on, seemingly to no one in particular, only to stop when he looked over his shoulder.

...

It's okay... It's okay...

We got rid of em'

It's okay.

Sect would be happy if he knew...

Would he?

No...

No he wouldn't.

A murder within a murder.

Jergens didn't care whether or not it counted.

Whatever.

They were home now. Friend was...

... . .

Friend was...

...

Not.

Present.

That was fine!

Jergens considered it a Godsend when he looked at the bright side of things.

He had gotten what he had wanted in the end

Revenge for himself and revenge for Sect... even if the deaf buck would never understand it.

Pert...

The name sounded familiar...

And Christof...

Jergens shot a glance back at the bald buck, earning him a nervous stare in reply.

Who is he?

In any case, they had reached the forest, and what had once been a prison now looked like a utopia to Jergens.

And so, one by one the group shimmied themselves through a small crack between the impenetrable oaks.

---

I'm so obviously done with this it's not even funny. I've never been so unmotivated to finish a project in all my life 8'D

God... just... make it end. I'll write some short one-shots of Pert and Jergens interacting sometime. Not now... ugh... not now...

I'm sorry it has to end like this >> My muse just got completely sucked dry. Still, at least you know.

Murder within a murder?

MURDERCEPTION

...

Eh...

Don't worry, Jergens'll probably tell bits and pieces of what happened in rps or his thoughts and such.