That night Charlie was passed out on the floor next to the fireplace in what was now his home. He was back in his own clothes and a fur blanket was covering him.
Rocky was still sound asleep on the sofa, snoring away.
Ted was out looking for more wood for the fire.
A few miles away, The Hunter was making his way through what was now a dark and gloomy forest. Distant noises were heard from the creatures of the night, and a gentle breeze brushed against the trees.
The Hunter could sense that his prey was near.
Charlie was sound asleep in the warmth of Ted Grey’s home.
Nearby, Ted was out gathering wood, when suddenly the Hunter let out a long, demented howl. The trees around the outskirts of the hut then began to shift in form, the branches growing longer,
stretching out in one direction: Charlie. The Hunter was calling to the trees in order to capture his victim. Charlie was no longer safe.
Ted watched in fear as the tree branches slowly moved out towards the hut. “Charlie,” he said aloud, realizing that Charlie wasn’t safe.
The door to the hut slowly crept open and the branches moved inside. They crept gently along the wooden floor and eventually twisted a hold of one of Charlie’s legs, which was uncovered by the fur blanket.
The bunch of branches then tightened its grip around his leg, and shortly Charlie awoke in fear. He threw off the blanket to reveal the dark tree branches pulling him towards the door.
“Rocky, help!” screamed Charlie as the branches pulled him outside.
And with that Rocky awoke from his sleep, yawned, then looking around slowly, he noticed the door was wide open and heard Charlie’s cries for help.
From the distance, Ted was backed up against a tree, the Hunter only about twenty feet away from him. He stayed as still as he could, waiting for his chance to take off.
Out of nowhere, the Hunter attacked Ted, and he was unable to fight back.
It slashed his left arm. He struggled to break free of his grasp, and then a noise in the distance was heard.
“CHARLIE!!” yelled Rocky from a short distance away.
The Hunter looked up, and then took off down the path to Ted’s hut, where Charlie struggled to break free of the attacking tree branches.
What appeared to be a tall, black-haired woman in a black shirt with a few rips on the side and black pants that were ripped at her knees walked out from behind a nearby tree. “Ted,” she said, realizing Ted lying there on the ground, half-wounded. She went to his help.
Sheila,” he replied. “Go to my hut, bring me my bag.”
“Right away,” she obeyed.
Charlie continued to break free of the tree branches which were holding him in place, waiting for the Hunter to snatch him and bring him back to the castle.
Rocky came to his rescue and he began pulling at the branches, desperately trying to free him. Every time he tried to yank the branches away, more would come and grasp a hold of him.
Then, all of a sudden, a winged creature appeared to be flying towards the hut, and the Hunter was making his way towards Charlie and Rocky as well.
Rocky stopped what he was doing as he realized the Hunter was less than twenty feet away from him and Charlie. He was ready to fight back if he had to.
“I’ll be right back to save you!” yelled the winged creature, which appeared to actually be the woman, Ted’s sister, Sheila, who was grabbing Ted’s bag from his hut.
The Hunter lounged at Rocky, causing both of them to roll over in a fight.
Rocky continuously swung at the Hunter as it pushed a powerful, beastly, wolf-like arm down on his face.
After one more swing the Hunter backed off, and Rocky stayed there, staring back it.
Sheila, the winged woman, then took off with Ted’s bag back to where he lay, his arm bleeding, a minute away in the forest. “Here,” she said, handing it to him.
“Thank you,” thanked Ted as he took it, desperately looking for something to stop his wound from bleeding.
Sheila then returned to Charlie, where he was, the tree branches holding him in place. She struggled to pull him free, momentarily realizing that she wasn’t strong enough for the task. “You,” she said, turning to Rocky, “take care of the boy. I’ll keep an eye on this beast.”
And with that, Rocky returned to pull Charlie free of the branches, which now weren’t growing back again.
Sheila turned to the Hunter and waited for the beast to try and attack her.
Charlie gasped for air as he was finally free, and then he ran straight to the hut with a plan of his own that he had in mind. The sword, he thought.
Charlie quickly entered Ted’s hut and spotted the sword still hanging above the fireplace. He went to grab it without stopping to think.
As soon as he grabbed it, he couldn’t stop but wonder why he suddenly felt an odd sort of connection with it. It was as if the sword instantly gave him some sort of energy that made him feel invincible...
But he didn’t have time to think about it. He needed to save Rocky and make sure Ted was safe, and to put an end to the beast waiting for him outside, the Hunter, the thing that had brought him through the portal and into the Underground.
He ran back outside, noticing the winged woman named Sheila two feet above the ground, her giant, black, bat-like wings spread out, hovering over the Hunter as if to attack it.
Rocky then attacked the beast again and this time held him in place on the ground.
Sheila lowered herself back to the ground, kneeling down at the Hunter, and whispered something to him. “Your days are over, Hunter,” she said, as she reached out a hand with long, claw-like fingernails and began to strangle the Hunter to death.
The Hunter struggled to break free of Rocky and Sheila’s grasp.
“Charlie,” said Rocky as he looked up and saw him holding the sword. Sheila looked over as well.
“Let me handle him,” said Charlie, and with that Rocky moved a little out of the way, giving room for Charlie to stab the monster.
Charlie got ready to lounge at the Hunter with the sword. He held the blade up above his head and with a giant leap of powerful energy the sword provided him, he threw himself up into the air, sword pointed at the beast which was laying there, weak, and slammed it down straight through the beasts chest, leaving it with what seemed to be a perfect brutality.
Charlie then fell to his knees, the sword still in the Hunter’s chest, sweating, breathing heavily.
Rocky and Sheila looked impressed. Rocky rested an arm on Charlie’s shoulder, and Sheila just stared at him in astonishment. “That was incredible,” she said to him, also breathing heavily.
“Thanks,” replied Charlie. “Who are you?”
“I’m Sheila.”
“Oh, so you’ve returned, I see. I’m Charlie.”
A moment later, Ted returned from the woods with a bandage wrapped around his arm wound. He stopped when he noticed Charlie in front of the Hunter, which now lay there, dead, Ted’s sword stabbed through its chest.
Charlie stood up and forcefully removed the sword from the beast.
Sheila then went and gave Ted a giant hug. “Brother,” she said. “I’m so glad to see you again.”
“And I’m so glad to see you again, sister.”
Chapter 12