Evelyn could only shake her head as Polaris and her departed from the warmth of camp. The crisp air of night settled in with speed, and the light of the moon did little against the thick canopy overhead. 

"Seems to get unnaturally dark in this forest." The elf said, rubbing her hands together to produce a magic bolt. It spilled off her fingertips to hover in the air, lighting the area around them in a pale glow.

After minutes of collecting firewood, Evelyn froze. Her eyes scanned the dark web of foliage around them, gesturing for Polaris to be still.

"Did you... hear that?" she whispered.

Red eyes, several pairs of them, glinted in the shadows. A low, guttural growl. Then, silence... to be broken. A terrible rumble moved the ground as wolves sprang from the brush, bearing a snarl as they attacked the women.

Polaris was glad that she borrowed Shaftly, Wrensthav's shape-shifting axe.  choosing the form of a halberd, Polaris was working her way to keep the large wolves away.  Striking down one of their flanking members, a burst of lightning hit a nearby tree.

"They have mages as back up, Evelyn!  Try not to be too occupied with the wolves."  Polaris sliced a couple of legs off another wolf that lunged her way.  another bolt of lightning shot near her causing her to move closer to Evelyn.  

Over time the wolf party moved the two ladies off the trail they came from and into a different part of the forest.  A cliffside was coming closer and closer to their backs.

"We are running out of room; have any ideas to get us out of this mess?"

"This isn't just a pack of wolves..." Evelyn said, delicately frowning. Ice shot from her hand and  impaled a few of the beasts, forcing them to move back. Tribal mages from the back of the group continued their spells, creating a line of purple runes on one side. 

Evelyn glanced back at the sheer drop behind them. "They're trying to force our move. If we stay pinned much longer we'll be forced to jump. Likely to our deaths."

She shot another bolt of ice, only to have it knocked aside by the mages. They were close enough that Evelyn swore she could make out the smirks under their bone masks.

"It's no good. Let's move, see if we can get back to camp," she said. "And close your eyes."

Firing off what looked like a firefly, it flew into the middle of the enemy group and exploded into a huge globe of light. A blinding spell meant to temporarily render vision useless. The wolves howled, heads thrashing around. 

As Polaris and Evelyn made a dash into the only stretch of wood available for them, a strange sense of magic tingled through Evelyn. Running in the dark, they both failed to see a subtle rune placed under the brush. It lit up under their feet, and the world fell on its side.

Almost literally. One moment they were in the forest, the next they fell a short distance up, and into blackness. The ground met them with a thud, it being a smoky charcoal material. In fact, everything was dark except the sky. It was a shade of grey. This... purgatory place stretched on forever. 

Evelyn moved to check on Polaris. "...Are you okay?"

[hr]
In the forest, a small, black cube landed in the dirt. Its features were seamless, and the material it composed seemed to absorb nearby light. A painted hand reached down to pick up the cube, holding it to his wicked face. The werewolf tribe's lieutenant let out a low chuckle.

"Nothing will stand in our way now..."

[i][sub]Written in collaboration with [@WrensthavAviovus][/sub][/i]