Ali and Mave spent the night in the deep of the woods, resting as best they could, though in truth neither gained much sleep. Ali kept watch. He trusted Mave, he found. But still, something kept him up much like a Two River's Watchdog, dark red eyes only glinting in the ever shrinking firelight. It was in the early hours of the morning that he got any sleep. He had dreams of dark terrors surrounding him, and being watching him from within a void. A terrible evil. 

Shaitan. He knew it was him, somehow. But why would the Dark One be intent on Ali? He tried to tell himself it was just a dream. But the feelings of being surrounded and watched invaded his very being, and he felt naked and uncloaked even when he woke, despite being covered in furs and blankets. He found Mave dressed and up, putting the fire out wordlessly, urgency in her every move. 

He didn't need to be told twice. 

Within minutes they had their belongings packed and they both mounted their horses, trotting at first to get themselves acquainted to the saddle again after a short sleep and then sending themselves into a canter. The fog had not lifted, but the sun gave them some visibility to allow them to move, but almost as soon as they had begun riding, Ali felt far more vulnerable than he had within the camp. It must have been Mave's wards. 

"If we keep riding south, we should hit the River Beorn!" He told her, but Mave wasn't the first thing to answer him. A howl echoed in the distance, toward the east. Another one answered its call, and for a reason Ali couldn't fathom, he didn't expect they were normal wolves. The wolf of the mountains were bad enough. Whatever lurked in the Forest of Shadows was bound to be even worse. They trotted down a small drop, nearly causing Ali to fly off his horse. Mave held on to her mount like a born rider, though truthfully she was only marginally more skilled than Ali and the fact that she weighed less aided her. 

Suddenly, a shadow passed overhead. So noticable among the many shadows cast by the ancient trees that even Ali took note of it, though he wasn't to be cowed until Mave shouted at him to go faster. 

It was then Ali's skin prickled at a roar he heard from deeper within the woods. A primal fear rose up in him that even his Two River's stubborn resolve couldn't immediately quell. "Blood and Bloody Ashes, what is that!?" 

"I don't know! MOVE!" She yelled at him, their horses now spooked too. Every way past a tree only brought more trees in their path to mess up their sense of direction and slow them down. It was all Ali could do to keep Mave and her mount in sight. His heart pounded in his chest, but even through that he could hear the pounding of something massive behind him. It was as if every beast of his nightmares as a child was summoned forth, and one had him in its sights. 

A part of him wanted to leap off of his horse and face whatever was behind him. At least he'd die like someone in the stories. But something compelled him to keep going. Something called him forward, and just as he felt he was about to have his horse ripped out from under him, he felt a sudden calm. As if the world and all of its ails had halted for now. The roaring and padding of clawed feet had stopped somewhere behind him, and both he and Mave found themselves trotting into a small clearing, the woods behind them foreboding and the woods ahead welcoming. 

Mave looked bewildered and confused, something Ali wasn't used to seeing in the pretty woman. He couldn't exactly blame her, however. Something about this area of the forest was...different. 

"Where are we?" Ali asked, blinking. 

She spoke as if the words were pulled out of her from a knowledge she had been given from her past. "A stedding." 
[@Penny]