Martis Ch 1 Greystalker

Beginning of Fantasy novel

Martis

1
Graystalker

It was the Cat that convinced Martis.

He slid through the undergrowth silently peering into the undergrowth around him. He was looking for herbs and fungus which he could sell in in the city of Bramnol. The herbalists there would pay good coin for them. He was very good at it and often spent a week or more into the depths of the woodland. It provided him a comfortable living.
The forest was called the Forest of Mists because in its depths one could find areas of strange mists. Sometimes in areas as small as a few hundred yards and at times much larger. It was said that they were connections to Faery where the Fay lived in a land full of strange trees and creatures. The Fay had extremely long lives and were occupied with things much different from those in the normal world.
Martis had been deep into the forest for years. He discounted the stories because he had crossed mists of a few hundred yards without seeing anything but the normal forest he had seen all his life.
That afternoon he found an area with soft moss growing on the ground and the trunks of several trees...It had many useful mushrooms on the forest floor and fungus on the tree bark. He took many mushrooms and cut slices of several growths from the tree surface adding them to his bag of such things. The bluish Narest was especially good because it was very useful with the fevers and chills of many diseases. It would fetch him a good sum in in Bramnol.
It was growing in a place under the tree canopy that was shadowy. He made his camp on the soft moss on the south side of a large tree. He had a frugal supper of hardtack strips of cured meat. He did not light a fire as that always drew insects to trouble the traveler. He wrapped himself in his cloak and slept.
He woke abruptly in the morning. It was much lighter than it ought to be.
He rose and saw around him a clearing that had not been there the night before. The sky was an odd shade of blue. Around him there were rocks of a strange blue color shot with veins of red about the open area.
He stung his bow nocking an arrow and cautiously turned around. The trees around \the clearing had smooth trunks of a light brown, and their leaves were an odd bight green and in queer shapes.
Then as he completed his turn there was a large gray female cat sitting on a large stone. It looked like many kept by his folk that hunted the vermin that were after the grain and other products stored in their homes.
She was staring intently at him with her blue eyes. The cats he knew did not behave that way.
"I am Graystalker," said in a woman's voice that seemed to speak in his head. He looked around him. The cat cocked her head "Who are you?"
Martis stared back at the cat confused.
"i am Martis," he said glancing around for the speaker. He lowered his bow.
She rose from her haunches and hopped down from the stone and approached him.
She slowly circled him
I've never met a human here before." she went on. She stopped a few feet before him still looking up at him.
"Very interesting.
:"Are all your people like you?" she finished sitting again on her haunches peering up at him.
"More or less," he answered, "women are usually smaller. Our hair varies black, brown, blond or red." he finished
"Very few of your people have come here," she said stopping before him still staring up.at him
"There must be for a reason why you have come." she announced, looking him up and down. "\Why have you come here?"
"I have no idea. I just slept in the forest and woke here. I was not trying to come here."
She seemed to consider that. After a long minute she stretched and walked back to her perch on the rock.
"Come and lay a hand on the stone for a moment."
He paused for a long minute before approaching. the stone warily.
"Close your eyes for a moment," she said.
He reached out. the stone was oddly warm when he touched it.
When he opened his eyes the light around him had changed., His hand was the tree under which he had slept.
Graystalker was staring up at him from the ground before him.
"I think I will have to see why you came to Faery," she said "Such things do not happen without a reason."
"How did you do that?" he asked staring around him.
" I did not. You did yourself."
"Why did I go there?" he asked puzzled.
"As I said we need to find out." she answered.
She waked a few feet in front They walked toward the barony.
"How do you know which way to go?" he asked after many minutes.
"This way is south." she answered. "The forest's edge is closest this way."
"I don't understand."
I know which way is closest."
He mulled that over as he followed her.