A Force of Nature

[Quinnred]

That could be difficult to use, Neahs thought. But, despite the variables, any chance he had to complete his objective should be investigated.

"Hrn, trah. Eerhaks we shudah undahstand each uthers skeils tah hetter stratahgize." (Hmm, true. Perhaps we should understand each other's skills to better strategize.)

Neahs crooked his head to listen more carefully to the elf.

[Lord_Fartknuckle]

Torrence nodded. "As you can probably tell from my attire and the copious amounts of hand waving, I am no warrior. I have no interest in that sort of thing. I'm a mage; a healer to be exact." he puffed out with a small bit of pride. " My father taught me. I'm an elemental elf on my mother's side so I have some knowledge in that. She also taught me something of illusion though I never took to it as she did."

[Quinnred]

"Ai, I hak a skill in healing as whalah, thah anly athahs ak ny kind." (Ai, I have a skill in healing as well, though only others of my kind.)

Neahs tilted his head down, recalling that he hadnt encountered another Chennlak for quite some time now.
He shook his head, trying to keep focus.

"Ut ny Rhymary skills are ny an gody. I ang a trained Shayahton, hist, hoot, and head are wekon, as whalah as watah najik." (But my primary skills are my own body. I am a trained Shayahton (Paladin), fist, foot, and head are weapon, as well as water magic.)

[Lord_Fartknuckle]

"Okay, that sounds useful enough." Torrence stopped suddenly. He looked up, examining the forest around him. The greenery was thick, unusually so for a forest in this area. His parents had often told him of stories of far away forests so big and lush that the trees seemed like a hoard of creatures frozen in place as they pushed and smothered each other to reach for the sky. The farther in you got, the thicker the forest became. Eventually most travelers would come up against something they couldn't clear and would turn back or no never be heard from again.

"Neahs." Torrence said, turning to his new ally. "When we first met you fell from a tree. You climbed up there, correct?"

Without letting him answer, the elf looked up again and pointed to the canopy. " I would like you to go up there, look for anything of interest and report back."

[Quinnred]

Neahs looked up and gave a few more curious twitches of his head, studying the branches. They looked strong enough.

"Ai, as yah wiesh Elth." (Ai, as you wish elf.)

Neahs jumped to a tree, hugging it with his strong limbs, and bounded to the next. He grappled from branch to branch, and snaked his way to the tree tops.

[Lord_Fartknuckle]

Torrence watched as Neahs ascended until he faded into the canopy. Torrence waited till he was certain that enough time had passed for the creature to properly observed the area.

"Neahs! Do you see anything?"

[Quinnred]

Neahs stood on the very sky scraping top of the canopy, observing the area like an alert meerkat. He twisted and turned his head, scanning the area.
To his left, a mile away, Neahs could see a large group of hunters in a man made clearing, obviously preparing traps and setting camp. The sight of this twisted his guts, reminding him of why he left his homeland.

To the right, a gathering of crows had formed, surrounding something unseen. Perhaps a corpse to feed on, or a simple get together of sorts.

The path forward was a mangle of trees curling around each other like vines, the mangle growing thicker further in until an odd spire could be seen towering out. A mountain made entirely of plant life, nesting unknown within.

Neahs relayed this information to Torrence.

[Lord_Fartknuckle]

The young elf cupped his chin in his hand, and peered through the thick canopy, seeing specks of a golden setting sun. A murder of crows could mean anything; a dead animal would get them anywhere. But Torrence wasn't so certain. He kept trying to think of things that related back to the magic forest. It could be the fawn, it could be their only chance. Torrence also knew the hunting party was a complete certainty, however.

"Head for the camp." The elf called. He paused as he thought, then interjected "Oh,and stay in the trees."

[Quinnred]

"Ai!"

Neahs clambered forth through the thick branches, pondering how these hunters will be dealt with.

[Lord_Fartknuckle]

Torrence heard the rustling of leaves as his companion went off. With a confident smile, he headed off after him.

The trek had them going downhill and through thick clumps of greenery, which only Torrence had the pleasure of experiencing. Even with the forest so dense, he could tell the light was fading. In the low light the elf almost missed a small clump of light green bushes which drew an immediate feeling of familiarity within him. Upon closer inspection he knew almost immediately what it was. The white berries gave it away. An idea quickly came to him. He took off his cloak, placed it on the ground and began to pick the berries. More than three dozen were placed his cloak before he decided he had enough. He folded the cloth into an impromptu back and slung it over his shoulder. Torrence chuckled, then went back to walking towards the camp.

An quarter hour of walking later and he could see the light of a fire flickering between the trees and the distinct chorus coinciding merrymaking permeated the air . He looked around the area, finding an impressive number of men wandering around the area outside of the camp, although by the way they were stumbling around, Torrence wasn't certain they were fit for any sort of wandering.

The elf's musings were cut short when he found someone was approaching.

"State your business!" the man yelled, slurring some of his words.

"Good afternoon, sir." Torrence cheerily replied. "I've come bringing important news as someone of my rank often does."

The man squinted, leaning heavily towards Torrence. "Rank?"

The elf straightened his posture and set his head back. "Delyle Sweetstuff, adviser to the mayor of Pickwood, at your service."

The drunk scratched his while continuing to squint. "Huh. I suppose you'll be wanting to talk to Darrin then."

Torrence gave an easy smile, recognizing the name. "Who"? he asked.

"Our leader of a sort." The man looked back towards the camp. " No one's supposed to be in charge. It's an adventure, right? Friends and equals; all that. Doesn't really work that way in practice though. He's got all the good ideas you know."

"Well, I guess I'll be meeting with him then won't I"?

"Right then, come with me."

The drunk proceeded to walk to the camp with Torrence in tow.

[Quinnred]

Neahs watched from his perch, eavesdropping on Torrence's predicament. Due to his natural misunderstanding of lying, he pondered why Torrence would advise the hunt but also attempt to stop the hunters entirely? Also, that name sounded strange for an elf, but then again all these foreign titles seemed odd to him.

[Lord_Fartknuckle]

The camp was wild. As soon as Torrence entered he could feel the energy in the air. There were men everywhere, all with drastically different cloths and complexions, from dark skinned men in loose, colourful clothing, to pale ones in slim-fitting duller ones . They either danced or drank around a large, barely controlled fire, not on the ground, but on brilliant rugs with intricate patterns. Others sat further off from the bright flame, loudly talking and laughing well passing around a strange, hollow object made out of glass and reinforced by steel which would billow out smoke when one put their lips to it. Three large tents made up the perimeter of the camp.

The man led Torrence to the middle one, a crimson double belled wedge tent rimmed with gold. He opened the tent flaps and gestured for Torrence to go in ahead of him. No sooner did he see the inside of the tent than his mouth had dropped. It was like entering an entirely different word; as if they were no longer out in some unimportant forest, but in the castle of a lord. A fire burned brightly on a saucer hanging by chains above them, allowing Torrence to see the colourful rugs hiding the grass and a well-polished table in the middle of it all. The table was laden with food, bottles and glasses to drink from. At the other end was a man slumped in a chair on the other side.

His green eyes brightened amidst the subtle wrinkles of his face as he looked away from the various foods, (which he'd shown little interest in according to the scarce bite marks among their number) and a white smile grew from his black beard. The blue silk vest on his chest rose as he began to convulse then rolled naturally into deep and boisterous laughter. He practically jumped out of his chair, stalking towards Torrence.

"Matthews! Taking a break from guard duty, eh?" he said cheerfully, clasping a hand comfortably on his shoulder. Not so comfortably with Torrence however who gently brushed his hand away.

"Well!" The man exclaimed, turning his attention towards the elf. "Who might you be?"

Before Torrence could answer, Matthews spoke up. "He's Lyle Seasurf, adviser to the king." He looked down to his escort. "That right"?

Torrence didn't answer immediately, needing to take a moment to come to terms with a drunken man coming up with a better fake name than he could. He finally managed a curt, "Yes, that's it".

"Right, well I'll be off to get a drink." Matthews declared before stumbling out of the tent.

After he left Darrin began to chuckle once more. "So, Lyle, I hope you'll at least grace me with some truth"

Torrence managed a sheepish smile. "I'll have you know he managed that blunder all on his own."

"As intoxicated men often do." Darrin nodded, then turned around to into the back of the tent.

Moving past the table and turning the chair under it to face him, he kept talking. "It wouldn't matter even if you had. Me and my friends aren't worried about peoples pasts, what they do now in our company is what defines them. Take a seat if you like."

Torrence had no qualms with sitting, but Darrin's warmth made it impossible to even consider. " I'm called Torrence. I was recently hired on as an adviser to the mayor. He's been under much pressure after declaring the hunt."

The lead hunter moved around the rest of the tent, pacing by a bedroll, a cupboard and then settling on a large mirror. " Ah, the pale fawn. There's nothing quite so attractive to traveling folk than the rumors a mysterious creature; aside from ale and shelter close at hand. Honestly, I don't understand why they want the deer gone. Even the growing forest allows them more wood."

Excitement hit Torrence as began to think dissuading the band of men would be easier then he'd believed. "Fine points. In fact, some of those arguments are what dissuaded him from this course of action. The hunt has been called off."

Darrin acknowledged the news with a nonchalant hum, all the while looking intently into his mirror. "Fickle lot aren't they? Ah well, none of us really needed the reward anyway."

"So you'll be leaving then?"

Darrin laughed. " Of course not! There's more to us coming here than just money. It's the intrigue of it. Exploring the land all over for the curiosities and mysteries of the world. And not just that! For the sake of accomplishment as well. To conquer what others fear to set out and do brings the clearest sense of direction I've ever felt. I aspire to be the one who slays the fawn so that I may look back on my life when I am old and withered and say, ;'My life is full. All it needs is an end.'."

The man turned from his mirror and looked to Torrence, beaming with excitement. That look had made Torrence's throat tighten. Somehow he found him worse than the other hunters he'd encountered, even though his ends were identical to theirs.

" You would kill just because you could."

Seemingly sensing the tone in Torrence's voice, Darrin replied slowly. "No. I could have killed many more than I have if I had chosen to. I kill when it halts my death and when it proves necessary."

"So the baby deer's threatening you then?" Torrence demanded, rising from his seat. " Is that what it is? Oh, I know! It's necessary to murder the thing so you can say you did it. Fantastic! Honestly, you're trying to pass off killing a creature that's done you no wrong as romantic!" Torrence ended his rant and found himself bent forward, having taken a few steps towards Darrin.

Darrin stared at the mage hard for a moment. His eyes bore down into Torrence's nerve and he began to think. The elf realized in that moment that he'd lost control and made a mistake. He wasn't arguing with a scholar or a friend. He was insulting the enemy leader in the middle of his camp.

Finally, Darrin broke the silence. "You're a young one, aren't you, Torrence?"

Torrence blinked. "What?"

Suddenly, violently crackling and groaning came from every which way. Torrence instinctively ducked and frantically looked towards the tent opening. The shouting of men could be heard outside; so many that they melded into one sound amongst the more powerful crackling. Torrence's eyes focused on the tent flap, something slowly pushing through on the other side. Without warning it shot through, green and huge. It hit the table and swung it to it's side, then began to push it towards the elf. Torrence placed his arms in front of him, catching the table. He almost fell back immediately, then pushing back became easier. When he looked beside himself he realized it was because Darrin had joined him.

Darrin had his face scrunched up from the stress of holding whatever it was behind the table. He nodded to Torrence, and Torrence, who almost instantly understood what the hunter wanted nodded back. They pushed at the same time. The elf felt no movement from the table other than the force against them pushing back. The thing groaned and a moment later Torrence felt something wriggling on his shoulder. He looked to see thin and vein like appendages slowly moving across his tunic. Green leaves sprouted from it and even more were budding on the new branches being formed.

The forest was growing once again.

[Quinnred]

Neahs was almost asleep on his perch, until the trees began to writhe and grow. One branch curled around his foot as other began a desperate climb to the rest of him. Neahs gave a strong tug, breaking the sprouting branch, and began his escape from the tree.

He hopped to the next tree and the one after that, but all were aggressive wriggling with an almost predatory growth. The only option was the one Neahs hoped to avoid, the ground, abundant with panicking, therefore very dangerous, hunters. He gracefully glided and swerved amongst the twisting mass of vegetation and landed at the now shrinking edges of the camp.

Now he had to find Torrence, amongst a crowd of hunters, and a viciously advancing forest. "Huk." (fuck)

[Lord_Fartknuckle]

The table began to crack as the tree pushed forward, gnarled branches slowly spilling over the sides. Torrence pushed as hard as he could, but he could tell the whole exercise was futile.

"Move!" someone screamed.

Without thinking, Torrence jumped to the right and the table, propelled by the twisted tree, came forward. It slammed into his waist, turning him wildly as he jumped out of the path of the tree. He hit the carpet rolling, landing hard on his stomach. He laid there, flat to the ground for a moment, then tried to get up. He shifted up onto his hands and knees then tried to push himself up from there. He pushed up, but found his legs weren't listening. A clear picture of branches swarming over him entered his mind.

Torrence felt the cloth around his neck constrict and he was yanked upward. His legs straightened as he rose until finally supporting him again. He looked over his shoulder to see Darrin still holding him by the back of his collar.

"Follow me." He said before dragging Torrence forward to the closest side of the tent.

Darrin unsheathed his sword; an ornate weapon, glowing an unnatural yellow. With one hand, he deftly and succinctly sliced through the red cloth from a height just above his head to an inch above his feet. The pair stepped through the tare to find the camp in chaos.

Men were either being caught in mess of roots and branches or frantically trying to free those who were by either the sword or the axe. Before Torrence could even speak, Darrin had left his side and began to shout at the unoccupied men closest to group up with him. As they stopped to listen he started pointing to areas where nothing stood between the encroaching trees. When all of the small group had been spread around the shrinking area belonging to the camp there were still large gaps between them were they had to frantically run back and forth in a losing battle to slow down their growth.

Darrin turned to Torrence and shouted. "I'll be freeing up some of my friends. Help them however you can, boy!". Then the man ran off to one of the people tangled in the trees.

Torrence looked around frantically. So much was happening at once. Everyone except Darrin was panicking and he feared he wasn't any better. What could he do to stop this? It was all just too much.

[Quinnred]

Neahs observed the chaos, trying to carefully and quickly find Torrence and get the elf and himself out of the situation. He noticed a man with a oddly incandescent sword assisting his allies, many of whom being suffocated by the grip of the branches. He could help them, but he knew how easily they could turn on him with eager blades.

"Ah!", then he spotted Torrence.
Neahs crouched with one foot stretching back and the other crunched forward. His long arms curled to his sides like a bird it's wings. His head steadied and lowered just below his shoulders.
Then with a flash of blue lining his glowing stripes he rushed forward, tearing the ground beneath his feet.

He only left a strong gust of wind at his back as he sprinted ahead, dodging and weaving pass the horrified hunters.
Neahs stretched out his arms at his sides and prepared to grab and rescue Torrence from this mess.