Chleo Donmear's Story

" AAAHHHG! " roared Dennor, another infamous sell sword who was once well known for feats such as fending of whole groups of bandits who sought to rape and pillage small towns all over Etherea, some believed he could even see into the future because no matter what the circumstances he would always appear in a small town just in time to fight off numerous bandits as they launched assaults of their own. In some cases they would flee at the very sight of him. Drennor had become something of of legend, little did people know he was nothing but a greedy con man and they all played right into his money grubbing hands.

In reality Drennor was the leader of a massive group of bandits whom he would constantly use to feign attacks on numerous small town just so he can make an appearance to make it appear as though he fought them and then demand large pockets of gold in return for his services, as his name grew so did the prices he demanded for his services and people have remained for the most part non the wiser, up until recently that it. While most people remained ignorant of his clever ploy there was one town who's leaders were already suspicious of Drennor's miraculous foresight, when the day finally came that his bandits attacked their town they called him out on his so called heroic act and refused to pay him as well, big mistake. The next night after a disgruntled Drennor seemingly decided to move on the bandits returned in force to attack the town once more . However because they never actually truly attacked any of the towns they targeted , they were unprepared and ultimately defeated utterly and it provided them with exactly the evidence they needed because there had never been a single other time where bandit groups Drennor defeated returned to attack the same town. Had they not foolishly chosen to launch a second assault on the town then they might have all survived with their secret in tact, Drennor escaped the second attack with his life unlike his gang of bandits, word was quickly spread of his fraud and the Head Hunter was called.

It has taken just a little over two weeks for Chleo to track his prey, the first week was spent searching areas around the last town that was attacked for a trail to follow, the second week was spent tracking the man through a trail of small abandoned camps. Drennor clearly did not know how to cover his own tracks and it would be his undoing. It wasn't long before Chleo figured out the course Drennor was set on, he was fleeing in the direction of Etherea's capital for reasons that remained unclear to Chleo. This brings our story back to the night of the final confrontation, after between thirty and forty-five minutes of combat Drennor was drenched in sweat and his own blood that leaked from the many lacerations that covered his body while Chleo himself who was unscathed and had barely worked up a sweat. It was no wonder why he had to resort to such devious tactics to obtain gold, he may have been good at putting on the show of a skilled warrior but he wielded a broadsword like a child against a single skilled opponent, how he came to be the leader of the group of bandits were a mystery to Chleo.

"AAHHHG! " Drennor roared as he made another desperately useless attempt to bring his broadsword down on Chleo's skull, but Drennor's moves were lethargic and his blade easily knocked to the side by the flat of Chleo's short-sword, Chleo followed up by pivoting and spinning behind his enemy on his right foot nimbly. As Drennor stumbled forward and dropped his blade at last Chleo sliced in half the larger man's ACL and he immediately fell to his knees.

" It's amazing you managed to even stay conscious after loosing so much blood " Chleo said as he walked around to the front of the man, sheathing his short-sword and positioning himself to deliver the final blow, he realized then that the man was only barely conscious with his eyes already rolling up into his skull

" what you lack in skill you make up for in will power I'll give you that, but I'm afraid this is where your life ends. Rest well " he said.

Chleo forced magic to flow through his body and infuse with the muscles in his right arm to give himself the proper strength needed to cut through the bone of a fully grown human male with just a hand-axe. He could feel his muscles immediate responding, his right arm grew warmer, a bit larger and the veins were very prominent in that arm. He halted the flow when his body absorbed just enough magic, too much would destroy the muscles and his entire arm but he could tell exactly when to stop just through muscle memory alone. Chleo raised his black iron hand-axe high into the air for about thirty seconds before coming down quickly and precisely with an arching stroke that send the head itself twirling through the air, the arteries in the neck spurted blood over his head and the body fell limp in response, a clean kill.

When they first met face to face Chloe hadn't a shred of respect for the man and no intentions of collecting his head for a trophy but after witnessing the way Drennor stood his ground to fight a man he knew he stood no chance against, Chloe mind was starting to change. After pondering this for several more minutes he finally collected the head, grabbing it by the hair to dangle it face to face with him, kissing it on the forehead before raising it over his head to allow the blood to run down his throat until the steady flow dwindled. He then dropping it into a brown sac he always kept on his person. He set the head down near the fire he found Drennor resting at, unrolled a thick black cloth reminiscent of a tarp to rap his body in to rest before continuing on his next journey. He decided that when he woke it would be best to head to the capital of Etherea since he wound up so close to it while tracking Drennor, he was starting to think there was an important reason he was set on his path because it made no logical sense for a fugitive to be fleeing towards a capital in hopes of eluding capture.

He put the thought out of mind for the time being, with a full belly he closed his eyes and within seconds he was out like a light and sleeping like a baby.

He didn’t make it too far. As strong as his vocalized intent to survive was, it still served to further sap his energy and he only managed to make a few more unsteady steps. It was no wonder he was discovered not only easily but also quite near to the spot where he’d paused. His head was filled with noise, his vision clouded with blood. His own? His enemies’? He couldn’t discern too much right now. It took all his strength to stay in control, but at this point it seemed it would either be control of his body or control of his instincts. The latter, for certain reasons, took priority for now. Depending on when he would be discovered a number of things were possible – either those who find him would get to help a still-human wounded or they would become victims of his hunger that soon enough would become uncontrollable. There was also the possibility of one who would approach him chopping off his head just to be on the safe side. He made several futile attempts to continue moving but he wouldn’t be able to even crawl without assistance any longer. The ache in his entire body continued and it made him let out pained grunts at somewhat uneven intervals, more frequently following any additional exertions.

Weakened as his powers of perception were, a sudden squeak of fear from someone very close followed by a remark he couldn’t make out didn’t go unnoticed and alerted him to a new presence quite close to him. The voices echoed and rang in his skull, rendering the speech incoherent and discomforting as was the inability to see those speaking next to him and likely about him. That is why the first thing he did was to turn his head slightly to the side. It certainly shifted his field of vision in a manner that would help see the ones whose voices resonated in his pulsing skull. But following his meek attempt at motion someone rolled him over. Then he felt something cool and moist against the skin of his face. It must’ve been wet cloth of some kind.

The fabric would become covered in blood quite soon, but it helped open his eyes and, to an extent, was rejuvenating. Water was not the liquid he dedsired right now, but it tipped the scales somewhat more towards staying awake and in relative control. Despite its likely sorry state after being used to wipe away the gore staining his face, the cloth did at least help in terms of revealing the features of the bloodied man. As the upper layers of blood were wiped off the noble features of the young man became slightly easier to observe, still stained and amply covered in smears of dried blood. Whatever wounds he had were not on his head or his face apparently, whether due to the fact that they weren’t present, or due to his regeneration having already patched up those particular wounds unbeknownst to those currently examining him. Thanks to the minimal care provided to him he at least managed to open both eyes now. His vision was still slightly blurry.

“Wh… ere… Where… This… We… Where is… this…?” He muttered weakly. The one tending to him presently spoke in a lower tone that was merciful on his aching head.

“I'm sorry lad but you're gonna have to walk some more. I'll try and help yee as much as I can but please bear with me.”

At this distance he could even make out the words, even though most of what he got were the key directions. “Walk more. Try and help”. He made another weak sound. Nothing like speech and in fact the way it came out he wasn’t sure if it was going to be a sign of agreement or on the contrary an attempt at protest. Regardless he was in no position to do anything but comply and so, at a sluggish pace yet definitely a better one than he would be able to muster on his own they began moving. There seemed to be two of them, though only one was carrying him. The short stature of the one supporting the weight of the armored young man made it a bit uncomfortable to move, but the young man earnestly made attempts to step ahead on his own, though more often than once ending up stumbling. He would’ve fallen to the ground beyond a doubt was it not for the one he was slowly managing to identify as a dwarf.

“Where… are we g… oing?” Another question was uttered slowly.

At the very least the sun wasn’t sapping at his strength further. Was nightfall approaching? It could put the ones helping him in danger. Their progress was slow and though the young man couldn’t track it well he too felt the ordeal stretch in time. Along with the potential danger came a slight relief. He could feel his senses sharpening somewhat. Though his mind was far from the clarity it would normally possess, it was as though certain sensations pierced through the faint crimson veil hanging over his vision and the noise lingering in his ears. And then he felt something… Blood, but not on him. And a presence which was steeped in the familiar, desired, but, at the moment, alarming fragrance.

“Killer… nearby…” He only managed to mutter around the time they’d reached the edge of the forest.

Brildar heaved the young, bloodied man through the forest step by step. He followed his guide through shrubbery and endless trees. The man he was hauling moaned and groaned each step they took. Pev continued to leave him the dust and then wait for him to catch up, which took even longer because of wounded man. Brildar was starting to tire and walked even slower. His stomach rumbled and he took note of the setting sun. How he could even see the sun through all the leaves and greenery is a mystery. It would be dark soon and they needed to get out of the forest. No telling what could sneak up on them in this dark and foreign place.

It's almost dinner time, I hope we get there soon. He thought to himself.

The weight on his shoulder from the man in armor was starting to make him sore. He watched Pev's tiny, black head bob up in down in front of him. She hoped over branches. Every once in a while she would glance back. Probably to make sure that their new addition hadn't magically cured and eaten Brildar. She seemed scared of him like she knew something he didn't. He tore his thoughts away from that and instead tried to focus all of his strength into carrying the man. He was getting heavy, probably from the set of armor he was wearing. He tried to talk but Brildar couldn't understand him, instead interjected.

"Don't talk lad! Use all yee strength to get out of these damn woods. I can't undurstand yee anyways."

Pev glanced back at them to see what the fuss was all about. After seeing that there was nothing major, she shrugged it off and continued to lead them out of the darkening forest. It was getting dark enough that Brildar could no longer see the trees in the distance without concentrating. He was used to being in the dark but this was different from being underground. There were so many objects and shapes around him that he was unfamiliar with which made him uneasy. The sound of the animals around him plus the man's heavy breathing and constant groaning did not make things any better.

The woods seemed to be getting less dense as far as Brildar could tell. Though he wasn't the expert on trees. He was about to ask Pev how far away the end was but instead the man on his shoulder spoke up. “Killer… nearby…” Those were the only words that Brildar could understand that had come out of the man's mouth since they had found him.

"Did you hear that Pev? Can you sense anyone nearby?" He said in a worried tone.

He could fend for himself but he worried for his new nymph friend and the injured man. His thoughts quickly stopped when the sound of a large explosion rang through the forest. Brildar was an expert on all explosives.

That was a whole hell of a lot of dynamite and not too far away. He thought while holding the man and looking at Pev.

The poor girl had screamed and was now cowering in fear from the loud noise. She had experienced so many new things and this just topped of her night. The man on his arm also flinched at the loud explosion. Brildar assumed that that was the person the man was talking about. Whoever had made such explosion was near and they would probably come in contact with said person.

The day had started off promising, a mere interluded through her forest, a hairy man-beast for a companion, and a simple trot through the woods to bring him to the city. Yet ever since they found the bloodied and battered creature, her experiences had gone from uncomfortable to downright terrible. It was getting dark, besides, and she suspected they had less than an hour to get to the city. She would be safe in her forest, of course, night or day presented no issue to her. But at night, Mother would instantly tune in on the intruders and send... Pnév̱ma shivered, best not to think about that.

The man-beast made to move forwards with the creature in the direction she gestured in when the bloodied abomination spoke, sounding gurgled and not very pleasant. "Killer.... nearby..." The hair (literally) stood up at the ends, curling a bit as she tensed up. Killer? Nearby? Just what in Gaia's dear name had she gotten herself involved in? She should've listened, she shouldn't have gotten involved, this was all just too strange! Her hairy companion frowned a bit as he regarded her.

"Did you hear that, Pev? Can you sense anyone nearby?" The girl peered at him from underneath lowered lashes and was about to answer when a very loud and disturbing noise pierced the air. She didn't know what it was or what it could possibly signify but all she knew for sure was that it scared her. She screamed again and scampered to a nearby tree for comfort. The instant her small body touched the trunk, the whispers of it filled her ears. Though normally she would find this a relaxing sound, the hushed voices that pressed against her ears were strained and not at all content. It was clear to the forest that the nymph was less than happy with her surroundings.

"What is wrong? Are you frightened? Did he do that to you?" She shook her head furiously, hair now tossed even more wildly around than it had.

"No no no... it is not the hairy man-beast... it's something else..." She muttered against the tree, hesitantly turning her golden eyes back upon the scene. Unlike her other companions, who were not nearly equipped to handle her woods in the fading light, she had long since grown used to the dim setting. Though she had been scared by the loud noise, annoyance was starting to bubble in her chest. She did not mind the man-beast; he was friendly, he made her laugh because he was silly and reminded her of something like her Mother. But the others had all waltzed in here uninvited and it was grating on her nerves. So what if the creature was wounded? Couldn't he have curled up and died somewhere else and not sully her earth? And now this thing? She was smart enough to deduce that no one creature could've caused the noise and compounded by the presence she felt shifting through her woods, she was right to assume so. And Pnév̱ma had had enough.

She was tired of all these willy nilly interruptions in her day and displeased by all these hitches in the journey that was supposed to go so smoothly! She hissed lowly under her breath and stopped leaning against the tree. Her eyes were not as honey-golden as usual and she narrowed them very carefully as she focused on the intruding presence. It was not far and by it's uneven footsteps, also suffering from the wounded ailment. And approximately not 15 meters from where they were standing. Her tone came out harsher as she focused on the spiritual energy of her forest, directing that essence at the moving figure.

"Si̱ko̱theíte, i̱ gi̱ mou, pagída af̱tó to thi̱río." The vines and roots lying exposed on the forest floor instantly heeded her words, coming to life and snaking through the forest after the presence. It took a mere few seconds before she heard adjoining yell and a smile of satisfaction fell upon her lips. She turned back to the man-beast and their not-so-pleasant travel creature, the former of which looking thoroughly confused. She blinked at him and crossed her arms over her chest.

"I didn't do anything bad, I just told my forest to snare him, that's all. That's how I catch runaway animals; you snag them around the arms and legs so they cannot escape!" She said it lightly though she was still rather annoyed underneath the smile. Whatever this thing was that thought it could come through her forest? She'd had enough of all this nonsense. At this point, she'd drag all this weight to the city herself (with the assistance of her plants, of course) just be rid of it. In fact, that was a marvelous idea! She didn't wait for her companion as she darted ahead, eager to incite her plan. They were right at the edge after all and she could fully justify this to Mother later.

"Come come, I'll still have you to the city!" She called over her shoulder, snapping her fingers to signal to her plants to drag the whatever-it-was out of the forest with them. Yes, this was a much better solution, shame she hadn't thought of it when they first found the creature. It would've saved her a lot of problems. She was already waiting at the outskirts of the path to the city before her hairy companion caught up with her, the nymph settling her hair around herself. There was some odd thing between the dusty, dirt path and what she had to assume was the city. It ran over the river but hovered in place. How was it kept like that...? She decided to stay put until her new friend got here, he'd know what to do. He came from the outside after all. So busy was she of thinking of this strange structure and what she had caught in her plants that she did not pay attention to her surroundings near the city, too lost in her own thoughts.

"Come back here ya thieving bastard!" It looked like the man was attempting to yell, but it sounded like a pathetic cough, audible only to West. His lone pursuer loosed another arrow as West continued his flight toward the edge of the forest. The quarrel struck a tree far to his left, considerably off target. But you had to give him credit, considering that he had been almost blown up and was sprinting. West looked up slightly as he mantled a fallen tree. The branches were low enough for him to grab. He looked behind him as he landed, his pursuer was panting, tired, and barely able to look straight. The sun was coming up. The man may see him. Would he risk it? Hell, what else could go wrong?

He made a sudden sharp turn, leaning close to the ground all the while. He felt the rough surface of a small rock in the bowl of his fingers. Taking hold of the rock in one hand, he leaped, grabbed a low branch with his other and flipped himself. He felt slight vertigo as he watched the leaves of the ground become the sky. He landed on a higher branch, hitting it with the balls of his feet. Feeling the jarring landing, he teetered, windmilling his arms, albeit in a bent-arm fashion. He flinched, his shoulder flaring out in a burst of pain. He quickly steadied himself, holding himself in a squat. He took in a breath. That actually worked. I might try that out later. Leaves crunched. The pursuer stumbled, almost tripping, under West's perch. West aimed the rock at a tree in the direction he was originally running.

The pursuer did a few 180s, looking for West, before the rock impacted the tree with a discernible thunk. "I hear ye!" The scruffy man took off again. West relaxed. He had him off his tail. Now I have to find a way to stop him. Make it easier for the authorities to find him, they'll find him out as a bandit. He readied his knife. He had made throws with it before, to cut out-of-reach ropes and the like, but never a handle strike. His former pursuer gained slightly more distance. He gripped the blade, aiming for the neck area. Before he was even able to draw back, multiple vines and brush, captured the man, and started dragging him away, to West's right. His face betrayed no emotion, but West stared as the man was dragged through the underbrush, cursing and protesting all the while.

"Unhand me! What devilry be this!" West almost laughed at the comment.

It occurred to West that he should probably drop down and meet the person who caused this. Hiding was a good option also, but he'd seem more believable to the local military commanders if he was a witness, and not the actual captor. And the less likely he was involved in any of this. He doubted that anyone at the actual capitol heard the explosion, but at least one of the surrounding patrols must have. A investigation or scout party was near guaranteed. He dropped down deftly, and started walking. He wiped some dust of his face, most of it came off during the chase, but he still felt a bit grimy.

He reached the clearing, and instantly his countenance changed. He appeared a bit more nervous and uncertain, but still kept his shoulders high. "Hello?" He called out to a small party a ways off. His voice was slightly higher, and more refined than his usual voice. "This man was dashing after me, I'm not sure of his motives, but he was. I hid myself, and I observed the undergrowth retain him. Who did this?" He hated doing this one, but it was the only that came to mind at the moment.

Though the encounter with those willing to assist him to such an extent as well as the lack of burning sunlight over them for the moment were truly blessings, they were only delaying the inevitable. His thirst had to be quenched and his powers of perception decreasing and increasing in unsteady pulses were signs of an approaching disaster to anything that would be near him when he falls into a state of frenzy. A hungry vampire’s body is able to mobilize its last resources to wrestle down just about any prey and feed, or else – to die trying. But of course fine moments such as discerning one’s prey and lingering sentiments towards those in the vicinity tend to fade out of the picture when that happens. Lysard knew that and nearer to the end of their stride he was already muttering weak requests for the dwarf to put him down and run…

While his requests were unheard, in fact, perhaps he was only uttering them in his mind, only weak groans and pained breaths escaping his throat in merciless reality, he did find a moment when he was released. Tired of carrying around the armored youth, the dwarf had paused at the clearing just a little bit before the explosion and put him down. When it did resound, it provided quite the sufficient distraction. The nymph was doing something ahead of them. He didn’t have time to make out what exactly it was, nor did it matter. Lifting himself weakly to his feet, he allowed his inner beast a very slight respite from his normally uncompromising self-control. His body was practically propelled against all injury and all odds away from the clearing without giving a chance for anyone to stop him. He didn’t move in the direction of the killer he’d felt – instead hoping for easier prey. He wouldn’t even make an encounter with the one who moved into the clearing afterwards. His senses were giving out. While at first he used the bare instinct to give himself a boost, moving out of range of his rescuers’ sight and hearing, soon enough it turned against him and enveloped his consciousness entirely. The man known as Lysard faded out of existence for a while. And his body, wild and hungering went on a hunt determined for his kind by nature.

Though the young nymph wouldn’t have any knowledge of it, she had entangled a suitable quarry for him. Not all vampires in the wild would be able to count on such luck as an already immobilized victim. Thus her ignorance became his bliss. The bandit tied by the forest’s roots was shouting something, asking who the hell he was, probably cursing or maybe begging for mercy. He… or perhaps at this point already “it” didn’t care. The man in front of him was prey, fresh and incapable of resisting. It grasped the man’s hair firmly with an armored gauntlet and pulled his head aside, exposing his neck. The man’s eyes shifted frantically to the side at the blood-stained face of the young armored man who quickly drew closer and bit firmly into the exposed skin of the human. A vampire’s bite was truly a strange thing – the toxin made the experience a mixture of pain and pleasure to the victim, even though the ensuing stages of corruption were a lot more decidedly unpleasant. Lysard however was not one to let it go that far… With every gulp of warm blood, with every drop of crimson trickling down his throat, his senses were returning. Delirious at first, determined to finish feeding later. He had to suck this body dry or else the toxin would bring forth a new vampire in a few days…

The man he left dangling from the roots the nymph had called forth was little more than a dried husk, drained entirely. Lysard looked at the man with a somewhat pained expression. He wasn’t proud of the deed, even if he managed to get himself to feast on someone he wasn’t indebted to. Hard as it was, he worked to release the man from the roots and laid him down at the bottom of one of the trees, closing his glazed over eyes and folding his hands over his chest.

"Rest in peace…"

He uttered simply before standing up. While he busied himself with this, he could feel his body utilizing the newly gained nourishment. His wounds were pulling closed, even his throat wasn’t burning anymore from the prior shout and from having been dry all this time. It was quite literally as though the life of the unfortunate man was now added to his… That was how it was for vampires. Lysard looked himself over – while he certainly felt nearly fully restored to proper health, he still looked like he’s been through hell and back. Most likely he would need to find accommodation. Get cleaned up, tend to his equipment… He cursed under his breath. There was nothing he could do other than get to the city. But he wouldn’t return to those who had rescued him – he would have to do it on his own now. And so, now rejuvenated and in full control once again, he began moving far more steadily towards another exit from the forest and the city that was beyond it…

Pnév̱ma had been teetering on her heels back and forth, staring at the strange structure over the river with wide, golden eyes. Though she couldn't quite figure out how, the structure stayed up even as other creatures on two legs and larger beasts that snorted walked upon it. The beasts were tied with brown vines but did not seem to mind being wound up and pulled square boxes that were on top of circular blocks. She narrowed her eyes at the odd sight and shrugged. There were strange things outside her forest, that was to be sure. The girl turned back to the hairy man-beast, who had set the odd creature down on the ground. Did her companion tire easily...? Perhaps that was why he set the offensive thing upon the ground. She swept her long locks around her body, tugging her hair closer to her form as she stuck out her bottom lip.

Ohhh, so close and so far. How on earth were they supposed to get across that infernal structure? The nymph was distracted from her inner turmoil as a soft male voice called to them, sounding unsure and hesitant. In a moment, her shoulders shot up to her ears, small body tensing. "Hello? This man was dashing after me, I'm not sure of his motives, but he was. I hid myself, and I observed the undergrowth retain him. Who did this?" Who did what...? What was he even talking about? She didn't know but she had definitely heard all she needed to hear.

Hid himself? In her forest? In undergrowth? How dare he lay with her plants in such an intimate manner and think he was worthy of their presence? Her hair settled over the left side of her face as she glared at the other man in full, unamused and disgruntled. She decided she did not like him, with his silly display of nervousness and his unassuming walk and oh-so-arrogant nature to think her forest enjoyed his presence. She gauged him from the tips of his unruly hair to the strange garments on his feet. Yes, he even smelled like an invader of sorts. She made her dislike very clear upon her face as she swept her hair around, given it's length, it was able to hit the sides of his cheeks in a rendition of a slap.

"Back, back heathen." She stated, thinking of the thing's name on the spot. "I don't know what you're pla--" A loud, resounding noise suddenly filled the air, effectively cutting off the girl's words. Her eyes were immediately brought away from the imposing figure and towards the city, catching sight of an odd sight of mist beginning to settle on the ground. Immediately, the trees behind her began to whisper in panicked voices, all shouting at once and filling her head. Her petite hands shot up to the sides of her head as she squeezed her eyes shut against all the noise rushing inside of her mind. It was impossible to make out any of the voices clearly for long as they all spoke at once; she was only able to catch snatches of what was said. But one such voice caught her attentions for it resounded the strongest in her mind, desperate, frightened, terrified.

'We must return to Mother...!' Her eyes shot open as she quickly turned to her new companions. She barely took notice of the missing man, more focused on her new friend. The forest wouldn't protect him, no, it would only protect her. She could care less about the heathen as well but she was always loyal to those kind to her! She went to outreach on of her arms towards him when a terrible roar vibrated through the air, vibrating through her tiny body. The girl was paralyzed, unable to turn, but she heard what sounded to be a singular flap of giant wings. The force of the movement created something resembling a sonic boom and she tried to will herself, urge herself to move her feet, to move forwards to try and say something--anything!

The ground shook beneath her feet violently and the nymph was too delicate of form to be able to hold her footing and was knocked backwards, tumbling several meters down the path as the earth continued to quiver. She managed to sputter out a few words, the jolt of her small form enough to snap her back into some functioning state. "Éla se ména, ampélia mou!" She cried, the vines and roots from the earth digging up from between the path and rising upwards. The walls of the city were already beginning to be chiseled away to nothing and debris was flying everywhere. The rocks were very large in size and despite her not caring of the others, she supposed the man-beast would be disappointed in her if she did not shield them all. She directed her plants upwards, the tendrils of earth wrapping around each other strongly to form a barrier of sorts around the group.

The strange sensation from whatever was causing this made her feel ill, her spiritual link already making her feel light-headed--which was a new sensation for her. She had no time to ponder it as the effort it took to create this barrier in this creature's presence was sapping her energy. Her vision began to tinge with black and the nymph fainted just as she finished making the barrier, collapsing on the very edges of the bridge.