Weywyn/Voluspa

[MissMilkMaid]

Off the Southwestern Coast of Voluspa

It wasn’t a large ship. The little galley had a dozen ores, two decks and just enough space for the crew of 24 chimera and their supplies. A single sail flapped over the deck amid rigging and a black and silver banner displaying a rose with a thorny stem. The name painted on the stern was, Farroe.

They’d left Thorwyn and spent about a week sailing close to the shore, around the rim of a large bay east of Weywyn. During that time the weather had been surprisingly accommodating and progress had gone smoothly, despite a few instances of bickering or back talk among the crew. Then, about two days ago, they’d left the bay behind and with it the fair weather and smooth waters. Cold, choppy surfs crashed against stony cliffs and shorelines, where large coniferous trees loomed like angry sentinels shaking their fists at a cantankerous sea god. A drizzle of fog and sleet had descended upon the ship, seeping into everything and everyone, chilling them to the bones. Small seeds of ill will that had mostly remained dormant during the good sailing grew, spreading out roots of deep resentment and canopies of bad temper and bluster.

The rocky cliffs and strong surf provided no safe place to throw anchor for the sake of rest and resupplying and by the time night fell on the second day, supplies were low and tempers were all but completely lost.

Leading the exploration was Captain Marius Blackeye, a chimera who had been unexpectedly promoted to the position for the sake of this mission for no obvious reason the that the rest of the party could determine. He didn’t have any of the usually traits of a chimera leader, not being ambitious, especially strong or charismatic. In fact, he had a defiant lack of boldness, barely ever speaking more than a sentence at a time and showing little emotion or empathy with anyone he spoke to. Also, unlike most Chimera he had no especially defining or powerful feature. Marius had no horns, claws, scales or other animal features to define him, or give him an edge in combat. It was true that he had six fingers on his right hand, was nearly seven and a half feet tall, had grayish skin, long course hair that grew in three different colors braided over his shoulder and one eye that was a vivid emerald and another eye so black it was impossible to tell the iris from the pupil, but these oddities were nothing compared to the physical combinations of humanoid and bestial features most chimera were born with. It was true that he was strong enough and capable enough in physical combat, but he had a passive compliance about him that detracted from his ferocity as a warrior and led others to consider him weak or even feebleminded. The fact that Marius Blackeye had been picked as commander had been a source of resentment for a few. Tonight the balefulness of their eyes and faces was blatant and their tongues barely contained by the time the sea captain somehow spotted an small enclose harbor through the darkness and the mist.

The Farroe pulled up to the protected mouth of a river, where the pines and furs had given way to powerful hardwoods that leaned over the river like arches over a flowing road of dark water. Ship captain Thaddeus Wart dropped the anchor with a loud plop and half the sailors immediately leap into the water, anxious to get off the confines of the boat. Most of them were Gills, chimera with aquatic advantages and swam as quick and ably a fish for the shore.
Captain Wart was a Gill as well, but he waited, staring over the water at the shore with large bulbuls eyes that stood high on his head. His skin was greenish and warty and turned slick with slime when it got wet. A wide mouth stretched from ear to ear above and impressively large throat the color of a pink pears. Small, serrated teeth gleamed in the reflected moonlight and his powerful back legs looked like they could carry him in huge bounds over the land, or send him darting through the water quick as a frog.

“I don’t see anything that looks like a threat,” he reported to Marius, “Just the river and a lot of them big trees.”

“Great!” piped another chimera standing by, a little Wing with a monkey’s tails and furry membrane stretched between his limbs like a flying squirrel, “For the goddess’s sake lets get to the lifeboats!” The little Chimera jumped from Marius’s long leg to the top of Thaddeus’s wide head and then to the little life boat as nimbly as a finch in the tree branches.

Marius picked up a lantern and nodded. “Thad see that the ship is well anchored and battened down,” he ordered, “You four, start loading the gear we need into the boat.”

One of the chimera he’d indicated, a large wolfish one, glowered at him. “All them Gills just jumped ship and ran off without doing a lick of work. Why should we have to break our backs just because we can’t swim so well?”

Marius stared at him almost blankly. “Because I told you to,” he stated then picked up his sword and bag of person equipment, before heading to the boat himself.

The other chimera growled after him, but didn’t make a challenge. Instead, he turned to work with the others, complaining none to softly that this Scrappy Captain wasn’t worth a piss in a bowl.

Thad got into the boat with Marius and glanced up at him. “You can’t let this go on,” he whispered.

“I know. It will be taken care of.” Marius said evenly.

Thad huffed through thin lips. “It better be sooner rather than later.”

It didn’t take long for the chimera set up camp. A few of them found some fallen trees and cut the dead wood for campfires, while others refilled water barrels and set up tents to keep off the rain and drizzle.

Marius didn’t help, but stood by watching with his sword close at hand. His mismatched eyes took in every detail and kept coming back to the wolfish chimera who’d complained against him the loudest. His gaze was in the manner of a deadly, but patient predator, observing its prey from a distance. It began to rain in earnest, but Marius paid it little mind. He simply got out a wet stone and beginning to sharpen his blade.

[Skjaeren]

From deeper within the woods, a pair of treants watched the camp from afar, taking care to remain still and up against other trees as they strained their eyes to see through the intervening foliage and rain. One of them was an older treant, a slender willow, with upper branches and leaves beginning to form over her shoulders that hung and drooped in the downpour like a shredded umbrella. The other was a younger ash.

The two of them had come out to watch the river while it rained, and talk alone together about troubles that weighed on the younger one's mind. As a sort of excuse for wandering away from the village for the evening, they had said they were watching the river in case it flooded its banks. When they had arrived here, that seemed an unlikely outcome to them, unless the rain continued for several more days. Then they had sighted the ship coming up the river and hastily withdrawn into the trees.

And now as they watched, the younger whispered to her elder. "Aldre Mormor, what are they?"

"I don't know, child." Mormor whispered back, a gentle reassurance carried in her voice.

"Are they monsters? That one is sharpening a blade!"

"One or two of them are armed ... yes. ... I don't know if they are monsters, ... but let us watch and see. Much can be learned about a people ... by how they treat one another. They are wet, and in foul spirits, but by not desperately in need of aid."

"Should we warn the village, Aldre Mormor?"

"There is yet time for that." answered the old willow. "We can move faster through this wood than they will. ... And there are too few of them to threaten Kormt if an alarm is raised. ... Hush child, let us watch and see. ... Let us watch, ... and see."

[MissMilkMaid]

Maryn Flint waited silently, watching though Marius’s black and emerald eyes. He’d been building up to this night. It’d actually taken longer than he’d expected for the challenge and resentment against Marius to get to this point. He’d switched between a few hosts, controlling subtle actions and influencing emotions, sometimes so skillfully the chimera he’d possess never even realized he was there. It’d been a calculated risk, making Marius leader of this band of explorers, but the chimera’s sharp mind, ability to keep secrets and skills as a map maker, a combatant and a spy had made him ideal to Flynt’s uses. The hard part was seeing to it that the rest of the band didn’t completely turn against him.

Gaining the respect of his peers had never been Marius’s strong suit, but Flynt intended to turn that pattern around tonight. The chimera respected strength, boldness, cruelty and physical or martial skills. If he’d orchestrated this so called mutiny correctly, Marius would demonstrate all this tonight on a level none of the others could master. This was because it wouldn’t be Marius Blackeye putting on the show, but Maryn Flynt, once high commander of the Elven Tarek, spymaster and servant of Lestari. He had his costume well in place, he was simply waiting for the cue he knew would come.

The night was progressing slowly however. In the dark and the rain, there was no opportunity to hunt or fish, so the chimera boiled their packed sausages and soaked hard bread in the water for their dinner, muttering about looking for more food in the morning.

The rain wasn’t letting up, only coming down colder and more determined than before. It was a miserable damper on everything, but after dinner events finally began to fall in place. Most of the chimera got out their meager bags of dried kypher leaves doing their very best to shelter the precious substance from the rain, as they rolled it in paper and got out tinderboxes. Flynt made his move, briefly flicking between hosts with a subtle touch.

Welynd Wolfang let out a snarling curse, as his clawed fingers fumbled and precious leaves scattered into the mud between his feet. He didn’t know what had come over him to make him so clumsy, but a rage was lit in his soul. This was the last straw.

Wolfang was a large chimera, with long gorilla arms, ending in hands with two-inch claws. Shaggy hair covered the muscles of his body and a torso like a yeti. His head was canine with the wolfish jaws and fangs that gave him his name and ears that flapped over like a hunting dog’s. His icy blue eyes looked up to where Marius sat on the locked chest containing the large stash of the mission’s kypher supply.

“Look at the scrappy bastard,” he growled to those around him, “Sitting like a damned king. He didn’t lift a finger to help set up camp. He doesn’t do anything but sit around, like he’s so damned high and mighty. He hasn’t done a thing to deserve it. Why should we take orders from a slack-brained scrappy, huh? That’s what I want to know.”

“I heard there’s over ten pounds of kypher locked away in that chest,” one of the others said, speaking with an almost dreamy longing.

All of them shifted anxiously the idea of so much kypher making them twitchy and eager.

Wolfang licked his wet nose with a wetter tongue. “The way he’s sitting on it like that…. Like he owns it all. I think its time we taught the scrappy bitch otherwise.”

Those around him nodded, mechanically reaching for weapons. Glancing at the group nearest them, Wolfang met eyes with a powerfully build female Gill. The conversation there seemed to have been running in a similar vein and she nodded to Wolfang, drawing her blade, even as he picked up his axe. There were seven of them in all, who came together and stepped away from the main campfires toward where Marius Blackeye sat alone in the light of a lantern.

A few of the other chimera looked up with strained, anxious looks and clutched at their own weapons, including the ship captain, but the seven united mutineers were all large powerful chimera and none dared to intercept them.

Marius watched them come, his mismatched eyes as blank and expressionless as ever. He was smoking his own stick of kypher and finished with a last long exhale, before chewing the last charred ends of the leaves. His sword had already been out and he stood, as the pack arrived and circled around him.

“Give us the key to that there chest, Scrappy,” Wolfang growled, holding his axe in both hands. “Then drop your sword and get to your knees.”

“We would kill you,” another said, “But if you’re willing to beg, maybe we will keep you around to suck dicks and dig latrines.”

“Goddess knows,” the female gill added “I’d rather have your sorry ass dragging them ores than do it my self all day long.”

Wolfang grinned toothily. “So what will it be?”

Marius looked evenly at other chimera then spat the dark blue cud of the kypher into Wolfang’s face. It was answer enough.

Flynt felt the trill of the situation, as he lifted Marius’s sword and dodged from the circle of enemies. He’d spent plenty of time practicing in Marius’s body and knew the coiled strength, fast reflexes and mental awareness of the chimera better than he remembered his own body. It felt good and downright exhilarating to finally use this host in true battle. Marius himself had never really proved himself any kind of warrior, but that was due to a lack of interest, not a lack of skill or capability. Even surrounded and outnumbered seven to one, Flynt had no fear of the outcome. He’d chosen and coxed the opponents for this fight. They were all large and intimidating by chimera standards, but most of them were also slow, clumsy and rather dull. Most of them had spent all day rowing a ship through difficult waters and were already numb and tired.

Metal clashed on metal. The lantern was kicked over and, in the darkness, the crowd of attackers bumped into each other, fumbling slightly in surprise, as their target slipped agilely between them. He struck back, cutting two down with one stroke and sending a third tumbling down into the mud with a well-placed kick to the knees.

Wolfanf growled and lunched after Flynt, who let him push him back, entering the light of the campfires, so everyone could clearly witness what was going on. It was like watching a cat playing with seven mice. It was no contest at all and was only drawn out, because Flynt took the effort to put his attackers down with non-lethal blows. One by one, he sent them tumbling into the mud, bleeding from wounds, which left them incapacitated, but wasn’t beyond the scope of the chimera healing abilities.

Eventually, it was only Marius and Wolfang circling each other. The mutineer looked haggard. He knew now that he was in way over his head, but it was too late to turn back. With cruel maliciousness, Flynt was playing with him. Dancing back from his attacks, the elf in chimera form lashed out with the sword, cutting Wolfang here and then there, slowly taking him down with small painful wounds. Finally, in a last riposte, Flynt cut the legs out from under his opponent and sent him howling to the ground.

The firelight flicked a yellow orange glow over the scene, as the captain coldly pressed his boot down on Wolfang’s huge chest and pushed the tip of his sword against the chimera’s throat.

Everyone else in the camp was completely silent. Even those wounded had stopped their moaning to watch. The emerald and black eyes looked around at the audience, then back down at his victim.

“You disrespected my authority, Weylend Wolfang, spread discontent among my men, raised weapons against your rightful master. You challenged me like a coward with a group of dimwitted thugs at your back. You are guilty of mutiny, of treason and of my provoking my great displeasure.” He said the last word with dark malice, pressing the sword hard against the chimera’s skin.

Wolfang whimpered, his axe forgotten as he bled and shook in the mud and the rain. “Mercy! Please. I’m sorry. I beg your mercy. I beg it!” he groveled.

Flynt was silent. His face expressionless, as void of anger, as it was of pity. He glanced up to make sure everyone could see them then lifted his sword, swinging up to bring it down with all his strength. Wolfang’s skull was split into two pulpy pieces and the blood splashed over Marius’s clothes like a red fountain.

No one dared to say a word, as the captain dislodged his sword and stepped away from the corpse. “To the others who followed this traitor, I will show mercy,” he said. “See to it that their wounds are tended to. You two,” he pointed to two other chimeras watching in abject horror. They hadn’t joined the mutineers in the challenge, but had shared in their complains and sympathized, “Get shovels and dig a grave.”

“Yes captain, right away, Sir,” they said and scampered to do as they were bid.

“We shall stay here three day,” Flynt said to the group in general, “Once the wounded are well enough to pull their ores again, we will set out.”

There were compliant replies of “ Yes Captain,” and the chimera, who weren’t digging Wolfang’s grave, began bringing the other wounded mutineers under the tents.

“It would be good if we had more medical supplies,” said Brawyn Oxarm.

Flynt nodded and looked into the dark forest. He had the odd sense of being watched and there was a pressure of something holding and haunting those trees, a presence of some powerful and guarding spirit. Now that the more pressing issue was dealt with, his curiosity was nagging at him to check it out.

“I will send Rolo to look for willow bark and healing herbs.”

Flynt left Marius and once out of body he felt the looming presence of foreign power much more potently. With haste, he moved onto the body of his next host, as if he might be spotted if he remained out of cover for too long.

Rolo was a small chimera, hardly over two feet, with fragile bones and a light bodyweight. Brown and tan fur covered his body and he had the strong tensile tail of a monkey and possible thumbs on both his hands and his feet. His arms legs were long and he had small had retractable claws like a cat. A membrane stretched between his limbs, similar to that of a bat’s wing or like a flying squirrel. His face had a ferret’s nose. Round rattish ears high on his head and he had perfectly round eyes, big and black as obsidian.

His fur ruffled and he jumped slightly, as Flynt took him over. Rolo always tried to buck against him, but wasn’t strong enough to even give the elf pause. The little chimera had excellent night vision, and Flynt checked to make sure the little, thin-bladed sword was in its place, before scampering into the forest.

He took to the trees immediately, climbing the trucks fast as a squirrel and running nimbly along the branches, jumping and flying over the gaps with ease. The sound of the rain hitting the leafy canopy and the fast flowing surface of the river below was loud, filling the forest with a steady roar of noise. Rolo had his hood up, but still had to shake water out of his face, as he searched the area around him. Flynt wasn’t sure what to look for. The sence of being watched and of a strange presence had increased as he moved further up the river, but he hadn’t seen any signs civilization or of life beyond the natural vegetation of the forest.

He came to an especially long leap between trees. He wasn’t as familiar with Rolo’s physic as he was with Marius’s and, in the darkness weighed down with water, he misjudged his jump. Luckily, Rolo was a sturdy little guy. Flynt landed on the mud and roots, rolled and bounced a couple times, before ending up on his feet down a little leaf-strewn dell close to the river bank. Slightly dazed and bruised by the fall, he shook his head, before glancing around him.

[Skjaeren]

They watched as the fight unfolded, and the captain struck down seven of his own crew. "They're brutes!"

"Hrrmmmm, they almost strike me as... pirates." Mormor Videgren slightly spat the word. "Fighting over the contents ... of a chest..."

"Do you think it's a chest of treasure?" the young ash whispered back.

"I'm not sure. ... It's treasure to them. ... And their leader must guard it from those with less ... discipline. ... Some of them seem brutish, but one or two refrained ... from fighting. ... These are people, most definitely. ... But people ruled by fear, I think. ... And fear can make people ... dangerous."

She did not say it, but she could tell that the cold, unfeeling captain seemed to enjoy executing the mutineer. Such cruelty. They watched silently as he shouted orders in the aftermath.

"Could we help them, Aldre Mormor?" the young treant asked. "The captain is scary, but they almost seem frightened and helpless."

"Hmmm, perhaps we can, child. ... But they are unlikely to be reasonable if we speak to them in their current state."

...

"Aldre Mormor, that little one might be coming this way!"

"That's enough. ... Scatter them a bit, not everywhere, just enough to seem something between normally shed and gifted. Good, now hide yourself, Dagny! ... Watch quietly, ... and remain hidden."

They were some distance from the camp now. As her young charge hid near the side of the small gap in trees, Mormor worked her roots into the ground gently, letting her upper branches spread and giving her the appearance of a natural tree. Completely normal, except for the two branches held forward and down like open, welcoming arms, and her wrinkly old face still showing prominently in the pattern of her bark, twisted into a caring smile. In front of her, beneath her branches, was a small scattered pile of rough willow bark on top of a few wide willow leaves. There were similarly shed leaves and a few odd pieces of fallen bark laying all around the tree, but this little pile seemed almost as if it had been placed together deliberately. There were a few berry bushes visible nearby that looked to be safe and edible. Perfect. Mormor thought to herself. Now I simply must remain very, very, still.

[MissMilkMaid]

Shaking water and dirt from Rolo's fur and leather cloak, Flynt looked up and sniffed. He thought he'd heard something- voices and movement not to far away. He was certain now that there was more to this forest than met the eye and his curiosity burned all the hotter.

Scampering back up the nearest tree, Flynt moved stealthily in the direction of the noises he'd heard, moving like a cat through the trees. Soon he reached the place where he was certain the noises had come from, but there was nothing here, only more trees and a few berry bushes. However it didn't take long for Flynt to notice the posture of the short willow, the open arms, seemingly presenting a gift of the very items he'd said he'd come into the forest to search for.

There was a face in the tree.

Still and made of bark, but smiling and friendly as can be, the face look out at him from the darkness and the rain. "Curious," Rolo said out loud. The little chimera's voice had a childish quality about it, quick and high. He'd always been an eager energetic chimera, full of curiosity, bouncy vitality and rash decision making. Flynt wasn't about to break character now.

Spreading his limbs, Rolo glided down from the tree he was perched on right onto one of the extended armlike branches of the willow. Running up the bark, Flynt hastily climbed onto the strange face, peering at it with his huge black eyes and feeling the lips and nose with his hands. "This is quite remarkable," he said, speaking to himself out loud. His tail twitching with eager interest.

[Skjaeren]

The branch he climbed on gave a slight creak with his weight, and there was a settling groan beneath him as he touched it's face. Another small bit of the thick, gnarly bark fell from the trunk cracked and fell from the trunk just beneath him, bouncing off a root and rolling onto the ground.

While at first glance, the eyes appeared to be a simple recession in the bark, there was significant depth to them. It felt as if they were watching the little chimera even from their corners. The tree leaned slightly with a groan, but was otherwise unmoving.

[MissMilkMaid]

Flynt glanced around, making sure there was nothing else in the little grove. Then climbed closer to the the "eyes" of the willow, putting a paw against the recess and peering at them quizzically.

"There is something strange about this forest," he said, weather he was speaking to himself or the tree was uncertain. "A power abides here." He looked around twitching his tail, "And it abides in you," he looked back at the eyes of the the strange willow tree.

Sniffing at the bark, Maryn was uncertain. In all his long years he'd never encountered anything like this, but the goddess had once spoken of mighty trees, giants of life's power. She'd laughed scoffingly, but he knew the tone she'd used. She used in when speaking of things greater than herself, or at least of things that were beyond her. She was a goddess of life herself, but the sense of life in this forest was like nothing he'd ever got from her. This was deeper, earthier and more whole and natural. As he listened to the groaning of the tree in the rain, the rustling of branches and smelled the wet, rich earth, a sobering solemnity came over him.

Rolo shivered, shaking rain from his fur. Then he climbed over to the "shoulder" of the willow's branch and looked around, hoping for another sign.

[Skjaeren]

Yes, there is. she thought in answer to his prying.

Yes, it does.

But you're an awfully smart and inquisitive little scamperer to know it, and awfully brave. ... There's something odd about you too, little one. Hmmmm.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see where Dagny was hidden. She looked concerned, but was remaining quite motionless. Still, her younger, treant physique would give her away if not for the cover of the brush she hid behind. And now the little chimera was perched on Mormor's shoulder looking outward. Had he seen or heard a glimpse of the younger treant?

This wasn't going as planned. Mormor had hoped that he would be a frightened, small pirate lacky, just ordered by his big scary captain to retrieve something quickly... but he was taking his time and being fully inquisitive, calculating, and insightful. At least he's voicing his thoughts alloud, she reasoned as she slightly turned her face to keep him in the corner of her eye, freezing again after the slight creak of timbers. maybe I can learn something, if the blasted clever little thing doesn't jab me in the eye.

She carefully flexed her trunk on the far side, cracking and shedding another small piece of her bark. Just little sounds... she instructed herself. She wanted to keep his attention here, if he was going to be attentive, not on the hidden ash maiden hiding further in the woods.

[MissMilkMaid]

Flynt turned Rolo's head as the bark fell and watched it land then he glanced back at the tree. He was pretty sure it had moved. This tree, if it was a tree at all, was alive in a manner beyond a normal willow. To what degree, he wasn't certain, but he was pretty sure it had intention and was trying to give him the willow bark. Was this forest trying to help their wounded? Had the presence here, whatever it was, witness the fight on the shore. Flynt wasn't certain, but it didn't seem like this tree was in a talkative mood... if it could talk.

Climbing down the trunk, he picked up the offered pile of willow bark. Curiously, he put a piece in his mouth an gnawed on it, wondering it it had any strange qualities. Then he glanced back up at the face. "This is a gift I presume?" he asked.

"How kind." Almost smugly, the little chimera rolled the willow bark in the wide leaves and tucked the package into his cloak.

Looking around, he thought he saw something behind some thick bushes. He couldn't see it all, but there seemed to be something pale and shapely hiding back there, like a woman's statue. Was it a shine perhaps?

"I'm glad we stopped here," he told the willow, "It's a most interesting place." He started to climb the tree again, intent on hopping between the branches over to where he had spotted the pale figure in the bushes.

[Skjaeren]

The figure distinctively flinched slightly as it was obvious that he had seen it and began to approach. As he climbed down the far side of the willow tree, having taken her gift as if he was entitled to it, she decided this game had gone on long enough.

Perhaps this little cabin boy was secretly the captain, using the bigger, more threatening chimera as a foil to keep control of his crew. Or perhaps they were both something more. Something that looked at the mystical and strange, and smugly took it for granted. But whatever they were, Dagny was not prepared to deal with it, and the forest needed to be made aware of their presence, whatever good or ill they sought to bring.

As he reached the ground and began to saunter towards the ash, one of the willow tree's roots pulled itself up out of the ground in front of him slowly, curling directly in his path. There was a very audible groan as her trunk twisted, her branches shifting. Her face bore the same smile, but with an edge behind it that was new, and her branches no longer spread in the welcoming open-armed poise, but one leaned down open fingered signalling him to stop, and the other lifted up the direction he had come, as if pointing emphatically.

It was now clear that this tree could move, and did not grant him permission to pass her.

[MissMilkMaid]

Maryn Flynt stopped as the root blocked his way and one hand when to the little sword strapped inside Rolo's cloak. Turning, he looked up at the willow, masking whatever shock he might of had with a slight smirk, but stepping cautiously back nonetheless.

"So you are alive," he said, "Can you hear me as well?"

He stared up at Mormor, curiosity and a little smug defiance in his ferret's face. "So it's take the bark and go is it? Don't want me seeing what's beyond those bushes." He glanced in the direction of Dagny with renewed interest. "What is it you are hiding?"

Keeping his large eyes on Mormor's face, Flynt made to hop nimbly onto the upraised root, watching to see if the willow would do anything more to stop him.

[Skjaeren]

There was something absolutely maddening about this little tiny creature's smug, defiant, irreverent attitude. Not even brash young treants acted this way around their elders, they knew far better. This little boy was fully admitting that he had no idea what he was dealing with here, yet he had no fear, no true sense of wonder. He was jaded, and simply smug that he had found her out. Beaten her at her game. It was like trying to play riddles with the other elders, but this little creature that looked barely 20 or 30 years from his mother was acting as if he was as old, or older than she...

That smug smirk again. Realization that she had underestimated the creature before her visibly dawned on her face as her smile faded and her eyebrows raised.

"No." she answered, her voice a deep, aged moan whispering from underneath her bark. "No, ... the question is ... what is it you ... are hiding? ... Flee, child."

It was a command, leaving no room for questioning that it must be followed. Only a few seconds passed from the moment she uttered it, without breaking eye contact with the chimera, before the woods behind him erupted in the sound of hastened footsteps moving away. The trees shifted back and forth, swaying in a path as the figure he had caught a glimpse of vanished down that path and was obscured by rain and foliage.

[MissMilkMaid]

Rolo dropped to all fours, backing up nervously, as the forest stirred with unnatural forces in the wake of the willow's command. His ears were laid flat in a gust of rain and wind and a good deal of the chimera's cocky arrogance seemed to slip away.

Flynt took in Moror's words and the surrounding forest with some awe. This was far more than some sacred sight and the presence of a mysterious being. The tree had spoken. She was more than just a face and a moving totem of power and intention. He was certain now that this was a person, with all the awareness of any other person. Living tree people. The idea was fascinating. And if there was one, there was probably more. The pale figure fleeing into the forest was likely something similar to what stood before him.

Flynt had the feeling of a power all around, a life and wrath just waiting to be provoked. This wasn't the time to play games with those sorts of unknown forces.

"I'll go," he said. Getting back to his hind legs, he managed a small bow to Mormor. "But may we meet another time. You really are quite remarkable!"

With that, he turned and scampered into the trees, jumping and gliding his way hastily back toward the chimera camp. Weather the haste was out of fear, or because the creature always seemed to move with as much speed as possible was hard to tell.

[Skjaeren]

Mormor Videgren waited for him to be out of sight, before quickly shuffling her roots up out of the soil and pulling in her branches ... as much as she could make them cooperate in her age. With an annoyed "Humph!" and a long glance after the chimera that betrayed a deep concern, she made her way after her young charge.

She knew the ash wouldn't go far and leave an old tree like her to fend for herself, so it was best she catch up and the two of them make their way roundabout back to Kormt before any more trouble cooked itself up.

"'Remarkable' ... heh. ....... We don't need this right now. ... This is trouble."

[MissMilkMaid]

Rolo came out of the forest, shaking water and bits of leaves from his fur and hastily bounded past a few other curious chimera before swinging into the flap of the tent where Marius and Thaddeus Wart were talking.

"Captain," he greeted saluting. "While gathering remedies, I came upon something very strange in the forest."

Marius pushed aside a few damp notes on their travel course and supply rations and looked down at the smaller chimera. "What did you find?"

Thad turned bulbous eyes on to Rolo as well, looking at him curiously.

"I found a strange tree, Sir," piped Rolo, "She had a face and branches like arms. She was a willow and presented the bark I had come to find in a small pile at her roots."

Thad frowned, but Marius looked as blank as ever, simply listening attentively.

"It felt very strange and when I searched the area, I thought I saw something more a little further off. However, when I tried to investigate the willow tree came to life, moving its roots and branches to stop me. It spoke and told me to flee. I'm certain she was a person, a tree person! Maybe a guard protecting other like her. I took the willow bark and came back here." Removing the wrapped package from his pocket, Rolo eagerly jumped up onto the table and laid it before the captains.

Marius glanced at it and Thad picked a piece up sniffing it.

"Did this tree... person seem hostile?" Marius inquired.

"Not so much, but she made it clear she didn't like me snooping around the forest."

Marius a quite and the other two looked at him.

"What should we do captain?" Thad asked.

"Nothing more for now, beyond keeping a careful watch through the night." Marius answered. "Take all unnecessary supplies back to the Farroe in case we have to make a hasty departure. We will look into this further tomorrow if nothing more comes of this in the night."

Rolo nodded. Inside the small chimera, Flynt was satisfied with Marius's decision. A dark stormy night with six wounded men on their hands was not the time for rash actions.

"Shall I give the orders?" Thad asked.

"No" Marius said, standing and moving to the flap of the tent, "I will."

---

The Chimera pack up all but the necessities of their camp and place a rotation of four guards to watch the camp and the edge of the forest throughout the night.

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