Colin's posts

"....that's a fair point about the note." Adym admitted, his tone revealing he genuinely felt better now.

"And yes... yes, it might." he agreed, looking out the same window.

"It's... well, it's essentially trapped us here." he said further.

"But we can't go out in that. We'll be rendered immobile and... at the mercy of whatever finds us." he then lamented.

"Oh, how is the numbness?" he asked.

"I'm still feeling it, but it's already slowly subsiding. How about you?"

Adym's ears twitched a little once more.

"I don't like it, either." he said.

"All I hear is the rain. And thunder." he muttered.

"No rustling, no scampering, no... anything." he continued.

"...this almost doesn't feel like home." he then told her further, looking around again.

"I hope we're not too late." he mumbled further.

"Well... 'attic'..." Adym replied, doing finger-quotes. "It's just a really small crawlspace up there." he told her.

"And yeah, go and explore." he said.

"Familiarise yourself with the place." he went on.

"I'm going to put the food out and get to making it a meal." he continued.

"If you need help or find something, let me know." he finished.

"Sadly." Adym replied, before taking some food out of one of their packs.

"Let's eat." he suggested.

"And then go and lie down, try and wait out this storm, and this numbness." he went on.

"It's all we CAN do for now." he lamented.

He was then silent, before she saw his ears twitch a little.

"...hm." he mumbled.

"Odds are there's some small animals in the attic." he told her.

"Probably nothing to worry about, though. Probably seeking shelter from the rain."

Adym shook his head.

"It might take that long." he said.

"The forest has a way of... making travelers lost." he told her. "It's essentially a living maze, but it shifts subtly." he went on. "And it can 'sense' if someone means harm to it, or to the elves here." he continued.

"Now, because we mean no harm, and even aim to HELP, it should be smooth sailing." he reasoned.

"...but it's corrupted. It could actively try and steer us AWAY from my village and shrine." he then told her.

"So, it could be anywhere between an hour, to a half a day, to a FULL day, to... who ever knows." he lamented.

Adym just sighed and dug out the matches, using them to light the candles... which threw not a LOT of light, but a surprisingly adequate amount.

"Huh." he said.

"Should work as personal torches for us, anyway." he reasoned.

"And how far? We're... well, we're close." he said.

"Probably another... hour or two of trekking." he guessed.

"Maybe longer or shorter, depending on conditions." he went on, as they heard another crash of thunder.

"Hm." Adym mumbled.

"Luckily we have matches." he said.

"Whether or not they'll throw much light depends on the wax they're made of, the oil used... depending on the kind of candle it is... and whether or not it's been enchanted." he continued.

"If they're enchanted, then we should each have a light source that's MORE than enough for each of us." he chuckled.

"If they're not, we'll need to either search for more candles, or I'll need to make more mushrooms." he sighed.

"Regardless... we'll light them up and then consider eating." he finished.

"We are." Adym confirmed.

"I am... having some difficulties moving." he said.

"So that's great." he muttered.

"And I have NO idea." he admitted. "The storm rolled in faster than expected, and the rain is FAR heavier than anything I've ever seen before." he said further, looking around and sighing.

He then made his way to one of the tables, and other places, looking around.

"We can't count on these mushrooms for light forever." he commented.

"We need to get a more permanent source of light in this place. There should be some candles around. If not, I'll have more of these mushrooms grow in various places around here."

"I have no idea." Adym admitted.

He then sighed and looked out another window.

"At least this rain should keep away any predators." he then said.

"If we had been trapped outside, they would have come for us when the rain ended." he told her. "But we didn't, and they won't venture out in this downpour." he reasoned.

"So we SHOULD be safe." he continued.

"SHOULD be." he stressed.

"How are you feeling, Callie?" he then asked her.

As they sped up, the howls got a little louder, and the water dripping down started to increase. So much so, that the both of them were starting to really feel it at the base of their necks, where they were the most exposed to it.

However, a cabin soon seemed to just... come into existence in their line of sight, and Adym nodded as best he could.

"Come on!" he told her.

The two of them then started to actually RUN towards it, and just when it seemed like they were about to get drenched, they managed to get to the door, with Adym forcefully pushing the door in to open it... so much so, he fell onto his front from the effort.

"...ow." he mumbled.

"I'm fine." he assured Callie.

"Just get in, quick!" he insisted.

Adym froze for a moment.

"...we have to pick up the pace." he said.

"The corruption must have perverted the trees to change what they do." he told her, as he quickened his walking.

"If we don't get into that cabin soon, our entire bodies are going to be numb." he went on.

"And that may very well effectively... paralyse us." he growled.

"Which will make us easy prey for any predators that happen by."

"Huh?" Adym muttered. "Above?" he asked.

"They should be Vitlae trees." he told her.

Vitlae trees were known for being used in general wellness salves. While they didn't have any healing properties or restorative uses, water that collected on their leaves, and was then collected had an energising effect on whomever used it, whether it was internal or external.

It was sort of a way to get a natural burst of energy if taken internally, or it made the skin feel younger for a brief period if used externally.

But that wasn't what she was feeling now.

Was it?

"That... that might exactly be it." Adym responded.

"I need to get to my village, to get to the shrine, to help heal it!" he exclaimed, before an immensely loud crack of thunder startled him.

"Yikes!" he yelled.

That was when they felt some drips of water... and heard a howl in the distance.

"...crap." he grumbled, before pausing and looking around.

"Wait." he said.

"I think we're close to the cabin!" he told Callie.

Adym was silent as they made their way through the forest.

"I... hm." he mumbled.

"I can think of... one thing." he told her.

"There's a shrine by my village. It's the heart of this forest." he said. "The source of all the livelihood and strength and vitality for this area." he continued.

"...if... if the shrine were... corrupted..." he then went on, coming to a realisation.

"The shrine is corrupted."