RRPG: Chapter 4 Outcome

Outcome: D [HEROIC DEED] Renate confirms the order, but her voice is too silent to reach Rudy. Georg looks back at her for a brief moment, making sure that she’s safe, and then throws himself forward, sword first. The girl is alone now. No one and nothing really looks at her now, which is the very best thing that could happen to a Caregiver during battle. With the Hero’s Party, Renate has been in the middle of a fight so often that she lost count, though it never ceased to frighten her. Before her, a strange, even surreal scene plays. Two men, a knight with an axe and a soldier armed with a sword and shield, strike and chop at moving treelings and vines that spring from the ground and wrap round them. Before them, on another side of the glade, three Dryads, green-haired and leaf-clad forest maidens, weave their magic, their chants like a beautiful song and their gestures resembling a charming dance. And yet, their song is not one to marvel at, but a spell, one that prompts young trees from the glade’s edge to uproot themselves and swing their branches at the intruders, and one that makes thorny vines sprout from the soil to grasp those nearby. Renate never put much thought into watching the combat; it was too dangerous, and standing still was the best way to get spotted and attacked. And yet, this time it is different. Rudy and Georg are just two men, outnumbered by far, yet the treekin, though tall, are clumsy and slow. With a creak of a felled tree, one of them falls to the ground, chopped by Rudy’s axe. Or, at least, most of it falls, as the stump still swings its only remaining branch at the knight. Georg makes short work of it with a well aimed kick and a sword’s swing. Renate blinks. It was the song and the glade that captured her; both are nothing short but beautiful. The song is melodic and mournful, filled with anguish and desperation, and the girl catches herself wondering just why the dryads are doing all of this. There are three of them; one tall, fair and willowy, one dark and voluptuous, and one small, almost childlike, her voice reminding Renate a bit of the Oracle’s soft speech. A sudden feeling of longing surges through her. And then she sees it. The body. A human figure, wrapped in vines and branches, lies on the glade’s far side. Renate can see the colorful peasant dress and fiery red hair, short and unruly, crowned with a head wreath, barely visible through all the flowers and tall grass. The lost girl! Renate looks at Rudy and Georg, but even she quickly understands that as much as calling them could put them in mortal danger now. And yet… She just can’t leave this poor soul alone. Renate Metczak takes a deep breath and crouches, then sneaks back into the forest. The mist slowly dissipates and she can see where she is going – and the Dryads, hopefully, can’t see her. It’s easier to move here without all the vines, bushes and high grass – though also dark and somewhat ominous. The mist, though no longer flashing with cruel visions, muffles the sounds of a fight on the glade, but does not silence them. Renate walks slowly, cautiously, in order not to make any loud sound which could alert the Dryads. And yet she can’t shake the feeling that someone is watching her. She quickly turns back. The tree is looking at her. Huge, gnarled, dark. Renate covers her mouth with her hand and it’s the only thing that lets her scream be unheard. The tree – or an Ent, rather – was looking at her. Huge, wider than she is tall, ancient, nothing more than a legend these days. Renate can’t help but turn back from this… thing and make a few hasty steps away from it. She almost trips on a root and realizes she walked into another tree. -Help us, dark-haired one- the tree hums, its voice deep and slow. -Stop them… Please… Somewhere in the distance, away from the glade, she hears an unearthly shriek, as if there was a fire that was screaming, though the very thought seems surreal; and yet, nothing can describe it better. She looks upward. This tree is looking at her too; with sad, soulful eyes, slowly stretching a branch out to her. Renate quickly steps away from the treeman, then shivers and looks down, to the ground, unable to stop trembling. She clenches her hands into fists and wills herself to make a step, then another and another, not looking back. She repeats the lost girl’s name, both in her mind and with her trembling lips. She might be in mortal danger now, or any second now. The lost girl must be taken from here. Now. And she is the only one who could do it. The creaking of trees slowly stays behind her. Renate pushes forward, circling the glade. The mist has almost dissipated in the forest, yet still lingers on the glade itself. The girl slowly, as silently as she can, slides through the bushes. And there she is. Tall and lean, her face sublime and feminine and her limbs long and sleek, with short red hair, dressed in what seems to be local folk clothes – white shirt with floral print and colorful pleated long skirt that made Renate spot her. Lying on the bed of flowers and grass, covered by thorny vines like an ornate casket. Renate clenches her teeth. She can not leave this young lady now! Not in this mist that brings horror to the mind, not in this forest full of magic and monstrosities. She quickly takes off her apron and wraps it around her hands; then, hastily, she begins to dismantle the thorny shell around the girl’s body with one hand and a misericorde Rudy gave her. It hurts. Thorns are long enough to dig into her skin when she grabs the vines and branches, but Renate does not waver. The Dryads are no more than a dozen metres before her, still singing their spells, though their voice sounds even more like a song of mourning now, but it’s only the matter of time until they hear her. She hears creaking behind her and looks back. She feels the hair on her nape stands on end. The treeman is here, behind the bushes. Looking at her. -Help… Us… Help… Her… Renate lets out a short shriek of horror and looks once more to the Dryads. One of them, the tall one, hears her and looks to Renate, her eyes opening wide from shock. Renate gathers all her remaining strength, grips the misericorde stronger, catches all the remaining thorn bushes she can, then she cuts them. Not wasting even a second, she throws them away and kneels by the girl. She’s asleep, as if comatose, unresponsive and pale. Renate gasps. Somewhere near her, a small tree moves. Renate has no time to think. She puts her hand into the bag, pulls out a small flask of holy water and pours it into the girl’s mouth. The girl suddenly coughs, then springs up, opening her eyes and gasping for air. -You’re alive!- Renate smiles. The red-haired girl looks at Renate and gives her a warm, though sad and tired smile. -Where am I… Oh. Thank… You. Please, help me stand up- she gives Renate a hand. Both girls stand up uneasily. -Let’s run away, miss… Anthenea!- Renate smiles at her reassuringly. [RENATE’S RESOLVE: +10] Renate gains 6 EXP. [LEVEL UP! Current Renate level: 2. Current Renate EXP: 3; 1 more EXP needed for Level 3. Raising the character’s abilities can be done after the combat ends] RENATE’S RESOLVE: 10. RENATE’S LEVEL: 2 [LEVEL UP AVAILABLE AFTER COMBAT ENDS] RENATE’S EXP: 3 (1 needed to advance) RUDY’S EXP: 0 GEORG’S EXP: 0 GEORG’S STATUS: WOUNDED MAIN QUEST: I speak for the trees! MISSION UPDATE: Escort Anthenea to safety. SIDE QUEST: What happens in the forest stays in the forest! MISSION UPDATE: ?