14 Cry On The Woods (1/2)

A deep moan of sorrow was heard through the woods.

”We need to end this quickly. The enemy is asking for help.”

Warned the druid.

Neither side was surprised. They both felt each other while still being somewhat distant.

From the west came a band of mounted gnomes, while a great tree stood at the east, shaking slowly as if to show it's annoyance.

But the massive treant wasn't the only one feeling miserable. The gnomes, except for Roselyn, weren't happy with this as well. They hopped for a peaceful journey, which would have allowed them to briefly investigate the mysterious explosion and return home as soon as possible.

Now, however, the battle was an absolute necessity.

Why?

Because such was the current state of relations between gnomes and the fey folk at the moment.

Times of peace among those peoples were long gone, dead and buried. Now they both vied for supremacy over the Azov Forest, locked in a permanent state of war for the last several decades.

As such, their policy was ”kill on sight” when they met.

From the moment these two groups saw each other, there was no other choice but for them to engage in combat.

...

While the other three stood behind casting their spells, Roselyn marched forth with her leafrider in a deadly charge.

Her muscles bulged, increasing greatly in size and her pupils became bloodshot red. As she rode, her stone hammer gained an eerie glow and the dry blood on its surface turned liquid once more, flowing down like a small creak.

The treant attempted to intercept her attack slamming down its thickest branches on the ground. But the wolf evaded all of them effortlessly.

From the four mounts of this group, this one was the oldest and the fastest.

Orcs were great riders, taking great pride in being unbeatable on the open field and Roselyn spent a great deal of time learning their techniques.

Now she presented them to their fullest potential. Because this leafrider was to the forest what the warforged horse was to the steppes, a supreme mount.

However, when she was about to clash against some os the treant's roots, Roselyn was thrown off balance by a vicious strike, barely maintaining her position on the saddle.

The treant managed to shake her off at the last moment. But the attack fulfilled its goal.

Now her companions had already finished their preparations.

...

Theodore made a small cut on his hand, spilling blood, and with a gesture, slightly bending two of his fingers, a red light flew towards the tree, enveloping It completely before vanishing without a trace.

The markings on his two swords shone bright yellow, causing Ted to smile. His spell had succeeded, so, unsheathing the weapons, he rode forth to help Rosalyn in battle.

This mount was not as fast as Rosalyn's but, since the treant now needed to divide his attention between several opponents, Ted managed to approach the enemy without many problems.

Rosalyn and Theodore stood at opposite sides taking full advantage of their numerical superiority. The enemy was on the middle being pressed through flanking as these two allies prepared to coordinate an attack.

On the backlines, Adan, the sorcerer, snapped his fingers and a white aura enveloped the treant, restraining it. And as such the pair of melee combatants stroke simultaneously

With great anger, Rosalyn hammered down several important branches of the top, cripplig this enemy, reducing its ability to fight.

Meanwhile, Ted used his twin swords as a surgeon wielding a scalpel. A huge mark appeared on the tree's body and his sword glowed even brighter. This was the spell he used before, taking effect. It was almost as if the marks, both on the sword and the tree were guiding him towards his target.

So, as expected, this strike was very precise, landing on a key spot. From the slashes, a lot of sap was leaked. The treant now seemed much more fragile. After all, this was a great loss in vitality.

...

Suddenly, a lot of vines sprang forth, trying to grasp both Rosalyn and Ted. She escaped duo to her wolf's great speed and maneuverability.

But Theodore wasn't so lucky. Even as his mount evaded this predicament, he did not, being trapped by the enemy.

”I don't understand.”

Said the sorcerer with great worry as he looked nervous to their party leader.

”The one who is counterattacking is not the treant. Look.”

As the druid pointed out, Adan remembered. Treants, frequently develop a symbiotic relationship with other creatures. Mostly animals that would live on their bodies and in return rise up to defend their homes when necessary.