The arrow whipped back out of the wolf and into the hand of a woman in green. She, and two others, stood at a distance. She was slim, muscular, with short brown hair. The arrow was clean, as if the blood of the wolf had never touched it. Her armor seemed to be made of fresh leaves, twisting and moving across her body. Her limbs bore wooden braces and leggings, moving wood to the same effect that bled into the leaves as if of one material. The arrow returned to a mostly empty leather quiver.
The companion to her left, a wall of a man with dull armor and a giant shield equalling his size, towered over her. He had a handsome face, symmetrical and soft compared to the woman's. He had no scars, and his eyes rested easier on the scene in front of him. There was a calmness to him. The shield was made of a plain, non-moving wood.
The third of them was obscured by a large cloak that puffed and rippled like a bedsheet ghost. Its hood completely obscured the face, with a solid shadow cast within. The cloak touched the ground: not even their legs were visible.
The wall was the first to speak.
TARREN: There's a man.
DAHLIA: He's bleeding on our wolf.
EN: On it.
The cloaked figure raised their arms, presumably, as they never left the cloak. Two indentations formed to the left and right of their torso, shaping the fabric around them.
EN: Shape Blood.
I felt the blood shifting up my arm, my neck, my chin, congregating at my injury. I felt the liquid solidify and cling to my ear, sending a pang of pain out. Then, I felt the pain concede to an itchiness. My eyes were wide.
I reached to touch my reformed ear.
EN: Don't touch it if you want to keep your ear.
My hand retracted just as fast. The dizziness was completely gone now, and I stood up to greet my rescuers.
RYAN: Thank you. For saving me.
EN: Sure.
DAHLIA: Whatever, just back off. That's our dinner.
Ryan raised his hands and took a step back. Each of them tensed the instant my hands went up, but relaxed just as fast.
MENU: You have three silver tokens.
MENU: Quests 'Survive a wolf attack', 'meet someone new', and 'stop blood loss' were completed.
MENU: 'Leave the forest (1 silver token)', as well as 'Team up with Dahlia's party (3 silver tokens)', and 'Examine new ear (1 silver token)' are available to you.
RYAN: (Shut up!)
MENU: You don't have to whisper, we're inside your mind.
New information reached me as Dahlia and her companions approached. The big one lifted the wolf up and placed it over his shield-bearing shoulder. On him, it looked like a big scarf.
EN: We should add a hauler to our party.
TARREN: I think I'm fine for this.
Dahlia looked me over.
DAHLIA: What are you supposed to be?
RYAN: What?
DAHLIA: Why are you here? Why are you in the forest without a weapon?
DAHLIA: If you were a forager, you'd have a bag with you.
DAHLIA: You'd at least know to stay clear of the wolves.
RYAN: ….
I had no explanation. The truth would sound crazy and these were strangers. I had to keep my head down.
RYAN: Just passing through.
EN: You might want to pass through somewhere matching your skill level.
DAHLIA: Your armour is new. Like, new new.
TARREN: If you didn't have it, you'd probably be dead.
RYAN: I just made it.
TARREN: Yes, that's what I said.
DAHLIA: You made it?
I froze. It just slipped out.
RYAN: Got it.
DAHLIA: You smell like an aristocrat.
DAHLIA: Or her servant. A fancy one, based on your clothes.
TARREN: Your pants are short.
DAHLIA: What is your name, and how did you get this armour?
RYAN: I'm Ryan.
I withered under the attention. I was usually good at keeping calm, but my heart had been trying to escape my chest for too long. These people--these powerful, magical people--were confronting me. I decided to play an open hand.
RYAN: I really did make it.
RYAN: I didn't know what I was going to make. But it came from me.
EN: Could you demonstrate this power?
I held out an open hand. The image of the candy machine resurfaced. I now held an orb, labelled 'Pouch of Dried Mint (COM)'. I broke it open and the resulting energy formed a small bag filled with mint leaves. The smell immediately hit.
With it, memories of going to the dentist. The clean, disinfected smell of toothpaste, not like the harsh sanitizer smell of a doctor's office, but just as strong. I liked sitting up on that table. You were told what to do. You weren't expected to reply to conversation. I kept my teeth clean so the hygienists would praise me. For a while, I had a crush on my dentist. As a kid. She always told me I had good teeth.
As far as toothpaste flavours go, mint was the only one for me.
TARREN: Woah.
DAHLIA: What is that?
RYAN: A bag of mint leaves.
DAHLIA: Huh.
EN: You made armour with this skill?
EN: Interesting.
Dahlia turned to her companions.
DAHLIA: Let's go.
RYAN: Wait!
Dahlia turned to me.
DAHLIA: What.
RYAN: Are you going....
I didn't know how to finish the sentence. Out of the forest? To a town? To somewhere, anywhere safe? I knew I had to go with them. They were powerful enough to protect me from the wolves. My ear tingled and I fought the urge to itch it.
DAHLIA: Yes?
RYAN: What I mean to say is, do you know how to leave the forest?
RYAN: I'm lost.
EN: What's in it for us?
I held up the bag of mint leaves. Tarren and Dahlia looked at each other, then laughed.
TARREN: Leaves as a reward?
TARREN: We're surrounded by leaves of all sorts of plants. Why not give us those as well?
DAHLIA: That's a no.
RYAN: They aren't just leaves.
EN: Do they have a magical property?
RYAN: Well, no, but-
DAHLIA: Offer something worth the time you're wasting.
RYAN: When you eat them, your breath becomes fresh!
RYAN: They have a distinct taste, used in tea and desserts.
RYAN: Try one!
There was a hesitation. Did this pitch catch their attention?
DAHLIA: You eat one first.
I picked up one of the leaves and chewed it. Then, I swallowed.
The man lumbered over to me. He took off a gauntlet from one hand and raised it to me.
TARREN: Me next.
EN: There was no point in him eating it if you were going to right after.
DAHLIA: He was willing to eat it, we know that.
TARREN: I'll be fine. Ignore them and give it here.
TARREN: Oh! I can smell your breath from here.
I pressed a leaf into his hand and he put it in his mouth. He chewed for a bit, giving an appraising hum. Dahlia and the cloaked one both approached me. I gave a leaf to Dahlia; another floated out of my bag and into the hood of the cloak.
TARREN: I like this.
EN: I wish it were fresh.
DAHLIA: It's interesting, that's for sure.
Dahlia put her hand out again. Understanding her meaning, I placed the pouch in her hand.
DAHLIA: There's what, a couple hundred in here? We can sell this for a good price.
TARREN: I want to keep some.
DAHLIA: It's coming out of your share of the sales, then.
The cloaked figure faced me.
EN: I'm known as En.
DAHLIA: I'm Dahlia.
TARREN: Tarren.
RYAN: I'm Ryan.
EN: We know.
DAHLIA: I regret this.
TARREN: Aww, he's harmless. Remember when we escorted that stuffy merchant?
DAHLIA: I hated that.
EN: Yes, me too.
TARREN: Good times.
DAHLIA: Well, Ryan, follow us.
DAHLIA: And don't stray too far behind, okay?
I nodded. I was finally leaving the forest, having only been there for a short while. It couldn't come sooner. As an interesting note, my 'Team up with Dahlia's party' quest didn't update. I asked Menu why, but he just pointed out what I already knew:
MENU: Well, you didn't team up, did you?
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