Back home in my forest once more, I felt at ease. The filthy goblins had been left behind, and the familiar terrain with its familiar scents and sounds surrounded me once more. It was nearing late evening, and most of the humanoids in the forest were well on the way back to the fort, carrying their spoils away from this rich hunting ground. The growing gloom would make it easier for me to move around in the forest without attracting notice. My new form wasn’t nimble enough for traveling through the dense forest canopy, so I would need to remain on the ground.

I allowed Dendra to guide me to the spot she felt would be most suitable for her new tree. I sat and waited at the place she designated, a small clearing that had a small stream running through it. I practiced growing my spears, since I would not be able to do so around the humans, and it didn’t hurt to further refine the skill while I had time. As I did so, Dendra extended a tendril of roots toward the ground, burying a small, round seed and churning up the grass to expose rich, black loam.

Several minutes passed as I grew and ate the spears. Eventually, a tiny green shoot poked up from the soil in which Dendra’s tendrils were still buried. The sprout quickly grew, and as it did, a number of slimes gravitated into the clearing, inching closer to us. They had a green hue, and leafy protrusions coming from their tops. The slimes excitedly bounced and rolled about the clearing as the sapling quickly grew. I could feel the soil shifting beneath me as its roots squirmed outward and thickened, seeking nutrients to fuel its prodigious rate of growth. The tree grew with an audible creaking and groaning, until it towered above the trees which surrounded the clearing.

This tree, whatever it was, was certainly something new. Its bark was an almost glossy, dark gray, complementing its deep green leaves that whispered and shook in the light breeze. Its lower branches were in easy reach, and were laden with a dark red, knobby looking fruit that pulsed with aura and had a strong, sweet smell to them. The green slimes closed in on the tree —giving me a wide berth— and bumped up against it before retreating. A full-sized Dendra stepped forth from its broad trunk.

She stretched and arched her back. “Ooh, that feels good. My old tree was nice, but it was about time for me to have little saplings of my own.” She turned to look at her new tree. “Yes, very nice indeed. Well, I think waiting here for the inevitable investigation will be the easiest way for you to meet up with the adventurers, no?” She played with the root necklace that was still draped around my neck as she spoke.

I shrugged. Go to them or wait somewhere they would come to, it mattered not to me. The new, very tall tree which radiated life and power would certainly draw attention. I shifted my position until my back was against the tree’s trunk, and closed my eyes, taking in the noise of the forest as dusk transitioned to night. “They are jumpier at night. I can wait here for now.”

I continued to lean against the tree, taking in the sounds of the night life of the forest, thinking and going over my plans. The new tree was drawing a lot of attention from the forest’s beasts. Many came to investigate but did not linger when I allowed my aura to leak out. Infiltrating the ranks of the humans would be interesting. I had much to gain, and little to lose so long as I was careful. I did not believe I had anything to fear from them.

I spent the hours until the suns’ rising browsing through James’ memories, building up mental images for other weapons to eventually grow. The spear would certainly work fine for now, but there was no need to limit myself — at least when I wasn’t maintaining a cover.

As the twin orbs rose, a different set of birds began their songs for the day. More beasts cautiously stalked near the clearing to inspect the strange new beacon of power.

Vee and her group made their way through Slime Forest. The activity and scrutiny surrounding the mysterious Bandit Massacre was finally dying down, and she was glad of it. Having been the only witnesses and survivors of the strange encounter, they’d been the subjects of much gossip and rumor. They’d even talked of leaving Slime Forest, but the money here was still too good to pass up. The forest had many things to hunt, some of which, like the chimeras, could not be found anywhere else.

Today, however, they were not on a hunt. They had a specific goal: something to investigate. Sometime during the previous night or evening, a massive tree had sprouted in the forest, nearly twice the height of any other in the forest. According to Trella, it was practically glowing with aura. Vee didn’t have the same ability to perceive aura as the young Kin woman of the Red Fox clan, but she certainly felt some kind of draw when she gazed upon it in the distance.

Grix, Sil and Sul kept a formation around their mage while Vee ranged ahead. As she drew closer to their destination, she picked up a faint smell of woodsmoke. A cooking fire? Had another group already reached the curious tree?

She reached the edge of a clearing, and peeked through some brush, staying low and out of sight. Near the center of the clearing stood the massive tree. Vee drew in a sharp breath. A dryad’s tree?! She had seen one of these before, years ago. Dryads could inhabit any tree that they helped to grow, but only a certain kind of tree would allow them to produce a new generation of dryads. This would surely be a boon to this forest, especially as a hunting ground. Dryad trees enriched the soil with magic, leading to a healthier forest and stronger beasts.

She tore her eyes from the magnificent tree to take in the rest of the clearing. Not far from the base of the tree was a small fire, with small fish roasting on sticks over it. Squatting next to the fire was a massive Kin, of a clan she’d never seen before, dressed in loose and simple clothing. It was a hulking brute of a Kin, with thick and powerful looking arms and legs, and a long, whip-like tail. His fur was a mottled black and red coloration. His head was almost like one of the wolf clan’s, aside from the pronounced brow. And his golden eyes were locked right on Vee’s own.

He maintained the stare for what felt like minutes before returning his attention to the fish cooking over the fire.

She had been so caught up in staring at the Kin, she had entirely failed to notice the dryad draping herself over his back and shoulder while speaking in hushed tones, or the oddly colored green and white spear that lay next to their feet.

After a few more moments of Vee staring at the strange duo, the dryad also looked in her direction and shouted. “Well, what are you waiting for, aren’t you here to see my new tree?”