"Arrrrrrghk!!!!"

The hag clutches her stomach and cries out. Crystal tears leak down her cheeks as she curls up in the dirt, uncaring of the dirt that smears into her hair and rough clothes.

"At this rate we'll be dead before morning. Nevermind the bird." The dwarf mutters, while the Minotaur crouches next to the hag in worry. There wasn't anything he could do to relieve her pain, without even arms to pat her on the back or carry her to a safer location.

"Here" Begrudgingly, the blind dwarf sets down his sword and runs his hands over the dirt until he finds what he's looking for.

"She needs to stay quiet if we're to survive." Using the rope connected to each of their waists as a guide, the dwarf finds the hag and pats her face, fingers hooking into her mouth.

His thick fingers work to pry open her jaw and press the piece of wood to her lips "Bite into this."

"No!" Knitting her lips together, the hag vehemently shakes her head, jowels flapping, and refuses. "No! This will pass!"

"You can't make her bite into the wood! To bite wood is to bite into her flesh!" Looking at the sight before him in alarm, the Minotaur wedges his thick leg between the dwarf and the hag.

"I know that! But we don't have any other choice!" Long ragged hair whips around the dwarf's unseeing eyes, widened in anger.

"The trees will help us." The old hag's sallow face wrinkles into deep furrows as she replies with gritted teeth.

Neither the Minotaur or dwarf seems to hear her.

Screeeeak!!

The rusted and chipped blade screeches as the dwarf unsheathes the sword given to them by the priest. He winces at the sound of the blade, running his fingers over the edge.

"This will have to do. If only my brothers could see me now." With the sword fully released from its sheath, he turns the sword inwards, pointing the tip at his own throat. He should have done this earlier, instead of stumbling about like a fool. And for what? The hope that somehow they would find the bird and be release from their slavehood? Grasping at ashes, he was.

Especially when he knew just exactly what these collars could do. Blind he may be, but a doddering fool, he was not.

Clang!

A powerful hoof kicks the sword out of the dwarf's grasp.

"Climb up"

"What?" Incredulous, the dwarf blinks cloudy eyes at the Minotaur's statement.

It should be simple enough. The Minotaur repeats himself, grunting as he crouches down. "I said climb up. I don't have arms, but you do. I have eyes, but you don't. We have to fight together. "

He uses his hooved feet to kick the sword towards the blind dwarf's bare feet.

"Pick up the sword, and climb up"

"Aeeeeeeiikk!"

The hag cries out again as she breathes in and out heavily. Sweat poured down her brow, making her look frightening, with face twisted and glistening in pain. A green glow emits from her fingers, where her palm touches the bark of the nearest tree.

Blink.

Light winks inside the blue crystal mana stones embedded in each of the slaves' collars, evidence that the priests of the Mioldri Empire were watching.

-----------------

Leaves fall to the ground as the tree shivers.

Ping!

Master look!

Greenie gestures with his slingshot at the tree he'd just hit. It had taken a good part of the day to get Greenie used to the slingshot, but we were finally seeing some progress.

Great hit, Greenie!

I clap my wings to congratulate him but freeze at what was happening behind Greenie as he turned to face me in excitement. Leaves were still falling to the ground of the tree Greenie hit.

The tree was still shivering. Like the shivering strings of the guitar, almost, the shaking branches causing a rustling noise.

Behind the tree that Greenie had just hit, another tree shivered, a bit stronger. And another, and another behind it, in a clear path leading to- somewhere.

Greenie backs up warily towards me when the sound behind him makes him realize the shaking trees behind him.

Master? We go?

That sounded like a good idea. I wanted nothing to do with the strange happenings that were going on here.

We should leave this place. Go back to our cave for now.

Let's go, Greenie.

Flying up on his shoulder, I keep my neck turned and eyes focused on the trees behind as Greenie steps further away.

We'd come to this clearing only because there were more stones here, and bushes and trees with differing thicknesses to practice the slingshot on.

Help me! Please! It was a cry of help, the whisper of it echoing in my mind.

Who was that!?

What was calling me??

Looking down at the ground that passes by me with each footstep Greenie takes, the words repeat themselves in my mind.

What if it was a trap. One of the humans from before, or another creature, trying to kill us. But why make the trees shake and expend energy for one bird and goblin. Why ask a bird for help in the first place? I knew that voice was talking to me, when I was the only one with Thought Transmission I'd met so far, other than the goblins. I couldn't imagine the voice was asking the goblins for help. So that left me.

Ha! As if I was going to fall for that!

I wasn't going to risk my life or Greenie's because of a voice asking for help. I was no saint. Either way, I was more curious than interested in helping the owner of the voice because of my own twisted sense of justice.

The trees were still shivering behind us, while Greenie stopped in his tracks.

Master.

Lost.

What?!

We weren't too far from the cave. Greenie should have had an easy time getting back to our cave. But the trees around us looked the same.

Even the tall tree that we'd been using for target practice was still behind us, pock-marked and shivering.

Let me check from the sky.

Creeeak.

When my body lifts off Greenie's shoulder to the open skies, the clearing suddenly grows darker. It was the trees, tightening their branches closer to each other.

I couldn't get through the foliage like this, let alone to the open sky above the forest.

Greenie tries strong-arming his way out back towards our cave. It doesn't work. The trees were too overgrown now, blocking off every gap we'd find until we're entirely surrounded by thick bushes and trees tangled together.

Only one exit remained, and that was in the opposite direction of our cave, where the trees were shaking as if they were beckoning us.

Whoever was calling us was that powerful.

No matter how fast I found a gap and dove towards it, the trees were quicker, sealing it off.

Please! The voice calls into my mind again, sounding weaker than before.

Fine.

Too bad we didn't have a bag with us to carry all our stuff. The only weapons we had right now were the slingshot stuck in Greenie's loincloth and the stones in his other hand. The spear and the hoe were both back at the cave.

There wasn't anything else for us to prepare. We were trapped, with the only way forward following the line of shaking trees.

Greenie.

Flying back to Greenie's shoulder, I remind Greenie to have his slingshot ready.

Ahh, if we'd only had some Spice Bombs right now, how much more confident I would have been. Even the spear.

If we ever survived this ordeal, I knew the next thing we needed to make.

Let's go follow the trees, but run if you sense any danger. I can fly, but you can't.

Yes, Master.

-------

We press forward in silence, with only the whispering shivering of the leaves in the trees our only accompaniment.

Greenie and I didn't have much of a plan. Run when attacked, fight if there was nowhere else to go.

The new skills he'd gained after evolution would be helpful in any case.

A weakened, hoarse cry sounds out past the bushes in front of us, hiding whatever was there. Very carefully, we creep through the bush together to see what was on the other side.

A tattered figure lay on the ground, arms outstretched while one hand lightly lay upon the tree. She looked dead. Until she groans and curls into the fetus position. It makes the dark green hair covering her face fall away, revealing-

An ugly old lady. She looked like that witch in Hansel & Gretel, except with dark green hair that rustled dryly like leaves.

What was an old woman like her doing in the middle of the forest?

Greenie, I'll go see if it's a trap while you stay in the bushes.

No me go!

I press my wing into Greenie's chest to keep him from standing up. Though I appreciated his concern, this was no time for him to demonstrate his loyalty or heroism.

Greenie, I can fly, remember? It's easier for me to look and fly away if she tries to hurt me.

Tapping his thick chest once again to calm him, I hop out of the bush before he can stop me.Even with the rustling noise caused by me hopping towards the old women, she doesn't budge.

But she does curl inwards, like a worm, when I poke her with the knuckle of my talon.

Um.. Hello?

Did you call?

Silence. It was completely quiet now in the forest. The trees no longer rustled. Not even a bird call could be heard.

GROOOOAAAR!

A huge figure leaps out behind the furthest tree, swinging something that flashes down at me-