When I woke that morning, Smell was again standing guard while Scar was pressed close to me. Feeling the warmth she radiated, I shrugged. I could get used to that, although…a host of memories of Sandra and my time in the flat flowed through my mind. I closed my eyes and let them come. I had bottled them up for too long already.

Ten minutes later, I sat up, strengthened in my desire to find her again. To figure out if she meant what she wrote or if she would push me away again.

But first, I thought with a grin. I moved to my pack and took out a piece of wood and my knife. I cast Soften Wood, split it along its length until I had two flat pieces, and began sharpening the ends. I added a finger-sized hole in one end and created a sharp tip on the other sides. Jamming a small piece of wood through each of their middles to connect them, I held up my wooden scissors.

"Perfect," I grinned while casting Harden Wood twice. Touching the edge of the wood, it felt sharp and ready.

"Now, let's see how this Grooming works."

With some difficulty, I began cutting my long hair. It had been getting in the way a few times, falling into my eyes, so even if things didn't go as planned, it would be a good idea. At first, I had thought to just cut it as short as I could, but then a ping came from my status.

> Grooming 1/99

A dozen curses and laughs later, I wished I had a mirror. From how it felt, I should have cut my hair to roughly finger length everywhere, but it wouldn't hurt to check. My grooming was four now, but it only increased quickly for the first few points.

Looking around, I saw Scar and Smell examine me.

"Do you want some off the top, girls?" I said with a grin. They just stared at me, and I shrugged. As I did, I felt small hairs itching my neck, and I tried wiping them away. No luck of course. Grumbling as I thought of the shower back in Dursic, I packed my bag and grabbed my ax.

A disgusting, pungent smell assaulted my nostrils. It came from my backpack, and my eyes widened. "The boar meat!"

With a groan, I opened the pack and took out the parcel wrapped in boar leather. Even without opening it, the stink was enough to make me want to vomit. "Dammit…" I said and tossed the package on the ground. Smell and Scar sniffed it and backed up.

Slinging the bag over my shoulders again, I took out the map and pinpointed the nearest dangerous area the goblin had pointed out. He hadn't been able to tell me more than that the Goblins didn't come anywhere near it, which didn't help much.

"Let's go."

Smell and Scar followed me, and we set out on another long trek through the woods.

It was afternoon when I noticed the woods began to change. The dark, gnarled trees had fewer leaves, and the bushes looked like someone had burned them. Vegetation on the ground was getting sparse, and I slowed my brisk pace to a careful crawl.

Either there was a disease in these woods, or we were reaching the edge of the dangerous area.

Finally, I stopped walking entirely, and I noticed that the sounds of the forest had dulled. The sharp, high-pitched bird sounds were gone, and the trees creaked as they swayed in the wind. Suddenly, I was glad I wasn't here alone.

"Keep your eyes open; it might get dangerous," I said to the two Wirgs. They looked at me, and I could see the ridicule in their eyes. Right, perhaps a bit too much, I thought as I grinned and felt my anxiety lessen.

I continued forward, and the trees we passed began showing dry cracks. The ground was dusty, and the air that wafted in from the direction we were going was warm and smelled moldy and disgusting.

Looking at the map, I knew we would need to go further into the sinister area a while before turning left. That would take us along the edge of the area, bypassing both the guard towers and patrols in this area.

A few hundred meters further, Scar and Smell, started sniffing things, stopping and keening softly. Another fifty meters further in they stopped, looking at me while hesitating, appearing unwilling to continue.

Looking around, I agreed with them. "This is deep enough," I muttered and began walking left. I couldn't help from keeping my eyes to the right, deeper into the forest of long thin shadows that moved like tentacles.

An hour later, I was finally convincing myself that it was just a creepy wood when the Wirgs stopped and began growling.

Fuck, I had to go and jinx it…

Looking around, I saw that Smell was looking in a different direction than Scar, but both stared into the depths of the woods. At first, I saw and heard nothing; then a whispering song became audible. Too soft to understand at first, I tried to detect its origin while wondering if I should run for it. Then the words became clear, and my skin began crawling.

"Little, little mortal, walking in the woods."

"Thinks his ax will guard him ‘gainst things that mean no good."

"Fear will not help you, nor will your ax."

The voice suddenly surged closer, and Smell growled as she jumped at one of the trees.

"Now, we will eat your eyeballs oh so, so sweet…"

The tree Smell rushed towards suddenly moved, the branches surging forward and gripping the Wirg mid-leap. Before I could even think of acting, they wrapped around Smell's neck and began strangling her.

Not one of those fucking Hags again, I groaned as I whirled around while two of my hands cast Entangle on the tree. When the green glow surged to the tree, the sound of shattering glass resounded.

The tree froze, the branches no longer moving as if my spell had countered the one already on the tree.

"Sisters, look! It knows elder magic, such a treat!" came a hideous screech, and I saw movement all around me.

As I inched towards Smell, a growling Scar beside me, six mottled looking figures stepped from behind the trees. Reminiscent of the Hag I had seen, they looked like old, hideously disfigured women with burning green eyes. Their yellow mottled skins were covered in patches of dark green mold, and I saw caterpillars and centipedes crawl through their hair.

One of the Hags pointed her finger at me.

"Boy, boy, with eyes so fair, come with us to our lair!" the Hag chanted, her voice beautiful again. I felt a wave of lethargy envelop me, and fog began clouding my mind. I actively felt my will to resist drain away, and instinctively I cast Entangle with three of my hands on the trees surrounding the Hag.

As my hands fluttered, the other hags made gestures of their own, but slower than me, and my spells fired first. The trees surged into motion, grabbing the singing Hag who released an ear-piercing screech. The lethargic feeling immediately dissipated, and I turned to the tree, intent on freeing Smell and then getting the hell out of there. A sudden itch, bordering on pain made me yelp and scratch my arm. The itch spread like wildfire, and all I could think of was getting rid of it. Ripping off one of the leather arm guards, I was horrified to find a yellowish mold with red veins growing on my arm, spreading fast.

A soft sound came from behind me, and I tried to turn around but a green fingered, black-taloned hand gripped my shoulder, while another talon pressed against my neck.

"Sleeeeeeeeeeep," sang a soft voice, and I blacked out.

--

A loud howl woke me with a start, and I tried to sit up to find I couldn't move. My eyes snapped open, and I was momentarily disoriented as I saw the ceiling sway above me. Then, I realized I was hanging upside down, bound by vines hanging from the ceiling of a dark and moldy cave. A dim green light came from an opening ahead of me. My head was killing me, and I felt tired and weak.

They caught me… I thought when another loud howl came from the room beside mine.

"No, no, little Wirg! Hold still, or it will just hurt more!"

What were they doing to Smell or Scar? I began struggling until I managed to spin full circle. I was in a small cave with some vines growing in the back up the wall. Looking up, they were also what held me. My ax and bag were gone, but more disturbing was that I wasn't wearing anything. Even my loincloth was gone. I tried to move my hands and cast Entangle, but some of the gestures required me to move my hand more than the bindings would allow, and they fizzled. The only good thing seemed to be that I saw no more of the odd mold, and there was no itch.

Another pained howl cut off abruptly, and a soft gleeful laugh came from the tunnel. .

"Seeeee, it's not that bad? Now you will make a beautiful addition to my army!"

A wail followed, guttural and unlike what I heard any Wirg ever make.

That can't be good, I thought. I struggled against the vines, but they didn't budge, and the momentary attempt left me winded. Perhaps in perfect condition, I might have ripped free, but not now.

"Ahhhh, the unique specimen has woken! Marvelous, let's bring you in right away!"

A massively fat Hag shuffled into the room, a dirty brown gown barely reeling in the rolls of fat that wobbled as she walked. She reached up with a crooked, taloned hand and slashed the vine. A moment of vertigo, and then I slammed into the ground, barely managing to turn on my back so I wouldn't snap my neck.

The Hag gripped the bindings around my ankles and dragged me across the muddy, moldy ground into a larger cave with a wooden table in the middle. To the side stood a wooden cage and in it sat Smell, or what was left of her. Missing both ears and with a smattering of small mushrooms growing from her back, she had her eyes closed and lay on the ground without moving. Her once lush fur had started falling out, revealing patches of skin covered in lesions.

"What did you do to Smell?" I said, my voice coming out as a croak.

"Oh, you can still speak? Impressive! Keep up this resilience, and perhaps you will actually enjoy what comes next!" The Hag said before she giggled like a little girl. The sweet, high pitched sound was so awkward from the massive disfigured shape that I shuddered.

She raised me up with a single arm and slammed me atop the table, the air rushing out of me.

"Now stay right here while I get your first!" she smiled at me, and a tongue like a green slug licked her top lip.

My hairs stood on end as she waddled away, the table trembling from her steps. As soon as she was gone, I turned my head to look at Smell.

"Smell, wake up!" I hissed, realizing I'd never called her by the name I'd given her. She didn't show any indication that she had heard me. "Wake up!" I hissed, louder this time.

A dissonant giggle from the entrance made my blood curdle, and I looked over. Another hag, thin and with a revolting rash across her naked torso, stood at the entrance.

"She won't answer you, not now and not ever!" she said, before moving inside, unsteadily. Her eyes were out of focus, and when she got to the table, she steadied herself with both hands. From this close, I could see that the rash was some sort of mold growing across her bark-like skin. Her hair wasn't really hair, but elongated cords of fungus that smelled like old sewage.

"What do you want," I muttered, getting an ominous feeling as I saw her sizing me up.

"Nothing you won't like!" she said, followed by a gurgling laugh. Then she pushed herself atop the table and straddled me. Her four saggy breasts reminded me of raisins, and I felt the urge to scream.