I flew to the ground. Sharp stones raking across my skin, and I felt the searing agony of torn flesh on my side and shoulder where I’d landed.

I screamed, and received a muffling mouthful of dirt in response, as the stoor worm’s attack had kicked up enough earth to choke me.

I spit bits of it out and stood, leaning against a tree. If I’d landed a few inches to the left, I would have split my skull open on the hardened, gnarled roots. Thankfully, Shizu’s shield had taken most of the impact before he’d crashed into me.

I waved my arm around, desperately trying to clear a visual path through the dirt cloud surrounding me. I saw indistinct shapes moving far ahead, and staggered toward them, clutching my wounded arm. Tang’s cloak was shredded, and the flesh of my bloodied bicep peeked out through the slashes in the fabric. Blood trickled down my arm and dripped from my hand, staining the ground where I walked.

I better not die again.

At this point, I was used to getting banged up, so I focused on moving forward, toward the silhouettes beyond the fog.

Where was the ax?

I’d had it when the worm hit us, but it was gone now.

Probably stuck in the highest branches of the tallest tree, with my luck.

Another roar ripped through the chaos, and I heard the smash of Shizu’s steel shields against the creature’s thick hide. I stepped over a log and continued on, wishing I had brought a rocket launcher from my world.

“Suck on this, dickhead,” I would have said, and then fired a spice missle right into that thing’s stupid, gross face.

I hadn’t had access to weaponry like that back home, but the thought brought me a little bit of hope.

Everything can be killed.

I narrowly dodged a large chunk of rock shrapnel, as it whipped passed my head.

Including me.

I could now see Shizu, both shields on his arms, pommeling that absolute hell out of the stoor worm. The beast was snapping at him with its awful teeth, but each time it would harmlessly gnash against the edge of the Fomorian’s guard, screaming in anger.

Shizu was bruised, but didn’t seem to have had the same misfortune I’d encountered by that initial blow. He grit his teeth, and slammed his shield into the stoor worm’s jaw as the creature opened its mouth, forcing it closed. It stopped the poison gas from escaping. A few plumes puffed out from the beast’s maw, but they dispersed before getting far.

It seemed like it was all Shizu could do to keep the monster at bay. His hits were hard, but on a well-protected creature like that, weren’t all that effective. The stoor worm would recoil, go for another bite or noxious green plume, and Shizu would shut it down. He was too busy fending off the attacks to return a good one.

It makes sense. In a game, people who use shields as their chosen weapon tend not to be straight fighters, as they usually Tank. People who use two shields... Well, sister, that’s a whole new breed.

I knew that while Shizu was concentrating on keeping the stoor worm from activating its potent attack, he’d never be able to take it down. He’d eventually tire, and it would be deadly. I hadn’t seen the Fomorian eat anything all day, either, so his Stamina was likely nearing the red.

I scanned the field of our battle, looking for anything to aid us. Upturned earth and stone scattered the ground, but I didn’t see any sign of a weapon. I’d hoped to see the ax laying on the ground somewhere, but it seemed it was truly gone. Guess I’d have to have Sage do all the heavy lifting from now on.

Sage.

I couldn’t see the woodcutter anywhere. I had an awful thought and whipped around, running back in the direction I had come.

That log had looked a little strange.

I saw him. The young Human was face down in the dirt, his body twisted at an unnatural angle, his arms splayed out. Above his body, his name was gray, blending into the tones of the debris cloud.

I hadn’t even noticed!

I reached him faster than I thought possible, and slid against the ground to stop myself, grasping Sage by the shoulders and flipping him over. His eyes were closed, and his face was covered in blood.

No, no, no.

“Sage!” I shouted, shaking him to hopefully rouse him.

Nothing.

I pressed my index and middle finger to his throat just under his jaw, as I’d seen in countless movies in my life and waited. I didn’t know if this was actually how to check for a pulse or if it was more Hollywood fabrication, but I had to try something.

Thump.

He’s still alive!

I exhaled, realizing I had been holding my breath.

Skill level Increase: [Medicine - Level 2]!

You’re becoming more accustomed to the refined doctrine of feelin’ good. With this new knowledge, you are more easily able to discern an NPC or Player’s condition, and gain the benefit of increased Stamina and Health regeneration with consumable items. Helpful tip: if you’ve got a sword sticking out of you-- that’s bad!

This isn’t the time for jokes.

I felt confident that moving Sage to a safer spot would help to keep him from dying, so I slipped my arm under his knees and the other behind his shoulders and neck for support and lifted.

Dammit!

While still young, as a Human, Sage was larger than I was, and my strength wasn’t sufficient. I couldn’t carry him at all. Instead, I switched my tactic and got behind him, grabbing him under his armpits and began dragging him.

It was slow going, but I was able to carefully transport the unconscious woodcutter to a tree. It seemed like a good idea to keep him upright, so I propped him up against the trunk. I wanted to make sure he was comfortable, but time was of the essence, so I decided to remove his vest to cushion his back. I slipped his arms out and bunched up the fabric. As I did, I saw the empty sheath for his hatchet.

I quickly stuffed the bundle of leather behind his back, and raced off toward where I found him.

The churned dirt where he had lain seemed as likely a spot as any to find the weapon, so I dropped to my knees, and began scooping handfuls out of the shallow pit as fast as I could. Sage was a woodcutter, and his tools were his livelihood. Even injured, he’d probably have held on to the hatchet as long as possible. I sifted through the loose ground until my fingertips brushed against something cold and smooth.

Bingo.

I lifted the hatchet triumphantly.

I’ve gotta go. Now. Shizu needs help.

I hopped up, and dashed back toward the calamitous noise of the battle still raging further on.

The cloud of dirt had dispersed, and as I neared I could see Shizu had taken on a strictly defensive role. He was holding his shields out and simply countering as the stoor worm struck out at him. The beast lashed out with its fangs and clattered against the Fomorian’s guard. The gargantuan Player then crashed back against the worm, careful to keep one shield positioned directly in front of its mouth at all times.

Get in there.

Now confronted with the realization that I’d have to actually fight this thing, my body was showing its tell-tale symptoms of my fear. I quivered. I felt the dampness of cold sweat on my face and arms. I tightened my grip on the hatchet’s handle to try and anchor myself to the situation as my vision tunneled.

Go. Do something. You’re here. Help him!

Shizu blocked a bite again, but wasn’t quick enough to dodge a swipe from the beast’s tail. It bashed him right in the head, and Shizu went sprawling. He brought the shields up defensively as the stoor worm descended on him. The creature struck repeatedly in order to destroy the warrior’s barrier.

Move, you fucking idiot!

I was frozen.

I could see almost in slow motion as the stoor worm finally smashed through Shizu’s dual towers. The Fomorian’s arm twisted with a thunderous crack, and he cried out, the shield plunging deep into the dirt next to him. Shizu flipped onto his stomach, his arm dangling uselessly at his side, and tried to crawl away.

Shizu’s eyes fell on me in that moment, and he stopped. I knew that he could see the fear and shame on my face, and his own ferocious expression softened. He closed his eyes.

I dropped the hatchet in defeat.

Like a bullwhip, the stoor worm struck down on him from behind, and Shizu’s body tensed up. A cloud of the gas breath filled the space around them, and I heard a muffled yelp.

Run. Get out of here. You’re next unless you RUN.

Nothing.

The gas cleared. A partially eaten Shizu lay in the grass.

My stomach churned at the scene, but the stoor worm made short work of him. The monster chomped into my friend’s flesh until his body dissolved into sparkling ash and dissipated.

My turn.

The stoor worm knew I was there.

With a roar, it lifted the upper half of its body, and its black eyes all shifted to my direction. Then it dove forward, beelining right for me.

Running away, I can do.

I pivoted and shot off in the opposite direction as fast as I could.

I raced through the forest, weaving in and out between trees and leaping over rocks and fallen branches. All the while, the creature was right behind me. And gaining. It took me a moment to realize I was heading back towards where I’d left Sage, but knew that was a colossally bad move. He’d be an easy meal. So, legs burning, I slammed my right foot into the dirt ahead of me and shot off to my left. I had changed course so quickly that as I continued, I saw a flash of brown, as the stoor worm kept moving. It roared again when it discovered my ruse, and I heard it giving chase behind me once more.

I didn’t know where I was going, but I knew I needed to keep running as long as I could. If I couldn’t fight it, I’d have to just hope my Stamina held out longer than its did.

I kept running, leaping over a small creek in one go. The ground was a blur beneath me as I focused only on the path ahead. The earth started to slope upwards, and I cursed my luck.

A hill.

I kept up my gallop, and chanced a look behind me as the ground leveled out again. Down the slope, the stoor worm was still a few short paces behind me, with no sign of slowing. I looked at my own stamina.

20 / 120

This is bad.

I wouldn’t be able to last much longer.

The trees began thinning and I could see a long stretch of open grass ahead. It appeared to swell gently to perhaps another hill but it looked like a straight shot.

Push harder! You let Shizu die because you were too afraid, don’t mess this up too!

I shot another look back. There was now a considerable distance between myself and the creature. It looked as though he was exhausted. Even his roars seemed tired. I felt the rise of the hill, and looked ahead again.

Nothing.

There was no ground beneath me, just a hundred foot drop over countless jagged rocks and a tiny sliver of river. I had run off the edge of a cliff!

I plummeted.

The world below hurled itself at me like nothing I’d experienced before. My organs were floating, and my whole body buzzed with adrenaline. I wasn’t even close to landing in the narrow ribbon of water. No, I was taking a direct flight to stabby-rock, ouchie-town central. I could see the point of one stone formation in particular seeming especially likely to make my acquaintance.

This is going to hurt.

And it did. But only for a moment.