Silently cursing the Moss Beast with every loping step, Glenn ran unerringly in a direction he was almost certain was east. He’d always been good with directions, even in the dark. Glenn’s friend Zack often said Glenn already had a Ranger’s Blessing hidden away, and Glenn liked to think so.

Yet as the sound of tramping Grass Sprites and the light of Becka’s torch vanished, leaving him in almost darkness, Glenn slowed to a jog and breathed heavily as he moved. He couldn’t fall or trip now, and as light as Azalea and the [Traveler’s Pack] had seemed when he first picked them both up, he’d been running and fighting for some time. Both pack and child were growing heavy.

Sinister doubts twisted inside Glenn’s mind as he jogged in near dark. He was going the wrong direction. That Moss Beast was even now ripping off Becka’s limbs one by one. She would scream and suffer and die as Glenn wandered for hours, failing them both.

Yet he couldn’t doubt himself. He couldn’t doubt Becka. They might only be Level 4, but if any non-Adventurers in Wolfpine could save this child, it was Glenn Redwood and Rebecka Coldbreaker. And then, just when Glenn despaired of ever seeing moonlight again, the endless lines of trees broke.

There was moonlight ahead! Glenn threw himself into one last sprint. He almost fell as he kicked a stubborn root, but kept his feet through determination alone. Soon he was running across grass, and then the reassuring blue glow of a Safe Stone appeared ahead.

He’d made it! No Monster could follow them onto this road, not so long as the Safe Stones glowed. Yet Becka remained alone in the Deepscorn Woods, possibly being savaged by a Moss Beast’s sharpened teeth. He had to get back to her soon.

Glenn huffed and glanced down at Azalea’s still form, still fast asleep in his arms. Despite the fires, the shouting, and the running, Azalea hadn’t even stirred. Yet her small chest rose and fell evenly, and her nostrils expanded with each breath. She was alive, still … just asleep.

Had that Moss Beast charmed her, like a Guilecaster used [-Charm-] to temporarily force a foe to fight for them? That had to be it. Glenn no longer believed Azalea had simply wandered all the way out here on her own, let alone into a circle of Grass Sprites.

The Moss Beast or one of its servants had charmed Azalea somehow. An Adventurer who’d deigned to talk with Glenn a few months ago had claimed some Monsters could [-Charm-] mortals of sufficiently lower Level, and Azalea was Level 1. So the question was, why hadn’t the charm broken?

Glenn dropped his knees, set Azalea down gently to free his hands, and pulled Becka’s pack off his back. He dug through it until he found Azalea’s stuffed tribbit, pink and warm, and pulled it out. He shook Azalea mightily, worried he might hurt her ... but more worried she’d never wake up.

“Wake up,” Glenn shouted. “Azalea, please, you have to wake up!”

She didn’t stir. Her breaths remained even. As Glenn considered what freeing her might take, he knew he had no time to waste in futile attempts. He slapped Azalea on the cheek, hard.

Her eyes shot open. Her cheek turned a fierce red, and the way she flinched tore at Glenn’s heart. Azalea confusedly blinked up at him, eyes as wide as a startled firedeer. Tears flooded her little blue eyes. Then, little Azalea Whitetalon sobbed her eyes out.

Glenn felt like an absolutely horrid beast for slapping her so hard, but at least he’d woken her, finally. That was another bit about [-Charm-] he’d learned from the Adventurer. A strong enough shock could break the victim’s mental connection to the caster. Had this shock been enough?

Glenn shoved Azalea’s stuffed pink tribbit into her hands. “You’re safe! It’s okay!”

Azalea gasped. “Mister Squeaky!” She clutched her tribbit tightly and blinked through her tears, staring as if seeing him for the first time. “And ... Glenn?”

Azalea remembered him! She didn’t seem charmed any longer. He had broken the connection.

“I was dreaming about flutterflies,” Azalea whispered. “Is this still a dream?”

“It’s real, Azy.” Glenn hoped her mother’s pet name for her would reassure her she was safe and with a friend. “And I’m sorry, but no matter how scared you are right now, I need you to focus and listen to me. Can you listen? Can you do that for me, honey?”

Sniffling and trembling, Azalea nodded. She’d always been a remarkably tough girl, especially for a girl with nine years to her name. Or nine years and three days, counting her resurrection.

“Becka’s lost in the woods,” Glenn said. “She’s in danger. Monsters might be trying to hurt her right now. I have to go save her, but first, I need you to promise me you’ll go right home.”

Azalea glanced fearfully behind her, then down, as if realizing for the first time she was standing on the Safe Road. “Home?”

“Straight north,” Glenn said, and pointed behind her. “You take Mister Squeaky north as fast as your legs will carry you, and you stay on this Safe Road no matter what. Go to Wolfpine, Azy. Go home.”

She clutched her tribbit tight, tears pouring down her cheeks. “But Becka!”

“I’ll save her,” Glenn said. “I swear it.” He forced a smile. “I’m an Adventurer now.”

A smile broke through Azalea’s tears. “North to town.”

“Promise me,” Glenn said. “Don’t leave the Safe Road.”

“I can get there on my own,” Azalea said, stronger now. “I promise, but you have to save Becka.”

Glenn forced a grin as cocksure as he could manage. “I plan on it. Now run. Go!”

Azalea took off running. Good. Glenn yanked another torch from Becka’s pack. He pulled the flint and steel from his pocket, struck sparks until the torch caught fire, and then shouldered Becka’s pack. With a raised torch in one hand and his sword in the other, he rushed back into the woods.

Glenn didn’t know if he could even find Becka any longer. He didn’t have [-Tracker’s Vision-] to call upon, but even if the Moss Beast had killed Becka, he could still retrieve her ensouled body. So long as he got Becka’s ensouled body back to Wolfpine—and to Richard Deepscar—before twelve hours elapsed and Becka’s soul forcefully released, Richard could use [-Resurrect-].

Becka might lose some experience as punishment for dying, but she could easily gain that back in a few months, especially now that she and Glenn were Leveling partners. And even if she fell behind, losing a Level was better than losing one’s life. Becka could regain experience.

No one could undo the forever death.

Whether Becka remained among the living or was now one of the ensouled dead, Glenn wasn’t going to leave this forest until he found her or her body. He’d search the entire night if necessary. He’d slaughter every Monster in these six-cursed woods to bring Becka safely home.

Soon the absolute darkness of the Deepscorn swallowed him once more, but Glenn knew better than to let himself give into self-doubt. Doubting himself and his ability to save Becka would only put them both in danger, and Becka was tough, brave, and wickedly smart. If anyone could successfully evade a Moss Beast and its horde of Grass Sprites in nothing but a [Seamstress Dress], it was her.

He went straight west once more, following the same path he’d followed when Becka led him using [-Tracker’s Vision-]. He had followed almost the reverse of that path as he fled, and reversing again was the best way to return to the point where they split up. If he was lucky, the passage of a Moss Beast and a dozen Grass Sprites minutes ago had left an obvious path.

If it hadn’t, well … he still had almost twelve hours to find Becka’s ensouled body.

Yet Glenn’s faith in himself and his Adventuring partner was rewarded. The Moss Beasts and its minions had torn up a trail during their passage, snapping tree limbs like toothpicks all the way from what Glenn assumed was their still burning Ritual circle. Glenn turned instead to follow the blindingly obvious trail leading away from the circle.

The Monsters had gone straight north … chasing after Becka. Glenn kept his pace to a jog despite his fear. As when they’d first set out to rescue Azalea, he couldn’t exhaust himself before he even caught up with the Monster horde. He’d been born with a decent amount of Vitality and improved it almost every Level, but he’d already run very hard tonight.

He was no Mammoth Cloudcrusher. Glenn knew his limits. He set a bearable pace.

Yet as it turned out, he jogged for less than a minute before the sound of chittering Grass Sprites and the menacing creak of branches on the wind announced he’d almost caught up to the Moss Beast and its minions. The fact that they still sounded very angry suggested Becka was alive ... he hoped.

====

Just because a mortal or Monster is significantly higher Level than its opponent doesn’t mean its low Level opponent can't win the fight. A higher Level means higher attributes, more Skills and Blessings, and more Health Points and Blood, yet the Gods impart no special protections based on Level. Even a Level 1 Skirmisher could theoretically defeat a Level 15 Minotaur, though the odds of such an occurrence are low.

Powerful Enchanted gear or weapons can give even low Level Adventurers significant bite, as can clever strategy in battle or a buff from a high Level ally. Moreover, Adventurers who have Dual Classed often have attributes wildly out of balance with the current Level of their second Class. They can often drop Monsters above their Level with raw power.

Yet regardless of the Level difference, soloing any non-Elite Monster awards 10 experience, except in cases where the defeated Monster is more than three Levels below the Adventure’s current Level ... in which case defeating the Monster awards no experience at all. Thus, adventurers who wish to grow stronger must constantly seek out and defeat higher Level foes to grow stronger.