Red met her eyes.

Slowly widening, still in the midst of confusion and sleep.

Her amber eyes scoured over the landscape.

Every colour was muted except for the drops dripping from her face.

Bringing a hand to her forehead met with more of the substance.

Blood, mixed with soil and the forest’s droppings.

Pushing off the floor her pack lay a few steps away, but when she tried willing her legs forward she collapsed to the ground below.

Catching the roots before they met skin and bone, Shadow could barely think.

Could barely walk.

And behind her were two of the biggest red outlines she had ever seen.

Her head limp, between her arms still gripping the roots she pulled it up.

Before she began pulling towards the pack.

Grabbing root after root, legs catching every second obstacle, her head burned with a vigor she couldn’t and didn’t want to comprehend.

“What h-” Hacking up nothing but her tongue, she continued to weakly pull herself forward.

Thinking was for later, when she wasn’t close to her death throes.

“Uffp.” Losing her grip, Shadow's head was centimeters away from pounding into the ground.

The pack only steps away felt like a marathon when crawling through the small maze.

Until it became only one push away from-

“Atch,” Pulling her hand back, Shadow in reflex looked down, dotted along the middle of her hand was new bloodied marks, almost looking like bite marks.

The roots below had grown spikes-

“Not happening.” Pushing off her leg with her hand, she was just able to reach her pack.

Hands nimble, the unnecessary was ignored while her eyes locked on to each item that would help.

She picked up the bandages, water and-

What else was there?

Items pushed and shoved until finally cold touched her fingertips.

The red cylinder stared at Shadow, she stared at it for a quick moment before dropping the bandage and waterskin.

Grabbing the health potion she immediately chugged the whole container.

Smashing the glass into the ground, the waterskin and bandages were next, it was damage control.

Her head and hands were the only places left still bleeding, wrapping a bandage around her head and hands took moments.

Snapping her head around she could already feel the potion working but the two monsters-

What was a mess of roots became a cage, a spiked cage with the red and purple wood tree’s interlinked, defending the white tree.

“The root-”

Eyes gaining back their colour a pitch of white stood right next to the pack.

Letting go of the breath she didn’t realise she was holding she quickly put the root away and immediately grabbed the bag and backed away from the trio of ents.

Shaking her head at her overconfidence, Waynev’s face was painted in a grimace-

“Wait-Waynev?” Calling out Shadow received no reply but before trying again she quickly located the dirt path, walked a few meters before realising what was wrong.

She couldn’t hear.

Blinking rapidly, Shadow closed her eyes and felt at Waynev’s body.

“Asleep-likely from fainting… But why can’t I-” Shadow probed, using her power she felt her being fit the mold.

Taking a deep breath Shadow opened her amber eyes only to hear shouting and screeching in the distance.

Looking around the sky was plagued red, the blood hadn’t plagued her vision, the sky did-

But wasn’t it midday?

Ripping open the Quest-

Quest:

Find or create a Magic Catalyst.

Find an object that can be used as a Catalyst. OR Create an object that can be used as a Catalyst. Merge with the Catalyst.

Consequence:

You lose your innate ability.

Time Limit:

Three days, 7 hours, 23 minutes remaining.

“What the hell happened in the last hour-” The words left her mouth just as a scream emerged from a house nearby.

Feet purging, left her tracks in the dust.

Shadow’s form flowed around the forest.

Bushes, roots and tree’s flowed around her.

Unlike the normal effect the green had on her, it was now the opposite.

Red, desperate and wrong.

Unnatural.

Leaping into the clearing Shadow saw thousands of them.

Horned, black in skin and eyes with only small blips of red running towards Aestern’s walls.

Massive portals, sparking black and red blasts of what looked like an electricity were arrayed around the town.

But where the majority of demons were rushing to the walls of the otherwise helpless, a dozen of them were already attacking the homes outside the walls-

“PTFeuu-” A small voice wailed.

“Crap,” Tearing her eyes from the scene Shadow rushed without thinking, only to find a three foot demon crunching on a woman’s torso, her head nowhere to be seen.

On the ground two imps were quickly dashing after a young girl-

Fists gripped Shadow sprinted into action, unable to stop herself.

Slashing at her arms the imp closest to the teen cackled before getting close to the ground to pounce at the helpless being.

As the other imp threw fire around her-

Bare bone snapped the imp’s back, Shadow pushing off the limp body and grabbed the frigid girl by the waist before turning into the forest.

Flowing into the gr-

FLRSHH

Balls of fire barely missed the two as Shadow twirled out of the way, somehow avoiding the branches, fire and the clawing attacker after her.

Legs pushed to her limits until her luck finally ran out.

Her foot caught by a root.

The child was almost thrown mid-air.

The world spun for a few moments but Shadow wouldn’t let her go.

Slamming into the soil she fell downwards into a ditch.

Again the world spun, but this time she felt disconnected-

Like there was someone else-

“What… the fu-” Waynev hacked up leaves, her eyes blinking rapidly.

Under her arm was a small girl shivering, her body aching and she was in a ditch.

“Shadow what ha-”

“NO TIME TO EXPLAIN-DUCK!”

Ducking in record time, Waynev’s eyes locked onto the red outline.

Gripping her bone knuck an imp was in front of her.

In the ditch.

Pulling up it’s arm Waynev prepared to jump-

“Block it! Don’t-let-her-get-hit-” Shadow barely got the words out before another ball of fire was thrown.

Waynev could only pull her arms up and scream.

Her legs and arms instantly acted.

Pulling at the walls around her and pushing against the ground below Waynev got half way to the imp before another array of fire was thrown at her-

This time too high, it snarled before trying to climb up.

But not before Waynev grabbed and began bashing it's head into the rocks it was climbing.

One hit, two hit, three hit-

“JUST DIE-”

Pulling back she shoved her fist through it's skull, killing it instantly.

“Jesu-”

Dropping the corpse to the ground, Waynev turned and saw the little girl looking up in terror.

Looking down at her own fits, blood flowed freely.

But none of it was hers.

“What the fuck just happened.”