Friedrich, Marina and Blackjack walked through the forest with the sun high in the sky. For the first time in a while, they had each had a comfortable night’s sleep at the inn. The bees were buzzing among the flowers and they were on the hunt for demons, it could not have been a better day.

“I feel great,” said Friedrich, stretching. “Is there a way we can portably carry an inn?”

Blackjack looked thoughtful as she spoke. “It would take a supremely powerful mage to pull off such a…oh, I see. You are joking.”

“Yes,” said Friedrich dryly as Marina giggled.

“It is a nice day,” the lightning witch said. “I feel great too. Don’t you, Blackjack?”

“I feel as I normally do,” she said.

“Come on, don’t be like that,” said Friedrich. “You can just say that you feel good.”

“Why should I indulge you?”

“Because we’re going on your detour.”

“After going on a detour that you decided upon.”

“You keep saying other words, but my ears are translating it to say that you do indeed feel great.”

Blackjack sighed. “You are insufferable sometimes, Friedrich.”

Marina giggled again as Friedrich grinned widely at Blackjack.

“You’re going to miss us when we part ways,” said Friedrich, swinging his sword around. “We haven’t been together quite long, but we’re very close now, aren’t we?”

“If we are close, then you will know my name,” said Blackjack.

“If I guess it, will you tell me?”

“No.”

“What if you give me three guesses? Those odds are very much in your favour.”

“Fine.”

“Alright,” said Friedrich, sheathing his sword and rubbing his temples with his fingers. “Your name is…umm…Quendi.”

Blackjack looked affronted. “What sort of name is Quendi?”

“I don’t know, but it sounds elven to me. It’s as good of a guess as any other. What do you think, Marina?”

“A minute ago, I would have said yes, but now I’m thinking that it’s gibberish,” said Marina trying to contain her laughter at the horrified looked on Blackjack’s face.

“Alright, guess number two…”

“No,” said Blackjack. “I do not want to play this game.”

“Lighten up, Elda,” said Friedrich.

“Elda?” scoffed Blackjack. “You know nothing about the Alauri, do you?”

“That depends,” said Friedrich. “Are we talking about high elves, dark elves or wood elves?”

“To even compare all three is an insult. The dark elves and wood elves do not hold a candle to a species like the Alauri. How dare you, Friedrich, even mention my people in the same breath as those other two.”

“I think you touched a nerve,” whispered Marina, looking perturbed.

“I seem to have a way of doing that,” said Friedrich with a shrug as Blackjack stormed ahead. “She plays it cool, but she can be quite childish, can’t she?”

“I think you may be right about her.”

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“What part?”

“Remember back when we first met Blackjack and you asked her about her age?”

“Yes,” said Friedrich, “she wasn’t happy about that, was she?”

“No, but I think you were right. She’s young for a high elf and feels like she needs to be perceived as more mature.”

“So childish,” said Friedrich shaking his head.

Marina laughed and gave him a slight shove. “Leave her alone,” she giggled.

“I’ll miss her when we do part ways, I have to admit.”

“Me too. It’s nice outnumbering you.”

“Outnumbering me?”

“Yes. Two girls and one boy.”

“Isn’t it three boys and two girls?” asked Friedrich, tapping on his masks.

“Are you sure about the minotaur?” asked Marina.

“He’s awfully rugged for a female, isn’t he?”

“I don’t know,” shrugged Marina. “I can’t say I’ve met many minotaurs. Myraeon is the only one to date.”

“We’ve come a long way since we first met though, haven’t we?”

“And it hasn’t even been that long,” said Friedrich. “I’m still expecting Muriance to show up and try nabbing Kitt’s mask from me.”

“Don’t say that,” said Marina, looking around. “Maybe he has an incantation on his name that alerts him whenever it’s said aloud.”

Friedrich laughed uproariously. “He’s probably arrogant enough to try that.”

“Hush!” called Blackjack, holding up her hand then beckoning the two Mercians over to her.

“What?” whispered Friedrich as he and Marina approached the Alaurian.

Blackjack pointed through the trees. Not so far away there was a green glow nestled within a cluster of roots and branches.

“What’s that glow?” asked Marina, but her question was answered immediately.

The cluster took a step forwards. It was alive, whatever it was. It’s arms, legs and torso were made of interconnected branches, brambles, vines and roots. It walked on two legs like a burly human, but it had no head to speak of. When it turned around, it revealed that the green glow was an orb within its chest. Perhaps the source of its life, perhaps an eye of some sorts; Friedrich could not be sure.

“Do you know what this creature is?” asked Friedrich.

“I think we have come here for no good reason,” said Blackjack, frowning. “I believe these creatures were the demons that the men in the inn spoke of.”

“And?”

“And these are not demons,” said Blackjack, shaking her head despondently. “These are…well, in your tongue, you would call them green lurkers. They are guardians of certain forests, often in the service of druids, dryads or…wood elves. You might think of them as wooden golems.”

“Should we leave?” asked Marina.

“Yes,” said Blackjack, turning away. “I believe we have wasted our time coming this way. I apologise for taking those two men at their word. Utterly embarrassing.”

“How could you have known?” asked Friedrich.

“It should not matter,” said Blackjack. “I was enticed by the idea of killing more demons and it blinded me. Foolish on my part, I have to say.”

“Um…” said Marina, grabbing Friedrich and Blackjack’s arms.

“What?” asked Friedrich, turning to see what she was looking at.

Five green lurkers were striding through the trees towards the trio. Their entwined arms swung by their sides as they walked, casually brushing past the bushes in their way.

“Do not come near us,” said Blackjack, drawing one of her fire arrows. The tip of the arrow glowed as though its magic was ready to be unleashed.

“I would not advise that,” came an ethereal, female voice from within the central green lurker.

“Who are you?” asked Blackjack, undeterred and now focusing on that lurker.

“If you were wise, you would put away that arrow and heed my warning,” said the voice. “I do not wish to hurt you Alaurian, but I will be forced to if you threaten my forest.”

“We aren’t threatening your forest,” said Friedrich, pulling out the minotaur mask, “but you are threatening us.”

“This is your final warning,” came the voice as the lurkers continued encroaching upon the trio.

Blackjack unleashed her arrow as Friedrich placed the mask upon his face. His body twisted and bulged as he took the form of the minotaur. He could see the central lurker writhing as flames engulfed its body. He charged for the one to its left while Marina zapped the one to its right.

Friedrich smashed his fist into the wooden golem, snapping its branches with ease. He shoved his two hands through the creature and pulled it apart as it tried to pull itself free, but it was unable to do so. Friedrich’s newfound strength was too much for it and it was torn in two, the green orb of light fading as the lifeforce faded from it.

As he turned to fight another, he found that the last one standing was now alight, courtesy of another of Blackjack’s arrows. He grunted and nodded as his companions, but Blackjack suddenly pulled out another arrow.

Friedrich turned around and spied another dozen lurkers approaching from deeper in the woods. He turned around to find somewhere to run, but there were more. In each direction there were more again. The trio were completely surrounded now and the lurkers were picking up speed.

“What do we do?” asked Marina.

Friedrich let out an angry roar, trying to tell the lurkers to go back from whence they came, but a roar was all he could give.

“You are him!” called the ethereal voice from within all of the lurkers. Her voice echoed throughout the forest, shaking the trees. “It is you! You are him!”

“What does she mean?” asked Marina.

Blackjack stared into Friedrich’s eyes. “You must play along, Friedrich,” she whispered as quietly as she could. “She believes you to be a druid of some kind.”

Friedrich lowered his fists as Marina and Blackjack lowered their weapons. The green lurkers continued their march towards them, but Friedrich was not especially confident in seeing how this played right. He looked at Blackjack who subtly nodded at him as if to say that she knew what she was doing.

“You will come to me!” called the voice through the lurkers. “It is you! You are him! You can set me free!”