A few hours after leaving the ruined town behind, Moxie found himself standing at the edge of the Forest of the Dead. The air here was thick with the scent of decay, and the trees loomed tall and twisted, their branches like skeletal fingers reaching toward the darkening sky. This forest was a place of legend, where the souls of the fallen were said to wander, trapped between life and death.

Moxie took a deep breath, feeling the weight of the place press down on him. But he wasn’t afraid. If anything, the eerie atmosphere only sharpened his senses, reminding him of the dangers that lay ahead. The gods and their sins had left their mark here as well, and the forest had become a graveyard for those who had crossed their path.

As Moxie ventured deeper into the forest, the trees seemed to close in around him, their branches forming a canopy that blocked out the light. The silence was oppressive, broken only by the occasional rustle of leaves underfoot. But Moxie was not alone. He could feel the presence of the dead, their eyes watching him from the shadows.

Suddenly, the ground beneath him shifted, and a skeletal hand burst from the earth, reaching for his ankle. Moxie leaped back with lightning speed, his body reacting almost instinctively. More hands erupted from the soil, and soon the ground was alive with the dead, their hollow eyes glowing with an unnatural light.

Moxie’s heart raced, but his mind was calm. He had been training for this, honing his abilities to a razor’s edge. As the first of the undead lunged at him, Moxie moved like a blur, his body a streak of motion as he dodged the attack and delivered a crushing blow to the creature’s skull.

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The battle was a whirlwind of motion. The undead came at him from all sides, their bony fingers clawing at him with relentless determination. But Moxie was faster. With every strike, he moved with precision and grace, his body a blur as he weaved through the onslaught. He was a force of nature, a whirlwind of speed and power that the dead could not touch.

Moxie’s feet barely touched the ground as he spun and struck, each movement a blur of speed and strength. The dead fell around him like leaves in the wind, their bodies crumbling to dust as he tore through their ranks. The forest echoed with the sound of their destruction, the air thick with the scent of decay and the faint whispers of the souls being freed from their torment.

But the dead kept coming, their numbers seemingly endless. Moxie could feel the strain on his body, the toll that the constant movement was taking on him. But he couldn’t stop. He wouldn’t stop. The power of Patience flowed through him, steadying his mind and giving him the endurance he needed to keep going.

With a final burst of speed, Moxie darted forward, his body a streak of light as he cut through the last of the undead. The forest fell silent once more, the ground littered with the remains of those who had stood against him. Moxie stood in the center of the carnage, his chest heaving with the effort of the fight, but his mind was clear.

As the dust settled, Moxie looked around at the forest, now eerily quiet once more. He had proven his speed, his strength, and his resolve. But he knew this was only a small part of the journey ahead. The gods and their sins were still out there, and this battle was just another step toward the final confrontation.

Moxie wiped the sweat from his brow and continued on his way, the path ahead winding deeper into the heart of the forest. The dead had tested him, but he had emerged victorious. And as he walked, he knew that he was ready for whatever came next. The gods and their sins would not escape his wrath, and he would stop at nothing to bring them down.