Welcome to Hermit's Pen. If you’re new here, I recommend that you read Chapter 1 first.
Otherwise, welcome back! Last time, we met Sarah, who woke up in a witch’s cottage, confused and disoriented. While she was still trying to get her bearings, there was a knock on the door, and one of the locals, Henry, waited outside with the most horrendous breath.
Before long, Sarah had promised to find a cure for his halitosis with the help of a journal left behind by the witch.
The cure requires two ingredients: Fairy Dust from Glimmerwood Grove and Slime Shells from Meltwater Loch.
We pick up the story with Sarah searching for the reagents in the woods.
Chapter 2: Foraging in the Woods
“Alright then. According to the witch’s notes, fairy dust should be easy to find,” Sarah muttered. “The little blighters don’t worry too much about cleaning up after themselves. So I just have to check toadstools, or I can set up a fairy trap. But I wouldn’t even know where to begin with that, so toadstools it is.”
Suddenly, she spotted movement between the trees—just a shadow at first, then the sound of rustling leaves. What was that? A bog goblin, perhaps? It hadn’t really occurred to her, but maybe walking around alone in a fairy-tale forest was not all that safe. After all, some of the older fairy tales were quite dark.
Deciding to stay safe, she crouched down between some bushes, looking in the direction where she’d first seen movement. Soon after, it emerged from the trees. A unicorn. It was amazing, white with a long, twisted horn.
It looked at her for a moment and snorted, releasing a cloud of fog into the morning air. Then it shook its head and disappeared into the trees again.
Seriously? A unicorn. That was crazy. She was definitely far away from New York.
When the unicorn had left, she got up and wiped the dust off her clothes. It glimmered in the air. Then it dawned on her. Sparkling dust.
She’d been disappointed when the unicorn disappeared so quickly, but perhaps it had still helped her find the fairy dust she had come for.
Carefully, she scraped the dust off her clothes and the bushes and poured it into a small bottle. Now she just had to find those slime shells, and she was ready to cure Henry’s bad breath.
But first, she had to find Meltwater Loch. According to the map in the journal, she had to continue through the forest toward the mountains. Then she would find the lake not too far from there.
After an hour’s walk, she reached Meltwater Loch. The water shimmered under the bright sun, its glassy surface sparkling like scattered jewels.
On the other side of the loch, the Moonbreaker Mountains stretched toward the sky, their caps covered in snow. She stopped for a moment to enjoy the sight and the scent of pine trees and wildflowers.
“Let me see,” she said, leafing through the journal. “According to the witch, the Slime Shells can be found in shallow waters and rock pools. I probably just have to follow the water to find them.”
She walked up the shore, looking into the water, but luck didn’t follow. There were plenty of rocks and shallow water, but no clams. Maybe it was too early in the season—the water was still frigid—but if she was to save the people of High Rannoc from Henry’s stench, she would have to carry on.
While exploring the shores, she spotted a large bird’s nest. It was bigger than anything she’d ever seen and covered in gooey slime.
She stopped, her heart racing as she looked at the nest. It was massive; she definitely didn’t want to fight whatever bird had built it. But if she wasn’t mistaken, the gooey stuff was sea beast saliva, a valuable ingredient, according to the journal, useful for a multitude of conditions. So maybe it was worth taking the chance.
Well, you only live once, she thought with a shrug. Then she snuck closer to the nest, careful not to be seen. But as soon as she neared the nest, a shadow passed over the ground, and a screech tore through the air.
The giant bird was almost as big as she was and came hurling out of the air like a missile. One nasty peck was enough for her to decide that living was better than some stupid reagent.
With a yelp, she turned and ran. The bird followed her with a piercing screech, but thankfully, it was not able to get her between the trees. Finally, after what seemed like hours, it gave up and returned to its nest.
Well, that was close, she thought as she leaned against a tree, trying to catch her breath. And stupid. I should probably leave the big birds alone, so I won’t need ingredients to heal myself.
The sun hung lower now, marking mid-afternoon, and she still hadn’t found the Slime Shells. But to find them, she had to get back to the shoreline, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to.
What if that creepy eagle or harpy or whatever it had been came back? But she also didn’t want to stay in the forest all night, so there was nothing to do about it.
“Come on, Sarah,” she whispered, “just keep moving.” She glanced around, half-expecting the bird to return, but the sky was empty. With a steadying breath, she stepped forward, forcing herself to walk back to the shoreline.
Further up the coast, a massive sword was stuck in the ground. She stared at it in amazement. It must be at least twenty feet long. Who could have left it there? Who could even swing a sword like that?
Now all we need is for the owner to come back, she thought, looking around nervously. This world just kept getting stranger and stranger. But of course, luck wasn’t on her side—why start now?
When she was almost at the sword, the ground started to shake with heavy footsteps, and soon a giant emerged from the trees. It had to be at least thirty feet tall. She had never seen anything like it.
Well, maybe King Kong, she thought as she dove to hide behind some rocks by the water. But this giant was more human than ape.
The giant must have seen her because it steered directly toward her. It was massive, with an enormous loincloth and not much else. As it got closer to where she was hiding, it squatted down ten feet from her and looked at the rocks.
“You no hide. Grok won’t eat,” it said in a rumbling voice.
Sarah wasn’t sure if she really believed that, but with nowhere to run, she poked her head out from behind the rocks. “I’m glad to hear that,” she said, trying to sound calm. “Are you Grok?”
The giant nodded. “Me Grok. You who?” he asked, pointing a large finger at her.
“I’m Sarah,” she replied, with an awkward curtsy. She wasn’t sure why she did it—it just seemed like the right thing to do. After all, she didn’t want him to change his mind about eating her.
“You from village?” Grok asked, squinting at her.
“Uh, no, not really. I’m new here.”
“Good,” he grunted. “Grok no go near village. People shoot with tiny sticks.” He showed her his hand, where an arrow was stuck under his nail.
Sarah cringed at the sight. She could only imagine how much that must hurt. “Maybe I can help with that,” she said, mentally flipping through the witch’s journal. She knew there was something about healing injuries, but didn’t remember how it was.
“Let me check,” she said, pulling the journal from her backpack.
After a quick search, she found the page. “To heal a wound like that, I need boiled Shock Fish fluid or Shadow Shark Ink for the pain, and Sea Beast Saliva to heal the wound.”
She thought for a moment, then looked up at Grok. “I’ll tell you what. Not too far up the shoreline, there’s a big nest covered in Sea Beast Saliva. If you bring some back, I’ll help you with your wound.”
Grok looked at the arrow under his nail, then back at her. “You help Grok. Grok very thank you.”
As he disappeared into the trees, Sarah wondered what she had just gotten herself into. Things just kept getting weirder and weirder, but Grok seemed nice enough. If he was willing to get the saliva, she would be happy to help him.
She glanced back at the journal. Shock Fish were nasty, but easy to catch—just splash around in the lake, and they’d come to you. The problem was their defense. Apparently, they released a cloud of electrically charged fluid that could leave you numb for hours.
That didn’t sound like a lot of fun. She’d rather not end up numb for the rest of the day, but maybe there was another option, she thought, glancing at the massive sword.
That was quite a day in the forest. First, a unicorn, then a massive eagle, and finally, Grok the friendly giant. I can’t wait to see what happens next time. Will Sarah be able to heal Grok’s wounds, and will she find the missing slime shells?
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