"Spread out, but stay within sight," Rylan ordered. "We can't lose her."
The forest seemed to close in around us, every rustle and whisper amplifying our anxiety. I conjured another fire orb, its flickering light barely pushing back the encroaching darkness.
"Anastasia!" I shouted, my voice echoing through the gloominess of the night.
We searched for what felt like hours, the sense of dread growing with each passing minute. Just when hope started to wane, a soft, melodic hum reached our ears, guiding us to a small clearing, now bathed in the ethereal glow of the full moon.
There, standing at the center, was Anastasia, her eyes closed, being caressed by a faerie, pulsing with a serene, green light.
My hair suddenly burst into flames in response to my indignation. "Let her go," I gritted through my teeth. The faerie, startled by our presence, growled at us, pulling Anastasia, who was still unconscious, behind herself.
Rylan crouched into a defensive position. "We mean no harm. That's our friend you've got there," he said, nodding towards Anastasia.
The faerie glowered in anger. "You lie. You only want the Nature orb of her highness."
Rylan dropped his defensive stance in shock. "Her highness?"
He managed to dodge in time as a slithering branch struck the ground he'd been standing on, tearing through the earth.
Another branch came hurtling towards me, which I grabbed and broke, before dodging two others. I backed up towards Rylan.
"I could burn her, but we have to consider Anastasia," I said.
"Don't even think about it. You burn Durin, it fights back. I'd rather keep this fight limited to a faerie," he cautioned.
We separated once more to evade the thrashing branches.
"Gonna have to do this the hard way, then. I'll distract the faerie; you grab Ana," I answered, grabbing a stray branch and swinging towards the faerie, aiming a kick.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Rylan vanish into thin air, awaiting the perfect time to grab Anastasia and run. I heated up my hands without flames and grabbed one of the branches controlled by the faerie. She hissed in pain and turned her malevolent green eyes on me in anger.
"That's right, come get me."
She surged towards me, an army of tree branches in tow. We engaged in a fierce battle, with me throwing punches and her wielding branches like whips.
Rylan opened a well-placed portal above Anastasia, grabbed her, and vanished once more. The faerie, now aware that she'd been tricked, propelled a particularly fast branch that hit me square in the face, sending me careening off into the distance.
I landed on my feet, preparing my next move when I heard Ana scream, "Stop!"
I paused in surprise, catching a glimpse of her running towards me with Rylan hot on her heels when another tree branch hit me from nowhere. I stood once again, groaning in pain. "Wish lady tree over here got the memo."
"Durin, stop," Anastasia shouted, standing between myself and the faerie, who rushed at her, pulling her behind herself once more.
"Don't worry, your highness, I'll keep you safe."
"They're my friends, Durin."
The faerie scrutinized us in disapproval, then turned towards Ana. "Then I apologize for my impudence, your highness."
"Durin?" Rylan asked.
"Guys, this is Durin, keeper of the Nature orb, that is until it was taken by us humans. She was showing me a bit about the orbs."
"My apologies for my earlier actions. I was trying to protect her highness."
"It's fine," I conceded. "You said she knows about the orbs. Do you mind sharing?"
"Absolutely."
As we headed back to the house, the forest seemed to part for us, as if acknowledging our presence. The sense of dread lessened, replaced by a cautious respect for the ancient power surrounding us.
Back inside, we settled in anticipation, waiting for Durin to answer some of our questions about the orbs.