This isn’t as easy as I thought.

He was heavy. It required a lot of strength just to climb a few meters up on the tree. Luckily, the tree bark had rough gaps where he could grip his wooden fingers on.

He was near the top when he realized he was already over the forest’s canopy and could see the horizon freely.

“I did it!” He spoke, letting out a little laugh in the process. Finding a strong branch to hold his height, he sat down to rest.

Oberon looked at the horizon. It was breathtaking. He didn’t just see a sea of green trees. There were also mountains with snowy tops, hills covered in trees with colors he had never seen before, and great valleys where river streams met.

The sun began to set. It had a gorgeous shade of orange. The clouds above had a tint of pink in them.

The wind was singing. He never felt so calm in his entire life.

The effort of climbing here was worth it, just for this moment alone. I’ve never known Sylvan could be this beautiful. He let himself become lost in the view for a couple of minutes. He breathed slowly, enjoying the last sun rays of the day.

He put his hand on the branch of the redwood tree he was sitting. It was warm. He activated his Tree Talk skill.

“Thanks for letting me climb you. You have quite the view here. I wonder how much time you’ve spent here, looking at the sunset. A thousand years? Maybe more? Sometimes I forget how small I am.”

The redwood didn’t respond to him. Not by talking, at least.

I could feel that the redwood heard me. It must be a little shy. It doesn’t matter, not everything needs to be said out loud.

The sun was almost out when he spotted something in the corner of his fiery eyes. A huge and weirdly shaped rock on an opening of the forest. This isn’t a natural rock formation.

Oberon adjusted his vision, trying to distinguish the strange rock’s features.

A building! Maybe I could find Barcus there! He thought, smilling.

Ok Oberon, climbing here was a great idea. You’re a genius, you know? He laughed at his own joke. Time to climb back.

Oberon looked down. It seemed to be higher than he thought it was. Calm down. You got up here and now you need to go down there. No mystery, he reassured himself.

Getting up, he heard a female voice in his head.

"Watch out!” The redwood tree spoke to him. The voice was soft, but he could feel the distress in its tone.

He turned his head only to see a winged creature flying towards him.

It looked like the birds he commonly saw up on the trees, but this was much bigger. It had stripes of red adorning its grey feathers. The head was bald, with evil red and yellow eyes, and a sharp looking curved beak. On the end of each of the monster’s four muscular legs, there was a giant talon, ready to rip off the flesh of any enemy. Its tail differed from anything he saw before, long and segmented with what looked like a sharp stinger on its end.

The flying beast let out a scream.

Oberon tried to ready himself, but it was too late. The monster talons pierced his bark, almost pushing him off the edge of the branch he was on. He grabbed the redwood trunk, trying to not lose balance.

The bird was now flying in circles, watching him. It's waiting for a moment to strike, biding its time to see if I open my guard. This one is smart, he thought.

I can’t attack him from here. If I use my Explosive Fireball it might attract others, and I can’t just jump away from this tree. If he comes close, I might have a chance of striking, but I also can’t use my fire as it might burn this whole tree down. I’m running out of options.

He Analyzed.

Adult Stinger Vulture

A four-legged vulture that has a venomous stinger in its tail. Won’t attack unless it feels threatened, or when close to its nest

Level

2

Race

Stinger Vulture

HP

100/100

The Vulture screamed again. Why is it screaming this way? It's almost like it is asking for help.

Not near a second passed when he got his answer. Another Singer Vulture appeared. Its appearance was similar to the one that was attacking him, but its feathers were colored differently, pitch-black.

There’s another one?!

They both lunged at him at the same time. Oberon tried to punch the black one, but the beast evaded his attack, grabbing his arm with its talons. The grey vulture used this opportunity to grab the Treant’s other arm. Oberon tried to flail his arms wildly, hoping to free himself from the beasts, but they held on tight.

Flapping their powerful wings in the air, they managed to fly while holding him.

If I activate my Fire Coat, they might drop me before they began to burn, but this way I’ll also fall down! He thought, a worried shadowed his face.

They were getting high in the sky. The wind was strong, but the vultures were still going up.

The black one released its talons from his arms.

They are going to drop me!

His mind raced, thinking of every possible action he could take to save himself. A wild idea came to his head.

If I’m going down, you’re coming with me!

As the grey giant vulture released him in the air, he grabbed the monster leg with his now free hand.

The vulture was screaming, trying to fly again. It began to scratch Oberon’s body with its talons, pierce him with its beak, bash him with its wings, but it was useless. They were falling together.

Oberon looked down. The ground was approaching fast.

He used the Stinger Vulture body as a shield. He closed his eyes and prepared for the imminent impact.

A loud sound echoed in the forest.

Oberon felt every fiber of his body scream in pain.

HP 14/220

He opened his eyes only to find a crater around him. Not a great idea after all.

His vision darkened.