Isaac's eyes followed Gypsy as she practically materialized into the clearing. He had only noticed her because of her strange geometry in relation to everything else she was moving past. She walked over to the sleeping Walter with silent steps and nudged his cheek with her nose.

Walter groaned and cracked an eye. "What is it?" He asked the giant fox.

Gypsy clicked a few times at him and then let out a soft chirp. She looked back over her shoulder in the direction that she had come from.

Walter sat up with a groan. "Okay, thanks Gyps." He told her and patted her head. "You can get some rest."

Gypsy didn't wait and curled up next to Walter's pillow, his saddle, and slowly changed colors to look like a moss covered rock over the course of the next few dozen seconds.

"Apparently there's another Silent Stalker wandering around outside of its usual territory." He gestured in the direction that Gypsy had. "That way, close enough to be a problem if it's hungry enough.

Isaac nodded. "We've been keeping an eye out. I keep expecting something to show up but it's been quiet every night so far." He replied.

Walter nodded. "That's a good thing. It means the wards are working." He stated. "I'm gonna switch which throwing spike is cooking, again, and then go back to sleep." He informed the duo and then sat his gun down on his saddle so both of his hands were free. Walter had changed throwing spikes a few times so far and seemed insistent on going through all of them while he had the time.

Isaac and Lenna continued to keep watch until the morning. They were able to get a good look at a Silent Stalker out for a midnight hunt as it walked gracefully across the mountainside a few hundred feet from them. Thankfully, for Walter's sleep, the giant cat didn't get close enough to notice them through the wards protecting the designated safezone. Breakfast came and went and then they were ready to get back on the road.

"How much ground are we going to cover today?" Isaac wondered as they were heading out.

"It depends." Walter replied. "Forty miles, unless you need to stop at twenty. Usually people with a caravan or on foot would only do twenty."

Isaac looked over at Lenna who nodded. He looked back at Walter. "We can do forty, as long as my death flames don't spook your horse too much." He informed their guide.

"She'll be fine." Walter nodded and patted the side of Copper's neck. "You ready girl?" He asked her. Copper stamped her foot as if to tell him that she was.

The group headed out post haste in an effort to reach the first resting spot by early afternoon and the one that they were after by pre-dusk. The trees were thick and close together in most places, with plenty of small game trails woven through their roots and the low groundcover that permeated throughout the entire forest. The leaves were just as colorful and varied up close as they were from the mountainside. The path was wide enough for two wagons to travel abreast but Walter insisted on staying in the middle of the path. Gypsy made herself scarce as soon as they had headed out, again. The groundcover entirely lacked briars and bushes in most places with the only ones being plants that defied all odds in order to strive for life. Instead, thick waves of moss, periwinkle, and other such non-grasses covered the ground. The random flowers that were scattered around bloomed in all manners of colors in what seemed to be a year long cycle of blooming.

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"So, what's the plan, if something, tries to eat us, while we run?" Isaac asked between deep breaths as he and Lenna casually ran behind Copper and Walter. Isaac hadn't use his death flames on himself in a little while as he tried to work on his endurance more.

"Most things in the forest know to stay away from loud noises, so usually I'd just shoot it." Walter replied. "But a lindwyrm might just get curious. If you see an opportunity to take an ambusher down in one hit, that won't spook the locals, take it. If not, I'll probably still end up shooting it. I'm pretty bad with free-hand magic."

"What is it, with artificers, and alchemists, being bad at, normal magic?" Isaac questioned his wife.

"They can't, be good, at everything." She offered, also taking the time to keep up with her regular endurance training.

"Thanks." Walter said dryly. "I can cast the common spells just fine but if I'm gonna use a fireball for a singular target, I might as well just shoot them."

"Fair enough." Isaac agreed.

The group continued on their way for the rest of the day without too much hassle, at least until they reached the 'safezone' that they were planning on staying at for the night. Some of the trees had grown around the edges of the wards and blocked everything save for a six foot gap that barely allowed travelers to enter and get some rest. As they approached, Walter eyed the trees and their mildly exposed roots.

Walter and Copper strode up to the opening and some of the roots started to writhe and wiggle. "Hey." Walter sternly addressed the trees. "None of that." His glare had enough authority in it that it looked as though even the trees felt it and the roots seemed to back off a bit before they settled back down. As Isaac and Lenna moved to follow him through the, now slightly larger, gap, the roots started to move again.

Walter looked like he was about to cut in when Isaac's entire body pulsed with death flames. Every root and plant within thirty feet of him looked like it recoiled away in fright from the expression of the end. Copper thrashed her tail and glanced at Isaac but otherwise maintained the perfect mastery of herself that made her such a wonderful mount and companion for Walter.

Walter cleared his throat. "They're with me." He explained to the trees and then started setting up camp. It was late but they had made it in time. The sun was hanging low and had just dipped from view entirely. The rapidly darkening forest would've given anyone not blessed with incredible dark vision a panic attack, as every creature in the forest seemed to get distinctly aware of each other, as well as the newcomers.

"Do the trees really understand you?" Lenna questioned Walter. It seemed unlikely at first but whenever he spoke, everything seemed to be able to understand him at least slightly.

"Yes and no." Walter replied. "They are magical creatures. That means that intent is something that they can feel as it's subconsciously transmitted through the mana around us. You just gotta mean it and things'll understand enough, probably." He explained. "For now, let's just set up camp. We have another twelve days of this ahead of us."

The next morning, as the group went to leave, just outside of the circle of hungry trees there was a wolf pack waiting. Each wolf was covered in bark-like fur and had green eyes that searched the surroundings for any sign of those that bore the scent that they were following.

"It's generally more harmful to piss off a wood-wolf pack than it is to just let them roam free." Walter explained. "The main reason is that they will not forget you and will most definitely start a new pack if their old one is destroyed."

"So, what's the plan?" Isaac wondered.

"Well, seeing as I've already pissed them off in the past, we should probably just wait them out." Walter answered. "Let's give them an hour and if they give up and head out by then, sweet, one less group of enemies that I have to deal with."

"If not?" Isaac wondered.

"Then we are eating wood-wolf steaks tonight." Walter replied with a shrug. "Don't get me wrong, they taste horrible, but it's free food so you get what you can get."

It only took the wolves a little over half of an hour to clear out and then the group was able to keep going. This cycle went on for the next few days. Wherever they stopped, Walter would either manually recharge the quartz slates or switch out what was being enchanted. Like this the second leg of their journey continued until eventually, Walter halted in the middle of their journey from one safezone to another.

"We need to make a detour." Walter explained to the duo. "Hood's up, faces hidden, don't talk unless it's an emergency. I need to ask the dryads about the lindwyrm. Too many creatures are outta their normal territories for it to be a coincidence."

Isaac nodded. "How long will it take?" Lenna asked. She was fine with it as long as it wasn't a day long detour or longer.

"It'll cause us to only reach the next safezone today, instead of the one after that." He told her with an apologetic look. "But if there's a lindwyrm out there, especially a strong one, it'd be best if we were completely certain of its existence before it slapped us across the face with a leaf the size of a wagon."

Lenna nodded in understanding. "I would prefer to not have detours, but this one is acceptable." She said to him.

"Good." Walter replied. "Remember, give nothing away about yourselves. Don't even breathe loudly for fear that they'll take a liking to you. I don't wanna have to fight any dryads because they decided they wanted to keep one of you."

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