Can You Sea the Trees [Genz, DS, Eternis, ft. Guy] (sea of trees)

While Hanno had been collecting some herbs along the river bank until he heard something approaching him fast from behind. Spinning around the Zora would quickly pull pull his spear from its harness on his back. He had taken a low stance, ready to strike out at his surprise guest. Luckily for Meryem, Hanno wasn't the sort to just attack someone for startling him. Upon hearing her blight, Hanno would let out a sigh as he stood up. She about gave me a heart attack.

"Calm down. I'll do what I can to help you. Just tell me everything that happened." Hanno was more than willing to help her if he could. The only problem is that unlike when Spaghet had helped him, he didn't have any way to track down her pet. No magical means nor any special skills. The best he could do would be wander around hoping to find a clue, but that wasn't going to stop him from trying to help.

'Huh, a cry for help... Eh, today was boring anyway."
Bragi dropped down from above the forest, alighting on the ground beside the pair.
"Yo, someone called for help? Kidnapping?"

Bragi grinned, humming gently as he rocked back and forth on his heels, contemplating his potential usefulness in this situation.
"Now, I'm not exactly the most, uh... Yeah, I'm just going to fly around as necessary."

Deeper in the forest, a pair of Deku Scrubs--one with jet-black skin, and the other wearing silver-and-red armor--had been stumbling half-drunk away from the nearest tavern, too tipsy to truly realize they were even lost.

"H-hey... hey now," Guy slurred out, "Izzat... zat ghosty thing. Roop Wraith, it didn't it?" Barely keeping his balance, he pointed a jet-black hand towards the sky, where a trio of Rupee Wraiths seemed to be carrying off a... pig? No, it was Miniblin, just a pink one. Guy's pointing hand happened to be holding a Bottomless Bottle of wine, which was slowly spilling out into the grass as he pointed.

"I know it's bottomless, but... but man, don't be so wasteful." With a panicked swipe of his hand, Tent snatched the bottle and sealed it back up, then slipped it back into Guy's pouch. It seemed his friend Guy had already chugged down far too much. Usually Tent himself was the first one to start slurring and tripping over himself, but he was still only a bit buzzed. Nonetheless, he looked towards the sky--and was a bit surprised to see his drunken comrade was correct. Surely Din wouldn't have him turn a blind eye to a helpless Miniblin? Rupee Wraiths don't even need to eat to survive--it was an act of pure and pointless maliciousness. "Guy," he clasped his friend's shoulders, "We... we need to catch up to them! Can you run?"

"Hmm? Yeah.... roop wraiths... gotta have roops... right? I like roops..." He glanced into Tent's eyes--a look of sudden serious determination aglow in them. With a sigh, Guy slumped back against a tree, sliding into a sitting position. "You go ahead. I'll... I'll catch up to you. Just gotta... sober up a bit..."

With a firm nod, Tent somewhat reluctantly left his friend behind, only to begin racing through the trees--as best as his drunken body allowed. He tried to keep the wraiths in sight overhead, but at this rate he feared he would soon lose the trail.

(Neither of the Deku Scrubs happened to realize the abducted creature was just the pet of a Gerudo by the river.)

Rupee Wraiths? Hanno had never heard of those before. Just what type of forest had he found himself within? What other types of creatures was he going to run into that he had never heard of in this forest? Now wasn't the time for him to worry about such things right now. "Your right, we should get going. The longer we stand around here the further away those Rupee Wraiths will get with your pet." Hanno would start down the path, keeping his eyes open for anything. He was already on edge after having heard of a type of creature he didn't even know existed. His paranoia would grow with each step unsure of what exactly it was he was keeping his eyes out for.

(Here, lemme just shove Eternis out of the way for now.)

Running out of breath and quickly falling behind, Tent chased the specters and their quarry with all his strength. Row after row of trees based, until he stumbled over an outgrown and landed right on his chest, wooden snout audibly thudding into the ground. "D-Din's grace..." Struggling to his feet and looking towards the sky, he beheld what he thought was the tail end of a Rupee Wraith soaring over a wall up ahead.

Not bothering to dust himself off, Tent quickly scurried to the wall. Bizarre construction... at least a dozen feet tall, yet made of tightly packed dirt or clay. It obviously stood out compared to the sea of trees which surrounded it. On its face was a large, imposing, solid red door. A minute or two of inspection would reveal he had no means of busting through it--the door didn't seem to catch flame. Yet, he was sure that's where the wraiths had gone--and where Din herself was trying to lead him.

Investigating nearby, Tent ended up discovering a pressure switch hidden under a pile of leaves. It clicked when he stood on it, yet did nothing... Was there something else he had to do? Maybe another switch or trigger of some kind...?

- - -

Meanwhile, a drunken jet-black Scrub startled out of his half-conscious state. It sounded like footsteps, brushing through leaves. How long had he been out? It felt like hours, but he was still so tipsy it might have only been a minute or two. That didn't matter right now. He needed to concentrate... who might those steps belong to? There was at least two of them... maybe Moblins... or some Hylian brat who thinks he's going to kick around a Deku Scrub.

Guy hissed in mild annoyance. His motor skills were garbage at the moment--even he didn't think he could put up a fight. Instead, he ducked away in the shade of shrubberies, hoping his jet-black form could remain hidden in their shade. Dimly glowing eyes peered out towards the source of the rustling steps.

((Totally fine by me.))

Bragi, staring at Hanno and his tensing back muscles, began to whistle, bright clear notes filling the small clearing with an almost mournful sound. Waves of sweeping calm washed over the listeners, evoking a sense of focus and acceptance. Upon whistling for a good fifteen seconds, Bragi ended his performance, smiling at the torn leaf that had mended itself in his hand.

He turned to Tent, a look of warm focus on his face.
"Deku guy, and if I could have your name that would be fantastic, if that click I heard from your-a-ways wasn't you snapping your fingers, I reckon it was a mechanical device. Was there any localised observable effect, or is it going to be some part of a greater schematic?"

((Edit: for clarification; Bragi performed the Song of Healing))

Apparently those brushing footsteps Guy heard where so incredibly fast--or he was so incredibly drunk--that they whizzed by him without him even noticing or remembering to care. Because that makes total sense. () With a shrug, he dusted himself off and proceeded to shuffle in some random direction... Hopefully he wouldn't accidentally run into monsters or something, though he was really too out of it to care.

...Which direction was that bar, again? Guy groaned, half-mumbling to himself, "I wonder if... one o 'dem... navigatin Kokiri ever gets lost... even when he wasted."

- - -

Tent practically jumped out of his armor, eyes wide and fists ablaze with a Fire Enchantment. "Wh-where in the sacred name of Din did you come from?!"

Indeed, Tent sprinted as fast as he could to get to these switches, but apparently this Rito had been here all the while? Did he just swoop down? () The man seemed to so casually just turn his head in Tent's direction, even though the Deku Scrub was still somewhat out of breath. How did Tent not hear him? The man began to wonder if he was more drunk than he thought...!

Regardless, Tent saw a Gerudo approach from behind him, followed by a River Zora it seemed. Certainly an odd group. Tent was still so confused by the Rito he barely knew what was going on. The bird man literally startled him and immediately asked for his name--without even giving his own. At first Tent thought he was being interrogated or robbed or something. He didn't want to seem racist, but Gerudo and River Zora weren't exactly known for being friendly to Deku Scrubs, either.

Erring on the side of caution, Tent kept his fists up and ablaze, retaining a fighting stance as he slowly inched back. Three-to-one, and he was still out of breath, and could feel a headache from that damn booze. Things were not in his favor, to say the least, and even if Guy caught up he likely wouldn't be much help...

...Thus, he was all the more put off with the Gerudo started acting all friendly and kind. Seriously, the fuck was going on? Tent was no longer sure if his life was being threatened, but still back away slowly. Still, he had nothing to hide about himself. With a bit of hesitance, he spoke to the Gerudo, "My name... is Tent Emberwood, a devotee of Din."

He was reluctant to admit he saw the Rupee Wraiths. These few, or at least the Rito, seemed like they could be responsible for that creature's kidnapping. If a Rito was chasing them, why would it not have simply flown over the wall? Indeed, to Tent it seemed more likely this Rito was interrogating him about finding the secret switch to his evil lair. It was beyond suspicious. The last thing he wanted to admit was that a friend of his was roaming around drunk through these same woods--lest they try to kidnap him as well.

Din's grace, Tent thought in frustration, If only this booze wasn't still in me...

As Bragi whistled Hanno couldn't help but relax. Even if the melody itself sounded mournful for some reason it still had some strange relaxing effect. As they came upon Tent Hanno wasn't sure if this was going to be a friendly deku or a hostile one. As the Dekus fists errupted into flames the zora became confused. Just what kind of deku used fire? What with the innate risk of self immolation. Luckily Meryem spoke up and pulled the zora back to his senses.

Introducing themselves seemed like the right thing to do. Maybe it might even help Tent take the edge off and lower his flaming fists. "I think that's a good idea Meryem. My name is Hanno Arabo, and I hail from the eastern sea." Though he felt that Tent might not believe him about his origins due to his appearance, and so decided to further elaborate. "While I know I may not look like I would be from the sea that is due to the unique origins of my birth. My mother was a green zora, while my father was a blue zora. I was raised in my fathers home, though neither my mother nor myself were truly welcome there." Hopefully that would satisfy any doubts that Tent might have had with his origins before they could even be vocalized. He had already learned that his appearance came with some stigma even outside of his home.

He would loosen the grip on his spear and return it to its holster on his back in the hope that it would help Tent relax. " The three of us are looking for Meryems pet that was taken by some Rupee Wraiths. So if you have seen anything that could help us we would appreciate it if you would let us know." The chances of the first person they had run into having any information wasn't high, but it was surely worth asking about regardless. Hannos main aim was to try and calm Tent down while still trying to help Meryem find her missing pet.

Bragi nodded to Hanno, acknowledging the introduction and description of the task. He then turned back to the rest of the group, putting on a wide smile and a performer's bow-
Low and flashy, but with face upturned to both express oneself clearly and observe the audience's reaction.
"I am Bragi Hodr, minstrel from Dragon Roost Island. I fear I will not be of as much use as the rest of you-"
He brought his wing-arms out wide, gesturing with his feathered limbs towards the canopy of leafy trees and branches.
"-Considering that I am no real fighter, and the forest severely hampers any scouting ability I may have been able to utilise. Still..."
He stood up to his full height, his grin not fading, but taking on an air of seriousness it had lacked.

"I hope that we can all work together to find the poor little thing."
He folded his wings back,returning them to the semblance of normal arms.
"First things first over and done with, I believe we should discuss our strategy, such as in the event we get forcibly separated due to trickery or necessity, and need to regroup. In the void of other suggestions, I put forth that I call out with a song... Possibly that of Storms, which allows me to raise some dreadful weather in my immediate vicinity, for ease of recognition. I have a strong voice that carries over even such a racket, so even if the thunder and tumultuous downpour failed to alert you, that in the least should identify my location."
He raised a finger up in the air.
"Second, as the good sir Tent Emberwood has prominently displayed with his flaming fists, it would not do to be under cautious in this forest. We should all ready ourselves for combat at a moment's notice."
He gave another bow, this one directed at the flaming deku, and while more perfunctory, was similarly businesslike.
"Much obliged for bringing it to our attentions."

(Just in case anyone wants to keep this going after waiting on me for so long, I'm game.)

With a bit of hesitance, Tent gave a slight nod towards the one called Hanno, then towards the blind woman he called Meryem. The Rito--Bragi--certainly seemed... odd... but Tent himself was quickly beginning to think the man's odd nature was not a threat to him. It was nonetheless eerie and startling how that fellow seemed to appear out of nowhere.

Tent's fists extinguished with a faint sizzling sound. It was apparent in his voice and stature that he was not completely sure if aiding this bizarre trio was the correct course of action, yet he informed them of the truth anyway. "I did see Rupee Wraiths, actually. I was chasing them until this wall prevented me from advancing further, as--" he glanced towards Bragi "--I cannot fly. I had no means of opening that large red door either, save perhaps burning it down."

Clearing his throat, he advanced a few paces--towards the switch he found earlier, to bring it to their attention. "This pressure-sensitive plate I thought might open it, but, as you can see--" he stood upon it, causing it to audibly click "--nothing seems to happen. It seems odd for a well-hidden switch to not actually accomplish anything. Either it is malfunctioning, or, perhaps, there are other switches nearby we need to uncover, and activating all of them will open the door."

He added, hesitantly, "Those wraiths--indeed it seemed they were carrying a creature of my size, though I assumed it to be a Moblin-like creature, not a pet." He said this looking into Meryem's eyes--then suddenly wondered if a blind woman could tell if he was speaking to her... but tried not to think about it.

Hanno felt like an idiot for not having noticed sooner that Meryem was blind. How could he, a healer, not have spotted that. He wouldn't even bother to offer to heal her sight since there were plenty of other, more powerful, healers to be found. If her eyes could be healed he was sure that she would have found someone capable of doing so before now. Turning his attention to Tent, and the matter at hand, which was far more pressing than a physical aliment that Meryem has probably learned to deal with long ago.

As Tent explained about the Rupee Wraiths that he had spotted that had been carrying something and the hidden switch that he had stumbled upon Hanno began to move closer to the wall that was in their way. The Zora would start digging through the bushes on the opposite side of the door from Tent. He agreed that a such a well hidden switch that didn't accomplish anything didn't make any sense, and while there was always the chance that the switch was just malfunctioning the lone switch to a door such as this not being maintained didn't make any sense.

During his search Tent would describe what the Rupee Wraiths he had seen were carrying which would cause Hanno to quickly stand up and spin around. There was no way that Meryems pet was a Moblin-like creature, right? Before he could voice his thoughts the Zora would lose his balance and fall backwards, not with a thud but rather an audible click as he landed on a second hidden switch. "Well I found a switch. Ow ow ow." Standing up Hanno would rub his backside. That switch he landed on wasn't the softest of things after all. "Meryem, would you happen to know what exactly Pooky is?" Since coming to live on the surface Hanno had already come to see some strange things, a Bokoblin that wears a wig, and a fire using Deku to be amongst some of the stranger ones. A blind Gerudo that keeps a moblin as a pet would be just be par for the course at this point.

Tent's eyes widened, and he uneasily rubbed the back of his neck. Although he to his recollection had ever had a lengthy conversation with a Miniblin, he had always assumed them to be decently intelligent... Maybe Moblins kept them as pets or slaves? Or, perhaps, it was just this 'Poo-Key' that was of limited intellect. Wait, wait--Tent suddenly realized what the term 'pet' could imply. Was it some kind of perverse relationship and she was this Miniblin's mistress? Hopefully not. It was a bizarre situation, regardless.

Did Din guide him to help these people? Who knows. He certainly didn't... It was the best he could do to keep from audibly sighing, instead just lowering his head into his palm. Guy would be alright without him, surely. By the time he lifted his head, the third switch sprung, and a door opened.

With a flick of his wrist, Tent slung an Ember Seed towards the Hikkun. At the slightest burn, it abruptly holed up into its iron shell, quivering slightly. "I've never defeated one of these, due to that impenetrable shell," Tent admitted, "But it seems to stop bothering you for a while if you do so much as scratch it..."

Judging from the switches and the door, Tent was expecting some kind of fortess, a den of thieves, or some sinister evil structure... not more woodlands. Why would you wall woodlands off of woodlands? Was this someone's orchard? Tent just shook his head. He begin to idly knock on the Hikkun's shell, asking, "By the way, Meryem, do you have any idea why this Wraith would kidnap your--erm--pet?"

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we're gonna need to find a dumpster for all these garbage posts

"A-ah." Tent hesitated. The woman was used to relying on her other senses, surely. He wasn't sure what the other two had whispered to themselves but... "Where did they go?"

He didn't know of them, and was too distracted with the commotion and the Hikkun to notice them. Even now Tent continued harmlessly poking the Hikkun, just so the monster would stay in its shell until the group--the duo?--moved on. There certainly seemed no need to kill such a shy monster.

"Well," Tent seemed perplexed, "I ran into these woods to rescue someone, but now that I'm a bit sobered up I--uh--well--" He cursed himself internally for a moment, "I suppose there's no reason I can't help you find your pet, especially if your other two friends have already wandered off." He didn't want to say the zora and rito both abandoned a blind woman in the middle of a forest but that is certainly what it looked like. Was this some sort of conspiracy? Some sort of evil plot? Who would just leave a blind woman in a monster-filled forest? The only thing Tent knew for certain is that he did not know. The two seemed capable enough on their own, but he was less confident in leaving Meryem's side.

"I'd rather stick with you than go looking for them. And--" His head perked up at a distant sound, something not unlike nails on a chalkboard--the screech of a horrid monster somewhere deep within these woods. Waiting for them. "--...is... is there anything you can do to help us find him? her? ...it? ...something like a horse call, perhaps?"