Chapter Seven.

The march south was slow, the large tree roots were difficult to climb over and chop. The humid air also slowed their pace quite a bit, Zen stayed in the rear to scout for any monster that may attack them from behind.

"How much futher Leo?" One of the sword welders asked.

"I'm not sure!" He snapped.

As their slow pace continued the forest gradually grew darker. "Huh? Is it night already?" One water user asked.

Everyone looked up to the sky, looking at the strange acurance, Zen too looked up. "Can't be guy, we've been awake four hours now." Laurie stated.

"Then why is it ao dark then?" Another magic user asked. Zen then realized what Nyra had told him. Zen was about to speak up, but then Leo cut him off. "Come on guys, the sooner we cross the forset the sooner we are out."

"But Leo..?"

"No but's Laurie, we keep moving now!" Leo slienced Laurie.

They all kept moving an uneasy feeling settling in their stomachs, no one wanted to futher anger their leader and kept silent.

Zen on the other had, scouted for a tree to move from, he knew why the forset was getting darker, they were now in the monsters territory, Leo was oblivious to remember that small detail Zen told him the day before.

He found the perfect tree to climb and stay out of sight, as the rest continued to struggle down below, the forset was near pitch dark as fire user made small flames in their hands to light the way for the others.

Zen hopped from branch to branch silently, that when it happened the first scream, one of the adventurers got cuaght in a trap, she let out a shrill scream of pain.

Zen and the others halted their movements, inspecting the the sudden noise. "What happened?" Laurie moved closer to the girl, who's leg seemed to have been cuaght in a primitive trap.

Her bone was sticking out, as blood gushed from it. "Why have we stopped!" Leo pushed his way through the group."

"Leo, Jay walked into a trap."

"What!" An eeri creaking sound rang through the silent forest, branches snapping like a storm was aproching. Dark tree like monster began aproching the group, while their backs were turned.

The adventurers thought it was just the wind picking up as the continued to asses the damage of Jay's wound.

As sharp branch pierced one earth user from behind, killing him without a sound. He let out a pained scream, making the others look back in time to see blood spray from his stomach. The tree like monster dragged back the earth user, while the monster ripped it sharp branch through him, splitting him in half.

They all watched in horror as he was killed, more monsters appeared, blocking them off, so the couldn't escape. "SHIT!" Leo cursed.

The earth user lay dead, some spilling the breakfast they just ate hours ago, Zen on the other hand took this opportunity to move, Laurie spotting him. "ZEN HELP!" She called out.

The monster saw where she was looking at, they now to aware where he was. Zen clicked his tounge in annoyance, one of the monster shout out his branch trying to pin him aswell. Zen dodge with ease pulling out his concealed daggers, leaping down from the tree, straight into the frey.

Laurie looked relieved, as Zen joined the fight. The monster turning back to the adventurers, their crooked faces unhappy at another human was around their territory.

Leo stepped forward taking his leadership role. "Fire users at the ready!" He help up his axe, as the fire user began making their strongest spells.

"Burn them to the ground!" Leo swung his axe down, signaling the fire users to attack. Large balls of flame flew ubove Zen's head.

The monster were directly hit with the flames, loud screeches filled the air as the monster fell one by one. Everyone celebrated their easy win, thinking they beat the tree monster.

Zen knew it was to easy, as more snapping began, the tree monsters rising from the ground. More sharp branches aimed for the fire users, yells of pain filling the air.

Blood sprayed and gushed form fire users bodies, some monsters snapping them clean in half, killing them instantly as their screams annoyed them. Leo looked in horror, unsure what these monsters even were if the came back alive from the attack.

"Leo, What now, we failed again? We also lost our strongest attackers." One of his party members spoke. Leo fell to his knees, unsure of how to defeat the undead tree monsters.

Zen readied himself for a frontal attack, knowing it would be hard, but not as hard as the dragon he fought days ago. The tree goblens pulled back their branchs, there purple eyes glaring at the adventurers before them.

Zen lowered his stance, waiting for the monsters to attack them. Branchs flew fast in his direction also to the others, he dodge and sliced one of the tree monster branchs.

Purple liquid oozing out from it, the monster sreeched in pain, clumsy running in Zen's direction, the others did the same, seeing what Zen had done. More loud screeches filled the air, as Zen bobbed and weaved, avoiding the monster branches.

Multiple dark branchs lay on the ground, purple ooze leaking onto the ground, making the grass wither away. Zen han not yet noticed this detail, while he cut off anothe monster branch.

The horde of monster slowly dwindled, as Zen and the adventurers kept up their attack, Leo still stayed on his knees in a daze while his party members protected him from the tree goblins assult.

A stench filled the air, as more branches littered the groung, some began coughing and gaging at the smell. Zen picked up on the noises they were making, as he dodge another branch. He quickly looked around, a dark purple haze filling the dense humid forest.

"What is this?" He wondered, seeing that some of the adventurers began passing out, with their skin a pale purple color. What was this, abd what was causing them to pass put one by one. Bodies of the tree goblins lay about, purple ooze leaking out at a very fast pace.

Zen's knees buckled, as his body felt slughish, he too had been inhaling the purple haze. Zen could not yet identify what was going on around him as more tree goblins began appearing around them....