Chapter 39: Entangled Encounter
Chapter 39: Entangled Encounter
Leaving the house, it was clear either a long amount of time had passed or the growth of nature had greatly sped up. Increasing their pace, they moved hurriedly towards the greenhouse ahead only to lose their balance due to the shaking of the ground. The greenhouse shattered as a large creature made of intertwining vines burst out, its body a mass of wriggling tendrils and patches of bark. A large tree's body in its center acted as a face, its bark splitting open into a horrifying mouth as it roared, then slapped down on a much smaller figure. Its vines tried to tangle the figure as it pinned them down.
"We need to go over and see what's going on. This seems like a real fun fight!" Alice said with madness and hints of battle lust seeping into her tone. Before Braedon could even say anything, she had already sprung forward, scythe in hand, seemingly pulled from who knows where. Sighing, he ran after her, hoping whatever was happening wouldn't end in disaster.
As they approached, Alice was all but ready to feed her thirst for battle, not caring for either side but right before she could, a firm grip fell upon her shoulder. She turned to Braedon with an annoyed look, ready to shake him off and jump into the fray. However, seeing the steel in his eyes watching the fight ahead, she decided to trust him and watched for the time being.
The creature seemed to pin the figure to the ground, its vines writhing and tightening, attempting to ensnare its struggling prey completely. But just as it seemed the battle was over, the figure managed a narrow escape, slipping their way out of the vines. With lightning-fast reflexes, they twisted and rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding the lunging vines.
With a swift, determined motion, the figure drew a massive broadsword from a sheath on their back, gleaming wickedly in the sunlight with a mix of silver and gold. With a shout that seemed to reverberate through the air, they lunged at the plant monster.
The battle was fierce and unrelenting. The figure swung the broadsword with a strength and precision that seemed impossible for a regular human. Each strike was met with the splintering of vines, and the creature roared in pain and frustration. Sap and plant matter splattered the floor with each impact. Braedon's grip on Alice's shoulder visibly tightened slightly to keep her from rushing in, her desire to join causing her to practically vibrate under his grip.
The vine creature was no pushover though. It retaliated vigorously, whipping its vine-like appendages at the figure. The human had to duck, roll, and sidestep to avoid being ensnared once more, using every bit of flexibility they could muster. The area became more of a mess with leaves and twigs sent flying in all directions.
The fight continued for what felt like an eternity, the combatants locked in a deadly dance of survival. Finally, after a grueling back-and-forth exchange, the vine creature managed to gain the upper hand. Its vines wrapped around the figure's limbs, pulling them off balance and wrenching the sword from their hands, causing it to embed itself into the ground. With a swift and brutal motion, the creature captured the human, encasing them in a wooden cage formed from its twisted vines. Seeing this, Braedon finally let go of Alice's shoulder, and with a burst of determination, she seemed to jump right into the fray. Her scythe swung wildly at the wooden prison, only for a large mass of roots to burst out beneath her, forming a hand that tightly gripped her and slammed her down to the ground.
"A little help here? Any time now would be good." Alice yelled to Braedon as she tried to break free, only for the roots to slowly tighten around her. With a small laugh, he walked closer, lightly tapping the roots holding her down.
"It's probably been a while for you, Elena. Sorry about that, but we're back now. Do you think you could share some light on what's happened while we were gone?" Braedon calmly said with a smile, getting a wide-eyed look from Alice. Slowly, from the roots, Elena emerged, practically throwing herself at him, tears running down her face as she tightly held onto him while crying.
"It's okay, we're back now. I'm sorry it took so long, but we didn't even know that was going to happen. But it's all okay now. We aren't going anywhere anymore. It's okay now," he told her in the softest voice he could, gently rubbing her back as he held her.
"Uhm, not to ruin the mood but can you please let me go now? And what's with the giant tree monster?" Alice said, her voice breaking the moment, and getting a look from Elena. With a sniff and a wave of her hand, Alice was slowly let loose from the vines, wiping her eyes as she looked at Elena.
"Oh? You're also back? Couldn't it have just been our master?" Elena said, giving Alice a sour look as she slowly got her crying under control and wiped the last of her tears, not wanting Alice to see her vulnerable side.
"Yep, you're still a bi-" Alice began to reply to Elena, only for a pained yelp to cut her off. Looking over, they saw the figure that was fighting the tree creature being pulled slightly tighter by the vines, their limbs stretched out and seemingly being gripped tighter and pulled almost to the point of dislocation.
"Well, this is familiar, minus the vine in the mouth part. Mind bringing them over and slightly loosening the tension so it doesn't rip their limbs apart slowly?" Braedon said, his focus going from the figure back to Elena. Getting a reluctant nod and pout as the wooden prison was slowly lowered and brought over, the vines, while still tightly capturing the person, no longer pulled them apart as they were before.
Alice, back to her usual self, rushed right up to them and began to poke them with the stick part of "Mister Stabby Stick."
"Who are you? Why are you here? Did you bring cupcakes or muffins? Where are the cookies? Is the cake really a lie?" Alice quickly began rambling at the figure in an obviously fake deep voice, getting a confused look from the figure and an exasperated sigh from Braedon.