Ymir's Forest

"We are here." Dalton whispered as he cut through the thorny vines in his way. A large wolf strapped with supplies came from the foot of the hill. She kissed his hand, and in return, Dalton patted her head and stroked her long black fur.

"Good girl, Sylph."

The two had been journeying for quite some time, traveling across the border of Ymir and Surt. Now, they were just in front of the Great Forest of Ymir, known as the most beautiful forest in the world; or at least that's what it was once called.

Just as they entered the forest, a strong pungent smell of death immediately invaded their nostrils. Dalton was used to it, going right into the forest as if it was just a morning stroll. Sylph, on the other hand, was coughing and gagging, unwilling to go in at first. But as the distance between her and her friend grew, she caved and ran to his side.

Inside the forest, the grass was coarse and dry, the rocks crumbled when stepped on and the trees were hollowed and ridden by fungus. Dalton heard the situation in the forest was bad, but this? He couldn't have imagined things could have deteriorated to such a state. Nostalgically, he remembered coming here years ago. From his memories, the leaves were lush, the air was fresh, and the animals were diverse and active. But now, it's just a barren wasteland. As a cold wind blew, brown leaves fell onto the forest floor almost as if the forest was weeping at the loss of its former glory.

Dalton looked at the canopy. Fairies were once common throughout the forest, perching on trees or fluttering around flowers. However, with the whole forest decaying, the mana probably became too poor. Not that this concerns Dalton at all -- afterall, dried up vines are easier to cut.

The two continued pushing forth, with Dalton cutting down a path and Sylph trailing just behind. The deeper they trekked, the denser the vegetation; something Dalton noted as his blade began to grow dull.

Sylph's whines had also become more pronounced as her paws were ravaged by the terrain.

"Krr...krrr..."

Dalton stopped as he noticed movement from a rock. It was shaking back and forth displaying more life than the entire forest had to offer. Slowly, Dalton crept up to, picking it up. Just underneath was a large worm. Leathery, iridescent and plump, this must be the rainbow worm the guild talked about.

"Look at this Sylph." Dalton said as he waved Sylph over.

The worm wiggled and squirmed under the sunlight, and even more so when Sylph approached it.

Rainbow worms hide underground, eating the roots of the trees and poisoning the earth with their feces. It is not far-fetched to say that these worms are the cause of the forest's decline. Being an eusocial species they also create complex webs of tunnels underground, making them hard to exterminate. The Ymir Guild Branch has already set up a bounty of 400,000 mira, roughly translating to 10 years of a worker's annual wage, for the extermination of the rainbow worm queen, the mother of all rainbow worms in the area.

But that is not what Dalton is after.

Dalton covered the hole and continued moving forward, leaving the worm untouched. 400,000 mira? That was nothing considering the amount of work required. He would rather leave the hard labor to more aspiring guild members. His true motive lies in the distance at the top of the tallest hill. A large castle was built at its peak, fitting into the landscape like polka dots on a tiger. It was called the Ymir Fort, home to Lord Yggdrasil, the Elven King.

Using his thumb, Dalton estimated the distance they have travelled. When they first got here the castle only took up a third of his nail. Now it was around half. They were closer than he expected, much to his delight.

A sneer emerged on Dalton's face. He has been training for this very moment. The day where he finally, could get some revenge.

Sylph looked on worryingly at Dalton. She tried running up to his side, whimpering and pulling his sleeve. But Dalton simply yanked his arm away in annoyance, causing Sylph to submit in fear.

Dalton's eyes widened as he realized what he had done. "I'm sorry Sylph, I'm fine. I just need to cool off a bit." Dalton apologized as he patted her head again. She forgave him and licked his hand lovingly in response.

"How about a break?" Dalton asked smilingly. To which Sylph barked in agreement.

Dalton piled a bunch of dried leaves, creating a makeshift bed before sitting on it. Sylph then habitually plops her head onto his lap, much to Dalton's amusement.

Using this opportunity, Dalton checked his supplies. He reached for the canteen in Sylph's belly pouch and rationed some water to Sylph who gladly lapped it up. A slight concern was raised; he had underestimated the amount of water required. Though, it should be fine as long as they find a river soon. Then he checked his own waist pocket and counted his throwing needles. They are about 12 inches in length, and though they were aerodynamic, they were pretty thin, making them easy to lose.

Soon, Sylph fell into a slumber on her friend's lap. Dalton caringly stroked her fur as she took a nap. He couldn't help but notice the cat-shaped brand on the back of his hand, a reminder as to why he was on this journey.

"BOOOM!"

Sylph was jolted awake. Her ears perked as she stared at the direction of the explosion.

A large mushroom cloud emerged from the forest as crows and vultures flew away in a flock of ominous black. Was it a bombing? A few seconds later, another explosion happened. This time accompanied by the sound of timber crashing onto the forest floor.

Dalton threw himself onto the floor and laid flat on his belly instinctively. Past experience has told him that the fragments from the explosion are equally as dangerous as the explosion itself.

"We better avoid that place, Sylph." He cautioned.

His hand felt around for Sylph's familiar fur coat, trying to get her to lay low, but all he could grasp onto was air. Quickly, Dalton turned back to check on his pal. She was gone!

From where she stood, her pawprints went in the direction of the sound, much to the dismay of Dalton.

"SYLPH!!!"

Not caring about his safety, Dalton leapt in her general direction, frantically slashing the vines in front of him. He didn't even have time to notice the dried tree branches scratching his clothes and skin as he plowed through the vegetation. With his other hand, he loaded throwing needles between his knuckles, in anticipation for the worst.

"SYLPH!!! Where are you!" He shouted.

No reply. An unsettling feeling sank in as Dalton searched high and low for his friend. Did he stray away from Sylph's path? There was no way to know. The forest was so dense that visibility was limited to just a few feet. The only guide he had was the increasing loudness of explosions. But as the explosions started becoming deafening, a new fear emerged. What if Sylph managed to get too close?