Finding Forest Materials

Wearing an olive green t-shirt and khaki long pants with boots, Leona carried her ever-present pack of supplies on her back and Argent Gloves on her hands. Today she had arrived in the Spooky Forest with Eero to to gather materials for use in creating magic weapons. In the course of exercising her research skills, Leona got the idea to make a bladed weapon. Her knife was perfect for fighting in close quarters but had too short a reach. Her ram dao had reach but was almost impossible to use in close quarters and was too slow to use in fights against multiple enemies.

What she needed was something like a shortsword or a machete. She was favoring the machete because outside of battle it could be used to cut through thick brush. With that idea in mind, she then researched possible magic materials to use in the weapon's creation. Two plants came to mind... nightshade and mandrake.

As much as Leona did not like poisoned weapons, she realized that others did not share her aversion to them. If she wanted to survive in a hostile world, she needed to change her mindset. She also needed an equalizer against tougher opponents like the barbarian king from Lycan Woods. Poison could be that equalizer. She found it difficult to ignore poison's association with assassins, but she would have to if she wanted to survive to old age.

Leona could deal with that issue later. Right now she had to focus on the present. Beside her was Eero, her guildmate. He too was looking to make a magic weapon from materials found in Spooky Forest.

"Hey Eero! What type of weapon do you plan on making?" Leona asked him, hoping to dispel a bit of the tension of being in the forest.

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"You're looking to make a staff, huh?" Leona asked of Eero. She kind of figured him for a staff user. He looked like the kind of guy who thought about more than just combat. Leona would do well to think about something other than fighting. Unfortunately, fighting was about all the blonde was good at.

"Me? I'm looking to make a bladed weapon, specifically a machete. Something that's a middle ground between a knife and a two-handed sword. I also want it to have something else, some special magical property. I'm not sure what, though." Leona admitted to Eero. She was still on the fence about making the blade secrete poison. She decided to put settling that issue on hold until she got back to the guild hall. In the meantime Eero introduced his new pet bird. Its name was Soho.

"Hi there Soho!" Leona introduced herself to the bird. She was glad that it had made a full recovery and was able to fly under its own power. Even if it was only a bird, she had helped save a life. Being able to save life as well as take it always made Leona feel that her efforts were worthwhile. Unfortunately, saving life sometimes meant taking it to protect others.

Jacob Goodnight was one example. He was too far gone to ever talk down. So were Bladdi Maccoi and Mutura. Neither one of them would back down. Leona had to kill them all to save many more lives.

"I'm looking for nightshade or mandrake plants. I wanna give my weapon a special plant-based property. I'm not sure what, though." Leona disclosed a bit more of her plan to her guildmate. He was no enemy. He was also smarter than she was, so he might have a few suggestions he was willing to share with her.

"What plants are you after?" Leona asked Eero.

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"I've got two choices. Nightshade or mandrake. I'm looking for something to be an equalizer in a fight against a lot of people." Leona said to Eero.

"If I go with nightshade like you suggested, there's a chance of making an invisibility effect. It'd be handy since I've been going on quite a few stealth-oriented jobs lately. It'd also give me an option other than barging into a camp and knocking out or killing everyone in sight." Leona spoke about the benefits of using nightshade for the magic ingredient. Being able to conceal herself at will was not a benefit to dismiss. Sometimes fighting was not the solution to a problem.

"If I use mandrake, I could go for a fear-inducing scream as its effect. It'd help in combat since I could break up mobs, but I'd have to be by myself to get any real use out of it. I'm not sure if I'd be immune to my own weapon." Leona reasoned. It was true that breaking up mobs would help her, but allies would also be affected. Besides, some people and beings were immune to fear effects. Still, she would not rule it out just yet.

"I read about an even stronger type of mandrake that could create insanity-inducing screams, but it's gone extinct. I don't know whether that was due to a natural disaster or some foresighted wizard destroying it all to keep it from being harvested. Either way, it's probably for the best that it's no longer in this world." Leona opined. There were some things that were better off not being made. A weapon that could destroy sanity with a single shriek was one of those things that should never be made.

"I'm ready to get moving when you are, Eero. We shouldn't hang around here any longer than necessary. Who knows what will turn up if we outstay our welcome." Leona readily agreed with Eero's suggestion.

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"Yeah, we'll just have to wait for when we get back to the guild. But I hope something useful comes out of it. Something magical that can be used for a good purpose as well as powering up a weapon." Leona expressed her hope to Eero.

Suddenly Leona felt what Eero was feeling. She got the impression that she was being watched by someone or something. But who? Bandits? Bandits did not normally wait this long before making their move.

They might be dealing with smarter bandits. The mages were being allowed to go deep into the forest so that once the trap was sprung, there was little chance of escape. The bandits might be gathering just out of sight, waiting for the right moment to attack.

Or it could be a group of assassins. Leona had likely made some powerful enemies after her last few jobs. Chief among them was the Crimson Sashes, but she had to also take into account the organization of the shrouded stalker from Beanstalk Village. His organization might have received word of what had happened to him and dispatched a team of assassins to take revenge.

Or it could be just nerves. They were in Spooky Forest, after all. It was called that name for a reason. It was not called "Forest of Fun" or "Forest of Joy." To add onto the creepiness, it was oddly silent for a forest in midday.

"Something doesn't feel right. It's the middle of the day and I haven't heard a single animal make any noise. Not one. I think we're being watched, Eero." Leona seconded her guildmate's opinion. She then walked up to him. She did not want whoever was out there to hear what she had to say next.

"I suggest we stick together. Unless we absolutely have to, we don't separate. We stick together and watch each other's backs." Leona softly suggested to him. She did not like this forest. It was quiet. Too quiet. That kind of silence usually meant that trouble was nearby.

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Leona did not see what Eero saw, but she saw that he was sufficiently spooked to suggest moving on. She did not argue with him. She too felt creeped out by what was going on, or rather what was not going on. The tension was steadily growing. It was getting to be oppressive.

"I agree with you. Let's keep going." Leona seconded his opinion. But then something hit her. Where were they going? Was there any escape from the ominous presence in the area or would it simply follow them throughout the forest? Whatever it was, it would likely follow them.

"Where do you want to start looking first?" Leona asked Eero. This was her first time in Spooky Forest and she did not read a travel book or map of the area before taking the job. Eero was more likely to have done so, so she was letting him lead the way. Leona needed to start reading books on areas and bringing maps before she went to anywhere new. She needed to start acting more responsibly and start thinking ahead.

Eero would not always be around to bail her out. Leona needed to plan for that and act accordingly. As soon as they got out of this forest, she would start to change her ways. Part of her hoped that she did not wait too long to make changes. She would find out by the end of the day.

"Has Soho spotted anything yet?" Leona asked her guildmate. It was nice to have a friendly eye in the sky. Having Soho with them would help alert them to danger before it struck. At least they were hoping it would.

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"I hope we can find my ingredients soon, Eero." Leona said. She could not stress it enough. This place was seriously creepy. The atmosphere was laden with dread like something out of a horror movie. They had better get to it... those ingredients were not going to harvest themselves.

Leona spotted a patch of purple flowers shaped like starfish growing next to the base of a tree. It was the nightshade plant that was a potential ingredient. She wondered if she could find any mandrake, but then she spotted something out of the corner of her eye. A humanoid-shaped object wearing a fancy suit... just a blink later and it was gone. It was best not to get greedy.

"I spotted an ingredient near the base of that tree. I'm going for it. Watch my back!" Leona requested before making her way to the base of the tree. She lowered herself onto her knees, put down her backpack, and pulled out a sturdy glass jar. She brought out her knife and started carefully harvesting the nightshade.

While harvesting the sixth one, she thought she saw the suit-wearing humanoid again. It was standing just behind a tree to her far left. It was leaning over with an arm on the tree like it was peering out at her. Leona blinked and it disappeared.

Leona kept at it until she harvested twelve samples. There were roughly three dozen flowers scattered around the area, so there were plenty of nightshade flowers left. She stood up and was about to turn around when she spotted multiple small holes in the earth just north of her position. Leona decided to take a risk and investigate. A closer look showed that two dozen of something had been dug up... chances were it was the mandrake she wanted.

Leona was about to go deeper when she spotted the humanoid again. It was in the far right of her vision. This time it had an arm up like it was waving at her. One blink and it was gone. The hair on the back of Leona's neck stood up... the blonde should quit while she was ahead.

Leona turned around, walked back to the nightshade patch, and stood near her jar. She then washed her hands off with some water she kept in her backpack and liberally applied hand sanitizer. It was not soap and water, but it would do until she could return to the guild hall.

"I think all the mandrake plants were harvested, but I can't prove it and I don't wanna stick around to investigate. At least I got plenty of samples of nightshade to work with. A dozen flowers should do it. When you're ready, let's go get what you need." Leona suggested to Eero while putting the sample jar away in her backpack. She was glad that she had taken only the nightshade. Something told her that she would have regretted investigating the patches of dirt where some plants had been.

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Leona watched Eero go towards a tree with a strange vine on it. The vine had a teal glow and was obviously different from a garden variety vine. She let Eero do his thing in peace. She wondered what happened to the mandrake and who that mysterious humanoid was. She also wondered why the humanoid bothered wearing a suit in a forest.

Her random thoughts were broken by sounds of distress originating from Eero's direction. She turned to look and found him ensnared by the very vines he was trying to collect. His arms and right leg were wrapped by the vines. He was clearly in distress and needed help. That was Leona's cue to go to his aid.

"I'm on the way, Eero!" Leona shouted to her guildmate. She drew her knife and slowly closed in on him. She had to free his hands first. But how? They were deeply tangled and she did not want to cut him.

She also did not want to get trapped herself. She had another idea. Maybe she could use her spells to help him. Lion Claw and Crescent Cutter should do the trick. If they did not cut the vine outright, they should cut through it enough to weaken it.

On second thought, maybe not. The knife would be better. She did not know if the vine could absorb magic to empower itself or not. There was little time to waste. She quickly approached and began sawing at the vine wrapped around Eero's left wrist.

It slowly started to give way, but the tree was not going to let Eero go so easily. It seemed to take offense to her efforts to free him and acted like it was going to come after her. She had to work quickly.

Leona moved onto his right wrist and began to cut the vine binding it. It too gave way, but Leona was noticing a stronger defensive reaction from the tree. Now a couple of vines were moving. They were going to come after her soon. Leona had just started work on freeing Eero's leg when she felt vines probing her legs.

Leona screamed and ran away just before they grabbed her. She kept hold of her knife but had left Eero behind. She had to get back to him, but how? If both of them got caught, it would be game over. She had to back off and think.

"Sorry, Eero! I can't get any closer right now!" Leona called out. The vines were in a position that made using Crescent Cutter difficult. She could use it, but the spell ran the risk of hitting Eero and defeating the point of a rescue. She would just have to find another way to help him. Was there a clue on the tree the vine was attached to?

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Leona felt upset about leaving Eero trapped in the final vine, but she need not have worried. Eero managed to free himself in a spectacular display of his magic, which appeared to be poison and acid-based. At least she helped him enough that he could free himself. He also managed to collect the ingredients that he needed. That was a welcome relief... it would have been a serious downer to go through all that trouble for him to walk away with nothing to show for it.

"I think we should get out while the going's good, Eero. I keep seeing a humanoid being in the area, but it disappears when I blink. I know it sounds dumb, but I don't like the look of it. it's like it wants us to travel deeper into the woods." Leona gave her opinion. It felt like whatever was stalking her was trying to use her curiosity against her. As much as she wanted to explore the forest to look for mandrake, something told her to quit now, quit and get out before it was too late. Leona would heed that warning. She would only go deeper into the forest if her guildmate wanted to.

"No ingredient is worth our lives. If we go deeper into the forest and get into trouble again, there's no guarantee that I'll be able to save us a second time. If both of us get caught in a trap, it's curtains for us." Leona added. She had no right to risk Eero's life against his will. She also did not want to risk her own life unless there was a need to. There was no urgently needed item here or any bandit king to fight. It was time to go.

"We might be able to find some magical ingredients on the way back to the guild hall. They might not be as strong as what we can find here, but they'll likely be a lot safer to harvest. We'll also be in familiar territory. I say we quit while we're ahead." Leona suggested. She had had enough of Spooky Forest for one adventure. They could not leave the forest soon enough.

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To say that Leona was surprised at what had just happened an understatement. The only way she could have been any more surprised was if that humanoid in the suit had appeared in front of her and offered to take her on a date. Eero had just behaved... oddly. From what little she understood, he had his normal voice and a deeper one. The deeper one relentlessly criticized the normal one for always needing the former's help to complete any important undertaking.

But what had happened was more than a change of voice. It seemed like Eero was playing host to two drastically different personalities. One was normal Eero. The other was more confident and more critical. The second Eero had a tongue that could have cut the vines earlier.

"No, Eero. It's OK. The other you didn't do anything bad." Leona replied to him.

"Nothing bad. I just didn't expect that. I didn't expect any of that." Leona repeated herself. She made no secret of being more than a little perturbed. She did not know that her guildmate had such depths, if depths was the right word to use. Leona made an effort to relax a little. She did not want to drive Eero away by looking afraid of his other side.

She should begin shoring up his confidence. Eero probably needed it after being chastised by himself. Well, a darker and more sarcastic self.

"Don't let what the other you said get to you, Eero. If you were as afraid as he said you were, you wouldn't have ever traveled to a place like Spooky Forest for ingredients. Mages a lot stronger than we are try to avoid traveling in here by themselves. You didn't avoid it... you came out here like you owned the place. So don't listen to that other you." Leona attempted to console Eero. She had heard of people having critical voices in their heads. As far as she knew, Eero was the only person whose critical voice could take over his body at any time it chose.

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Leona listened to Eero lament about how his other self was right. According to Eero, he could not do anything without Other Eero's help. "Other Eero" was Leona's unofficial nickname for her guildmate's other side. They shared the same body but had vastly different personalities. It was both intriguing and frightening.

She listened as he requested that she keep news of his other persona quiet. That was a reasonable request to make. Other members of Silver Wolf might not be as accepting as Leona. She wondered if Poko knew about this. Chances were high that the Guild Master knew about the matter long before Leona did.

"I'll keep it strictly between us, Eero. No one else has to know. Not until you're ready." Leona assured him. She liked Eero. He was a faithful companion and was a lot braver than she was when it came to heights. He also did not judge her for being less adept at research than he was. She would keep his secret for as long as he wanted.

"I'm ready to go whenever you are." Leona said to him. Other Eero was bold and decisive, but he was verbally abusive to Original Eero. Leona did not like that. She had a feeling that the two would clash some day. Whether it was with words or with magic, Other Eero and Leona would come into conflict.

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"All right! Let's go then!" Leona declared. They could not get out of here soon enough. Leona gladly led the way out with Eero following close behind and Soho flying overhead.

-Silver Wolf Guild Hall, several hours later-

"We made it, Eero." Leona said to him after closing the wooden doors behind them. Now they were in the clear. No more creepy things in suits stalking them. No more vines trying to murder them. They had their ingredients... well, Eero had both of his.

Leona was unable to find a satisfactory second ingredient for her weapon. Maybe the guild storage room would have something she could use. It did not have to be mandrake. It could be almost any plant-based ingredient. She thought of getting a vine like Eero's, but after what happened to him she decided to quit while she was ahead and seek ingredients in a safer location.

"I couldn't find any second magic ingredients along the way. I'm gonna have to check guild storage rooms to see what I can find. Maybe I can use something from in there." Leona stated to her guildmate. She was not going back to Spooky Forest today. She would hit up alchemist shops if she had to. She would even pay a visit to Margaret the Herbalist in Beanstalk Village if it became necessary. Margaret might have duplicates of something she could spare, or failing that, point Leona towards someone who did.

"Well, I'll sort it out. I'm just glad you got what you needed and got out alive." Leona said to Eero.

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Leona listened to Eero for a moment as he spoke to her. He offered to give Leona part of the vine he had harvested during their adventure. Leona paused to think about it. That was an offer she might actually take him up on.

"I might actually take you up on that offer, Eero. I'm not sure that the guild has any ingredients on hand. I'll go ask a staff member before I give up, though." Leona said to him. An older, bespectacled staff member passing by walked up to her and began speaking. What he said was not good.

"I'm sorry, dear. We don't have very many magical ingredients yet. Unfortunately, we must save what we do have in stock. I'm sorry I couldn't bring any good news." The older man politely informed her. Leona was momentarily disappointed. But she would adapt like she always did. She would go out and find something if she had to. Or she could take up Eero on his generous offer.

"It's no problem. I'll handle it. Thanks." Leona said to him before the older man walked away. she turned back to Eero. Earlier she had rescued him from almost certain death. Now he was saving her bacon. Part of her still disliked asking for him to split the vine that he had worked so hard to get.

"I'll follow you shortly, Eero. I need to set my pack in my room and get the nightshade. Then I need to grab some tools and an instruction book on working the forge. I've never used a forge before. My older brother is a blacksmith's apprentice back home, but that won't do me any good here." Leona addressed Eero. Like with her mother the scribe, having a professional as a family member did not translate to Leona having their skills. She had been around a forge, but she had never actually worked one. Now she was going to use one to make her very own magical weapon. The next several hours would be both exciting and dangerous.

Now to address the biggest issue of all... what her second ingredient would be. There was no getting around it. She needed his help.

"Eero, would you mind sharing half of the vine with me?" Leona asked him.

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Leona felt guilty for even asking for Eero to share a piece of his vine. She had just ensured that he had no spare vine. If he made a mistake, he would have to live with the results since he did not have any spare material. She now intensely regretted asking for it. There was nothing that could be done now except make sure she got it right the first time.

"I appreciate this, Eero. If you need any more vine, I'll go back and get it myself if I have to." Leona said to Eero while clutching the section of vine he had gifted to her. She was not going to insult his generosity by handing it back. She would use it and make her weapon. But she would return the favor one day. She would repay his generosity somehow.

Speaking of the weapon, Leona needed to think of what she wanted out of it before she started forging it. Should she go for the partial invisibility? Should it be poisoned for damage over time and other effects? Or should she follow Eero's example and trade raw striking power for utility? The possibilities were numerous.

A machete tended to be a short-ranged weapon. Perhaps she could benefit from extending its reach somehow. She was not sure if "extending its reach" meant allowing her to grapple onto objects or extend the reach of its blade. Either one was a viable option. There was something to be said for being able to reach new vantage points during battle.

There was also something to be said for being able to extend one's reach during battle. She could use a rapidly extending blade to take opponents by surprise with a sudden stab or slash that had a longer reach than they had anticipated. Which one was the better option? For once the blonde had good options to choose from. That was something that did not happen too often.

In light of this exciting new choice, poison lost a lot of its appeal. If an enemy managed to take her weapon, an extending blade would be less dangerous than poison. That was an important consideration to keep in mind. She was fairly certain Eero thought the same way. That was one reason why he did not go for an obviously dangerous weapon like a sword or mace.

"I'm gonna go get ready, Eero. See you then!" Leona said to him before taking her leave. She got a shower, changed her clothes, and borrowed a well-worn book on magical properties and a bookstand. Now she was wearing an olive green t-shirt and khaki cargo shorts with boots and Argent Gloves. It was not the safest outfit to wear around a forge, but she was sure that she could borrow a thick blacksmith's apron to wear. She left her pack in her room... she would not need it inside the guild hall.

Now to gather the materials. Leona took her dozen nightshade flowers, the length of vine, and some distilled water. She carried them to an empty workstation and laid them out. She placed the book on the bookstand she had brought in. She tied on the blacksmith's apron.

Leona had all the materials she required, but what she needed now was an idea. What would she commit to? The ability to grapple onto objects? Or the ability to extend the blade's length at will? She began reading the book of magical properties to help her reach a decision.

A staff member helped her by preparing the forge for use. Leona was ready to do this. She was ready to take a step towards gaining new skills that could be useful in the future.

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