The Queen Of Thorns

The swamp was dark and very quiet. We couldn't hear any signs of creatures living in the area. We slowly walked through the waist-high muddy water. The water was cold and I was freezing, but the hope that we'd be home soon was burning me with warmth. Despite the slow pace and carefulness, I tripped on protruding roots a few times. Good thing Dan and Mike were by my side. As we went deeper into the swamp, the air got heavier and damper. I could feel my perspiration. We stopped a few yards from the gigantic old tree which Satyro carefully warned us to be the home of the demon. We recognized it immediately from Satyro's description. A few meters to its left, in the trunk of a weird-looking tree, was a portal. It was a small portal just enough for a person to crawl through. The second portal was also only a few meters from the tree - to its left- at the top of another weird-looking tree whose leaves appeared to be dead due to its dark violet color. We moved a step forward and heard a weird snapping sound.

Then, we saw her. The demon emerged from the body of the giant tree. She just casually walked out of it, like she was part of the tree that had been forcefully pulled out. The Queen of Thorns. Satyro shivered by the mention of her. He said she is the demon world itself, at least that's what he heard. Nobody had faced the demon and lived to tell the tale. A few demons had wandered off to the swamp and saw the portals, but they were quickly scared away by the demon's aura. Standing there, staring at her, her power was evident. She looked human; her face that of a beautiful woman except for the unusual shade of green eyes and the tree roots for hair. She was covered in vines, twisting around her body and limbs. She looked like she was wearing an endless gown of roots. She stared at us, a smile on her face. She'd been waiting for us. She knew we'd be coming, but how? Satyro? No, I don't think he'd betray us. I fought back the panic forming at the back of my mind. I casually asked her of her identity. She introduced herself as Ivana, Queen of Thorns. She said she saw us coming. As she was saying that, something moved under my feet. I jumped in surprise. Roots. Of course. Trees are everywhere. She controls nature so she must've sensed us through them. I took a glance at the portals. They were small, probably only able to transport one person each. What do we do?

There was only one answer: one of us will be left to stay. One of us will have to make the sacrifice. I looked at Dan and Mike, two of the people I love most and both needed back home. I controlled my emotions before my face betray me. I never told them about the discoveries I made and it seemed like I will never have the chance to. I put my attention to the queen, and we braced ourselves for the fight. The trees in the swamp shook and numerous roots spurted out of the water at the same time. I almost lost my balance but I was able to dodge them. The tips were sharp, obviously meant to kill their target. We cut our way through them with our swords. Satyro's swords were made from monster corpses as well. They were sharp and light. The roots kept attacking and we kept plowing our way through them. Suddenly, the roots stopped moving and a path to one of the portals was laid open. The queen spoke, "I have no interest on the female, and she can go. One of the men can use the other portal, but one shall stay. You'll have to fight for that." Then she flashed her evil smile.