ENCOUNTERS

Sparrow moved with a speed remarkable for a man carrying a limp body. Zeenara felt like dead weight on his shoulder, but he couldn't afford to slow down. 

The image of Canary, small but fierce, defending the campsite flashed in his mind, fueling his urgency. He followed the faint path cutting through the darkness of Lushwood forest, a path he now knew was tainted by something ancient and evil.

A twig snapped.

Sparrow froze, his senses screaming. He tightened his grip on Zeenara. He had been too focused on getting back, on protecting his sister, to properly scan his surroundings. A mistake that could prove fatal.

From the shadows emerged the grotesque figure he had thought he defeated. The Evil Hermit. It lumbered forward, its movements jerky and unnatural, its augmented body a patchwork of flesh and metal. Its single eye burned with malevolent glee.

Sparrow cursed internally. He had hoped that the creature was truly gone, dissolved into the forest floor.

He gently laid Zeenara against the trunk of a thick tree, trying to shield her as best he could. Before he could even rise fully, the Hermit roared, a guttural sound that echoed through the trees, and lunged. But not at Sparrow. Its single, burning eye was fixed on Zeenara.

"This Bastard!" Sparrow roared, his voice laced with fury and desperation. Without thinking, he threw himself in front of Zeenara, intercepting the Hermit's attack.

The Hermit's claws raked across his left arm, tearing through his jacket, protective undersuit, and flesh as he blocked the blow intended for Zeenara. A searing pain shot through him, almost blinding in its intensity. But he ignored it. He had to. 

Sparrow unleashed a strong stomp kick that launched the monster back a few steps. He grabbed a bunch of shards from his pocket and picked the fire shard.

With a focused growl, Sparrow crushed the fire shard and released a fireball magic. A miniature sun, the size of a tennis ball, blasted through the night. It was smaller but much brighter than the one he released in their first encounter. This time, he aimed for the Hermit's right arm.

The fireball struck true, penetrating the gooey substance covering the monster's flesh. The smell of burning rubber and sizzling flesh filled the air, accompanied by a tortured shriek from the Hermit. It staggered back, clutching its injured arm, its fiery eyes blazing with fury and pain. It's clear the attack hurt it badly.

Sparrow, breathing heavily, watched the Hermit. He couldn't drop his guard. He hoped the attack bought them some time. He just needed to protect Zeenara.

To Sparrow's surprise, the Hermit didn't retaliate. It hissed, a sound filled with pain and rage, then turned and fled into the darkness with unnatural speed, disappearing into the dense forest.

Sparrow remained rooted to the spot, his muscles tense, waiting to see if the Hermit would return. Once certain the creature was gone, he turned to Zeenara.

Zeenara's eyes were completely open, both her hands covered her mouth. She had regained consciousness just in time to witness Sparrow's clash with the grotesque creature.

"Zeen! Are you alright?" he asked, his voice laced with concern. He knelt beside her, examining her for injuries.

"I... I saw it," Zeenara stammered, her voice trembling. "That thing... it was horrible. And you... you fought it!" 

Her eyes filled with a mixture of fear and awe. "Bigbro Sparrow! What was that… that light you used?"

"Magic," Sparrow simply answered. Seeing that Zeenara was bruised up all over, but still relatively fine, he simply scooped the girl into princess carry and continued moving to the campsite. "Come on! We've got to leave."

"Wait, Bigbro! Let me walk."

"Faster this way," said Sparrow, ignoring her awkward face, and his bleeding left arm. "I'm worried about Canary and your other friends. We've got to get there quickly."

Zeenara showed another baffled face. "Cana? Here?"

Sparrow didn't stop running. "Well, she got some premonition that you were in danger. So, we came here to find you. She stayed to protect your friends while I tried to find you."

"Find me?" Zeenara repeated, her voice gaining strength. "But… that thing... the cave… the others…" Her eyes widened, remembering the horrifying scene she had witnessed.

"Don't think about that creature or the cave. The others should be safe, for now," Sparrow said, his voice grim. "But we need to hurry. There's no time to explain everything."

He risked a glance at her. Her face was pale, her eyes filled with fear. He knew she was trying to process everything, but the forest, the darkness, the pain in her head… it was all too much.

"Just hold on, Zeen," he said, his voice softening. "We're almost there."

They finally broke through the tree line and into the relative clearing of the campsite. The scene that greeted them was chaotic.

Several figures huddled around the flickering fire, their faces etched with terror. Canary stood in front of them, both her handguns drawn, her eyes darting nervously into the surrounding darkness. She had her three sprites circling in the air, patrolling their perimeter.

As Sparrow approached, Canary's head snapped towards him. Her face lit up with relief. "Birdbro!" she cried, lowering her bow. "You're back! And you found Zeen!"

The other campers turned to look, their faces a mixture of relief and apprehension.

"What happened?" Sparrow asked, rushing towards them. "I heard gunshot."

Once he reached them, he gently lowered Zeenara to the ground, supporting her as she swayed slightly. 

"The monster tried to ambush us," Canary explained, her voice low. "Luckily, Echo discovered it. I shot a fire bullet and a lightning bullet at that thing and it ran away. But it's still out there. What about you, Birdbro? Why is your arm bleeding?"

He grunted and quickly recounted the events of the past hour, from finding Zeenara in the cavern to the encounters with the Hermit. The campers listened in stunned silence, their faces growing paler with each word. When Sparrow finished, a wave of panic washed over them.

"We have to get out of here!" one of the campers, the boy with glasses, cried, his voice trembling. "This place is cursed!"

"Yes, let's leave. Let's leave right now!" the girl with short, choppy brown hair seconded.

"I agree!" Yet another camper said.

A chorus of agreement erupted from the group. They were terrified, desperate to escape the horrors of Lushwood Forest.

Sparrow and Canary exchanged a worried glance. They knew that leaving in the dark, disoriented and afraid, was incredibly dangerous. But they also understood the campers' fear.

"We can't just leave them!" Canary said to Sparrow, her voice pleading. "It's too dangerous to travel alone at night."

Sparrow, her deep green eye glinted in apprehension, nodded in agreement. He had observed the situation in that place. The injured and unconscious camper was already up and capable of moving, although he might still need some help.

"We'll escort you," Sparrow said to the campers, his voice calm but firm. "But we need to stick together, stay alert, and move quickly. The Hermit is still out there."

Despite their reservations, the campers readily agreed. They were too afraid to argue, too desperate to escape. They quickly gathered their belongings, their movements frantic and clumsy.

Sparrow surveyed the scene, his mind racing. He knew that this was a risky move. But he couldn't abandon these people to their fate. He had a responsibility to protect them, even if it meant putting himself and Canary in even greater danger.

He looked at his sister, her face set with determination. He knew that she would be by his side, no matter what.

"Alright," Sparrow said, his voice cutting through the noise. "Let's move out. Tweety, you take the lead. Everyone else, stay in the middle. And keep your eyes open. We don't know what's waiting for us in the darkness."

...

The exodus from the campsite was a tense affair. Canary, with Echo, Ink, and Holy buzzing around her, led the way, her eyes constantly scanning the inky blackness beyond the reach of their torches. 

Sparrow brought up the rear, his senses heightened, the air thick with a primal alertness. The rest of the campers huddled together in the center, a mass of whispering fear. The injured ones, Zeen and Woods, were supported by the others.

They had only walked for about fifteen minutes when the first sign of trouble materialized: a low, guttural growl that resonated deep within the chest, followed by the rustling of unseen things in the undergrowth.

"Hold!" Sparrow commanded, his voice sharp. His hand instinctively reaching for the fire shards he had prepared on the way. He needed every advantage he could get.

Before the echoes of his voice died away, the Evil Hermit burst from the trees, a grotesque figure of twisted limbs and snarling teeth. But he wasn't alone. 

Behind him, a figure emerged that made the blood run cold: a hunched, diminutive form wreathed in shadow, with gnarled, branch-like protrusions jutting from her decaying flesh. Rotten, tentacled vines writhed around her like a macabre halo.

Sparrow immediately focused her deep green eye, activating his {Great Appraisal]. His mystery talent, the {Eye of Wisdom}, flared with eldritch aura, instantly analyzing the new threat. 

He felt his sister's mind link to his, allowing her to know what he know. It was the standard protocol for their cooperative work, the Combo Alpha.

Sparrow's appraisal informed them that the new threat was... Evil Hermit's Mother, a Sentient Green surreal entity, unlike her Vicious Red son. She used to be the demented old mother of the self-exiled hermit. She died and was possessed by a sentient surreal entity.

She was the one who led vicious surreal entities to possess her son and husband's dead bodies. She was also the one who spoiled her current monstrous 'son' in whatever insanity he did. 

Sparrow gritted his teeth. The Mother was small and seemed fragile, but she was extremely tough, protected by powerful mental armor. And she was deceptively super fast. And she was able to control rotten tentacled vines. She was a big trouble.

Silver... That was her only weakness, but only after her mental armor was down. The information flooded the siblings' mind, a cold, strategic assessment amidst the chaos.

There was no time to think. The Hermit lunged, claws extended, while the Mother raised a hand, and the tentacled vines lashed out, seeking to ensnare.

'Tweety, campers!' Sparrow roared as he communicated mentally to his sister, charging to intercept the monster.

Canary reacted instantly. She dropped to a crouch, her handguns spitting fire. Two quick shots slammed into the Hermit, momentarily staggering him. 

"Echo, Ink, Holy! Protect the campers!" she shouted, her voice clear and commanding. The sprites, glowing with ethereal light, darted around the group, each creating a different types of shimmering energy barrier.

Sparrow clashed with the Evil Hermit for the third times. Their moves were a blur of motion.

Sparrow ducked under a wild swipe of the Hermit's claws and unleashed a brutal uppercut, connecting with the monster's jaw. He felt bone crack, but the Hermit barely flinched, its rage fueling its tenacity.

The Mother cackled, a dry, rattling sound that sent shivers down Sparrow's spine. The tentacled vines surged forward, aiming to constrict him. He sidestepped, narrowly avoiding the first vine, but another lashed toward his leg. 

Without hesitation, he allowed it to wrap around his calf, using the momentum to spin himself into a powerful kick, slamming his heel into the Hermit's chest. The Hermit went flying backward, crashing into a tree.

Pain flared in his leg as the vine tightened its grip. He ignored it, and forcibly break the vine with his hands. But the Mother was deceptively fast. Before he could react, she was already behind him and slammed her fist on his back, pushing him to the ground.

He felt a surge of pain as he landed. The fragile old lady seemed to possess unreasonable strength. A vine tried to ensnare his neck, but he swatted it away, rolled to his feet, and charged toward the Mother.

Meanwhile, Canary was a whirlwind of motion. Two vines snaked towards the campers, but she was already moving, firing a shot that broke one into pieces. And another one that pierced the other vine. 

She vaulted over a fallen log, landing gracefully, and aimed her handgun at the Mother. A pulse of arcane energy flared, and a bullet of pure light streaked towards the monstrous matriarch.

The Mother shrieked as the bullet struck her, the regenerating mental armor preventing any meaningful damage. Still staggered by the surprise attack, she sent another vine to attack Canary, while still focusing on Sparrow.

Sparrow saw the attack and shouted, "Tweety, watch out!"

Canary knew she couldn't dodge in time without abandoning the campers. She gritted her teeth, braced herself, and raised her arm to block the vine. The vine struck her arm with brutal force, sending a jolt of pain through her body. 

She stumbled but managed to stay on her feet, her grip on her handguns unwavering.