Tanya has been quiet for all the journey out here, but it is the usual quiet of her short, snappy temper. She has bitten back a lot of things she has been saying, but as the road finally peters out and she looks around her, she pipes up. "I think I may have mentioned how much I hate the wilderness."

Danielle nods, the walk bothering here when it wouldn't usually. She's still limping some on her right leg. "I think you've mentioned it a time or two. What are you expecting we'll find out here"

"I'm after a new staff," Tanya says. "The old one's starting to twist internally with the stresses, and that means it'll explode. Eventually. At some bad moment. If I push too much through it. Some get straighter, some end up with tiny blockages that twist." She shrugs. "And... is this it? Is this all of Arden?" She looks around the clearing.

Dirk is near by looking worried.

Tanya adds, "And the cat's here because he's a cat and probably wants to fight something or... well, currently he's dressed, so probably not the other thing cats do."

Dirk chuckles. "I want to get my daughter back. And kill stuff."

Danielle hms "I believe Arden was far bigger where I'm from?Do the two of you remember it bigger too. What was that thing that attacked us in the lowers anyway besides fast, sharp and ugly

"I once walked in Arden for three days and I was still in the world they call Amber," Tanya says. "And then a sodding undead bear attacked me and after that I called in a ... well, air-strike isn't the right word, but there was a lot of lightning."

Dirk looks to the forest edge. "I was an arden ranger once." He starts to walk towards the edge.

Danielle smirks "and a lot less forest"

Tanya follows Dirk towards the edge of the clearing and the start of the forest. "We've improved on nature, where I'm from. It grows in rows, adds to the purity of the magic."

Amy is in the forest, on her own, picking flowers. Or at least so it seems. Then again, a lot of those flowers can be used in healing, so perhaps that's what it's about. She hears voices and stands up, gaze going guardedly in that direction.

Dirk says "I want my baby. Her mom socks But I was a good dad."

Danielle hms at Tanya's words "Sometimes things can be overimproved, like it sounds as if great-uncle julian was fond of. Balance is important"

"People say that, then they pay no attention to the state of the universe, because they think they're being herders, not guardians." Tanya sneers. "But Prince Julian was, I admit, absolutely freaky when it came to precision." As always, she looks like she is in a bad mood. Her black robes look unsuited for the forest, but so far have not tangled on anything.

Dirk keeps walking into the forest one toe at a time.

Amy shakes her head, as she recognizes the voices. "Well, well," she calls out. "Fancy meeting you all out here."

Tanya mutters something under her breath and plasters on a smile.

Danielle waves to Amy "No paying no attention is the opposite extreme. letting nature run rampant with no oversight isn't good either . So what kind of tree are we looking for

"Oak," Tanya replies. "Hail, Amethyst? Anything lethal out there right now, and have you seen any oak saplings, about twenty feet tall?"

Amy considers both questions, while waving back to Dani. "I have seen nothing lethal, so far," she puts in after a moment. "Unless you consider things that are poisonous to be so. And I admit I've not been paying attention to tree types, unless they were of the type I need for healing herbs." So one can take that to be a huge negative on both.

Dirk rolls with advantage -1 at difficulty 20, using no talents or gifts.
The result is a success.

Danielle rolls with advantage -1 at difficulty 20, using no talents or gifts.
The result is a failure.

To Dirk, edging into the forest to see what is what, all seems well - then a rock about as tall as he is shifts and moves, and the sound of grinding stone whispers around him as it does.

Dirk says "It's alive." He starts climbing the rock. "Let's get ready to rock and roll."

Tanya mutters something else, and tiredly pulls her wand with her left hand, and her sword with the right. She does not move forwards.

Amy steps back from the group. She's been here for a while, the rocks not moving like this. "I think it likes you, Dirk," is her only comment.

Danielle blinks "Well this is not a welcome development. she too stands ready to attack but first tries "Hello?"

The rock seems to inflate somewhat, and then splits about where Dirk is standing, leaving him to make balletic movements, or face doing the splits without warming up.

Dirk jumps to one side of the split. "Thys

Dirk says, "This is like old times."

A big swipy claw, looking like it's made of rock, shoots out to grab at Dirk just as he jumps, missing him by not far at all. It moves like flesh despite the rocky appearance.

"I'm glad I wasn't in your old times then," Amy says, taking a couple more steps back so she's now back with Tanya. or behind her.

Dirk dances around drawing his sword to attack the claw.

Tanya neatly steps between the danger and Amy.

Danielle stands back waiting to see if dirk need help or he's got this

Tanya stands ready, but does not try to interfere.

Dirk rolls with advantage 1 at difficulty 20, using combat , combat trained.
The result is a success.

Amy is definitely not interfering. She's watching as well, ready to heal if needed. She does though bring up her left hand, perhaps a little oddly.

Dirk is slashing at the claw as he dances around. He stabs it too.

Tanya winces as she rolls her wand in her damaged left hand, and takes a quick glance left and right, in case of more rock-related danger. Even in the time it takes to look around and back at the action, Dirk has stabbed the claw once, and the arm it is attached to twice. It withdraws into the rock, which starts to close up almost instantly.

Danielle waits and watches taking slow steps forward

Amy follows Tanya's lead, looking around to see if there's anything else trying to attack them.

Dirk back flips off the rock.

The rock closes out, and a slow voice echoes from inside. "ALRIGHT, I GET THE IDEA! IT IS NOT MY TIME YET!"

Dirk yells "who are you?"

Danielle blinks "Good day. Did he hurt you badly. Pretty standard reaction to being grabbed I'm afraid"

Amy looks at Danielle and adds to that question. "Your time to do what exactly?"

"NO, DON'T TRY TO CONVINCE ME! IT IS STILL TIME FOR ME TO SLEEP," booms the rock.

Tanya puts her hand over her face, wand sticking out at an angle, and swears into it, muffled.

Dirk yells "get out here!"

Danielle nods a bit incredulously "Sorry to have woken you if that's the case. we're just looking for a good oak branch for carving

"NO!" shouts the rock. "YOU DO NOT WANT ME THERE! GO AWAY! I HATE TREES AND PEOPLE!!!"

Amy shakes her head. "If you're sure. Though if you let us know what you're looking to do, we could perhaps come back and knock on your rock when it is time?"

Tanya has the decency not to make eye contact with anyone.

"I JUST WANTED A SNACK! GO AWAY!!!!"

Dirk yells "People are not for eating!"

Danielle nods, "Got it. sorry again and she starts to move off, pretty much regardless of what anyone else is trying to do

Amy arches a brow. "Then you'd best go to sleep for a very long time. We are not snacks." There's a sort of stubbornness in her voice there that probably most don't recognize. yet. She shrugs a bit, and then moves to follow Danielle.

"Right. I'll watch this for a bit and hit it if anything tries to eat us," Tanya says, "And then we can see if we can find an oak. I've got a few months before my staff's unsafe, but I never like to push that too hard."

Dirk nods. "Cool."

The colonel finds a rock, taps it a few times with her sword to be sure it is not moving, and then sits down on it with her robes pulled around her to keep them away from nasty organic things like dirt and grasses.

Dirk sits near the colonel.

Danielle walks off a few steps further into the forest...