Osric and William met at the guild again the next morning.
Today they would take on their third mission as a party.
They sat down at a table in the guild and put the mission parchment on the table to carefully go through it again.
Forest Creeper Nest Eradication
Objective:
Kill all Forest Creepers in their nest.
Numbers:
8-10
Reward:
70 Copper
"What do you think?" Osric asked.
William answered confidently.
"Sounds good. I think we can do it."
"And their corpses will get us a lot of money."
"You're right about that. But we still shouldn't let our guards down."
William nodded.
After some discussion on how to fight them together, they checked their equipment.
And before leaving the city, they each bought a venom antidote and William bought a second bag to carry monster corpses.
—
The eastern gate of Ashbrook opened just as the first pale light of morning spread across the sky.
Osric and William left the town behind and followed the familiar dirt path toward the monster forest.
The air was cold enough that their breath formed faint clouds with every exhale.
Frost still clung to the grass along the roadside.
Neither of them spoke much during the walk.
Both were focused.
After about twenty minutes, the sparse outer trees thickened into the dark edge of the forest.
Osric slowed slightly.
His eyes moved carefully over the surrounding trunks and undergrowth.
"Let's stay sharp from here," he said quietly.
William nodded.
"Got it."
They stepped off the road and entered the forest.
The sounds of Ashbrook disappeared almost immediately.
Only the faint rustling of wind through bare branches and the distant cry of a bird remained.
Osric's hand rested loosely on the hilt of his sword.
William adjusted his grip on the bearded axe.
The hunt had begun.
Osric slowed after a few minutes.
The deeper parts of the monster forest always felt different from the outer edge. The trees grew closer together, their branches blocking much of the pale winter light. Fallen leaves and patches of frost covered the ground.
He raised a hand.
William stopped immediately.
Osric listened.
At first there was nothing unusual. Just the quiet forest.
Then he heard it.
A faint scraping sound somewhere ahead.
Not loud.
But wrong.
His eyes moved upward along a nearby tree trunk.
Something dark clung to the bark before disappearing behind a thick branch.
"There," Osric whispered.
William followed his gaze but saw nothing.
"You saw one?" he asked quietly.
"Maybe. It moved too fast to be sure."
They advanced more slowly now.
Osric focused on the subtle signals his Heightened Senses picked up.
A faint sour smell lingered in the air.
The sharp scent of venom.
He crouched and brushed aside a thin layer of frost on the forest floor.
Small disturbed marks showed where something had recently dragged itself across the ground.
"Trail," he said quietly.
William leaned closer.
"Forest Creepers?"
"Most likely."
The marks continued between the trees.
Sometimes they disappeared beneath fallen leaves before appearing again a few steps later.
They followed the trail carefully.
After several minutes Osric stopped again.
This time he pointed toward a large tree with thick twisted roots.
Dark shapes clung to the bark.
At first they looked like rough knots in the bark.
One of the shapes shifted slightly.
Claws scraped against bark.
Forest Creepers.
Several of them.
William tightened his grip on his axe.
"How many?" he whispered.
Osric studied the tree carefully.
"Three… maybe four."
He drew his sword slowly.
"We take them together."
William nodded.
"Got it."
The monsters had not noticed them yet.
But that would change soon.
Osric shifted his stance slightly.
His eyes stayed fixed on the shapes clinging to the bark.
"Ready?" he whispered.
William nodded.
"Yeah."
They took two slow steps forward.
For a moment nothing happened.
Then one of the dark shapes suddenly moved.
The Forest Creeper released its grip and dropped from the trunk.
The creature was roughly fox-sized, its long body clinging easily to the tree bark.
Dark, bark-colored scales covered its body, blending almost perfectly with the trunk.
Jagged spines ran along its back, and rows of needle-like fangs dripped with thick venom.
It fell directly toward them, claws spread wide.
Combat Instinct flared.
Osric's body reacted before the thought fully formed.
He stepped forward and raised his sword.
Clack!
The blade intercepted the creature mid-lunge, knocking it sideways before its fangs could reach him.
The Forest Creeper hit the ground and twisted immediately, hissing as strands of venom dripped from its jaws.
Before it could recover, William moved.
His axe flashed downward.
Thud.
The bearded blade bit deep into the creature's neck.
The creeper convulsed once before going still.
But the sudden movement had already alerted the others.
Two more shapes detached from the tree.
They scrambled down the bark with disturbing speed.
Osric stepped in front slightly, sword ready.
"Left one!" he called.
William nodded and shifted his stance.
The first creeper lunged.
Osric deflected the strike, his blade sliding along the creature's claws before redirecting its momentum.
The motion felt smooth.
Controlled.
William stepped in immediately.
His axe swept across in a tight arc.
Another dull crack.
The second creeper collapsed.
The last one hesitated for a split second on the trunk above them.
Then it dropped.
But this time both men were ready.
The Forest Creeper dropped from the trunk with a sharp hiss.
Osric stepped forward before it could fully land.
His sword moved almost instinctively.
Clack!
The blade struck the creature mid-air, knocking it sideways before its claws could reach him.
The creeper hit the ground and tried to twist toward him, fangs snapping.
But William was already there.
His axe came down in a brutal downward chop.
Thud.
The bearded blade split through the creature's neck and drove it into the frost-covered earth.
The body twitched once.
Then it went still.
For a brief moment the forest was quiet again.
Osric lowered his sword slightly and scanned the surrounding trees.
"Three," he said quietly.
William exhaled.
"Nice."
But Osric's eyes narrowed.
Something felt wrong.
His Heightened Senses picked it up first.
A faint scraping sound.
Then another.
Not above them.
Below.
"Wait—"
The ground near the thick roots of the tree suddenly shifted.
Leaves and frost slid aside as two more Forest Creepers burst out from beneath the tangled roots.
"Roots!" Osric shouted.
One of the creatures lunged straight toward William.
William reacted quickly, raising the shaft of his axe to block.
The creature slammed against it with surprising force, claws scraping along the metal edge of the blade.
Osric stepped in immediately.
His sword flashed.
The tip pierced through the side of the creature's neck.
It shrieked and thrashed violently before collapsing.
The second creeper darted past them, trying to circle behind.
Combat Instinct pulled Osric around instantly.
He pivoted and slashed.
The blade cut across the creature's side, drawing dark blood.
But it didn't stop.
The creeper twisted its body and snapped at his leg.
Osric jumped back just in time.
Venom dripped from the creature's fangs onto the frozen leaves.
William moved again.
This time he didn't swing immediately.
Instead he stepped sideways, cutting off the creature's escape.
The creeper turned toward him.
Big mistake.
William's axe swept forward in a heavy horizontal strike.
Crack.
The blade smashed into the creature's skull and sent it rolling across the forest floor.
Silence returned once more.
Osric took a slow breath.
But his gaze remained fixed on the roots of the tree.
The disturbed soil.
The hollow spaces between the roots.
His voice lowered.
"This isn't just a resting spot."
William followed his gaze.
The tangled roots formed several dark openings in the ground.
Small tunnels.
Osric tightened his grip on the sword.
"It's the nest."
And inside the hollow roots…
Something moved.
The soil shifted again.
A narrow head pushed out from one of the root tunnels, green eyes glinting in the dim forest light.
Then another.
And another.
Four Forest Creepers emerged from the dark openings between the roots.
They moved with unsettling speed, their clawed limbs gripping the tangled wood as they pulled themselves out of the ground.
Osric's eyes flicked briefly toward the tunnels.
The openings were narrow and twisted, disappearing deep beneath the roots of the tree.
Far too small for a human to crawl through.
If the creepers had eggs or offspring, they were hidden somewhere deeper underground where adventurers could not reach them.
Which meant the only thing they could do was kill the adults.
The first creeper lunged.
Osric met it head-on.
Clack!
His sword intercepted the creature's claws before they could reach his chest.
The impact jolted through his arms, but his stance held firm.
Another creeper rushed in from the side.
William stepped forward to intercept it.
The axe swept upward in a brutal arc.
Crack.
The bearded blade struck the creature's ribs and knocked it violently sideways, sending it tumbling across the frozen leaves.
But the remaining two were already moving.
One darted toward Osric's legs.
Combat Instinct flared.
He jumped back just as venom-dripping fangs snapped shut where his calf had been a moment earlier.
The second creeper leapt straight for William's upper body.
William barely managed to raise the shaft of his axe in time.
The creature slammed into it, claws scraping across the metal edge.
Osric reacted immediately.
His sword thrust forward.
The blade pierced cleanly through the creature's side.
It shrieked and thrashed violently before collapsing.
"Two left!" Osric called.
William shoved the creeper off his axe and stepped forward.
The wounded one from before tried to scramble back toward the roots.
William didn't let it.
His axe came down again.
Thud.
The creature's body went limp.
The final Forest Creeper hesitated.
For a brief second it looked between the two humans.
Then it turned and tried to retreat back into the root tunnels.
But Osric was faster.
He lunged forward and drove his sword through its back just before it could disappear into the darkness.
The creature convulsed once.
Then it went still.
Silence returned to the forest.
Osric slowly pulled his sword free.
William exhaled heavily and lowered his axe.
Osric glanced once more at the dark root tunnels beneath the tree.
Deep underground, hidden somewhere beyond human reach, the nest continued.
But the adult hunters were gone.
And for this mission, that was enough.