43. A Voice in Your Head

[] Go North, but get some safety distance between you and the river where ferals are likely to hide and hunt.

-------------------------------

After a moment, you decide to keep moving north, following the river until you find a place that's safe enough to cross. Going deeper into the wilderness might be a bit risky, but at least you won't have to worry about random challengers. 

Ignoring Lamina's groans, you tell your Woodmouse to lead the way. Ana is eager as always, her tiny form showing you the quickest and safest path forwards, though you notice that she chooses a path that puts a healthy distance between you and the river's edge. You can't even see the river, though the sound of rushing water nearby lets you know that you're still on course. 

The three of you push on, struggling past the increasingly thick undergrowth as you move. The deeper into the woods you go, the more abundant the flora becomes. The trees grow to massive sizes, blocking out the sunlight and casting everything into shadow. The bushes are no better, growing so large and thick that Lamina's sword needs to be used more then once to hack a path through. You can hear birds singing, but the sound seems muted, almost as if it's being swallowed up by the woods all around you. The air itself seems thick and cloying, pressing down on you as if it knows that you don't belong. 

Is this what the wilderness really felt like? Your high school camping trips were nothing in comparison, even after two of your classmates had disappeared one night. 

Here, there were no chaperones, no adults, no safety measures of any kind. Just you. Alone. All alone. Nobody would miss you. Nobody would care if you were gone. Nobody would ever... would ever...

[Saving throw passed by ally!]

You yelped in pain as an armored fist struck the back of your head with a loud clang. "You back with us, Mistress?" the Armsmistress drawled, looking completely unrepentant. 

"What was that for?!" you growled, clutching at your aching head. Were you bleeding?! Oh, god! What if you got infected? You could die out here! All alone, with no one to-

Clang!

"Stop hitting me!"

"Then stop letting it get in your head." Lamina shot back, her sharp eyes darting from one shadow to another. "It's already got the mouse. I can't afford to let you wander off by yourself either."

"Mouse?" you blinked, your thoughts feeling strangely... heavy. "Ana? What's wrong with-"

"I dunno what it is, but we need to get outta here ASAP." the former gladiator said. "Mousy girl's wandered off somewhere. I thought she was taking us on a safe path or something, but she's just leading us deeper into the woods."

"What... what do you..." you... weren't feeling so good. What was going on?

"Can you hear the river?" Lamina asked. "Cause I can't."

You blinked slowly. Huh. That's right. Where'd the river go? And why was it so important, anyway? You already knew where you needed to go, after all. You just needed to... to...

Clang!

Blue collapsed, unconscious. 

The Armsmistress sighed, lifting her tamer over her shoulder. "Dammit. Now I'm getting a headache. Goddamned magic types. Now, normally I'd let the tamer do the thinking, but it's obvious that you're in no condition to plan. Right now, the best thing to do is..."

[] To hunt this thing down. Nobody messes with my brain and gets away with it. 

[] Find that stupid mouse. She's the only one of us who knows how to travel in the woods.

[] Fuck this shit, I'm flying outta here. Gotta get the tamer to safety. The mouse will just have to take care of herself.