Zone D -- The Foam

[Strazio Rockwell]

Strazio followed the river for quite some time. As he walked the crest of Darkshire bounced off his bare chest and sparkled in the midday light. Eventually the river opened up into a vast floodplain. His boots squished against the ankle deep layer of muck and he immediately regretted his decision to head south. Still the way back was further than the way forward and so he continued on. It only took a few steps through the marshland to waterlog his boots and he had an unfortunate feeling that the safe houses lacked fresh socks.

“This fucking sucks,” he growled.

Soon enough the marsh gave way to drier land. Tropical plants and animals surrounded him. Every now and again a thick clump of vines barred his path, nothing that a quick burst of magick couldn’t fix, but annoying nonetheless. His stomach growled and he stopped for a moment. It had been a while since he had ate and the constant physical exertion burned through calories quickly. He groaned and rubbed his belly. Strazio could power through most forms of pain, but hunger was a particularly insidious malady.

A branch snapped nearby and Strazio dropped into a crouch. He craned his neck trying to listen. Birds chirped overhead and strange animals called out to one another. Another snapped branch followed by a rustling of leaves. Something was headed towards him. He stood slowly and pushed through a thicket towards the sound. A large creature that looked to be a cross between a bear and an elk stood on four legs nonchalantly munching on a bushel of pink-colored leaves. Strazio licked his lips and began to charge a bolt of death. He raised his palm and took aim, and just as he was ready to fire a guilty pang tugged at the boy’s heart. Strazio discharged his energy and cursed himself. He shouted to spook the creature and it tore through the tropical forest.

His stomach growled and on a whim he plucked one of the pinkish leaves and stuffed in his his mouth. Sweet nectar filled his maw and he grabbed a few more of the saccharine treats and stuff them down his throat. The boy chewed happily and it wasn’t until it was too late that he made a sudden and terrible realization.

The creature wasn’t eating the leaves for sustenance, but rather as means to intoxicate itself.

Strazio’s body erupted into a storm of fuzz. Every pain receptor muted itself and allowed feel-good chemicals to flood the boy’s brain. And try as he might to resist the absinthe-like fairy his willpower melted as fast as his cognizance. Carried by whatever whimsical machinations that drove him he started to march inland.

Moving D3 to C2