Molly took one look at the tree of fruit as her stomach grumbled and begged me to get some for her. It didn't make much sense to me to do it. Why not just buy some more rations if she was hungry? However thinking back to how terrified she had been I decided to reward her for her bravery.
Yet something about the tree clearing seemed familiar somehow. Not directly but as if it reminded me of something. There was nothing that indicated danger it was just a tree in a clearing so I agreed to go.
I told Molly to stay at a distance and I would go get some fruit for her. She wanted to stay close to me yet I insisted. Something in my databanks told me to not let Molly approach.
I finally got Molly to agree and I cautiously went closer. The tree was tall and broad at the base with the fruit hanging down within easy reach.
The fruit looked delectable hanging from the tree in big juice clumps. Slowly I reached for one.
As I plucked and pocketed a fruit I saw a quick movement on my right. Thankfully the attack came in not on my blind side and I had just enough time to block.
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My new ability flared to life as a barrier stopped the impact from hitting me. This gave me enough time to get a good look at my attacker. It was the tree itself trying to whip me with its branches.
My databanks finally recalled where the tree setup looked familiar. It wasn't the same but it had a similar setup to the tree in the fairy grove. As the tree flailed about trying to pulverize me I weaved and dodged zigzag away from it as fast as I could. I ran back to Molly glad I had made her keep her distance.
After getting out of range of the tree I made another note in my HUD to watch out for similar clearings. Me and Molly made a spacious circle around the clearing giving the tree in its center a wide berth.
Despite the bit of excitement from the situation I had gained a fruit for Molly. Soon she was eating it with fresh fruit juices running down her chin. It must have been delicious as she smiled through mouthfuls.
An unexpected windfall that gave us a surprise is that when Molly finished eating the fruit a notification popped in front of Molly.
"Ida numbers went up!" Molly let me know with an excited gasp. Apparently she had gained +1 Body from the fruit.
Pleased that the encounter with the tree had not caused anything bad to happen to Molly I took her hand and we continued on our way. The goblin camp was just up ahead and we would come to it soon.
I mentally ran through calculations and scenarios. Preparing for what had to be done to get Molly home.When I got there I would be ready.