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The forest was dense. Dense, dark, and - as Oz suddenly realized - quiet. At some point in the last few minutes that Oz had been walking, the sounds of battle against the Risen that had ambushed their party had faded, and there was nothing left but the eerie rustling of the trees. Leo had located what seemed to be treasure in the forest near the village they were fighting in, and so Oz had led the way, finding a chest at the foot of a large oak tree, nearly buried under its gnarled roots. Inside had lain the jackpot: a silver, feather-shaped barrette inlaid with lapis lazuli, that by some magic still sparkled as if newly made. It was unlikely to sell for much at a shop given the current market, but perhaps Elliot knew of some noblewoman who would be interested in taking it off their hands. Oz had turned around to share his find, only to discover the forest quite devoid of his friends, and indeed, any sign of life whatsoever.
He went back through the forest, keeping a close eye on his surroundings as he retraced his steps, or so he thought, but the farther he walked the less familiar the woods looked, and the longer he walked in silence the more he worried that he was going in the completely wrong direction. It had been nearly five minutes since he had last heard the sounds of fighting. Or maybe it was fifteen? Was the battle already over? He walked a bit faster, using his lance to help him navigate the uneven ground as he scanned the forest ahead of him for any indication that he had come this way before. After what seemed like several minutes - but was likely only arund 30 seconds - Oz came to the conclusion that he was, in fact, lost, and promptly turned on his heel to make his way back to the treasure chest where, one of his companions could at least track him down. And so he would have, had not his abrupt turn landed him face-to-face with a slender girl, uneven strands of short, white hair falling into a face that mirrored Oz 's own shock.
The strange girl recovered first and leapt back, ripping her hand from where it must have just been rifling through Oz 's bag and drawing two long knives as she fell into a crouching stance. A thief, then, most likely, and possibly in league with the Risen if the timing of her appearance was any indication. Oz was still slow from the shock, only just managing to draw his lance up in front of him in defense as the girl took a running leap toward him. The weapon, however, was kicked away with ease as the girl's other foot hit Oz square in the chest, the brief thought that she was strong for a thief flitting through his head before his back made contact with the nearby trunk of a sturdy oak.
His vision went black for a moment, and the next thing he registered was the weight of a heeled boot digging into his sternum, pressing his battered back into the tree roots below. That, and a knife at his throat.
"Whoa... hold on!" Oz gasped, raising his arms in surrender.
The movement was fast enough to startle the girl, and she jumped off of him, knives in front of her in defense.
Oz, however, merely groaned as he pushed himself to a sitting position, rubbing the back of his head gingerly to check for blood. "Ow," he said with a wince as he found a particularly tender spot. No blood, though. At least he wouldn't die of a head wound today. Probably.
"Ah, look," he grated out, still a bit short on breath from the scuffle. "You just wanted this, right?" Moving slowly so as not to goad the girl into attacking again, Oz pulled the newly-acquired barrette from his bag, holding it up where she could see it clearly. "It's fine, you can have it."
The girl narrowed her eyes, sharp silver flicking back and forth between the barrette and his face, which Oz tried to make look as nonthreatening as possible.
"Why?" she asked sharply.
It was a fair question, one for which Oz had multiple answers.
The first, and most prominent in Oz's mind, was the fact that, in a battle between the two of them, Oz had quickly reached the conclusion that he would not win. The girl's attacks earlier had suggested a strength that would match his own fully equipped, let alone with only the bronze lance that Gil had insisted he needed to train in to make himself a "well-rounded Great Lord" or whatnot. Even if Elliot's sword hadn't broken in the middle of battle, causing Oz to give up his own, he would have been extremely wary of meeting this girl head-on.
The second was that, while he was always prepared to fight off Risen, fighting other humans always made him feel a bit sick. Especially when the blood being spilt was over so petty a reason as money or treasure.
And finally, the only reason he actually felt it prudent to share, was "I don't really need it, and it's not what I came here for, anyway. My friends and I were fighting off the Risen in a village near here, but we got separated and I just kind of found it." It was a slight stretch of the truth, but nothing too unbelievable.
Unexpected, then, was the way the girl froze. "You're fighting the Risen?" she asked, her eyes boring into Oz's face in scrutiny. She must have found something telling there, as her posture noticeably relaxed, arms falling down to her sides, though she kept a firm grip on her unsheathed knives. "You're a fool," she intoned, nodding as if she had figured out his entire character.
Oz winced at her straightforward tone, dusting the dirt from his trousers as he forced his legs to stand. "That's what Elliot keeps telling me," he conceded with a self-derisive chuckle. "He's fighting with me, though. I guess we're all a bit foolish." Oz turned the barrette over in his hands, a bitter smile on his features as he absently traced the silver feather veins with his thumb. "Every day we get more and more reports of towns being destroyed, of people being killed. There's no way we can save them all. But if no one fights back, they'll just keep destroying until there's nothing left. If we don't fight, it would mean giving up on this whole world, and maybe it's selfish, but there are some things I'm just not willing to give up. My friends..." he continued, his smile turning soft, "They're worth fighting for."
At some point during his speech, Oz had wandered forward, closing the gap between himself and the girl, and he now stopped in front of her, noting absently that they were nearly the same height as he lifted the barrette and used it to clip the hair out of her face.
"There," he said, smile growing bright as he observed his handiwork. "It suits you."
After a few moments with no response, his smile began to falter as he realized the girl had frozen in place, a bright pink blush spreading across her nose and cheeks, and threatening to overwhelm her entire face.
Oz gave an awkward cough into his hand, feeling the blush start to spread to his own face. "A- anyway," he stuttered, "I should be heading back. My friends are probably wondering where I am, so..." His voice trailed off, and after a few more seconds in stagnant silence, he turned to where his lance lay on the ground, picking it up and marching resolutely in what he desperately hoped was the right direction.
A barrette and only a small amount of his dignity in exchange for his life. Perhaps once his cheeks had cooled, Oz would decide it was a decent trade.
"The village is the other way," came a soft voice from behind him.
What was that about dignity?
Oz gave a stilted laugh as he stopped in his tracks, turning reluctantly to face the girl who was somehow able to keep her voice at a monotone despite her obvious discomfort.
"I'll come with you," she murmured, turning on her heel and leaving a thoroughly befuddled Oz in her wake. It took a few seconds for her words to sink in, but once Oz's brain had deciphered their meaning, he jogged to catch up, a hopeful smile beginning to grow on his features.
"So does that mean you'll - " Oz's question was cut off by a distant but familiar whoop from above, followed by the unmistakable cries of Risen and the steadily growing sound of hoof-beats from the direction in which the girl had led them. Oz flashed her a relieved smile, daring to grab her wrist and pull her along as he dashed toward the sounds of battle.
It was only moments before Gilbert's horse became visible through the trees, galloping toward them at a speed far too reckless for such uneven footing. The horse had barely pulled astride of them when Gilbert jumped off the still-moving beast, stumbling briefly before rushing up to Oz and shaking him vigorously by the shoulders.
"Oz!" he shouted breathlessly, leaving off his shaking to scan the boy for injuries. "Are you alright? Are you injured? Where were you? We were right behind you, but then all of a sudden Risen were blocking our path and we couldn't see you, and - "
Gil was cut off by Alice's jubilant shout from above of, "We're having meat tonight!" followed by what was most likely the screech of an undead wyvern as she hacked it apart with her axe.
"You will not feed Oz Risen meat, you heathen!" Gil shouted to the treetops, but his indignation was met only with raucous laughter.
Oz was robbed of his chance to intervene as the ground battle caught up with them, forcing Gil to remount his horse with one last worried look at his lord. Elliot and Leo crashed through the trees, Leo firing spells one after another at the Risen swarming around them as Elliot parried with one that had gotten too close. Oz took his chance to rejoin the fight, stabbing the creature Elliot was battling through the head and earning himself a vicious glare for what Elliot most likely considered his unnecessary assistance.
"Who is that?" Leo shouted to Oz over the din, gesturing at the white-haired girl who was now standing motionless against a tree.
"Oh!" replied Oz. "We just met. She's a friend!"
"Not what I asked," Leo sighed.
"You can't call someone you just met a friend!" shouted Elliot. "Have you no shame?!" he shrieked as he slashed an enemy across the chest with vigor, sending it stumbling backward toward Oz.
"Ah, that's right." Oz flashed the girl in question a blinding grin as he shoved the weakened Risen away from him with the blunt end of his staff. "What was your name again?"
The girl watched on, stunned, as the party continued bashing heads with a messy sort of coordination that should not have been nearly as effective as it was. With a slight shake of her head, she uttered a single word, before leaping to join the fray.
"Echo."