Water, Water Everywhere

The stag raced towards them, giving them little time to think. Devrim and Junayd drew their swords, but the mighty creature flung them aside like they weighed less than a feather. He bore down on Gandr, who stared wide-eyed at the beast.

To everyone's shock, the stag gathered up Prince Alaron in his branchlike horns and gave a guttural cry before racing off into the trees before them.

"Did he just abduct our abduction of the prince's abduction?" Junayd queried.

Gandr ignored him. "After the stag!" The halfling used his wind magic to push along the the trio just as the gnomes came into the clearing. The men needed no more coaxing. They ran full out after the stag and away from the gnomes in a life-or-death game of tag. The close proximity of the trees made them difficult to avoid, but the agile warriors remained focused. Their lives depended on it.

The gnomes could not move as easily through the trunks and exposed roots, and so many of them opted for an underground route. The stag's ru