「A few hours later.」
The last wisp of ash rose from the dark gray embers.
It danced in the morning sun, a pale mote carried skyward on a trail of smoke.
Colin watched the dust rise and let out a heavy sigh of relief.
He looked around.
The acrid smell of smoke mingled with the metallic tang of blood and the damp scent of moss, drifting on the wind through the Supreme Forest.
The semi-subterranean forest homes, built against the roots of giant trees, had mostly collapsed. Their fern-and-moss-covered roofs were now charred husks.
The thorny low wall that had once encircled the village entrance had been torn asunder. Its barbs were still snagged with tattered cloth and dark red bloodstains.
The village had been utterly destroyed. Most of the homes were ruined, and bodies lay scattered across the ground—Kobolds and Cultists, as well as the local villagers.
Medicinal herbs, baskets, berries...
