You reach out and grab the nearest tree, your fingers sinking into the thick green moss that cloaks it. Satisfied with your grip, you launch yourself skyward, desperate to evade the ravenous beast that pursues you. In a matter of seconds, you scramble up the tree trunk and settle upon a branch that hangs at least thirty feet above the forest floor. Your evasion couldn't have come a moment later... the second you wrap your limbs around the branch beneath you, Gorlak bursts into the clearing below. Your heart lurches in your chest as he skids to a halt, sniffing the air around him like a hound on a scent. Your stomach flips inside of you as doubts race through your mind... can he smell you? Are trolls good climbers?! The giant green monster lifts his head for a moment, as if pondering your possible location, and then lumbers off, hunting for his meal in vain. You exhale in relief, realizing that you've been holding your breath for nearly a full minute.
After another few minutes of precautionary hiding, you scramble back down the tree and take stock of your surroundings. From the looks of it, you've come across a section of forest that can't possibly be part of the Faybrook Academy grounds... so the million dollar question is how in the hell you're supposed to get back. After a moment of thinking, it occurs to you that Gorlak has left a broad swath of destruction through the woods, leading right back to where you came from. As much as you want to retrace your steps, gather your clothes, and pretend this never happened, you don't dare return to the stream where the troll first found you. However, his trail orients you enough to know the right direction (you hope) back to the academy.
So you set off in the general direction of your school, naked, bleeding, sweating, and terrified. You can hardly believe what you've just been through... and, to your dismay, you can't imagine anyone else would believe it either. But you have to tell them, right? There are things... bad things in the Faybrook Woods, and the students need to be warned!
