Moment

"Why do you have to do this again?" Rukk shouted over the winds whipping around them. Petoryn stood dazed at the edge of a barren pit and Rukk worried the winds might blow him right in. "I thought we said you'd never try to go deep aga-"

"Stop." 

Petoryn never spoke so clearly when he was magic-drunk off of the influence of the woods. In fact, Petoryn never spoke so clearly. His nasally voice no longer sounded as goofy, but almost authoritative. Rukk could do nothing but follow the command and he sealed his lips tight.

"I'm not real, Rukk." Rukk could only see Petoryn from behind, but his arms wrapped around himself firmly like an unkind hug. That much he could tell. 

"What…?" 

"I'm not real! Dont you get it! Im not a person!" Petoryn turned, his face contorted with anger like Rukk had never seen before. That and the force of his shout made Rukk instinctually step back.

It was now that Rukk could see Petoryn in full. His skin… It bulged with bark in almost every place, like it was eating him. He looked like he was in pain.

"Do you know what happened?" Petoryn yelled, advancing on Rukk. Rukk willed himself to stand still.

"Grandma? She made me!" Another step.

"The spirit of the flora of this island couldn't be an animal Rukk." He continued. Another step. Rukks eye widened as he put the story together.

"So she took a stump. And she took some flowers. And some magic. And do you know what she did??" Petoryn was right in Rukks face now, looking into his singular eye. Rukk noticed new bark growths pop through Petoryns hairline. Rukk looked back into Petoryns storm of a face with as much calm as he could muster.

"SHE MADE ME RUKK! I WASN'T MEANT TO BE CONCIOUS!" Petoryn screamed. Rukk had to close his eye tight just to take the force of it. When he opened his eye again, Petoryn was very different. His face was hidden in his hands and he sobbed quietly.

Rukk quietly pulled Petoryn against him in a hug. "Its ok, hey, you're still having a great life anyway though, you can just come back and keep-"

"I can't though," Petoryn interrupted. "I cant just keep living I-

"Those three, the fauna spirits of our island… we cant exist at the same time in intelligent humanoid forms." Petoryn sobbed mournfully. "And I'm not supposed to be conscious in the first place… they sacrificed their humanoid intelligence to give me a life.

"But the roles being switched…. It threw the island into magical chaos. It… it was all my fault, really." Petoryns sobs calmed but Rukk wasn't sure he liked that at the moment. "I need to correct the balance."

Rukk found himself holding onto Petoryn tighter. "No… no we can find a way to do this! Everyone can be ok Ryn! You dont have to…"

"I do, Rukk." While his brain scrambled at the interruption, Petoryn was able to push himself out of the hug. Usually he was too weak to even come close to wiggling free but… The orc felt his heart sink. Petoryns hands and arms were bulky and stiff, completely covered in layers of bark.

"Im sorry," Petoryn said. Bark emerged faster, tearing through the nice shirt he had been wearing to cover all the bark up in the first place. It covered the last exposed parts of his neck. "I loved you."