They moved south, keeping the murmuring river a constant presence to their right, pushing deeper into Tallenwood. The oppressive weight of Hammer Falls' roar faded behind them, replaced by the gradually returning sounds of a living forest. Birdsong, once absent, now filtered down from the high canopy, tentative chirps, territorial calls. Insects buzzed lazily in the damp, cool air, thick with the scent of wet earth, decaying leaves, and strange, unfamiliar blossoms. The unnatural chill had completely dissipated, leaving only the memory of wrongness. Atmospheric conditions returned to baseline parameters, William noted via EMMA's passive environmental scan. Wildlife auditory signals trending towards expected norms for region/time of day. A relief, theoretically, yet the forest didn't feel welcoming, merely indifferent... and watchful.

  Roland had confirmed their immediate plan after assessing the aftermath in Sharwood and the intel gleaned. “We follow the riverbank south,” he'd stated grimly. “Skirt wide of the Black Pools region Herbert warned of. Once we estimate we're clear of Virrerk's main force's likely southern reach, then we evaluate turning west towards Lumenar. Until then, maximum vigilance.”

  Jett, naturally, took point, moving several yards ahead, a near-silent phantom navigating the tangle of roots, ferns, and ancient, moss-covered trees. Roland followed, then Julia and William, with Caspian nervously bringing up the rear. Despite the return of ambient noise, they moved with painstaking quiet, hyper-aware of their intrusion.

  Suddenly, Jett froze, dropping into a low crouch, hand held flat, halt. The team instantly mirrored his stillness, hearts pounding. Jett remained motionless for a long minute, head cocked, listening intently. Then, almost too quickly for William to track, he darted off the path, examining the damp earth near a cluster of ferns. He returned moments later, shaking his head slightly, frustration warring with certainty in his sharp eyes.

  “Footsteps,” he whispered, his voice barely audible. “Deliberate. Light tread, tried to use the roots to mask sound.” He pointed to a single, almost imperceptible scuff mark on a patch of moss, a freshly bent fern frond nearby. “Seems to be an animal. But...” He frowned, scanning the woods again. “...lost the sound signature when we stopped. Couldn't pinpoint direction or distance accurately. They're good. Or lucky.” He clearly wasn't satisfied with the lack of continuous data but was certain of the initial contact.

  Threat detected, then obscured, William logged. Stealth capability of potential hostile: High. He activated EMMA’s passive auditory filters, increasing sensitivity, accepting the slight continuous mana drain. MP: 130/136.

  They moved on, tension cranked to maximum. Every shadow seemed deeper, every rustle of leaves a potential threat. Roland used curt hand signals to adjust their spacing, sometimes wider, sometimes tighter near dense thickets. Julia moved with her hands held slightly away from her sides, ready to channel mana instantly. Caspian visibly recited protective verses under his breath, clutching his amulet. William focused EMMA's limited processing power on analysing auditory input, constantly comparing incoming sounds against the forest's 'normal' baseline, searching for the pattern Jett had detected. Like running an intrusion detection system on a noisy network... filtering false positives is key.

  Twenty minutes crawled by. Twenty minutes of strained silence, heightened senses, and the constant, low-level hum of William's mana drain. MP: 107/136. Then, EMMA flagged it. A pattern emerging from the background noise.

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  Pattern Match Detected! Rhythmic, low-amplitude acoustic signature consistent with muffled bipedal locomotion. William focused EMMA’s sensors, pushing slightly more mana. MP: 100/136. Isolating signal... Filtering ambient noise... Comparing signature... Database match inconclusive (Low confidence match: Small animal OR Unknown Light Humanoid / Goblin). Calculating Vector... Target moving parallel, west flank, distance approx. 70 meters +/- 5m. Maintaining pace. Stealth discipline: High.

  “Stop!” William hissed, louder than intended, grabbing Roland's arm. “Confirmed! Jett was right! Follower reacquired! Single entity, west flank, seventy to seventy-five meters! Matching our pace! Keeping cover!”

  Jett nodded sharply, already facing west, bow partially drawn. Roland spun, sword coming half out of its sheath, peering into the dense tangle of trees and shadows. Julia’s hands glowed faintly.

  They all listened. Now, knowing where and what to listen for, they could just discern it, the incredibly faint, intermittent pad... shuffle... snap (of a tiny twig)... pause... moving when they had moved, silent now that they were still. The stalker knew they knew.

  “Damn their eyes,” Roland breathed, lowering his voice to a harsh whisper. “Sticking to us like a tick. Scout for the main army? Or something local?”

  “Too skilled for the goblins we saw at Sharwood,” Jett offered quietly. “Moves too well in this terrain.”

  “Regardless,” Roland stated grimly, “we can't let it shadow us indefinitely. We're losing time, and they hold the initiative.” He assessed their surroundings. Tactical impasse, William thought. Forward movement compromised by surveillance. Direct confrontation risks ambush. Delay risks main force interception.

  While Roland weighed the grim options, William ran a quick self-assessment. Ambush or direct confrontation likely imminent. Assess user combat readiness. His eyes flickered to the EMMA status overlay. Unallocated Stat Points: 3. Analyse optimal allocation for potential engagement vs. unknown stealthy opponent. Boosting Agility (currently 20) seemed logical for reaction speed and maneuvering in the dense woods. Vitality (17) offered resilience if ambushed. Magical Power (26) less crucial unless sustained EMMA analysis or multiple spell casts were needed. Tempting to enhance Agility now... but the threat profile remains unknown. Strength? Magic capability? Numbers (is it really alone)? His usual caution, amplified by the high stakes, won out. Hold points. Reactive allocation based on confirmed threat data remains optimal strategy.

  “We force their hand,” Roland decided, his voice hard, interrupting William's internal debate. “Draw them into ground of our choosing. Set an ambush.” He turned to Jett. “Find us a spot. Now. Narrow the approach vector, provide us cover, them exposure.”

  Jett didn't hesitate. His eyes, accustomed to reading terrain instantly, scanned their immediate surroundings. After only a few seconds, he pointed slightly upslope, away from the river. “Ravine,” he whispered. “Fifty yards. Cuts across the game trail ahead. Narrows to less than ten feet wide. Overhanging rocks and dense ferns on the ridge offer concealed positions above and flanking. Clear line of sight back along this approach.”

  Roland glanced, visualized, nodded once. “Perfect. Tactical repositioning to Ambush Point Alpha.” His voice dropped further, barely audible. “Move like ghosts. We reach the ravine, take positions, and wait.”

  Silently, swiftly, the team detached from the riverbank path, melting into the undergrowth, heading towards the designated kill zone. The sounds of their own passage were carefully controlled, deliberate. The forest seemed to watch, holding its breath once more, waiting for the silence to be broken by violence. They settled into the ravine, Jett finding a high perch among roots and shadows, bow ready. Roland positioning himself behind a thick tree trunk at the narrowest point. Julia taking cover behind a mossy boulder further back, mana gathering. William and Caspian flanking her, William drawing his sword, Caspian gripping his amulet, both peering intently back the way they had come, listening for the return of the shadowed steps. The trap was set.