"A while ago, you mentioned protecting the forest." The mercenary says before continuing: "Are you here protecting these woods from people Or are you protecting people from the forest?"

The man sighs to himself and turns around, "Both." The man's appearance has changed over the past year since they met; his skin has become scaly, almost armor-like. He has sprouted horns from his head, and his feet have become hooves. His appearance is reminiscent of a goat or some other bovine.

"What do you mea-" The mercenary began to ask before being cut off by the ground beneath her feet crumbling, sending her scrambling down the newly formed hole. She lands with a loud crunch, and she feels a sharp, stinging pain as the world begins to fade.

Sometime later, she gasps back to life and tries to stand, but she stumbles. It's beyond easy to tell her leg's broken. She cries out in pain before tears well up in her eyes as she sits alone in the dark depths of the pit.

Just as she begins to give up hope, she sees something out of the corner of her eye: It's a firefly. After a few moments, there isn't just one or even a few: There are dozens, if not hundreds, of the insects. She cries out in pain once more as she forces herself to stand, grabbing a large stick to balance herself on. She needs to push through the pain. She needs to see what's happening. The swarm cannot be natural; it cannot be a coincidence.

After following the hoard of insects for what could have been hours, she finds herself in a massive cave. The cave entrance was a large, stony maw waiting to swallow her whole. She looks around for further instruction and finds herself alone once more. With a sigh, she trudges into the gaping mouth of the grotto, fearful of what awaits her.

After she finally hobbled to the end, what she found left her baffled. She had never seen anything like it: There stood a colossal, tattered creature with deep glowing eyes, giant branchlike vine-covered horns, and a body crusted with mud and moss in thick layers. She nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"I've been searching for you for the past six hours." The man says, with a warm, comforting tone. Before looking up at the large creature before them. "Looks like I didn't have to explain anything after all."

"What the hell do you mean you don't have to explain anything!?" The mercenary almost shouts, cringing at the pain as her weight shifts. "What the hell is this thing?"

"Honestly, I have no idea what he is. All I know is he wasn't doing so great when I came across him the first time." The man responds, reaching out to help stabilize her. "I got lost while doing a recon mission to gather some intel on the Grineer for Amaryn when I stumbled across him, and I've vowed to protect the forest ever since."

"That... That's really noble of you." She smiles at him, chuckling softly, "It also explains why people think you're a cult leader.

"Didn't I tell you to stop bringing that up already?" He rolls his eyes and groans, "Let's get you out of here, You're going to need some rest."