Alana Quickleaf

[*jasonpauldegraaf]

The Beastlands is a plane home to many celestial animals, creatures of the wild, and anything that grows. Settlements are few and far between and sparsely populated. In one of these outposts lived Alana Quickleaf, a wood elf working as a park ranger. Most of her time on the job was spent keeping up trials, mapping forests, and giving tours to centaurs and catfolk.

Then, one day, she was let go...

**********

“What the cuss?! You’re firing me?”

“Yeeeaaah,” her boss said. He was an older satyr with a grey coat who wore horned-rimmed glasses. Sitting behind his desk in the ranger station, he looked up and nodded to Alana who was standing in front of him.

“Why? What did I do wrong? I’ve been working here for ages!”

“Yeeeaaah, I know,” continuing to draw out his words. “I’m sorry, Alana. It’s, just with the economy and all, we simply can’t afford to have you on staff anymore.”

“But what about the trails? And there’s so much more mapping to do. My schedule is full all the time!”

The satyr took off his glasses and rubbed the sides of his nose. “Yeeeaaah, that. Riiiiiight. We’ve actually found a replacement for you. We had to go with her because she would work for a whole lot less.”

“What?! I’m not making a fortune here, boss. Who are you hiring?” Alana asked.

“Sprinkles.”

“Sprinkles? Who the cuss is Sprinkles? I know everyone in this outpost and there’s no one named Sprinkles?”

Her boss paused for a long time. “Yeeeaaah… She’s a pixie.”

Alana’s eyes went wide. “You’re cussing kidding me! A pixie? I lost my job to a pixie?!”

The satyr shrugged. “What can I say? She works for one-third of your pay and would rather take berries and herbs than coin.”

Alana’s hands went to her hips. “This is unbelievable.”

"And she can fly."

"Right."

"It helps with aerial mapping."

"Of course."

"And turn invisible."

"They all can."

"And read our surface thoughts."

"That comes in handy."

"And force others to dance uncontrollably up to ten times in a given day."

Alana whimpered, feeling somewhat small. They both stopped and looked at each other for a while. She was tearing up.

“So what am I going to do now?” Alana looked to him frustratingly.

“Yeeeaaah, that. Riiiiight.” The satyr nodded for a bit. “Have you ever considered Plane Walking?”

“Plane Walking? What the cuss is that?”

**********

And so began the adventures of Alana Quickleaf, (Park) Ranger of the Beastlands.

((Please feel free to send me a PM if you enjoyed reading this. I appreciate any feedback and love improving my writing and role-playing. Best, -JPDG))

[*jasonpauldegraaf]

A week later, Alana Quickleaf was with her brother, Amras, practicing to become a Plane Walker. Considering her background as a park ranger, it seemed very fitting for Alana to follow the path of woods-woman, learning the ways of the lands, forest, and bow. Dusk had fallen, and the two were working on her ability to move stealthily through shadows.

**********

“Okay,” Amras said, “Let’s go over the basics.”

“Right,” Alana replied, getting herself ready.

“Take off your nametag.”

“What?! No!”

“It needs to go.”

“I’ve had it for years!”

“We can’t start until you unpin it.”

“But we’ve been through so much together!”

“Remove it from your very being!” Amras finally exclaimed. His sister promptly obeyed, taking it off and putting it in her pocket.

“Now,” he said, “I want you to think of yourself like a cat.”

“A cat!” Alana said, getting somewhat excited.

“A quiet, sneaky cat.”

“A ginger one!”

“That never makes a sound.”

“That’s fluffy and likes chasing mice!”

Amras looked somewhat confused. “Um, right. Just try not to make any noise. Ready?”

“Ready!”

“Great. Go!”

Alana stood in the shadows for a good minute.

“Alana?” Amras whispered.

“Yes?” she whispered.

“You’re supposed to move.”

“But I’ll make a noise. And I’m not supposed to make a noise.”

“I know, that why we’re training.” Amras looked frustrated. “Just try moving from this tree to that tree without making a sound.”

“But that’s really hard!”

“Just do it!”

Alana took a deep breath and collected herself. She began to creep forward. Snap! “Drat! Who put that twig there?!”

Amras put his hands to his face, shaking his head.

“Can I try again? Do Plane Walkers get do-overs?”

Amras ran his fingers through his hair. “This is going to be a long night…”

**********

And so the Quickleaf kin spent many hours in the woods of Brux working on Alana's skills at stealth and subtlety.

((Please feel free to send me a PM if you enjoyed reading this. I appreciate any feedback and love improving my writing and role-playing. Best, -JPDG))