Hideaway Strath BWP: time makes you bolder

I’m editing this post to write in an injury to explain Rue’s absence/demotion. Sorry for being MIA, everyone!

This quake was stronger than the others, certainly-- but what concerned Rue most was the distant, thundering roar. The Fusor picked herself up from the ground once the violent heaving subsided. A dusty haze hung in the air around the Strath, and the forest was ominously silent. 

Rue began to trot in the direction of the roaring she had heard; northward, toward the Strath's only opening. As she arrived, it took a long moment to register what she was-- or wasn't-- seeing. Nothing looked the same; it was if the Strath's exit passage had been swallowed by a wave of rocks, dirt and broken trees. 

Someone had been on watch, Ruenna realized. Someone was always on watch at the entryway. Who was it? Shocked and numb, it took the Fusor's brain some time to arrive at the answer. Towhee. It was nearly always Towhee. 

"Towhee!" The strangled word tore from Ruenna's throat, and she charged forward... But there was nothing she could do. She darted back and forth across the closed passageway like a caged animal, barking and whining in grief and horror. Somewhere in the back of her mind, the presence of Aneira, Pippin, and Elfie registered, but she was hardly capable of addressing any of them in this moment.

As if it could hear her calling out, the beast beneath the surface groaned in response. The earth shifted once more, and the debris piled directly above Ruenna began to tumble. Everything in Rue’s world went dark as a falling rock struck Rue on the back of the skull. She slumped to the ground, and a hail of stones and dirt rained down upon her still form.