Caerus (almost)

[Tristan]

Tristan walked beneath the canopy of enormous pines, their needles scraping his bare skin like grasping fingers. Tiny scratches reddened his arms as he pushed through the forest. He paused at one, straining his neck upward. The sky obscured. He felt caged.. trapped. Defiance wrapped his heart like a crushing fist...

Golden eyes slid low and the world shrank around him. Or maybe it was he who grew. When next they peered, he beheld a wide distance. The tops of trees came to his shoulders as he waded through what felt like high grass. Hills loomed and a sea called. Steps broadened and the sea was summoned nearer. Legs strode fast. His hair streaked wildfire behind from a long braid. The air rushed by his cheeks. When at last his toes tasted salt-water, he lept, and his heart soared.

On a barren slope, he squat and rested, watching the distant sea with golden eyes. Furs occasionally donned his shoulders, but they mostly remained bare. Paint streaked his back with circular designs and gaping maws of disembodied serpents.

Behind him, the trollstone watched his every movement.