The Guardian

Barely a day has passed and yet we find ourselves in the eye of a storm whose pieces we barely comprehend. Yesterday we faced off against giants covered in tree bark and dryads who seemed to be transformed in some way. Whatever grace and elegance the tales whispered about was replaced by a savage behavior that was closer to a wild animal than of a person.
 
While the bark-covered giant shook the ground beneath us and threw its fists against the Runecarver and Aloise's shield I could only watch from a distance in despair as Dagny was chased and was almost killed by our enemies, while her parents observed all of it as well. I lost my temper with her when we finally brought the giant down, I could not bear the though that she might have lost her life in front of her parents but thankfully we were able to have a word afterwards and come to an understanding, though I do not like the idea that she might be aware of my respect for someone in our group.
 
Thanks to Ladin, who the elves refer to as the "Ancient One", we were taken to what they call the Center and met up with Aloise's friend and Dagny's sister: Siv, in a shrine devoted to Mielikki. We were all aware that we'd be facing a powerful giant in Stedesgronne, but none of us suspected that Mielikki herself was in danger and her powers are being drained by the giant as we speak.
 
After resting we embarked towards the Guardian, with Siv as our guide, but when we found him, he seemed to be corrupted as much as the dryads we had previously faced. As it moved by burrowing at immense speed under the ground and tried to kill us, my mind went blank for a moment, and all I could see and feel was a heartbeat coming from a dark place close to us. When I came to my senses, the Runecarver hung over Aloise's head as she bled. I couldn't believe what I had done, but I was filled with rage and thought I could end the threat by ridding us of that heart. As I was about to give it the final blow, I heard a voice in my head telling me to stop and shortly after Aloise dove into the dark waters and I tried to guide her to the heart's location where her touch cleansed it of whatever corruption was affecting it, restoring the guardian to its normal self.
 
We gained a powerful ally to help us save Mielikki but it almost cost us everything. When tomorrow comes and we face the giant, everything might not be enough.