I sigh and walk back to the fallen alien woman. I turn her body so that she is lying flat on her back. Her skirt has ridden up and her alien womanhood is staring at me. I guess there is no underwear in the loot drop system? I fix her skirt. I know I have changed, some kind of fundamental change in my mind. Arguing with myself and having no emotions should be concerning, but I'm not ready to confront what I have become. But, I still am a good person. I'm not a lecherous creep. Sitting down, I prop her head onto my lap. Now what? I'm not a doctor, she needs water and something to counteract the poison. Thunder rolls off in the distant sky. Damn. I maybe have an hour until that storm gets here. I consider for a moment about taking her back to the ruins, but it is too far and up a mountain. Gently, I place her head under a pair of pants from my bag.
I get up and look for a place to camp. There is a grouping of trees with an overhang of branches that may provide protection from the elements. I throw down some dry leaves and then spend the next half an hour finding stones to make a fire pit. Next, I find some dry twigs and branches from these strange red trees. Hopefully burning this red wood doesn't create harmful smoke. I still have access to Elemental Shards, upgrading didn't block me from still using the original skill, I was worried it might. Leveling it up won't allow me to upgrade it again though. I create a tiny fire shard and use it to light the fire. After the fire is going, I lay out the many pairs of pants I have collected. I knew they would be useful. The blue woman is lighter than I expected, and her body is burning hot. I have no idea if this is just her normal temperature or if she is running a fever. The sun is dropping fast and it has begun to sprinkle, a chill snips at my exposed skin. It is dry and warm under the trees with my fire. I place the Progenitor down on the pile of pants and sit next to her. Thunder and lightning are coming more frequent and louder.
Laying my head down I watch the sleeping woman, there is not much else I can do for her. She can have my water if she wakes, but I have no healing skills. I don't want to waste one of my Health Orbs if it won't help her. My eyelids are heavy, the sound of the rain and the crackling fire beckon me to sleep. Thunder so loud my teeth rattle awakens me, I am confused as to where I am. Embers glow in a fire in front of me, and then I see a pair of eyes staring at me.
"Water..." The woman asks, her voice like sandpaper.
Seems I had been asleep for quite a few hours, the fire is almost out. I throw some wood on the fire and poke it with a stick to get it going again. Then I get my water out of my bag and lift her head with my hand and hold the water to her lips. She takes a drink and coughs it up. Then she takes more water. I set the bottle down after she has had enough.
She looks up at me and then raises her hand to my cheek. "What... what have you done to yourself? A thrall? And Corruption?" Her eyes hold mine for a moment, and then she closes her eyes and falls back to sleep.
Chapter Fourteen: The Great Wood Fairies
~
Musty smells abound as Jill wakes up. The space that Jill finds herself in has a deep earthy perfume of leaves, dirt, and unbridled plant life. Her eyes take in her surroundings, Aurelia and Thunder lay on lush green grass sleeping soundly. It appears they are inside of a tree, its wood black as night. Flowers of many different colors grow off vines that cover much of the space, the flowers glow with a soft light, illuminating the otherwise dark and magical prison Jill finds herself in. There is a doorway and a small window with black branches forming bars, confirming that they were indeed held captive. Against the wall the wood has formed into a bowl where glistening water pools. A few feet away is a wooden seat with a hole in it, must be the toilet.
Jill feels her stomach rumble, and then fruits bloom from vines hanging from the ceiling. "Well, that's convenient." Jill plucks a plum-like fruit that swirls with lights inside. "Wow..." Jill says with juice running down her face after she takes a bite. It is sweet and little pops explode in her mouth, like pop-rock candy. Her mental energy goes up by 150% and her mental regeneration is off the charts. The buff will stay with her for two hours. Jill hears a whine and feels Thunder rub against her leg. Aurelia is sitting up in the soft grass rubbing her eyes and yawning, her hair a mess. Thunder whines again. "I'm not sure you will like this fruit." Jill tells the beast. She leans down lets the giant Wiger lick her face. Jill laughs and scratches behind his ears, "I missed you too." Jill looks at Aurelia and then back at Thunder, "So...you and her are a team now? I guess it makes sense, you are both orphans." Ignoring the question Thunder walks a few feet away and whines at the ceiling. Jill walks over and looks at the fruit hanging there, it is brown and has an odd odor. Jill plucks it and then drops it with a start, it is warm and felt like it had a beating heart. Thunder snatches the fruit from air and chomps it up, blood-like liquid visible in his mouth. He whines again. Jill shivers at the thought of touching that kind of fruit again. "Okay. Chill, I'll get you some more. Just don't eat them in front of me." She picks five more of the blood fruits and leaves them in a pile on the ground, she turns around before Thunder gorges himself.
Jill picks an assortment of different fruits, avoiding any that smell strange. She dumps the pile of fruit in front of the sleepy-eyed child. "Good morning, sweetie." Aurelia crawls over onto Jill's lap and hugs her. "I think we might be safe, for the moment." Jill pulls back to look the girl in the eyes and then looks at Thunder, "There will be no attacking our...hosts. I don't know what they have planned for us, but I don't think this is a situation we can fight our way out of." Thunder sneezes and then turns back to munching on the bloody fruit. Aurelia nods to Jill and then examines the pile of fruit, picking a long red fruit. "Why do I feel like neither of you are taking me seriously?" Jill chuckles. She looks at the child and the Wiger, they have a strong bond. They had to rely on each other. Jill will need to find out what type of effect Beast Champion has on Thunder.
Jill takes this moment to pull up her notifications.
Congratulations! You have completed the Quest:
The Hunt for Aurelia
Aurelia, Nessa and Thunder are safe.
Quest Type: Personal, Timed
Difficulty: Very Hard
Rewards: Disposition increase with Aurelia, Nessa and Thunder. 1,500 Experience
Jill leveled up twice while she was asleep. She is now level seven, with 20 undistributed stat points. She holds off on assigning them for the moment. Next, she pulls up her next notification.
Congratulations! You have learned the Synergy Skill:
Thousand Strikes (Novice, Lvl 1)
You have combined two skills to create a Synergy Skill. This skill uses Unarmed Combat and Energy Infusion. The level of this skill can never exceed that of the parent skills. When used, all infused energy is channeled into a flurry of a thousand fist strikes, each strike causes between .5 - 2 points of damage, depending on the type of Core used for infusion. This skill will also heal user for 20% of damage dealt.
Mental Cost: 50
Stamina Cost: 50
Requirements: Energy Infusion at 75% or higher.
Experience awarded: 100
Jill's eyes nearly pop out of her head, this has the potential to deal 2,000 points of damage, plus heal her. This is an amazing skill. It is also expensive, Cores are the money of this world and she used all she had to reach Aurelia in time.
A creaking sound, like branches of a tree moaning in the wind, snap Jill out of her thoughts. The black wood bars of the door slide into the ground and Nessa flies into the room. Then the bars grow back across the door.
"Good morning." The silver eyed fairy greets them.
"Hi Nessa. So...what's going on? Why are we being held prisoner? And why did they call us 'Old Ones'?" Jill asks.
Nessa flies over to Aurelia, lands on her shoulder and gives the child a kiss on the cheek. Then she hovers in the air to go over to Thunder then stops. Her face scrunches up, "I'll let you finish eating before I greet you, Uxia, son of Dorxicet, of the Setting Sun Clan." Thunder licks his chomps and then turns back to the pile of blo
ody fruit.
"Uh, what did you just call Thunder?" Jill asks confused.
Nessa flies over to Jill and lands in front of a fruit and nibbles on it. "The one you call Thunder comes from a great clan of Wigers. His soul name is Uxia, but he is okay with Thunder. He also knows you are the one that killed his parents. He holds no grudge. Strength is what drives the Setting Sun Clan, you beat his parents and spared him, so you and the Beast Champion are his clan now."
Thunder trots up to Jill, then lays his head on her lap. "I...don't know what to say." Jill strokes Thunder’s head. "Can you talk?" She asks the Wiger. Jill hears Aurelia giggle. Jill looks at the child, "What?" The child shrugs and goes back to eating the fruit.
"No, Uxia...Thunder, does not talk the way you understand. The child and the beast share a unique bond. She is able to commune with Thunder. Aurelia told me everything I just told you."
Jill feels a pang of hurt in her heart, that this beautiful beast lying next to her forgave her and now loves her. She leans down and hugs Thunder.
"Fairies have a long and tumultuous past with humans. Fairies were created when Jax came to this planet. For a time humans and fairies lived in harmony. But the differences grew until the fairies created a secret space to live, away from the destructive ways of the humans." Nessa's eyes glisten and glow brighter for a moment, then she sheds a tear that crystallizes midair. She takes the tear and places it into a pocket. "You and Aurelia may look human, but you are not, you are Progenitors, or called the 'Old Ones' by most that do not know their true name. The Old Ones are considered by many races as an evil race of beings that lived eons ago. There are some races that will not step foot on this continent because it is thought to be the home of the Old Ones."
"This is silly. You know Aurelia and I are not evil." Jill says, feeling hurt.
"I have only spent one rotation with you. Your intentions are not clear to me. But, Aurelia and I have spent more time with each other. She trusts you and I trust her, so I will give you a chance to show your ways." Nessa looks at the barred door, "All this talk may be moot. Maybe if I was a queen I would have more sway, but I am unknown to these Great Wood Fairies. I fear they may kill us all. They blame us for the army of The Caste invading their forest."
A small hand thrusts forward with a silver object laying on her palm.
Nessa gasps. "Where...how...where did you get that?" Nessa flies up and lands on Aurelia's hand. She stares at the object with wide eyes. She reaches out to touch it, but Aurelia raises her finger.
"Wait." The child says softly. Then she uses her finger to swipe in the air, it looks like she is accessing her user menus.
Jill gets a pop-up window.
Aurelia wishes to share the Quest:
The Fairy Crown
Jax found the quest object, Fairy Crown, in a Gibling Lair. He transferred ownership of this quest and the object to Aurelia. Return the crown to the Fairies.
Quest Type: Rare
Difficulty: Very Hard
Rewards: ????
Do you accept this quest? Y/N
Jill accepts the quest. Nessa is looking at them with an anxious expression on her face. "Well, I guess by your reaction, you know whose crown this is?" Jill asks Nessa.
"This cannot be by chance. The odds are too extreme, the timing too prefect, the Silver Mother must have orchestrated this..." Nessa looks at Aurelia, "May I?"
The child nods her consent at the silver haired woman.
As soon as Nessa touches the crown, Aurelia and Jill get notifications that the quest has been completed. Nessa hesitates for a moment, and then places the crown on her head. The fairy is enveloped in silver fire, but she does not seem to be in pain. Once the fire subsides Nessa's silver dress has been replaced by an elegant gown fit for...well, fit for a queen. Her hair is longer and now flows behind her in mesmerizing waves of movement. She holds a scepter in her hands, a glowing orb adorns the top.
"You have saved us my dear child. This was my great-great-great grandmother’s crown. My family used to be the royal blood line, but their rule ended when this crown was lost. I..." Nessa stops, her face a mixture of emotions. She takes the crystalline tear out of her pocket and places it in her mouth. Her whole body lights up with warm energy. She floats into the air, her delicate wings not moving. She floats to the barred door and waves her hand and the roots shrivel and turn to dust.
Four Wood Fairies rush up and point black spears that radiate dark energy at Nessa. Their faces pale and the closest Wood Fairy quickly lowers his spear, "My apologies...I..." The Wood Fairy sputters and looks to the other fairies for help.
Nessa raises her hand and all four Wood Fairies flinch, "Take us to your queen."
"I cannot let these Old Ones leave the Midnight Tree." One of the other Wood Fairies speaks up. She grimaces as soon as the words leave her lips.
Nessa's eyes flash with a bright light and her hair whips about with silver fire dancing around her head. "YOU WILL DO AS I SAY." Nessa commands.
Jill feels an oppressive force weigh upon her as Nessa speaks those words.
"Yes...please follow me..." The fairy says cowering.
Jill, Aurelia, and Thunder follow Nessa out of the prison. Jill stops, she is awestruck at the site around her. Huge trees, some with a diameter of 20 feet and hundreds of feet tall grow around. Little cocoon homes hang everywhere, glowing with inner light. Jill can see fairies inside of the homes, many are openly staring at Jill with wide eyes. Jill turns around and sees an even larger tree than the rest. It is black as night, twisted and gnarly, with dark purple leaves hanging like a weeping willow. Off in the distance there is a shimmering barrier. Beyond the barrier the world is void of color.
"Jill?" Nessa speaks.
Jill turns to the floating silver fairy.
"Please follow." Nessa tells her.
Jill nods her head and walks behind Nessa and the Wood Fairies. Nessa floats back to travel next to Jill.
"That is the last remaining Midnight Tree. It is ancient." Nessa tells her.
"Jax had a staff made of Midnight Wood." Jill tells her.
One of the Wood Fairy guards turns her head and scowls at Jill.
"It is sacrilege. Please do not speak of that again." Nessa whispers to her.
"Okay. Sorry." Jill apologizes. They walk for a few minutes, then Jill sees movement beyond the barrier. She feels her skin crawl. She watches intently as she walks. There. It is The Caste! Jill gasps.
"Do not fear. We are hidden. Only those horrible Red-eyes are able to find fairy villages..." Nessa looks pained for a moment. "I was trying to give this protection to the human village, before we were attacked." Nessa's eyes look like she might cry, but she clenches her jaw and holds back. "I'm sorry I was not fast in the ritual...it was my first time...I could have saved them all..." Nessa's voice cracks with emotion.
"No. It is not your fault. The Caste is to blame." Jill tells her.
Nessa doesn't say anything for a bit and then nods to Jill and floats forward.
A few minutes later they approach a tree that rivals the Midnight Tree is size, but this one is has golden leaves that sparkle in the light. Golden fruit hangs from the massive tree.
"The Tree of The Forest Father." Nessa says with reverence.
There are guards out front, they are wearing golden bark armor, once they spot the Jill and the others they rush forward. "Halt!"
Nessa floats forward, "Move aside. I will address your queen."
"Wha...we were told the Silver Moon were killed..." The royal guard sputters, looking at Nessa's crown and flowing hair.
"I will not ask again." Nessa states.
Trying and then failing to compose herself, the royal guard turns around and leads them forward towards the golden tree. Walking inside of the tree Jill wonders why the doorway, rooms, and hallways are large enough for humans.
As if reading Jill's thoughts, "The fairies used to have diplomatic relations with many of the other races. That is why the insides of this tre
e are so large." Nessa tells her.
They step into what is obviously the throne room. "What is this?" A Wood Fairy yells from the throne. She has a wooden crown upon her head. Greenish-brown hair flows behind her and she is wearing a golden gown.
Nessa floats forward, making herself known. The queen of the Wood Fairies gasps as well as the other Wood Fairies in the room.
"Impossible..." The Wood Fairy queen says.
"Why so shocked, Queen Fula'za?" Nessa asks with venom in her voice.
Jill looks at both of the queens, confused as to what is going on.
Before the Wood Fairy queen can speak Nessa talks again, "I have had a lot of time to ponder during my travels. How did the Red-Eyes find the Silver Moon city? Unless they knew exactly where to look, it is near impossible."
"You cannot possibly insinuate..." Fula'za stops and looks at Jill, Aurelia, and Thunder. "Why are these Old Ones released? You must know of their evil?" She looks at Jill again, "You paint a tree on your chest? We will have to remove your skin."
Jill stiffens and is going to speak, but Nessa shakes her head.
"STOP." Nessa commands. Everyone in the room falls to the floor, like a great weight just fell upon them. The Wood Fairy queen's face grimaces, but she remains upright. "You, my dear sweet sister, visited the Silver City not but a few days before we were attacked. I heard there was a great disagreement between you and the Silver Queen? I was there when Shuvinia the White died. Her last words were 'She has betrayed us...'"
Chrysalis: The Crucible of Immortality Book 2 Page 17
