Vraxious- Hopes End
Vrax had been planning to set out after his training session with Martha; that hadn't happened. Vrax had gotten the absolute socks beaten off him by someone so far beyond him in skill he had a hard time comprehending it. No matter where she was, she was always within striking distance; the haft the blade, her damned elbow—he was never out of range. The way she slid and glided around him like an untouchable god of war had opened his eyes to what was truly possible for someone who mastered a weapon, and Martha had mastered the polearm just as much as she had the honey bun.
Vrax was so tired and beat down after his hours of training that even after imbibing two potions, he simply dragged himself to his room and climbed into bed for the sweet release of slumber. He could start his journey to finish his trial tomorrow.
Vrax snapped awake sometime in the middle of the night, his hair on end, a sense of danger pervading every part of his being. He opened his eyes the tiniest slit to survey what was in his room with him. The red cats-eye glow of vampiric eyes directly above his face met him. Oh fuck, this is it; this is how I die.
A voice as dry and rasping as the sands of time came from the figure, only his eyes visible in the gloom: “Vrax….. It’s been a month; why are my hedges still pink..”
They swept forward like this for a few hours, Vrax using his talent to expertly traverse the treacherous and sometimes hungry terrain with well-practiced leaps and rolls. The conductors were reveling in all the new sights and sounds; they seemed especially enamored with the mundane squirrels dotted around the treetops. The squirrels, for their part, were scared shitless of the conductors, seemingly instinctively knowing how out of their depth they were in the presence of their evil cousins.
Vrax slid beneath a mossy log, pushing off his back leg as his momentum waned to throw himself up and over a small stream, landing softly in the rocky bank on the other side. He scanned the idyllic area around himself. Oh goody. I don’t think I’ve seen this spot before. An odd fuzzy creature he wasn't familiar with drew his attention. It was a mottled green shaggy thing; all its limbs were hidden under the veritable carpet of tangled fur as it snuffled in the underbrush, rooting around for something.
Vrax cautiously crept nearer to it as it continued its search, seemingly totally unbothered by his presence. He was about to identify it when a nearby willow bent over and scooped the shuffling creature up in a tangle of branches, each with serrated hooks hidden within. The unkempt scavenger shrieked as the hooks held it in place, the willow slowly splitting apart down the center, exposing a wriggling tongue as large as Vrax and unceremoniously plopping its prey into its mouth before closing back up and resuming its life as a tree. What the fuck?
Vrax looked at the willow in horror; there wasn’t anything to give away its true nature that he could see. The hooks had disappeared, and if it wasn’t for the heavily muffled squeals he could still hear from inside the tree, he would be worried he was losing his damn mind. Alright, mystery murder tree, it is not okay levels of concerning that I couldn’t pick you out as a threat. Let’s see what you really are. [Greater Mimic Tier-1](lvl 80). Oh hells, that makes sense.
Vrax cautiously backed across the stream he had just leapt over and took a wide berth of the mimic. It probably wasn’t as deadly as its level suggested, with the vast majority of its essence going towards its stealth capabilities, but he didn’t think it was really worth testing out. Duchess behind him was curiously watching the whole debacle, her head cocked in apparent confusion. She looked at Vrax and then the tree, then at the still squirming lizard in her grasp. She threw the lizard at the mimic.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Vrax’s jaw dropped in astonishment. Why? The lizard tumbled through the air for a few seconds before thunking against the side of the tree in a hiss. One yellow pupil-less eye opened on the bottom of the trunk, directly in line with the disoriented lizard. It slowly turned its head towards the eye and froze. Both of them stared at each other for a moment before the entire tree tilted sideways, a tongue shooting from above the eye like a chameleon striking at prey, disappearing the lizard inside the tree in a flash.
Duchess cooed in amusement and started looking around for more small animals. “Holy shit, knock it off! If that fucker really wants to, it can get up!” Vrax hissed at Duchess before starting a slow jog again past the very hungry mimic. Vrax slowed to a leisurely creep after they got a bit of distance.
As he and his creatures explored on their way to terminus, Vrax wound through stands of trees and bushes, changing little things here and there as he went. One tree was given a resplendent rainbow-colored bark that slowly pulsed with an inner light. A Logart that came up snuffling curiously at that tree was sent on its way a good deal smarter and with an enhanced musculature rippling beneath its silky green and black fur. Vrax chuckled at that one; he liked logarts. If he could be the reason for a new, super-strong subspecies of them, he wouldn’t mind that one bit.
The rest of the day was filled with much of the same—a pleasant stroll through the varied flora and fauna of the forsaken lands. Other than a small pack of forsaken wolves that bit off far more than they could chew with Dutchess, it was surprisingly free of conflict. Vrax pushed on through the early evening, hoping to find a good camping spot. He had veered quite south of the forsaken fort he would normally use and would have to push forward for another three hours at least if he planned to camp at the sourceless falls.
Vrax had just crawled out from an especially dense patch of brambles when a cool blue light dancing in the distance caught his eye. He called the Sweetness and cuddles back to himself and drew his spear before creeping towards the unexpected light. Bioluminescence was very common in the forsaken lands but not in this quantity. Ahead lay a quaint pond that might as well have been lit by a dozen torches. Tiny hummingbird-like creatures positively glimmered with light as they zipped from plant to plant across the water. The way the icy blue hue cascaded shadow through the trees around the pond was truly a magical sight. Vrax stopped behind a stump and surveyed the glimmering water and mossy shores. Nothing this pretty is ever harmless here….
Smooth stones dotted the edges of the pond almost arranged like a low fence around the water itself. Small circles of spiraling wildflowers like mad bouquets grew around the pond in the rough shape of a star. Wait...this can’t be. The water stirred slightly as if in response to his thoughts, something swishing inside just out of sight. Is this an honest-to-gods fey circle?
Something ahead changed. The air pulsed as if the surroundings noticed his presence. The idyllic glade took on a spiritually sharper edge; nothing changed, but at the same time, everything did.
The hummingbirds with too many eyes and wings froze in place, hovering as if stopped in time for a moment before swarming together towards Vrax, their bodies arranged in such a way as to make the outline of a woman with wings flaring behind her. “Yes, a child of man has come to my home, but why...” The buzzing silhouette leaned in close as it spoke in a soft, deceptively kind voice.
Vrax knew he needed to play this carefully. The fey are tricky as hell; some of them don’t mind having some company, and some would even help others out of altruism, most, most would try to get something out of the deal. Vrax spoke clearly and slowly. “I was exploring, looking for a place I could shelter until the dawn of tomorrow.”
The silhouette undulated slightly as it mulled his words: “An explorer…one known to these eyes…you have walked among us before, though you did not know it; you did not slash, you did not burn, you simply settled in to learn….” The soft voice spoke in an almost songlike cadence, shifting closer to Vrax’s face with every word. He braced himself, not stepping backward to avoid insulting the creature or, worse, showing fear.
The silhouette darkened for a moment before light cascaded out once again in time with its words, “A place of respite, a sip of water—what would you offer for these things?”
Vrax frowned slightly. “What do you want in exchange for my safety until the sun has risen to the highest point on the morrow?”
The silhouette giggled, causing the shadows around them to roil. “The son of man is clever; we approve of his choice of words. Not offering freely anything that has not been requested is wise.” Vrax spied Duchess’s eyes looming like evil slits to hell from behind a tree in the distance. Don’t you fucking dare, you overgrown lizard! I have no fucking clue how strong this thing is!
Vrax didn’t respond, waiting for the being to name its price; finally, she spoke again. “Fine, a simple request: a name from you, not the name of your birth. No, I wish to know if you are the one the godsbane whispers of, he who can meld life in the images he sees fit, wielding the powers of an old god thought long dead but instead was long forgotten.”
Ahhh, fuck. I don’t know if I should answer that; depending on what her and the dungeon’s relationship is, that might be a death sentence for me. Oh hells one way or the other, I don’t think I can just walk away at this point. Duchess slowly stalked closer, darting between the beams of blue light, casting long shadows through the trees.
Vrax summoned his armor as he answered, “I am the one.” He used identify bracing himself to dodge if he had to. [Abandoned Nyad Tier-1](lvl47).
She didn’t so much as flinch at Vrax’s glowing appearance as its light clashed with hers. “Well met, The price has been paid; rest your weary head and know that it shall be safe until the sun has risen to its highest.” She then, almost blindingly fast, reached into his cloak, snatching Sweetness out with a yip of pain. “Now this creature, tainted with savage magic, holds no such protection.”
Vrax growled out through his helm. “I think you have severely misjudged this situation.”
The silhouette’s “eyes” danced dangerously. “Oh child of man, striking your host would end your protection. Now, if you wanted to make another deal in exchange for this...thing…” She said in a cruel voice, giving Sweetness a slight shake.
Cuddles rose like an avenging god from Vrax’s pocket, a storm cloud of green fire wreathing it hatefully as the beautiful Fairy Circle burst into ethereal green wildfires. The nyad recoiled slightly in surprise and then looked at Sweetness in her grasp, who was giving her a sick, feather-filled smile, having shoved two of the hummingbirds making up her silhouette into its gnawing teeth. “The second you touched Sweetness, the choice was out of our hands…” Vrax nodded to Duchess, who had made it to the edges of the clearing unseen and was looking at whatever true form this thing held within the waters of the pond.