Chapter 22

Eva pulled up to the curb of their street, with Amy in the passenger seat. By the front door, Darren, Emalia and Elizabeth stood idle, until they spotted the car. They hopped to, heading for the car right away, and they piled into the back seat.

“Sounds like shit has really hit the fan,” Elizabeth commented as she buckled herself in.

“Indeed, it has! I just hope that you have some serious energy reserves there, Liz. I can already feel this is going to be a long day!” Amy said as she blew out a heavy breath. “Have you been practicing with your magic, Darren?”

“Yes, I have been,” her brother replied.

“I mean outside the bedroom!” she laughed.

“Again, my answer is yes. Have you seen the new walls of vines that cover the fences now?” he asked her.

“No, I haven’t. Is that your work?” she wondered.

“It is. They’re not just there to look pretty or to reinforce the fences. The vines have some pretty wicked defenses worked into them,” he stated.

“Like what?”

“Let’s see; touching the vines will make you disoriented to where you have vertigo, the pods on the vines, when triggered, will release a cloud of paralytic toxin that knocks you out for hours, and certain clusters are ones that will entangle and hold you in place. Even Jason would be hard pressed to break free of those,” Darren told her.

“Wow!” Amy replied, truly impressed with her brother’s initiative. “Those are some pretty badass defenses!”

“They only trigger when a non-Gaian gets too close, or tries to jump the fence,” Daelina told her.

“Ah! You helped him with setting those up then?” Eva asked, as she drove the car onto the highway, heading for the house.

“A little,” Daelina admitted. “I helped guide him and had to get him to tone down the defenses.”

“Tone them down? What do you mean?” Elizabeth asked, curious.

“Darren originally wanted to have the plants exude a deadly poison and give off noxious clouds of deadly gas. I had to talk him out of those, as they could affect us too,” Daelina stated.

“You wanted to do poisonous plants, to protect our home?” Amy asked, awed that her brother would go to such lengths.

“When we came to Elizabeth’s house and kicked the door in, you had no manner of deterring us. So, I wanted to make it so that anyone else who tried to break in would not find it so easy as we did,” Darren said.

“I will say this much, little bro; badass!” Amy told him as she offered her fist to him. Darren smiled and bumped her back as they headed to the house, wondering what the plan was.

“Going into the forest, with what little we know?” Sheena asked, cocking an eyebrow at her boyfriend.

“You got any better ideas? If you do, I’m all ears,” Jason said.

“If we must go in there, we’ll need to employ scorched earth tactics. Burn everything around us as we go. Don’t want any surprises or traps coming at us where we can’t see them,” Sheena replied.

“I agree with Sheena on this, babe. Burning a path to the grove is the best option, if that’s where you want to go,” Phalmina said to him.

“A sound idea. Burn away the corruption, so that the Great Spirit can reclaim these lands once again,” the Wolf Shaman agreed.

“Ema? Your thoughts?” Jason asked.

“I agree with Mina. Fire seems like the best way to fight these things. Carve a path to the grove and burn it down. Fire will burn away anything that rots,” Emalia stated.

“Then we’re in agreement. We should have some ice spells handy though, to slow down anything that attacks us,” Jason replied.

“Slow them down or root them to the spot before burning them to ash? I like it!” Sheena enthused with a grin. “But our ability to use such spells is limited. Where do you expect us to learn how to wield such magic?”

Jason snorted a laugh before pointing at the house, which left Sheena confused for a moment, before she facepalmed herself.

“Shut up!” she snapped at Jason.

“What? I didn’t say anything!” Jason snickered.

“No, but you were going to,” Sheena accused.

“Says who?” he asked her in a boyfriend voice.

“Says me, that’s who!” Sheena told him.

“If we could put aside the bickering for a moment? While it is hot watching you two argue, we have a job to do,” Phalmina reminded the pair.

Jason and Sheena blushed for a moment as some raunchy thoughts flitted through their minds before they focused back on the task at hand. The entire group adjourned to the interior of the house, heading for where the books were stored. Xaera had pulled together a comprehensive list of tomes to go through, as she had little else to do while there.

While everyone moved inside, the Shaman moved to the front of the house, with Bert in tow. Though Sheena had magically cleared his arteries and a second heart attack wasn’t in the cards for a while, the children had terrified him. Not wishing to see them again, he went and sat on the porch, with his notebook in hand, and resumed his questions for souls of the Shaman.

He sat there, jotting down everything they told him, his mood improving markedly as they conversed. Bert had grown up during a time when residential schools were still a thing and the memories still haunted him. The cultural genocide that his people endured was nearly complete, but with this knowledge he was receiving, it would soon be reversed. He continued to write things down as a car pulled into the driveway from the road.

“Hello?” he called out to the women who got out of the vehicle.

“Good morning! I’m guessing that you’re Bert?” Eva questioned, as she neared the elder.

“Yes, I am. And you are?” he replied, smiling at the gorgeous woman.

“Eva Marston, Druidess in training,” she told him.

“Ah! Another Great Envoy! Welcome! The others are inside, studying spells, I believe,” Bert told them as he gestured to the door.

“Are these...” Darren asked as he caught sight of the spirits of the dead Shaman.

“Honored elders,” Amy spoke to them, bowing respectfully. Darren, Eva, Elizabeth and Daelina followed suit, showing the spirits the deference they were due.

“You honor us, sister Shaman,” the Wolf Shaman replied, placing his hand on Amy’s shoulder. “As do you, guardian. You do well to take care of the new lives that your fairy consort carries. They will be strong in the Great Spirit’s power. Give them the guidance they need to grow good and strong.”

“I will ... honored elder,” Darren replied, bowing a bit deeper.

“Go. Your friends will need your help this day,” the Shaman told them. Everyone then stood up and headed inside, eager to find out what the gameplan was. The Shaman smiled after them, before he turned to Bert.

“Much had changed since our days. Whites bowing to us out of respect, without prompting?” the Shaman wondered with a smile.

“Oh, it has! Though whites did a lot to our people, they’re not all bad. Hell, some have even sided with us in our fight to reclaim what was once lost, and for reparations for what has been done to our people,” Bert stated.

“Really? We have true allies among the whites?” the Shaman questioned.

“Let me tell you about my friend, Jerry! Real nice guy who helped me and my boys out with a lot with things!” Bert started. The Shaman listened, eager to hear the story that Bert had to tell of his friend.

The Gaians stood about inside, each one of them with at least one book in hand, studying its contents. There was much to be learned from the archive that had been liberated from the Sons of Caesar. Xaera had even found a book that contained some basics for Troll magic. She was currently engrossed in that tome, smiling the entire time she was reading.

“Hmm! While Druidic magic is powerful, its scope is limited,” Jason commented.

“How so?” Sheena asked.

“Well, it seems that when it comes to anything that exists in nature, it can be done! The only catch is that it has to exist for us to make use of it,” Jason stated.

“Like, water needs to be around in order for you to make use of it?” Amy queried.

“Exactly like that!” Jason said. “If it is currently in existence around me, then I can draw and channel it into something very fearsome! But I have to have said aspect in order to do it.”

“So that’s why when Druids banded with Shaman, they were nearly unstoppable,” Phalmina smirked.

“How do you mean?” Eva questioned.

“Shaman, while they are in some ways weaker than a Druid, have distinct advantages that a Druid does not. Shaman can summon the very weather itself to work for them, be it mist, rain, fire, ice, etc. Druids cannot, but if a Shaman were to summon certain elements into play, like say, a fire spell...” Phalmina started.

“Then the Druid could work with the element in play and either amplify it, of craft his or her own spell from what the Shaman has brought forth!” Sheena replied, putting the pieces together.

“Exactly! So, as long as Shaman and Druids stick together, using their magic and abilities in tandem with each other, there is little on this planet that could stop you!” Phalmina told them.

“I can be of some help as well!” Xaera stated.

“Oh? How so?” Sheena asked.

“Troll magic, while it does come from Gaia, it also draws on elements that are outside of Gaia’s control,” Xaera told them as she walked forward.

“Like a fusion of magical energy?” Eva wondered.

“Yes! Exactly like that! This book here details that because of this, my magic will be able to do things that even Gaian magic cannot,” Xaera told them.

“Let me see that!” Jason muttered as he walked over. Xaera handed him the book, and he peered at it intently, flipping through several pages. His eyes widened as he took in the information that was written there, and he smiled to himself.

“Luke, I think they will require your input here,” Jason said to his friend.

“Why do you think that?” Luke wondered.

“Because, with what I’m seeing, what Xaera can do, or the theory of it, is right up your wheelhouse. One of your mains in WoW is a mage, right?” Jason questioned.

“Yeah?” Luke answered hesitantly. He walked over and took the book that Jason was reading and took a gander at it. As his eye scanned the contents, a smile lit up his face, which progressed to a grin.

“Holy damn man! Did Blizzard get their hands on one of these spellbooks or something?” Luke laughed.

“Maybe the theory of magic isn’t that difficult or ludicrous at all. Might be that most of it is just common sense, to those who have the mindset for it,” Karla interjected.

“You know, that might just be the simplest way to explain magic,” Phalmina grinned. Karla smiled at the compliment and shrugged.

“That’s Occam’s Razor for you,” Luke remarked.

“Occam’s Razor? What’s that?” Daelina questioned.

“When you have a problem of any kind, the simplest solution to it tends to be the correct one,” Amy filled in.

“Oh! That makes sense!” Phalmina grinned.

“If what I’m reading here is right, a lot of the fancy and destructive spells I see in the game, Xaera will be able to use, no problem!” Luke smiled.

“Sounds like Xaera’s magic will most assuredly give us the edge we need to win this fight!” Sheena enthused. “Especially since last time this Nymph fought anyone; it was only Shaman she was fighting.”

“I agree, but that doesn’t mean that we should be careless. You saw what she did to the vines when I tried to tangle her up,” Jason stated. The reminder of the rotting plantlife was a sobering thought.

“Well, we should be careful and start learning about any barrier or defensive spells, then. Anything that keeps ... Felicitae at a distance is something we should have handy,” Darren suggested, which was met with a round of nods from everyone.

“No arguments here. After seeing what she did to the plants, I’m not eager to see that same effect on human flesh,” Jason agreed.

“All right, then. So, caution and moving in a slow advance towards the grove is what we need to do. We are not going for a blitz approach, no matter how well we are progressing. I don’t want anything to encroach on us from behind and then we wind up trapped in the forest,” Sheena told them.

“I’m not sure I can do anything to help with that. My magic is purely defensive,” Darren lamented.

“You actually have one of the most important jobs there is! That is by being our bulwark against any major attack when we’re calling it a day,” Jason stated.

“Calling it a day?” Darren questioned.

“Yeah. As much as I’d like to, we’re not reaching the corrupted grove today. It’s at least seven to eight kilometers away, if my math is correct,” Jason stated.

“You’re guessing?” Sheena asked, folding her arms.

“Hey, it’s the best we’ve got to go on at the moment. But yeah, the grove itself is a fair distance from here. Burning a path through the forest to the grove will take time. A few days, if we’re lucky, and a week if we have to fight something every day,” Jason replied.

“I see. So, I’m keeping everyone safe, then?” Darren concluded.

“In a sense, yes. We will need you either on this side of the barrier or close to it. I doubt the creatures of the forest are just going to let us go through peacefully once we’ve started torching it,” Phalmina said.

“That’s where we come in. We’ll stay in fairy form and keep any attackers from getting too close,” Emalia replied.

“Sound tactic! Staying small and flitting around while raining destruction on those things will keep them occupied, while making you much harder to hit,” Luke smiled.

“The real challenge is going to be Felicitae. Though we’ve seen some of what she can do, that’s likely not the whole scope of her power. All we’ve likely seen so far is probably just a small taste of what she’s capable of,” Jason surmised.

“But, as powerful as she may be, she will be hard pressed to take down all of us,” Sheena smirked.

“Strength in numbers is a tactic that never fails to work. Enough wolves will eventually pull down a lion,” Eva agreed.

“We should keep up with the studying, though. Maybe practice some of these spells before we head out there?” Amy suggested.

“A prudent idea, but we can’t spend the entire day doing that. We need to get started as soon as we can because the more time we take with practicing, the more time Felicitae has to prepare for our coming,” Jason responded.

Nodding, Amy went back into the spellbook she was reading, while Luke assisted Xaera in understanding the principles of Troll magic. Though what he knew from games wasn’t the same, it was close enough if what he was reading was correct. He and Karla helped Xaera with figuring out how the magic worked and how to focus her energies.

The others kept reading and did some basic theory with their spells and even fired off small scale versions of the spells they were reading about. After another hour had passed, Jason closed his book and set it on the table, having had his fill of magical theory.

“Everyone ready to get started?” Jason asked.

“I could use a little more time on theory,” Amy admitted.

“Same!” Eva chimed in.

“Sheena? Mina? What about you two?” the redheaded man queried.

“We’re good to go,” Phalmina stated, speaking for both her and Sheena.

“So are we!” Emalia replied, flitting over with Daelina.

“All right, then. Darren?” Jason wondered.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” the man stated.

“Good. Sheena, you and I will start things up. Mina, Ema, you two fly high up above us and let us know what you see. Lina, you stay close to Amy and Eva when they join us. Darren, you’re on guard duty,” Jason told everyone, delegating their responsibilities.

“We can help too!” Luke told them, before dashing out of the house. He was back a few minutes later, with his spy gear, while he pulled out his box of ear buds. “I’m sure a little co-ordination and teamwork would be a welcome thing.”

“Smart thinking, babe!” Karla enthused.

“Also, I probably should set up a few cameras, in case there are angles that you overlook when they come at you,” Luke suggested.

“Good idea, Luke! Let’s get them set up!” Jason enthused, before turning to the women and gesturing for them to help out. Everyone moved and followed Luke, heading out to his van and collecting everything he needed. They put several cameras on the ground in the back, while a few others went up on the second floor, so they had a good overlook.

“How’s it look from down there, bud?” Jason asked his friend.

“Just turn that camera a few degrees to the right ... there! Right there!” Luke called out.

“Got a good view, then?” Jason asked.

“It’s perfect! I have a full one-eighty view from my little command post! You are good to go!” Luke enthused.

Jason moved back downstairs as he made his way out to the back. There, he found everyone in place and ready to get going. Elizabeth and Karla were there too, primarily as lookouts, in case anything came back to the house that was too far for Luke to spot.

“OK then. Sheena, let’s get this party started!” Jason told her.

Nodding, Sheena started weaving her hands in a summoning spell, calling upon Wolf to aid her. She could sense the element of fire just beyond her reach and continued to chant and move her arms to summon it. In a few seconds, a spark lit above her hands and she stopped moving. Sheena kept chanting though, enlarging the fire until it was the size of a basketball above her hands.

Amy had followed suit, imitating Sheena in calling upon her totem animal, the Mountain Lion. She could feel the great cat answering her call, bringing its power forth to fuel her spell. It was maybe a few seconds after Sheena had conjured her own fire that Amy’s burst into being. She continued her own chant, feeding the flames until it was around the size of a soccer ball.

“All right! Let’s get moving!” Jason stated as he stepped across the barrier.

The moment he was across, he could feel the putrid wrongness of the forest all the way to his bones. He shuddered in revulsion, but kept his focus on why he was there, calling Gaia’s power to him. It bloomed in him, much like the warmth of life itself, before he could feel it suffuse his entire being. Gaia’s magic banished away all the negativity of the Dark magic and set his mind on the goal ahead.

He brought the runes he needed forward, calling to his mind what he had read. The runes wreathed his hands and arms like spheres as he started siphoning the power of fire from Sheena. The magical fire raced along the runes, becoming a great conflagration in seconds. Jason had it under control though and channeled it towards the forest.

Like a magical flamethrower, the fire lanced out from him, consuming everything in its path. Jason swore he could hear shrieking from the surrounding forest, but he paid it no mind. What he was doing was Gaia’s work, which would see the corruption in this place burned away, making room for new life. The fairies flew above the fire, staying in their fairy form as they watched the humans carry out Gaia’s will.

Though rot was a part of the natural cycle of life, this went far beyond simple rot. This was pure and unadulterated sickness, which had to be burned and purged. Jason stopped for a moment, looking over his handiwork. Much of the vegetation had been burned away to where it was little more than ash, which made him smile. Looking behind him, Jason saw that Sheena, too, was making use of her magic.

Amy and Eva were following along behind them, using their fire to incinerate everything that lay behind them, cleaning up what Jason missed. The area which they burned down was at least twenty meters wide, making a large path that would be difficult to cover or corrupt. Xaera stood close by, her hand enshrouded in the icy blue magic of cold, ready to attack anything that lashed out at them.

“This is a good start! Let’s keep going!” Sheena shouted over the blaze.

Without another word, the quintet continued to burn their way through the forest, immolating grass and trees alike. The trio of fairies continued to fly above everyone, keeping their eyes open for any threats. Everything the magical fire touched was burned into ash before the ground itself was scorched. The screaming that Jason had heard earlier was becoming more strident and intense than before, to where everyone could hear it.

“You hear that?” Xaera questioned.

“Yeah! Any idea what it could be?” Sheena asked.

“The corruption of the forest must be more serious than we thought! Keep pressing on!” Phalmina called from above, as she brought forth her fairy magic to aid her friends and lovers.

“Heads up! We’ve got company!” Emalia called out as they passed the three-hundred-meter mark.

“I see them!” Jason roared as the screaming children charged at them.

A small group of about four of them leaped out of the dank foliage to drive their clawed hands into the Druid. Jason was ready for them and unleashed a small ball of exploding fire at them. The ball detonated much like an explosive would, bathing all four of them in flames. They squealed and clawed at themselves, trying desperately to put the fire out, but Jason wouldn’t let them.

Jason brought another spell to bear, but this one was more like concentrated bolts of fire. The power of it was so intense that it melted what was left of the children, turning them into ash on the forest floor. Sheena did her own thing and surrounded a trio of children, attacking her in a circle of flames. They panicked as they saw the fire, before Sheena willed the circle to shrink, slowly burning them down to nothing.

Xaera brought her ice magic to bear, as a greater portion of children came right for her. Summoning her will, she chanted a brief sentence in Trollish, before placing her iced hands in front of her face and blowing hard. The breath was magically amplified to where it was a literal cone of frigid ice that bathed the dozen children in its embrace. In seconds, their charge was halted as most of them were frozen in place.

A couple of those on the outer edges of the spell were caught in the blast but could still move. Xaera then summoned her Troll fire, which burned hotter than even the Gaian’s fire, and pushed it from her hands. Like a wave, it poured from the troll woman’s hands and rose over the frozen children. Steam poured off them for a moment, before they were immolated in the fire’s heat.

The steam cleared away after a few seconds, and Xaera chanted for the fire to cease. As it did, she could see that the skeletal structures of the children remained, but only for a second. The wind blew through gently, but it was more than enough to turn what remained of the children into clouds of ash and dust. Even Xaera was amazed as she witnessed the pure destructive power of her magic.

Shaking herself back to reality, Xaera called upon her ice magic again, as she heard more screams from incoming children. Steeling her mind, the troll woman kept her eyes open for anyone who would attack them. Amy and Eva continued their clean up efforts behind Jason, as he and Sheena led the charge.

“Watch your left flank there, Jay! Another group of children coming at you! Looks to be about a dozen of them!” Luke told his friend through the earbud comms.

“We’ve got them, Luke!” Sheena replied, mimicking Jason’s flamethrower spell. The children squealed in pain as they were caught in the blast. The smart ones fled the moment they felt the flames lick their flesh. The steadfast ones died in mere heartbeats, falling apart as they tried to get close.

“How are things looking back there, Darren? Any creatures coming for you at the moment?” Jason asked.

“Nothing right now. Seems like all their attention is on you and what you’re doing,” Darren responded.

“Good. Daelina, head on back and keep an eye on Darren. We need to be sure that our way back is still covered if things get dicey out here,” Jason ordered.

“I’m on it!” the fairy woman replied, before she flitted back to the house and the barrier where her fiancé waited.

“Looks like these spells are more than enough to keep these children at bay! What else can this corrupted Nymph throw at us?” Amy exulted, as she watched the children retreat. In answer, howls filled the air, which chilled everyone to the core at how ... foreign they sounded.

“You had to ask!” Eva groused, while she smacked Amy upside the head.

“Luke, can you see anything coming at us?” Jason queried, eager for some intel on the coming attack.

“Negative! You guys are too far away for me to get a good look!” Luke replied.

“You didn’t bring the drones?” Jason wondered.

“Well ... I’ve been spending a lot of time at Karla’s so...” Luke started.

“We get it! Just keep an eye on our rear and watch out for anything that might give Darren and Daelina trouble,” Sheena snapped.

“You got it, sista!” Luke said.

“Jason, on your right!” came Phalmina’s warning.

Snapping his head in that direction, Jason saw what appeared to be a swarm of animals coming at them. The moment they got close enough, Jason lit them up as he had the children, not waiting to see what they were. He heard yipping and howling as the animals were engulfed in flames, and Jason stopped for a moment to get a better look. They were indeed animals, or they had been at one point.

What Jason saw nearly turned his stomach, as the animals coming at them were supposed to be dead. There were large tears in their flesh, scabs filled with maggots, and even parts of bone poking up through the skin. The Dark magic that flowed through them had given them life once more, but as slaves to the one who controlled that magic. Re-igniting his flame spell, Jason burned them, putting the poor animals out of their misery.

“I knew the darkness had corrupted much, but this is beyond what I believed was happening here!” Jason groused as he kept tossing flames.

“There’s a lot more happening here than even I thought possible! Keep burning through! We need to get to the grove and eradicate what remains of it!” Phalmina yipped as she blasted several corrupted bears with fairy bolts, reducing them to scraps of flesh and bone.

“Move!” Xaera called from the back.

Everyone turned to regard the woman, and their eyes widened in amazement and alarm. In her hands, Xaera held a sphere of cold magic, the size of a large medicine ball. As quick as they could manage, the Gaian spell casters stopped flinging fire and got out of the troll’s way. Seconds later, Xaera chanted and icy runes appeared all over the sphere, before she launched it in front of her.

More animals, reinforced by the children, took the halt in fire spells as an advantage and charged in. What they didn’t see coming was their doom, in the form of a sphere of ice magic. The moment it neared one of the creatures, it exploded like a supernova. Cold magic wrapped up all who were caught in its blast, in an icy cocoon, freezing them. None of them had the chance to turn back, as the effect was instant.

“Fuck, Xaera! That’s really damned impressive!” Emalia called out from above.

“Thank you! I saw the spell in the book and wanted to try it out!” Xaera replied as she drew on more of her troll magic.

“This makes things much easier for us!” Phalmina laughed as she used her fairy magic to shatter every creature caught in the icy blast.

“Indeed, it does!” Jason rumbled as he drew upon more fire magic to incinerate what remained of each creature. The flora and fauna were likewise torched, returning to the dirt from which they had once sprouted.

“How far in are we?” Sheena questioned.

“Hold up a second!” Jason replied as he turned his head to look back at where Darren and Daelina were standing. “I’m guessing about eight-hundred meters or so, maybe a full klick. Time flies, eh?”

“That it does! Luke, any updates on how things are on your end?” Sheena asked out loud, tapping her earbud.

“Nothing to report! Whatever it is you guys and girls are doing, keep doing it! It’s making our job over here easy!” Luke responded.

“Copy that! We’re going to keep progressing. Hopefully we’ll hit the halfway mark before the day is over,” Jason stated.

“No, you won’t!” a feminine voice shrieked. Everyone turned to the source of the voice and saw the Dark Nymph, Felicitae, standing there, looking furious.

“Was wondering when the queen bitch was going to show her pretty little face,” Sheena said, cracking her knuckles.

“You will all pay for this transgression! You will pay with your lives! Hurt them, my pets! Destroy them!” she called out, raising her arms, as though giving a signal.

Seconds later, a massive group of animals burst from out of the foliage, as did what remained of the children. The Gaians quickly fired spells of stoneskin at each other, armoring themselves for the fight ahead. Though many of the attacking creatures were immolated or frozen in the attack, some broke through, hitting the Gaians directly.

They were all thankful for the defensive spells they had readied, which kept the creatures from doing anything more than superficial damage. Seeing how he had little time for casting any additional spells, Jason settled for empowering his fists and legs, making use of them. Though he had no real martial training, Jason knew enough to hold his own in a fight, which served him well here.