by Kong, Aleron
The trip back to village was uneventful, but they were thankfully able to find several more healing herbs. Arriving back, Richter placed the magic core in the vault. He was sure that it was worth a fortune, but he equally sure it could greatly increase the power of his village down the road. An item of that was epic class and masterwork quality had to come in handy!
The staff seemed like it could be powerful in the right hands, but the corruption severely limited its usefulness. Richter really didn’t understand the importance of alignment yet. It was easy to think that negative was bad and positive was good, but he had a feeling it was more nuanced. Sion was positive alignment, but his people had shoot on sight orders for anyone in their territory. Not exactly a cute and cuddly policy. Despite being unsure of what it all meant, he still wasn’t in a rush to equip a creature of negative alignment. Maybe he could purify it though.
“Futen, can the corruption on this staff be removed?”
“Yes my Lord, either Light or Life magic can be used to remove corruption. One of the few magics available at Level 1 of the village is curse removal. The cost is 200 mana. Would you like to use it?”
“Yes, do it. No wait! I will do it myself.”
“Very well, my Lord. The spell will have a higher likelihood of success if you cast it in the room with the Great Seal.”
“Why,” Richter asked.
“Just as the village is the physical manifestation of your Place of Power, the Great Seal is the physical representation. That is why it has the strength to keep monsters of the catacombs at bay. Though your domain extends beyond this village as we discussed, your powers will always be greatest at the core.”
Richter nodded, then climbed the small hill that led to the Great Seal. When he got there he was somewhat surprised. The mosaic had changed. At least part of it had. The clear spiral that was set in the floor had changed from tiles to a solid piece of crystal. It was now shining a faint light. The other three arms remained the same. It appeared that when Richter had claimed his power it had awakened part of the design. He felt a faint thrum in the room that had not been there previously. He walked to the center of the Great Seal. A quick check showed that most of the mana from casting Confusing Mist was restored. He then found the proper spell under the village interface and cast it.
Motes of light began to fill the chamber they were standing in. They coalesced around the staff, and when they disappeared, the black stains that had been present at the end were gone. It was also the clear blue of artic ice now, rather than the opaque blue it had been before. Examining it again he found it had increased in strength.
Staff of the Ice Wizard. Attack 14-18. Durability 30/30. Item class: Uncommon. Quality: Above Average. Weight 5.1 kg. Traits: -10% Cost to Water spells.
He checked his status page again, and saw that his progression in Life Magic had progressed from 11% to 49% just by casting one high level spell. Just another little perk of being a Master he supposed. Gotta love it when you can power level!
Sure that the staff would come in handy, Richter packed it on the ponies. He also loaded them with the better weapons they had found so far. Counting the coins from the chest that had been in the treasury, he found 55 gold coins, 215 silver, and 174 copper. Unfortunately he had no idea if he was a wealthy man or a pauper. Even though in the game a copper had equaled one dollar, Richter couldn’t trust that the conversion held true. A loaf of bread could be worth a gold coin for all he knew. Sion was no help in this. The wood sprites had a clearly xenophobic attitude, and didn’t mingle with the humans of the neighboring kingdom. Richter would just have to figure it out on the way.
One thing was clear, it was time to grow his village, and that meant getting help. Even though he was chomping at the bit to unlock more of his Powers, the next quest required that he be at least two levels higher. Presumably the subsequent quests would have level requirements as well. Waiting around just wasn’t he style! He needed to travel into the Kingdom of Yves to find people that would settle in his village.
Richter instructed Futen to continue collecting resources for when he returned. Futen surprisingly took some initiative, and told Richter about a nearby quarry that had provided the stone for the village in the past. There were several tasks Richter wanted Futen to attend to: quarrying the stone, harvesting iron from the mine, widening and deepening the trench surrounding the village and clearing trees for two hundred yards around the borders of the village. Warning the remnant to always leave enough mana to pay the Confusing Mist upkeep, he and Sion turned to leave. Futen gave his customary, “Yes, my Lord,” and that was that.
The next day, Richter and Sion started on their journey through the forest. The basic plan was to follow Hisako’s directions and head west until they reached the edge of the forest. Using Tommy Lee Jones’ math, a fugitive could move over uneven terrain at four mph. That fugitive was obviously not going through mountainous terrain and virgin forest! Even though they walked a solid twelve to fourteen hours a day, there was no way they traveled more than twenty five to thirty five miles before they rested for the night. Of course that didn’t factor in having to backtrack around obstructions, their slowed pace with the ponies, or the most important issue. That was neither Richter nor Sion was as badass as the man that played Indiana Jones and Han Solo!
Sion didn’t understand Richter’s obsession with distances or hurrying. For the first few days it frustrated Richter to no end. The laissez faire attitude of the Wood Sprite was so… un-American. After that ridiculous thought, Richter realized made he was being a bit silly, and with a small laugh at himself, relaxed and decided to enjoy the journey.
They moved beyond the borders of the mist during the first day, and had no issues until the second night. A pack of wolves was seen that evening. They made camp early and built the fire high. The wolves started approaching, but lost interest after a sizeable portion of the lead wolf was turned into bloody chunks by Sion’s Imbued arrow. While not able to salvage the pelt, that night Richter discovered that wolf meat was quite tasty, despite being gamier than what he was used to. They were able to kill several rabbits, foxes and one small brown bear during their trip. They only hunted at the end of each day though, when they had time to skin the animals and dry the pelts over a low fire.
The first days they traveled along the small river that flowed by the village. It rejoined the larger river that Richter had followed upon arriving to The Land, and they continued west. In addition to hunting, they practiced their Haste spell as often as they could hoping to advance their skill. They both increased their Air magic by one level, Richter slightly ahead of Sion. The Herb Lore skill also increased for both of them gradually as they picked useful plants along their journey.
About a week into the journey, Sion suddenly motioned for him to lower himself to the ground. Tying up the ponies, they moved at a slow crawl to look over a drop off in front of them. Only fifteen feet away from the lip of the small cliff, there was a ten foot tall green humanoid eating a stag. It didn’t show any squeamishness as it reached into the animal’s body. Its oversized hands were tipped with thick claws and pulled meat and viscera indiscriminately into its maw. The jaw must have been able to dislocate like a snakes because it shoved almost a whole leg into its mouth before chewing loudly, the sound of snapping bones clear. Richter used Analyze on it.
Mountain Troll, Lvl 22. Health: 1100/1100, Mana 0/0, Stamina 520/520.
Richter face froze into a twisted expression as if he had eaten something sour. Making eye contact with Sion, he motioned sharply with his head for them to leave. Sion gave him a perfect, ‘What the hell did you think we were going to do expression’ and nodded back. With slow deliberate moves, they eased back from the edge on their stomachs and then collected their mounts. They backtracked a good half an hour before setting on a path that would take them well wide of the creature. Sion later told him about the troll. The creatures were apparently brutally strong and fast. They were aggressive almost to the point of insanity
. They were driven solely by the desire to feed. Worst though was that it regenerated so fast that even massive wounds didn’t slow it. Without dismembering it and then lighting it on fire, it would not stop until it had eaten you, most likely alive.
Though the troll was the greatest threat they came upon, it was not the only one. A few days later, while taking a break to eat, Sion was ranging around the campsite. It was a something he had a tendency to do. Richter wasn’t sure if constant movement was something endemic to the Wood Sprites or if Sion just had a bad case of ADD. Whichever was the case, his friend would often would scout in small circles around any area they paused at or stopped at for the night. This time Sion came back camp excited. “I need some time to do something. It might take a bit, is that all right?”
After Richter’s nod, he pulled out his mortar and pestle and started grinding. Richter didn’t recognize the herbs, but they made a greyish red paste. Sion scrapped it onto a piece of bark he cut from a nearby tree being careful not to get it onto his skin. He left camp again with no explanation, moving quickly back the way he had come.
Bemused but not concerned, Richter simply continued to relax. It was nice taking a bit of a longer break. Walking for days on end was not as glamorous and restful as it might seem. He laid on his back with his pack as a pillow, and looked up at the forest canopy and the snatches of blue sky that could be seen between the leaves. About twenty minutes later, Sion came back smiling broadly and said, “I found something. Come with me, I’ll need your help.”
Richter got to his feet, “Where are we going?”
“Just come, and leave the ponies. They will be safer here.”
Not exactly sure what he meant by ‘safer,’ Richter just shrugged and did as he was asked. The two of them walked two hundred yards from where they had been eating. Sion stopped walking and pointed to a large dead tree. The trunk was about three meters wide and six meters high. The top was jagged and irregular, clearly only the base of a once much larger tree. There was a large hole at the bottom of the trunk leading down into the earth. The opening was about three feet tall. Richter could probably make his way into it, but it would be tight.
“Okay great. An old dead tree. Is it a long lost relative?”
Sion huffed in irritation, “No gyoti!” (The translation was something like ‘irritating fool’ as best as Richter could make out with his Gift of Tongues ability) “This was an Offshoot! It was the beginning of a Hearth Tree long ago. Something obviously happened.” Sion picked up the bark with the grey-red paste on it, and tossed it down the hole.
“But the Hearth Tree is huge,” Richter protested. “This thing is a toothpick in comparison!”
“That’s because our Hearth Tree is built on a Place of Power. Normally Hearth Trees are just the center of a Wood Sprite community, though a few Sprites may live within if it get big enough.”
“So finding this is like finding a piece of your history,” Richter asked. History had never really been his strong point. He still shuddered when he thought about the historical tours his grandmother would drag him on. At some point people just need to admit that looking at old homes in Gatlinburg is not that great!
“Yes, it is that,” Sion said with his previous excitement. He either did not pick up on or decided to ignore Richter’s nonplussed tone. And why not, he was just talking to a gyoti after all. “More important though, is that the Seed Core might still be viable!”
Richter just looked at him.
Sion peered at Richter from the corner of his eye, then looked back at the tree, then peered again this time with a small turn of his head, then looked back at the tree. This continued for a good five minutes, with Richter just staring at the sprite. The human’s stubborn resistance finally won out.
“Do you know what that means,” Sion asked exasperated.
“You know that I don’t! You knew before you said it, that I didn’t know what a Seed Core was! You could have just called it a mystical booty scratcher! I still wouldn’t know! Just tell me!”
“Fine! You humans are so cranky and impatient. A Seed Core…,” Sion paused for a moment, Richter was sure just to mess with him, “is how you make a Hearth Tree, a Guardian Wood or a host of other magical trees. One of the sacred duties of my people is to further the cause of good by growing magical trees for the betterment of all.”
“Oh, so it’s like a stem cell?”
Sion looked at him confused.
Richter gave his best sarcastic grin, “Not so fun when someone drops a term you don’t know, is it?” Changing his expression to one of gracious forbearance, he said, “You may continue.”
Grinding his teeth, Sion said, “The point is, the Hearth Tree only makes a Seed Core once every several hundred years, if that! If the Core is still viable, it will be a wonderful boon!”
“This tree looks like it has been dead for a long time, Sion. Why would you think that this Seed Core thing wasn’t dead too?”
“The Core is a source of great magical power. It gives to nature, but also is maintained by it. As long as its power is not drawn upon too much, or too fast, it can sustain itself almost indefinitely
“Okay, okay, I’m sold,” Richter said. “How do we check?”
“We simply need to go down into to the bowels of the tree, and see if we can find it. I should be able to feel a resonance if I am close enough. It will be a round sphere about yea big,” Sion held his hands apart showing something the size of a grapefruit.”
“Okay that won’t take that long. Let’s do it,” Richter said.
Sion looked at him a moment opening his mouth to speak, and then closing it again, looking indecisive.
“What is it,” Richter asked.
“Well, from the stories I have heard, if a Seed Core is ever left out for a long period of time, it has the tendency to attract monsters. The healing and regenerative properties of the Core can be used to make the monsters stronger, more resilient, or… bigger.”
“What do you mean exactly by bigger?”
“Just that. The elders told stories of giant ants or snakes. I’m sure that they were exaggerating. Besides, we don’t need to worry about that here.”
“Phew. For a second I thought we were going to be overrun with flesh eating beetles or something,” Richter said with a small laugh. He had never really been a big fan of bugs.
The sprite laughed in return. “No, no. There are no flesh eating beetles in the Forest of Nadria.” There was a short pause, “What we DO have is a viscious animal called a skeeling. It’s usually only about the size of a badger. It is completely blind, but has excellent hearing. It’s subterranean, and they don’t wander to the surface. It has ridged scales and a very distinctive smell. They have been known to burrow under trees and eat the roots, killing the tree. It’s a pest we try to get rid of whenever we can!
Richter nodded along, thinking it was remarkable that Sion had so much information about one forest creature, but wondering why he was focusing so much on it.
The sprite continued, “Now skeelings are mean and fast. They had two rows of sharp teeth that can tear through an animal in seconds! Luckily, they hate the extract of red vine mixed with iron leaf. It’s bad enough that it drives them out of their holes and above ground. Then they are easy to kill! Now when I was wandering earlier, I found this.” He tossed a flat palm sized rock to Richter. “I didn’t know what it was at first. It had ridges like a skeeling scale, but was way too big. Most scales on adult male skeelings are about the size of your thumbnail. Are you following me so far?”
Richter nodded again, starting to feel uneasy about story time.
“Well, now that I have found this old Hearth Tree, it makes sense that a skeeling might have made its home underneath.”
“Okayyy. So you want to drive it out from underneath the tree?”
“Yes. As I said, it would only take a mixture of red vine and iron leaf. We toss it down the hole and the skeeling is so angry it comes to the surface. Then we can kill it and lo
ok for the Seed Core.”
“Sion,” Richter said quietly, “does red vine and iron leaf make a greyish red paste when you mix them?”
“It does,” the sprite said in an innocent voice.
“Would you want to avoid getting it on your skin?”
“Oh yes, it causes horrible itching,” the sprite replied, “That’s why it’s best to keep it in a container or on something like a bark plate.
“Hmmm,” Richter said. “And if you were to throw something like that mixture down a hole, how long would it take for the skeeling to react.”
“Hmmm,” Sion replied. “That’s actually a fascinating topic. Now that you ask, it would depend on time of day. Skeelings are nocturnal. If it were to be exposed to red vine and iron leaf at night it would go into an immediate rage. If, however, it were to smell the mixture during the daytime,”
“Like now you mean,” Richter interjected.
“Yes, Richter, like now. Well in that case, it might take a few minutes to wake it up, but I can promise you it would be EXTRA furious when it did.”
“So it might take, almost exactly the amount of time it took you to relate all of this information.”
“About that amount of time, yes Richter,” Sion replied.
Losing patience Richter asked, “Okay, so what do we do after it comes up?”
“Well,” Sion replied with an evil grin, “depending on your perspective, this is the easiest part. Just run and I’ll kill it before it eats you.”
The ground in front of the tree exploded upward, and a shrill screech filled the air.
The skeeling was NOT the size of a badger. The thing was the size of a black bear! It had an armored carapace like an armadillo. The four legs of the creature ended in three fingered paws. Each finger was tipped with a wicked black talon, arched slightly inward towards the palm. It was off white in color and its face resembled a rodent of some kind. The eyelids were closed, and two large triangular ears stuck straight up from its head. The snout was rat like, but when it threw back its head and shrieked, the teeth were flat, but tapered to be sharp at the bottom.