[If you skipped chapter 4, here's what you need to know: Isprit fixed Logan's arms, and the chapter ended with Logan falling asleep]
Chapter 5: Isprit's Incarceration
It was an hour past midday before Logan opened his eyes again. Isprit had obviously moved him in his sleep, because he was not looking at the sky but into a treetop. When it became apparent that he would not be waking up in the "morning", she had dragged him into the shade to prevent the sun from baking his skin. He rose onto his elbows to see Isprit floating in the middle of the clearing with her back to him.
"Good afternoon," she said without looking back.
"Good afternoon."
"I laid your clothes out in the sun. They should be dry by now."
"Thank you." Logan walked over to the articles and picked them up off the grass. They felt warm. He quickly started dressing. He pulled his shirt down over his head and saw Isprit looking at him with a half-hearted smile.
"It's probably time you left," she said pointing at him. For a moment his body glowed green before his armor appeared onto him.
"Why must I leave?" Logan asked confused. "It wouldn't be proper to leave you after the events that transpired last night. And besides, I do not wish to go. I won't- no, I can't just pretend none of this ever happened."
"Oh Logan, that's sweet, and quite chivalrous of you. But after thinking it over this morning, I realized that it was a mistake for us to grow attached."
"But I- I would be haunted by what could have been for the rest of my life"
"Please Logan, be rational. There is no future between us that could be. You can't survive here with me. Your place is among your fellow mortals. Return to your life among human and elf kind."
"Why don't you come with me?"
"Please. Don't make this harder than it has to be. JUST GO!" Isprit demand with tears starting pour out of her eyes.
"I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE UNTIL YOU AT LEAST FULFILL YOUR PROMISE!" Logan shouted in return.
"WHAT PROMISE?"
Logan calmed down. "You said you would tell me the story behind why people are trying to kill you." With that he sat cross-legged in front of her.
"Oh! I had forgotten. I might well tell you since it doesn't look like you're going to move willingly. It all actually starts with the story of how these woods came to be…"
…
"Now what exactly are we dealing with?" a mage asked his comrades. The group of seven was composed entirely of mages.
"According to the reports Master Dwarkin," one spoke up while opening a scroll, "it's a rogue monster from the Cantabilian Borderland. She's a powerful fairy that has concluded manipulate wind. All physical and magical projectiles are useless as she uses some kind of whirlwind as a protective barrier. Close-up attacks are also not an option as she flies too fast, even for the most experienced rangers."
"And the death count?" another asked.
"Surprisingly none. And only some of those who have encountered the monster were injured at all. Everyone was a minor case."
"Be that as it may," Dwarkin announced authoritatively, "This being is still a high class threat to the people of Erina. And as wielders of great power that we are, it is our responsibility to see to it that it be dispatched. AM I CLEAR?"
"YES SIR!" the rest saluted in unison.
"Then here is our plan. Because we cannot use our magic to fell this thing ourselves, we will combine our power to seal it in place. When it is in range, we will raise a forest around it to cut off its exposure to the wind. After that she will try to fly out so we must quickly perform this ancient magical earth seal to lock her within the forest." He pulled a scroll out of his robe.
"MASTERS!" The shout from outside their circle. A ranger was running toward them.
"Ah, one of the scouts," said Dwarkin.
"We've found the target. It's hiding on the left cliff of Cloron's Lair."
"Excellent work, give word to send it in our direction."
"It will be done," said the ranger before taking off in the direction from which he came.
Several minutes later, Isprit had flown down from the cliff and was racing across the field with astonishing speed, unaware of the group hiding under a massive tree a mile ahead.
"The target is in range! Now is the time!" ordered the head mage. All seven of them pointed their staffs off into the distance.
Gigantic trees rose over one hundred feet out of the ground, blocking Isprit's path.
"What in Shaiya is this?" She turned around to find her exit backwards had been cut off as well. "Who has the power to raise a whole forest?"
"PERFORM THE SEAL!" Dwarkin kept his staff pointed at their newly created forest while the other six pounded the butts of their staffs into the ground and recited the ancient words on Dwarkin's scroll. Six trees shaped like maidens in prayer rose from the ground surrounding the giant central tree.
Dwarkin and the rest cheered in success when fist sized orbs of light began dancing about the new human-like trees. After the commotion settled down, a realization began to dawn.
"Master Dwarkin," one spoke up, "what will be done now that the monster is contained?"
"We don't know what other powerful magics it may possess, so it will be held within the forest until it is felled by a strong enough warrior."
"But sir," another jumped in, "who can do this? All of Raina's [A.N.: this is apparently the accepted name for the Goddess of Light] strongest warriors are in the far lands or combating the Vail and Nordein in the borderlands. We couldn't possibly recall them to handle this."
"Not to worry," replied Dwarkin. "Being separated from the wind, in time it will grow weak enough for a warrior in Erina to handle. Now I don't want to hear any more negativity. You have all shown excellent mastery in the magic arts. From this day forth, this site shall be known as Siamaia Spiritual Water." [A.N.: I have no idea why this place was designated that name nor could I come up with any reasonable back-story.]
…
"I have not left this enclosure since that day," Isprit concluded her story in a somber tone.
"Isprit, just how long have you been here?" Logan asked wide-eyed.
"I don't know anymore. It's been at least several decades."
"Well you look great for your age," Logan joked. "I had thought you were as old as I was."
Isprit smiled half-heartedly again. "If I kept trying to escape, I might not still be alive today. My body is physically weak and can't withstand much abuse."
Logan thought back the part of her story of when she tried to fly out. "If you don't mind, I'd like to see for myself how you're sealed in here."
"Alright," she quietly replied beginning to float upwards. When she was about fifty feet high, Logan stood up and watched in awe as the surrounding trees stretched and twisted inwards forming a dome and blocking out the light. Isprit then descended back to the ground and the trees opened up again to their former upright positions. "They do the same thing when I try walking out."
"It must have taken an unfathomable amount of magic to raise these woods in only a couple seconds. Whoever did it must not have held anything back. They must have also known how powerful you are."
Isprit looked down to hide her eyes. "It's a bit ironic that you're a defender Logan. These days, that's what I need more than anything else."
"Why is that?"
"My power has dwindled after so many years locked away from the wind. The maidens that I keep reanimated in the woods are really just a taunt. If anyone saw through my ploy, I would have no way to protect myself. This must have been the ultimate plan of whoever sealed me in here."
Logan was shocked. He had thought that Isprit was powerful enough to strike him down at any time. Knowing that all she had been doing was putting on a strong façade made him worry for her safety. A whole minute passed before he spoke again.
"Why exactly did you come to Erina?"
Isprit closed her eyes tight in concentration. "Now I remember," she started while reopening them. "I never did find what I was looking for. Back home in the Cantabilian Borderland, my eldest sister Pharos told me a story that she had been told by her mortal lover. She said that somewhere in Erina there is an enormous tree that sings a song beautiful enough to uplift even the most depressed and grief-stricken souls. She advised me against indulging in my curiosity, but knowing me, she shouldn't have told me the story in the first place."
"I have been to that tree," Logan responded with excitement, "and it does indeed sing beautifully. Isprit, I want to take you there."
"But I cannot leave."
"I have an idea. We know that you can possess those dead women. Do you think you could do the same to me?"
Isprit was shocked. "That's a dangerous idea Logan. A possession with a being already occupied by a soul would require a full body merge. I've never done that before. The merge could kill you, and if it doesn't, we may become permanently bound and never again live as individuals."
Logan walked over and placed his hands on her shoulders. "I'm willing to take that risk. I will not leave my woman here to die."
"But Logan-"
"Have faith that I can endure and survive. For defenders that is a must. And if we become eternally joined, then I guess I really will have 'become one' with you." He finished with a powerful smile then pulled Isprit into a kiss.
"Well what do we have here?"
Logan's eyes shot open when he heard the familiar voice.
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