Chapter 46:- Not so warm welcome
Disclaimer:- all the characters form the game belong to moonton and this is not a commercial story but just the work of a diehard fan.
Claimer:- the other characters which are not in game of mentioned are mine
With Nana's aid, the company travelled further down the forest the very next day as the young cat elf lead her new friends on a path which, according to her, was supposed to lead them out of the forest.
Hanabi was quite sceptical about it this and asked whether Nana knew what she was doing. To this the kid laughed and answered, "If there is anything I know best then it's this forest. I know it as the back of my hand, it every trees, streams, rocks and mushrooms. I am an Expert!" she says boastfully unaware of the unimpressed look Hanabi was throwing at her. Turning towards Saya, she asked lowly, "Do you think we should trust her?"
Saya simply shrugged at this, "We don't have much choice. And this is certainly a lot better than going around in circles."
And so the group travelled through the jungle as their little guide lead them forward. All the way, Nana constantly talked about all her adventures and mis-adventures she had in the forest with her old friend whose they learned to be as Miya.
"You wouldn't believe the time when we ran into this huge smilodon and we were like…" Nana was so engrossed in talking that she was oblivious or uncaring that whether her listeners were listening or not. Saya and Hanabi quickly learned that Nana was quite a chatterbox and thoroughly loved talking a lot. It was as if she was using all the energy that she gained from eating dinner last night was spent on talking.
While Saya found it to be quite enduring and adorable in its own right, Hanabi was very much annoyed by the child's endless banter and was using all her might to restrain herself from snapping at Nana.
Her talks ranged to all sorts of things, form tales of adventures, the types of animals and mushrooms that were found in the forest, about her friend Miya, who, judging by the way Nana talks of her, she seemed to regard her highly. Most of her words flew right over their head, however Saya did perked up when Nana started talking about the Elven city of Moniya. She describes it as a beautiful city at the shore of a magnificent waterfall, telling that it was a sight to be seen at least once in life.
"The streets are clean, people are nice and they make the best mushroom soup in the whole world!" Nana exclaims happily causing the rest to laugh heartily.
"So, are we heading to the city? Thought we were searching for a more secluded place for training?" Questioned Hanabi.
"Well that might be so, but if going to this city means that we will be out of this forest, then we should definitely do so." Saya stated in a sagely fashion.
"Hey, the forest isn't so bad! It's just that you lots are not used to it!" Nana was quick to defend her home, offended by Saya's assumption of the Magical Forest to which the Sai'ore mumbled a small apology sheepishly.
They travelled the whole day till it got dark and were forced to set up a camp in a small clearing for the night. The company sat around the camp fire, easing their feet that had been sore after walking all day.
"Are you sure this is the way, Nana?" asked Hanabi tiredly, "How much further is this City of Elves?"
Nana, cheerful as ever, answered truthfully, "The forest is pretty big but at this rate, we will reach the city in about a week!"
Hearing this, the colour of Hanabi's face faded, really not liking the idea of a long walk, causing Nana to laugh. "Ah, don't worry, there is a small road about 2 hours walk away from here. That will make our journey easy!"
Saya frowned at this, "If there was a road, why didn't we take it?"
Nana laughed at this, "Because it's a secret road!"
Her answer confused both of them, "A secret road?"
"Yeah, a secret road. Most of the foreigners don't even know it exists! You see, the Elves are not exactly the most populous race, and are also are very much prone to invasions. That why most elves live in the forest where the vegetation is so thick that the invading will get lost half way in the forest and soon give up!"
"But how can a road be a secret? It isn't exactly something that you can hide, Y'know."
Nana simply giggled at this and spoke mischievously, "You'll see."
Her words confusing them even further.
The very next morning, Nana leads the group further into the forest. After a long walk, the child stopped before a particularly huge tree and chirped, "We are here!"
Seeing no road anywhere near them, Hanabi was the first to speak, "Are you messing with us? There is nothing but trees here!"
"Exactly." Replied Nana with a grin and pointed upwards. Saya looked upwards and all she could see was the dense canopy of the trees that entirely blocked out the sky. However, Saya did saw that something was off. The tree that Nana had stopped looked awfully thick. It was easily about ten metres in diameter and it swirled above. It slowly dawned to her what Nana was implying and gasped, "You mean to say that the road is…." she couldn't describe it in words but only pointed upwards. Nana smiled happily and nodded.
She when closer to the tree and tapped it lightly with her hand. Suddenly the roots of the tree opened up and revealed them all an entrance that leads into the tree.
"How?" mumbled Hanabi in shock while Nana simply giggled at the ninja's shocked face, "I can do magic too! Come along now, we have a great journey ahead of us."
First thing they discovered was that inside the tree was actually a spiral staircase that reached further upwards and it was clear where they had to go. The stairs was big enough to allow Nhari to actually come along with them which was good because otherwise, they would have had to resolve to use other means to get their horse to the top. Soon the company reached the top of the stairs and what lay before them shocked them all. Up at the top of the sixty meter tall tree was indeed a road, hidden within the dense canopy of the forest.
"Told you the road was hidden." Grinned Nana, enjoying the priceless expressions Saya and Hanabi had. The road was made of wooden planks and stones which were at top condition with railings at the edges of the path. If one were to look form the side of the road, they who've gotten a clear idea just how high they were from the ground right now and frankly, it was terrifying.
(Imagine the arena in Brawl mode. Think that arena is actually a highway through the tree canopy.)
The entire system was like a highway that reached far deep into the forest with several trees serving as support pillars for the road. It was quite ingenious of the elves to come up with such a road-system as carving a road through a forest was generally much harder. This meant that their military and goods could move unnoticed throughout the forest without raising mass suspension. Very useful when ambushing or scouting on the enemies. A brilliant display of innovation indeed, especially the use of the natural terrain and biome to their full advantage.
With the road, their journey was easier as walking on road was simpler than traversing through the thick foliage of the forest floor.
"Great, my foot was sore stepping on marshy floor anyways." says Hanabi with new found enthusiasm. Nana grinned and replied cheerfully, "We should be able to reach the Moon temple town by dusk. My friend Miya lives there, I'm sure she can help us!"
It was hard not to be effected by her infectious energy. With their destination set, the group travelled ahead with high spirits, unknown of the danger that lay ahead.
Thanks to the road, travelling was easy, and the company had covered much ground by nightfall. Nana reassured them that they were close now and that they would reach the town any moment.
"The Moon Temple Town is not as grand as the Moniyan City, but it sure is pretty. Especially the Moon Temple, the most sacred worshipping place of the Moon Elves. It's very beautiful and even more so within the temple. However non-elven races are not allowed in. I only got the chance to see because Cat-elves are part elf and Miya somehow managed to convince the temple priest."
Saya nodded listening to Nana's banter, getting somewhat used to her talkative nature while focusing ahead of them. She could see a faint light peeking through the canopy below, giving her an idea that they were probably reaching near the town. Her nose could also smell the scent of burning wood, further solidifying her doubts that indeed they were nearing the town.
As they grew close, her Human and Cat-elf companion sensed the warmth as well and brightened considerably. The road stopped before yet another giant tree where on a giant signboard was written 'Moon Temple' in Elvish Language. Nana hurriedly entered the tree through the door and called, "Hurry up, I wanna see Miya!"
Her steps were practically bouncing as she spoke, "Miya said that she was training to be a Moon Priestess herself. Maybe she has already been one by now. Oh I wanna see her!"
They finally reached the base of the Tree via the swirling stairs and opened the entrance. Nana was very happy and had a wide smile on her face….. Which faded at the sight before her.
Nana was expecting a beautiful town of Elves upon the various trees that supported the platform which held the town. But before her was nothing but the burning remains of the once beautiful town she knew.
The Little girl's eyes widened in horror as she slowly dropped to her knees. Everything was burning, most were destroyed and ashes of the fallen town and people alike fluttered pitifully in the area. It was a disaster. It was a nightmare.
Not being able to hold it back anymore, tears trailed down Nana's eyes. She knew so many peoples of this town; she had so many fond memories of this place. And to see it burning utterly broke her. The child cried pitifully, breaking down into a violent fit of sobs. Since Hanabi was the closest to her so she didn't waste any time to wrap the child in a sympathetic hug while Nana poured her heart out in her bosoms.
Saya looked at the child with sympathy. However, there was still one question that remained unanswered.
"Who could have done such a thing?"….