Recuperation went quickly after my talk with my Partner, though I was greeted with the disquieting sight of the Ghost still praying in front of me as I 'woke up'. I say 'still', but with my utter inability to tell time I could only assume time passed similar to what it has previously.
She stopped when I stood, instead choosing to simply look upon me reverently. I couldn't decide if I regretted the lesson, even if it was important for my education, or rather to say I wish I had just failed it at first so I didn't have to deal with this. I tried to ignore her as Thessa came in with a squad of former Onslaught, probably for the report she mentioned earlier. Which made me question her timing, did she wait for me? Did she know when I was going to wake?
Most of them were less ornately armored, comparatively to my Knights at least, a spear on their backs and clad in what looked like pieces of mail and plate. So, what most actual knights would look like… which honestly surprised me given I was in a High Fantasy world. But I suppose 'realistic' is considered being 'subtle' in a world where massive pauldrons are a sign of skill. The rest were a motley group, dressed in leather and cloth, holding tools ranging from shovels and picks to hammer and axes.
I focused on the soldiers first as Thessa came to my other side, her eyes visibly flickering a quick look at the Kaldorei before ignoring her, as I was trying to do. The lead soldier came before me, dropping to a knee as his fist hit the floor, the rest of his group following his lead and kneeling before me as if I was royalty of some kind. Tapping my staff twice, I motioned for the captain, presumably anyway, to start, which he did without hesitation.
"We took flight shortly after you left, Lady Wraith, taking a group of workers to survey the area. The flight was difficult with the blizzards across the Glacier, but we weathered it in good time and got through into Crystalsong." I hummed before tapping my stave against the ground, getting up with the motion and turning to Thessa.
"Bring me a map of the continent."
She bowed and vanished from sight with a blink of my eyes, something I was slowly getting used to, before returning within a couple of seconds with a rather large sheet of parchment. Rolling out the map in front of me… I would need to get a table for this at some point, and an actual 'war room' which I'm sure the Cathedral actually has but for the death of me I had yet to find in my wanderings. Thessa pinned the corners with a knife before stepping back and letting me get a proper look of the continent. It wasn't marked with much of anything, and I had to look at Thessa before she pointed out where we were… at the far west of the continent on a tiny bit of land that barely appeared. I had a sudden realization of how big this continent was.
I got up and walked to the map, more to get a better grasp on what was there than anything else. It was rather rudimentary, details were sparse, and entire sections of the map were just blank entirely, the only things in any good detail were the bottom and center of the continent and the area around the Harbor, Settlements, points of interest, terrain types, all of these were concentrated in a few areas, rather than the entire continent, which I could understand to a degree.
Some places weren't explored, others held nothing of value when they were explored, and the rest were just inaccessible.
The captain strode up and knelt by the map, pointing out the path he took and where Crystalsong was on the map, the immediate center of the continent. "We flew for a bit and noticed large amounts of ruins and good lumber, with a single tree larger than the Monastery at its greatest." I had no idea what this 'Monastery' was that he was talking about, but I was assuming it was much bigger than I thought was normal for one.
"As we progressed further into the forest we came across various nature spirits. Walking trees and the like, nothing major." What? Walking trees weren't major? What the hell was then? My internal grumbling was silenced as he continued without delay, recapturing my attention. "As we crossed to about halfway through, the scenery changed to… 'corruption', and the reason for its name."
I stayed silent - I had questions - but I could ask them at the end after this report was done, and for all I knew my questions would be answered with said report. So, with a gesture for him to continue, I listened further to the scout captain. "We didn't go too far, the Gryphons refused to go further, and there was a… Hrm, " He paused still clearly trying to organize his thoughts on whatever he felt, which was worrying being that he has had days to mull on it. "A presence that made us fall ill. There were far more corrupted spirits in that area as well, and I prioritized caution when observing. Shortly after another run of the outskirts we turned and headed back my Lady."
Well, I had a clue as to what 'Major' was considered now.
The scout stepped back as a worker took his place, half-lidded, frost-blue eyes looking directly at me with an axe propped against his shoulder. I had an idea of what he was going to talk about, and gave a nod for him to begin. "Lumber's good from there. Got a few samples 'fore we left and it passed muster with the shipwrights and carpenters. Stone's also decent from there. Ruins are better quality, but more limited and difficult to harvest. If'a we need more? Coupla good quarry spots with the right setup." Well. That was straight to the point, and appreciated.
I gave a nod of acknowledgement to the worker, the man thumped his chest before departing with the rest of the workers, leaving me with the scout captain and his retinue. Looking back at him, I finally asked the questions buzzing in my head. "What kind of spirits did you find in Crystalsong?"
He kept to his knelt posture as he gave his reply, my eyes unable to see what was behind his helmet. "The flora and fauna were corrupted with what looked like arcane energies. Purple-White Crystals were radiating energy, so tha-" I bit back a grimace and struck my staff against the stone, silencing the scout instantly, allowing me to speak.
"I asked about the Spirits. Not what they were corrupted by."
He was silent for a moment, "I apologize, my Lady. It will not happen again I swear." I couldn't respond to his disproportionate apology, as I was merely correcting what I wanted to know from him. I clearly had just stepped on a landmine that I simply couldn't just ask about.
Unnerved, I cautiously chose my next words carefully, just in case the scout captain killed himself or something. "Just… continue." He stayed silent himself for a long moment, making me wish I could see his face, before eventually continuing to answer.
"As you wish, my lady. We couldn't get close to the Corrupted area, but from what we saw, there were elf-women with the lower body of a deer, walking trees, Elves and some abomination of a goat and man." Ignoring the last one for a moment…
There was a variety of things in that forest, and they'd almost assuredly be pissed off when my undead started harvesting the area. What sounded like classical dryads, ents and more elves called that place home, on top of the 'abomination'... Which was likely a permutation of Satyrs from the, ah, Greeks I think... If there was one thing I absolutely knew from my readings it was that pissing off nature beings in a forest tended to go poorly for the person pissing off Nature. Saruman was the notable example of that with the Ents and Fangorn.
Yet… The problem here was, I needed those materials.
Not for any nefarious purpose like that of all the villains of stories that try to fight Nature, but merely to complete my mission of fortifying the harbor. A pity, it seems my affiliation with the Scourge is a negative in this instance, as normally I likely could have simply requested troops or materials. But after Chillwind and how he was handled? I wouldn't put it past for a more competent, but no less petty, lich to screw me over and make me look bad when the materials I requested never arrive. At the same time I couldn't negotiate, if that was even possible, with the Nature spirits to harvest the forest as my Liege made it no secret to me that we are a faction that is hated by everything, including the elements and powers that be.
Which meant that I was going to be pissing off nature, and hoping that I had enough strength to bulldoze through whatever it sent at me. The problem with that was, beyond the obvious... I couldn't bring the full brunt of my forces to bear on the nature spirits. It took the entirety of my time in Naxxramas for the gryphons to get there and back, and I had… maybe a dozen to a dozen and a half gryphons.
Just the workers alone numbered near a hundred… and I had over triple that in actual forces!
No. If I wanted to deal with the spirits of that forest, and safeguard my resource extraction efforts long-term, I needed all of my forces at once to deal with the forest in its entirety. Unfortunately, I probably needed even more than what I had. But to even bring my undead over, I needed a route to and from the area that I could connect, somehow, to the Harbor, and wouldn't get caught up in anything important on that route.
So the first thing to do is to get back over there, survey the area for a good position to put a base down, and find a path to the ocean to send the eventual resources harvested back to the Harbor. I wasn't about to leave that to just my undead… I sighed, which meant I had to go out there and get my first taste of the world I was in outside of this frozen hellhole.
On the back of an Undead mythological creature, followed by the ghost of some's soul that I ripped out that now worshipped me, with a smattering of undead soldiers that I slaughtered and forced into my service. Why must my life be so weird?
Tapping my staff against the floor, I laid 'judgement' on the scout captain. "Your report is acceptable captain. Don't be sidetracked though unless it is relevant to the conversation." I wasn't about to give him a punishment for making a slight mistake. Besides, I knew that some people just tended to ramble about topics that were intriguing or interesting to them, so it wasn't even that major a thing.
"Yes my Lady."
With that out of the way, I could focus on the important matters, like preparing for my journey to Crystalsong. Turning to Thessa, I gave my orders without a shred of hesitation from the earlier discomfort showing. "I require an architect and several warriors. Let Heinrich know he is in charge of the Harbor until we return Thessa." With a bow, Thessa vanished from my sight, leaving me with the Gryphon Riders.
"Ready your mounts. You'll be taking me and others back to Crystalsong."
As one, the riders rose and saluted, hand behind their back while another crossed to their heart, chorusing out a "By your will!" before leaving me alone with my Ghost. I probably had a bit of time before the riders were ready to depart, and Thessa gathered the people I requested, which meant I could relax for a while. I wasn't looking forward to the 'blizzards' the captain spoke of.
"Avatar. May I accompany you to Crystalsong?"
I started and turned with the Kaldorei's voice, not expecting her to say anything. After the brief panic, I let out a sigh of relief before replying. "You may Kaldorei." A thought crossed my mind as I accepted, and led to a question in turn. "Is there a reason you wish to come?"
Her serene expression didn't change as she closed her eyes and shook her head. "Not particularly, Avatar of Elune. I merely thought you would benefit from one who scouted the area for a while before my capture." I blinked and looked at her in a new light as that information sank in.
A guide to that forest would be nice, and almost assuredly make the outcome better. A highly and clearly magical forest like this… If she knew hidden groves of relics, quick paths through the bramble or easily defendable areas, it would make the trip's purpose far more successful. Besides which, even if it was slightly more difficult to get another person on the Gryphons, a Ghost shouldn't add much weight. Probably.
…Shouldn't was the key word.
My thoughts stopped again when I felt something take hold of my hair, followed by the realization that the Ghost wasn't in front of me anymore. "What are you doing?" The Kaldorei was broken, in a state that wasn't out of place in the worst Master cases I'd seen and heard. No matter what it was that she was doing, it wasn't going to be something deadly to me.
My Partner would intervene if it was.
The Kaldorei had the nerve to giggle at my question, and continued doing... whatever it was she doing. Humming a melodic tune, she responded after a few seconds of working. "Mother taught me that the Priestesses had braids signifying their connection to Elune. I learned a little under the Head Priestess before I went to Mother's command." The touch went away, and I heard the Kaldorei make a sound of contentment. "It is only proper for Elune's Avatar to have her symbol."
I simply sighed and let her continue, I was not about to get into an argument with a broken ghost. Besides which… maybe the braid looked nice. Just because I was an 'Evil Necromancer' archetype, I didn't have to look the part, even if everyone else looked like they were part of an evil cult. Honestly, even if bones were common due to the Necromancy, the sheer amount of skull decorations I've seen everywhere were a bit much. It is like whoever is in charge took pages of being Master of Undead straight out of some childish bedtime story.
… Speaking of. I actually didn't know what I looked like…
When I had a moment of respite, I'd take a moment to look at myself. But for the moment, there was far too much to do in a limited timeframe. Maybe not as rushed as my time in the Wards but it certainly carried the same sense of finality to it if I failed.
Needless to say, I wasn't too bothered by what the Kaldorei did. Sure it was out of nowhere, but given it was her… I couldn't really blame her. "Please say something the next time you want to do something, Kaldorei."
She gave a bow that I saw the end of as I turned to her, still utterly serene and unnerving as ever. "As you wish, Avatar." Trying not to shudder from how she acted, I turned towards the door out and started heading out, followed by my Ghost.
My journey to the stables was one without incident. A town of undead acting in concert with one another tended to be unnatural, as nothing wrong typically happened, and it was silent aside from nature itself. I saw that as I passed through the streets for the third time, workers moving various materials between locations, Onslaught standing guard ready for an attack to come. It was unnatural, and shouldn't have occurred. Ah, hello Partner. You are getting better at this moral compass thing.
However, the stables itself on the other hand, was a cacophony.
You'd expect undead creatures to be silent unless there needed to be conversation, or they were attacking something. You'd be wrong about undead gryphons. The half eagle, health-lion creatures were beyond noisy, squawking, screeching and growling at one another as if they were still alive, even as they stood ready to take flight. With armor strapped to them, the beasts were even more majestic to look at. Despite being dead.
Thessa and the individuals I asked for were already assembled and preparing for the long flight, while the Gryphon Riders coaxed the beasts into a semi-docile state. I didn't launch into some grand speech like Legend gave as I walked forward to the captain. I didn't even give an order for us to begin like Alexandria or Armsmaster. No, I just tapped my staff against the ground, and the assembled Onslaught, two Skeletal Archers, Kaldorei and myself mounted the immediately docile gryphons.
There weren't enough gryphons to accommodate two to a beast, the larger and burlier four of them being graced with three individuals on them, with the other eleven sticking with only two. I myself was mounted with Thessa and the captain, he had the biggest of the gryphons, a-
With a loud screech, the lead gryphon took off without warning, leaving me with a deathgrip at the sudden motion and lack of ground, the wind howling in my face the moment we were in the air. Above it, somehow, I heard the laughter of the captain as he led the squadron towards the glacier. "Mind the blizzards, we don't want a crash landing like Andrew at the end."
There were bits of laughter from the other Gryphon Riders, save for one who shouted something in response, unfortunately I couldn't hear a thing from the wind that got worse. And in the distance, I could see the 'blizzard' that the captain talked about... And calling it that was like saying a Tsunami is a wave. It was correct… but it wasn't accurate.
A veritable wall of ice, clouds and howling wind that obscured the sky itself. And we had to go through it.
Fuck my life.
Flying through what could only be called Frozen Hell, was an… experience, even if I couldn't see a damn thing. I felt the cold entering my bones, with each wingbeat of the Gryphon, I could barely hear over the wind, and as said. I could barely see the captain in front of me. I couldn't fathom how inhospitable to the Living it must be if it's this inconveniencing for the Dead.
I had no idea how long we were in the storm, but it felt both too long and too short. Whas that just me or was there magic involved? Regardless of that question, time was completely and utterly lost to me on how long we spent in the blizzard, especially since the Gryphons just kept on going regardless of the cold seeping in. Eventually the blizzard seemed to lessen minutely, and light peaked through the frost clouds, and I was plunged into the light.
My first thing upon tearing through the blizzard was shielding my eyes from the oppressive light that blared into me. The next thing I did was hear the laughter of the captain and immediately grip onto the Gryphon's mane tighter as he sent us into a dive. My eyes adjusted slowly, barely catching sight of some massive black metal structure before it passed by and I was left staring at a large lake that stretched for probably a few miles.
A loud screech cut through my looking about, the sound met by the cries of the rest of the squadron of gryphons as they formed up and began gliding across the mirror-like lake. My attention turned to the captain as he spoke clearly in the calm wind. "We'll be touching down at the lakeside for a gear check my Lady. Don't want any gear to fail because it froze through that blizzard, right?"
"That is fine. I could use a rest after that… journey." My response was met with a bark of laughter, just before the gryphon let out a shriek, answered near immediately by the rest as it accelerated.
If I wanted to get used to this kind of travel… I was going to need a lot of practice. Maybe I should look into figuring out a way to get my hands on that teleportation magic.
After what felt like a few minutes, the beach came up and we landed without any incident. I got off with shaky legs and barely kept my balance as my feet hit the sand, only my staff keeping me from planting my face into the ground. Noticeably to me, the rest of my undead were completely fine, even the architect that Thessa had brought for the job, as they proceeded to get off and check over their equipment.
Considering I had no equipment to speak of, that left me with nothing to do whatsoever. And with absolutely nothing to do, I figured that I may as well look at the lake to see if there was anything worthwhile in it, small chance there may have been. Trudging across the bleached sands, I made my way to the water's edge before stopping as I caught my reflection in the mirror-like surface.
Leaning down, I became captivated in looking at myself. I wasn't vain, nor narcissist, but I hadn't seen my image since… I couldn't even remember, so I was naturally entranced by how much I changed from what I remembered.
My skin was pale, deathly pale, which made sense since I was a Necromancer and all, on top of not having seen the sun since I had been raised. The next thing I noticed was my eyes, the glowing, violet-black eyes with wisps of the same colored energy radiating off of them, that was… unsettling, and made me question what had caused that. And then came my hair…
The only actual thing that I cared about my body. The only thing that was actually worth anything, and a memento of Mom… looked like I was elderly instead of my actual age. My hair was turning grey, and only a small portion of it was still brown near the tips, with most of my hair unkempt, ratty and otherwise a mess, the sole exception was the braid I could visibly see that the Kaldorei had done for me circling around the back of my head. I would need to take of that in the future, I refused to let my last thing of Mom be this… mangled.
After taking in my physical looks and such, I finally noticed the thing that made me grow very annoyed. I wasn't horrified by it, if I was I'd have been horrified at everything that I'd been doing in the past 'days', if it were days. As it was, I was just annoyed that it reinforced my look of the 'Evil Necromancer'
Needless to say, leaking what was clearly death magic from my stump and the holes I still had in my body did not make me look any better as the energy pooled at my feet. Suddenly, I started understanding why no one corrected any outlandish assumptions made about me. Not even someone like Gothik leaked this much energy passively.
What was it that he said to me? "Your soul is ancient and swollen with death." ...Eh, close enough.
I looked down at my hands, my past sins crawling down my spine… I had a lot of blood on my hands. Partner had even more. It seems in this world that it finally came full circle to never let us forget it.
Pushing myself up with a grimace, I turned back to my Onslaught and made my way back. Apparently my timing was great, since they were just getting finishing up their equipment checks and remounting the gryphons for the trip. Getting on was a simple affair, and with minimal effort and time we were in the air with a screech of the gryphon beneath me.
Nothing else happened of importance as we flew further into the region, we didn't stop as we followed along a mountainside on the side of the forest. I didn't question why they were doing this, I had some thought that it was easier to know where we were rather than in the middle of a forest, but that 'argument' fell flat when you could see above the trees for miles. The reasons for this route ranged so much since I knew absolutely nothing, so I wasn't even about to go into them.
As we flew by, fast enough that the trees near us sped by, I took the free moment afforded to me to just look over the forest. Trees stretched from mountain range to mountain range, a sea of orange and yellow that was simply breathtaking to see… If I weren't busy staring at the tree across the way that dwarfed Behemoth to the point the Endbringer would have looked like a kid under an apple tree. I knew I was in a Fantasy world, but that thing was absurd, even when there was real-world examples like sequoias, but this thing put them to shame from *miles* away.
Turning away, I spotted a few cleared areas in the forest, where what looked like pieces of ruined stone structures that I was told about hours earlier were scattered about. I noticed something wandering through the area, but from this distance they were just specks of purple against a backdrop of stone and lush forest. They disappeared as the gryphons kept going and I was left wondering what the hell those specks were, and why they were purple of all colors.
We kept flying into the dusk, and it was then when I understood what the scout captain meant by 'Corruption'. There was a massive glowing section of the forest far in front that illuminated the night, the same purple-white that the speck had earlier when we flew by, and it just felt… wrong. Worse than anything that I had witnessed in both this life and my last one, it reverberated through my soul and made me nauseous even looking at it.
Naturally, I tried to not look at it as we continued our flight, a very difficult ordeal since it seemed to draw the eye with its exotic nature. In the end, I managed to, for the most part, focus off of it and down into the dark forest, which looked eerie with the light seeping through the boughs. Some time after as two moons stood high in the midnight sky, the squadron of gryphons squawked and chirped at one another, before they dove to the ground, where what looked like an incline was rising into the mountains.
Landing was a much better affair after the first one, and my undead quickly set up camp. While we could see in the dark, with the radiance of that 'Corruption', I wasn't comfortable having my undead out and about where something from that 'Corruption' could come in and smash us from the air.
The added benefit of taking a moment to 'rest' and focus off this unending flight was just a nice bonus in my eyes. So with a bit of rest allowed, I closed my eyes and mediated.
I was jarred from my meditations when a spear slammed into my chest.
Tumbling to the ground with a gasp of surprise, I was instantly aware of the shouts of my Onslaught as whatever it was attacked us and they went to work. Pushing myself up slightly, I grit my teeth at the sight of what looked like a purple-blue tree branch shoved into my chest, before gripping it with my hand and wrenching it out without a damn. Black ichor sprayed with the wound before beginning to dribble down my back and chest, I stopped paying attention after that as I threw the 'branch' away and pushed myself up.
As I looked around, the haphazard camp we'd made, my annoyance and frustration welled up. The Nature Spirits were assaulting us, and we hadn't done anything to the forest at all! I wasn't even in the damn forest yet!
What looked like dryads, if dryads were made entirely out of crystal that pulsated wrongness and were hopping about brandishing about glaives and spears as they tried to kill my Onslaught. My Onslaught and Gryphons were fighting back valiantly, but for the most part they were too slow in comparison to the nimble 'Dryads', missing most of their attacks, and the rest being blocked.
Even my Archers were doing poorly against them, jarring as it was to see, as the 'Dryads' would duck or twirl their polearms to make the arrows careen around them. The only ones doing well against the 'Dryads' were Thessa and the Kaldorei, both too quick for those spirits to escape their grasp unscathed.
As I looked around more, I saw… Satyr that the scout had reported about. Except the Satyrs in the stories weren't quite so large nor were they made out of the same crystal the 'Dryads' were made o-
My thoughts screeched to a halt as another spear impaled me, punching into my flesh and spilling my 'blood' with ease. My annoyance rapidly became anger as I pulled this one out, reminding me of the time just like with that asshole Onslaught that kept shooting me. My eyes burned as I swept my gaze across the battlefield, looking for the culprit, and eventually I found her.
Of course, right as she hurled another spear straight into my chest with enough speed I was sure a low-level Mover wouldn't be able to dodge out of. I didn't get any weaker, not with the literal holes in my body pouring ichor out. Being an undead meant that I was graced with endurance that was stupid, and could shrug off most not-obliterating wounds. No...
I was pissed.
Not even bothering to rip the spear out of my chest as the 'Dryad' proceeded to form another spear for herself, I reared back my stump of an arm, necrotic energy wildly lashing out in my rage, and sent the magic hurtling at the creature. Panicked the 'Dryad' tried to bound away, but Death is attracted to life, and the grasp of a Death Grip clamped around the nature spirit, yanking it away from the forest's edge.
Slamming the creature into the ground and dragging her to just in front of me relieved some of my anger, but I still was pissed beyond reason as the battered creature was lifted up in front of me. She struggled to move, and I could see her legs cracking and pieces breaking off and disintegrating as my rage grew. Without a pause I dug into the 'Dryad' with my energy, a hellish scream erupting from the creature that sent the entire battlefield into silence.
As I hooked into the soul, I did as Gothik told me, and ripped.
The 'Dryad's' physical form crumbled to pieces of dissolving crystal as the soul was yanked out, looking much different than the abomination that I had brought in front of me. Slightly smaller, with what looked like plant life growing on her - and providing modesty to her - and an overall look of confusion as she seemed to inspect herself. As I looked up from the dryad barely coming up to my chest, I watched the rest of the attackers start bolting into the forest.
I was still a little pissed off, though ripping out the dryad had helped, and while the other 'Dryads' were out of sight in the trees now, the 'Satyrs' had apparently stuck around to watch the Dryad get tortured as they were still clearly visible. Death magic lashed out again as I bent down and picked up my staff, standing up as the Death Grip neared the 'Satyrs' like a sharkfin of Death. I was treated to a moment of shock as one of the Satyrs took one of their kin and threw it into the magic nearing it, a scream of outrage from the captured one erupting before I yanked him back to me.
With that, the remaining attackers disappeared into the forest as a 'Satyr' came flying at me, flailing erratically. Pulling back my arm as it got closer, I plunged my staff straight through the back of the 'Satyr', sending crystal flying. I expected blood, it was a satyr, who were half-human, half-goat creatures, so of course it had to have blood… but it didn't bleed, it just slowly shuddered as it tried to pull itself off, before eventually stilling.
Pulling my staff out of the corpse, the 'Satyr' fell to the ground, pieces cracking off with the impact, and finally quiet enveloped the camp. I tapped my staff against the ground as I let out a breath, death energy rushing into the corpse as a faint screaming could be heard. The corpse twitched before rising to its feet, I was momentarily surprised by just how much magic it took to raise. Unlike the rest of my undead, the 'Satyr' didn't knit itself back together, staying a broken and shattered creature with a hole in its chest where a flame of Death burned. It was unnerving.
I was thrown off guard when something slammed into my side and wrapped itself around me. Immediately looking down I saw the dryad… hugging me, as she babbled at me. "Thank you, thank you, thank you-"
What?
Confusion took over as the dryad continued to thank me, what for I had no idea and it made me more confused-
"Will you shut up treehugger! I don't need my ears in pain with the rest of me!"
The spiral of confusion paused as the dryad was cut off by the 'Satyr' yelling at her, glowering at the far smaller creature as she moved from me and gave a scathing reply. "Oh, I'm sorry Mister Goat, I forgot that you could talk like an intelligent being. You certainly didn't use any when you followed the Highborne here." The 'Satyr' growled as embers flickered in his hands, quickly followed by the dryad coalescing a spear into existence.
What the fuck was happening!
Every damn moment, something happened that made me more confused than the last! Was it too much to ask for two god forsaken moments where I was able to understand what was happening!
Unnatural fire burst into the 'Satyr's hands as he snarled, a dizzying mix of purple, green, red and black. "You little! I should burn you like I did handfuls of your kind at the Well!"
A glance at the 'Dryad' showed she was undaunted by such a display, somehow turning her nose up at someone that towered over her. "As if you could burn me Mister Goat! You couldn't do anything without the Eredar prodding you forward!" Please, Lisa. Cease the smug. My brain hurts.
Slamming down my staff, magical CRACK and all, silenced whatever the 'Satyr' was about to say, causing both the 'Dryad' and 'Satyr' to look at me, my annoyance clear with both of them. That didn't deter either of them, as the dryad pranced back to my side and happily gave me another hug, once more making me question what happened to her, and if she was treated to the same scene as the Kaldorei, while the 'Satyr' relaxed and slouched.
Turning to the 'Satyr' first, I barely had to wait before he decided to speak. "So Master," He sneered at me, my reflexive admonishment on the tip of my tongue. "You wanna put me back together, only correctly this time? As much as I adore having a ball of fire for a heart and being chained to this agonizing form, I could do without. Really. " I twitched. Alec. Of course they're both sarcastic assholes, except one's aimed at me and the other was… weird.
Taking a breath to not just murder him right then and there, I tried to calm down after the blatant disrespect. As much as it'd be cathartic to just kill him, I needed every single body available to me if I wanted to survive whatever this fucked-up forest had in store for me. "I can't." The Satyr blinked, before narrowing his eyes and leaning forward, looking behind him showed the rest of my undead collecting the camp together.
"Really? You mean to tell me, Old One, that you can't heal a simple hole in a corpse you just raised." The incredulous tone drove my annoyance up, and it was only through mentally repeating that I had a need for him that I once more didn't kill him. "I guess that makes sense if you haven't fixed your own holes. It's impressive you even raised one as magnificent as I."
…I wanted to punch him. So much.
It was like talking to an even worse version of Alec.
"Are you flesh and blood?" My question caught the 'Satyr' off guard as it blinked owlishly, looking down at itself for a mere moment before returning to fix me with a 'Are you that stupid?' look. "Necromancy reknits dead flesh." And does so much more but I doubt he was willing to listen to my budding dissertation of the conceptual weight of an object and the limits of necromancy in reforming it. There was a moment where he kept that look, before a thoughtful expression went across his face. The dryad at my side giggled like a little girl at the sight, just as the 'Satyr' nodded his head.
"Huh, I guess that is a problem." He chuffed, "I hope you don't plan on me fighting until you remedy that." … He did have a point, as much as I wanted to punch him. "Until then, I'll just lay back and support from behind." It was so tempting to just kill him with that smug smile as he sat and laid himself out on the ground.
He was a worse Alec.
Taking another breath, I turned my head down as I felt the dryad doing something to my side, finding her… nuzzling me with an expression of pure joy. What was it with Ghosts and being creepy weird? "Um… what are you doing?"
She stopped what she was doing, looking up into my eyes and gave a smile that instantly set alarm bells off in my mind. "You saved me from pain and darkness. The song was madness since the Dragons came. I was showing appreciation for my Savior~" As much as I hate to say it… I would have preferred another one like the Kaldorei, compared to this dryad. At least with the Kaldorei, she kept her distance, for the most part, and just prayed to my Partner.
A snort from the Satyr took her attention away from me, which I was grateful for since it released me from the dryad's grip, and had her focus on the asshole. "What's so funny, demon's pet?" Oh joy, Demons exist. Great. Taking a step away from the creepy dryad, I carefully avoided drawing attention from her as I backed away from the two bickering creatures. I could deal with them later… when I didn't have an angry forest sending spirits at me.
Who knew when the next attack was, and what it had in it?
Walking up to Thessa as she was sharpening her knives, I tapped my staff twice, getting her attention and having her hooded head turn to me. "Did we lose anything important in the attack." She shook her head as a response, turning back to her knife as she inspected it, apparently finding it satisfactory as she stored it on her belt.
"We didn't lose anyone or any supplies in the attack my Lady." She paused, as if she wanted to say more given she looked back at me. I motioned for her to continue, and with a nod she continued. "If you truly wish to harvest resources from here my Lady… It would be for the better if we destroyed these… Corrupted." I nodded my head slightly, as a sigh left my lips.
What I learned from this event was, so long as I had those 'Corrupted' active in this forest, I would have to deal with attacks against my forces. They'd attack me without warning, prompting or reason, and sending workers out in these conditions would be asking for the death of all my workforce. Of course, I could just bring them back but growing resentment was alway an issue. My life in the Bay told me that critical infrastructure workers can cause a lot of damage when disgruntled. And while yes, I could order them around, I simply couldn't keep watch over them at all times. But… if the size of this forest was any indication, what had just attacked me was a tiny portion of what was inside…
I would either have to scour this forest of a sizable amount of 'Corrupted' and raise them as I had done of the 'Satyr' and dryad, or bring in more of my undead from the Harbor… I needed more in my horde, and that meant scouring this place and raising everything that came at me.
Yet, I still needed to do what I had planned originally, and get a base of operations set up for harvesting resources, or at least find a good location for one to return to later and make. There was a solution… and it left me without the non-combatants.
"Get the Goat-man, Architect and a Gryphon-rider for me, Thessa. After that, prepare the rest for an immediate fight."
I barely registered the "Yes, my Lady." as Thessa disappeared to do her duties, already trying to figure out the best way to accomplish my goals. I clearly had spooked them with my little display, so the spirits of the forest weren't about to launch an assault on me without overwhelming odds. Which meant that when I went in after them they were either going to hide or do guerrilla warfare on me once they understood I was after them.
I'd have to be fast, decisive, and above all, ruthless. I was certain I'd be fine. Just like old times.
Quickly, the three I had asked for assembled in front of me, and I quickly relayed my orders to them. "The three of you are to find a defensible area leading back to Icecrown. Once you have found something, mark it and find a route that can lead to the Harbor." The two Onslaught men bowed their heads and headed off, while the 'Satyr' stood there, and if I didn't know any better I'd say he was arching an eyebrow at me. "You're useless until you're fixed. And you have magic I want to learn, so I'm not getting you killed again."
He didn't say anything to my proactive reply, merely adopting a satisfied grin before sauntering away like the arrogant ass he was. Ignoring him, I turned back as Thessa reappeared at my side, just as the rest of my undead finished their preparations and looked at me for direction. I let a smile grace my face at their promptness before I quelled it and moved on, walking towards the foreboding forest as dawn lit up the sky.
There was much to do, creatures to kill and raise. The normal since I came here.
The walk quickly turned into a hunt after I accidentally stumbled upon some 'Dryads' barely a minute in, gripping one as the rest bolted into the trees hissing in some grating tongue.
As I ripped its soul out much like the first, I felt… something shift its attention onto me, stopping me in my tracks. It was dark, cold and amused, as It looked at me, before I heard a deep, chilling laughter and the presence lifted off my being. I shivered after it was gone, not pulling away from the bliss-filled hug the new 'Dryad' gave me in the hope it would ward the cold coating my sin-soaked soul.
From there, everything devolved into a game of cat and mouse.
My new 'Dryad' happily nuzzled my side before leading us through the trees, giggling as the other 'Dryad' bounded up and tossed her a dazzling smile. Still unnerved by the presence, I almost didn't see the flash of purple trying to escape further into the forests, all I saw was one of the Archers fire his bow into the trees, while both 'Dryads' hurled spectral spears in the same direction. Shortly after the two bounded into the woods, giggling lightly as I kept walking rather aimlessly.
Before I got too far I heard more of the grating tongue and the giggling 'Dryads' coming, looking over to find them dragging another crystalline 'Dryad' across the ground, the creature struggling against their strangely strong grasp as they trotted forward happily. "Don't worry Sister. The pain will stop soon and we can frolic under the light of the Moon again!" More noises ground out from the 'Corrupted' at the first 'Dryad's' words, causing her to giggle harder. "You'll be of clearer mind when the Savior touches you."
… How are they worse than the Kaldorei?
Once more unnerved, I still reached out and gripped the still struggling 'Dryad' with my magic and dug deep, hooking into the spirit inside and tearing it out. I didn't hear a thing from the now-crumbling corpse as another 'Dryad' joined the other two, blinking owlishly at her form before she was glomped by her 'sisters'. Turning away from the creepy, if heartwarming, scene, I deliberated on a course of action as I kept moving forward.
Moving as one group, while being very effective at killing them, was rather noticeable, and while it made sure the corpses were raised or ripped in good condition… that meant little if I only got a few of them. Splitting into smaller groups was almost certainly a better idea, and I quickly turned and started separating my horde into multiple smaller hunting parties.
Was this a bad decision? Probably, but what was one more bad decision on top of everything else I'd done?
Quickly sending off the other groups, complete with pouting 'Dryads' looking absolutely miserable, I looked at what was left over for my own out of the seven groups made. The Kaldorei, two Gryphon Riders with said gryphons, and two Onslaught with greatswords met my gaze unflinchingly, awaiting orders. I had no idea how well this was going to work, but at this point it was far too late to change my mind.
"Let's go."
With those two words, I moved to the Gryphons as they lowered themselves to the ground, allowing the rest of us to get on their dilapidated forms. With a piercing screech from both, we took flight and sped through the trees.
Sunlight peeked through the trees as the hunt progressed throughout the day.
I had to admit to being surprised at how well it was going, despite the obviously bad idea it was to split up. Not only were my groups doing well, but they were bringing me the… 'spoils' of their hunt, despite me not knowing where the hell I was. I was going to attribute that to my Partner, and leave it at that.
If I was honest though, it was… rather boring compared to the battle for the Harbor. Granted, it was a battle instead of a hunt, but still. I was brought more and more bodies of 'Dryads' and 'Satyrs' as the day progressed, the 'Satyr' corpses slowly beginning to crumble to pieces before I got to raising them.
Each one of those goddamn goats were Assholes. Honestly, it was a toss-up if I considered them or the creepy, affectionate 'Dryads' worse. On one hand, the 'Satyrs' were utter self-aggrandizing pricks, and gave off the same shitty air Sophia did. On the other hand… the 'Dryads'. Just, all of them. I was getting a Fallen-like cult around me in the form of bound nature spirits. And yes, the 'Satyrs' were that assholeish that it put them on the same level as a cult.
… Anyway.
The only truly interesting part was when a group of withered looking trees, with arms, eyes and what looked like a necklace, decided to ambush my group. Unfortunately… those 'Ents' were a joke. Given the world I was in, I expected them to command other trees and plantlife, roots erupting from the ground to grasp people into the earth, branches trying to rip me apart…
Instead I got walking trees that lumbered at me, to which I responded with a Deathbolt to each one. I was… disappointed.
By the time night began falling and I had the hunt called off, I had a sizable amount of 'Satyrs' and 'Dryads' accompanying me. Nothing compared to the numbers I had of Onslaught, but maybe around fifty or so I think were raised total. I had lost track after the third 'Satyr' and fifth 'Dryad', and I honestly wasn't in any mood to count them out after the disappointment of the 'Ents'.
"I hear something, Avatar."
Kaldorei's voice whispered into my ear, and it was as I turned to look at her that everything went to hell.
A screech echoed through the trees as I suddenly felt the gryphon take a dive without warning, my stomach sinking in my chest as I turned back around. Valiantly, the Gryphon Rider tried to keep us airborne, but judging from the three see-through arrows stuck into the creature's skull, it was unlikely. I prepared myself for the crash landing as much as I could, but even still I was sent flying off when the gryphon slammed into the detritus in a tangle of limbs and feathers. Another screech and the other gryphon with me slid to a stop, screeching defiantly at whatever just attacked us as the Onslaught leapt off and drew their weapons.
Bracing my staff against the ground, I lifted myself back to my feet with a grunt of effort. I looked up-
I felt a tinge of pain as half of my vision went dark, and I instinctively ducked my head as multiple things thudded into my chest. Annoyance welled up again as once more, I was being turned into a pincushion.
Looking back up, I finally found the foes I faced, namely see-through humanoid figures darting through the trees atop some kind of similarly spectral creature. I growled as necrotic energy seeped from my 'wounds', melting the spectral arrows embedded in me, as I took a step forward, only to receive another arrow straight through my knee. I ignored it and kept my stride, marching towards the ghosts regardless of whatever they threw at me.
A Death Grip lashed out just as another volley of arrows thudded into and around me, but I ignored them as the necrotic hand shot forward through the trees towards its target. The lead spectral figure darted through the undergrowth on their steed, but it did little as the magical appendage weaved through obstacles without any effort. All it took was time.
Another volley went through my chest, though I paid it no mind, and without a sound I split the Death Grip in two just before it reached the creatures assaulting me, reaching out and grabbing the bodies. Energy anchored into whatever the creatures were, before I ripped them through the trees to me, not breaking a branch in the process.
What landed next to me looked similar to the Kaldorei, both in dress and in actual physical looks, alongside a giant, lioness-like feline. With that bare glance given at them I twisted the energy I had buried in them, tuning out whatever it was they did in response before continuing on my way without another glance. My annoyance grew as I saw the rest of the Elves aim their bows at me, even as I kept moving forward.
I felt something weigh on me, nothing as terrible as the one from earlier when the hunt started, but one that was distinctively uncomfortable as the arrows came hurtling at me. A foreboding feel-
With a veritable boom and flash of white energy I was sent hurtling back, past my newly acquired huntress, and into the arms of my Kaldorei. What just-
"You dare strike the Avatar of Elune with Elune's own Blessings? Blasphemers! Forgiveness will not be given for this transgression!"
The hate in her voice was something I wasn't prepared for given my previous experiences with her. With the gentleness I assumed of her, the Kaldorei handed me to the Elf I'd just bound, the woman cradling me as her Great Cat growled before sprinting to join my… pinned undead.
Note to self. Don't be an idiot and get controlled by emotions again. Even if I was fully in the right to do so. I sighed internally, it was a note I was likely to ignore, again, as I had done every previous moment of my life.
As the Great Cat slid to a stop, I was able to see my Kaldorei fully step into combat for the first time with my full focus on her. A sword in each hand at her side casually batting the arrows out of the air with an ease I would never achieve, her body seeming to glow with similar colored energy as whatever hit me. She took a step forward, bringing her blades up to the sky, radiating a blinding amount of white energy mixed with motes of pitch black, before sweeping both down to her sides.
[ELATION]
My eyes widened, both as the surge of sheer [Emotion] I just felt and as what seemed like pillars of light lanced into the ground from the heavens, blasting apart the forest below them with all the force of one of Purity's lasers. Dust clouds obscured my vision of what was happening, while the sheer noise made by the earth splitting and breaking on top of the explosion of energy left me deaf to everything else as the huntress held me tight. Even still, I didn't look away. As the light faded and only the settling dust remained.
An echoing clang of metal rang out through the air before being joined by a scream of pain, followed by a roar, then another scream, and another until the air was quiet again and the dust vanished.
Kaldorei stood amidst the blasted ground scoured of life, faded in places as light which reminded me of starlight floated in the air. I could faintly hear struggling, and found the 'bodies' of three huntresses held to the ground by swords along with one of those Great Cats… How the Kaldorei managed to produce multiple blades, I didn't know and didn't care to know until I was in a place that wasn't trying to kill me. Regardless, what had been attacking me was now… disposed of, and required binding, to which I quickly left the grasp of my own huntress to go do.
The Kaldorei was at my side through the entirety of the process as I got to work, ripping the blade pinning each after I bound them to my will, happily taking to my side as she pointedly ignored the Elves. After they were bound, looking disturbingly depressed and haunted, I was led by Kaldorei off to where the blasts had split the earth, and where the 'bodies' of the rest of the huntress party laid… flickering in and out of existence.
I pointedly ignored the lingering trails of light flitting up from them, as well as the wisps of their 'body' floating away, and just got to work raising them and their mounts.
I was still annoyed after the entire event, but I buried it deep and tried to ignore it as I led the Kaldorei and my huntresses back to the rest of my undead. The huntresses quickly removed the arrows pinning them to the ground and getting them back on their feet, while I focused my attention on raising the fallen gryphon with two taps of my staff. The creature twitched before getting off its side, shaking its feathers before letting out a huff and stalking over to its rider, letting him get back onto its back.
And with that, we clambered back onto our respective mounts and rode off back to where we had camped the night prior. Of course our pace was slowed as the oddly ground bound spectral huntresses paced us on the ground. The journey was thankfully short and uneventful for the rest of it, and we made it just as the last of the other groups arrived with the last of their 'spoils', which were quickly dealt with.
Just as the sun set past the mountains, the survey team returned on the back of a frost-bitten gryphon, the Satyr among them dropping to the floor in a melodramatic manner, much to the unrestrained amusement of its kin. The architect swung off with much more grace, dusting himself off for some reason before walking up to me and beginning without any preamble. "Best place for a defensible position for storage and refining is further up the slope on the edge of Icecrown. With some manpower and materials I can get it ready in less than a day for storage and defensive purposes."
I was impressed, both by how quickly he had finished his task, on top of how easy he could get the next one done, and how he just stuck to what needed to be said. Granted, it was his job, and I expected one had to be very, very good at their job in order to be in the employ of the Onslaught given their… prior commitments, but it was still impressive that he had done it within the span of a day. "I see. And the route to the Harbor?"
He grimaced, and immediately my slight good mood deflated. "Good news and bad for that Boss. Good news, there's an easy route to the coast, and a relatively sheltered, flat area to build an encampment. Bad news. It's a sheer drop down to the ocean, same as the rest of the Glacier." I could see how that was an issue…
It wouldn't do me any good if I could harvest all these materials, shipped them to the coast along whatever route the architect had found… only to not be able to transport them down to sea-level for ships to pick up and send off to the Harbor. A creature with wings could only carry so much weight before it couldn't fly any more, and given a gryphon's size, I was not confident in their ability to carry large quantities of resources. But again…
I needed the materials.
With a wave of my staff, I sent the architect on his way as my undead constructed a camp again, with the sheer amount of Undead, I was feeling better now than I was earlier today about being in this area. I could plan out what was going to happen with regards to this tomorrow, for now I needed to have a talk with my Partner, that magic Kaldorei used, and the one that ble-
Looking down, I finally noticed that my skin, muscle and clothing were distinctly missing from my chest, leaving a gaping maw of necrotic energy staring out from within my ribcage. I was going to have to address that. Given that I was constantly being peppered with projectiles, I was going to have some kind of plate armor made for myself, or something that let me not get turned into an archery target. It was what I assumed was only a few days, but I'd already been shot some forty times, at the least! Even if I wasn't affected by the projectiles… barring the last one… it was clear I was going to be a target and the principle of the matter.
Anyway, with a huff I sat down, staff leaning against my shoulder and began the process of meditating again. I had a feeling this was going to be an… enlightening conversation.
I opened my eyes to be greeted with a fine brackish mist matching what was pouring out of my chest, it seems this…. Mindscape? Soulscape?
"Personally, I prefer The Tether or Limbo." I turned to look at my Partner, actively looking for any changes to her form. Which is why I instantly spotted a spectral purplish skeletal arm forming from the stump we shared. She followed my eyes and gave a light smile, raising the hand to reveal that it too was emanating that same brackish mist. "Ah, yes. It seems that widening the channel for such energies that the natives call 'Magic' has… effects on both the physical and the 'soul'."
"I'm aware what I'm going to say is by definition 'ironic' but still, I'm not sure how comfortable I am with 'widening a channel' to Death." I cringed internally at that since I was the one who was widening this theoretical channel, and in reality I only had myself to blame.
I invaded their lands, I set out with the expedition. I was the one to rip the souls, to bind them to me. This whole time the only thing I could even blame my Partner for was-
"Are the stars not beautiful tonight?"
Startled, I looked to her, then followed her gaze up to the 'sky'. The stars…
"We are so very small, in the end. Are we not?"
I closed my eyes. That final moment, those final thoughts. They were not just mine. "Yes. We are." The stars were beautiful, hanging there in what amounted to the sky. Looking exactly like the night sky from better days, like at the summer camp that started it all. I couldn't imagine what Queen Administrator feels, looking at the stars. I opened my eyes and returned my gaze to the stars.
"For so long my creator thought of the stars as mere generators to be siphoned. Planets are resources to be harvested. Life as a program that could be run and then deleted." She sighed, one part wistful and one part disappointed. "It was a simpler time I suppose. But now, now I see the truth. That blast of magic you took? It opened my eyes."
I slid my eyes back down to her. So I was right in my assumption that the blast of magic was connected to whatever the hell my Kaldorei did. "Opened your eyes to what?"
The smile she gave was one of childlike wonder, as she threw out her hands and shouted exuberantly, "That there is so much more out there! That the answers my creator massacred for existed!" She turned her gaze to match mine, eyes light with joy. "Cosmic magic, that is the answer you are poking for."
Cosmic magic? I suppose if Nature has magic, it would make sense that exo-magic also exists. "I could assume from what happened that there is some sort of… thing? With the Kaldorei?"
At that Queen Administrator fell silent, a pensive look on her face. Finally she slowly answered, "You are aware of the… connection… we have with the Elven Ghost, it seems that it was not as one way as we had assumed. She… called on me? Invoked me? I am not Elune but it… tugged on me all the same. A speck of energy, only noticeable because I was intensely looking for it, was drawn away, filled with Cosmic Magic."
I was shocked, my Undead could pull energy from me? My panic began to rise before it was abruptly cut off as I reviewed her words. The Kaldorei was able to call on our shared soul for power by prayer. That was an unsettling but heady was not however, one I was overly keen on exploring. Not now, at least.
She drummed her fingers on the crystal throne, "I would not worry overly much Taylor, the energy was nigh-instantly replenished, and I suspect that as long as stars exist so shall Cosmic Magic. Regardless, if it eases your mind, I shall endeavor to keep a close eye on any future fluctuations."
I gave her a genuine smile at that, we conveniently thought on similar wavelengths, and it wasn't paranoia if people were actually out to get you. Not that I would suspect treachery from the broken soul of the Kaldorei but any opening that can be leveraged will be, eventually. Poor Alexandria realized that lesson far too late.
She gave me a soft smile, "Well then, Taylor. This talk has left me with quite the rollercoaster of emotions I believe the saying goes. If you don't mind I'd much rather go back to watching the stars, if only for a little longer."
I didn't begrudge her that, so I nodded. "That's fine, Partner." Then I remembered something, "By the way, I like The Tether. It's fitting."
I turned my gaze up watching the stars as my consciousness slowly faded out of this shared space.
Better days indeed.
Light from the rising sun met my eyes when I opened them, instead of a spear to the chest like yesterday.
Getting up from my seated position, I quickly got my undead to break down the camp and prepare for the move to where the architect had found the best place for what I needed. It was an uneventful affair, made much quicker with the addition of the other undead helping out… sans the Satyrs being themselves. Which amounted to following orders but complaining all the way. When that was finally over and done, we mounted up as best as possible and followed after the architect as he led the way.
'Further up the slope', as it turned out, went from a gentle slope to a mountain pass with cliff faces surrounding the path up. For a moment I was worried that my new undead would be left behind and not know where to go… at least, I was before I looked down and saw them climbing the path with speed and surety I wasn't expecting of them.
Eventually we arrived at the spot the architect had found to be adequate, and I could see why. No winds whatsoever screaming into the valley hidden by mountain sides, though the blizzard I had flown through could be seen above, blocking out the sun beneath chilled winds. There was a large amount of space available to me for building whatever I needed, and the ground looked to be made of snow instead of ice, which I assumed would be good for the place.
As we touched down and had the ground-bound Undead catch up, I had to wonder how exactly the architect planned to do anything with what we had here… It wasn't like we had the materials to build anything, nor even the workers with the proper know-how to build whatever he wanted built. I guess he could start marking places out for structures, but that was something he could do on another day.
From my spot in the middle of the chaotic storm of undead milling about doing things the architect instructed them to do, I found the man speaking with a small group of 'Dryads' near the route down. From this distance I couldn't hear a thing that he was saying, and the noise around only made it worse, but even if I had wanted to listen in he finished shortly after I took notice, sending the 'Dryads' off without another glance as he turned to order some Satyrs to go do… something.
Naturally, I was more curious to see what he had the 'Dryads' doing than whatever else was happening around so, with Thessa and Kaldorei following after me, I wove through my horde after them. What I came across was them 'kneeling' down at the edge overlooking the route up and shoveling the snow off to the side with their hands.
I… was not sure what to make of that, I understand under the snow and ice there would be dirt… and that they are Nature Sprites. At least, in my mythologies they are.
To be honest, I was more concerned and confused about how solid these ghosts were. The shades and specters in Naxxramas were nowhere close to being this corporeal.
Before my confusion could go any further, one of the 'Dryads' stood up, lifted her spear, and slowly began waving it through the air. I felt the magic coursing through the air around her, though I couldn't tell what she was doing, or what kind of energy she was channeling, just that she was. It was like feeling an unknown liquid run through your fingers: you can't grasp it, it feels like something you know, but nonetheless an utterly alien sensation. Curiosity. Another Dryad trotted over brandishing her own spear and joining in without a word, seemingly entering a trance as they tuned out everything happening. Streaks of faint glimmering green began to fill the air.
Just as I was about to walk over, I finally saw what it was that they were doing. As I watched, a... I hesitated to call it a tree, because a tree didn't start that big, or with that much bark, as it emerged from the ground. It wasn't tall, but it was growing rapidly for a plant, and as I looked around, I found multiple plants being grown by the 'Dryads'.
…I had just solved my wood problem… and I hadn't even realized it as focused as I was on doing it the 'normal' way.
Calmly, completely contrary to what I was feeling inside, I turned around and was about to leave the 'Dryads' to their task, only for the architect to walk up to me. "I gave the new ones orders to take care of building the initial layout Boss. We're ready to depart to the 'coast' at your command." I gave a nod, and sent him on his way, before I began thinking.
I needed someone in charge of these Undead, it wasn't that I didn't trust them to do their job… well, I trusted the 'Dryads' and huntresses, the 'Satyrs' were another matter. Anyway, when the inevitable end of their orders came, I needed someone that would think about doing things beneficial to me. And having no clear leader among a group of close to a hundred?
It'd be an E88 situation again.
"Kaldorei. You'll be staying here. Ensure everything happens correctly according to what the architect planned."
She gave a bow, her contentment still in place as she replied happily. "As you wish, Avatar." A thoughtful expression crossed her face, head tilting to the side as something crossed her mind. "What would you have me do when that is over?"
It was a good question, but one I didn't have an answer to. I did have a response, and I could only hope that the things that came of it weren't going to bite me in the future. "I trust you to further the plans I have already set in place, Kaldorei." She gave another bow, staying behind as I led Thessa back to the Gryphons.
As I mounted the captain's gryphon again, the beast shaking its feathers free of bits of snow as I did, I braced myself as best as I could for the blizzard to come, it probably wouldn't help but I could hope. With a collective screech, the Gryphons took off, flying straight into the storm above without a care for the winds.
I took comfort in knowing that, at the very least, the wood problem was solved… now it was a matter of getting it over to the harbor. This was going to be a long, strenuous task, I could feel it in my bones, pardon the pun.
Just another day I guess.