NISSA

A seed buried deep in the dark soil hums with life. As its outer shell cracks open, the tiny white sprout unfurls. The sprout pushes through the dirt, passing worms and ants and other insects burrowing by on their own path of life. It pushes toward the surface, stretching, reaching for the warmth. When, at last, it pushes through the warm topsoil and for the first time touches the yellow rays from the sun stretching down through the trees, the sprout rests in the comfort of knowing it is free.

Life unfurls all around us.

Nissa opened her eyes and looked around without moving. The forest was buzzing with life yet perfectly still. Peaceful. This was her home. This was the Zendikar she knew and loved.

Why, then, did she feel a sudden…angst? What was the disturbance she felt deep within the Core of Zendikar, spreading all throughout the leylines and into every plant and creature and elemental with whom Nissa could connect? Someone had come. Someone from another plane. Someone Nissa considered a trespasser. And the cool-headed elf unfurled herself like the sprout she had coaxed from its seed and, gripping her staff, dashed through the forest to find the intruder and discover why he had returned to Zendikar.

CHANDRA

"I don't know, Jace," said Chandra, looking around at the lush green of Zendikar with an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. "I think if Nissa already feels betrayed, you bringing me here is not going to help. If anything, she might feel even worse."

Jace swatted at a flying insect that landed on his cheek, ready to draw blood from the only place on his body that was left uncovered by his massive cloak, save one of his hands. He grimaced. There was a whole cloud of blood-sucking insects descending on them. "Look—she's already sent her greeting party to ambush us."

"Har, har." Chandra rolled her eyes, letting her hair ignite to attract the insects to an instantaneous death. Then she extinguished her flames and shook out her hair. At least with the humidity, her hair didn't feel quite so dry and brittle as it usually did after ignition.

She looked around, and asked, "So, how will we even find Nissa here? I mean, it's not like she's expecting us."

"With any luck," said Jace, "she'll find us. She probably already knows we're here. The elementals will keep her informed of any changes."

He paused and gave her an odd look. "You should know all this. Nervous?"

"I'm fine," she said firmly, even though her stomach twisted, and she struggled to breathe.

She wanted more than anything to see Nissa again, but at the same time nothing terrified her more. That part of her wanted to 'walk as far away from Zendikar as possible, to forget everything that had happened and move on with her life. How had she let Jace talk her into this? Sure, he was the best mind-reader she had ever met, and he had said Nissa missed her but…what if he had only said that in order to get Chandra to follow him blindly? What if Nissa actually hated Chandra and never wanted to see her again?

The thought of Nissa looking at her with hatred filled Chandra with more dread than anything ever had before—even more terror than the thought of losing her mother, and that was one of the worst things Chandra could ever imagine.

After a long silence, during which Chandra grappled with her feelings, she finally asked, "Jace?"

"Hmm?" He had been standing perfectly still, his eyes aglow. He was probably reaching out with his mind, searching for Nissa to see if she was anywhere nearby.

He was about to speak, but then Chandra asked, "You know how you once said you would forgive Liliana if only you could see her again?"

Jace seemed almost to choke. Chandra was too distracted to notice his odd behavior, as he stammered, "Y-yeah. Why do you ask?"

She shrugged and kicked at a clod of dirt by her boot. "I guess it gives me hope, is all."

"H-hope? Hope in what, exactly?" His face turned red and he was fidgeting. Even with her own inner turmoil, Chandra couldn't help but notice.

She narrowed her eyes, and asked, "Geez, Jace, why are you acting so weird?" Without giving him a chance to answer, however, she continued, "I'm just thinking that if you could forgive Liliana for…everything she did…then maybe Nissa…"

Jace's shoulders relaxed and then he stepped closer, placing a hand on her shoulder. "She has forgiven you, Chandra. Actually, I don't know that there is anything to forgive. I don't think she was ever angry with you in the first place. She was hurt, no doubt, but not angry."

He paused and let his hand drop to his side. "Listen, you don't need to worry about anything. Nissa will be glad to see you."

"What if seeing me again only causes her more pain? I mean, I've inflicted enough pain already. Showing up unannounced might just be adding salt to sore wounds, you know?"

Her face burned from the inside and her hair sparked as if it might once again ignite, but she managed to hold it back. Jaya's lessons were paying off, but it still took an immense amount of energy not to just burst into flames, she was so angry with herself. Finally, she shouted, "I mess everything up!"

Birds in the nearby trees lifted into the air, the noise of their flapping wings and the movement of leaves breaking the quiet peace. No, thought Chandra, I broke the peace. Like I always do.

"Chandra, relax," said Jace. Suddenly, his hand was on her shoulder again, and the next thing she knew she felt a calming sensation course through her. She shivered.

"Cut that out," she said, pulling away. "I hate it when you do that."

"What, help you relax?"

"It's cold, you know. The sensation. Like ice going down my spine. I don't like it."

"I apologize," Jace answered, placing a hand over his heart in a gesture of sincerity. "I won't do it again."

"It's okay. I know you're just trying to help. But definitely…don't do it again. Just let me figure things out on my own, you know? I know I can be impetuous and…well, foolish, really. But I still have to do things my own way. That's why I thought Nissa would be better off without me."

She paused and her cheeks grew warm again. "Why I thought everyone would be better off without me."

NISSA

Nissa listened from within the shadows of the forest, her back pressed against a tree. She had been listening, observing, for the past few minutes and wondered if now it was time to reveal herself. She had known Jace was there, but she had not expected to see Chandra with him. Just when she was about to burst through the jungle leaves and confront Jace for trespassing on Zendikar, she had heard Chandra's voice and all her anger was suddenly brought to a halt as confusion took over in its place.

What was Chandra doing here? Not that she needed a reason to return to Zendikar. Nissa may have doubted Jace, but she trusted Chandra explicitly. Only, she had never expected to see Chandra again. And now she had heard everything Chandra had said, but she was frozen with indecision.

Soon, they began moving on and she realized she had to reveal herself. Gripping her staff, she stepped out of the trees and into their path. They froze in place, but only Chandra looked surprised. Jace had likely picked up on her presence when he was meditating. She had felt his energetic tendrils poking at her mind and had resisted, but she knew he had likely already detected her before she blocked him.

Nissa held her staff in front of her with the pointed base resting in the dirt. Her eyes fell on Chandra with tenderness but when she looked at Jace, her gaze hardened, and her jaw tensed.

"Why have you come?" she managed to articulate. Words had never come easily to her.

Before Jace could respond, though, Chandra came forward in a rush and threw her arms around Nissa. The elf stood there, stiff and uncertain what to do, as the pyromancer squeezed so tight she thought she might break. Finally, Chandra released her, and said, "Nissa, I'm sorry! I thought I was doing what was for the best—and maybe I was, I dunno. Maybe you're happier without me in your life. You love it here, and Zendikar needs you, but I'm not really the forest-y type, so maybe it's better off this way, but I should have talked to you first and we might have come to a conclusion together. But since I made the decision for you, I've wondered ever since if I was wrong, and I hope if I was you can forgive me and we can still be friends, at least?"

Nissa was overwhelmed for a moment, as her mind processed all the words spilling out of Chandra like a wave of flames passing through a dense forest. It had been so long since the last time she saw Chandra, she wasn't used to the intensity. Finally, when Chandra fell silent long enough for Nissa to think through a response, she said, "It's okay. I am okay, Chandra. I've…missed you."

A smile brightened Chandra's face. "I've missed you, too!"

Again, she threw her arms around Nissa, who tried to let the overwhelming feeling pass. She was happy to see Chandra again, after all, even if it did bring up some of the sad feelings of their last parting.

"Nissa," Jace's voice came softly, breaking through the discomfort. For a moment, Nissa almost forgot she was still angry with him.

Chandra pulled away and Nissa turned a suspicious gaze on Jace.

He paused, considering his approach before speaking. He was trying. She realized that. She still didn't trust him after he betrayed Zendikar.

"I'm…sorry. I know, I was wrong to side with Nahiri. I hope you can forgive my…arrogant pig-headedness."

"What do you want?"

He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "We…I think I may have figured out where Tezzeret has gone to hide. What he might be planning next."

"I'm not Gatewatch anymore."

Jace nodded in understanding. "I know. Will you at least hear me out? Hear what we—what I think he may be planning?"

"Tezzeret is not my problem," Nissa said, mustering great effort to form the words in her mouth.

"Actually, he is everybody's problem," Jace insisted, his voice tense despite his apparent attempt to keep it cool and steady. "I have good reason to believe he is working with the Phyrexians."

"You know this?"

"I…went there. Briefly. Almost got myself killed in the process, but only stayed long enough to detect him. He was not there at the time, but he has been there. Recently. I picked up on him in the minds of some of the Phyrexians."

He paused. "Nissa, if this is true—if he is forming an alliance with them or brokering some kind of deal—the Multiverse has never been in greater danger. Even Bolas cannot compare to the power of the Phyrexians. With the Planar Bridge embedded in him, Tezzeret is their means of getting anywhere in the Multiverse he cares to take them."

"The Planar Bridge," said Nissa, carefully working her thoughts into words. "It only moves non-life? Machine. Artifact."

"The Phyrexians are…unique that way. They are machine. They are artifice. And they are alive. If anything living can get through the Planar Bridge, it is them. And that is a very bad thing."

Nissa considered what he was saying. She glanced at Chandra, who was giving her a hopeful look. She almost resented her being there—resented Jace for bringing her. She knew he had brought Chandra as a means of pressuring her into agreeing to join the cause. For that reason, a part of her wanted to say no right then and there. How dare he use Chandra to manipulate her. But her sense of reason always won, in the end.

"Will they come to Zendikar?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "But there is good reason to believe nowhere in the Multiverse is safe if the Phyrexians are unleashed. They come from a plane where all life has been tainted."

"Emrakul?"

"Worse, actually." He tried to think of a way to explain it, but decided it might be easier just to show her. "May I…?"

She regarded him suspiciously. What if he tried to take over her mind? She was about to refuse, but then she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Chandra had stepped up behind her. She smiled. Reassuring.

Nissa turned back to Jace. She lifted her chin and stiffened her back. Reluctantly, she said, "Yes."

Jace froze in place and his eyes began to glow. Then Nissa felt the cold tendrils touch her mind. It was always a prickly sensation, though she had once grown used to it. He was gentle, but it was to Nissa not unlike the unfamiliarity of physical touch. She had grown used to being alone again. But after seeing the nature of the Phyrexians and their plane, the horror of it…

Nissa shivered when it was over. Even though Jace had ended the connection, the vision still haunted her.

"Zendikar?"

Jace nodded. "That is what they'll do to Zendikar. And to every plane they touch. Every elemental, every person, every planeswalker…"

A tear stung Nissa's eye, and she looked down as she blinked it away. After a moment, she looked up. "I will join you to fight this evil."

"Thank you," said Jace. And she knew he meant it. "We are going to need all the help we can get."

"Like Ravnica?"

"Like Ravnica," he agreed. "We will need to accept the help even of those we don't like, because in the end, we are all in danger."

"Ob Nixilis," said Chandra, almost spitting the name.

Jace nodded. "And others. This is going to be bigger than Ravnica, though. And even those we may have seen as enemies then will need to be accepted as allies."

"Like who? Tezzeret?" Chandra said with a laugh. If she hadn't laughed, Nissa would not have understood the sarcasm.

Jace gave her a firm look, almost like a father chastising a sassy child. "Obviously, no."

"Obviously," Chandra smirked. "So, then, who? Everyone else who worked with Bolas is dead…right?"

Nissa noticed the sudden change in Jace. He was tense. He shifted his stance. He looked away.

"Jace," said Nissa. "You are hiding something."

He sighed heavily. "Is it that obvious?"

Chandra slapped him on the back of his head. "Yeah. Duh. I knew you were hiding something." Suddenly, she gasped. Her face went white, and she shook her head. "No… Impossible."

"What?" asked Nissa.

Chandra narrowed her eyes at Jace. "That scent. I knew I recognized it. I thought I was losing it. Jace, is she…?"

"Who?" asked Nissa, in desperation.

Jace looked Nissa in the eyes. Then all he said was, "Liliana."