Peace returned to the deep forests of Sadida after surviving a terrible battle which almost costed the lives of a whole race. After growing mad by the Eliacube's influence, the Xelor named Nox had set his eyes upon the Tree of Life with the goal to take its Wakfu and use it to travel two hundred years back in time, before the monster Ogrest tore the World of Twelve apart and nearly drowned its inhabitants with his everflowing tears. Nox wished to see his family again, having felt guilty for their demise because he wasn't there for them when they needed him most. He was certain he could set things right again, that he could redeem himself no matter if he were to erase the future or kill thousands in his wake. He would return, one way or another.
Who would have ever guessed a young boy would be the one to stop him? Twelve years old… Nox hardly stood a chance when the young Eliatrope named Yugo stood up against him, but it was the betrayal of the Eliacube that was the true victor of this battle. After draining Yugo from his Wakfu the moment the boy was distracted and battered enough, Nox finally set his plan in motion; to travel back in time with the aid of the Eliacube and all the Wakfu he had collected over the years. Yet what should have been two hundred years became only twenty minutes, returning Nox, Yugo and his draconic brother Adamaï to the point before the Tree of Life was felled by the massive mobile invention which was Nox's Clock. The damage the Clock had taken during the fight between the eliatrope and Xelor couldn't withstand the short travel back through time and fell apart shortly after those twenty minutes, bringing an end to the conflict as Nox had nothing left to fight with. Spared by the boy after the devastation, Noximilien disappeared after making peace with the fact he was not to see his family again. Not in this life at least…
While the people of Sadida were saved by the unintentionally short travel back into time, lives had been lost that day. Among those who fought and perished against the Xelor's minions was Tristepin Percedal, one of Yugo's close friends. He gave his life to protect his friends against the unstoppable Razortime, another one of Nox's inventions which broke down soon after the Clock fell apart. While Yugo and his friends were victorious, the need and want to celebrate was little.
After the dust of the battle settled, the people of Sadida began with restoring what was destroyed. A large part of the forest had been leveled to the ground, vaporized by a tremendous power which was no more. The rubble that once formed the massive mobile Clock laid spread over the empty waste. Both military and civilians were searching through the debris for anything salvageable, yet most wished for the metal parts to be completely removed from sight and mind; it held no use for a race affiliated with wood and the metallic debris was an all too fresh reminder of what had and could have happened.
"Careful now."
"What are we going to do with this mess?"
"Melt it down, I guess. Maybe ship it off to Amakna or Bonta. Who knows."
The workers were persistent to bring their home back to its former glory, sorting through what was left of the Clock while making way for trees to be regrown. It would be a while for nature to take its course, but the Sadida were willing to lend a helping hand to have the trees and plants grow tall and strong once more, wishing to restore the forests they called home.
"Over here!" A loud voice caused several of the workers to halt what they were doing and look towards a Sadida guard standing upon a hill of broken cogs and rafters. He wove with his arms to get the others' attention, shouting as he pointed down towards the foot of the artificial hill," I found something! Come help me!"
The workers either dropped down the metal they were carrying or laid aside their tools to come to the guard's aid, curious to know what he had found. One of the Xelor's devices that was still functional perhaps, or something else? It was anyone's guess but whatever it was, it seemed to be important.
"What did you find?"
"Look," he said as he pointed with his spear to a dented container that was covered by parts of the Clock's debris. The container laid upon its side, battered and damage by the weight which had crashed down upon it after the Clock fell apart, but still in one piece. The position the container laid in almost concealed a window at the front of it, bent out of shape while shards of broken glass framed it like jagged teeth. It was hard to make out what was behind the window, but if one were to look closely, one could make out a hand beyond the broken glass. "Someone's in it," the guard said and placed a hand against the metallic hull when his fellow Sadida gathered around him.
"Or something," someone muttered, the suspicion high among the grass covered faces. One thing they had learned this day was to not trust anything related to machinery, especially the machinery which belonged to Nox.
"Let's move all this! Maybe they are still alive," the guard said with determination and began to try to push some of the rubble aside, soon joined by his brethren whom helped him lift up the metal pieces which weighed down upon the container.
They worked in unison, no matter that some were uncertain about revealing the contents of the container. It wasn't long before the container was free from its imprisonment and was carefully pushed over. A face could be seen once the sunlight was able to shine down into the broken window, a body laying still and motionless against the inside of the container. The moment it became apparent it was truly a 'someone' and not a 'something', the Sadida workers sped up their efforts to try and pry the hatch of the container open with hands and spears alike. It took several men to try and open it as the hatch had bent out of shape like the window had, but a quiet cheer sounded among the crowd the moment the hatch finally gave way and cracked open.
Questions rose and mixed as the guard who found the container leaned inside and lifted the body out with great care, the crowd which had grown silent over the course of the last few seconds muttering in awe. The guard held a woman of unknown origins in her his arms. She was pale and a little banged up but felt warm to the touch; she was alive.
"We have to get her to an Eniripsa," the guard said while looking the woman over, eyeing the tattered hood she wore after quickly examined her for any crucial wounds. It looked like Yugo's hat, the Eliatrope boy who stopped the Clock from destroying the Tree of Life and the people of Sadida. "And someone get the boy and his dragon," he added, his grassy eyebrows arched with concern at the new found mystery," hurry!"
There was a small uproar since the finding among the Clock's rubble, the news that a mysterious survivor had been found quickly spreading. There was reluctance, but it was overruled by curiosity to learn about the survivor and why they were kept within Nox's captivity. Was it an ally of the Xelor? A prisoner? An experiment? Everyone was eager to find out.
"Bring her in here," the Eniripsa said while holding aside a thin leafy curtain to allow the guard to go through, her wings fluttering as she watched the Sadida carry the unconscious woman into the small chamber. The guard quarters were closest to the site where the stranger concealed within a busted container was found; the guard rushed her there while others had gone to inform the Eliatrope boy and his dragon of the finding. The Eniripsa came closer to inspect the stranger after she was placed upon the available bed," tell me how you found her."
The guard nodded as he watched the Eniripsa begin to check the female survivor's pulse and dilation of her eyes," she was contained within a metal crate, a container of sorts. It was sealed fairly tight, but we managed to pry it open. There was nothing else in it from what we could see, just her. She was unconscious then."
"A cell?" the healer asked and gently tugged off one of the long tattered gloves her new patient wore, looking for any injuries which would require immediate tending. So far the woman seemed psychically well, no matter the worrying paleness and thin appearance. All she found were bruises and some scrapes but such was minor; time would heal it. There were also no fractures to be felt. She reached forth with both hands to undo the hood to check for any head injuries when a sudden voice and loud footsteps rushing into the small chamber stopped her.
"Wait!"
The sudden urgency kept the healer's hands aloft as she blinked bewildered and looked over to where the loud voice came, seeing the boy Yugo standing in the doorway with Adamaï right behind him. The deep color that formed upon Yugo's cheeks made the Eniripsa aware he didn't mean to call out as he did, the embarrassment all too clear, but she had a patient to look after no matter that someone called out for her to wait. She gave him a small smile before asking him while hovering next to the bed with the fluttering of her little wings," is something the matter?"
Yugo stepped inside with reluctant steps while softly stammering to find the words, his head tilted to the side as he gazed to the woman upon the bed. He was told that another Eliatrope had been found but he had a hard time believing it. He was ecstatic at the news however and hurried to the guard quarters to find out if it was true after several guards approached him in the palace. Adamaï was a little more collected than his brother, lingering a little behind Yugo when he stepped up next to the bed to have a better look. Yugo's eyes were large to begin with but they grew wider after he took note of the hood the unconscious woman wore, the look of uncertainty making way for one of awe. "Adamaï, look!" he said as he placed both his hands upon the mattress to lean up and have a closer look, distracted from giving the healer an answer as to why she was supposed to wait," so it is true. She's an Eliatrope."
"But where did she come from?" Adamaï asked, looking towards the Eniripsa and the Sadida guard with an arched brow as if they held the answer and was demanding of them to tell him.
"We uhh… We found her among the debris of the Clock, locked away within some contraption" the guard said in answer," we know nothing more than that."
"Among the debris...?" The master of Bonta muttered thoughtfully with his chin cupped in a gloved hand while his eyes were cast downwards to the floor, standing outside of the small chamber with the King's chamberlain Toufdru, the princess Amalia Sheran Sharm and her two confidantes. The small group came along with Yugo to the guard quarters after the young Eliatrope was informed about the finding, though they had a hard time keeping up with him as he teleported away like the wind with the aid of his Zaaps. It was worrying to know such a secret was kept within Nox's invention, especially because no one knew what the survivor's purpose was.
Joris looked up from his thoughts and ponders when another guard stepped over to the elderly chamberlain and handed over an unorganized stack of papers, saluting the princess in respect before he took a step back. "We found this as well," he said with a small incline of his head to what Toufdru was holding in his bony fingers," we'll bring you more when we find it; these pages are scattered all over the forest."
Amalia leaned a little closer to have a peek at the torn papers Toufdru was skimming through, her lips pursing as she couldn't make head or tail of what she saw. Rough sketches of strange devices, unreadable scribbles and terrible handwriting was all she could see as the chamberlain fumbled through the collected stack. "Research, maybe?" she blindly guessed before the papers left her sight as Toufdru bent down to show the master of Bonta the findings and see if he could make sense of it.
"You are correct from the looks of it, Your Royal Highness," Joris nodded while his eyes moved over the writings. He had an easier time deciphering what he saw, but it was a mess all the same. It held important information however, information which could prove to be of great value. It piqued his interest, though it wasn't for himself but for everyone he served, such as the King of Bonta. He needed to become a part of this revelation to learn more. "Toufdru, please allow me to assist in deciphering this," he humbly requested, seeing the old chamberlain nod a little to give the small master his permission. After the chaos the Xelor had caused, all help was appreciated and the master of Bonta had proven time and again to be a trustworthy ally. It would be unwise to turn down the offer of help.
A sudden commotion coming from the small room caused everyone look up from the found notes and find the young Eliatrope trying to excuse the healer from the room. The Eniripsa protested, confused by the boy's request to leave her patient unsupervised with him and the dragon. He was nudging her gently but with an urgency which made the situation seem bizarre, especially towards the onlookers.
"I am sorry, just give us a moment… please," Yugo pleaded, his brother Adamaï sitting upon the edge of the bed to let Yugo handle the situation. The leafy curtain fell shut behind the Eniripsa who blinked in a bewildered manner after she realized she had been shooed out of the room and away from her patient, floating on the spot in front of a large eyed crowd that stared at her inquisitively.
"What happened...?"
The Eniripsa gave an apologetic smile towards the princess after gathering her senses and heard the concerned question, saying while fluttering closer towards Amalia," I am not sure, Princess. The boy insisted on examining the patient himself. He refused to let me take off her hood."
"Of course…" Amalia sighed deeply with a hint of annoyance and pinched the bridge of her nose before she shook off the frustration about Yugo's actions and nodded, saying as a small smile crept across her lips and she wove a hand in dismissal," please don't take it personal. Yugo never allows anyone to see what is hidden under his hat, not even me. Since the stranger is assumed to be one of his people, it must be the same for her. We honor the request to never look at what is under the hat out of respect for Yugo, but it does make one curious to know what exactly the Eliatropes are hiding... I sure am curious." She pouted a little but didn't make a scene about it. For now all they could do was wait until Yugo could confirm if the woman truly was an Eliatrope; it would decide the next step of action.
Yugo climbed onto the bed to join Adamaï after shooing the healer out of the small chamber, sighing in relief like he just prevented something catastrophic from happening while rubbing a cheek to calm his embarrassment. "That was close," he mumbled before he fixated on the mysterious woman laying next to him, his shoulders lowering while his expression turned grim," do you really think she is an Eliatrope, Ad?"
"Only one way to find out," Adamaï shrugged. He was as excited as Yugo about the finding but he was more skeptical about the situation, not wishing to give in too soon to avoid disappointment. To their knowledge, he and Yugo were the only dragon and Eliatrope to walk this world; to have found another came like a shock, a good kind of shock. He was right though, there only was one way to find out the true heritage of the woman who laid in between them. "Just hurry before the healer comes barging back in and kicks us out."
Yugo nodded with a heavy swallow and leaned forward to dip a hand within the depths of the hood the unconscious woman wore, carefully cupping the back of her head to raise it up from the pillow before his other hand pulled back the torn hood. He was reluctant, wanting to know what he would find but also afraid to not find what he was hoping for. She seemed unharmed underneath the blue cloth she wore over her head, no signs of any injuries, which was a relief. He could assure the Eniripsa that her patient didn't need any tending there, keeping the secret of the Eliatrope people safe.
Adamaï shifted a little closer as Yugo pulled back the hood, his eyes growing in awe while his mouth hung somewhat open at was revealed to him. From the sides of the woman's head sprouted small amounts of Wakfu, tiny fluctuating tendrils which were the size of Yugo's index finger.
The chuckle of glee Yugo let out with the discovery died fairly quick when he realized the size of the Wakfu wings he too possessed and grimaced before saying somber," she is very weak…"
"Who knows what Nox has done to her and for how long," the young dragon sounded bitter, still holding a grudge towards the Xelor who was responsible for the demise of the mighty dragon Grougaloragran. He leaned forward to give Yugo's shoulder a light punch of encouragement however, grinning at him to lighten the mood for them both," she is alive though, and an Eliatrope! She may know us or has met Grougaloragran. Maybe she can tell us more about the Eliatropes." There was so much she could tell them. Weak or not, this was a good sign for everyone involved.
Yugo couldn't contain his excitement at Adamaï's words, smiling wide as his eagerness grew. He pulled the hood back over the top of the woman's head to hide the small Wakfu wings and carefully laid her back down to rest on the pillow, saying as he turned to his brother," maybe she has a dragon sister or brother somewhere. Maybe there are more of us out there! With her and the Eliacube we may be able to find them, Adamaï. Can you imagine?"
"Well, she has to wake up first… She doesn't look too good, Yugo. She may be like this for a long time to come…"
Yugo lowered his arms he lifted in enthusiasm and slumped back down to a sitting as he looked back at the woman who could be a sister to him for all he knew. She looked extremely frail and pale, unnaturally so. Adamaï was right… the chance she wouldn't wake was as large as the chance she could wake up at any given moment. He hoped for the latter; he wanted to get to know her.
"Don't worry, bro. She'll wake eventually," Adamaï said as he began to climb off the bed," and when she does, we can ask her anything we want."
Yugo nodded in slight defeat, knowing there wasn't anything more he could do at this point in time; it was his patience's turn to be tested. He hopped off the bed to leave the small room with his brother after casting one last glance to the female Eliatrope before meeting an anxious group waiting for their return.
"Well?" asked Amalia once Yugo pulled aside the curtain to step outside," how is she? Is she an Eliatrope?" The princess had grown impatient, not to mention annoyed that she had been left out by her two friends but her two confidantes managed to calm her and not have her run into the small room to demand an explanation for not being included… even though she was very well aware of the reason.
Yugo nodded, looking a little solemn until he took note of how Adamaï glanced towards him, a reminder that there was no point in sulking about the woman's current state. He forced a smile on his face to bring himself in higher spirits before he clenched his hands into fists and quickly moved up before Amalia, saying while his excitement grew once more," she is! She is fine from what I could see, just very weak but she is one of us, an Eliatrope. I uhh-" He turned his head to look towards the Eniripsa he nudged out of the room and rose a hand to rub the back of his neck, saying while battling an embarrassed blush," I am sorry for sending you away like I did."
The healer shook her head with a kind smile," the princess explained everything to me. Not to worry, Yugo, I won't have a peek. I will continue examining her but from what I could tell rest is all she needs. Please do not worry, she is in good hands; we'll nurse her back to health." She patted Yugo on the top of his head to reassure him before she flew past him to re-enter the small room, disappearing to tend to the female Eliatrop and leave the group to themselves.
"I am so happy for you, Yugo. I hope her appearance means there is more of your people out there just waiting to be found. We should prepare a guest room for when she is no longer in need of medical attention," Amalia said before glancing over towards Renate and Canar, the two flamboyant Sadidas who looked after her since she was but a sprout," I'll leave that to you two. Be sure it is comfortable and will satisfy her every need."
Both the male Sadida eagerly nodded before they turned towards one and another, already brainstorming about which guest room would be the most suitable before taking their leave from the guard quarters and attend to the princess' demand. They had a few rooms in mind which would be suitable to house the unknown Eliatrope, assuming her needs would be the same as anyone else's.
The chamberlain stepped forward after Renate and Canar left, softly clearing his throat to gain Amalia's attention while collecting the papers under his arm," I shall go through these notes with Master Joris while there is still daylight left. We may find something of use in them. If you'll excuse us, Princess…" The old Sadida was in no hurry, his old bones turning his walk into a snail pace as he leaned on his staff.
The slow tread of the elderly Sadida allowed Joris a chance to catch up with him after throwing an inspecting and thoughtful glance into the small chamber where the Eniripsa was tending to the new guest, quietly pondering to himself. He inclined his head respectfully for Amalia, excusing himself before he followed after Toufdru to join him in sorting the Xelor's notes and make sense of them. The true reason for why the Eliatrope was in Nox's possession still had to come to light; it was best to remain cautious.
Yugo also stood peering into the room as Amalia laid a reassuring hand upon his shoulder, the Eniripsa waving her brush-like wand over the female Eliatrope's skin to let her healing magic flow through the bristles and seek for any internal injuries which may need her care. "Come Yugo, she'll be all right," the princess of the Sadida said to try and cheer Yugo up while giving his shoulder a squeeze; he looked so very worried. He nodded in response before he began to leave the guard quarters with his brother and dear friend, leaving his fellow Eliatrope with the kind healer while hoping she would indeed be all right.
To be continued