Welcome back and enjoy.
Flora's eyes widened at the sight of the flowers around the room in different colors. "After centuries of being forgotten, it is now found by me!" She exclaimed as Fuchs walked next to her and picked a flower before examining it.
"And how do you know it works?" He asked as Flora stopped and stayed silent for a bit.
"I don't know... my research never gave me an answer for it but I can figure it out!" She said before taking the flower from Fuchs's hand and rushing to the fountain where she took the mortar and pestle and crushed the flower into a paste before filling it with the fountain water as Lilith recalled what the map had said about the items needed for the temple and the bloom.
"WAIT!, You must return that which is from its home. The titan's blood is what it needs!" Lilith shouted out before being forced onto her knees by a scout as Flora ignored her.
"You expect me to waste such a rare and valuable resource when the bloom is its power?" Flora said before pulling out the vial of Titan's blood she kept on her. "If you want me to believe you so bad then you try it!" Quickly Flora ordered Lilith to be restrained as her mouth was forcefully opened, Flora slowly poured the mixture into her mouth as Lilith struggled to move away she could taste its high sweetness like a sour fruit before she fell on the floor chocking violently before letting out a large stream of purple vomit as Camila tried to help her but was held back.
Flora snarled. "Damn you Clawthorne for being right..." She then poured the vial into the water system and the flowers around them began to bloom and grow as they glowed brightly. "Now, finally enteral youth is achieved for the emperor and I'll be known as..."
"Nothing..." Lilith coughed out. "You think Belos will let you take this as YOUR discovery, it's be a secret he'll make sure of that, and you won't receive anything out of it, no snails, no publicity, no recognition of this discovery." She told her as Flora was now angry at her, she quickly reached into Mateo's holster and quickly aimed the gun at Lilith's face.
"Shut up, you can't possibly know that, and if I won't be known as the one who discovered enteral youth... I'll be the the first to have it!" She said before taking a handful of flowers and crushing them with her bare hands with the liquid poured into the mortar she quickly filled it with water before quickly drinking all of it. She coughed a bit before looking at her reflection she didn't see any changes to herself until her face began to soften a bit as everyone looked at she continued to slowly de-age by a few years as it stopped as she looked in her early 30s as everyone looked at her in shock.
"Look at this, look at me it works! It works! And now once I publish my findings I will..." Flora stopped a bit as she noticed her voice gain a high pitch as her clothes were a bit loose for her when Lilith realized something.
"You've used too much of it... It's de-aging you by a few years but with the number of flowers you used, Flora you may..." Lilith was cut off by Flora's screams as the appearance saw her mentor scream like a child. Flora soon looked in her late teens then a young child until she dropped to the floor and curled into a ball as screams turned into a baby's cries and then silence as where Flora once stood now remained a pile of clothes with a pair of fractured glasses and Mateo's pistol.
"Well, that was unexpected." Fuchs proclaimed as he kicked the clothes away they fell into the water and were washed away before picking up the pistol and looking to his men. "Take as much as you can and then we leave this place." He ordered as the troops began to follow his orders.
"What about them sir?" A guard asked looking at the trio as Fuchs was about to reply when Camila took the chance to slice her ropes with the guard's spear before taking it and knocking him down before freeing Lilith and Mateo the latter quickly making a spell circle as a burst of fire launched from his palm and hit the large flower beds which quickly caught fire and spread burning the flowers to ashes. Fuchs yelled in anger before firing the gun only to miss several times despite Mateo being at close range the bullets ricocheted and bounced everywhere hitting a few troops A bullet struck a worn pillar which then fell in the center causing the floor to quickly collapse in on itself as Camila quickly leaped away from the pillar as underneath the floor was a large bubbling pool of lava as a scout then lost their grip and quickly plummeted into it with a sizzling pop.
Camila quickly helped up Lilith as Ava began to hang from Mateo's leg he held his grip only to be pulled down a bit as Ava screamed with Camila and Lilith seeing Fuchs stand up before proceeding to quickly snatch a few of the blooms as he walked towards the exit of the area before looking back seeing a few of his men struggle to climb up as he turned to Lilith and said "Goodbye Clawthorne." before running out of the room leaving the rest of them to fend for themselves.
"Stop grabbing so hard!" Mateo said as he held on while Ava climbed on top of him and then proceeded to lift him with the two of them looking at Camila and Liltih before the four of them rushed out with the remaining scouts following them with Lilith grabbing Flora's whip as she left.
Mateo proceeded to the exit as a large row of spears flew in front of him as he stopped and started to continue before stumbling upon Fuchs's impaled corpse, the agent was in a rush to leave he had forgotten about the traps in the hallway as the bundle of flowers were tightly clutched in his hands which Mateo then took from him.
"Farewell Fuchs." He mocked before heading out as the rest of the group was catching up to him they all ran out as the entire temple entrance caved in on itself. They all coughed from the dust before standing up everyone looked at each other as Camila and Mateo then said. "Truce?" "Truce."
Both tired, exhausted, and with various injuries the two parties then went their separate ways as Lilith and Camila left the island on one of the coven airships as Camila asked Liltih.
"How long till we're back home?"
"By the way, this thing moves I'd say a week at least." She said reassuringly, While back on the island Mateo and the remaining scouts began to pack up when he realized something.
"Has anyone seen Ray?"
A few miles away a carnivorous flower lay dead as Ray stood up holding a broken sword hilt and was covered in purple blood.
"Who's laughing now? Who's laughing now?!" He screamed before lifting his right arm to see that his entire hand and elbow were gone as blood squirted out of the wound. "So that's why I feel..." He then collapsed from the shock and blood loss.
One week later
Eda sipped on a cup of tea as Lilith and Camila told their story. "So I guess I'm still stuck with this huh?"
"I'm afraid so," Lilith replied as she sat next to her sister. "But I won't stop looking for one I promise you that." Luz then chimed in.
"So, what there no more youth flowers anymore?" She questioned.
Camila responded. "No, Mateo burned every last one of them but if they did manage to save a few of them then I'm not sure what they'll do with it."
"Probably being studied by their top men right now." Lilith started as others looked at her. "Who?" "Top men." Lilith simply answered.
At the castle, Mateo kneeled in front of Belos who sat on his throne his breathing getting heavier and heavier as the coven head explained his failure.
"Unfortunately we lost a lot of good soldiers as well as Fuchs and Flora my lord, The entire place collapsed before we had the chance to recover the bloom I'm afraid that it is once again lost to time," Mateo informed as Belos's fingers clawed the hand rests of his throne.
"Do you have any idea how much time and resources were spent on that expedition? You have failed your mission, as for the others they can be replaced as easily as you can, do you understand me?" Belos stated standing up and raising his staff as a bolt of red energy struck Mateo, he felt a harsh pain move around his body before it stopped as he struggled to stand.
"Yes... lord, Belos... I won't fail again, I swear on my life." Mateo replied before being dismissed. He walked to his room and closed the door before pulling out the flowers he had taken, opening the window, and burning them in his palm before blowing the ashes outside as they flew into the wind before he sealed the window and sat at his desk before taking out his journal and began to write in it. "You may be forgotten Flora but I'll make sure my legacy will be one for generations to come."