Lucas

Now, don't get me wrong, technology was still working and the power was still on most places, at least locally. It wasn't like one of those doom and gloom end of the world as we know it situations where the grind was collapsing and taking everyone down with it. Or rather, it was, with the benefit of hindsight, something that was playing out over months and thus a lot easier to rationalize as the new normal rather than something sudden. But out in the country? Things could hold off on changing for seasons, or longer in some cases.

Which is why the fact that we missed the first few waves of invaders and looters who had come. The scouts and 'tribute extraction forces' had apparently gone missing, as magic and power surged. Oh, most people remained humanoid, plenty of people even remained human if with a bit more, but those with power were quick to throw around new weight and influence, seizing crowns of their own. It was a glorious thing, a heady thing... a dangerous thing as the situation spiraled out of control. Long range communications suggested that this was a global event. Which had ramifications... and potential issues.

Still, most of the family, except for Matt, the fat fuck, were dragons. Some were convinced he was something dangerous, that he had become something more, something other. Which fair, given the rise of magic and how some were figuring things out, I would not put it past him to have cudgeled something together in that library of his. Though he had gotten even more anti-social, which actually was something he did not think was possible. At the very least his brother was actually leaving his room and doing something, though given how Matt was vanishing into the woods?

He closed his eyes. Just their luck if his asshole of a big brother was some sort of cryptid or fae. Would be just their luck really. And typical. Because their brother fucked things up... even as the radio cackled and they got some more of the insanity of what was coming from down south. Because the civil war everyone had seen coming? Yeah, turns out adding out mass magical awakenings into things and an already volatile situation was looking like it was less a political fight and more multiple crusades slamming into each other, with 'refugees fleeing north.

Oh, and there were people looking to leave the cities, as what do you know, warlords were rising close at home as well and there was apparently an army coming our way, an actual organized army, that was... looking to challenge to see who the better monsters would be. The thing is of course, we could not refuse, as we met emissaries and established were the duel would take place, as apparently their previous scouting patrols had vanished. Which yeah, we were going to have to ask around about that. But, soon enough, all the rules were hashed out, the entire thing being far more formal than what we were expecting.

Which of course, if when the contract caught us. Because of course the city slickers would send a devil to establish the terms.

One of the conditions of the 'battle' as our two 'armies' assembled (well, they had a well disciplined and equipped force, ours was far from standardized) was that they would spend the two weeks creating a zone were wounds would be non-lethal, the better to preserve human capital, because yeah, slavers were all heart. A zone that we would choose for the fight and they they would agree to, making this just some bizarre war game.

Still, theirs, from what we could tell were established in good order, had good weapons and were probably going to win this. Which was annoying, but... well, no but, I wanted to shred the fuckers. Still, the most annoying thing was that Matt had finally shown up, wearing just a pair of shorts and holding some crude as fuck warhammer that was barely more than stone lodged into a split stick and lashed into place, no matter that it was carved with something runic, like useless decorations on a piece of thrown together crap.

And then Matt started walking, casually and yet somehow menacingly, towards the approaching battlelines. No fear, and then he started changing. Each step, he swelled in size, his bulk expanding as his flesh twisted, becoming roots and earth as the world groaned under his titanic bulk. That crap hammer? Sure, it still looked like junk, but it was now as big as a fucking house! Which is likely why the advancing forces paused before he slammed into them. Which, as the hammer burned a rune into the earth, it exploded, elementals surging forth to further disrupt the battleline.

And then the trees started singing as they rose up; and went to war. Because of course Matt was some kind of monstrous tree spirit. Content to simply lash out with monstrously powerful strikes of his hammer, trees and elementals sprouting were it struck the earth as the fat asshole laughed with such force to be felt. And now? Lucas looked at his draconic form, and then at the elemental titan... how the hell did being a dragon measure second best to an overgrown tree?

Rosebloom

She had taken advantage of her becoming an elf to change her name, even as she took on the mantles of love, green and peace! Like, totally a modern druid, though if her new god wants the old version, you know, complete with human sacrifice and wickermen burnings? How could she refuse him, as she looked at his titanic self, at the vast expanses of hardwood flesh, the branches and the leaves... the fact that he was an avatar of nature and masculinity both?

She did not even wait till the battle was over before moving to his feet to prostrate herself, kowtowing and abasing herself before him. How could she not? For was this not a lord of nature manifest? And as a druid, was it not her duty to serve? And if he acknowledged her and found her worthy? As she raised herself to slam her forehead into the ground once more, her eyes looked up his shorts and she drooled. For he was not wearing anything under them.