Setting
The little child was right behind her though Astria knew she could fly much faster. It just wouldn't be fun if she did. Slowing down a little she allowed the child to catch her. As soon as she started chasing the child back, the parents called making Astria hide and giggle, urging the little one to go home.
Now that she was alone she sighed and began flying further into the forest, searching for another friend to play with. She wasn't paying attention to where she was going and soon found herself at the entrance of a cave.
A little voice in the back of her head told her she was being silly for being this twitchy, but her rational mind ruthlessly crushed it. She frowned, 'Silly?', she mouthed disbelievingly. Her Woods were being corrupted by an unknown force, and she had been forced to leave the only home she had ever known behind in that state. Where had that thought even come from? Because it certainly wasn't hers.
So what if her current surroundings were still untainted? It wouldn't be for long if the taint kept spreading at this rate. She startled at a sudden noise, and whipped around, calling upon the forest around her. It wasn't as easy as it could have been, since this wasn't her own territory, but the nearby flora nevertheless heeded her call, sharpened branches poising themselves to hit the source of the sound at the slightest wrong move.
Suddenly the figure spun round, sensing a disturbance in the air. He realized there was an unusual gust of wind somewhere, and what was more, someone was trapped inside it.
The figure waved the staff around, and the wind calmed down, allowing the fairy down safely. Before he could ask if she was OK, the plants of the forest suddenly changed, sharpening and pointing towards them.
"Oh...oh dear." he said.
Setting
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Don't worry, I think it's impossible since no one seems to have been able to move posts. Just blank out the wrong one so it's not reread.
by Juilii
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Lore relaxed slightly, as the figure did not seem hostile. In fact it looked like the puzzled man was only just beginning to notice her. In better times she would have retracted her control over the flora immediately and have apologized profusely, but the thought was completely foreign to her current mindset.
She let go of her hold of most of the plants, reverting them back to their previous state, but two or three remained poised at the stranger that had snuck up on her.
"Greetings. Excuse my paranoia, but the past few weeks have not been kind to me. May I inquire what you are doing here?"
The 'this close to me without announcing yourself' was left unsaid.
And for that matter, how had he managed that anyway? She might not be as connected to this forest as she was to the Eschelia Woods -the latter being more of an extension of her being-, but surely, she should have sensed him with the power granted to her of Life's domain? Was she truly that diminished outside of her territory?
Despite her inner turmoil at that realization, her expression remained calm, her silvergreen eyes trained on the wizard.
I accidently posted this in the wrong topic, as I haven't figured out how to move it, i'm reposting it here.
She looked from the man to the woman and back again, trying to figure out what was going on. Noticing the mans beard, she really wanted to hear his stories as she figured he had been on many adventures. She picked out little leaves and sticks from her hair, listening to them talk.
When she began dusting off her clothes quietly and cleared her tiny throat as most of the plants backed off. Looking up at the female she asked "Why are you so scared?" fluttering her wings to dust them off as well she waited for an answer.
'Not that you have the right to call anyone old', a small part of her mind that reminded her of better times giggled, but that was beside the point. Two beings? She hadn't noticed two beings nearing her. Her earlier hypothesis seemed to be accurate. This was going to be troublesome.
Lore's shoulders sagged slightly and she ran a hand through her hair. She debated on what to tell them, but decided to go with the truth in the end. What harm could it do?
"Why wouldn't I be?", she asked bitterly. "Dark times are upon us. My Woods grow more and more corrupted with every passing day, and here I am in unknown lands, far from home to search for help, while my powers seem to be greatly diminished."
"Besides", She added wryly, doesn't any lone traveler -any person for that matter- have the right to startle at a sudden noise behind them?"
he attempted to put his hands up to show he had no weapon. In doing so, his 'staff' clattered to the ground and he almost fell over. He quickly stooped to pick it up, grinning awkwardly as he leaned on it for support.
She seemingly relaxed slightly, and added to her explanation.
"I used to be able sense life over a large area, but it seems that ability is greatly diminished with my leaving of my territory. I'm really, really not used to being able to be snuck up unto. And with the aforementioned events going on...", she trailed off...
She straightened again, "Nevertheless, I apologize for scaring you. It was not my intention to cause harm to innocents."
The fact that those that meant her harm would have been ruthlessly gored was left unsaid, but was undoubtingly acknowledged by all present.
Lore fidgeted slightly. She might be on warpath, but while she wasn't as innocent or naive as her appearance would suggest -had not been for a long time- she did have kindness and a general need for acceptance and assurance, having been able to act like a child for the longest time.
While similar to -but not quite like- being caught redhanded by someone else, the fact that she was clearly the one in the wrong here was undeniable.
It was guilt she felt.
"I am Astria Starflower. It's a pleasure to meet you both." she then sat, curling her tiny legs beneath her as she studied the other two she had encountered.
"Nice to meet you." the wizard replied to Astria, "My name is Velin."
"So then," he turned to Lore, suddenly seeming more serious, "You mentioned some sort of corruption? I doubt it is anything I'm familiar with, but I may know where to find out more."
"Ah", Lore was a little flustered by his sudden change in demeanor. "Yes. The Flora and Fauna in the northernmost part of the Eschelia Woods are either mutating or, failing that, dying. These former are especially the case for the magical species. It is as if magic itself is infected by something, but while I was able to pinpoint where the corruption started spreading, I could not do the same for the cause of it."
She straightened after a short moment of silence. "Can you give me directions to that person or place?", Lore asked, "I would be in your debt..."
"I know of a handful of good libraries, some of them with resources from ancient times. the best that I've been to is probably in the wizard's school in the capitol city, but that might be a bit far."
"Although I have heard tales of a lost library hidden somewhere in Hamnu..." he mused to himself.
Lore was also somewhat doubtful of his last claim. Not that she believed him to be a liar, but it simply sounded to good to be true. She was met with a quandary, would she go to the capital and gain the knowledge practically for certain? Or would she take the gamble and search for the lost library? Did it even exist?
"What would you recommend?", she asked plainly, too many things whirling around in her head and too little of it the knowledge she required for her to make a proper, informed decision.
She shifted. "I know where the old place of books is." she simply stated, though with all the people around her buzzing with noise, she didn't think she would be heard.
"I know where the old place of books is."
He tilted his head, staring at her briefly before he answered, "Where is it, and what must I bring from that location?"
Of course, the person he was talking to was technically a stranger and there was always the chance that they couldn't be trusted, and this might just be some trick. But that kind of thought didn't tend to cross Velin's sheltered, naive mind.
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