Day ~116~Part Two~

The next two hours left this half treant druid flabbergasted. Rea would watch carefully for about ten to twenty minutes then duplicate the effect with very little effort. It was almost as impressive as it was aggravating, remembering his own druid training was making him want to squish her like a bug.

Ability [Rejuvenation Lv. 1] learned.

Ability [Regrowth Lv. 1] learned.

Ability [Hero-Runic Druid] learned.

Ability [Revitalize Lv. 1] learned.

Ability [Rune Transmogrification] learned.

Rea had what she needed to help Gaius now... too bad she was more interested in testing out rune transmogrification. It hadn't worked on her tattoos, but the weapon's runes could be freely changed to any other from the same base rune. Meaning as long as she had a kenaz rune available it could be changed to tech, camo, vision, fire, or regeneration. Looking at the other rune she had been using frequently, uruz, she took mental note of all its useful forms. Uruz, the auroch, or wild ox was a physical based rune, strength, speed, endurance, tenacity, and... masculine potency. Rea shook off the memories of what happened when she last used that rune.

Gaius was impatiently tapping his limbs on a nearby stone. Every strike pounded it further into the sandy ground. Sereda was giving her another familiar look of annoyance. Rea waltzed up and asked him what needed to be done. Less than an hour later Gaius was... well sorry Dunwalt, but Gaius was the hottest elf she'd ever seen. Where Dunwalt had been... proper and prince-like, Gaius was rugged and outdoorsman-like. She much preferred the ruggedly handsome elf with mid length silvery hair and natural accessories. Rea then mentioned that she wasn't a druid, but a runic druid and a hero at that. Gaius immediately started asking questions...

Nearly two hours later Rea was severing the hive so that she could just remain bonded with Sereda. Using her psychometry Rea had seen the exact moment her druid mentor had gone from level X druid to the second [Hero-Runic Druid]. She then went on to explain about runes. Realizing that she'd probably just started an epidemic among Gaius and the good druids he'd talked about, Rea decided it would be best to dump a bunch of info on him. As Rea wrote down the more useful runes and all of their stroked forms, as well as rules to use while activating them, Gaius and Sereda set up camp.

Rea had a goal in mind. If one bad druid had been enough to raise tension in Lumansolice... kill a bunch of people with wyverns. Then a bunch of good druids who suddenly had runic power should be... useful. She was looking forward to cashing in on favors in the future. Rea had asked Gaius how he sensed her, he simply told her that a higher level druid learns to sense magic from a distance.

A relaxed atmosphere fell over the camp. Gaius, happy to be elven again, went about using their ingredients to cook something up. Rea was a little stunned at first but it would seem that druids, even the elven ones, are meat eaters. Boy could that rugged elf tear into a juicy piece of... Sereda caught Rea staring lustily at the elf's maw. She quickly got back to her notes while downing a chunk of rabbit.

Day ~117~

The morning was spent engraving the base form of all twenty-four runes on daggers. The druid had somehow pulled them out of thin air. They then spent a while showing Gaius the ropes. While transmogrification was certainly powerful, druids had lacked combat ability in tighter enclosed spaces. Becoming a wolf wasn't much help after all.

This new ability was giving Gaius a power rush, so Rea proceeded to take one of the daggers then square off with him. Thanks to her superior runic suffusion and close quarters combat experience he got floored nearly a dozen times in the span of five minutes. The now thoroughly humbled Gaius apologized for his unsightly behavior. Before they parted ways Gaius offered Rea a gift... who was she to say no?

TransmogrificationForms-

1 - Ophidian: Variant

2 - Ophidian

3 - Lizardman

4 - Wyvern

5 - Dwarf

6 - Wolf

7 - Treant

Gaius left quickly after imparting the knowledge of his two greatest forms to her. Rea looked up at the clear moon, visible in the skyline, and howled like a beast. Sereda smacked her forehead as Rea became a black wolf with blue and red highlights along her fur. Walking up to her, Sereda admired the silky black fur. Rea sat on her haunches, easily three times the size of Sereda. Looking up at her wife, Sereda asked, "can I ride?"

Rea went prone and let her on. After settling in Sereda smacked her on the side a few times. Rea got the message and started walking. She could feel Sereda digging her heels in and nearly falling off every so often. Rea waited for her to get more comfortable before picking up the pace.

An hour later there was a bronze woman riding a black wolf through the plains, just north of Vestlei. Adventurers heading north were spreading rumors like wildfire, the pair were having far too much fun to give a damn. At some point Rea had realized that transmogrified druids seem to confuse her [Psychometry].

Day ~118~

Morning's first light broke the treeline, Rea had spent the night in wolf form. They had run, and run, and run all day... most of the night too. In the end the pair had come upon two small ponds in the middle of a lush forest. Rea had always been fond of oak trees and nature. This place, with glistening pools of natural water, fallen logs, and uneven earth had struck her as peaceful. The forest seemed to come to life as warm beams hit her fur. Rea had curled around Sereda who was resting in her new favorite spot.

Rea never failed to enjoy being encompassed by the larger woman, so she was letting Sereda bask in the sensation. Resting against the flank of a great wolf with fluffy fur of ultimate fluffiness. Rea very nearly freaked out a moment later. A squirrel had landed on her back, it then sauntered off to the pool of water and began to drink. The animals of the forest weren't afraid of her. One after the other rabbits and three horned stags emerged. All of them were coming for water. Rea, enjoying the spectacle, chose to let them all be... except the squirrel. Something about this wolf nose was really good, she already had the little bastard's scent.

When Sereda first awoke, Rea got up and shook her fur out. Sereda cocked her head when the black wolf charged off furiously. That poor squirrel was doomed...

TransmogrificationForms-

1 - Ophidian: Variant

2 - Ophidian

3 - Lizardman

4 - Wyvern

5 - Dwarf

6 - Wolf

7 - Treant

8 - Squirrel

Rea cursed under her breath, it was supposed to be rare to learn transmogrification from eating something. Most of the time you had to study life and form bonds with creatures. Gaius would be angry at how easy some things were for her. Rea was a bit pissed that she could turn into a squirrel... then again, she'd be a pretty squirrel... and she could lead them in, then she could... oh ho ho

Sereda wasn't sure what to think of Rea's expression when she came walking back in ophidian variant form. "Have fun?"

Rea grinned childishly, "yup, sleep well?"

"Thanks"

"Don't mention it... I like it here, wanna stick around for a while?"

Sereda looked around the place she had taken them to last night, "as good a place as any."

Nearly two days were spent sparring. Rea wanted to get used to wielding a spear again so that was where they started. After a while she would switch it up and let Sereda pound on her tower shield. Rinse, repeat, the days were relatively uneventful... once in a while Rea would disappear while claiming that she had picked up a new hobby. By the end of their brief stay this small forest would be devoid of squirrels.

Ability [Improved Piercing Power Rank Up].

Ability [Improved Piercing Power Rank Up].

[Job-Adept Spearman] Level 34!

Ability [Spear Abilities +] learned.

Ability [Improved Piercing Power Rank Up].

[Job-Adept Spearman] Level 43!

Ability [Spear Prowess] learned. (They weren't able to spar with a spear anymore at this point. Sereda tried to hide it but, even in full on ironwoman mode, she was taking damage.)

Ability [Block Rank Up].

[Job-Shield Bearer] Level 13!

Ability [Guard Boost Lv. 2] learned.

Ability [Block Rank Up].

Ability [Block Rank Up].

[Job-Shield Bearer] Level 22!

Ability [Guard Boost Lv. 3] learned.

Ability [Block Rank Up].

Ability [Block Rank Up].

Ability [Block Rank Up].

[Job-Shield Bearer] Level 34!

Ability [Guard Boost Lv. 4] learned.

Ability [Block Rank Up].

Ability [Block Lv. X] altered, [Mighty Block] learned.

[Job-Shield Bearer] Level 47!

Ability [Guard Boost Lv. 5] learned.

[Job-Shield Bearer] Level 50!

Ability [Job-Guardian] learned.

Ability [Knockback Resistance Lv. 1] learned.

It wasn't pretty but sitting there with Sereda pounding on her tower shield was enough to get the job done. Rea was fine with the improved block and guard boost. As soon as knockback level one kicked in she wasn't losing ground anymore. Looking forward to higher levels of guardian she quickly went about packing up camp. The pair, during their sparring, had decided to actually go hunting. They were getting tired of just mindlessly guarding or attacking, and Rea really wanted to get lancer so she could go after dragoon.

Day ~120~

Looking out across the plains sent a chill down Rea's spine, literally. Northern plains that should be in the middle of summer were... covered in ice and snow. Rea quickly kicked her wife off and went back into ophidian form. In the distance they could see tons of people fleeing south. Rea wasn't sure what to make of the spectacle. Sereda quickly asked her to stitch together a few fur coats.

Both of them, now looking like Eskimos, trudged on warily. The snow wasn't too deep, but it was unnaturally cold. Nearly an hour after they had started walking Sereda spotted a village that still had light emanating from it. Upon approaching the village they found a gathering of nearly thirty adventures. Some man in silver armor was up on a building shouting out commands and talking about the current situation. A witch, as they put it, was causing the supernatural storm.

Eyes fell on Rea because both she and her wife were surrounded by revolving lantern spells. As they made their way through the crowd a familiar voice called out to her. Ralph, the rogue, people didn't bother to follow as he led them off. In a building on the outskirts of the village she met Valerie and Kalphus again. Kalphus laid still in bed, a chest wrapped in red bandages.

Rea could feel the tension in the air, "What happened?" she asked while handing a vial of [Elixir] to Sereda.

As Sereda poured it down his throat, Ralph spoke up, "There was this treasure in a dungeon. Supposed to be easy pickins' yeah? So this group goes down to get it and... Well, then there was this witch and boom, ice age. She nearly killed Kalphus."

Rea wasn't happy with the hastily thrown together explanation. However, if this was being done by some evil witch then it was something she couldn't just turn a blind eye to. Valerie averted her gaze then asked them to leave before Kalphus awakens. Rea and Sereda left them be, less than a minute later Ralph was chasing after them. "What is it Ralph?"

"I'm comin' with, I know where she was."

Neither argued as all three marched towards the gathering. Rea had hated the Salem witch trials, a disgusting farce that always reminded her how terrible humanity had been and could still be. In this world though, there was an actual witch... It was a complex feeling that left her heart in turmoil. Hoping that the witch is just an evil monster, she tuned out the man barking orders. Sereda listened up and Rea drilled Ralph for some answers. The little rogue really was being dodgy.

An hour later they were part of a large thirty strong group heading north. Ralph snuck off once or twice to tell the captain where this dungeon had been. Rea was pretty sure by now that the group who went after easy pickins' was her three acquaintances.

It wasn't an easy journey, people kept bickering at her to cast more fire magic. Rea wanted to conserve as much as possible. Every once in a while monsters ranging from massive bears to icy golems and magical beings would assault them. Before the day was over ten people had died from the surprise attacks. Visibility was low thanks to a constant storm of snow. When hail started to pour they made for a nearby wooded area. Rea quickly made an igloo big enough for twenty people to fit under comfortably.

If it wasn't for the fact they they had already seen her use an inferno, and watched Sereda throw a five foot menacing steel lance, they would have probably attacked her. Everybody got a little paranoid when she started to use powerful ice magic. Ralph continued to dodge questions.

Day ~121~

The next day was spent regaining strength, they had plenty of meat from the bears. Everybody huddled in and started setting up a camp. Rea used her fire magic while Sereda set up a small hot spring. Nobody was looking forward to resuming their march the next day. Nobody was in the mood to get to know one another. Rea considered leaving alone... she would have if not for Sereda and Ralph.

At some point the leader approached Rea. His armor turned out to be quicksilver. He easily put aside a large mace and spoke, "I should like to get to know the woman that is keeping us warm."

Rea looked up from Sereda's lap, the man's haggard features struck her as shockingly normal. A single scar ran the span of his entire face, some sort of claw mark. Hazel eyes, light brown short hair.

"Rea Ainsworth, and my wife, Sereda Ainsworth."

Sereda's grip tightened as he introduced himself, "Creighton Tore, marauder... sure you're up for what we're marching into?"

Rea flexed her hand, a few joints popped menacingly, "I can kill an evil person, not happy to have us?"

"On the contrary, two battle mages are more than welcome. More so considering the enemy we'll be up against." A few men nodded in approval at that, "let's just hope the rogue is leading us properly."

Ralph shrugged, "I am, Selene was definitely that way."

*Crash!*

Ralph struggled to free his neck from Rea's grip as she gazed into his eyes, "who?"

Her heart was beating like mad as he averted his gaze, "the witch."

Rea's shoulder popped, the tree behind him creaked. Sereda stopped her from breaking the rogue's neck just in time. Falling to the ground and gasping for breath he looked up fearfully. Rea already had her spear handy, "I think you should stop lying to me Ralph. I'm not stupid, a fucking tundra and you mention the most talented water mage I know. Valerie, the straightforward battlemaster, averts her gaze and asks me to leave before the ever so honest Kalphus wakes up."

Rea pressed her boot into the base of his stomach. Ralph almost went for a blade, but then he realized that the ground around him was sinking. Looking up fearfully he knew it was either talk or die. "We met a girl lookin' for ya, t-t-took her along."

By now everybody was watching, no one was interfering. One look at the usually calm, now malicious expressions on their mages, was enough to put any thoughts of intervention aside.

"Got along great we did, fast friends. Told her to stick around till we found ya. So one day we hear about this cursed staff."

Creighton picked up his mace and pointed it at Ralph, "You didn't."

Ralph shrugged, "it sounded too good to be true."

"If you heard about the staff you also heard about what it is! No one goes near the damn thing for good reason rogue!" Creighton stopped brandishing his mace as Rea looked at him, "the weapon belonged to an arch-lich. A powerful undead magician. It's cursed, the immortal lich's soul resided in that staff."

Rea had gotten the picture and removed her boot from Ralph. "What did you do?"

The greedy little bastard went on to explain how he may have left that lich detail out when he told the others about it. When they had gone into the relatively safe dungeon to retrieve it nothing astounding had happened. Just as described it sat, embedded in an earthen fissure, untouched by time. As soon as Selene had her hand on the thing she... changed.

Rea already knew the rest but, she had to ask, "Selene is a very smart girl, she would have known better than to pick that up. Care to explain?"

Ralph twiddled his thumbs nervously while explaining that she'd been suspicious when they saw it, but she had believed him in the end. He was also scouting ahead, removing all the warning signs. That was half the reason she believed him. Rea then asked for the other half, "we... were friends."

Rea crouched down and took hold of Ralph's dominant wrist. The rogue screamed out as sounds of snapping bone could be heard. "You will go back through this tundra alone. Maybe you make it to Kalphus and Valerie, maybe you die on the way. I don't give a damn, but, if you stay here, if I so much as glimpse your tattered robe one more time, I will track you down and break every other bone in your body. Are we clear Ralph?"

The teary eyed rogue nodded like mad, a minute later he was running for his life. "Anything else you can tell me about the staff, or the lich?"

Creighton apologized, "Sorry, no one's ever been stupid enough to pull the damn thing out. Not even monsters. Best we can do is kill her."

All of a sudden the temperature dropped, a chill went up everyone's spine as Creighton began to panic. Rea had permafrosted him to the ground, Sereda was already full on steel. Neither liked hearing that. "We're doing the rest alone. If we fail, feel free to give it a go. If we spot any of you before we find her, you're dead." Rea quickly scanned the various looks of disbelief and fear, "Are we clear!?"

Various muffled replies later Rea and Sereda left the camp alone. Letting out a long sigh Rea asked, "What do you know about lichs?"

"Not much"

Rea decided Sereda should know what they're walking into, "Lichs are sort of like revenants, intelligent living dead. They're magicians or sorcerers who gained immortality by binding their soul to a phylactery. It sounds like this lich's phylactery is the staff, break the staff, kill the lich." Sereda nodded, "though I doubt it'll be that easy, it would've been a powerful mage... and now its got Selene."

"We can save Selene that way?"

Rea clicked her tongue, "I don't know, and I wish I knew more about this lich. They aren't all evil, sometimes they do it for a noble cause... becoming immortal. If I didn't need a flesh and blood body I probably would've tried to become one."

Sereda looked around them, "judging from the state of things, I'm gonna go with evil lich."

Rea chuckled while dispelling half her lanterns, they didn't need so many anymore.

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