[Lilly POV]

Three days. Whatever kind of magic our quarry had used knocked me out for three whole days. I woke with a splitting headache and a long thank you to the world for the fact that nothing had eaten us while we were unconscious. After taking a few moments to check on the condition of my companions I sat down to focus on my recovery and sift through my memories of our journey. The last moments when the group had closed in on our target were hazy so I focused my efforts on trying to recall what I could about the encounter.

As far as I am able to tell whoever she is, she must be very powerful. She has somehow acquired the ability to use spatial magic and was using it to do something when we first arrived. Apart from that she clearly has power in both air and water magic as evident by the fog she was able to summon. If it hadn’t been for my powers as a druid, we probably would have lost her at that point. The most concerning thing of all was that strange song that she used to incapacitate the entire group.

I have seen magic used through song before, but this was something else entirely. It seemed somehow primal and far more powerful than anything else I have experienced. If, no when I meet her again I will have to ask her about what she did.

On the topic of a future meeting that final warning she gave me before I passed out was quite concerning and might be the most informative thing about who she could be. She called me an outsider so it is possible that she is an inhabitant of the forest. If that were true it makes little sense why she would attack me a druid though. The attack makes even less sense when I consider the ending part of her message where she mentioned the laws of nature. The only ones who should know about those are druids and some rangers.

The most concerning part of her message however was that we would have to prove ourselves worthy of a future meeting with her and that she would be watching us. I don’t know what we would need to do to prove worth and if her powers are as extensive as I think they are then she will have little issue keeping an eye on us. Also if she truly does know of the laws of nature then we will have to be a lot more careful while in the forest. If we accidentally accrue a debt by not paying a price for what we take, then running into her again would likely be unpleasant. I will have to talk to the others once they get around to waking up.

My internal musings lasted long into the day. I kept going over everything I knew about the strange girl we had met and tried to draw what conclusions I could about who she was. Unfortunately, I just didn’t know enough to get a firm picture. I knew that she was some powerful nature user and that was about it. With noting else to go on and tired of running myself in circles I decided to start meditating and communicating with the forest while waiting for the others to wake up.

Nothing happened until the morning of the next day when both Will and Adam woke up. The pair were understandable angry about being attacked and were a little embarrassed about being rendered helpless for several days. We talked for a long time about what each of us had experienced and what we thought it meant about our target. Will offered to try and scout out her trail again but I told him to hold off on doing so until we were able to form a more concrete plan. Not seeming to want to sit still he left to go and scout the area around us. We were supposed to be close to a road, so he went to try and find it.

Late that evening Mya finally woke up. I had started to get worried about her but now that she was awake those fears were gone. She was slightly worse for wear than the rest of us due to her low stats but after a little bit of healing magic she was feeling much better. With everyone now awake it was finally time to start making a plan. We chatted of small things until Will returned bringing news. Needles to say it shocked us all.

[Will POV]

I had been on edge ever since our encounter with the woman we were tracking. Lilly had given us a brief overview of what she had thought happened and the explanation didn’t sit well with me. How could a little girl have done everything that we have seen so far? Just to defeat a Defiler she would have needed to be a high level and that doesn’t even take into account the signs of extremely high level magic that we have seen. Creating that spatial distortion alone would require an amount of power that was just mind blowing.

Thoughts and worries like those filled my head and made me restless. Eventually I just couldn’t take all the sitting around anymore and decided to go scouting. Having a firm mission in mind helped me to feel just a little bit less helpless. I was going to try and find the road that should be near this area. I was also going to try and find the target’s trail despite the warning that Lilly had given me to stay away. After what she had done I don’t think that I would be able to rest until I knew she had moved on.

I started my search and it didn’t take me long to pick up on her trail. It seemed that whatever she had done to us had taken a lot out of her because she had abandoned her stealth. Her tracks indicated that she had stumbled off to the north and a couple droplets of blood indicated that she was at least slightly injured. I followed the trail to a point where it looked like she had collapsed and decided to abandon my search after that. If she had fallen here for a while then I didn’t want to risk getting any closer in case she hadn’t made it far.

Turning away from her trail I started my search for the road in earnest. What should have been a simple search quickly grew into a frustrating endeavor.

What the hell! I know we were closer to the road than this! I couldn’t possibly be as far off in my estimation of where I thought we were as this. Could we have really wandered further away than we thought? Maybe that little freak did something while messing with spatial magic that really screwed things up. If that’s the case then there really is no way that we can find the road.

With the added frustration of not being able to do my job I started making my way sullenly back to camp. I was not looking forward to telling Lilly that I had absolutely no idea where we were. I was nearing camp when in my distraction I tripped over a fallen branch and fell hard. Cursing under my breath I got slowly to my feet and while I dusted myself off, I took a look at what I had tripped over. Whatever it was it didn’t look very much like a branch. Bending down to get a closer look my breath caught in my chest.

It was not a branch; it was a road marker. One of the sturdy posts that the kingdom had set up all along the road. What the? These things are supposed to be next to the road what is one of them doing all the way over here? In confusion I started looking around for possible answers and began to notice something strange about the trees around me. They were all the same. Not just the same type of tree, but the same size, same height, all the same. On top of that none of them showed any of the signs of having actually grown in a forest. There was no damage to them. They didn’t have uneven limbs or wear to spots on their bark, in fact they looked as if they had just sprung into existence in their current form.

No way… it can’t… she couldn’t have. My mind was spinning at the scope of what I was seeing. The more I looked around the more the pieces clicked together. The hard ground, the road marker, the trees that seemed too new. I had found the road. Somehow that girl had regrown the forest and the road was just gone. The scale of what I was seeing bordered even more on the impossible than what we had seen so far.

This- this is just too much. How in all the hells are we supposed to deal with someone who has the ability to do something like this. For the love of the gods she somehow turned an entire road into a brand new forest! I don’t think we have any chance of actually defeating her if she really turns out to be hostile. With magic as powerful as she has displayed it would be a rough task and likely an impossible one at our levels. I will have to let Lilly know about this but I think I will save the specifics for later once we get a clearer picture of what’s going on.

Thoughts and possibilities clashed within me as I made my way slowly back to camp. “How did the scouting go?” Asked Adam as I entered our small circle of firelight. “Fine. Found the road, and a bit of her trail. Don’t worry I didn’t follow it long. I just wanted to make sure she wasn’t still hanging around too close.” I reply, cutting off the chastisement I could see about to come from Lilly. “I’ll give you all the details in the morning.” I say curtly before heading over to an area of flat ground and getting out my bedroll.

Quickly getting ready for sleep I lay down and faced away from the light of the fire. Though I was tired and desperately wanted to escape the craziness of this expedition for the peace of sleep, it eluded me until deep into the night.

[Adam POV]

Clang! Tap, tap, tap. Clang! Tap, tap, tap. Clang!

“Uuuhg! Who the hell is making all that racket?” I mumble as several loud clangs and a series of faint metallic taps drag me out of sleep. Rubbing the grit from my eyes and sitting up I searched for the source of the unwelcome sounds. Sitting a couple feet away from me in the early morning sunlight was a large squirrel. As I watched it raised an acorn in its paws and brought it down with another loud clang on my helmet.

“Oi! What do ya think your doin?” I shout at the furry intruder. The squirrel stopped trying to crack open the nut for a moment to stare directly at me. There was silence as we both stared at each other then without breaking eye contact it brought the acorn down with another resounding clang. “You little shit! I’ll skin you alive!” I shout lunging at the thing. It jumped back easily avoiding my grasping hands and let out a long high-pitched hiss.

Before I could react the squirrel darted back in to bash the acorn once more against my helmet. Clang! “That’s it! When I catch you, I’m going to make you into a stew and wear your skin as a hat!” I shout lunging once more at the infernal beast. Dodging me once more the squirrel chittered and hissed before picking a long glittering white object off the ground and scampering away. “Oh no you don’t! you won’t be getting away that easily!” I shout as I gave chase.

The two of us raced around the clearing before it managed to escape by crawling up a very surprised Lilly’s leg and perching on her shoulder. With the squirrel being as large as it was the sight was quite the strange one. “Well now, what’s going on here?” Lilly asked trying to suppress a chuckle as the squirrel hissed at me once more from its new perch. “That little shit woke me up by bashing its stupid nuts against my helmet.” I seethed while glaring at the offending animal.

I don’t think I have ever seen a squirrel do the innocent pleading eyes shtick before but this one sure gave it a go as it chittered softly in Lilly’s ear. She cocked her head to listen and burst out laughing. “She- she wants me to protect her from the big scary man who want’s to turn her into a hat.” Lilly gasps out between chuckles. “Don’t worry friend I’ll keep you safe from the scary man. Nobody will turn you into a hat.” She continued, now speaking to the squirrel. When Lilly turned back to look at me letting out another chuckle the squirrel gave me a look that could only be interpreted as smug.

Oh just you wait. I’ll get a hat out of you yet. You may have mommy druid’s protection for now but that won’t last forever. I seethed internally while glaring at my tormentor.

“So what brings you to our camp little one?” Lilly asks the beast. “Oh you brought me a gift did you?” She replies to a series of small squeaks. I watch as the squirrel drops the long pearly white object into Lilly’s hand. “Now this is quite curious. Where ever did you come across such a thing?” She asked while closely inspecting the object. At the squirrel’s reply Lilly instantly stiffened and her face went pale.

Seeing Lilly’s reaction all of my senses go to high alert. “Lilly what did it-“ my question is cut off when Lilly raises a hand motioning for me to be quiet as she enter into a rapid exchange with the squirrel in druidic. By the end of the exchange Lilly looks severely shaken. Turning to me she orders, “Gather the others. Do nothing else. Touch nothing, make sure they touch nothing. Do it now.” Her voice is low and clipped leaving no room for argument.

What in the hells is going on here? What could shake Lilly this badly? I ask myself a long list of questions as I hurry to do as I was told. In short order I am standing once more in front of Lilly with Mya and Will beside me. “So are you going to explain what’s so important and why you are acting so strangely?” Will asks. “We are in a lot more danger here than even I expected.” Lilly replies, causing the rest of us to share confused and worried glances with each other. “The girl we have been chasing is not some mage. She- she is a guardian.” At this Will goes pale and Mya gives me a confused glance.

“Umm would either of you care to share what a guardian actually is?” I ask, looking between Lilly and my brother. “Guardians are like nature’s ultimate defense mechanism. They show up whenever there becomes a large imbalance in the natural order.” Will answers softly. “Umm okay. That sounds a little concerning but I think I am still missing something.” I reply. “They share a deep connection to whatever area they appear in and are driven to protect it and fix the balance at any cost. Anything they see as a threat to that balance they either fix or remove.” Lilly replies.

As I try to wrap my head around the new information Mya asks a question of her own. “I’m sorry but I still don’t get it. Why would we be in danger? Have we caused any imbalances?” “Us maybe not. I have been doing my best to balance out anything we may have done so far.” Lilly replies before continuing, “What the two of you need to understand is the first law of nature, everything has a price. When you take something from nature it comes with a cost. That cost can vary depending on what you take and if you don’t pay then an imbalance is created.”

“So if we are careful and try not to take too much without somehow giving back we should be fine right?” I ask. The explanation while a little confusing doesn’t seem like it would be that big of a deal. Lilly however shook her head. “Not quite. While we may not be directly responsible for a lot of the harm that has been done to this forest the guardian still considers us to be outsiders.” “Okay and that matters why?” I ask, starting to feel a little stupid.

“Do you have any idea how much has been taken from this forest?” Will asks. There is a brief pause before he continues, “Trees, animals and plants have all been taken or slaughtered with no regard to the price. There was a road that cut through the forest and I can say with certainty that no price was adequately paid for the amount of damage that caused. If the guardian considers us to be outsiders then she is putting us in the same group that committed those crimes. Do you see now how much danger we are in?”

See it I could. The more I reflected on the things that had been done to this forest the tighter the cold fist of fear clenched around my insides. As I mulled over the consequences of the new information Mya asked a question about something that I had missed. “What do you mean there was a road?” “It’s gone.” Lilly and Will answer in unison. The two share a quick glance before Will explains further, “That massive spatial disturbance we saw; that was the guardian fixing the road. She was able to completely regrow all of the trees that had been cut down. The road no longer exists.”

H- how? How is it possible for someone to do something like that? How will we even get out of this forest alive if someone that powerful considers us to be an enemy? Thoughts like this swirl around my mind driving out nearly all other thought until Lilly breaks the silence.

“With this new information our mission has become more important than ever. With a guardian that is able to cause changes on the level we have already seen we must find a way to make peace with her. If we fail she may very well destroy Greenwood Village and any other town or city she perceives as a threat to the forest.”

“How exactly do you expect us to be able to do something like that?” I ask incredulously. How could Lilly expect us to continue to chase after someone who clearly had the power to mop the floor with our corpses? “Before I fell unconscious when we first attempted to catch her the guardian gave me a message. She said that if we wanted to have a peaceful meeting then we would have to prove ourselves worthy. I believe that if we are able to do something that helps the forest then she will be more willing to meat with us.” Lilly answers.

“Okay but what is there that we could do to prove ourselves and even if we manage to do that how will we be able to find the guardian again? I lost her trail and I know that you aren’t able to track her through the trees.” Will asks. “As to the latter it will be simple. I have this.” Lilly replies holding out the object the squirrel gave her.

“Umm what is it exactly?” Mya asked, looking closely at it. “This is a spike created out of pure mana. Our little friend here said it was a gift from the guardian. Though that may be true I think that it also represents a threat. If we fail to prove ourselves then she will likely kill us. With this I can track her mana signature and find her anywhere.” Lilly answered before putting the spike away.

Her answer unsettled me as it basically confirmed what I had been fearing. “We may be able to find her but how can we prove ourselves as friendlies?” I ask, knowing that I wouldn’t like the answer.

“Within our capabilities there is only one thing I can think of. We are going to have to visit The Graveyard of the Lost.”

[Mya POV]

This trip was turning out to be far more than I had bargained for. The information shared by Will and Lilly had given me a whole new perspective on everything and set me on edge. I had never before considered what they described in the laws of nature. After hearing about it I started to see natural environments as more than just resources. They were like communities. Each had its own residents and resources. I felt guilty that I had taken things and participated in the killing of animals for nothing more than gaining levels.

My new perspective was making me reevaluate a lot of the actions that I had taken up to this point and I was even starting to question parts of my faith. The latter was hard to consider but I was putting most of those questions off until a later time. For now most of my focus was on the location we were currently approaching.

Several days ago Lilly had told us that we would be going to a place called The Graveyard of the Lost. Apparently it was the remains of an old village where a massacre had taken place. All of the inhabitants had been slain and now it was filled with restless spirits. Rumors and legends said that those who got lost in the forest would end up there to wander eternally, never able to find their way out.

While the thought of confronting and attempting to banish a large number of spirits was unsettling it was something that I had done in the past. My magic was particularly good at the task and my connection to Radiance should help with the task. I stopped going over different plans that could work as the scenery around us changed.

A light fog sprang into existence and the temperature dropped. Even though it was barely past midday the sun seemed to fade, plunging the world into dull shades of grey. “We’re here. Everybody be on guard. Do not wander away from the group and if you see something speak up.” Lilly whispered.

As we delved deeper into the mist the light faded further until it seemed that all color had been leached from the world. Pushing deeper we started to see the first signs of the village that had once been here. There were shattered foundations, the remains of walls, and burnt charred husks of buildings. The style was something that I had never seen before. The buildings had once been short round things that almost seemed to have been grown or crafted out of living trees. Seeing the way that they wove together was quite interesting.

Despite the fascinating new buildings, a vague sense of wrongness pervaded the area. It was like time had stopped in this place on the night of the massacre. Things still seemed fresh despite the time that had passed. Fighting back the feeling of wrongness I pushed on, following the group towards what we believed to be the center of the village.

As we got closer a faint melody could be heard drifting through the mist. It was faint and beautiful. The notes seemed familiar and yet completely new at the same time. There didn’t seem to be any cohesive song to it but rather it just wandered.

We all tensed at the sound each preparing in our own way for a fight that might start at any moment. I had blessed everyone’s weapons with my holy magic earlier and I started to ready my own spells as we drew closer to the source of the melody.

The mist suddenly cleared and a short ghostly figure was revealed. Her form was translucent and she appeared to be young. What was surprising was the fact that she had a long furry tail and two pointed ears atop her head. There hadn’t been a beast kin seen in hundreds of years and to see the spirit of one in a place like this I got a good picture of why that was.

As we approached the spirit she stopped humming her song and turned to look at us with a slightly displeased expression. “You are not welcome here outsiders.” Her voice is low and icy and as she speaks more spirits begin to condense out of the mist surrounding us. First five, then a dozen, then dozens of them fade into existence. “You have entered the realm of the lost. We cannot let you leave.”