“Fairies are rarely solemn. The only known exception happening regularly is when they make a deal. In that particular situation they become the most pedantic creatures, even more than an Aldrastian lawyer. Such things are never written, but they couldn’t be any more real.

Never break one. Believe me, you’ll regret it. I’ve seen it happening.”

-“Deal with fairies, Volume one” From Paladin Ela.

Nashariel pov

Nashariel stumbled a few times but managed to break into a run.

Around her, the mist was quickly evaporating thanks to the missing Core. That left only the angry Banshee to deal with, a task that seemed much simpler than it should have been.

The dragoness grunted. I didn’t manage to identify her in time, but she should be no less strong than that… thing, Core aside. Secondary mind, how long did we fight the Dracolich for?

/Approximately ten to fifteen minutes, but we rested a minute or two after we dealt with it/

Nashariel’s guts twisted. Too long! She would’ve liked to shift into Lightning, but [Radiant sight]’s active part worked only during this form. She had tried.

And it didn’t help that the power was out of the village, deep into the woods. I saw her die right at the fountain, why is her place that far!?

/Perhaps it was the location she was most attached to?/

Nashariel wanted to smack herself in the face. I must calm down, I can’t even reason anymore.

Undead were the most common enemy a Templar had to face, so obviously, Nashariel had studied everything she was allowed to. Which wasn’t much, given her recruit status, but, ironically, the books regarding some of her past lives had helped in this regard.

She didn't want to think that one of such lives had led to the creation of no less than four new types of undead chimeras, and that she (he at the time) had unleashed them at a city in a bout of anger.

Definitely not a topic that her team would ever hear from her lips.

A faint wail resounded in the dragoness’ ears. It seemed… doubled?

This is… Veliel’s screech! If she’s still fighting…Nashariel shifted into Lightning, as she didn’t need a special sense anymore, then shot in that direction.

When Nashariel arrived, she saw her human friends on the ground, staring emptily at the void. They still breathed, but their souls were in dire need of healing and rest. Veliel was holding on, even her she was bleeding from her mouth and ears.

The Banshee looked more or less as Nashariel left her, save for some of her brilliance lost. She smirked cruelly at the priestess.

*Phantom/Torment/Sound-Fairy twisted Banshee Lvl 200 *

Nashariel quickly identified her, without bothering to read the description. She already knew about the weak and strong points of the powerful specter and, judging by the state of her friends, she was… toying with them.

That alone made the dragoness see red.

Putting every semblance of honor aside, Nashariel shifted into Radiance and angrily spit the golden beam. Not a river, her friends were too close.

Something warned the Banshee. She turned toward the attack, widening her eyes before getting seared.

Her wail was music for Nashariel’s ears.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t enough to get rid of such a powerful monster. She reappeared close by, glaring at her. Disgust, shock, and anger were equally shooting out of her eyes. “YOU! How dare you still be living!?"

Nashariel ignored her, stomping in front of Veliel. The siren’s relief was palpable. “Thank Astill… you’re here…” She whispered before fainting.

The omnidragon commanded her other mind to buy [Medical eye] and use it on her protégés. She bought time, hiding her wrath. "I have tough scales. Nothing that some bones and mist can get through."

The spirit hissed, the sound killing off some nearby grass. “Then I’ll have the pleasure of personally ripping them out of you!”

/They’re alive, but… we need help. Not too urgent. The skill’s too weak to be more precise/

Nashariel’s legs almost buckled with relief. Now I only need to bring the fight away from here. “Do you really want me to destroy this place too?” She taunted, golden sparks seeping through her half-closed mouth.

The Banshee looked around her in a panic, especially at a small shrine filled with dead flowers. The dragoness had noticed that, despite the fight, it was strangely untouched. She turned towards Nashariel, pure hate twisting her face. Without a word, she vanished.

The Radiant dragoness felt her presence not too far. She instantly switched to Light, fueling her healing breath with vitality. The ground below her resurged to light, and Veliel woke up with a sharp intake of her breath. The earth just below the group still shone with loving luminescence. “Go back to the village. I’ll deal with the Banshee.” Nashariel commanded, her tone not allowing a reply.

The priestess nodded. She picked up her human companions, slowly and wobbly flying away. Some motes of light on the ground followed her, making Veliel appear as some sort of giant firefly.

Nashariel hated to put the siren under another strain like this, but staying in range of her new breath attack was a much worse alternative, even while not considering the Banshee’s cries themselves.

The omnidragon soaked in the aftermath of her skill, then walked towards the power. Now it’s you and me, Dahlia. A whiff of angry light came out of her nostrils, feeding the one on the ground.

The once-druid floated on top of a hill, in front of a large burned tree. She was caressing what was left of the trunk, which was marred by countless inscribing. At a closer look, Nashariel read a bunch of names written within circles or hearts. The dragoness managed to read the name ‘Thal and Aila’.

“We used to write the names of couples here.” She smiled sadly. “A stupid, childish tradition, I know. They would marry at the shrine, and then would come to this tree, inscribing their vows under the names. Once they passed on, everything would vanish, like if they had never been…” She longingly caressed one of the circles. It read ‘Dahlia and Delmar’. The names, circles, and vows were all clearly an illusion, as they vanished a few moments after Nashariel carefully looked at them. “You brought him away from me, Dragon. Your kind took away everything from me… all for your FAULT!!!” The Banshee cried, killing the remainder of the tree.

Despite her anger, Nashariel felt a pang in her chest. She didn’t know if it was an effect of the cry of a Banshee or actual empathy, but her thoughts went to her friends. She sighed. “I can’t control other dragons! Stop saying that it’s my fault!” Nashariel set herself in a combat stance, shifting to Radiance. She wasn’t at full health yet, but that had to do. The talks are over.

The remnant of what once was Dahlia turned. She let out a wicked smile. “Oh, I won’t kill you, you won’t be that lucky. I will keep you trapped like my people, and let you watch your companions experiencing all we went through, again and again. I enjoyed toying with them, you know? They asked where were you, and it was so-”

She didn’t get to finish the phrase. Nashariel was already trying to bite her face off.

The Banshee vanished, cackling. Nashariel’s jaws closed on nothing but air. “Oh, how long they’ll remember.” A boundless voice taunted from around her. “Oh, how long they’ll suffer!”

"Stop wasting both our time and show yourself!" Nashariel shouted.

“And, best of all…” The Banshee reappeared in front of Nashariel. “… It’ll all be because of YOU!!!” The last word was imbued with power.

Nashariel felt the sound drifting deep inside her soul, much like the Core did to her. Unlike the construct, this attack didn’t awaken bad memories, it only amplified her guilt about everything in her life. Gritting her teeth, the omnidragon powered her [Radiant aura], suppressing the effect almost instantly.

The spirit recoiled with a brief scream, vanishing once again.

The omnidragon roared deeply. She powered her Sight, tracking down the Banshee thanks to her inner corruption. The moment she solidified, Nashariel readily welcomed her with a breath attack.

Dahlia, in response, wailed her pain. Her agony solidified as a black wave of Torment, clashing with the golden light coming out from Nashariel’s maws.

The dragoness intensified her attack. After a brief clash of might, she won, but Dahlia had already vanished into the night.

I can see why they lost. Thought Nashariel bitterly. Catching a ghost that could vanish at will was no easy task and one much above their level? Impossible.

But she was a patient hunter.

Nashariel stopped her skills, save for her Sight, limiting most of her mana usage. Hers was a cold fury, simmering within her heart. “Is this how you avenge your people? Hiding in the shadows?” She taunted. The girl had no idea of how much mana the other possessed, but knew her limits very well. She didn’t enjoy unlimited resources.

As expected, the Banshee angrily shouted from her incorporeal form. As soon as she reappeared, Nashariel slashed her Radiance-infused claws at her, but the spirit ignored the hit. More accurately, she welcomed the strike, wailing in a different tone, one that didn’t damage Nashariel.

From below and around them, a bustling crowd of people appeared. They all vacantly stared at nothing but, as soon as they noticed Nashariel, they shouted in anger. From empty air, a multitude of weapons appeared in their hands, from pitchforks to bows, and they started hurling those at Nashariel.

The omnidragon ignored them and kept mauling the summoner. She managed to get in two more slashes before Dahlia turned immaterial once more.

The specter reappeared above the crowd. [Come, my brothers and sisters! Let’s get our vengeance, together!] She shouted, earning a chorus of approval from her followers.

Nashariel charged her breath, fueling it with a few points of Shine. She lowered her head to the ground, unleashing her attack sweeping from left to right. All the spirits but the Banshee herself vanished into ethereal dust.

Dahlia broke down in tears. “WHY DO YOU KEEP KILLING US?!” She screamed. The volume formed visible cracks all around the two of them. Before Nashariel could react, they shattered all at once, amplifying the scream tenfold.

Suddenly, all that investment in awareness didn’t seem like a good idea.

The omnidragon’s ears and eyes started bleeding. She instinctually covered her head, crashing down with her chest. Anything gone for good?

/No, primary- Watch out!/

The Banshee formed a dark sphere in her hands, throwing it in Nashariel’s direction. It crackled with Torment.

Thanks to her other mind’s warning, the dragoness rolled to the side, avoiding the projectile. Proving her agility, Nashariel used the momentum to stand up once more. The sphere exploded where she had just laid a moment before, wilting the ground even further.

The other desperately casted spell after spell, throwing precision out of the window. “Why won’t you die!?”

Kept in check by the sudden barrage, Nashariel couldn’t retaliate. Until she remembered the Dracolich. Maybe…? Soul damage was tricky, but she had resisted against the fog, so…

The omnidragon planted her feet on the ground, then sprinted ahead. The closer the next four spells were, the faster her heart beat.

The moment a sphere made contact against her scales, a familiar agony followed.

But not enough to stop her.

Nashariel powered both her auras and summoned her Armor, not thrusting the delay of her breath weapon. Finally, she grasped the stunned Banshee among her claws.

Embraced by Radiance, the specter howled her pain. The howl was abruptly ended by Nashariel’s jaws. The Banshee dematerialized instantly.

And a few seconds later, she reappeared close by. “How…”

Nashariel gave her no quarter.

Replaying every phrase that the woman had thrown at her, she slashed and punched, uncaring about the deep gashes she left on the ground and Dahlia’s agony.

A moment later, the Banshee jumped much further, right in the direction of the shrine. She jumped and jumped… “Not… here… no…” She murmured.

Nashariel dashed behind.

When she arrived, she saw the specter staring at the shrine, whose flowers had beautifully blossomed again thanks to Nashariel’s light. Tears flowed down her eyes, for once without expelling wave after wave of Torment.

The heavy steps of the dragoness startled her out of her stupor. “It’s over.” Nashariel snarled.

The other let out a sad smile, looking at her arm. She couldn’t completely materialize it anymore, and the rest of her body came and went every second, streaks of gold fighting back her inner darkness. “I… see.” She said. “Forgive me for not avenging you…” she whispered, right before a luminescent wave of gold invested her waning self.

The ring in Nashariel’s ear sealed the deal.

The dragoness sprawled on the ground, mutely screaming and flailing in agony. This time, tanking the hits had not been the brightest idea. Even powering [Radiant aura] did little to relieve her.

/You endured a circle of Torment in your Curse form/ Noted the secondary mind.

Just thinking about that intensified the pain. Still, Nashariel followed the suggestion. As the last time, the pain diminished considerably.

She felt her [Body of the cursed dragon] slowly but eagerly eating up the foreign energy. Please, don’t tell me that I need another round in that chamber…

*Hp: 3.289/14.000

You are no longer cursed with Banshee’s cry. *

Nashariel’s eyes widened at her health points. This close?! Holy… fuck! The girl took in a deep breath. She couldn’t feel the Torment doing work inside her anymore, so she shifted to Light and started healing herself.

The Astillian forced the blocks of ice her legs felt like to move, despite the wave of tiredness that hit her. They’re waiting for me…

Step after step, she walked towards the village, accompanied only by the warmth of her aura, and the sound of the crumbling shrine.

Once at the village's walls, Nashariel was in good health, physically speaking. Soul damage needed a long time and care to heal, hopefully, coupled with a powerful soul healer. Which, unfortunately, she was not.

The dragoness sniffed the area, following the trail left behind by Veliel’s flight. Nashariel hoped that the heavy cargo hadn’t weakened the priestess too much.

She saw her friends lying in the plaza, immobile.

Nashariel darted towards them, ignoring the crumbling buildings around her. [Medical eye] saw nothing wrong with their bodies, but their souls… the Angel of Death was probably this much distant from bringing them in front of Astill.

The dragoness turned dragokin. She shifted into Light and powered all her skills to help them. Then returned to Radiance, using for the first time [Radiant light].

The last skill helped a great deal, as the lasting curse in their body was greatly weakened. They didn’t get worse, but they didn’t improve either.

Nashariel dropped to her back, staring at her helpless friends. What do I do… this is Hospital work, I can’t carry them by myself there!

The temperature dropped.

Nashariel snapped to attention, focusing on the fountain.

Above it, the same fae she met the night before observed her. “You all survived. We are impressed.” She said, cocking her head. Then she clapped her hands twice. The movement seemed uncertain, as if unsure about what she was doing. “Congratulations are in order, Empress. You won a hard game.”

Nashariel grunted. “My friends are dying, fae. Forgive me if I’m not in a festive mood.”

The Omen of Winter appeared near her, too quickly to be perceived, even by her. She bent on the closest Astillian, Dan, who seemed to sob in his sleep. That done, the fae did the same for Nashariel.

She fidgeted under the unblinking eyes of the powerful being.

After a few seconds, the fairy stood upright again. “I see, Banshee’s cry.” She announced. “You all have been cursed, but your soul is strong, Empress of the many lives. Theirs have not been tempered by the ages…”

“I used a skill made to free them from curses. How are they still under its effects?”

“We fear that a Banshee’s lament requires a proper treatment… or a blessing of equal power.”

The last sentence tipped Nashariel. “What do you mean with that?”

The Omen waved a hand, forming a rough map of half the forest with snow. “Centuries ago, both the Orders of the Winged Sisters helped our home against a great corruption coming from below. Sometimes, this evil ran so deep that the roots of the cities drank from it. We remember their fall… we remember our children’s heat going lost, devoured by the black mud…” The spirit paused for a moment. “One day, a powerful Paladin arrived. In a single strike, he summoned the true wrath of the Flaming angel.” A large part of the map turned golden. “What once was corrupted turned into hallowed ground… and it still is.”

Nashariel’s eyes glinted with understanding. Such power… must have been the Grand Paladin himself. Was he alive even back then? Vitality and Light affinity surely help with longevity. “So that means…”

“The waters of Lake Valkania are said to be able to heal most curses, Empress, among having great healing properties.” The map vanished in a howl of wind.

Nashariel grabbed her artifact, opening it. She searched for the lake in question.

The fae curiously examined her map. “A precious artifact.”

“The druid of a village we helped gifted it to us as a thank you.” She mumbled in response. I wonder how Phillia is doing. Astill, if we didn’t accept the Quest in time… Nashariel shuddered at the thought.

She found the place. And deflated.

The lake was distant a month on foot or so from the Valkanian border, which was exactly the opposite place from their destination. Suffice to say, it was also a few months distant from here.

Nashariel noticed that, ironically, this was the village they had planned to stay in if the city rejected them. What a joke…She punched the ground in frustration.

“Is something the matter, Empress?”

“They won’t make it! I can’t keep them safe for months by myself, and the curse will kill them on the way!”

The fae observed her, the map, and her friends. She nodded. “We think that the curse will kill the humans within a week, and your siren in double that.” Turning towards Nashariel, her eyes glinted in such a way that made Nashariel shudder. “Perhaps you wish to… strike a Deal with us?”

All the alarm bells went off in Nashariel’s mind. Deals with fairies often ended poorly. For the non-fairy, of course. “Fae, I… I’m not sure.”

The Omen cocked her head. “We can bring you there, in the same time of a heartbeat. If in this life you call them friends instead of servants, perhaps listening should be in order?”

/This is a bad idea, primary mind/

You’re absolutely right; we shouldn’t even listen to her. “What do you propose, Omen of Winter?”

/Duck/

Yep, she’s totally going to become sentient. In her heart, Nashariel knew she wasn’t going to deny the fae. Perhaps this was why she felt more relaxed.

[The terms we propose are as follows:

We shall grant you and your allies a single passage from our Shortcuts to Lake Valkania, in which you all will benefit from its blessed waters.

Your stay will also be ensured for as long as you need or wish.

We shall task some of our children to escort you in Valkas or Varastill, at your choosing.]

She paused for a moment, letting her words sink in.

[You, the Empress of many lives, shall repay us as follows:

You shall hunt monsters too powerful for our children to face without losing their lives, but within your limits, without asking for anything in return.

You shall freely provide and teach the healing arts to those who ask that of you at the best of your abilities, and you’ll make a substantial effort to unlock more skills for that purpose.

You’ll share with us your Status with complete and utter sincerity. As the token of gratitude that we have promised during our first meeting, we shall help your development.

Finally, you will be unable to leave our Mother’s hunting grounds.

The entirety of this Deal between the both of us will be fulfilled upon Spring's Equinox, unless both of us agree otherwise.

Do you accept these terms?]

Nashariel shifted into her Mind affinity, letting both her superior brains work out the fine prints. There didn’t seem to be any.

“What do you consider within my limits?”

“We saw the ease with which you destroyed the puppet and the maddened child. Expect a similar level.”

Oof. “Three months… it’s a long time.”

“We believe that strangers would have waited out Winter, instead of going through its jaws. We ask you no more than that.”

Fair enough. Nashariel was unable to find any other controversial point. Well, aside from slaving away for a fae for a few months. Shifting back to her metallic self, she sighed. “I accept, Omen of Winter.”

The fae’s eyes shone for a moment. [The deal is struck, then.]

Nashariel felt an icy circle settling on her wrist and around her heart. Nothing appeared to the naked eye, but the sensation remained.

The fae extended her hand toward the Astillians. A wave of power rippled through reality, unfolding as if the scenery of the other side had always been there.

From the portal, Nashariel could hear waves crashing against the shore. For a second, she asked herself if the fairy hadn't changed her mind and brought them directly home. The dragokin didn't smell any salt in the air, though. “Space magic?”

“No, Empress. We fairies are older than most trees, and we know the Shortcuts between places. The world simply reveals them to us.” The Omen replied. The cold beneath her feet quickly expanded, wrapping both the ground and the ruins under its embrace. “After you. We need to do one last thing.”

Swiftly taking the invitation, Nashariel grabbed her friends, two in her arms and one with her flexible tail, and went to the other side.

Turning toward the village, she saw ice as far as her sight could go. A moment later, it all shattered into a storm of icy dust, leaving only bare dirt instead of houses.

The sight reminded Nashariel just what power she was messing with.

The Omen followed on this side, gesturing toward the waters. “That is the blessed lake. While you heal, we shall talk with the child guiding this place.” She assumed the form of a naked elven woman, perfect in every detail, if not for her pale-blue skin color. And the frozen ground beneath her steps.

Nashariel noticed that the fairy, now that she had a humanoid body, looked… sad.

She calmly marched towards a tree as tall as the Willow, but larger and in the form of an oak.

Nashariel examined the waters, easily detecting a massive source of Radiance attunement within and below. She gently submerged herself and her team in the lake, stopping at the chin.

Finally relaxing, the dragokin looked at the stars, lost in thought.

Meanwhile, she felt the waters washing away a stain from her soul, letting her inspire deeply. Similarly, her friends stopped fidgeting in their sleep.

This was the only way, right?

/It was/

Then so be it.