Chapter 15

Avenging Forest Spirit

Telka had long been brought up on the stories of the ancients, of where her people came from. She was an Elf of the Great Forest that had once been the home to their ancestors long ago. She grew up on stories of how her people were once blessed by the Great Forest Spirit, how her ancestors were able to go out to the world spreading peace and knowledge wherever they went. Life had been good until the Great Forest Spirit abandoned the world.

Telka’s family had been one of the many Elven establishments that were set up at the far reaches of the world. Then when the power of the Great Forest Spirit left her people, her family went from prominent protectors of the Realm to outcasts in moments. The members of the different races did not appreciate how they had been treated during their occupancy. While the High Wood Elves originally came to remove the blight from the land and face off tyrannical dictators, those who remained soon filled the role of dictators that they once opposed. Looking back, it was no wonder that her people had been abandoned by the Great Forest Spirit. They had broken their vows. Worse, they had made many curse the Great Forest Spirit around the world rather than sing of his praises.

Soon Telka’s family was left with nothing, as the generations after the great explorers never practiced the ways of fighting. They always had the magic of the Great Forest Spirit to call upon. Desperate for a new start, her family, like many others, began the great pilgrimage back to their home lands. Back to where the Great Forest where the remnants of the Great Forest Spirit were said to still reside.

She had thought the entire trip was a waste, but what was she to do. She could either stay and be an outcast who had generations of anger sprayed at her daily or go with her family to find a mystical deity who had already abandoned her people once. There were many hardships along the way. Most died on the trip across the great ocean. Others chose to wait and rest upon making landfall, yet her family drove on.

They passed through human and beastkin cities alike, going through territory once considered conquered by her ancestors, only to find that anywhere her family went, they were met with scorn and derision. In the end, they had to give up on their old ways and forge a new way ahead.

Then her family met Jarilos’ camp. They were captured and taken in by the Azani outcast. Even in the old days, the Azani were considered to be one of the greatest rivals one could face. Now without the blessing of the Great Forest Spirit against a powerful Azani shaman, they didn’t stand a chance. One by one, Jarilos’ tribe sold Telka’s family. Her mother was sold first, followed by her sister, then her brother. She lost track of the cities they were in when each was lost. She was in a new land with different languages, and she only spoke the old tongue and the Kylon language, the language of where she was born, so she had no way of knowing where she was at any given time nor where she would go to next.

Greasy people had clamored for her, but each time they were rebuked. It was clear that Jarilos had big plans for her. While he would entertain the idea of selling her, each time he was close, he would hear value, think on it, then shake his head no. Each time Jarilos denied her sale, she wondered just what he had planned for her. But she could never ask.

After a few weeks of captivity, she only understood a few of the Azani words like; eat, drink, and of course, the word that sent shivers of revulsion down her spine Jarilos.

The bandits would encounter groups of traveling merchants and caravans along the way. If the caravan was unlucky and had women who openly walked within view of Jarilos’ men, they would be attacked. Especially if a pretty enough female caught any of the men’s eyes. That was how Jarilos kept refilling his stocks of food and supplies of slaves to be sold. As an Azani shaman, he knew the ancient binding ways, ones where the power of the captive could be used to channel energy into Jarilos. Each time Jarilos would direct his men to attack a caravan, he would call forth magic from the skies that would smite his enemies. Each time he attacked, Telka would feel a slow, gradual wave of exhaustion overtake her.

While Telka didn’t know it at the time, it was the fact that Jarilos used Telka like a magical battery that saved her from the life many members of her family now suffered. Jarilos realized early on that the magical reserves within Telka were beyond comparison. To make matters even better, for Jarilos, it seemed she never learned how to access her magical potential, meaning she was defenseless against his attacks. That was the true reason Jarilos kept her of all the members of her family.

She was beautiful. That much could not be denied with her long blonde hair and emerald green eyes. Even her lightly tanned skin gave her an exotic look compared to other Wood Elves of the lands. This was why Jarilos was often asked about her price but would always turn down the offer. To get rid of Telka would be the same as cutting his reserves of energy in half, if not more. He kept Telka as a security blanket in case his troops ever decided to stage a coup against him. Jarilos learned from his own succession to power that those who lead a bandit camp lead by power, the moment his subordinates tasted weakness, they would be drawn in replace him like sharks to blood in the water.

Thus Telka accepted her fate, that she would die at the machinations of Jarilos. She knew she would eventually be sold off to some horrible Master, forced to do depraved acts, never knowing the grace of the Great Forest Spirit nor the loving embrace of her family. Despite her resignation, she still prayed to the Great Forest Spirit. Each night she would pray to the being that had abandoned her ancestors so many years ago.

Then as if to mock her prayers, Jarilos began going to and through the Great Forest. Here other Wood Elves were caught and captured. The males were cut down, while the women were enslaved. Each day that passed in the Great Forest, she could feel the slight pull of magic on her. It was faint, as if a small spirit had just poked her to see if she was real and then vanished before she could fully understand what was happening. That feeling was her one and only true time feeling the Great Forest Spirit, that much she was sure of. She had never felt the touch of the Great Forest Spirit before, but its warmth and presence were unmistakable. Feeling that presence touch her even once filled her with hope.

While others might have been distraught from the one-time touch and then abandonment of the Great Forest Spirit, Telka’s faith had been fully renewed. She began to pray harder, hoping with all her might that the Great Forest Spirit would come, that it would listen to her prayers. Weeks went by, but what were weeks to a nearly immortal being.

Just when she was close to giving up all hope, chalking up her visit by the Great Forest Spirit as nothing more than a flight of fantasy brought on by a mind near the brink of delirium, she heard it.

Shouting.

Everyone in the cage turned toward the large cliff that they were near. There were cries of distress throughout the camp.

Whisper.

Many of the captured women began talking excitedly. Telka tried to talk to the other Wood Elf, but it seemed she either spoke a different dialect or refused to speak to Telka. Either way was fine as she wasn’t here to make friends. She was here to once again forge a bond with the Great Forest Spirit and hopefully be able to free her family. She didn’t need anyone else. At least, that was what she told herself. These were her thoughts of resolve until she saw him.

The male glowed with the power of the Great Forest Spirit. That much was readily apparent to Telka’s eyes. Telka had long since been blessed to see the magic in others. That was part of why she had begged her family to surrender to Jarilos, as his power was supreme, and there was nothing they could do against him.

Thunk thunk.

“Oh.”

Some sounds are universal, the sound of awe and amazement being one of them. Everyone in the cage looked up as they heard the landing of feet above. Only to find the cage lurch from a sudden shock of impact as the warrior jumped down.

That was where she saw the blade. It was a sacred Spirit Blade that was only given out to those most worthy of bearing the mark of the Great Forest Spirit. The man was a blur of violence and fury. Guards who had tormented and groped at Telka fell one by one like marionettes with their strings cut. Blood sprayed everywhere, washing the ground like an impromptu rainstorm. It was gruesome, yet Telka couldn’t turn away. Not because she was somehow excited by the carnage around her, far from it, actually. No, she watched because she knew what this moment was. She had prayed for a miracle. After months of captivity, her prayers had been answered, and she had been found worthy. The Great Forest Spirit had tested her and found her prayers and sacrifice to be enough.

That was why she watched the man who glowed with the markings of the Great Forest Spirit tear through the bandit camp. This was a blessing from the Great Forest Spirit made flesh. Then her heart stopped as she saw Jarilos. She knew that even the best High Wood Elves had a hard time against the Azani. Had this been later, had he managed to arrive while Jarilos was asleep, then he might have had a chance. But right now, he was but one man against dozens.

Shouting.

Jarilos shouted, and all the men backed off as the trained warriors they were.

Thwoosh.

Jarilos called forth a torrent of electricity from the sky and hurled it right toward the lone warrior the Great Forest Spirit had sent. A chill ran down Telka’s spine. She wanted to look away, especially as she felt the slight wave of exhaustion begin to take her, the same way that always happened when Jarilos cast his spells. Still, Telka fought on through the exhaustion and fear. This was her blessing, she had prayed diligently for this one moment, and she would watch the culmination of her faith.

Then just as she had hoped, her faith was once again rewarded. Rather than being eviscerated by the blast, the arc of electricity forked into two streams and began tearing through the men who stood and watched the display.

The man, Telka’s savior, never moved. He just stayed there, though it was clear that he was somehow manipulating Jarilos’ attack to be used to wipe out his own forces.

Jarilos stopped and stared at the carnage that his spell had wrought on his own men. It was one thing to see the effects of a bolt of lightning tearing through an enemy encampment, quite another thing to see it on your own troops.

The warrior used the moment of confusion to his benefit. Telka missed the second he began to move as she too looked at the devastation around the camp from that one spell. She looked back just in time to see the great Spirit Blade slice through Jarilos, separating his head from his body.

What happened next could only be described as a slaughter as the vengeful Forest Spirit made corporeal chased down and slaughtered every member of the camp. He moved like lightning. Even the tales of warriors long since past failed to explain his grace and fluid attacks he was able to unleash.

A few warriors made little more than token defensive swings before the Swordmaster before them dodged the attack and sliced open the adversary with quick slicing strikes.

Everyone in the cage was quiet, though they all watched on in muted horror at the carnage they saw before them. When the warrior would move behind tents to pursue a fleeing bandit, everyone would move and turn to that side, trying to follow the action. Finally, having chased everyone that was moving, the man began cutting the ropes that held the tents upright. He watched each and every tent fall. Most collapsed to the ground in a pile. Some collapsed over bags or other items. One fell onto a person who had no doubt awoken in the carnage and tried to remain hidden.

Thunk.

A swift sword strike through the wriggling body quickly put an end to the lurking bandit. The man disappeared from sight for a second.

Screams of terror could be heard coming from the forest.

Finally, the man returned only to come back covered in yet more blood. Apparently, he had found a few bandits who had managed to make it out of the camp. As he came forward, he knocked down every tent, making sure there were no more people waiting in ambush. Any that were found were brought down with ruthless efficiency.

The more he cleared the camp, the more the dark, ominous gloom of darkness that had clung to the bandit camp like a festering mold was lifted. Now the lights that still burned showed an entirely empty camp filled with dead bodies and one man walking through the destruction to make sure everything was cleaned.

The man came up to the cage. That was when the Wood Elf greeted him. As was to be expected, he responded back. Hearing that, Telka’s heart slightly dropped. The language that she had been brought up on that her family had taught her as the language of her people was wrong. There was no other way to explain, at least not now. Telka still felt the flow of exhaustion rolling over her, but she was determined to get out. The Great Forest Spirit had heard her pleas and had responded. The least she could do was thank the man who followed the will of the Great Forest Spirit.

Her heart began to race as she was now able to take him in fully. That he was a High Wood Elf was in no doubt, his glow, his walk. Even his clothes he wore spoke of the old lands, these lands.

There was a giant lock on the door. The man looked around to see if there was a way to open the door. He searched through the pockets of one of the men. Then an idea hit him. Dropping to one knee, he closed his eyes and prayed.

The fact that he was praying was readily apparent as the glowing golden ball of light in his chest began to radiate for a second. With that, all of the bodies that had been on the ground disappeared, no doubt in sacrifice to the Great Forest Spirit.

Gasp.

Everyone who witnessed the miracle took in a sharp intake of breath. Even the Wood Elf seemed to be at a loss as the shock was apparent on her face. They watched as he rose from his kneeling position and then quickly began to look around. Bags of different sizes and quality lay on the ground. The man quickly looked but then soon found what he had been looking for at the base of the wagon cage. He walked over then, with a quick motion, bent over out of sight only to reappear the next second with a giant black key. Seeing that key, everyone began to cheer and talk in their foreign tongues. Even Telka felt her lips ache as the first smile she had felt in a long time crested her lips. Her prayers had been answered, better still her faith that the Great Forest Spirit hadn’t died as so many of her people assumed from her home continent, so many thousands of miles away.

Creek!

The grinding screech of the cage door being opened never sounded so amazing. The man stood there, helping everyone off the cart. Everyone was still sore from having been held in such a tight place for so long. Even though the cage had many openings, the smell of fresh air filled Telka’s face. It felt like the Great Forest Spirit was there giving her its love. A smile filled her lips. Then there was an electric tingle that pulsed through her left arm from where the man who had saved them grabbed her hand and helped her down. She glided down. Only after she landed did she realize the man who had been sent to save them had unimaginable strength that was deceptive to his lean frame. She only realized this as he had to have lifted her up and placed her on the ground. That was the only way to explain the smooth transition. She was about to ask him, but he had already turned to help the last few people out of the cage.

Once everyone was out, he began giving out orders. It was apparent that he knew quite a few languages as he could shift between the different people and dialects easily. While Telka only spoke the two languages, she could hear enough differences to understand he was talking in multiple languages. Hearing this, a well of hope grew in Telka. At first, she thought about talking to him in Kylon, but when he came to her, she immediately went to the language of her ancestors.

“Can you understand me?” she asked, hope rising in her voice.

A look of confusion fell across the man’s face. Though now that he was this close, it was clear that this person before her could barely be considered a man as he was young. His ruthless efficiency on the battlefield belied his true age. But here he stood looking at her with his dark hair, dark eyes, and pale skin. Still, there was an intensity to his gaze that caused Telka’s heart to beat faster. Then when he replied, her heart all but stopped.

“You speak the old tongue?” he responded.

That was it, the sign she had been waiting for. Her prayers had been answered by the Great Forest Spirit. She smiled as exhaustion and relief filled her all at once. She was still drained from Jarlios’ attack and had only managed to remain conscious through sheer willpower alone. Yet hearing him respond, she finally felt truly safe for the first time in a long time and felt her mind collapsing into unconsciousness.