Chapter 391: Moon Fang Part 2
The base of the Moon Fang mountain was steep, with tall grass sparsely spread about, and large jagged rocks decorating the whole area. Cold air blew down the mountain with a heavy chill that sent shivers down Tauri and Plum’s backs.
Stryg smiled with determination, “What are we waiting for?”
“Shouldn’t we wait for the chieftain and the rest of the party?” Tauri glanced back at the hill behind them.
But Stryg had already dashed away towards the mountain.
“Hey, wait for me!” Plumm yelled and ran after him.
“Agh, dammit, you two never listen!” Tauri groaned and followed reluctantly.
Stryg glanced back at the two of them with a grin. He didn’t stop moving, though he slowed down to a jog to give them a chance to reach him.
The air slowly grew colder the higher they climbed up the base of the mountain. Blossom’s white petals tightened around each other, forming a thick layer of insulation. Stryg glanced at the cloak in wonder as it wrapped around him with a snug grip.
It still amazed him how the cloak somehow always changed to suit his needs. Whether it was the petals growing fluffier to form a cushion of sorts to sleep atop or simply raising its cowl to protect him from the rain.
The cold hadn’t really bothered him for a few years now, but Stryg still appreciated how the cloak looked after him.
He looked down the mountainside and saw two figures below. The grey and red figures were small but they were growing closer, slowly. Stryg glanced around at the plenty of jagged boulders lying about and sat on the one with the flattest surface, it was still fairly uneven but at least he wouldn’t fall off.
As if to answer the mild worry, small roots sprouted out from the edges of Blossom and slowly began to wrap around the boulder. Stryg smiled to himself. The cloak truly was incredible. After everything that had happened with Ophelia Thorn, he was glad that he had managed to win the magical heirloom from her family.
Now if only the cloak could fly…
Stryg waited in anticipation. Blossom’s petals did not shift.
He sighed in mild disappointment.
Ophelia had told him that when she had flown down from atop the coliseum with Blossom that it had been her yellow magic that had carried her in the wind. Still, he had hoped that it was a lie. Flying had always fascinated Stryg. To be able to sail through the skies like the birds was a dream of most people, though few would ever have the means to accomplish such an act.
Flight spells were a specialized subset of chromatic wind magic. It was usually only cast by yellow high-masters, though there were a few yellow masters who had managed a stable cast. Even Heather Navis had managed to cast a flight spell during the tourney, albeit it had been unstable.
And yet the Ebon Aspirant, victor of the Grand Cities Tourney, and master mage, could not manage a single flight spell. He knew it was a specialized magic but he had practiced flight spells over and over anyway. He had even technically managed a somewhat stable cast, but his body’s weight prevented him from lifting an even from the ground. Even when he used agility magic to lessen his weight the flight spell wasn’t strong enough to carry him into the sky or off the ground for that matter.
I just need to get stronger, he thought.
Someday his yellow magic would be strong enough, he would make sure of it.
“Of course, this would be so much easier if I had elemental air magic instead,” he said aloud, hoping his flower petal cloak might hear him. “You were made by the fairies, right? I know they’re elemental creatures of light and life, but they can fly, right? Any chance you’ve got some air magic within you, hmm?”
As always, Blossom did not respond.
“~Ughhh, I can’t go on. Go on without me~” Plum’s voice sounded from nearby.
“Shut up, you’re not even walking you damn bookworm,” Tauri snapped.
Stryg couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight. Tauri was carrying the exhausted Plum on her back.
“I was wondering why it was taking you guys so long,” Stryg teased.
“This dumbass forgot she failed all her running exams back at the academy. Her legs gave out on her after the first half of the climb,” Tauri said.
“It’s not my fault, my body was made for magic, not mindless trudging through the wilderness,” Plum said.
“Bullshit,” Tauri said.
Plum raised her index finger to the sky, “No more complaining. We’re only a few paces away from our destination, onwards my noble steed! Aagh!”
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Tauri dropped her unceremoniously.
“Drow down, drow down!” Plum yelled dramatically and rolled on the ground as if to illustrate her point.
Tauri ignored Plum and walked up to the boulder by herself. Stryg shifted his legs to make room for Tauri, but to his pleasant surprise, she sat on his thighs and leaned back on his chest.
“Ah, I’m tired,” Tauri mumbled and closed her eyes. “Let’s rest here and wait for the others.”
Stryg nodded happily, “I agree.”
“Oi, don’t just ignore me! ~I’m dying here!~” Plum cried out.
“No, you’re not,” Tauri said easily.
“I could be though,” Plum muttered with a small pout.
“You’ll all be dead soon if you don’t tell us who you are,” came a sudden voice. A goblin stepped out from behind a nearby boulder, bow in hand, and pointed at Plum.
Stryg stiffened and glanced about as four other goblins stepped out from behind the rocks all around them. He hadn’t noticed them. Their grey cloaks blended into the rocky terrain. But what bothered him was that he hadn’t heard a single footstep as they sneaked up on him and his friends.
Judging from their matching cloaks they were part of the same tribe, probably a squad of sorts. A hunting party perhaps?
“Are you their captain?” Stryg asked the goblin holding the bow.
The goblin aimed his bow at Stryg, “Who are you people? I won’t ask again,” the goblin captain asked.
So that’s a yes.
“Get ready to hide,” Stryg whispered in Tauri’s ear.
She nodded subtly while keeping a wary eye on the five strangers.
“We’re not your enemies, sir. My name is Plum, her name is Tauri, and his is Stryg,” she said quickly.
The goblin narrowed his eyes, “An orc and two drows enter the sacred lands of Moon Fang unannounced and you expect us to believe you are not our enemies?”
“I am not a drow. I am a goblin, just like you,” Stryg said.
The captain stared at Stryg as if he was an idiot, “...You’re not a goblin. One more stupid lie and I lodge this arrow into you and that orc woman.”
He frowned, “I am Stryg, son of the Blood Fang Tribe, father of the Ebon Ho– I mean, the Ebon Tribe,” he corrected at the last second. He thought it prudent if he didn’t associate his tribe’s name with the city of Hollow Shade in front of these goblins.
“I know of the Blood Fang but I’ve never heard of the Ebon Tribe,” the captain said.
“As I said, I founded the tribe. It’s fairly new,” Stryg said.
“You? A drow? Founded a Sylvan tribe? I told you, one more stupid lie.” The captain pulled his back bow, arrow taut.
Stryg’s pupils narrowed to slits in anger. Brown and yellow mana began to flow through his veins.
“Eldon, wait,” one of the other cloaked goblins spoke up. His voice was deep, but it wasn’t gravelly. It was clear like glass, a distinct voice that captured one’s attention. He pulled down his cowl, revealing a weathered face, and a grey-speckled beard. His eyes were a bright yellow and he stared at Stryg with a frigid gaze, “I wish to get a closer look at this one.”
Eldon immediately dropped his bow and bowed his head, “Of course.”
I was wrong. He wasn’t the captain. This one is, Stryg thought. “And who might you be?”
“…Stryg was it?” the older goblin asked in a calm voice.
“And you are?”
“Arden.”
Stryg furrowed his brow, “Arden?”
Why did that name sound familiar?
An enormous stone hand suddenly erupted from the ground underneath Stryg and Tauri and curled its fingers over them in a deadly grip. Tauri leaped away in a flash, agility magic already flowing through her veins.
Stryg didn’t hesitate and cast durability and vigor spells simultaneously. Bronze swirls swam over his skin as yellow scales of light wrapped over his flesh. He yelled a warcry and barreled straight through the rocky cage.
Arden's eyes widened in surprise and he raised his arms to defend himself. Stryg slammed past him, sending the older goblin flying. The other goblins screamed in outrage and fired arrow after arrow at Stryg, but they broke on his skin and Blossom harmlessly.
Stryg ignored the attacks and rushed over to Plum. He tossed Blossom over her and quickly looked around for Tauri. He caught a glimpse of her scarlet skin as she jumped behind a boulder several meters away.
“Don’t move,” he whispered to Plum.
Orange mana surged into his body. Flames came to life around him in a wide circle and expanded outwards in an explosion of light. The ring of fire seared away the sparse grass and scorched the ground in a wide circle around them.
The sounds of screaming goblins were silenced and only smoke remained and blackened rock remained.
A few of Blossom’s petals were scorched at the edges, but overall the living cloak seemed fine. Even now he could see the petals slowly regenerating.
Stryg smiled and peeked under the cloak, “Are you okay?”
“I’m not dead, I think. Where’s Tauri?” Plum asked worriedly.
“I’m fine,” Tauri called out and stood up from behind a boulder.
“Your flame magic is impressive, especially for one so young,” Arden said calmly.
Stryg spun around. “You’re alive!?”
Arden stood crouched atop a nearby boulder without a scratch. His lips curled in a slight smile. He waved his hand and the earth spat out his companions, unharmed, though they were covered in bits of dirt and dust.
“You protected them?” Stryg whispered in shock.
Arden nodded slowly, “I didn’t expect such powerful flames, but I managed to save all my tribemates, yes—”
Stryg threw Nameless with all the force of his vigor-enhanced arm. The broken sword turned make-shift dagger flew through the air like a singing air and struck Eldon in the chest, sending him crashing into the boulder behind him. The blow severed his spine and killed him instantly. Eldon’s body slumped over, leaving a bloody trail on the boulder behind him.
“What was that about saving all your tribemates?” Stryg snarled.
Arden glared at him with a wry smile, “You really are her’s, aren’t you?” The goblin’s body blurred in green light and expanded and shifted until the goblin was gone and in its place was a sabertooth 3 meters tall.
“Holy shit!” Plum gasped and scrambled to hide behind Stryg.
Arden…
Stryg finally remembered where he heard that name before. A shiver run down his back.
“Arden, chieftain of the Frost Whisper Tribe…” Stryg mumbled.
The greatest shaman-warrior of the Sylvan people bared his saber fangs and roared in a deafening response.