Kaden shared the quest logs with the party. “Trella. Druuiids?”
“No, thanks. I’m over Pirates, too. I want to rest. Stab a few sailors who are stealing from us and altering the cargo manifests. Take it easy. That Trial took more than I expected, and I haven’t really slept since.”
Kaden looked over the quest logs. “I want the tokens. I’m going to need help from a [Druid] at some point, and I’m really not comfortable with the [Wheamyn] seeds. Where’s the FarPortal?”
“I will show you,” Ashi said. “I grow bored of foretelling storms. These Druids will show you respect, too.”
The Arch Druid was probably not someone Ashi could intimidate, but Kaden would never so no to company. He rose and gave Trella a kiss. “Rest. You’ve earned it.”
She gave him a smile. “You have, too. Don’t stay too long. Though, if you do see an attractive [Druid], you know what and who to do.”
That made Kaden laugh. “I’ll be back.”
Outside, storm clouds gathered on the horizon, black, with lightning branching from them. Kaden hurried to the FarPortal, dragging Vip back into his soul. “You don’t have to go.”
“I choose this,” Ashi said.
Kaden paid the Portal Mage on duty and transfered the portal coordinates. The FarPortal errupted into light, and Ashi took his hand as Kadens stepped through—into blinding sunlight.
Kaden blinked covered his eyes until he could look around.
The air here was not just warm, it was hot, and grasshoppers sang in the grass, and birds in the trees.
“Kaden Birch.” The voice was Olidar, Druid Centurion. “I was hoping you’d come quickly. The Grove Spirit and Arch Druid are waiting.”
Ashi continued to shield her eyes as she stumbled forward. “Where is this?”
“The World Heart,” Olidar said, like that answer made sense. “Druids don’t have a country but we do have a continent all our own. Be respectful. You’re going into the presence of Nature’s daughter and the highest ranking Druid in the world.”
Kaden could finally see—and feel—what surrounded him. It wasn’t just a forest, it was a forest of [Sheild Trees], each of them so tall Kaden could barely see the top. Their trunks grew together to form an arched path deeper into the forest.
“Let us go and see,” Ashi said.
Olidar had combed his wild hair and now it lay, smooth and black, hanging to his waist. He wore no shoes, and as he stood, plants grew and flowered by his feet. “This way.”
The deeper Kaden went into the [Shield Tree] Forest, the heavier the weight on his shoulders grew. Ashi often used [Hover] to move and now, she hovered, but her feet dragged the ground every few feet until she was forced to walk.
Beneath the shield trees, glowing wisps of every color moved, and beyond that, [Beast Soul] told Kaden he was being watched.
The tree-tunnel ended in a clearing miles across, and in the center grew a single shield tree, glowing bright blue. It would have dwarfed Queen Brownbeak’s tree in Verona.
Olidar stood at the edge of the tunnel. He drew simple brown robes from Inventory. “Change. No shoes, you’re walking in the presence of Nature’s Daughter herself.”
He turned his back, and Kaden quickly stripped and donned the robes, while Ashi contorted and undressed wearing a robe over her top. “I will not be exposed before others,” she said.
The moment Kaden’s feet touched the soul, warmth blazed up. Not just heat, but like the earth itself was grasping his feet. He stood still, uncertain of whether or not he should continue. Or could.
Ashi’s skin flushed deep green, and she retreated. “I cannot go without my wraps. The Life Mana here is too strong.”
Olidar grumbled, but nodded. “Do what you must. No shoes. That’s not debatable.”
Kaden helped her apply them, binding the skin on her arms and legs before wrapping her hips, stomach, and chest with the cloth enchanted to shield her.
Ashi spoke, and a wave of green power rushed out, brushing past Kaden, before sweeping back to her. “I think I may pass now.” She gasped as her feet touched the ground, and kneeled, touching it with her hand.
The power surrounding them pulled back, ever so slightly. At least, from Ashi. “Now, I go.”
Olidar led them across the field, and as they did, the plants on it shifted and changed, growing, dying, withering and growing again every few feet. “This place is sacred, not to any god or goddess.”
Beneath the shade of the blue tree, a man waited, exactly what Kaden would have expected from someone called the Arch Druid. His robes weren’t brown but faded gray, his face was more a maze of wrinkles than skin, and his eyes were cloudy, his head balding.
The sheer pressure that exuded from him beat a Demon Lord easily.
“Olidar, young man. Good of you to bring them,” he said in a voice that was barely audible. “Ceri, will you council?”
I WILL. The voice came from all around.
The blue tree’s trunk split longways from the base, and Kaden had to look away as power flooded out.
Ashi groaned and almost fell.
From the tree came a woman, or the suggestion of one. When Kaden looked at her, like with Ashi’s mother, he had to struggle to define the entity before him, but as she grew closer, he settled on an image. A woman with beautiful blue green skin and hair of vines that wrapped into a dress which grew into the ground, dying and regrowing with every step.
MEMONAR. OLIDAR. YOU ARE WELCOME IN MY PRESENCE, CHILDREN.
Before this being, they were all children.
The Arch Druid kneeled. “Thank you. We may have found it. These two passed a Trial of Yarrow and brought items from his Harvest.”
WHAT HAS BEEN IS KNOWN TO ME. SEA DAUGHTER, YOU, TOO ARE WELCOME. AND YOU, BEAST MASTER. IN THIS PLACE YOU ARE THEIR EQUAL. SHOW ME.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
Kaden took out the corn Trella had taken, and the wheat, and the [Wheamyn] seeds, and last, the acorn. “There were a whole mound of them.”
FROM THIS A SCION OF YYGRA WILL GROW. THE WORLD TREE GROWS FROM A WORLD, AND FROM IT, WORLDS ARE GROWN, BUT LONG AGO THE SNAKE DEVOURED THE TREE, CUTTING OFF WORLDS.
“Yarrow must have harvested these,” Memonar said. “But Yarrow has been lost for cataclysms.”
How a snake could devour a tree that grew from the world and with other worlds on it made no sense, but there were basic rules about disbelieving the daughter of Nature herself and Kaden didn’t need that kind of trouble. “How do we grow it?”
LEAVE IT HERE WITH ME. WHEN YOU ARE STRONGER, RETURN. I WILL GRANT YOU THE QUEST. A WORLD SEED TAKES DECADES TO GROW. FOR NOW, I WILL CARE FOR IT.
The goddess approached, reaching carefully for the acorn, careful not to touch his fingers.
“What of the corn and wheat?”
THEY ARE ICONS OF SPRING GODDESSES LONG GONE. WHERE THEY ARE KEPT, CROPS WILL GROW QUICKLY AND HARVESTS HEAVY. BUT BEWARE THE WHEAMYN. THEY OFFER SERVICE AND POWER BUT NONE CAN CONTAIN THEIR WRATH.
Olidar picked up one of the seeds. “I don’t like it. Nature is what nature is, but these are just plain violent.”
THEY DO NOT BELONG IN THE NATURAL WORLD. DESTROY THEM BY FIRE.
Kaden put the seeds away, then the corn and wheat. He could already envision a crafter making relic holders, and putting them in a temple. Or hiding them away to prevent a holy war over who would gain them. No, if Verona were suddenly blessed with healthy crops and heavy harvests, better that no one knew. “What level do I need to be to handle this quest?”
YOU CALL IT THIRD TIER. ANYTHING LESS AND THE NEW WORLD TREE WOULD CONSUME YOU AS IT GREW. RETURN WHEN IT IS TIME. WHY IS THERE A MATCH LIZARD ON YOUR COLLAR?
“Do not speak of bread,” Ashi said.
Kaden hadn’t even thought of it much. “To remind me of what’s important. Trinity is a warrior. Rocky’s a defender. The Falcrow annoys everything and occasionally takes messages. Vip loves everyone. Burny just exists. That’s all any of us need to do. But, at level three, he’s the most powerful Match Lizard in existence. King of the Match Lizards.”
Your bound ENTITY ‘Burny” has gained a title: King of the Match Lizards.
That was unexpected. Kaden checked Burny’s status.
[Burny - Match Lizard]
Level: 3
HP: 12
Mana: 4
Skills: Burn
Talents: Fireproof
Titles: King of the Match Lizards
The mighty fire salamanders are feared and worshiped for the ability to melt rock and boil oceans. Their stunted cousins, the match lizards are largely ignored because eating one requires getting burned in the mouth and almost never confers a talent. This match lizard is living the high life, burning dry, burnable materials and eating ash. Beast Knowledge: We know of a really great grilled cheese recipe. They practically cook themselves, melt the cheese and toast the bread at the same time. You got to try it.
[Burn]
Catch fire, burning something. It’ll probably have to be something dry and relatively burnable to start with, but you’ll burn it into tasty ash.
[Fireproof]
It wouldn’t make a lot of sense for you to catch fire and burn yourself, which how Match Lizards went extinct the first four times (our mistake). You don’t burn at all. You do, however, squish nicely, and fit between two slices of bread, so keep moving, little lizard.
[King of the Match Lizards]
Your fire damage will be doubled. The good news is, you’re the indesputable king. The bad news is, you’re king of the Match Lizards.
Double fire damage? In a few hundred levels, Burny would be deadly.
Circi, daughter of Nature stared at Kaden, specifically at the metal embedded in his chest. YOU HAVE CHOSEN THE PATH OF MAN.
“A demon tore my chest apart. I chose to live. I’ll never be a [Druid] or a tree, which is ok with me. I’ll be back when I’m level fifty. Take care of the acorn for me.” But as he spoke, for the first time, Kaden sensed emotions from the Beasts in his soul. “My Beasts want to meet you.”
IT IS ONLY NATURAL. THEY ARE PART OF MY DOMAIN. BRING THEM FORTH. DAUGHTER OF THE SEA, YOU CARRY A SPARK OF LIFE AS WELL.
Ashi produced the globe of saltwater that suspended Levi-ling. “It is pleased to see you.”
Kaden summoned Vip first.
The dog rolled over and wagged its tail. *Love?*
Rocky came next. The Rock Gobbler actually bowed. Or he layed down, front feet first and fell asleep before remembering to lay the rest of him down. It was sadly a real possibility.
Trinity burst into existence, strangely calm. She didn’t bow down, but lowered her left and right heads to the ground, then her middle head unleashed a low roar that went on. Not a thought, but a need Kaden didn’t understand.
SO IT WILL BE.
Kaden understood the urge. It wasn’t [Authority] or [Dominion], just the power of Nature personified. The arch druid drew something from Inventory. “When you reach level fifty, this will let you return. You took the seed. It falls on you to plant it.”
You have received a new Quest: The All-Root - Plant the World Tree Seed in the middle of the Damar Wastes. Reward: Unique
You have received 1x Heartland Passport.
You do not meet the requirements for this item (Level 50, [Beast Master]).
Your skill with [Beast Form] has increased. (Circi, Nature’s Daughter).
THE SERPENT WILL MOVE AGAINST YOU. I WILL WORK TO RESTRAIN IT UNTIL YOU ARE STRONGER, BUT ITS REACH IS LONG AND ITS FOCUS UNRELENTING. WHEN IT IS TIME, YOU WILL NOT FACE IT ALONE.
“This serpent, can it die?” Ashi asked.
IT CAN ONLY BE RESISTED. GROW STRONGER. FIND MIGHTIER BEASTS TO LEARN FROM.
That matched Kaden’s goals anyway. But here, the daughter of Nature herself might be able to help. “I have Quest. Restore the withered seed. We had a meeting in Verona with every gardener and we don’t have a withered seed.”
YOU CARRY IT WITH YOU NOW.
“Demon seeds,” Ashi whispered. “Did you not show us one?”
Kaden actually carried three. Naski’s, Desmona’s, and the Sniffer. “One of these?”
The silver orb that had been Naski glowed brighter—and then dimmed. A barage of images hit Kaden, faster than he could possibly interpret. At last, they slowed.
Ever since Kaden offered Naski’s seed to the god of Death, he hadn’t sensed anything from the demon, though she remained a bound Entity according to the skill. “Thank you.”
SEA DAUGHTER. YOU CARRY YOUR MOTHER’S MAGIC.
“I carry all magic,” Ashi answered. “All colleges. In time, all spells.”
THAT IS THE MAGIC OF THE ONE WHO SIRED YOU. YOU ARE MORE THAN THAT. REMEMBER THIS: IT CANNOT BE TAKEN FROM YOU. THE FOLLY OF MAN IS TO CHAIN THE SEA.
The Nature goddess began to recede, taking the World Acorn with her, until the tree trunk resealed around her.
The Arch Druid walked like a man headed to his deathbed, limping over to Kaden and Ashi, as Kaden drew his Beasts back. “You should have been a [Druid]. Your heart is right for it. I know you’re responsible for the [Burning Dream] surviving.”
“I wouldn’t trade my class for anything. When I’m level fifty, I’ll come back for the World Acorn.” Kaden bowed before the Arch Druid. “I plan to take the wheat and corn to Verona and hide them somewhere in the city.”
Olidar laughed. “Or you could sell them. Those belong to a harvest god and a spring god. We’ve no qualms with anyone using them.”
“Just like you’ve got no qualms about the metal plate in my chest?” Kaden asked.
“That wasn’t a slight, it was a fact,” Olidar said. “Circi’s got no quarrel with you, just, your life’s going to have a different bend to it than a [Druid] would. She didn’t rip that plate out, and she could have. Most who encounter her are drained or energized. Which is it?”
“Drained,” Kaden said. “Not injured. It was like the first time I encountered Asmodeus. What do the servants of this ‘snake’ look like?”
“It’ll take time for the Ouroboros to realize a World Tree seedling has sprouted. Even longer for it to know where in all the worlds it is. When it does come, you’ll be the first to know.” Olidar followed them to the FarPortal. “Don’t try to come to this place uninvited. This time, Circi herself wanted to see you. You don’t want to see what happens when you’re not suposed to be here.”
Kaden dispatched the [FalCrow] and waited for the FarPortal. Ashi had been near silent. Something had changed in her, and he wasn’t sure what, but she felt different. “Are you ok?”
“I am many things,” she answered. “Let that be answer enough for now.”
The Farportal activated.
All around Kaden, lightning flashed and hail clattered. Winds tore through the town of Krebat, sending lanterns rolling through the darkness.
“Quickly,” Ashi said. “We must retreat indoors. This is not just a storm. The Sea Dragon Oceanus comes.”
The mother of all lightning bolts lit up the sky, framing a winged dragon the size of the sunset. It hovered over the sea in the distance. As the after image faded, Kaden couldn’t shake the feeling it was looking at him.