The screeching calls of protest and complaints at my presence died as my impromptu escort of hundreds of Birds took it as a challenge and started trying to Sing along, only to fail completely and the magic to continue dancing despite their butchering attempts at imitation.
Before too long they all shut up, and their attempts at music and challenging the Song became winging along and playing to the music with their innate magic. Soon enough, I was speeding along, and they were swooping and diving around me as all the Elements swirled in an ever-more-complex and enthusiastic skydance, different species of Birds with different attunements flowing through different parts of the pattern as if they’d practiced this all their lives.
As their magic mixed and flowed, the Song grew louder, the Dance brighter, and now, now the coordinated notes burst forth from their throats here and there as the Birds immersed themselves into a Sublime Skydance like nothing they had ever experienced.
Their harassment and cold examination of me became an impossible-to-miss swirling cloud of explosive colors as tropical Birds of all ranks, sizes, and affinities came to hear the Song. They found themselves joining a tireless Skydance of celebration and confirmation of the life and vitality of the Amazon and all that lived within it, savage and glorious and bright and grim, fang and talons dripping blood and shining with rainbow glory beneath all the sunlight.
I had a +71 Perform (Song) check. The Birds and the Butterflies had never heard anything like it, and were Fascinated in spite of their resistance to such powers. Even the species that were masters of Sound and Psychic Magic found themselves helpless to resist, drawn into the joyous rapture that surrounded the Will of two Emperor Avians as I flew towards the middle of the Amazon, the Birds drawn into the Chord by the very Magic that they’d normally be relying on to withstand it.
Ah, contested Caster Level checks, so abusable in this world. Sometimes, quality over quantity, baby!
I was making good time. I’d been a passenger on flying Avians, and I knew how to use Wind Trails for grown-ups. Using Linejumps and similar things, I could easily have outpaced any pursuers, if not out-flown them. I was instead doing a casual 300 mph, the stronger Birds were easily keeping pace with me or falling out of the escort formation when it was time. The Winds swirling about me were a chaotic mess, yet flowed perfectly with the Sublime Chord and guided the Birds through the Skydance with ease.
---
I had Detect Plants up at V+1, and the increasing level of sentience and awareness among the forest giants was like a graduating slope showing me exactly which way to go. In addition, Detect Magic V+1 showed the effect on the Manafield from these Plants reacting and anticipating what was going on as the Sublime Chord reached out to them, and the Trees and the Plants growing on them were reacting to my passing with explosions of floral colors of their own.
I might have been a Human and initially unwelcome, but they were celebrating my passing now in spite of that. Also, I was carrying the Will of two Emperors, and so word was racing through the roots and vines out ahead of me, faster than sound, and they knew I was coming.
It wasn’t like I could surprise an Emperor, but I didn’t want to wait a day for Father Tree to wake up, either. My Whiskers of the Wild had four Stars powering it up, so I could understand the subtle wavings of flowers, vines, and branches, the creaks and rustles as they communicated both above and below.
They were particularly moved by the Natural Magic in the Sublime Chord, which they had never felt before. It thrummed in their bark and wood with an old, old feeling that called to the essence of what they were.
Aelryinth had never been a Druid of the Green, preferring the Seasons, but that didn’t mean he was unaware of it, given that a Commune with Nature was often intertwined with whatever Nature Spirit was infused into the local Flora.
There were more than a few true sapient Trees among those I was passing, watching and listening and feeling the display of the Song as I zipped by overhead with my ever-more-powerful array of Birds swooping and Singing around me in glee, the forest opening up a rainbow carpet before me, closing slowly behind as the echoes of the Chord faded into the distance.
The Trees were getting taller, space was both folding and expanding ahead of me. It occurred to me that I needed to open my Sanctum Sanctorum, and given the power of the Spatial Magic here, it was probably going to be pretty impressive in size.
I wasn’t going to have a Pocket soon, I was going to have a Pocket Space! The amount of stuff and people I’d be able to move around was going to be pretty impressive...
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These Trees I was now flying past, my speed lowered, were fully two miles high, clustered around another tree that literally towered over them all at fully three miles tall.
It was freaking impressive, especially the levels of Void and Plant Magic rippling off it. The internal expansion of the Amazon was effortlessly anchored here, as was the Mazing effect that tended to overwhelm non-natives of the place, making this place impossible to find or impossible to leave, as the Trees desired.
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They were also trying valiantly to resist the Sublime Chord as I approached, and I could register the surprise of all these Imperial Plants and Animals who had come out to watch as they utterly failed to do so. The Sublime Chord was not intrusive to them, and with Natural Magic woven into it could even be said to be completely harmonious, shocking them all.
Their Auras didn’t target me, but they were everywhere, and certainly would have overwhelmed any normal non-Sage, even withdrawn as they were.
The carpet of colors guided me in to the edge of Father Tree’s clearing, and there I hove up and paused, waiting for His invitation to land, keeping up my Song while I did.
I knew He was awake and regarding me, Speak with Plants making looking at the whole tree as effective as seeing a person’s face. Indeed, I could see His whole council of mammoth Trees of multiple types studying me, albeit without the faces Beasts would be presenting.
It only took a moment before the Trees all realized I was patiently looking back at them!
“Healer Fae, former vassal of Flowing Silver Emperor of the Beast Realm, servant of Thunderbird Emperor of North America, servant of Fire Phoenix Emperor of Fire Avians, greets Father Tree Emperor of South America and the Council of the Amazon!” I introduced myself with Voice, woven in between the Song I was yet Singing.
Behind me and around me, the thousands of fliers alighted on the many Trees, all of them now watching me with great interest indeed as I knelt on a Disk in midair to Father Tree, my star-filled Wings edged in gleaming sharp silver joining me in the proper manner of supplication to an Emperor.
And I Cast the Commune with Nature.
If they were very curious and intense before, the absolute ripple as I reached down and hooked into the Land below smoothly and with no resistance absolutely shocked all of them. They were a nearly-godly assemblage of power, it was true, but the Amazon itself was still greater than all of them, and they had enough power to realize it had just woken up and was smiling at me.
Oh, yes. I was not just some random Human. I had the Wills of two True Emperors with me, and the Amazon itself was aware and listening to me, watching all of this happening in real time.
Even the most slothful of the Council of Trees came fully awake, and that included Father Tree Himself! His slow and patient thought processes were jolted into motion by feeling the Land He was sitting atop open its eye and disregard Him as it watched me.
Wasn’t that something to give an old Wyrdwood conniption fits?
“SPEAK, HEALER FAE,” came the voice of Father Tree, a thing of creaking wood, rustling leaves, and shifted wind no human would normally be able to recognize. “WHY HAVE YOU COME TO THIS PLACE?”
“Your Imperial Majesty, this one has been sent by Thunderbird and Fire Phoenix to ask the Father Tree Emperor to a Council of the True Emperors of the Lands. When this one has visited Auric Tyrant Emperor, White Death Wolf Emperor, Ancient Dream Serpent Emperor, Heaven Westward Fox Emperor, and Old Mountain Emperor to receive their Wills, the Council may be gathered and the Emperors engage with one another whilst none need to move from their Demesnes.”
There was a pause as multiple levels of conversation happened among Beasts and Plants at the same time. It sounded almost like a wind was roaring through the trees, raising a ruckus among the beasts, and that the wood was creaking and leaning in a hurricane blow, despite there being only the gentlest breeze here.
“OF WHAT MATTER DOES THUNDERBIRD EMPEROR WISH TO DISCUSS?” the curious Father Tree asked of me, as leaves ruffled, branches swayed, vines danced, and blooms opened and closed. I was carefully keeping the air about me free of pollens and perfumes, or I would have been enthralled quickly.
“Your Imperial Majesty, the Humans of the world have a method to break The Great Flood Magic of Ice Emperor that has once again come to eat at the borders of His Lessers’ territories. However, the Humans need the permission of the True Emperors to do so!
“Thunderbird Emperor believes that Ice Emperor will not bother to reinstate The Great Flood if it is broken, and has little desire to endure The Great Flood if such can be done. However, using Humans to break The Great Flood is a matter for Emperors to discuss.”
“IT IS SAID THAT IT WAS HUMANS WHO PROVOKED ICE EMPEROR INTO BEGINNING HIS FLOOD...” Father Tree replied slowly to that.
“Your Imperial Majesty, that is a matter for the Emperors to discuss,” I repeated simply, not looking up.
The massive Tree was quiet a long moment. The great Emperors of the world would seldom meet, as doing so was an excuse to fight if there was any power discrepancy between them whatsoever. Naturally the very best food for an Emperor to advance was to consume one of their equals!
I could see that the bones of countless Beast Emperors were woven down between the roots of these massive Trees, used to nurture their power and their growth to a level in the Amazon that could not be challenged. In the Amazon, it was not the Beasts who were the ultimate rulers, despite holding some of the most powerful Emperors of their types in the whole world. The Spider, Beetle, Ant, and Mantis True Emperors all lived here.
There was no way another True Emperor was going to meet with Father Tree and His Council here in the Amazon, and the Trees had little, if any, reason to ever leave. If other Emperors came here, there was an excellent chance their bones would join those among the roots below.
Plants were among the most ruthless of species, after all...
“IS THERE ANY OTHER REASON YOU HAVE COME HERE, HEALER FAE?” the great old Wyrdwood asked abruptly, probably testing the waters of Human greed, famous as it was.
“Your Imperial Majesty, this one requires a Token of your Will so as to begin the conference when all Emperors who wish to attend have agreed to do so.”
There was only a moment of hesitation, and then a crack, like wood harder than steel being broken. A moment later, the tip of a great thorn was floating before me, severed more cleanly and smoothly than any blade could possibly cut, and it was wrapped in the Will of Father Tree.
“TAKE THIS AND DEPART. DO NOT RETURN WITHOUT MY LEAVE, HEALER FAE.”
“As His Imperial Majesty commands!” I replied promptly. A strand of steelvine, a dose of Sovereign Glue, and His Token hung from Noble with Thunderbird and Fire Phoenix. “This one thanks His Imperial Majesty and His Council for their patience!”
The Song which had dimmed to basically background thrumming of the Manafield soared once more as I took flight, flashing into the air and drawing a path politely east. My speed built up very quickly even as countless Birds took flight to escort me out of their space, as I left far more swiftly than I had arrived.