The area didn’t look all that special, and wasn’t even in the center of the Graveyard, which was now occupied by the Pyramid. No, this was further south and east, further away from the two defiles that led through the walls of the extinct caldera that had formed the circular valley within its confines.
I doubted any of the incoming Beasts had ever made it to this Plant, as they’d also likely have the urge to consume it and grow their own power, the fate of many and indeed most magical Plants. The Kingdom of the Green was also ruthless in its own way, and was happy to prey on one another and magical Beasts alike if they could.
That was not what the Imperial Protea of Repose did, however, at least not actively. The Proteas of Repose grew only in graveyards and the like, but they radiated a peace and serenity that comforted all who came there, and incidentally didn’t allow any of the corpses there to rise as random Undead. While they gained power from the decay of Beast Corpses like many Plants did, they never forced a compulsion to die upon the old and weak Beasts, only easing their pain and any fears they might have in their last moments.
It was my belief that this Elephant’s Graveyard existed because the Imperial Protea was here. It simply called out to those whose time was coming, and so they came here to die, if they wished to. Certainly they could die among their own, and let their bodies be nourishment for the next generation, and indeed most predatory species chose that route if they were intelligent enough to do so.
The herbivores, especially the Elephants, not so much.
I knelt in the shadowy grassy clearing, the Tokens of Emperors fluttering from Noble and making it plain that I was not in a unique situation.
Whiskers of the Wild/4 could communicate with Plants clearly. “This one is Healer Fae! She and her friends, Golden Heavenly Sun Rose and Crystal Starsilver Moon Rose, pay respects to Imperial Protea of Repose Emperor!”
My Roses emerged from my sleeves, coiled around me and over my back, bowing low as I did.
There was a pause, and the slightest quiet rustling of the grass.
A single stem emerged from the ground with patient power, thickening and growing with near-liquid speed as it did so. A bulb bulged on it quickly, opening and turning towards us in a magnificent display of whites and golds, crystals and metallic veins running through it as the quiet Aura of an Emperor suffused the area.
“Why are you here?” the Imperial Protea asked, not bothering to grow any more than waist-high, although I was sure it could tower to the height of a normal tree without effort.
“Your Imperial Majesty, this one and the Roses have come to remove you from this site until the Pyramid that defiles your Graveyard is destroyed and the forces of the Netherworld that have invaded it are gone.
“The Undead Sage in charge of the Pyramid could sense Your Majesty’s presence at any moment, even hidden as it is. If it does, it will expend all its efforts on locating Your Majesty, capturing you, and then sacrificing you to gain more power for itself.
“Its forces are great in number, and the powers that back it are without limit. Your Imperial Majesty, you cannot remain here. As this one’s allies have moved the great Plants that did not succumb to the Taint of the Netherworld, so this one seeks to remove Your Imperial Majesty until you can be restored without danger to your Domain.”
The gorgeous Flower bobbed slightly for a moment as it considered my words. “You come bearing the Will of Emperors, but they are all of the Beasts. What say the Flowers that adorn you so?”
The blooms of the Roses lit up with Vivic Eternal Lights, which also ignited on the thorns that grew suddenly from their steams. “Healer Fae reunited our forebears, and so brought us into being. We serve her gladly, and know that if it is our will, she will allow our Contract to end and free us as we desire.
“She has displayed no antipathy towards Beast or Plants, and has even been acknowledged by Grandfather Tree. You will find only Truth in her words, Elder.”
The Imperial Protea of Repose considered that in silence. “You cleansed away the risen bones that were being corrupted from My graveyard. In doing so, you undid much of what I had built over the ages... but such was already being Tainted, and the richness of the energy you have imbued the earth with was not taken by you in payment. Why, then, are you doing this, Healer Fae of the Humans?” the ancient Plant eventually asked tranquilly.
“This one does this to thwart the coming of the Netherworld and its rise to power, Your Imperial Majesty. The Coming of the Light or the Dark will mean doom to Beasts and Plants alike. The Undead, especially those that were once-Human, are traitors to this world entire, not merely the Human Tribe.
“One might say that it would be difficult to compensate this one enough to do what this one does, Honored Elder of the Green.
“If this one’s veracity you doubt, this one will only say she has no designs upon the Emperor, Your person, or Your Demesne, and that is Truth.”
The shocked Flower wavered at the power of the Word, while the two Roses, long being fed on Celestial Energies, burned visibly for a moment with Rainbow, Gold, and Silver Light, bobbing happily as they did so.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
Sapient Plants were not immune to Truth, either!
“Present your Contract to me, Healer Fae,” the Imperial Protea of Repose finally responded, sublime awe in its voice at the sensations it had felt.
I wove together and presented the temporary Contract for the Plant Emperor’s perusal. It did not truly bind our souls at all, making only the most tertiary link between us, one easily broken by either party without cost or strain to either. It would allow the Imperial Plant access to the Summoning Pocket where it might exist safely, and also allow us to communicate while it could still perceive the world about in safety.
If it chose to help me or not was its own choice; there was no compulsion or tie between us with such an agreement.
A sparkling mote of light emerged from the Protea’s blossom, reaching out to clasp the Contract and join to it. I felt the surge of Contract completion, distant but effective, and noted the great and hidden power of the Imperial Protea’s spirit, hidden behind a mild appearance and languid words.
“If it pleases the Emperor, enter the Contract Space and this one shall remove You from here.”
It considered that, and then a very tightly controlled but immense amount of power shifted, and the immobile Plant vanished from its clearing, entering one of my four Contract Pockets.
I noted that most of the Plant’s mass was quite hidden down in its roots. It actually weighed many tons and simply chose not to show most of its power, especially in the circumstances it was in.
-Very interesting,- it /observed, feeling the Contract Space and extending its Awareness beyond into the real world. -I have only ever seen Summoning Magic from afar. To be subjected to it is quite different.-
“The Emperor’s connection to its land and Demesne is far more important than a minor Contract, Your Imperial Majesty. You may choose to remain with this one, or sequester yourself in another quiet place, as you wish... but this one believes the former is safer for now.”
-I concur. Please bring me to my fellow Plants, and I will let them know I am still alive. We have been friends for years beyond counting, and it will please me to greet those that yet live.-
“As the Emperor desires!” I responded politely, drawing up a mental map of how the Plants were dispersed about and beyond the rim of the Caldera. My Teleport away was quiet and subtle, and I left no trace behind for the very disturbed Undead and their frantic minions to track or realize I’d ever been here.
------
The new Death Zone fighting started soon thereafter.
There were some eager recruits to fight the Undead from among the natives of Gabon, tens of thousands of whom had perished to King Magogo’s rampage. When they learned how and why the Honey Badger King had done so, the fact they were named King Magogo’s Legion became a point of grim honor, rather than cruel mockery.
Archmage Obai bore Magogo’s own Baneskull with grim purpose. If he had far from the idealized Elements to face the Undead, the grim purpose of the Honey Badger King seemed to inspire every native of Gabon who gazed upon his Baneskull, firing them up for the battles against the undead.
The natives could not match the endurance and persistence of the Undead, nor even their numbers, it was true. If Pharaoh Ahtep (took a while to learn the arsehole’s mortal name) actually marched out with all his forces, he could have laid waste to the entire country.
Alas, his forces could only persist within the Domain of his Pyramid. It was a limitation shared by all the Pharaohs, and which had prevented them from overwhelming and sweeping away Egypt, and indeed all of the other countries around. It took power to keep their Undead servants manifested in the mortal world, and they had to stay tight and close to the Pyramids, or mystical reflections of their power, the latter a trick they used to suddenly assail Human cities normally outside their reach and harvest extra souls for themselves.
It was fine. While Typeless wizard-mages had it easier accessing the anti-necromantic spells than Elemental mages did, that was only optimizing. Younger mages could Awaken the desired Elements if they were truly committed to the cause, and Maces of Disruption didn’t care what Element was used, they all did double damage when they were wielded as a Rod.
My job was overwatch. I waited, and I observed as the Human forces moved out against the Netherworld ones, turning this into a game of numbers and healing.
Yes, I could have gone in and butchered my way through the millions of undead. They weren’t going to stop me, any more than they’d been able to stop Aelryinth when he was raging at the top of his undead-slaughtering game.
The surrounding Beasts were eager to get in on this fighting, especially the Elephants. Summoning Element after Element was Awakened, and the Elephants came to the fight alongside us, Buffed up and reinforced by Human magic and totally willing to take on the Snakes, Scorpions, and Medusae. Rhinos, Hippos, and Buffalo soon joined them here and there, and the serene peace that had been replaced by deathly pallor was now riven by combat, unleashed magic, and a great deal of vivus.
It was a Death Zone. Unlike the littoral areas, where attacks came in waves and surges, there were always things to fight here. If you were a wizard, that meant there was always something here to grow stronger with... and Soul Crystals to harvest.
The Coralost Undead Hunters formed the heart of the forces, naturally enough. Their attacks started at doing triple damage against the Undead, and only went higher from there. Ironically, that meant that the Beasts were the most powerful forces of the Netherworld that they could throw at us, as be it in magic or personal combat, the Undead Hunters were very, very able to put the Undead down with speed, and could speedily dispatch hundreds, even thousands if they came in numbers.
As Stars were Tempered, they grew even stronger, too! Getting Stars to Tier Five was the equivalent of gaining the very strongest of Spirit Seeds, except they stacked, and gave more Mana to throw out there on top of it! Combined with the Spell Penetration boosts and Caster Level increases learned from Wizardry, the forces we trained here started to improve with shocking speed, Seven Star Formations and more helped with increasing Mana and breaking through rank after Tier as they did so.
The forces of Coralost and Outer Gabon grew in number and in strength, although much of this was kept quiet. Sage Ojibwae did once come close and try to investigate, and the Auras of four King Beasts promptly chased him away. His imprecations to be told of what was happening were largely ignored, and many of his spies did not return to inform him of what was going on.
We’d all seen the video of him waking up with the headless body of the Violet Cardinal of the Black Curia in his arms, his shriek of horror and alarm, and the reports of his turning Libreville upside-down looking for those responsible. The fact he had actually paid for the force that had successfully put down King Magogo without him and in doing so united the outer provinces of Gabon against him had probably not helped his fuming paranoia.
Which was good. If he abandoned Gabon, Sama was going to hunt him down and kill him promptly, seeing no reason to let him live.