Chapter 6
Enter the Faerie Glade
"Fuck Faeries." The first words from Roddick-Tems mouth, after everything had settled down. They stood still, at attention on the tiny island within the small sanctuary. "Pretty much everything you've encountered so far, was probably the doing of that Faerie."
"What are they?" Asked Kunjao, finally settling down on the log near the fire.
"Beings of the Fae." Came Roddick, "Not merely ‘beings who live in the Fae,’ they are of it. Like the entire Fae exists to create Faeries. Their power within the Fae is vast, as they can shift and change it to their desire. They delight in nothing more that luring outsiders, and toying with them. Until they eat them, that is."
"They eat… people?" Maggie asked.
"To be fair, you guys just ate a Gnome." Star pointed out.
"That's the tamest thing I can imagine them doing, once they’re bored, yes." Roddick-Tem paced back and forth on the stretch of the island, "And you lead it here. I hadn't attracted its attention yet. Now it knows where I am, oh, oh no, it knows where I am…" Roddick stopped and breathed.
"Well, that's alright, cause we're gonna kill it." Maggie said, her emerald eyes shining from the fire. The others nodded around her at the idea.
"Oh, you're going to fight a being who literally controls this hellscape we find ourselves in, good luck with that." Roddick snapped.
"You haven't seen us work together," Star said, lighting a cigarillo, and sitting down, "We're an amazing team."
"Yeah," Roddick agreed, "Amazing you're not all dead. You crash into the forest, stumble dick first—" he paused, "—or vagina first," acknowledging the female companions
"Cloaca, actually," Da'La corrected.
"I know," Roddick said quickly, "I'm doin' a thing. You stumble in here, and so far you've gotten lucky, but that, that thing. That's luck running out. " Roddick waved his hand toward the forest.
"Well if you don't want to join us, you can stay in the grove for the rest of your life." Kunjao said.
Roddick stopped, as if he hadn't considered that yet.
"Look," Lodak spoke, "We're tired. Oi fink if we get some rest, and rejigger in da mornin', we moight be able to come to a conclusion."
Roddick didn't answer.
"I think that's an excellent Idea, Lodak," Maggie answered, yawning. After a beat she turned to Da'La, and whispered, "So you have a Cloaca?"
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Roddick had disappeared into his hut, shutting the tarp behind him. Da'La had gotten Maggie comfortable, and, as Da'La was preparing an evening tea, Maggie had fallen asleep. Da'La, after ensuring her charge was sufficiently comfortable, took off her dancer's shoes, and sat at the bank of the island, putting her feet into the cool glowing blue water.
"Wonder what makes it glow," It was Star, sidling up to sit beside her.
"Question for Roddick, I imagine." Da'La answered.
"Can't sleep?" Star asked, as he sat down, and used his arms to hold himself up.
"Unfortunately, zhere isn't exactly a salt vater source, and zhis vater is, a little too big for my brine," Da'La tossed her bag in her good hand.
"Isn't that dangerous?" Star asked.
"I don't deteriorate if I don't submerge." Da'La gave a slight chuckle, "Later I vill fill a hole vith water and bird bath myself in a brine, zhat should do for now."
Star pulled out his cigarillo tin, he opened it and presented it to Da'La. Da'La smiled and took a cigarillo from the tin. She accepted the light from Star's flip lighter, and puffed a few puffs from her beak, before taking in a large breath.
"Most people go into a coughing fit by this point," Star said, lighting his own cigarillo.
"As Mon Divinica aptly put, 'Ve had a life before our oath.'" Da'La said, taking another drag from the cigarillo. "Zhough I don't do zhis as much, hurts zhe lungs."
"Yeah, you're telling me," Star lightly rubbed his broken ribs, and coughed a bit. "About that life…"
"Growing up a C'Shyk in Meril Cove, particularly a female C'Shyk, it had its… challenges." Da'La said, vaguely, "I picked up skills in zhat time." Da'La moved her feet against the cool water. "Vhat about you? Vhat did growing up here in Ja Reyil teach you?"
"Wish I knew." Star said.
"Vhat do you mean?" Da'La moved her eye toward Star.
Star sighed, took a long drag of his cigarillo, and reached into his pocket. He pulled out an old petinad pewter locket. It was on a leather string, which obviously was a replacement for a chain. It was a small oval, with decorative patterns, and filigree carved on the outside, but it was dead, a small smashed bullet lodged in the center. "It's my old memory box. It happened only a few weeks into learning how to shoot guns." Star said. "I was only 56, just a boy, really, and I had heard about guns, and travelled to Heret Betar to learn about them from their creator. Least that's what I can piece together."
"Vhat do you mean?" Da'La asked.
"Xericoz rely on our memory boxes." Star explained. "It's how we store generations of memories. They not only keep us sane, the keep us knowing who we are. I know my name is Star, I know I'm from Twilight Run, I know I had a Clade, that's about it before the day this happened." Star repocketed the locket.
"I'm so sorry," Da'La turned fully to Star, sitting on the side of her hip. "Zhat sounds… awful." She rested her hand on his shoulder.
"Can't miss what you don't remember." Star said, his eyes smiling, "Plus, it gave me time to build this Star." Star pointed to himself.
"How much time?" Da'La asked. "How old are you?"
"How old are you?" Star turned fully to her, flicking his cigarillo and pocketing the stem filter.
Da'La chucked, she should have seen that coming. "Zhirty-four." She answered, still smiling.
"142." Star said.
"You're quite fit, for a man in middle age," Da'La took her hand off his shoulder, and teased his collar.
"You're pretty fit for an old crone." Star shot back, his eyes smiling.
Da'La's mouth lay agape in a smile, she playfully punched him.
"Ah!" Star coughed, "My ribs," he let out a small laugh through the pain.
"I am so sorry!" Da'La's face went from playful to worried, using her one good arm, and grabbing Star's shirt and pulling it up to inspect the damage. His body was rail thin, and grey like the rest of him.
Star pulled his shirt back down, and patted Da'La's hand, "It's quite alright." They shared a moment of quiet, after a beat Star asked, "Does Maggie know?"
"Vhat?" Came Da'La, who sat back and adjusted her emerald sling, and took a puff from her still lit cigarillo, and then flicked it, "Zhat in four or five years I vill begin to rapidly deteriorate? And if I'm very lucky, and eat vell, and exercise, maybe five years after zhat I vill meet Merne myself?" Da'La paused and looked out at the creek. "No… She has more pressing matters, she doesn't need to know zhat."
Star said nothing, letting her stare out into the middle distance, while he stared at her for longer than he anticipated.
"Room for one more?" Kunjao sat on the other side of Da'La.
"Ve vere just discussing mortality." Da'La's blank stare turned to a smile as Kunjao sat next to her.
"Save ya some time, we're gonna die. Gotta do what you can with the time you have, is what I say." Kunjao said, he grabbed a rock from a bank and skipped it across. Oddly, the rock sat in the middle of the water for a moment, before catapulting back to him, he ducked, and it hit the hut. Everyone looked around to make sure nothing else was around.
After finding nothing Da'La was the first to let out a laugh, followed by Kunjao, and finally Star, they laughed a deep laugh, a hearty laugh, the kind where care leaves and the sides ache. As they slowly settled down, Kunjao spoke.
"Look, you're an incredible fighter, Da'La. Never met someone go toe to toe like that."
"It took a lot of training; Blade Dancing is a complicated art." Da'La said.
"Yeah, I see…" Kunjao said, amorously. "Look, when we're in Twilight Run, how ‘bout you come an’ join me for a drink?"
Something in the centre of Star's stomach ached.
Da'La was taken slightly aback. "I am beginning to feel like… how do you say La Reine du bal?"
"Well?" Kunjao followed, doing his best to give a polite smile. The failure of which Da'La had to admit was endearing.
"Vell, as you said, ve're going to die, so do vhat ve can vith vhat ve have." Da'La came back with a smile. "I vill have to check vith Ma Soeur, first, of course."
"Naturally," Kunjao smiled at her.
Star's heart sank for a moment, but after a breath he picked out a cigarillo. She was an adult, after all.
"Now," Da'La said again, "I zhink you both need rest, ve have a long day ahead of us."
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Maggie was praying into her sigil, it began to glow gold as she vocalized a chant in a dead tongue, and she placed her sigil against her throbbing, shockingly painful, and now itching leg. It was worse when she woke up, the kind of blinding pain the mind conveniently forgets about when we're healthy and standing on two feet.
"Your flesh mending spells could use some work." It was Roddick, who was staring from out of his hut.
"It's not a spell," Maggie said, concentrating.
"Yeah, it a 'miracle'," Roddick rolled his eyes.
"I take it you don't believe in miracles." Maggie sighed, looking up at the glowing eyes of the Magician Manifest.
"I've been doing Magic for several lifetimes now." Roddick leaned forward with a grin, "Every miracle worker I've ever known was either doing tricks, or using magic to people who didn't know the difference."
"That doesn't mean some of us aren't actually given gifts from the gods." Maggie shot back and returned to trying to speed up the healing of her leg. At this rate it would still take weeks.
"You're going to need commune with gods, with what you're about to do." Roddick laid back in his hut.
"At least we're doing something." Maggie spat.
"Point taken," Roddick sat back up, "Dying is doing something. Now sure how useful."
"And you think staying here is going to save your life?" Maggie said, indignantly.
"I think I hav--" Roddick began.
"Le ferme" Maggie said sharply, "We might go out there and die, but all you're going to do is wallow here, you callow branleur. You're going to starve here, too afraid to leave, because of a little girl in the forest." Roddick opened his mouth to speak, "Je t'ai dit de te la fermer." Maggie cut him off. "You're going to either get so hungry you have to leave to find another Gnome, or more likely, you're going to curl up in your hut, and as you're preparing to meet you maker, and I promise you, she's there, the people who died because your cowardice will be the last thing your mind will conjure." Maggie breathed, "Or not, I don't think you even remember them, so as they say in my mother tongue, va te faire enculer."
Roddick sat in stunned silence, as Maggie and him locked eyes.
"Lodak!" Maggie called.
"Yes, mum?" Lodak's thundering steps approached Maggie from the other side of the hut.
"Pick me up, and let's gather the rest." Maggie ordered, "Let's get out of Roddick's sight."
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The group had met up around the Dancers where they saw the Faerie last. They knew it was a trap but had no other clues. They proceeded past the dancers into the woods beyond. The thicket welcomed them, and scratched their skin, but thanks to Da'La, still only wielding one sword because of her broken arm, and Kunjao, who due to bad depth perception required a few more swings, they tore through the bramble and emerged in a rather wide dirt path. The trees were taller here, and the canopy of the forest widened out to reveal, for a time, the rainbow sky, which rolled like clouds and lit the ground. To the sides of the path were sharp drops, ditches from presumably rain, in which water trickled.
After a while of walking down the path, Kunjao held up his hand, "You hear that?" Everyone quieted, in the distance they heard… a baby crying. Da'La and Kunjao's eyes widened, and the group broke out in a run to find the source. The crying got louder, and more frantic. Did Faerie's actually kidnap children? Ran through Maggie's mind, as she held tightly to Lodak's neck, who sprinted ahead.
The crying seemed to surround them, and then suddenly, stopped. Maggie's heart hit her stomach, she feared to imagine what had happened, and jumped when she heard rustling coming from the trees. She turned and saw a lion with a long beard exit from behind a tree, she stared at it, as it turned its face, it's face which was that of a human child with freakishly big blue eyes. It opened its mouth, full of sharp claws, and let out the sound of a baby crying.
Before Maggie could scream, the baby-faced beast leapt, and knocked Maggie off her perch to the ground, Lodak struggling and failed to catch it. It bit into Maggie's shoulder, and she let out a cry.
Swiftly, the lion was kicked in the side, tumbling off of her, and standing over her was Da'La, and Kunjao stepped beside Da'La. The lion scrambled to its feet and faced the pair of them. Da'La and Kunjao charged in unison, leaping over Maggie, as the lion ran toward them as well. As they readied their weapons, the lion sped up, and ran through the space between them, adjusting, Kunjao and Da'La turned and ran into each other, stumbling and falling to the ground.
Star pointed his pepperbox as the beast ran at Maggie, and pulled the trigger, the gun smoked, "Fuck" Star exclaimed, and started to pop out his fresh rounds, all of them were toast. The Tiger nearly reached Maggie before Lodak came in with a swift kick, and sent it flying, skidding on the ground. Lodak bent over, and began to pick up Maggie from the ground, when the babyfaced lion stood to its feet and locked eyes with the giant. The four-armed Veck froze in place, a chill cascading through his body.
Da'La had sprung into action, followed in toe by Kunjao, and she leapt into the air, doing a spin extending one blade, the lion, ducked and juked, narrowly avoiding the blade, and ran passed her, and Kunjao slid toward it, blade extended out. It leapt over him, kicking him in the head with its back claw before running toward Maggie again, Da'La giving chase, and Star, panicking, loading his gun with fresh rounds.
As the lion closely approached Maggie, who, using her arms, backed up as quickly as she could, but not quick enough, it closed the distance, opening its maw to bite down.
A flash of heat and blue flame crashed into the side of the creature, sending it off of Maggie, skidding on to the ground. Another flash went over Maggie and hit it again as it tried to gain its footing. Then another. After the third fire bolt gained purchase on its hide, and its side burnt and smoking, the lion bolted back into the forest.
Maggie looked back, and there stood Roddick, hand out, the crystal on the back of his hand glowing.
Lodak, who had come out of his stun, continued to pick Maggie from the ground.
"We had it." Maggie said, as the group formed around her, not looking as sure.
"I told you, up til now, you got lucky." Roddick said, pocketing his bejeweled hand.
"What are you even doing here?" Maggie jeered.
"Saving you from a Yayu." Roddick said, "You're welcome by the way."
"I said, we had it." Maggie said.
"No, we didn't," Star said, "we're lucky he came across, he was going straight for you."
"Yeah, the Faerie knows how to strike at you now," Roddick said, "It won't be so easy."
"So vhy did you come, if you knew it vould be harder?" Da'La asked.
Roddick grimaced, "I thought about what Maggie said, and you were right," Roddick turned to Maggie. She gave a slight bemused look, "Well, except about the miracles and makers and stuff, that's still bullshit." Her smile disappeared. "I don't want to wait there and starve to death. This way I can at least die quickly." Roddick confessed.
"Not exactly my point…" Maggie began.
"And point of order?" Roddick ignored her, "I remember all of them. I remember everything. That's my curse."
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The group, now including Roddick, moved through the forest. The trees had begun to curl inward, and a thick rolling fog chilled and covered the floor of the forest. The air became chilly, as the forest folded over them, blocking light more and more as they walked down this long path.
Star took up the back, and Roddick lead the group, having been in the Fae longer, Roddick felt confident in his ability to navigate the Fae. Star checked his ammo, as Kunjao slowed his pace to walk alongside Star.
"Hey." Kunjao said, stepping alongside the gunslinger.
"Hi." Star returned, puzzled.
"Look, when I got up this morning, I realized, when I came in on you two, you guys were having a moment…" Kunjao said, slightly embarrassed.
"It's alright," Star said, holstering his gun.
"Not, it wasn't." Kunjao said. "I was drunk with Lodak and failed to read the situation. Look, if you want me to back off…"
"No," Star said. "Da'La and I are friends, if you want to pursue her, my blessing isn't the one you need to get." Star gestured toward Maggie, who upon noticing him waved.
They waved back, Kunjao leaning to star, "How do I even begin…"
"It's easier than you think." Star said with a chuckle, "She'll probably insist on planning it, to be honest."
"Well, that's a relief." Kunjao smiled.
"So, you got into a life of crime, and yet you felt so bad because you thought Da'La and I had a thing?" Star looked curiously at his walking companion.
"Yeah, that's a long story." Kunjao said, "Mostly dealing with Lodak, honestly."
"You guys are good friends." Star said.
"The best." Kunjao nodded, "Tell you what, when we get to Twilight Run, I'll buy you a pint, and I'll tell you all about it."
"You have a deal--" Star said, and the group stopped.
Roddick held out the hand with the jewel on it. They stood quiet, as Roddick drew glyphs in the air, muttering something, then holding his hand out forming a box with his forefingers and thumbs. He stood cold for a second, "Move into the treeline!" He whispered in a half yell toward the ground and ushered them to the trees.
Roddick put his back to a tree, as Lodak and Maggie crouched. Da'La activated her camouflage and readied herself. Kunjao unsheathed his sword and put his back to another tree, and Star pulled his pepperbox.
After a moment the ground shook. It shook again, and yet again. Peeking up, Maggie spotted a tree trunk hit the ground, then another tree trunk came out behind it. It was attached to a gargantuan being of gnarled branches, maybe twice as big as Lodak, that curled up forming a ribcage of pointed thorny bramble, and giant branches, that twisted into arms, and unfurled into flowery claws. Its head was a treetop, filled with green leaves that swayed as its trunk legs walked along the path from where they were heading.
Kunjao readied, but Roddick gestured him to stop. Kunjao, indignant, looked past him to Maggie and Lodak, who both nodded. The giant tree creature walked past the group and paused. Everyone held their breath as they heard the subtle creaking of tree branches. A smell like moulding leaves overtook the group, as they heard the shuffling of leaves like the shifting of branches in a storm.
After a moment the ground shook again, then again, slowly getting quieter as it moved away from them.
When the sound stopped, Kunjao spoke, "Why did you stop us?" He looked at Roddick, "We could have killed it."
"What do you think you would have done against that Dryad?" Roddick came back, "Your sword would have broken against its leg, and it would have crushed you."
"I think I'm going to crush you!" Kunjao approached the wizard.
"Kunjao," rumbled Lodak, standing up leaves still clinging to him, adjusting Maggie on his back, "Look." He pointed with his lower left arm.
Kunjao looked and the multicolored fireflies gathered, dancing like murmuration of starlings in the path, and then funnelling down the way. The group exchanged glances and headed toward the fireflies.
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The forest closed in as they followed the fireflies, the light growing dimmer and dimmer as they headed down, deeper into the forest. The ground began to show an overgrowth of vines, so that before long the floor of the forest was replaced with an array of vines and roots, that the group negotiated over. Before long the only light left, was the light of the fireflies, which danced in the darkness.
The forest had become claustrophobic, Lodak ducking to prevent from being hit by the branches that weaved overhead. As they moved down, the bramble closed to a small point, big enough for them to move in one by one. First Roddick, the Da'La, Lodak and Maggie, then Kunjao, and finally Star, as they squeezed through the small opening in the thick forest.
Then it opened up into a pitch-black glade. The trees still weaved its branches overhead, and roots and vines, dead and alive covered the floor. The trees grew so close as to form a wall around the edges of the glade, and the only light, the strange spectral fireflies, spread out in the grove, giving them a dim light to see a small pale very young girl, no more that 6 or 7, with black hair that shadowed her eyes, wearing a white nightgown, barefoot and standing on the vines. Moving to the side of her were two, impossibly big dire wolves, whose fangs and teeth stuck out of their drooling jowls.
"This has been fun." The little girl giggled.
Roddick ran. He made a break for the opening, which closed up behind them, and a vine lashed out from the ground and latched on to Roddick's ankle, sending him to the ground.
"No, not now. We've only begun to play…" The little girl, smiled.
"What do you want?" Maggie asked, locking eyes with the creature.
It looked up, its eyes were hollow black things, that pierced through the darkness. "Fun." Her voice came sweetly. "It's been really fun watching all of you in my grove. Your screams were so funny when you arrived."
Maggie's heart went cold.
"But you know what's more fun?" The girl leaned forward and smiled. Her smile widened uncannily and kept widening. Her cheeks split open, and her jaw, like the jaw of a snake, like a cut from ear to ear, opened wide and unhinged.
The fireflies went dark.
Out of the darkness Maggie saw the Faerie emerge and latch on to Lodak's head, tearing at it with sharpened claws, the thundering voice of Lodak howled in pain, as the Faerie looked directly at Maggie as she tore chunks, her head blurring and moving unnaturally, shifting from position to position, moving her head, but not using the space in between where her head was, and was not, her black pools staring deeply into Maggie's soul the entire time, the girl then disappeared. The disappearing was even more unsettling. She heard Da'La yelling to the right, then Star to the left, she helplessly listened as her friends struggled against the thing.
An arcane sublimated voice came from the darkness, and 3 spheres brightened, and light filled the room as they danced across the ceiling, Roddick was standing, his gem glowing, his face filled with fright.
The Faerie was currently latched, like a wild animal on top of Star, she looked up, and leaped back to the centre of the grove. The group blinked watching her move, it was as if the space between her and her destination was not used in the transit, not like she teleported, but she moved in a way the mind simply refused to recognize.
The wolves rushed.
Da'La and Kunjao readied their blades, Da'La using her good arm to wipe the blood from her brow. As the wolves approached, Da'La leaped over her wolf in a spinning gainer, slashing it's back and landing behind it, Kunjao, planted his feet, and caught his direwolf with a stab, running it through, as it bit off a chunk of his shoulder, Kunjao cried in pain, as blood rushed down his arm.
Star let out a shot toward the wolf attacking Kunjao, the force hitting its body, and it releasing his shoulder in a whinny.
Roddick drew glyphs in the air, while playing cat's cradle with his hands, speaking an arcana tongue as electricity danced from the glyphs to his gem, he let it out toward the fairy, a crackle of electricity thundering toward her, striking her. The energy hitting her in the chest, her hair standing on end, blowing from the impact. But she stood, unmoved, unphased by this display of arcane prowess. Staring at her split face and cut smile, Roddick yelled, and ran behind Lodak, taking shelter.
Lodak pulled out his Oboe and played a low note, as it began to shine indigo.
Da'La spun on one leg and made a ballet leap to the side of the giant wolf, with her sword crossed over her, the direwolf bit as she moved past it, it snapped, and grabbed her broken arm. Da'La gasped in pain, as it thrashed, tearing her sling apart, and pulling her to the ground.
A vine lashed out from the ground, grabbing Lodak's Oboe, and jerking it out his hand, he flailed uselessly, as it crushed the Oboe, the Faerie, cocked her head.
Kunjao ran his direwolf through, and cut its neck open, freeing himself of it, and he ran toward Da'La, but the distance between him and Da'La widened, as the grove stretched before him, he turned to the Faerie, and still not using the space between them, it leaped on to him, and began thrashing madly at him, tearing flesh from his arm, her head blurring wildly in front of his eyes.
She giggled, "This is fun." her voice never changed from the innocent girl voice, even as she thrashed.
A golden vine struck out from the forest, and grabbed the Faerie by the arm, and chucked it away from Kunjao. Maggie held out her sigil, controlling the vine, "You're not the only one who can control vines, puntain." Maggie yelled.
While they were busy wrestling with Faerie, Star turned to the wolf who thrashed Da'La, and pointed his Pepperbox, a sphere of air condensed around the barrel, and he shot out a bullet followed by a shockwave that pummelled into the wolf, sending it flying. He rushed toward Da'La, but as his feet landed, he felt the sand of a bank beneath his feet.
Star looked around, he was still in Roddick's sanctuary, Da'La was sitting at the bank of the sanctuary, looking out to the glowing blue water. He approached, confusion washing over him. "Da'La?" He called; she didn't answer. Dreamily, he knelt down beside her, and she turned to him, her face split like the Faeries, and black pools stared at him, "Sit vith me!" She called, her voice sounding innocent.
Da'La looked up at Star, who was frozen in place, she managed to her feet.
"You want to play with vines?" The Faerie looked at Maggie. "Ok!" She said, in an excited voice, and vines began to converge and coalesce from the ground, forming a gnarled claw out of the ground, and hitting it, lifting itself up, a treetop head emerged from the ground, as a dryad pulled itself, or rather formed from the vines of the ground.
Da'La slapped star, who blinked, "Da'La? Please tell me that's you." Star focused his eyes on the C'Shyk Dek'Har.
"Ve don't have time," she gestured toward the giant living tree that was pulling itself to its feet.
"What the hell are you doing, Roddick, we could use your help!" Maggie called back behind her.
Roddick cowered behind Lodak, shaking, "She's too powerful, we're going to die!"
Maggie gave out a frustrated grown, "Fine," She began to chant over her Sigil, gathering golden energy around it.
Kunjao charged the Dryad, slashing at his arm, cutting off a finger, stepping forward with an overhead slash, he split the wood of its weaved branch arm, and a final step, swung his sword against the broadside of its left.
Ting.
The sound of a breaking blade echoed through the glade. The monstrous beast let out a roar, and with its other hand wrapped it around Kunjao, and lifted him from the ground. It squeezed and a sickening crack came between its hand.
"Kunjao!" Lodak screamed, his voice filling the glade.
Maggie's eyes glowed golden, as she waved her hand toward Da'La, whose eyes began to crackle with golden lightning. Da'La sprang into action, her broken arm now dangling to her side, she blurred across the field toward the giant tree monster, leaving a trail of Golden lightning. The lightning trail arced on to the branching arm that held Kunjao, and with a yell, Da'La spun into the air, forming a circle of lightning with her spinning blade, cutting the stalk of the branch that was its arm, clear off, and hopping to its head.
Star followed with another shockwave bullet, crashing against its frame, stumbling the tree backward then click, he had to reload. Da'La negotiated around the treetop head of the beast, leaving a trail of lightning as she danced her deadly ballet around its stalky neck, her blade whirring as she spun gracefully in the air, the crackle of lightning following her.
Lodak stood, his eyes watering.
"It's not over, Lodak," Maggie said, focusing on her spell, "We can do this, if you help, please, Lodak."
At that moment the Faerie came flying across the battlefield in its unnatural spaceless movement, crashing against Maggie, and landing on her, tearing and laughing. The lightning faded from Da'La, and a hand of vines and twisted branches grasped around Da'La, and chucked her against the wall of trees, her bouncing off and hitting the ground.
Star raised his pepperbox, a shockwave forming at the Dryad, and it exploded right in front of him, sending Star careening backwards, and the barrel cracking.
The Faerie continued to tear against Maggie, who screamed and pleaded for help, as the Dryad began to slowly make its way toward Da'La, who lay unmoving.
Thump, Thump, Clap, Clap, Thump, Clap Lodak began to stomp his feet, and clap all four hands in a rhythm. In time with the beat, he stepped over the Faerie, and kicked it off of Maggie, who was bloodied and scraped. His body glowing indigo, he continued his percussion as indigo smoke rose from his body, and into the group’s nostrils. Their blood pumping, their focus narrowing.
Star pulled his Messenger rifle from his back, and quickly released a shockwave to the Dryad, cocking the bolt he released another, it stepping back with each impact. The Faerie leaped into action back at Maggie, who held her sigil out in front of her, and force of golden light bulged from her sigil and struck against the Faerie, sending it slamming against the tree wall.
An arc of blue fire, screamed against the air, striking the dryad, it catching on fire. Roddick-Tem, finding his footed, standing triumphantly on his feet. The Dryad fell to its knee, dissolving in blue fire, as two more shock waves tore pieces of its body. The group turned to the Faerie. Lodak still stomping and slapping his percussion, Roddick weaving glyphs through the air, Maggie chanting from the ground, and holding her sigil, Star reloading his gun. They each released at once, a blue fireball, a wave of golden force, an orange flame of fire, and a shockwave careened through the air, hitting the Faerie against the wall of the glade.
The Faerie slowly began to turn black, her wide smile never leaving, she giggled, "That… was fun." And she deteriorated into ashes.
The trees yawned above them, as the glade loosened, and the canopy roof opened slowly to reveal stars. A blackened night, and the moons glowing and giving light to the perfectly ordinary glade.
Maggie looked over, and dragged herself toward Da'La, who lay on the ground, unmoving. She panicked, "Lodak!" Star and Roddick ran over to assist, but Lodak, ignoring her, ran to the severed branch in the middle of the glade.
They managed to move Maggie to Da'La, who without checking, face covered in scratches, blood, hair matted to her head, she chanted and held her Sigil to Da'La, pushing with all of her conviction, it on to her Dek'Har.
Da'La coughed and breathed heavily inward. Maggie broke to tears. "You're ok!" She cried and buried her head into Da'La's chest. Da'La weakly lifted her good arm to Maggie and patted her back.
Lodak let out a cry. They looked up, as the giant man, with tears streaming from his face, lifted with his lower arms, the crushed, lifeless body Kunjao.
"Fix him!" He yelled at Maggie. "Please! Fix him!"
GM's Notes: I made a creative decision while running Schancier a long time ago: Death is permanent. I made this decision for a reason, I wanted death to have a sort of gravitas. When a player or an NPC died, I wanted the players to know, with certainty that it was not a matter of tracking down and bribing a powerful priest to resurrect them. It was a matter of burial and coming to terms. Not all stories get told, not all characters get to reach their potential. Sometimes they die.
Now, of course, while this was a decision, I felt was right, I don't think it is universally right. I've seen many games with Resurrection mechanics succeed, because they use them as opportunities. It's really a matter of your priorities. Mine are to give my players very real experiences, that challenge them, and yes, sometimes hurt them, not as characters but as players. If that's not your goal, the resurrection opens up opportunities I eschew, such as quests to Resurrect characters, cool rituals, deals with death gods, etc. But I feel the trade-off was worth it.
Another creative decision that makes how I run my game differently is my attitude toward difficulty. If you notice in the last chapter, the players breezed through the challenge, and during this one, they narrowly scraped by. This is intentional. I find that a game that is always challenging and every battle draining all of the resources of the players, feel crushing. They stop being fun, because each rise in power comes with a new escalation of power, everything feels the same. On the other hand, if every battle is a breeze, every challenge easy, no matter the circumstance, the game never feels worth it, any challenge feels more like busy work. So, I slide the scale. I give gimmies to the players, battles in which make their team feel powerful, their abilities feel like they are real heroes, all while they don't notice I'm winding up my other fist.
This makes it when I throw an unusually tough battle at my players, the fall is felt around the table, as they scrape desperately for any footing. This balance, of maybe a little too easy, to holy fuck this is hard, is difficult to pull off, but I highly suggest GMs look into it. The easier battles help the players become excited at battle and feel like powerhouses, but the hard battles bring them to their knees, and make them earn their victories.
I may also talk about fumbles later, as these help facilitate this same thing randomly.
Written by: Jack Shawhan
Proofread and Edited by: Alhana Escher
Original Characters played by:
Maggie - Donovan Hill
Star - Stephen Kirk
Roddick-Tem - Joshua Horton
Schancier, Whispers of Ja Reyil, and all associated copyright Jack Shawhan 2020.
