The Land: Forging (Chaos Seeds Book 2) (3 page)

They were met at the edge of the glade by a female sprite.

“Well met, Sionavar,” she said.

“Well met, Daniella,” Sion responded sounding annoyed. “I have told you to call me Sion.”

She simply laughed, “The Hearth Mother wants the two of you to come to the Tree. Follow me.”

The three of them started walking towards the massive tree. Richter was able to successfully fight the impulse for all of ten seconds, “So Sionavar, huh?”

“I DON’T want to talk about it!”

“Hahaha, whatever you say… Sionavar!”

Sion half drew his sword again and pointedly looked at Richter’s legs. The laughter trailed off into a bout of coughing.

When they arrived in front of the Hearth Tree, Hisako was standing with three other older sprites. “Welcome back, Richter of the Mist Village. Welcome back, my son. Were you able to retrieve the supplies you needed?”

Richter smiled and said, “Yes. In fact, I would like to give you a small gift.” He pulled ten Potions of Clarity from his bag. One he placed in her hand, and the other he laid at her feet.

When she saw the motes of light in the vials, her own eyes began to sparkle, “This is a wonderful gift! Thank you!”

“It is a small token of appreciation for what you have given me. I am sure you have many wonders associated with your Place of Power Hisako. I would like
it if, in addition to
helping each other with defense, we could become trading partners as well. I know we could both profit from this arrangement.”

The sparkle in her eyes was replaced with a crafty gleam, “I am sure we can come to some arrangement in the future. I’m not sure our relationship is quite strong enough for a standing trade agreement right now, however. Perhaps if you employ an experienced trader we can discuss it again. If we do become trading partners, do not expect special
treatment, just because you are friends with my son!”

Richter was confused by her refusal, but then a prompt came up.

Know This! Both parties involved in making a trade agreement must either be a minimum skill level of Initiate or employ a trader with that level. The stronger the relationship between two civilizations, the lower the level of trader required.

Richter nodded to himself, the rebuttal now making more sense. Not wanting to make the situation awkward, he gave a small laugh and answered, “I wouldn’t have it any other way, Hearth Mother. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

She gave a laugh of her own, “Well enough talk of state
. We have repaired your armor, and made a few, ahem, improvements.” The tired looking elders moved out of the way. What was behind them took his breath away.

You have found: Sprite Helmet of Mana. Defense +7. Durability 30/30. Item class: Rare. Quality: Superb. Type: Light Armor. Weight 1.3 kg. Mana +50.

You have found: Sprite Breastplate of Brawn. Defense +12. Durability 60/60. Item class: Rare. Quality: Superb. Type: Light armor. Weight: 6.1 kg. Strength +8

You have found: Hardened Sprite Bracers. Defense +10. Durability 30/30. Item class: Rare. Quality: Superb. Type: Light armor. Weight: 3.0 kg. Dexterity +7.

You have found: Studded Sprite Gauntlets. Defense +7. Durability 40/40. Item class: Uncommon. Quality: Superb. Type: Light Armor. Weight 2.2 kg. Increased climbing +10.

You have found: Greaves of the Wood Sprite. Defense +9. Durability 45/45. Item class: Uncommon. Quality: Superb. Type: Light armor. Weight: 2.8 kg. Movement speed increased by 10%.

You have found: Reinforced Sprite Boots. Defense +8. Durability 35/35. Item class: Uncommon. Quality: Superb. Type: Light armor. Weight: 1.8 kg. Silence +15.

Congratulations! You have obtained an entire set of matched armor: Enhanced Sprite Armor. Defense given by each piece increased by 25%. Special Bonus: 50% less noise made while moving through
forest
. Special Bonus: +20% Earth Resistance.

Hisako looked at him and chuckled, “Close your mouth,
Richter. That’s how you catch flies.”

“Hisako, this is too much!”

“This is well within my power Richter. My son is wearing an almost identical set of enhanced armor. The resistances are different, and there are one or two other small variations, but otherwise you are now wearing the armor of a sprite warrior. We fight for the good of the
Forest of Nadria
, and you have proven that you do as well. The least that I can do is to give you better protection.”

Richter looked at Sion, “You have been wearing enhanced armor? And I was the one that had to run from the giant
skeeling?”

“What giant skeeling
,” Hisako asked confused. Sion looked at the ground and kicked it with his foot.

Richter looked at the stats of the gauntlets
, “And increased climbing? Is that how you always make it into the trees so easily? When I asked, you said I just needed to apply myself!” Richter’s voice was getting louder.

Sion looked up with a smirk on his face.

“And your Strength? I asked you how you were so strong when you were so much smaller than me! You told me it was because of ‘secret sprite exercises!’ You had me do all of those pushups!” Richter’s hands
leapt out to choke the little man who was now cackling
with abandon. Richter was sure he heard chuckles from behind him too, but he stayed focused on manipulative
leprecaun
in front of him.

Violence would most definitely have ensued if Hisako had not placed herself between the two of them. “Peace, Richter, peace! My son has a lot of growing up to do! I am sure he is sorry!”

Sion kept laughing and shook his head. Richter glared at his Companion. Tears were coming out of the bastard’s eyes now!

“Ignore him, Richter! Look what else we have for you!”

Richter exhaled heavily, “Okay Hisako. You’re still a dick, Sion!”

“Sion! That was not funny,” she half-heartedly admonished. Was that a note of suppressed laughter
in voice
? When Richter looked at
her,
all he saw was her normal serene mask so he couldn’t be sure. Still not quite trusting her calm exterior, he decided to let the matter drop. For now, anyway. He would be getting even with Sion at some
point, though.

Hisako looked to one of the older sprites who nodded back. He went inside of the Hearth
Tree
and came immediately back out. His arms were holding… something. When he shook out his
burden, though, Richter whistled softly in appreciation.

You have found: Cloak of Concealment. Defense +4. Durability 30/30. Item class: Rare. Quality: Superb. Weight: 0.9 kg. Increased Concealment all terrains +25.

Richter placed his hand on the cloak and felt the fabric. The smooth cloth molded to his skin. It almost seemed to anticipate his movements. Putting it on completely, he found that it reached down past his calves. The molding quality of the cloak kept it close to his body as he moved. At the same
time,
it was light as a feather, and when he extended his arms, it easily fell away. It would be perfect for either stealth or battle.

“Once again I am overwhelmed by your generosity,” Richter said his irritation forgotten as he played with his new and latest toy.

“Fight well Richter. Enjoy our gifts,” a wry expression found its way onto the Hearth Mother’s face.

Richter smiled back, “Thank you again. There were one or two other things I would like to discuss. Master
to Master so to speak.”

Hisako nodded, “Daniella, take Sion to his armor. The rest of you, thank you for your help. I will speak with Lord Richter alone.”

Everyone began to shuffle away. Sion and Daniella appeared to be arguing
good-naturedly
as soon as they started walking together. In a short period of time, Hisako and Richter were alone in the
see
of golden grasses. They walked leisurely through the meadow. The grasses reacted to the Hearth Mother’s presence, both bending out of her way and also caressing her outstretched hands.

“So what did you want to discuss,” she asked.

“First, I’m guessing from your surprise about hearing about the giant skeeling, Sion did not tell you about that battle?”

“No, I had no knowledge of this. I have never heard of a
skeeling any larger than a raccoon.”

“Well, to make a long story short, we found an Offshoot. Sion said it was a baby Hearth Tree or something like that. The Seed Core was still active, and a
skeeling
had been feeding off of its energy. It had grown to the size of a bear. We killed it and skinned it. Once it was dead, we were able to recover the Seed Core.”

“Now I’m sure there is still a lot I don’t know about it,” Richter continued, “but Sion told me that if could grow any number of magical trees. He also told me that you would not mind
me planting it in my village. Now I can only imagine what an amazing asset it could be for my village. Whatever benefits the tree might provide however, your friendship is more important to me. The Seed Core seems like a relic of your people. I will give it to you if you want.” Richter pulled the brown sphere from his bag. The green veins pulsed with light. Once more, he was filled with a feeling of contentment, and the smell of warm rain on grass filled his nose.

“My son was correct. If the Forest led you to the Seed
Core, then it belongs with
you. But,” a speculative look crossed her timeless features, “perhaps we can help one another. Your Mist Village is the physical manifestation of your Place of Power, much as the Hearth Tree is the physical manifestation of mine. I
am guessing that your village is still at level 1,
however. I have access to certain
high-level
spells that you do not yet. Both of our Places of Power share a Life ley line. As long as the spell is of that school there shouldn’t be any… unforeseen consequences.”

“Okay,
you lost me. What do you mean consequences,” Richter asked.

“It is never
a good idea to recklessly blend magic of different types. It can cause short or long term effects that might be good or ill. To fully explain would take years of study, but an example is casting
Heal
on a zombie. A spell of Life cast upon a creature of Death can have the opposite effect. In this case, casting
Heal
actually harms the zombie because it is undead. The same spell would
might heal a vampire, though,
because it is living dead. As you can see the details can get quite frustrating and irritating. It is best not to imbue an already powerful relic with a blessing that just might negatively react with the massive Powers your village is built upon.”

“Makes sense,” Richter said. “So what blessing did you have in mind?”

“There are several, but what I suggest is the Life Blessing of Growth. Seed Cores grow much quicker than other trees, but it would still take years for even a level 1 tree to develop. I can advance the growth one level, which would equate to ten to fifteen years of growth. The Blessing of Growth is also the best because we do not know what type of tree will be made. I don’t know if Sion explained, but Seed Cores create whichever type of tree best serves the needs of the lives around it. We can almost be assured it will be a strong
tree, though if you plant it at your Place of Power.”

“I will trust your judgement
. The growth blessing sounds wonderful, but you mentioned that I could help you as well. What can I do?”

“I am sure you remembered the chrysalis from the staff?” Richter nodded. “Unfortunately, we have been unable to revive the Royal Pixie inside. I can only deduce that the pixie has been in stasis for too long. That, coupled with the chrysalis being used to fuel that evil weapon, must have made its life spark flicker dangerously low. We need an infusion of Life energy to safely extract it from the chrysalis. A Seed Core is the purest expression of Life Magic that I know. Unfortunately, the Hearth Tree will not make another for at least one hundred years. That is why I need your help. When a Seed Core is planted, it releases an amazing amount of Life energy. You can save the pixie trapped in the chrysalis. Will you help?

You have been offered a Quest: Resurgence of Light I. The pixie race was destroyed many years ago by a magical plague. One chrysalis has been recovered. One last light has been
preserved. When you plant the Seed Core at the Mist Village, will you help Hisako birth the Royal Pixie Chrysalis. Reward: Unknown. Yes or No?

Richter nodded at Hisako, “Of course I will help.”

She breathed a sigh of relief, “Thank you. The ceremony for the blessing will take place at tomorrow morning. I will need to use all the mana that can be generated by my Place of Power, and I have already used a large amount to enhance your armor. My stores will
replenish
by the morning. As long as we get the Seed Core planted within a week, the Blessing will last. While you wait today, I have a suggestion. You should work with Yoshi. He is an adept in swordsmanship. He can teach you how to use that sword on your back.”

“Thank you. I would be honored,” Richter said somewhat surprised. It never occurred to him that the diminutive sprites would have a
high-level
swordsman. Before he let Hisako slip away, there was one last piece of business to address, “Do you know where the bugbear and goblin camp is yet?”