Chapter 710: Introductions (2/2)
“How is this possible?” Wayland murmured, taking a step forward.
“Found her in a dungeon far north, some rituals happened millennia ago, killed a monster and a problematic undead, and here we are,” Ilea said and shrugged.
That doesn’t explain anything!
Wayland nodded to himself, turning around as he glanced at his three shadows. “This is real, right? You’re seeing this too?”
All Navalis could do was give him a confirming hand sign, one only her team would understand but she didn’t really consider it in the moment.
“Yeah, it’s real alright. Or some high level illusion spell… mind magic maybe,” Rock said as he looked around with his hammer in hand.
That thing won’t help you here, Navalis thought.
“There is nothing like that here,” Sulivhaan said in a calm voice. “Greetings, Greater Lich Owl,” he added and bowed. “Are you a representative of Hallowfort?”
“I… no… I just…” the Lich said and looked at Ilea, her eyes glowing a little brighter.
Aki stepped over and touched her ethereal back with his morphing silver arm, long fingers ending in spikes.
Navalis gulped at the sight.
“She’s just a resident. The Meadow teaches her to handle her overwhelming power. So that she doesn’t just kill people with her presence alone,” Ilea explained.
The Meadow… teaches a four mark? Navalis didn’t dare look towards the grass.
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The edges of the domain were clear, usual travelers moving through the hidden crevices in the lands, lightning distorting the perception of the all seeing Meadow where it truck into the ravaged stone. The day had come like any other and yet it felt significant. More so than most others.
Life was brought into the world, and taken away. New beings would awaken, others forever gone, their chance at enlightenment snuffed out by the cruel hands of reality. Civilization as known to Elos would soon reach another stage, long range teleportation capable of bringing together species and peoples of distant lands. Their values and history would clash and grate, the comfort of their walls breached by the ways of the fabric. The fate of thousands lay on the scales of time, and the Meadow saw those at the very center.
The potential of endless wars and unprecedented death was a reality, and still it trusted the one being at the center of this new age. She herself neither considered the true significance of her character in the weave of relations nor did she want the responsibility that came with such a position. And precisely because of those facts, was she the perfect initiator. Those she had gathered around her were beings from different pasts, species of all kinds of make, beings that would fear and fight each other for a sheer lack of similarity.
Ilea had enjoyed the title given to her, the position of Primordial Arbiter, yet she failed to grasp the significance of its existence. Even the Meadow was impressed at the trust given to her, not just by itself but by the beings present in this historical event. An undead Lich, feared by those who had encountered such, cursed by others. A Taleen machine, accepted by Elves. Humans in the North, about to meet the Council of Hallowfort, awakened beings they would’ve considered monsters without the presence and significance of Lilith.
The Meadow couldn’t help but feel pride. To have come here, to be part of it all, to have helped her reach further understanding, as resilient to learning as she was. This world held promise after all, the beings full of hope and potential. It considered the wasteland of Erendar, the spirits of death and the sky, roaming long forgotten lands, civilizations of hardened warriors unable to survive the harsh existence of their realm. And yet their descendants had remained. Saved from extinction by Lilith herself. In all but power, it would seem the woman was closer to divinity than the Meadow itself.
Its eyes moved west, always on the lookout for her enemies. Should they choose the path of violence, the Meadow would respond in kind. Hallowfort would stand, against those who would seek its destruction.
At the same time it watched the frozen humans, fear and confusion obvious as they were introduced to creatures beyond their comprehension. The conversation with Trian had shifted to practical matters of the Sentinels, the man both polite and responsible, though a slight distance remained, the common fear or reverence present just like with most awakened creatures that came in contact with the Meadow. Instinctual perhaps, much like a young Star Chaser would avoid the Miststalkers of the northern night.
Few were entirely uncaring. Ilea of course, her immunity to risk and inability to sense danger most certainly correlating with her fast growth in magical power. Her ability to heal the mind was likely the only thing that had kept her sane, a foundation now to her grounded state. Human and yet so much more. Even the Meadow could not grasp the potential future of its… friend. Verena and the self proclaimed Dragonkiller were close in the way they treated its presence, though a deep seated instinctual fear remained. “Perhaps Ilea is really just too stupid to understand my true power.”
“Hey, I heard that. Your true power is fucking terrifying by the way, you’re like multi fucking dimensional,” the woman replied.
Amusing. A simple conversation of course, compared to the eighty three threads of thought it currently discussed with the Faen fragment that called itself Twin, and yet it couldn’t help but enjoy the simplicity of its human friend. A genuine connection, perhaps something deeply rooted before even its own awakening had fully come to be. Something it had fulfilled with the connection to traveling Elementals and beings of similar power. It considered itself a being of guidance, but there was enjoyment in the perceived equality it felt towards Ilea, though her assumption was preposterous. Never could she be as glorious a Meadow as itself. A part of it knew the day would come, and it hoped it would, for it if didn’t come to be, it meant the death of either one or both of them.
New possibilities opened up as the Fae explained in simple terms the complex weave of this realm. Its mind was limited still, and yet the Meadow remained its student. Still it felt pride in the fact that it could offer at least some considerations the being had not yet had the opportunity to decipher. A direct meeting with the true Fae would not come to be but perhaps a conversation, through the fabric itself. First it had to prove itself, to the boundless source of knowledge and magical power of the primordial being. Unlike Ilea, it couldn’t impress it with a few simple physical attacks, though perhaps that approach would’ve been more successful with the Baron. An opportunity squandered, but here it was, communicating with yet another of the ancient kind. It thanked Ilea once again for the opportunity, keeping a few of its eyes on the confused and overwhelmed humans, impressed with so little, entire new worlds opening before them as they were introduced to the beings living in its domain. Time moved, ever onward, life vibrant in all of its perception. It was a good day, under the northern suns.
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“I guess those are the strangest people around. Well Elana is gonna give some of you a few headaches too, but she’s at least human,” Ilea said as she looked at the group.
They were still a little overwhelmed but at least there hadn’t been any magic thrown so far. Likely because I didn’t yet invite the Elves. That can wait for another day I suppose, she thought. Ilea had refrained from healing their minds, she knew at least Sulivhaan would be offended at the gesture. He would want to process everything himself.
Enjoyable in a way, because while his mask prevented her to see his face, she could gauge quite enough with the rest of her perception. The team of Shadows was on guard, Navalis at least calmed a little with her telepathy. Rock was Rock, and Senia was ready to stab something, not that it would do her any good with her level in her mid two hundreds.
“When are the others coming down?” Ilea asked the Meadow.
“About twenty minutes,” the being replied. “I can inform them if the humans require more time.”
“I think they’ll be fine. The important ones at least,” Ilea replied. “Last and least important is the Meadow,” she said and gestured in the general direction of the being.
“Wouldn’t it be the most important?” Kyrian asked with a slight smile.
“We’re far too uninteresting for the multilayered eldritch being,” Ilea mused.
“Untrue,” the Meadow spoke, half the people in the group turning towards it, those capable of comprehending its telepathy trying to find the source. “Greetings, representatives of Ravenhall. I welcome you into this domain. Whatever the outcome of these talks, I guarantee your safety and a way back, should the corresponding gate not be damaged in the duration of your stay.”
A large stone plate with the same greeting scratched into it appeared before the group. “Should you have any questions or concerns, simply ask and I will try my best to satisfy your curiosity.”
Ilea snorted. “Very mysterious, well done,” she said and clapped slowly.
“I am merely trying to set them at ease,” it said to her.
“No mention of your world domination plan?” Ilea asked.
“It’s supposed to be a surprise, Ilea,” the Meadow replied.