"You are leaving?" Alder cocked his head to the side. "Where to?"
"I'm continuing my journey."
"You cannot leave, little blossom. You are still training."
I sighed. He avoided eye contact and went back to eating. I expected this to be difficult, but I did not expect him to pretend like he didn't know what I was talking about. It wasn't like I wanted to leave either. I just couldn't stay here forever. I kept wringing my hands together as I tried to think of a way to just… get out and say it.
"Alder…" I said softly. "I can't stay here anymore. I need to go to Othesh."
He shook his head. "It is too dangerous."
"But I've been training, and I feel-"
"You have not trained enough." He interrupted.
"I feel confident enough in my skills." I insisted, leaning forward.
"I cannot let you go, Cahira. Not with the Atrophy growing each day."
I sighed in frustration and leaned back in my chair. "I know it's dangerous. It was always going to be a dangerous journey. But I cannot let that dissuade me. And I can't have you holding my hand the whole way through. You're the Fairy King. It's not your duty to protect me."
Alder's eyes darkened. "It is my duty to protect you. You are in my forest. My domain. And I cannot simply stand by and let you go out there and get yourself killed. I care for you too much to let that happen."
"So you just let it happen for others?" I scoffed, rolling my eyes.
"Cahira, that is not-"
"No!" I yelled, standing from my chair. "This is completely unfair! I heard the entire fight with Stolas and he's right! You can't be treating me like I'm special! You can't save me if you aren't doing the same for everyone else! What are you going to do, leave Elfil Forest and follow me all the way to Othesh?"
Alder stood as well. His expression was a mixture of pain and fear. "You are special, Cahira! You have made my life better and I just want to do the same for you! How can I stand by and let you walk face first into danger?!"
"Because I am nothing but a traveler to you! I enjoyed our time together as well and I've learned so much, which I'm grateful for! And now it's time for me to move on, Alder! Just let me go!"
"I cannot and will not let you go! Ever!"
I ran my hands through my hair in anger and frustration. He just wasn't getting it. He couldn't decide this for me. I wanted to scream, to shake some sense into him. I understood that he wanted me to stay safe. Still, I can't just waltz through life living in his shield. Living in his shadow. I suddenly felt so suffocated. I backed away from the table.
"I need some air."
"Cahira, wait!"
I stomped out of the kitchen and walked towards the staircase. I was so stuck in my mind, I didn't even notice Stolas charging down the stairs. He ran straight into me. I stumbled back several steps before looking up at him. My eyes widened. It felt like it's been ages since I last saw him. He looked worn out, tired, and… frightened.
"Stolas?"
"Little elf." He breathed, looking down at me. "I'm sorry, I-"
I didn't let him finish. I wrapped my arms around him and squeezed as tightly as I could. I missed the bratty raven more than I had thought. And I needed comfort from anyone other than Alder. He hesitantly hugged me back, one hand awkwardly patting my head. I sighed and closed my eyes.
"You were gone for ages, Snappy. I almost missed your training."
"I had work to do." He murmured.
I stepped back and gave him a weak smile. The air was tense. Alder and Stolas stared at each other, most likely having another silent conversation. I looked between the two of them. Why couldn't I be included? I wanted to hear what they were saying. I crossed my arms.
"Uhm… hello? I'm still here."
"Right." Stolas cleared his throat. "Alder, the Atrophy has spread. And I don't think that-"
The tree shook. Actually shook. All of our gazes immediately turned upwards. There was a large boom before the tree shook again. I was about to ask what that was before Alder grabbed my shoulders and started pushing me away from the stairs. His grip was strong as I struggled against him. He shoved me into my room.
"Hey-!"
"Stay here." He raised his hand, his tattoo glowing. A transparent green doorway appeared. "You will be safe."
My eyes widened. "This is so not fair!"
"Stay here, Cahira. I will not have you in danger again." His voice was firm, leaving no room for argument.
"Stolas!" I looked over to him for help.
He sighed and pushed his glasses up his nose. "I'm sorry, Cahira. It's bad out there. You can't fight this time. It's too dangerous and I won't make the same mistake again."
They both walked away from me and towards, what was probably, a group of dangerous Atrophied. I growled in frustration and banged my fists on the magical door. It wouldn't budge. This was so fucking stupid. What was the point of all this training if I didn't get the chance to use it? It's not like I was going to charge in there and just try to kill everything in my path. I could provide support.
For once, I had confidence in myself. Alder's need to keep me sheltered and Stolas not wanting to make mistakes again was killing that confidence. All my life I had to deal with people talking down to me, saying I wasn't good enough. I know I used to lack in everything I did. I only had music and writing to keep me afloat. But now, I had a chance to prove to everyone that I was useful.
Flops hopped over to the door. She looked up at me. Poor thing had grown attached to me and now we were separated by Alder's stupid door. I sighed and leaned down. She pawed at the door sadly. I put my palm flat against the door. I could feel the magic coursing through it. I could feel the emotions and intention behind it. Protection, fear, and an overwhelming sense of compassion. I sighed and closed my eyes.
I needed to use what Alder had taught me. Of course, he never taught me how to dispel magic. But he did teach me how to change the effects of potions. I could do the same for this, couldn't I? So I focused on how I was feeling. What I wanted to do. My anger, my confidence, and my desire to help compressed into a ball in my soul. I let out a soft hum and let those feelings flow down into my hand and then into the door.
I felt something soft and heavy jump into my lap. I opened my eyes and looked down. It was Flops. I had done it… I had taken down the magic. My eyes widened before I picked up Flops and set her down on the bed. There was no time to give myself a pat on the back. I needed to go outside. I grabbed my quiver and slung it over my shoulders before grabbing my bow. I holstered both of my daggers in my belt.
"I'll be back, Flops."
When I got outside, It was absolute chaos. The magical dome made from the talismen was cracking. Stolas was in the sky, Aeternum glowing a mix of gold and blue in his hands. His wings flapped as he sent a dark blue wave of energy towards the group of Atrophied currently attacking. I wouldn't even call it a group. It was a monstrous horde. A whole pack of lupi, several cervidae, and two large ursidae were currently attacking the dome and trying to get inside. All of them were corrupted by the Atrophy.
"Cahira!" Alder's eyes widened as he ran over to me. "How did you get out?!"
I glared up at him. "I used the magic you taught me, asshole!!"
"Get back inside!" He hissed, reaching for my shoulders.
"No!" I growled as I backed away. "I am here to help!"
"Alder! It broke!!"
Stolas's yell made us both whip our heads towards the horde. The dome had shattered and the talismen all turned to dust. I swallowed thickly as roars of what can only be described as the sound of nightmares filled the forest. My hands shook as I grabbed an arrow from my quiver. I wouldn't back down from this fight, no matter how terrified I felt.
"Cahira…"
I shook my head. "I'll stay back. I won't get in the way. Just let me support you and Stolas."
Alder didn't argue. He just nodded solemnly and ran forward. I took several steps back and nocked an arrow. I raised the bow and took a deep breath. I would shoot whenever I had an opening and wasn't in danger of hitting Alder or Stolas. The raven was currently battling half of the mob. A cervidae reared its antlers and tried to hit him. Aeternum easily knocked back the creature. Stolas was faster than I had ever seen. He was a blur of blue and gold as he tried to push back as many creatures as possible.
Alder had the other half of the mob tied under a tangle of vines. Both of his fists squeezed tightly together as he tried to crush him just like he did previously. Sweat formed on his brow. He was struggling. One of the ursidae broke free and took a swing at him. Alder lifted his arms and crossed them. The ursidae seemingly hit a hard block of air. It glittered a faint green. It was a shield.
My aim shook as I tried to get a clear shot. Seeing them use their magic and still struggle to hold the Atrophied back instilled fear in me. Was this disease really so terrible that even the strongest people I knew couldn't fight against it?
"Shoot!" Stolas shouted, glaring back at me. "Don't freeze up, little elf!"
Right. This was a battle. I couldn't afford to get distracted. I couldn't afford to have a repeat of last time. I took another deep breath. That buzzing feeling flowed through me once again. After I felt the magic go into the arrow, I shot at the rampaging ursidae. The arrow lodged into its shoulder. It sent out a wave of purple lightning. Its muscles tensed up before it fell twitching to the ground.
"Great job, little blossom!!" Alder called. His vines moved to recapture the Atrophied ursidae.
"Keep it up!" Stolas said, a proud smirk on his face.
I was doing it. I was actually helping them. With a determined huff, I started to shoot as many arrows as I could as Stolas and Alder worked on fully killing them. Some of them only grazed the Atrophied, but it was a big enough distraction for them to deal the final blow. My body ached. I had never used this much magic before. But I had to carry on.
Stolas was able to get to the ground. He wiped out all the cervidae and three of the lupi. I was running out of arrows. Alder pushed back to give Stolas support. His vines could only do so much and he was too busy making sure none of them got loose. The last ursidae left let out a pained bellow.
"Alder…" Stolas said, looking over at the Fairy King.
He nodded. His eyes were filled with pain. "I know. I am sorry, my beloved creatures. I will save you from your pain."
Stolas flew backwards towards me. With a large shout, Alder clapped his hands together. A surge of glittering pure magic spread out and towards the remaining horde. As soon as it hit them, they exploded into a cloud of leaves and a sludge puddle of Atrophy. The wind carried their aching cries away. My eyes widened. Why the hell didn't he do that before?! I lowered my bow. And then I dropped it. I ran forward, but my legs gave out. I collapsed to the ground. My body was drained of all my energy.
Alder teleported next to me. "You did good, little blossom. Rest."
Stolas crossed his arms. "Well, that went terribly. It's gotten worse. It's taken up part of the forest."
"I know."
"We need to figure something out."
"Damn it. I know." Alder cursed, starting to pace. "We have to go see him."
Stolas shook his head, scoffing as he did. "Oh, fuck no. I'd rather fight these monsters than go see that fucker."
"I do not want to see him either. However, we are out of options. If both of our combat skills and magic can barely push back the Atrophied, then we need help. Even if it means getting help from someone you do not like."
"Don't like." Stolas rolled his eyes. "More like revile."
I groaned as I tried to sit up. Alder pushed me back down. "Can someone tell me what you guys are talking about?"
"Stay still." Alder's hand brushed my hair out of my face. "We are talking about the king of Acros, little blossom."
My eyes widened and I sat up, despite Alder's efforts to gently get me to lie down. "The king?! You mean…"
"Yes. It looks like we're going on a trip." Stolas sighed in defeat.
"Cahira…" Alder spoke softly before looking down at me. "We will travel to Othesh."