The Endless Forest

Felix grinned as the elves filed past him and entered the hatchery. The look on their faces said it all, they were in complete shock.

“I-it’s amazing…” Noria stuttered out. She was clutching Lorem’s arm as they walked. The large elf was clearly distracted by her and only nodded.

“Wow.” Yedril said breathlessly. He nearly bumped into his sister who had come to a complete stop in front of him. Solanna was staring straight up into the fictional sky above them.

“Amazing, isn’t it?” Felix said.

Only Yedril responded and even then, only with a nod.

He cleared his throat in an attempt to regain everyone’s attention. “Alright, listen up.” He started after they finally looked back at him. “There is only one big rule here. Do not touch the dens or eggs. The dens themselves have runes that will activate, if you aren’t careful.” I’m not even going to mention the portal for now…

“And the eggs?” Solanna asked, beating Noria to the punch.

Felix’s grin widened. “You might accidentally hatch them.”

They all looked at him with a mixture of confusion and wariness, but before he could continue a commotion from the back caught everyone’s attention.

“Ah, Master return!” The familiar voice sounded out. A moment later an old gray kobold appeared from one of the dens.

“Watcher! There you are!” Felix called out, moving past the group to catch up to the kobold. “How have things been since we were all gone?”

“Eggs fine. Watcher finishing task Master give.” Watcher turned his gaze over to the elves. “They new Masters?” He asked.

Felix gave him a nod. “Yes, assuming everything goes according to plan.”

The kobold stared at the group, as if sizing them up. “Plan will work, Watcher sure of,” he suddenly stated.

Chuckling, Felix gestured for the kobold to follow and made his way back to the group.

“Right, time for introductions,” he said and gestured to Watcher. “This is Watcher, he is the leader of the kobolds and takes care of the eggs.”

The old kobold gave a simple bow. “Watcher is servant of Masters.”

It was Lorem who introduced himself first. “I’m Lorem and it's a pleasure to meet you.” The elf held out a hand to shake.

Watcher studied it for a moment before grasping it.

Breaking away from the handshake, Lorem gestured to the elf at his side. “This is Noria, my–”

“F-friend! I’m his friend.” She blurted out. Her face was red from embarrassment.

Felix cocked an eyebrow at that. It was obvious that they were more than friends, but he decided to leave it alone for now. Besides, should I be the one to talk? His memory of the previous night flashed through his mind. No, I don’t think so…

Watcher looked at her curiously, but bowed again. Lorem, on the other hand, looked a little dejected before quickly forcing himself to smile.

The kobold turned his attention to the last two.

It was Yedril who decided to speak, even as his sister opened her mouth. “Yedril, and this is my sister, Solanna. It is a pleasure to meet you, Watcher.” He gave a little bow himself.

“Yes, it’s really nice to meet you.” Solanna echoed. “I hope we don’t disappoint,” she quickly added.

“Masters think you fine. Watcher think you fine.” The kobold said reassuringly.

“Alright,” Felix interjected, “That’s pretty much it for the tour. I’m going to allow you all to do as you wish for the remainder of the day. I suggest getting yourself familiar with the area, though I’ll ask you all to refrain from going too deep into the forest. It isn’t completely safe.

“If you have any questions, I’ll be sticking around for a little bit but I do have some training to do. Speaking of which… Starting tomorrow morning we will begin your training. Both me, Eri, and Watcher here, will be teaching you everything we know about dragons.”

He paused, waiting to see if anyone would speak up. Seeing that no one did, he continued. “Well then, you all are dismissed.” Dang, that felt good to say…

Aluin stood off to the side of his window, staring down to where Eri and Kyrith rested. He knew he was weak, that he should be resting. But the world wasn’t going to stop and wait for him…

The truth was, he hadn’t slept at all the night before. Ancient memories had kept him up. Ever since the ceremony– No, before it, he had started replaying his life in his mind. The good, the bad, and the terrible.

He was not a perfect person, he knew that. He may be a Sage, but he was still capable of all the trappings of mortals. But then, what was the difference? What made him a Sage? He knew it wasn’t the spirit, Mother Forest had only given him a way to live, to become a Sage.

It wasn’t wisdom, that was a myth, a lie. Sure, he had wisdom, that was a perk of being so long lived, but no. That wasn’t what made him a Sage. There were plenty of wise men, even now.

What made him a Sage, he decided, was that he was willing to stop and listen. To stay neutral and be an arbitrator. It was a difficult task, one that was often at odds with his fellow elves. In many ways, he was the jury of his peers.

That was what he was thinking about as he stared down at the two. He knew what he must do, but is she ready? Will she accept, or will she reject it all?

From the day he met her, Aluin knew that Eri would never become a Sage. It wasn’t in her, that will to be neutral, to be fair and impartial. She was fiercely loyal, to a fault. Something that could not be within a Sage.

In comparison, he had made mistakes but he always tried to be open minded. It was why he’d agreed to help Felix, despite all the misgivings he had. In the end, he was grateful he’d done that.

The human was exactly what they needed.

In fact, Aluin believed that it was the human who was pushing Eri to become what he truly wanted her to be.

A Queen.

Noria wanted nothing more than to explore the hatchery. The dens and walls were absolutely filled with enchantments, but more importantly, she wanted to study the eggs contained within.

Her passion for animals, beasts, and even dragons ran deep. However, most did not know this. She kept this little secret close to her heart, and only two people knew it. Her mother and Lorem…

Sadly, after the passing of her mother, Noria found herself having to put her passion for animals aside and focus on being a Mage. It wasn’t that she hated being one, but it wasn’t really her decision. Bernel village had all but begged her to take up the post, despite her not wanting it.

But now? Things are different… I might not have put much thought into it, but it was my decision to come here. If Felix asks me for help with enchantments, I don’t think I would mind…

That honestly made her feel better, not to mention she had Lorem. With him, she felt she could take on the world.

A wave of embarrassment flooded her mind at that thought. So stupid! She chided herself. A quick glance around told her no one noticed, she quickly let out a sigh.

The temptation to go pester Felix about the eggs was high. She wouldn’t dare go against his rule of disturbing the eggs, but her repressed passion for them was just too great. She needed to leave, and so she did.

Noria slipped out of the hatchery without anyone noticing. She wasn’t trying to hide, but somehow it felt…daring. Like she was on an adventure, exploring long forgotten–

Her face reddened again, and she quickly tried to think of something else. Her eyes quickly fell upon the manor.

Solanna had been right, if a bit crass. Noria had never been here and, now that she thought about it, she couldn’t remember her mother giving any real details about the place. But when she pictured a manor fit for a queen, this wasn’t it. At least, not on first impressions.

What the other woman had failed to detect was the enchantments. The manor alone was practically vibrating with mana. It wasn’t dense, but it felt…alive. The hatchery took that even further, just walking up to it had sent a shiver down her spine.

Her thoughts continued to wander on about the details of the entire place until a commotion caught her attention. Listening, she could hear the sound of snarls and growls, followed up by the distinct sound of kobolds.

Curiosity got the better of her then, and before she even realized it, she was walking around the Hatchery. She came to a sudden stop, however.

Before her were a group of kobolds, all wearing armor and weapons. Most of it looked to be finely made equipment. The kind of equipment that no kobold should be able to afford. In fact, she thought she saw some dwarven markings–

Her attention quickly shifted as another growl sounded out. Noria gulped and took a step back as she realized what was making that sound.

It was a dire– No, six dire wolves, and each was chained and muzzled. As she examined them, she noted that most were sporting serious injuries. One in particular was completely limp.

However, that wasn’t all. Nearby, wrapped up in a sheet, was what looked like a body. Judging from its size, she was almost sure it was a kobold. A couple of the wolves were staring hungrily at it…

“BACK!” A blue, male kobold shouted as he kneeled down next to the limp wolf. He began to inspect the wounds while the others gave room.

“It live?” A green kobold asked. It was female, and she had a bow slung around her body.

“Yes, need healer else won’t.” The blue kobold said sternly. He completely ignored the growls from the wolves.

Another kobold spoke up, this one red. “Gern go get healer!” He started to take off.

“Wait!” Noria shouted, surprising herself. The entire group of kobolds turned to look at her. “I’m a–”

“You healer?” The blue one asked, cutting her off.

“Well, I know some–”

“Good. Come, wolf die soon.”

She gulped. Why did I do that? She wondered to herself. Those…beasts could easily break through those chains if they aren’t properly made…

Seeing her hesitate, one of them, Gern, came up to her and took her hand. “Healer no worry, chain strong. Gern protect.”

Her heart raced while her mind was stuck on repeat. What am I doing? What am I doing? What am I doing…?

She nodded slowly and let the kobold guide her over.

The blue kobold began to speak as she came to a stop over the wolf. “It hurt, bad. Rib broken, leg broken, lung has hole. It drown in own blood…”

Noria was barely listening, she was doing everything she could just to keep her breathing steady. She made the mistake of glancing over to where the body was.

“No, healer focus on living. No help dead, kobold help dead.” The blue one said, snapping her back to the wolf. “Hurry,” he continued, “it no have long, soon join dead.”

Sucking in a lungful of air, she closed her eyes and dropped to her knees. Biting her lip, she thrust her hand onto the wolf’s body.

Noria was no ‘healer,’ but every mage worth a damn knew at least some basic healing spells. However, now she just needed to calm down enough to remember them…

“Mamma! Come quick!” She shouted as she threw open the door.

“What is it dear?” Her mother asked, rushing over to her.

“Look! It hurt its wing and can’t fly!” Noria held up her arms and revealed a bird. One of its wings was clearly broken.

Her mother gasped, “Oh dear… Quick, bring it over here.” She followed her mother to a desk, and set the poor bird down. It chirped out in pain as it tried to flap its wings.

“Can you heal it, mamma?” She asked nervously, she hated to see any animal suffer.

Her mother carefully examined the wing. “Of course, but mamma will need your help.”

Noria nodded, trying not to tremble.

“Now dear, listen to me well. This is going to be painful for it, but you must hold it down and keep it from moving. Can you do that? Can my big girl handle this task?”

She nodded again, this time not even trying to hide how she felt.

Her mother smiled at her, beaming with pride. “Good, then let’s get to work…”

The memory faded as she felt her mana well up inside. The spell came to her almost immediately.

“Hold it down, don’t let it move!” She shouted.

A moment later, she started casting a spell.

Felix came rushing out from the hatchery after hearing all the shouting taking place. He wasn’t alone either, as everyone else quickly followed him.

What greeted them was not exactly what they were expecting.

For starters, Noria was unconscious and being dragged away by several kobolds. Then there were the wolves… They growled and fought against their restraints as one of them thrashed around on the ground, howling in pain.

Lorem rushed past him to Noria as he spotted Gern. “What happened?!” He shouted, preparing his mana for a fight.

“Wolf hurt bad! Healer say she heal… She heal but faint.” Gern answered, quickly looking between Noria and the thrashing wolf.

Felix let out a curse. They needed to get the wolf under control before it realized it wasn’t restrained. “Help me! I’ll sap its mana and you restrain it!”

He didn’t wait for a response and quickly darted to the dire wolf. As he lunged onto the beast, he activated his mana sight and prepared his mana.

The wolf was starting to come to its senses and snarled at him, snapping its powerful jaws next to his face. Trying to shove its head back down, Felix felt the sensation of his mana flood his body.

With it, and the fact the wolf was still weak, he easily regained control. Not wanting to waste another moment, he began sucking away at the beast’s mana.

It continued its thrashing, but after several agonizing seconds, the dire wolf went limp. Seeing that the fight was over, he slumped down fully onto it.

“Chain it… Now.” He mumbled, hearing its steadily beating heart as he rested on its chest.

After catching his breath and ending his magic, Felix rolled off and sat up. The other wolves were staring daggers at him.

He shook his head and stood, before carefully walking past them. He made his way over to the elves, who had gathered around Noria. Both Lorem and Solanna were checking her over.

“How is she?” He asked, doing his best to not sound worried.

Lorem looked up, there was panic in his eyes for the briefest of moments.

“No broken bones, a few scrapes though.” Solanna said, rather calmly given the situation.

Thank the gods… “I’ll go get Eri, bring her to the manor.” He received a single nod from the elf before he left.

***

Felix plopped down onto a couch within the drawing room. The entire ordeal had exhausted him.

Noria was alright, and had only fainted from excessive mana use. The wounds that she did have were only superficial and were easily healed by Eri…

He closed his eyes to rest, but someone chose that moment to sit down next to him. It was Eri and she looked concerned.

“Lorem with her?” He asked cautiously.

“Yes…” She trailed off for a moment before twisting her body to face him. “What exactly happened?”

Felix took a deep breath. “I…honestly don’t know. What Gern said is that she tried to heal a dire wolf. It was hurt, I think. That’s about all I was able to get out of him before I had to go and stop it.”

She frowned at that last part, her eyes falling to his hands.

He held them up to her. “I’m fine, see? Just a few minor scratches, nothing that I can’t handle myself.” It’s not the first dire wolf I've fought… He thought to himself, not bold enough to say that out loud.

She let out a sigh and shook her head. She opened her mouth as if to say something but stopped. Instead, she decided to sit back and lean against his shoulder.

“What am I going to do?” She finally said.

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

“I mean, my own healing magic is nowhere to the level of Master Aluin’s. If something bad had happened to her…or you, I don’t know if I would be able to help.”

“Why do you say that?” He asked, resting his head against hers. “You did a wonderful job with Zira.”

“Yes, but… But what if it’s worse–”

Felix wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer. “Shh, you’re not being fair to yourself. Zira was in a dire situation, you managed to get her back to walking within days. That is impressive.”

The sound of someone rushing down the stairs caused them to immediately separate. A second later Yedril appeared.

“Noria is awake. She wants to speak to you, Felix.”

He nodded and stood up. “Right, time to find out what happened.” With that, he left and made his way up the stairs.

Noria had been placed into the spare guest bedroom so as to give her some privacy. However, as he came to the room, he found the door opened and all the elves gathered inside. Their expressions gave him a bad feeling.

Uh, oh… This doesn’t look good. He gulped and entered.

“Noria, how are you–”

“I’m so sorry Felix! I got ahead of my better judgment and ended up making everyone worry… It was all my fault. I promise to be more careful in the future!”

Felix blinked.

“Huh?”