Path of Dragons - A LitRPG Apocalypse (BOOK TWO STUBBING AUGUST 15)-11-50. Empty
For a few hours, Elijah just wandered the grove, wondering where everyone was. He could feel them nearby, but so vaguely that they were barely even noticeable. It was similar to what he felt from the people in Ironshore. The city was within his grove’s sphere of influence, but not of the grove itself. That put it in something of a gray area when it came to his authority over them.
Could he integrate the city? Probably. Especially if he was willing to take Ramik’s Seal of Authority. But at the end of the day, he just didn’t think any good could come of that. He already had enough on his plate, and trying to manage a city was a burden he had no interest in carrying.
In any case, it took Elijah a few minutes to realize what the problem was. Of course, he’d only come to that conclusion a few moments before Nerthus appeared and explained everything. The grove had sent an entire group into the local tower.
“What? Are they prepared for that?” he asked.
Nerthus answered, “They meet the minimal requirements,” he said. “Young Soli will have some difficulty with the healing, but he should be able to handle it.”
“Oh, so more awakened their classes?” Elijah asked.
And they had. It almost felt like a dam had broken. There were still a lot of children that were too young to have been offered an archetype, but at least half of them had reached that threshold. And in the three months since he’d last been in the grove, they’d all established their classes.
Nerthus then gave him a breakdown of what they’d chosen. Three had taken the Warrior route and joined the Grove Sentries. They weren’t offered the class itself, but instead, were given lower-tiered variants. That further established that Rosabella was special. A couple had become Tradesmen, which the grove desperately needed, and there were even two Healers among them.
But Elijah was most excited about Soli’s class. Apparently, the grove had gotten its third Druid, though Soli had taken a much different route than Elijah had by becoming a Lifecaller.
“It is similar to Mistress Nara’s Naiad class, though with more of a focus on healing instead of nurturing a grove.”
“I see,” Elijah said, considering the young elf’s choice. There were others among the children who might follow the Druidic path, and as far as Elijah was concerned, that was a fantastic thing. Nerthus needed help, after all.
Pointedly, he never even considered his own efforts with the grove. He was less of a grove-tender and more of a wandering fighter who often brought powerful natural treasures to be integrated into the island.
And he wasn’t altogether certain how he felt about that. Once, he’d imagined his ideal life as him sitting on a beach in Hawaii, drinking fruity umbrella drinks with Nina. But now? He knew he’d go insane just sitting around like that, no matter the company.
That might have been fine for some Druids. Just not for him.
After Elijah was made aware of the grove’s progress, Elijah finally remembered the apple he’d gotten in the Hollow Depths. He’d intended to get it appraised before handing it over to Nerthus, but given that it’d already been sitting in his Arcane Loop for months, he suspected that leaving it there for any longer would send it down the route to being completely forgotten.
To Elijah’s shame, that tended to happen a lot.
He handed it over, asking, “You think you can do anything with this?”
Nerthus vibrated with excitement. “Where did you get this?”
“Found it in the Hollow Depths,” he answered. Then, he stoically told the story of how he’d failed to save the tree’s guardian, finishing with his efforts to set her progeny up for success. “There was one little spider that took a liking to me. He followed my trail all the way to my new dolmen. And that was miles and miles away. It looks like it’s made a nest there.”
When he asked if he should go back and collect the spider to be inserted into the island’s ecosystem, Nerthus outright refused to sanction that course of action. “It is a creature of the depths. Removing it from that environment would be a grave disservice. From what you describe, the island would be incapable of supporting a predator of that size.”
Elijah sighed. “Yeah. I kind of thought so. What about the apple?”
“I do not know what species it is, but it seems compatible with our climate – so long as we keep it out of direct sunlight.”
“There are a couple of caves on the south end of the island. They’re probably big enough.”
Nerthus agreed that was the best course of action. After that, he showed Elijah around the grove. Of course, he could sense everything in his domain, but it was nice to see the progress with his own two eyes. The pillar trees had grown considerably, reaching heights of nearly a hundred feet. They would grow much, much larger over the next year, though.
The same could be said for the remaining children – especially the sea elves. They’d spent so long struggling to survive, and they’d suffered the consequences. When he’d first met them, half of those children had been malnourished and a little dehydrated. Now, they were thriving.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; any sightings.
Living in the grove, where food, ethera, and vitality were in vast abundance, came with serious benefits.
“We mustn’t coddle them too much though,” Nara told him when he found her by the beach. Her budding reef had grown, albeit incredibly slowly. Already, the area had benefited, and the local sea life had become much more vibrant. “If we hand them every advantage, they won’t know what it means to work for it.”
Elijah frowned at that.
It certainly wasn’t an unfamiliar concept. His own parents had let him and his sister make plenty of mistakes and effectively guide their own development. They’d steered them in the right direction, and when necessary, punished them for errors in judgement. However, they had been adamant that their children be self-sufficient, and from an early age.
In service of that goal, they’d both taken quite a lot of time to teach them life skills. For his father, it was hunting, fishing, and wilderness survival. For his mother, it was life skills and foraging. Two sides of the same coin.
Either way, he and Nerthus went to plant the apple seeds in the cave. Elijah stuck around just long enough to see it sprout before heading out to begin his final preparations for his upcoming foray into the Broken Crown. Just because he wasn’t looking forward to it didn’t mean he would procrastinate. Indeed, he was now more aware than ever that he didn’t have time to waste.
Assuming that he managed to conquer the Primal Realm in a few months – which was about what the others had taken – he would only barely have enough time to turn his attention to the others. After all, there were still five Primal Realms to conquer, and only a handful of years to do it.
Two were currently – or would soon be – under attack. But even after Sadie overcame the Red Marsh and Elijah conquered the Broken Crown, there were still three others.
Time was ticking down, and unless Elijah got a move on, it would run out before they finished the job. And considering that Earth was at stake, he knew he couldn’t afford to indulge his self-pitying strategy of avoidance.
His first stop was to re-stock on food. Then plenty of water as well. In fact, he bought some barrels that would hold a few thousand gallons each, which he stuck in his Arcane Loop.
Next, he dropped off his armor with Griff so the dwarven Leatherworker could affect some repairs. He’d only scuffed it a bit, but Elijah had vowed not to enter the dragon Primal Realm unless he was entirely prepared. That meant freshly repaired armor.
After that, he filled his barrels with water from the stream that ran through his island. Just as he’d put everything back in place, he felt someone approach. He turned around to see Hope picking her way through the forest.
“You could have just waited for me back in the grove,” he remarked.
“No guarantee that you’ll be back there anytime soon,” she said with a bright smile. “I don’t mind a little nature walk.”
“Fair enough,” Elijah said. “What’s up? Miggy was fine when I last saw him. He’s been in the Primal Realm for less than a day, so I’m sure he’s still okay. Plus, I can still feel him.”
“Oh. Good,” she said. “But I didn’t come to see you for him. I wanted…I wanted to give you something.”
Then, she reached into her pocket and retrieved a bundle of what looked like twine. She handed it over. Elijah looked at it, unsure of what it was. The twine was interwoven with chunks of green dragonstone that had been polished to a dull sheen. “Uh…thanks. I love it.”
She giggled. “You have no idea what it is, do you?”
“Um…”
“It’s a bracelet!” she exclaimed. “And it’s not just any bracelet, either. It’s my very first peak Simple-grade item. Miss Mari says it’s only a little away from Complex, but I probably won’t pass that at least until I get my specialization. Maybe not until ascension.”
Elijah unraveled the bracelet, which looked like it’d been woven from hemp. It had a rustic charm to it, and he instantly took a liking to the design. “You really know my style, don’t you? This might be the most awesome gift anyone’s ever given me.”
“Even better than the suit?” she asked.
“Ah…well, I’m not really…you know…I’m not a suit person,” Elijah said, gesturing to his simple linen pants and shirt. He wasn’t even wearing shoes.
“You dress like a hobbit.”
“What do you know about hobbits?”
“Are you serious? I spent three years in bed after I was first diagnosed. I watched the extended versions multiple times.”
“That’s not that impressive. I –”
“Each month.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah. Don’t question my credentials. If I say you look like a hobbit, then you look like a hobbit. And that’s a compliment, by the way.”
Elijah almost laughed at her sudden change in demeanor. Normally, Hope was a shy, earnest young lady, but the second she started talking about Lord of the Rings, everything had shifted. Assertive was the kindest label he could give.
“Noted,” he said, giving her a smile. “That’s how I took it.”
And he had to admit that there were definite similarities between his chosen style and how they’d depicted life in the Shire. If he’d shaved his beard and grown some hair on his feet, he might’ve fit in as an extra.
As he considered that, Elijah bound the bracelet and fastened it around his wrist. Immediately, he felt a tiny tug of ethera. “What’s that?” he asked. “What’s it doing?”
“Oh. That’s the trait. It’s called Emergency Heal, and it’s just what it sounds like. If you get mortally injured, it’ll heal you,” she said. “I don’t know how strong the heal will be, but the drain you’re probably feeling is it recharging.”
“How much will it drain?”
She shrugged. “I’m not sure. I couldn’t test it without binding it.” Then, she asked, “Do you like it?”
“I love it!” he exclaimed. “Just my style, like I said, and I can always do with a little extra healing. I don’t know if anyone’s told you or not, but I tend to get hurt. Like, a lot. This is perfect. Truly, Hope.”
She beamed.
Over the next few minutes, he and Hope trekked back to the grove. Along the way, he pointed out a few interesting things. She was an inquisitive kid – well, young woman, if he was honest, but he had trouble seeing her as anything but a child – who took real joy in the wildlife. That infected Elijah, lightening his spirit.
But eventually, that had to fade.
After leaving Hope in the grove, he flew back to Ironshore to pick up his armor. He also stopped by the Branch to send off a few messages. Gunnar had contacted him again, and he’d revealed that Lefevre – his primary suspect – had proven to be a dead end. He had moved on to the next on the list.
He also sent a message to Benedict, letting him know that he still intended to tackle the Labyrinth of Dead Gods once he finished in the Broken Crown.
And at last, Elijah had everything he needed.
By that point, he’d gotten preparations down to a science, so it had taken less than a day to gather everything he needed. One glance at the sky told him that, judging by his previous experiences, the sun would soon set on the Painted Wastes. Considering the necessary nocturnal schedule of traveling through the desert, he decided not to waste any more time.
So, after heading back to the grove and letting Nerthus know what he intended, he took a deep breath, then looked up at the sky, at the sunlight filtering through the trees. It glinted off the polished dragonstone on his new bracelet, reminding him of what was at stake.
With that, he activated Roots of the World Tree and teleported to the Circle of Lost Seas.
11-50. Empty
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