Path of Dragons - A LitRPG Apocalypse (BOOK TWO STUBBING AUGUST 15)-12-1. Immediate Relief
A wave of life and magic washed over Elijah as he suddenly appeared beneath the ancestral tree. When he took his first breath, a sense of relief bordering on giddiness suffused his mind, body, and soul. His apertures drank deeply, and with the enthusiasm of a thirsty man who’d suddenly stumbled upon an oasis. And for the first time since advancing his core to the Lindwyrm stage, he felt complete.
The tree that was his cultivation system spread its branches far and wide, intertwining with the very environment. Both he and the grove benefited, finalizing a symbiotic relationship where they refined one another into better versions of themselves.
Instantly, the density of the local ethera surged, and that, in turn, nourished his parched body in ways Elijah never could have expected or anticipated. The influx of levels and the improvement of his cultivation had already been more impactful than mere words could describe, but somehow, rejoining with the grove served to reinforce the steps forward he’d already taken.
The change wasn’t as impactful as a complete transformation. He didn’t gain any new attributes, and he didn’t think his spells would grow any more powerful. Instead, it was like he was a tree experiencing its first rainfall after a drought. Everything felt more alive. More vibrant. More magical.
And Elijah knew that if he was able to compare his strength or durability – or any other aspect of his being – to what it had been before returning to the Hartwood Grove, he would have seen verifiable improvement.
But in the moment, he wasn’t as concerned with how many pounds he could lift or how much damage he could endure. Rather, he only cared about how he felt. And right then, he felt better than he had in years. Maybe ever.
It was a heady thing, and it reminded him of the euphoria he’d experienced when breathing pure oxygen, but without the toxicity that came with it.
“Welcome home,” came a voice from nearby. Elijah didn’t need to look to know it was Nara. Or that she was in the middle of a lesson being taught to the pre-adolescent members of the grove. He didn’t even need to consult his locus or Soul of the Wild. He simply knew, and at an intuitive level he’d never before achieved.
He ran his hand through his wild hair, lamenting his appearance. He was dressed, at least, but there hadn’t been much time for grooming in the Broken Crown. Nor in its aftermath. As a result, his beard and hair had grown entirely out of control, and to the point where he probably looked like a man who’d been stranded for years on a deserted island.
Which wasn’t that far off course.
The Broken Crown hadn’t been a desert island, but it might as well have been. And while Elijah had managed to take quite a few creature comforts with him – mostly via his tent – his life in the Primal Realm could never have been called civilized.
He looked back at Nara. The sea elf Druid hadn’t changed much since the last time he’d seen her, but she had managed to put on a little weight. A good thing, considering how malnourished she and her people had been when they’d arrived at the grove. The children had followed suit, and, aside from their elven features, they were almost indistinguishable from the ones who’d come from Ironshore.
In short, they all looked healthy and happy, if a little alarmed at his sudden appearance.
“Thanks,” Elijah said, pushing himself to unsteady feet. He took another deep breath, regaining his composure. The influx of vitality and ethera hadn’t abated, but his body was on its way to adaptation. “The atmosphere is denser.”
Nara let out a musical laugh, then swept her white hair out of her eyes. She tucked the stray lock behind an ear as she said, “That is quite an understatement.”
“The atmospheric ethera is now more than seventy percent denser than when you left,” came another voice. Nerthus’ arrival wasn’t surprising. The spyrggent was always around, and his senses were nearly as keen as Elijah’s when it came to the grove. “And climbing more every day.”
“That much?” Elijah asked.
Nara interjected, “We were forced to take measures so the children would not be overwhelmed.”
One of the kids – Soli, Elijah thought – raised his thin arm to proudly display a woven bracelet that glittered with polished seashell ornaments. He wore a gap-toothed grin that told Elijah that even sea elf children lost their baby teeth.
“They’re okay though, right?”
Nerthus was the one to answer, explaining that the bracelets were meant to help the children slowly acclimate to high levels of ethera. He added, “In a few months, they will no longer be necessary.”
“It does make recruitment a lot easier, though,” Nara pointed out. Then, she went on to explain that there were quite a few children – or really, their parents – in Ironshore who wanted to join the grove. Most lacked the attunement, but there were still plenty who met the nature-attunement prerequisite.
“Where are they?” Elijah asked.
Nara looked down. “We did not want to overstep, so we chose to wait until you returned before making any lasting decisions concerning the grove,” she answered.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from NovelFire; any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“I told you before – this is your grove, too. I trust your judgement,” Elijah said. He glanced at Nerthus. “Yours too. You two can do whatever you think is necessary. You don’t have to wait for my approval.”
Nerthus and Nara exchanged a glance, but neither said anything else on the subject. To skip over the awkward moment, Elijah knelt in front of the children and asked them what they’d been learning. They let loose with a cascade of stories about cultivation and lessons about the natural world. Each of them were incredibly enthusiastic, which Elijah supposed came as much from the curriculum as from their predisposition toward the material. After all, if they didn’t get excited about plants and animals, then they probably wouldn’t have gotten a nascent nature attunement.
Although, Elijah knew that, at their age, those kinds of things weren’t set in stone. Certainly, there was an in-born predilection toward certain attunements, but such things were subject to nurturing as well. Some of it was nature – in the sense of genetics – but at least as much of it was due to socialization.
It wasn’t so different from a plant. Impossible without a seed, but so long as it had the right nutrients and environment, it could grow into something truly beautiful. So it was with nascent nature attunements.
Of course, some were always going to be stronger than others. Aberrations that would grow strong and tall, even in the worst conditions. Elijah was one of those, though the potency of his own attunement never would have been possible without his parents’ influence.
To say it was complex would be an understatement, and one that only those with appropriate classes could truly understand. Elijah was content in knowing that every child there would have every chance to reach their potential. Nara and Nerthus would see to that. What they did with that opportunity would ultimately be up to the individual.
Whatever the case, he was more than happy with how they were coming along. What’s more, he was content with his own role. He’d never been a great teacher, but he liked the idea of dropping in and fanning the flames of a child’s interest in nature.
So, he spent a little while just basking in their enthusiasm, and within a couple of hours – during which he relayed some of his tamer experiences – he felt that he’d acclimated to the grove.
That was when he left Nara and the children to their lessons. Nerthus followed him as he made his way to his treehouse, and when they were alone, the spryggent asked what had happened.
“The fourth stage of core cultivation,” Elijah said. Then, he went on to explain how he’d used the Worldseed to fuel his core’s growth. At first, Nerthus had been appalled at such a waste, but he relented when Elijah reminded him that the Broken Crown was, at the end of the day, just a Primal Realm. As such, the Worldseed was reborn the moment Elijah exited.
“It should not be possible,” Nerthus said, shaking his head in a rare human gesture. “A Worldseed is powerful beyond comprehension. Perhaps if you were a deity…”
“I think the Primal Realm was structured to give me the chance,” Elijah revealed. “Kirlissa said that it was different than it normally would have been. Probably because I’m a dragon, and it was the dragon realm? I don’t know. I guess we’ll find out for sure when someone else heads inside.”
“I see,” Nerthus conceded. However, he still didn’t seem happy about it. That was countered by his obvious interest in Elijah’s imagery. He could sense the metaphysical tree growing within Elijah and comprising his cultivation system.
“I actually used your circulatory system as an example,” Elijah admitted. “Or maybe as inspiration? There are plenty of other elements in there, but the way everything is blended together came from you. So, thank you.”
He reached out and gripped the spryggent’s bark-covered forearm. With Nerthus’ height, that was all Elijah could easily reach. “I don’t know where I’d be without you. Long dead, probably. And I’m not just talking about what you did for me in the beginning. I’m still grateful for that, but it’s gone so much further since then.”
Indeed, Nerthus’ existence was so firmly intertwined with Elijah’s fate that he knew he couldn’t live without the spryggent. Nerthus was as responsible for Elijah’s power as anyone else.
And he obviously had no idea how to respond to such a compliment. He merely muttered, “Thank you.” Then, he disappeared into some nearby roots, only to reappear within his underground chambers. Elijah noted that Nerthus’ home had expanded to three rooms, and he’d even built himself a bed. Still, most of the space was occupied by jars of various seeds. None of them bore labels, though if Elijah could tell them apart, then Nerthus certainly could.
Idly, Elijah tried to think of something he could do for Nerthus – in an effort of showing his appreciation – but he came up blank. The reality was that Nerthus was about as low-maintenance a person as any Elijah had ever met. So, the idea of getting him gifts proved incredibly difficult.
In any case, Elijah soon reached the familiar confines of his treehouse. Once there, he took a long, hot shower. In the wild, he could make do with the rain from Blessing of the Grove, but given that it was only conjured, it just didn’t feel the same as genuine water.
After the shower, Elijah headed to his Ash Lotus hot spring, which was even hotter and more soothing than ever before. He could practically feel the stubborn contaminants being scoured away, leaving him both relaxed and clean.
For a while, he just lay there, mostly submerged in the steaming water. However, it wasn’t too long before his responsibilities – and worries – reasserted themselves. The former required him to make a few preparations, and soon, while the latter concerned the continued absence of Sadie, Carmen, Miguel, and all the others who’d ventured into the troll Primal Realm.
That they had not returned after eight months was more than a little troubling. Elijah would have panicked if he couldn’t sense Miguel, confirming that at least he was still alive. That allayed some of his fears, but only by a little.
Regardless, after soaking in the spring, he picked himself up, headed back to the treehouse, and prepared for the next step. Once he was dressed – and groomed as best as he could manage – he stepped outside and threw himself into the air. After springing well above the grove’s canopy, he transformed into the Shape of the Sky and headed toward Ironshore.
The city itself hadn’t changed that much, though Elijah couldn’t help but notice that its development had continued along the same track. The walls had once again expanded, while the density and verticality of the buildings within had grown right alongside the population.
Elijah already knew that. He could sense the city, though not nearly as well as the rest of his locus. Even if laying eyes on it was very different from the vague impressions he got by virtue of the city being encircled by his domain.
He landed outside the city, and as was his custom, entered on foot. The guards on duty recognized him, so they didn’t bar his way. Soon enough, he’d traversed the city to the Branch, where he sent out a variety of messages. As he did so, he could only hope that his invitations would not be ignored. Because he didn’t think Earth would survive if he couldn’t get the world’s elites to work together.
12-1. Immediate Relief
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