Path of Dragons

Book 4: Chapter 1: Showing Off

“This is amazing,” said Miguel, his mouth hanging open as he stared at the verdant landscape of Elijah’s grove. They had only just arrived, having been teleported thousands of miles in an instant via Elijah’s Roots of the World Tree spell. But neither Carmen nor Miguel had any means of knowing just how vast the distance between his most recent dolmen, the Circle of Spears, and his grove really was.

By comparison, Elijah knew precisely how far they’d come. After all, he’d spent the better part of two years trekking across the wilderness – albeit with a few distractions along the way – in an effort to reunite with his sister. However, when he’d finally found his nephew and sister-in-law, he’d been horrified to learn that Alyssa had been killed long ago.

Perhaps it had happened before he’d even left his island.

Whatever the case, that discovery had come with a healthy dose of rage, guilt, and grief.

The first came because his sister hadn’t been slain by happenstance. No monster – at least not of the normal variety – had killed her. Instead, she had been murdered by a power-mad despot she’d once considered a friend. That betrayal was foremost in the most prominent facet of Elijah’s Quartz Mind, though he couldn’t allow himself to embark on his planned quest for vengeance.

Not yet, at least. He needed to get his family – and the other refugees who’d come to the grove almost a week before – settled. After that, he would give himself fully to revenge.

The second emotion – guilt – was twofold. Most prominently, he’d taken his sweet time adjusting to the new world. After Earth had experienced the touch of the World Tree – and been transformed – he’d spent months simply surviving. He hadn’t been driven by a need to grow stronger. Instead, he’d focused almost entirely on satisfying the necessary requirements to continue living. However, that had all changed after his protector – a powerful mist panther guardian – had been killed, and he’d been forced to see to his own safety. A few months – and a life-altering tower run – later, and he’d become a different person.

Yet, he still wondered what might have happened if he’d taken responsibility for his own progression sooner. Would it have been enough? Maybe not. But the mere possibility that it would have let him find his sister before she was killed haunted him. The same could be said about his habit of giving in to every distraction he found in his travels. Whether it was healing the plague-stricken residents of the first human settlement he’d found or one of the superfluous tower runs he’d embarked upon, Elijah knew he’d wasted a lot of time. Certainly, he’d also grown more powerful, but he’d trade any number of levels – or strangers’ lives – if he could get just a few more days with his sister.

The second facet of that guilt came from before Earth’s transformation. Just before Elijah had graduated high school, he’d lost both of his parents. That had sent him down a spiral of grief where he’d pushed everyone away, and it had culminated in his jetting off to Hawaii for college, where he’d studied to become a marine biologist. And while his pursuit of a degree – and employment afterwards – had been reasonably successful, it had also put thousands of miles, both figuratively as well as literally, between him and the only family he had left.

Before, he’d thought he had plenty of time to reconnect, but being diagnosed with terminal cancer had thrown those plans aside. That was how he’d ended up on his island in the first place. Knowing he was dying, Elijah had decided to live his last days with his sister – mostly at her insistence. But the world’s transformation – and the subsequent crash of his plane – had seen him stranded on a deserted island.

Loneliness had taught him just how deep his regrets went. Sure, he didn’t immediately set off to find his sister and her family, and even when he had, he’d taken his time. From his perspective, there had been no urgency. More, simply finding them when the entire world had been randomized and transformed made the task almost impossible. It was like finding a needle in a haystack, and it was only through coincidence – and a little planning – that he’d found Carmen and Miguel.

Or maybe he was just making excuses.

Perhaps his guilt was warranted.

Either way, there was nothing he could do to change the past. What he could do, however, was to ensure his family’s safety. Carmen and Miguel weren’t related to him by blood, but then again, neither was his spryggent friend, Nerthus. That didn’t change the fact that all three were family.

“I thought you might like it,” Elijah said to his nephew. He reached out and gripped the boy’s – no, the young man’s shoulder. “It wasn’t always like this. When I first got here, it was just a big meadow with the ancestral tree in the center. It looked different back then, too.”

“Different how?”

“Well, it was more like a normal tree,” Elijah explained. “But when Nerthus absorbed a Shard of the World Tree, it started to change. So did he, come to that.”

“Indeed,” said Nerthus, who had a habit of standing so still that one could almost mistake him for a tree himself, albeit an oddly shaped one with only a few leaves. Or perhaps an expertly carved sculpture. However, Nerthus was as distinct an individual as anyone else Elijah had ever met, and he was powerful in his own right. The grove was as much his as it was Elijah’s. Perhaps moreso, considering how much time and effort the spryggent had spent guiding its growth.

More than that, though, Elijah owed the tree spirit his life. Without him, he’d have never embarked down the path of cultivation, and without those advantages, he had no doubt that he would have long since perished. Most recently, he’d have been slain by one of the most powerful people in the world. Even then, Elijah had been forced to use his entire toolkit to survive Thor Gunderson’s ambush.

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“The ethera here is so dense,” Carmen said, almost as impressed as her son. She was a short woman – even compared to Elijah, who, in his more honest moments, would have admitted that he was a little below average in the height department – and even though she’d clearly lost weight during her travels, she was still quite muscular. Otherwise, she and Miguel shared the same tan skin, dark hair, and brown eyes. She asked, “How is this possible?”

“The ancestral tree is a natural treasure,” Nerthus answered. “A powerful one, too. All ancestral trees are strong, influencing their environments more broadly than most treasures. My tree is far more powerful than most, especially after absorbing the Shard of the World Tree.”

“Making it the center of the grove didn’t hurt, either,” Elijah supplied. He and Nerthus had spoken on the subject at length, so he knew just how special his situation was. Most natural treasures didn’t last long. Even if they were protected by powerful guardians, they were usually consumed by natives or even opportunistic wildlife. Not only had Elijah foregone consuming the tree, he’d also actively reinforced and empowered it. The results had been impressive, growing its influence to encompass the entire island.

Indeed, when Elijah had established his grove – via one of the first spells his Druid archetype had granted – it had come with a Domain, inside of which was a Locus of awareness. It had since grown a little past the island’s boundaries, so the result was that he could sense everything about the island, regardless of his own location.

Fortunately, he had his Quartz Mind to deal with the overwhelming amount of information.

“Do you guys want a tour?” Elijah asked.

Miguel eagerly said that he did, while Carmen’s agreement was a little more subdued. So, after they gathered the other three who’d preceded them a week before – they’d been holed up in the treehouse intended to become Carmen’s living quarters since they’d arrived – Elijah set out to show them the highlights of his island.

Fittingly, the first location was the grove itself. It was the beating heart of Elijah’s Domain, and it was easily the most important part of the island. Everyone was suitably impressed by the varied vegetation and the stand of coffee trees Elijah had most recently planted. Nerthus had also planted a wide variety of other plants, from herbs to sunflowers and everything in between.

“Glad to see the seeds I got for you didn’t go to waste,” Elijah said. “Amazing work, Nerthus. Really. You’ve outdone yourself.”

The spryggent beamed at the compliment. It was in moments like that that Elijah remembered that, though Nerthus looked like a weathered collection of twisted roots, he was in fact, little more than an adolescent. Even since their first meeting, Nerthus’ personality had developed considerably, and Elijah expected that trend to continue going forward.

After the grove, Elijah took the group to the ruined cabin that had provided solace and protection from the elements for the first few months after the world had transformed. Then, he took the group to the beach, where he introduced them to the giant crabs that seemed to love his island so much. They didn’t get close enough to get the huge crustaceans’ attention, but Elijah did describe his first few encounters with the creatures.

“I woke up to them nibbling on my legs,” he said. “They weren’t bigger than a cocker spaniel back then, but they grew to this size within a year. Thank God they leveled off. Otherwise, we might be in danger of living in a world ravaged by huge crabs,” he joked.

Once they were suitably impressed by the crabs, Elijah showed off his dwindling collection of rowboats, then pointed out Ironshore across the strait. “That’s where most of you are going,” he said. “The people there are mostly okay. Goblins, dwarves, and gnomes. Oh, and a couple of elves. But they’re nice enough, now that…well, Ramik keeps them in line.”

He'd almost let loose with the tale of how he’d slaughtered fifty Ironshore residents who’d attempted to invade his island, but it didn’t take a genius to guess that that wouldn’t have ended well. Carmen, Miguel, and Colt would be fine. But the other two? They were clearly terrified of him, and he wanted to avoid spooking them any further. Besides, they’d find out the truth soon enough, anyway. But by then, they’d be on the other side of the strait where he wouldn’t have to deal with it.

The final landmark he wanted to show them was the tower, which took a couple of hours to reach. It would have taken longer, but Elijah knew the optimal path. And the others – aside from Miguel – all had a few levels under their belts. For his part, the young man didn’t complain; instead, he endeavored to keep pace, and though he couldn’t do so, he kept up a lot better than Elijah would have predicted.

It was impressive, and it boded well for when the young man gained access to the system and actually started gaining attribute points.

“Wow,” Carmen said. “I’ve never actually seen a tower.”

“I have,” Colt said. “I was with the second group who went through the one near Easton. It was not a pleasant experience.”

“They usually aren’t,” Elijah said. “But if you want to get stronger, Ironshore sends a group through there once a week. I’m sure they’ll let you in. They have a shortage of combatants.”

“I…may just do that,” Colt stated.

“When can I do it?” asked Miguel.

“Not until you have a class,” Carmen said. “And if I hear about you going anywhere close to that tower…”

“I know, mom. I’m not stupid,” he complained.

Carmen just shook her head. After that, Elijah led the others back to the grove. By that point, it was time for supper, so he shared a bit of meat he had stored in his Ghoul-Hide Satchel, which they cooked in his kitchen. However, retrieving it highlighted the fact that Elijah had picked up a lot of stuff recently. So, he knew he would need to stop by Atticus’ shop soon, not only to identify the items, but also to unload anything he didn’t need.

After the meal, everyone but Carmen headed to the other treehouse. Once they were gone, Elijah and his sister-in-law sat on his balcony, which overlooked the grove. Both clutched steaming mugs full of the tea he’d bought back in Ironshore, and for the longest time, neither spoke.

Finally, though, Carmen said, “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For this. It’s exactly what we need,” she said. “When you told me about this place, I thought you were exaggerating. But now…I think you might have been underselling it. It’s paradise.”

“It wasn’t always like this. My first year was incredibly difficult.”

“I don’t doubt it.”

They both went silent for a little while longer until, once again, Carmen broke the silence and asked, “What are you going to do?”

Elijah didn’t need her to elaborate. He knew what she was asking.

“I’ve got some things I need to take care of,” he said. “Then, I’m going to Easton. I intend to kill him. That’s certain. Other than that, I don’t know. I still haven’t decided.”

For a moment, Elijah thought his sister-in-law was going to argue. But then, she just gave him a curt nod and said, “Good. If anyone in this world deserves the worst you can dish out, it’s Roman Cain.”