Risha: Chapter 64

Risha watched the accompanying saplings as they set up camp next to her people. They simply lowered their roots into the ground, not a single fire in their camp as they once again became one with the forest. 

Her own people laughed and chatted as they set up their camp. There were many fires to light the night, the smell of cooking meat reaching Risha from where she looked over the two armies. 

Her stomach twisted with hunger, but she wasn’t ready to join the others quite yet.

Kliks crawled to Risha’s shoulder, and rested there. Many of her spiderling had begun to leave Risha more and more. Only Kliks and Sks, another daughter of hers, were with her now. Beyond the spiderlings that wandered through the tents, a few had been chosen to stay at the city, protecting the vine child while Risha was away.

They grew up fast, very different from little goblin children. 

A bird flew through the night, drawing Risha’s eyes. It’s feathers were black, blending in well with the evening sky. [Tribal Hunter] followed it as it swooped towards one of the councilor’s tents. 

That was Elder Kulos’s tent to be precise.

Risha’s eyes stayed on the tent, until a minute later, the same bird took to the sky, following the road that they marched on. 

Elder Kulos left his tent, making his way to where Risha stood. 

He walked up the hill and looked over the two armies, just as Risha had moments ago. 

“Did the bird tell you its secrets, Elder?” Risha smiled, her eyes moving back to the bird, far in the distance now.

Elder Kulos glanced at her, then followed her gaze down the road they followed. “A Goblin Hunter from your village evolved into a Goblin Beast-Whisperer. The bird is his companion. And yes, it has told me of some important matters.”

“Is that why you’re here?”

“In part.”

“Only part?”

“You looked lonely.” 

Risha’s mouth shut, any response dying on her tongue. Kliks chittered from Risha’s shoulder, and Risha smiled. She reached up, giving her a light scratch, “Yes, I’m never alone with you here Kliks.” 

“I meant no offense.” Elder Kulos said, bowing his head to the tiny spiderling. 

“She takes none.” Risha said, “I have been staring into the distance a lot lately.” 

“Does something weigh on your mind?”

Risha laughed. “Lots.”

Elder Kulos turned his gaze to the sapling army. “We are watching them, Grand Mother. I remember well my promise to you. They will not catch us by surprise again.”

“I believe you. What did the bird tell you?”

Elder Kulos saw that she was changing the subject, and only let out a sad sigh. “The others will find out in the morning. We believe we know why the scaled creatures are attacking.”

Risha focused, her eyes gleaming in the darkness. “Why?”

“They are evolving themselves by capturing and killing your evolved children.”

Risha growled, her eyes narrowing, “What?”

Elder Kulos lowered his head, not meeting Risha’s eyes as she stared at him, “A scout witnessed a ritual killing of a High Goblin Spearman. The lizard that killed him evolved, as if they expected it.”

Risha’s lips pulled back as she bared her teeth. She turned her gaze back to the distance. “I’ll kill them.”

Elder Kulos let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. He glanced up to the Grand Mother before pointing his eyes back to the ground. “Their deaths will be swift.”

Risha took a breath, then let it out. She closed her eyes, sensing the spirits that surrounded her. 

They watched from everywhere, the air, the earth, the trees. Even Kulos’s spirit watched her, as if drawn to her. On the edge of her senses, there was a realm, it felt like the council of the grandmothers, but separate from it. There, more spirits watched her, observing, waiting, wanting. 

She turned her attention to the spirits inside her swords. Scarlet and Crimson, they were children in comparison to the greater spirits who watched her, but they felt her gaze and responded with a readiness. Ready to spill the blood of her enemies.

Risha opened her eyes as she drew both swords, the chains wrapping around her arms as her spirit flowed into them. 

She resheathed the swords, and Elder Kulos’s whole body relaxed as the bloodlust hid itself. 

“We leave at first light.” Risha turned away and walked back to her tent.

“Yes, Grand Mother.” The Elder said to her retreating back.

***

Risha opened her eyes to a familiar tent, inside a pocket of what she now recognized as the spirit world. 

The Council Of Grandmas was connected, but separate somehow, like a room with a lock that only Risha and the other Grand Mothers had the key to. 

Risha changed the tent with an effort of will. It morphed, matching the bloodthirst she felt within her. Replicas of her chainswords hung from the walls, while bloodied spears marked the entrance. Images of her many battles painted themselves in a tapestry across the canvas of the large tent.

She walked out of the tent, and her home in the council expanded in front of her. A pathway of stone, with the edges marked by broken swords and bloodied spears, at the end of which stood a stone statue of broken chains. From the chains stood an orc, a spider, a goblin, and a kobold, all of them standing tall with heads bowed to a doorway. Behind the four, more creatures constructed themselves, their features blurred. A drake, a demon, and a human. 

The doorway they bowed to was made of intertwining vines, small purple flowers blooming down its length. 

Risha let out a breath as the space finished constructing itself. 

She strode forward, through the vine covered doorway, and space twisted around her. Risha knew where she wanted to go. 

Iris sat in the snow of the mountain, warm furs covering her body as she looked out over an unfamiliar landscape under the sun.

A warm cup of tea was held in her hands, steaming into the air. 

“Hello, dear.” Iris looked at her with a small smile, her eyes saw through Risha’s anger in a second, piercing into the depths of Risha’s turmoil, before returning to the landscape in front of them. “Come here, I just made some tea.”

Risha hesitated, then nodded. She trudged through the snow, leaving footprints in the otherwise pristine landscape. 

A table of ice rose from the snow, and Iris pulled another cup from nothing before pouring a kettle of tea that hadn’t been there moments before. 

Risha sat in the snow, and picked her tea off of the table. The warmth of the cup spread through her hands, and into her body. She took a sip, and the sensation spread through her. Muscles she didn’t realize were tense, relaxed, and any chill she might have imagined from the environment disappeared.

“What brings you here, little one?” 

Risha stared into her cup, contemplating how much she could trust the older woman. Yes, she had protected Risha, but she also held power that Risha couldn’t comprehend. If Iris chose to join the angels against Risha… it was a reality that she didn’t want to imagine. Still, Risha could not afford to stay in the dark, no matter how comforting it might feel to her. 

“What are the Lin?” 

Iris paused, her eyes gaining a note of seriousness before she took a sip of her tea. “They are creatures of the first age. Together with the Sparks, they made the classed races.” 

Risha tilted her head, “Made the classed races?”

“Yes.” Iris hummed in thought before turning her gaze to the goblin who sat across from her, “They had a connection with life and the system that is beyond any creature of the currant age.” 

Risha drank some more of her tea to keep her from immediately speaking. Her curiosity wanted her to explain her entire situation and ask a million questions. Instead, she stared into her cup as she enjoyed the warmth of the tea. “What happened to them?”

“Greedy creatures hunted them. Even a single Lin would increase the life energy of a region, increasing fertility, crop yield, leveling speed, and magical energy. Beyond that, they had the power to heal even the most life-threatening of wounds, cure the greatest of poisons or restore limbs on a whim.”

“That’s…”

“Dangerous. They were beloved by the world itself, but that love was not taken with the kindness it should’ve been. Greed is powerful, and will destroy you if you let it.” 

Risha set her cup down, “Did that greed destroy you?”

Iris paused, then set her cup down as well, “Yes, yes it did. I didn’t see it until it was too late. That is why I remove myself and my people from the wars and cares of mortals. I couldn’t let myself make the same mistake twice.” 

Risha pushed the tea between her hands, not looking into the eyes of the Grand Mother. “What would you say if I told you I knew where a Lin child was?” 

Iris leaned back and looked to the sky, “I would be relieved. I have too many regrets. Knowing that I brought about their end… that is one of the greatest pains I carry.” Iris paused, her eyes returning to Risha, “but that is not the question you want to ask. You want to know what I would do with that information, don’t you?” She paused and continued as if asking herself, “What would I do with that information?” She stayed silent for a long moment before continuing, “If I listened to my instincts, I would do everything in my power to ensure that harm does not come to the surviving Lin. I would believe that I am the only one capable of protecting them, and I would once again fall into the trap of protecting them by chaining them.” 

Iris laughed, “It is a good thing that I do not blindly listen to my instincts. If you told me this, Risha, Mother Of Monsters, I would tell you to be better than me. I would tell you that they must live a life that is more than a prisoner’s. Protect them, yes, but they must discover the world on their own and live as any of your children will. Free to experience the world’s love, and its dangers. Ah, and I would warn you. Keep them hidden from the eyes of the Sparks. That is, if you had a Lin child in your care.” Iris smiled, “Do you like my tea? It’s a new blend.”

Risha absorbed everything that Iris had told her, and it took her a few seconds to hear the last question, “Oh, yes! It is yummy tea.”

“It comes from a plant that was blessed by the Lin. They did have such an interesting relationship with plants. Able to bring magic to them with only the slightest effort. Thousands of years old, and it still produces such breathtaking aromas.” Iris pulled out the kettle, “Would you like some more?”

Risha hesitated, then nodded, “Yes please.” 

Iris poured her some tea, and Risha continued to tell her about the war continuing with the Scaled Warriors. Iris had a surprisingly deep knowledge of the culture and biology of the creatures. 

Risha learned much about them, and a plan began to form in her mind. It would take time, but she saw a path for peace.

A brutal path, but it was a path.