Chapter 12: Chapter 11: Surprise

It's early in the morning and Meira, Rose and I are walking to the Adventurer's Guild. Well, "walking" is relative...we fairies are actually hitching a ride on Meira's shoulders since we left the village about ten minutes ago.

The sun is barely visible, rising low on the horizon. Most trees in these woods are blocking the first rays, but occasionally one lone beam manages to light our path.

After yawning more than once, I notice that these woods don't look that healthy. Many trees are completely devoid of foliage while moss seems to be in abundance.  

"Hey, Meira?"

"Yes, Daisy?"

"What time of the year is it anyway? Is it summer?"

"Summer? Is that what you call this season?" Meira seems surprised, but as I'm on her shoulder, she can't see me very well.

I look at Rose for help.

"Daisy, this is the period of Greenpeak. The next ones are Sunwake, Witherleaf and Frostcall."

"Eh....okay....sounds like it's springtime then." I simply shrug. Same meaning, different words. Something else I have to get used to, I guess. 

"Really? We call this period Bloomrich."  Meira is as surprised as I am about Fairy terminology.

Now it's Rose's time to have a surprised expression on her face. Let's leave it at that.

 

"Meira, in our country the forests seem bright green and...just healthy. But....are all the trees in these woods so....gloomy?" I asked.

"Gloomy? Ha! That's the best description I've heard so far. Yes, it's all the same since your kind stopped paying us a visit. Oh, no offense."  Meira raised her hands to emphasize she didn't mean to sound disrespectful. 

"Non taken. You have two fairies right here, so....maybe we can try out some moves?"

"What did you have in mind, Dense Daisy? I'm a Wind Fairy and you are a Snow Fairy. Not actually rain, don't you think?"

"Eh.....snow melts after a while, resulting in rain, miss smarty pants."

"Huh? Yeah, that might actually work. Didn't expect you would finally start using your brain."

"Now, now...be nice you two." Meira said, but she's smiling...she just loves this friendly bickering. It's just for fun after all. 

 

"Rose, how about you and I first do some power leveling? You know, grinding..killing some slimes and goblins?"

Rose looks at me in that typical "....what the heck is she talking about this time?" fashion.

"Huh? Why would you kill any goblins? They are harmless little critters. And what are slimes?" Now it's Meira's turn to make me feel stupid.

"Nevermind, Meira. My mistake. Just...nevermind."

 

 

A few minutes later, another very important question entered my mind. I've been wanting to ask Rose about it, but never seem to get a straight answer from her.

"Rose, I was wondering about something..."

"Really? That's new. What is it, Daisy?" And yes, I caught her rolling her eyes, but let's ignore it for now. 

Okay...here goes nothing.... "Why are fairies afraid of the rain?"

Rose immediately glares at me, but then relaxes and shrugs. She knows I have absolutely no clue what this is about, so she just gives up. I see her taking a deep breath, followed by a long exhale. And when she's finally ready to speak...the moment when I finally will learn about life's most important fact, Meira interrupts us. 

 

"Shhh!!" Meira stops and crouches. She whispers "be quiet."

What's going on?

From our hiding spot between the trees, we see ten, no, about twenty creatures stealthily approaching the Elven village. Only seconds later can we hear an alarm signal....these creatures have been detected by Elven sentries.

They have a dark gray skin color and are hunching. Their strong muscles tell me that they are not to be underestimated. They don't seem to have any body hair....completely bald..naked.. 
What are these creatures? Should I.....

"Status..." I whispered while looking at the creature.

And as expected, I see a small popup window appear. "Gloombrood - lv.57 - demonic"

How do I get rid of that popup? I instinctively want to wipe it away as if it were truly in front of me. It seems to work....what do you know? 

But then....oh oh...

"Grrrrr......growwlll!" The creature turns to us.....and looks directly at me. 

While the other Gloombrood are running to the Elven village, they were detected anyway, this one seems to have an interest for me. 

"No!!! Hide you two. It's coming this way!" Meira speaks, but not too loudly, trying to avoid alerting the other creatures.

Meira then starts climbing the tree, but the creature is too fast. I jump off Meira's shoulder and fly down, wanting to reason with it. 

"Hello there!" I simply shout....ready to fly away at a moment's notice.

"Grr........a demonic fairy. What's your business with a filthy Elf?"

"We are guests in their village and would...."  But I can't finish my sentence.

"What? You are blessed by a goddess? You no longer serve our Demon Lord? You traitor!"

Without any warning the creature lunges forward with its arm stretched, but instead of grabbing me....it sends me hurtling towards a tree. If anyone doubts it, let me tell you that trees can actually hurt when hit at high speeds.

"Ouch!" It takes me a second to realize what had happened, but I'm quick to fly up, above its head. 
But it has lost interest in me, now shaking the tree to get his hands on Meira.

Think..think...THINK Daisy! Then I remember something I read on my status screen. But how does it work? Vocalize?

I point my hands towards the creature, magical girl style and shout "Starlight!"
And sure enough, two bright beams of light leave my hands, hitting the Gloombrood at close range. 

It simply stops moving and falls backwards, until vanishing in dark smoke. I look around and make sure that we're safe. I don't see any other creature?

Thud! This startled me, but Meira is now standing behind me. She must have jumped down from the branch. "Daisy! My goddess...are you alright?"

I look at my body for a moment.  "Eh.....all seems fine? Just a little headache."

"Hold still. Goddess, please grant me HEALING..." Meira's hands start glowing and sure enough...I feel better immediately.

"Thanks...that worked."

"Daisy! What were you thinking? A tiny fairy against such a creature? Didn't you see it was a level 57 demon?" Rose said.

"Eh....yeah, I noticed. I think it noticed me looking at it. And....I just acted on instinct. I can't explain it."

"Well..let's not waste any time. The Village is under attack. Get on my shoulder, quickly!" Meira motions at her right shoulder.

And so we raced back to the Village. 

"Halt! Who goes there?" A sentry jumps onto the path from nowhere. "Ah...Meira, there you are. We have some wounded, can you please..."

"Yes, yes, of course. What about those demons?"

"We were lucky, there weren't many this time. Now GO!"

Meira nods and runs into the village, shouting "where are the wounded? Quick!"

One sentry points at the hut where the Elders spoke to us yesterday. "There! All of them!"

Okay...that Elf seems unable to speak full sentences...probably still in shock. But why am I not in shock? I feel.....excited? In control?

We enter the hut and see about a dozen wounded Elves...all are bleeding. Green blood....but still as painful and disgusting to see as human blood.

Meira simply walks to the nearest injured Elf and starts the healing ritual again. 
"Daisy, Rose, can either of you heal? I need help and the others aren't here yet."

I don't know what's going on, but I feel calm and controlled. I'm not panicking, in fact, I feel that I simply know how to deal with the situation. "I can heal."  I loudly state. I just don't know how....but I didn't say that last part out loud. "Kind goddess, please grant me your divine healing for these Elves."

What happened next? I was blinded...blinded like unexpectedly seeing the sunlight reflected in a window. It might have been a lightning strike as well. But when I open my eyes......there is no blood to be seen anymore, and the Elves start moaning and moving. I guess...they are okay now?

"D.....Daisy.....did you just...." Meira is at a loss for words.

"No, Meira. The goddess answered my request for help. Thank her, not me. I don't even know how to heal yet."

"Yes...I noticed that." 

I turn around and see the Elven Matriarch look at me, a surprised look on her face. Her comment sounded a bit sarcastic to be honest.

"Matriarch....." Meira bows to her for a moment, but the Elder keeps looking at me.

I still feel serene...a calmness that is beyond words. I almost seem to speak without thinking. Like someone is pushing my buttons. Then I feel warm...no....boiling hot suddenly....and my hands are enveloped with bright light, palms up. It's like I'm sitting on the backseat now...no longer in control. Then my voice is amplified as if I were using a megaphone.

"Brave Elves! By the power of your goddess....  For not falling into demonic temptation....for staying true Elves.....you have been blessed and healed through this little one. Be warned...more demons will come to this place...but not for weeks. Prepare for that event and you shall live."

At this point my limbs go numb....and all lights go out.

 

 

When I wake up, I'm startled by a close encounter of an Elven face  "Ahhhh!!"  That was my cry, if you hadn't guessed already.

"Relax, little one." The Matriarch says.

It's hard to relax when the entire village appears to be here, in Meira's bedroom. The room is packed with Elves, all around me. On Meira's shoulder I see Rose...she seems concerned, but why?

"Eh...okay?" What the heck is going on here?

"Thank you for allowing our goddess to heal our people through you. For this you shall have our gratitude."

"But....I didn't do anything?"

"Oh, but you did. You killed one Gloombrood today, and allowed our injured to be healed. Whether you or the goddess herself directly healed them doesn't matter. All healing comes from her to begin with.
We managed to wipe out our attackers and have survived. All of us are in good health.
For that....we thank you, little one."

At this moment, all Elves bow to me...for an agonizing three seconds. 

"Please....please...I don't...want this. I....I don't deserve this. You saved us when we first arrived here, and the goddess helped you today. That's what happened. At least I think so?"

"Hahaha...you can't fool us, you are tougher than you look, little one."

But then I hear the sound of someone crying....it's Rose!

Meira takes her from her shoulder and puts her on the bed, close to me.

I embrace her, hug her. "It's alright now, Rose. It's over."

But Rose recovered faster than I had anticipated. She shouts:
"No, Daisy! Stop it! You don't get it. I'm supposed to be on their side! Just like you. 
But.....those demons..... they were brutal! All the bloodshed. Why?" 
Her voice changes...she's now almost whispering. "So mean, vicious. Without provocation."

Then her voice changes again. She shouts with all her might,  "if this is the way the Demon Lord forces obedience...then then....I no longer want to serve him!"

At this point Rose collapses into a crying mess. But the Elves are smiling and start clapping. First slowly, softly, then faster and louder.

She looks around, just like I am. What the heck are they doing now? 

Then silence. Total and complete silence. I don't get these Elves. Really. 

The only thing I can think of is saying "I believe you, Rose. As do they. And the way you shouted that.....I'm sure that the goddess heard it as well."

I'm not sure...but I'm guessing that the goddess was waiting for this. And sure enough, a bright, white light can be seen around Rose.

"Huh? <sniff> What's this?" Rose is still crying but is startled by the light around her.

Then the light slowly diminishes.

Rose seems to look in the distance for a moment, then she says "you were right! The goddess has blessed me as well! She gave me a permanent teleport skill. No....she gave me more....so much more!"

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The Matriarch then says "my people, our goddess has taught us well today. Do not be quick to judge. And.....size doesn't matter. For failing to see that....we are truly sorry."

All Elves bow again to us.

"For the love of....would you cut that out? Please?" I said with my hands on my waist.

The Matriarch looks at me for a second......and then laughter! Everyone laughed so loudly that I had to cover my ears. What the heck is wrong with these Elves?

The Matriarch then replies "Well said, little one. Let's find a way for you to go home. But not today. Today we shall rest and celebrate."

And because these people seem to love bowing so much, I return the gesture.
"Thank you. Thank you very much."

 

 

The celebratory part turned out to be all about singing and dancing. Let's just say that Rose and I sneaked out without anyone noticing. At least I hope so. Don't get me wrong....the first hour was interesting....but then we got bored beyond reason.

Rose's mood has improved dramatically since her blessing today. She must still be in a warm, fuzzy mood, because she hasn't insulted me once for a long time. She simply follows me wherever I fly. To put this to the test, I flew through the village, made a u-turn and simply repeated the route. She doesn't say a word, she's just....happy?

Okay, time to snap her out of it. I don't like her like this.

"Hey, Rose?"

"Yeah?"

"Shall we head out into the woods for a while and see what our new skills can do?"

"Eh..sure! I'd love to!"

 

 

We are now in the woods, about a five minutes flight away from the village. I simply land on a branch and take in the gloomy atmosphere. Truly dreadful, abysmal, dreary. These trees won't be around for much longer. Eh.....except for this branch?

I see the moss retreating and the branch's color is changing from a dark, near black to a healthy brown. "Eh...Rose? Did you see that?"  

"Yeah...that's odd. Same here."

"Oh, you're right. Just a thought...do you have the healing skill now?"

"Eh....yeah! I do!"

"See...I guess those skills are passive skills. They work all the time. So just being in this forest already heals it a bit."

"That....actually makes sense. In the old stories it was our task to maintain nature. So perhaps this comes naturally to our people?"

"Sounds about right. I don't know about you, but I'd like to experiment. Ready to join me?"

"I thought you never asked, Daisy!"

"Oh wait...I just checked my eh.. status thing. And just sitting here increases the indicator from negative to positive. But ever so slowly."

"You mean the darkness to light affiliation?"

"Yeah, that's the official term I guess?"

"It sure is."

I simply nod and start flying higher and higher...and Rose is following me everywhere.
Let's see..."Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!!" I shout...just like the famous Christmas song. 

And true enough, only seconds later a few snowflakes are forming behind me, luckily none of it is touching me.

"Eh, if this is all you can do....."  Rose seems disappointed.

"Nope. Just warming up. Eh....cooling down, I guess. Let's see..what else can I use?

I suddenly see another popup:
"Race Level upgrade. Lv.1 -> Lv.2. 
New skill available. North Pole: instantly freeze a wide area.
Affiliation + 350."

 

"Hey Rose! I just leveled up!"

"Really? Did you learn a new skill?"

"Sure did! Am going to try it out now. Stay back!"

Rose nods and gives me some space. 

"North Pole!"  After shouting this, I suddenly feel tired, like life itself just got sucked out of me, but I'm still fine. Just...tired.

"Daisy! Are you okay?" 

"Yeah....just..tired?"

"Whatever you did, must have almost depleted your mana. Be careful!"

"Okay, but I think that we're safe. I have other skills as well, but probably not enough mana. Yeah, that's right! Most skills are grayed out now. There's a safety mechanism in there, it seems we can safely use them!"

"Wow. Just one day with you equals two years in school..."

"Eh....Rose?" I look up into the sky and see something suspicious.

"Eh....yeah. I see what you mean.."

Dark clouds appear above us....far, far beyond the village on all sides. And it actually starts snowing.
And the ambient temperature slowly decreases as well.

"Rose! Back to Elves, now! It's going to freeze!"

"Yes!"

 

 

We returned to the village as fast as we could, quickly flying into the same hut as before.

Well, the dancing has stopped, so that's a big plus. 

Meira sees us shivering and simply seals the hut's opening by releasing a knot in a rope. Some kind of animal skin, I guess, is now blocking the entrance. So that's how they keep warm in winter....I already wondered about that.

"Fairies...did you just....do that?" Meira says like someone who just caught their dog gnawing on their favorite slippers.

"Do what?" I'm trying to do my best innocent fairy impression. Whatever happens...it wasn't us.

Meira opens the "door" and points outside. "Look at it! It's beautiful! You made it snow, didn't you? It's freezing out there! It's not supposed to snow this season!"

Okay, I can't escape this. "Yeah....sorry..."

"What? No no no. It's perfect." Meira takes us in her hands and exhales her warm breath to instantly warm us up.

"Eh...thanks for that?" The instant heat was very welcome.
It smelled fresh by the way. Very minty, yes, let's keep it at that.

And another weird display of gratitude followed where the Elves thanked us for bringing rain.....albeit in frozen form to this very dry and dying forest of theirs.

At some point the temperature just plummeted, making the Elves start another fire. Finally, after about an hour or two, it stopped snowing, much to their dismay. But I'm kinda happy....might have taken days to clear up if I really messed this one up. 

 

 

Meira arranged for better looking miniature Elven clothes and shoes for us, and those proved to be very warm and comfortable. Seems we won't have to worry about fresh clothes anymore. I didn't ask why one of their kids looked at me with jealousy, though. They didn't really give me her doll's clothes....did they? Nah...they would never do that to their kids....right?

 

 

Rose then had a brilliant idea. As the temperature slowly increased, we flew back into the sky, but now it was her turn to shine. She called for a breeze, just to test things out, and it was already powerful enough to clear the sky, but only for a few minutes. Just enough for sunshine to break through and melt some of the snow.

Let's just say that the two of us were very popular fairies today....

 

 

It's almost bedtime again and we're discussing a few things I don't understand yet. We fairies are already lying comfortably in our makeshift beds and Meira is brushing her hair while I see her reflection in the mirror. She occasionally smiles while listening to us fairies.

At some point, the discussion went silent and I finally took the opportunity to ask something important. You see, everytime I ask Rose why we fairies are supposed to be afraid of rain, she just pretends to not have heard me. She simply won't answer! But now I want to know. No...I NEED to know.

"Rose?"

"<sigh> Yes, Daisy?"

"Can you please answer me a very important question? It's a matter of life and death."

Meira, now joins us on the bed and looks at me with interest. Yes, just wait until you hear the question. 

"Oh? Well, if that's the case. What do you want to know?" Rose said, frowning and tilting her head.

"Please tell me why we fairies are supposed to be afraid of the rain?"

"Ah, nooo. Really? That again?" She sounded really annoyed, glancing at Meira for a second.

Meira smiles at her and says "well...actually....I'm quite curious about that too, if you don't mind." 

Thank you Meira! 

"Alright, alright, if you two really, really must know..." Rose sighed....again.

"Yes!"  I made the victory pose from within my bed. That didn't work as intended, as I accidentally pushed some of that cotton stuff out of my handcrafted bed. 

"My goddess, Daisy. At times like this it's really easy to forget that you're a Princess, you know?"

"Quit stalling and start talking. Please."   She waited for the please part, so there it is.

Meira picks up the cotton filling and carefully fixes my bed while Rose starts explaining.

"Well.......I'd rather not explain, considering you've had nightmares for a long time...are you sure you are ready for this?"

"Eh...yeah?" What the heck am I supposed to answer? I don't even know what this is about!
But I MUST know.  I nodded vigorously.

"Alright, have it your way. Well...it happened a long time ago. It's said that since our ancestors became demonic fairies, the Demon Lord had visited them often, to make sure they were fully obedient. On one of those visits, a few fairies were discovered helping other nations, making it rain because they simply felt sorry for them. You know, they weren't even allowed to do that. And we fairies just HAVE to do this, it's literally our reason for being. We love nature and it's our duty to assist nature. While most fairies learned to suppress that desire to help, some didn't. And as I already said, a few of those were caught by demons, while making it rain where it was needed most.

As punishment for making it rain, all fairies, no exceptions, would suffer the immediate wrath of the Demon Lord if a single fairy was caught in the rain again. It wouldn't matter if they were caught in rain that just happened to fall, or some fairy made it rain. So just being in the rain might seal our fate as a race. All of us would suffer the consequences."

Meira blinks, she can't believe how any of this is even possible. Then her face shows pity, but she doesn't interrupt.

"I see. And what about snow then?" I look at Rose after giving her a moment to gather her thoughts.
She seemed far away for a moment.

"Eh, what? How can you even ask that? It's the same, I guess?" 
Rose sighs, "I don't know, Daisy, the story only tells us about rain."

"Great, but it's just a silly story to frighten kids, right?"

"Yeah....not really. Trust me, or even better ask your mom and dad. Even adults run when it's raining."

"Okaay....Did anyone get punished since then?"

Rose glances at Meira, then looks at me again. "No. Nobody has been punished since then. Yet"

After this rather dark topic, Meira switched to something a bit better suited for bedtime. She discussed the guild we were about to visit in the morning. She seems happy that we fairies were so easily distracted, excited about tomorrow's events.

 

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