The trees around Ivory began to lean over, reaching their long branches out to take ahold of her. She cried out into the sky as they began to tug on her limbs, attempting to tear them off. Ivory gripped the hilt of her rapier and slashed away at the trees.
However, her attempts to free herself with the use of her blade proved useless. Their hardened bark repelled the rapier from any attacks. Ivory looked on in horror as one of the trees was bringing a branch down upon her with great force.
“Dark Arrow!” Ivory shot forth one of her spells. The occult projectile tore through the branch, splitting it into two pieces.
The branch fell to the ground as the tree moaned loudly. Ivory allowed no time for it to recover as she began launching more spells at her targets around her. Her Darkness spell wrapped around the area like a thick fog. The occult magic began to eat away at the hardened bark of the trees, causing them to wither away even further than what they already were.
The trees began to loosen their grip on Ivory and eventually she was able to pull herself free. However, just as she had turned towards the edge of the dead forest, she noticed something blocking her path. Several of the trees had come together to form a blockade. Ivory’s exit was less than assured as more joined in to twist their arms and trunks together.
“Darn! There’s nowhere to go!” Ivory desperately looked around her, searching for another exit.
Though they blocked Ivory’s escape here, the trees could not be everywhere. They only built up around this spot but the edge of the forest stretched on for quite awhile. As her eyes followed along the edge, she watched as more and more trees piled up, making their barrier even longer.
“I’ve got to make a run for it!” Ivory took off in a sprint, making her way towards the edge of the barrier.
For every tree that Ivory passed by, another would form at the edge of the barrier, causing a nearly indefinite loop to occur. Ivory knew that if she wanted to make it to the end, she would have to go until no more trees could reinforce the barrier. However, such a feat began to seem even more out of reach as she looked on to see the dead forest span far beyond her line of sight.
“How many of these things are there?” Ivory worryingly searched around for another means of escape. “At this rate, I won’t see the edge of this forest again for quite awhile. I need to think of something and I need to do it quickly.”
Suddenly, a few trees began to jump out at her from nearby. Ivory screamed out in shock as they bellowed with a loud, deep roar. Ivory leapt out of the way as the trees collided into each other. She desperately shot forth a few Gloom Bolts in front of her, striking a few more.
Ivory hopelessly battled away as the swarms began to amass around her. Now, she not only had the wall of trees to deal with, she now had to concern herself with the pursuing crowds too. They began to flock around her as Ivory was the only source of food in sight. These trees were hungry and they longed to devour the flesh of a fresh meal.
Ivory’s search began to seem bleak and hopeless. Any means of escape soon appeared to be out of the question as the trees continued to build up their barrier. As their seemingly endless wall lengthened, the trees fortified their position around Ivory too. Masses of trees soon surrounded the area.
Ivory looked around her in all directions, watching as the trees gathered around. Each of them had their branches stretched out and their hollowed eyes and mouths opened wide. Ivory lifted her rapier and tome high into the air and howled as loud as she could as they descended upon her.
“Occultist’s Ploy!” Suddenly a dark presence began to envelop Ivory. It covered her, wrapping her like a blanket of black smoke.
The trees continued their pursuit, inching closer towards her. Within mere moments, they would be within reaching distance of her. As soon as the trees made it to her, they would wrap their branches around her and consume her within seconds. However, the trees were allowed no such chance as a myriad of tiny black orbs began to appear all around them.
“Doom Particles!” Ivory shouted as she swiped her blade in the air.
Suddenly, the tiny black orbs that filled the area began to combust. Each of them exploded with a dark essence. The trees began to moan with great pain as the black orbs collided with them. Pieces of branch and bark began to fire off in all directions as the trees were being destroyed.
“Black Orb!” Ivory fired her spell towards the direction of the barrier.
The Black Orb shot out, blowing through the crowd of trees that directly surrounded her. Several trees shattered into ash and dust as the orb consumed them. Ivory followed it as it made its way towards the wall.
Several trees began to reinforce the spot that Ivory was heading towards. While the Doom Particles lingered and continued to tear through the others, Ivory and the Black Orb continued their path. The trees thickened the barrier as they watched the pursuing spell of black essence. It collided with them, slowly eating through bark and branch. The Black Orb slowly began to fade as it consumed more and more of the trees.
“Here! Have another!” Ivory pointed her rapier towards the barrier. “Black Orb!”
Another orb of darkness formed in front of her, this time even larger than before. Ivory’s eyes illuminated and a grin crept upon her face. The swirling black mass began to grow further and her eyes widened even more because of it.
“I’ve never seen it get this big before!” Ivory observed. “My Occultist Ploy ability has increased the power of my occult spells by an immense amount…this should be more than enough to blow through this wall of trees!”
Ivory cried out as more and more trees made their way towards her. As some continued to fortify the barrier, others would lash out towards her. However, the great occult orb that hung before her would still grow larger, beginning to affect the very gravity around it. While Ivory somehow remained unaffected, the trees began to slowly pull towards it.
“This is it!” Ivory shouted as her tome began to hover in the air. She placed the palm of her hand outwards and pushed it towards the Black Orb. “Let’s see your wall hold up against this!”
The mass of darkness pushed forth, consuming the trees along its path. More and more of the trees were pulled into it, whether or not it was their intention. Bits and pieces of branch and bark went flying in all directions as the orb ate through them, shredding everything in its path.
“Now’s my chance…” Ivory took off in a sprint as the orb pushed through.
Trees continued to pursue Ivory from behind but it was too late for them. She took off, following through the newly formed pathway that was littered with ash. Ivory followed behind the orb as it consumed everything until it eventually pushed out into the opening, breaking through the barrier completely.
A multitude of trees attempted to reform the barrier but it was too late. Ivory had already burst out into the open area, freeing herself from the confines of the dead forest. She continued to sprint for a few more moments until Ivory deemed it safe to rest for a short time.
Ivory leaned over, huffing and puffing as she struggled to catch her breath. Though it seemed she had not done much, she had exhausted so much mana during that battle. Her Occultist’s Ploy, although a powerful ability, was quite draining for Ivory. However, her recovery was sufficient in allowing her to regain her composure.
Ivory turned towards the hut she had seen earlier. She steadily began walking again, heading towards the old beaten down structure. Ivory searched around in order to check her surroundings. She didn’t want to just assume that the vicinity was safe even though she had escaped the forest.
Rocky formations rose up around the area in the far distance. More dead trees were spread out in a scarce fashion. Crows and vultures surrounded the local area, seemingly a common sight within Qeshor. Patches of dead grass were scattered throughout. Large cracks formed in the rocky foundation, displaying the lack of moisture in the region.
Ivory could not see anything of notable danger in the immediate area or the surroundings. For the time being, things appeared safe. She slowly approached the old hut, looking around for any signs of life. Much like the huts that Zayd and Milly had visited, it was designed in the same fashion as the others, almost as if these huts were designed by the very same architect. Nearby was a campfire that seemed as if it had not been used in days, at the very least. A few tools and utensils were scattered on the ground in an unorganized manner.
Ivory shook her head in disgust as she watched several bugs slither and crawl across the cookware. She slowly approached the door of the hut. Ivory raised her fist and began to knock on the door. No answer was given except the creaking of the door as it slowly opened. Ivory nudged it open a bit further and peered inside.
Ivory noticed the sight of what appeared to be a small, elderly woman. The strange individual was knelt down in a sitting position but seemingly levitating off the surface of the floor. Her hands were raised to the side and her eyes were shut. The lady, herself, didn’t appear out of the ordinary as far as her features were concerned. She had long, flowing white hair and was adorned in a rather decent looking robe. Her skin was littered with wrinkles, displaying her old age.
Ivory slowly entered the hut further as she heard the old lady chanting words. She couldn’t make out what she was saying or what the words meant. They sounded as if they were some foreign language that Ivory had not heard of before.
Suddenly the old lady began to chant something legible.
“Oh Great Basilisk, hear my prayer…,” The old lady continued to murmur. “Grant me your blessing. Allow me to use your power to bring ruin to those that would dare enter my domain.”
Ivory’s eyes widened with intrigue as she listened on. “She’s invoking the power of the Great Basilisk…”
“Huh?!” The old lady suddenly fell from her levitating posture, smacking the floor below. “What in the hells?! Who goes there?!”
Ivory chuckled to herself as she took a step back. She watched as the old lady slowly stood up and patted herself off.
“Damn intruders coming into my home without permission!” The old lady began to glow with an intense dark aura. It swelled around her, covering her in a thick black haze. “Answer me now lest ye be consumed by the flames of chaos!”
“Wait!” Ivory stuck out her hands. “I mean no harm! The door opened when I knocked on it…”
“That’s what the last bugger said to me right before they tried to drive a dagger into my heart, sweetie!” The old lady levitated off the ground and reached her arms forward. A mass of dark mana began to form in front of her. “Of course their failed attempt to assassinate me led them to be completely disintegrated by my Black Hole ability! You should have learned from your predecessor’s mistake!”
“No! Wait. I’m not-,” Ivory had attempted to explain but it was too late.
The old lady shot forth the swirling black orb. Ivory wanted to move out of the way but somehow felt trapped in place. Perhaps it was fear that compelled her, or maybe even the sheer shock of the situation. No matter the reasoning, she now faced certain death as she stared down the swirling black mass of chaos. Ivory had journeyed so far and come such a long way, all for it to end by the hands of this mysterious stranger.
