Phoenix
Phoenix had spent what little of the morning hours were left trying to complete her first quest. If felt like she had searched most of forest. She had discovered many bio florescent flora, hues of glowing purples, dazzling reds, and starry yellow among the thing twisted roots. Great dark brown stags with golden antlers that blending in with the giant trees would startle as she ran by. Small earthen hares with eyes like rubies squealed in terror, scurrying into burrows hidden under the ground. She even felt the presence of the unseen wolves like phantoms in the shadows following closely, yet out of reach. She sniffed the air. Every scent was catalogued into her mind but none of them seemed to stand out as significant. What was she missing?
[First Steps]
[Explore Twisted Root Forest]
[Incomplete]
She opened her in-game, a holographic three-dimensional landscape to scale blinked into existence. The forest in the map was roughly shaped like a full moon. A small blinking white arrow pointed at her to be in the north-east of forest. Each small clearing was scattered sparsely through the forest like tiny stars. In the heart of the forest was a crystalline blue space on the map. A pond? A call like a hushed whisper in her ear ushered her to this particular spot. Is this what she was supposed to be searching for? There was only one was to find out.
She bounded through the wooded landscape, guided by the faint sound on the breeze. Growing ever closer to the blue area in the map until she skidded to a stop just at the edge of the clearing. All fell silent. Spread out across the vast open space here at the very heart of the woodland was a pristine placid lake, shimmering with thousands of stars. Night had suddenly descended over the land despite still being midday. The moon hanging high above centered in the middle of the open canopy. The water began to shine bright, forcing her the cover her eyes to prevent being blinded. The whisper tickled her ear once more, this time the words clear in her mind.
Child of light, born of darkness
You have hidden my holy brightness
Broken, straying, your purpose forgotten
You've let your heart slowly darken
Forsake yourself, seek my face
Shine my light, share my grace
The air shifted. A presence, dark and sinister sent a wave goosebumps down her arms, her hair standing on end. Glancing over her shoulder, there behind her was a figure of a black wolf. The beast's shoulder was level with her own with fur, thick and writhing like living shadows. Its blood red eyes pinned her in place while it bared its razor sharp at teeth at her.
[Alpha Night Shadow Wolf LVL 10 has challenged you]
[Skill: Call of the Wild (Disabled during challenge)]
[Skill: Polymorph (Disabled during challenge)]
This was bad. She was only at level 1. To make matters worse, her claws and fangs were unavailable for this challenge. The alpha wolf lunged at her. She threw herself to the side, narrowly avoiding the beast's snapping jaws and rolling to all fours. With the full force of her coiled legs, she burst forward to catch it by surprise. Instead of feeling the impact of slamming into the massive creature, she passed harmless through its body like a sickening vapor before crashing head first into the broad side of a thick tree trunk. Pain exploded through her skull. Her health bar dropped by 20%. Ugh! It's not just cloaked in living shadows. It IS a living shadow.
Heavy wheezing erupted behind her. She turned around to find monster's mouth hanging wide up in a grotesque smile, its red eyes filled with mirth. Phoenix's blood boiled. The monster was laughing at her. She wanted to punch its teeth in, but how do you beat something you can't touch? Again the whisper came.
Forsake yourself, seek my face
Her rage simmered. Calm took its place, clearing her mind. A savage snarl ripped through the air. The change in her had angered it. It lunged again and again. The dark shadow's teeth pushing her further from the light that was calling her. One corner of Phoenix's lip turned upward. Her goal was now clear. When the beast blindly lunged at her again, this time she leapt over it. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she launched herself in the direction of the lake. Running with all her might, she felt the wolf's breath on her ankle as she entered the clearing. She stumbled and fell at the water's edge, expecting to feel the tearing of flesh. It never came. One glance at the tree line was all she needed to see why. Mere inches from where she lay, the shadowy figure shifted and writhed, gnashing its glistening fangs against the protective dome of light surrounding the lake.
Now that the danger had passed, she collapsed on the soft shoreline, catching her breath. "It's not over yet, dear child." Phoenix jerked her body upright in alarm. There within arm's reach was an elderly man in long white robes. His body was hunched over and the staff he held firmly was curved like a shepherd's rod. Ancient eyes almost white with age saw through rather than actually seeing her. A gentle knowing smile spread across his lips, making the wrinkles on his face deeper.
"Who are you?" She wasn't sure where he came from or why he was here. What she did know was he had no intention to cause harm.
He bowed his head, hunching over a bit more. "You may call me, Elder Flynn. I've been waiting for you. However, it seems another matter must be attended to first."
"How?" She sat watching the beastly monstrosity. It had seized its assault on the light dome and was now pacing in a small circle, its red eyes never letting her out of its site.
"There is only one thing that can defeat darkness." Using the hook of his staff, he nudged a few strands of her hair into her view. Phoenix's eyes widened. Her hair was shining with bright light.
Ding
[Skill: Moon's Blessing (passive)]
[Bonus effect unlocked (purification of Shadow entities)]