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<blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 7497944" data-attributes="member: 143"><p>Chapter 208</p><p></p><p>The interior of the grove was quiet, almost hushed. Even the cold breeze didn’t seem to penetrate into the space between the giant trees. In fact, it was noticeably warmer, despite the lack of light. The interlaced canopy was so dense that the forest floor was wreathed in a perpetual twilight.</p><p></p><p>The ground was covered with a dense layer of decaying matter. It was slippery, and even the Rangers had to tread carefully to avoid a spill. Tenaille paused and drew a knife that she used to prod the ground. What came up was a thick mass of rotting vegetation that had the color and consistency of pitch. With disgust she cleaned her blade and moved to rejoin the others.</p><p></p><p>A trail of sorts led deeper into the grove. There were plants here, growing somehow despite the dearth of light. The trees were stunted and bent, the bushes covered in thorns that seemed to reach eagerly for the travelers as they passed. Glori softly strummed her lyre, summoning a string of <em>dancing lights</em> that added some brightness to the deep gloom. Their pale glow cast the surrounding growth into sharp relief, and only added to the impression that they were passing through some fey shadow-realm, with malevolent things waiting just beyond the edges of the light. Shreskra shot Glori an alarmed look when the lights appeared, but again she let it drop, perhaps recognizing that it was almost impossible that their adversary did not already know that they were coming.</p><p></p><p>The lights revealed a thicket up ahead, a massive wall of tangled growth. The thicket rose to almost twenty feet high, woven around the twisted trunks of trees to form a cohesive barrier. There were thorns, of course, but these were truly nasty, hooked blades like daggers with tiny glistening drops of something foul dangling from their tips. They did not need to ask Brightbriar to know that they did not want to come anywhere near those vicious points.</p><p></p><p>The trail led right up to the edge of the thicket. It was not until they were almost on top of it that they could see that there was a path that led through the barrier into the interior. The corridor was narrow, wide enough for only one of them to venture through at a time, but as the lights drifted forward at Glori’s command they could see that it led to another open space on the far side.</p><p></p><p>The passage through the thicket was nerve-wracking. The opening was wide enough that there was never any real threat from the sharp thorns, but close enough that they had to be constantly vigilant. The Rangers led the way, followed by the bards and the Tender, and then finally the two monks who brought up the rear.</p><p></p><p>None of them were particularly shocked with the passage closed behind them, sealing them in.</p><p></p><p>They found themselves in a dim area dominated by a single huge tree. This one was only a fraction of the height of the giants that had surrounded the hilltop, but it more than made up for it in sheer breadth. Its branches held no leaves, but they still managed to form a dense, overlapping canopy that extended over the entire space encircled by the thicket wall. The tree itself was black, and exposed roots projected up around its base, forming a warren of nooks and niches. Some of those spaces had been covered with drapes of canvas, turning them into small chambers, but they could not see anything stirring within.</p><p></p><p>“This way,” Brightbriar said, drawing them around the perimeter to the far side of the tree.</p><p></p><p>The others followed him, and as they circled around the massive trunk a disturbing tableau came into view. This side of the tree appeared to be diseased, with a massive, pulpy mass of ochre putrescence clinging to the gnarled bark. The stuff rose from the base of the tree almost up to the spreading branches. There were four smaller trees in front of the sickened ancient, stunted versions of the mother tree, their branches bent and sagging as if they were wracked by heavy pains.</p><p></p><p>“This is not going to be good,” Majerion said.</p><p></p><p>“What… what is this?” Tenaille asked.</p><p></p><p>None of them had any answers, but a voice sounded from the shadows that clung thick around the base of the tree. “Purity,” it said.</p><p></p><p>Strumming her lyre, Glori sent her <em>dancing lights</em> forward to illuminate the scene.</p><p></p><p>The shimmering witch-lights revealed that they were not alone. Standing next to each of the smaller trees was one of the altered Tenders. These seemed even worse off than the pair they had encountered earlier at the outpost. Their robes hung about them in shredded rags, allowing them to clearly see the growths that sprouted from their flesh. Their fingernails, cracked and filthy and long like claws, gently caressed the bark of their trees. The last of them seemed somewhat different than the others, but it wasn’t until one of Glori’s lights swung around to shine directly on its face that they could see why.</p><p></p><p>Loriellan let out a strangled cry. “Razelle!”</p><p></p><p>But before any of them could react to that horror, the <em>lights</em> revealed something else. As the darkness withdrew they could see that there was <em>something</em> embedded within the noxious foulness that coated the side of the tree. No, not <em>something</em>, but <em>someone</em>, a bulge that was barely recognizable as human. They each had suspicions about the identity of that imprisoned form, but Brightbriar confirmed it as he slumped to his knees and moaned, “Celestron.”</p><p></p><p>They had expected to confront their enemy here, but these revelations had overpowered even their worst fears and left them stunned. Thus they did not see the last figure until he stepped away from the tangle of roots near the base of the tree. Glori’s fingers jerked over the strings of her lyre and the four globes of light swarmed in that direction. They bracketed the figure, who was revealed to be the same cloaked form who had challenged them coming out of the swamp. Any doubt as to whether it was the same person ended when he lifted a hand and addressed them.</p><p></p><p>“Your quest, it ends here,” Jakan said.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lazybones, post: 7497944, member: 143"] Chapter 208 The interior of the grove was quiet, almost hushed. Even the cold breeze didn’t seem to penetrate into the space between the giant trees. In fact, it was noticeably warmer, despite the lack of light. The interlaced canopy was so dense that the forest floor was wreathed in a perpetual twilight. The ground was covered with a dense layer of decaying matter. It was slippery, and even the Rangers had to tread carefully to avoid a spill. Tenaille paused and drew a knife that she used to prod the ground. What came up was a thick mass of rotting vegetation that had the color and consistency of pitch. With disgust she cleaned her blade and moved to rejoin the others. A trail of sorts led deeper into the grove. There were plants here, growing somehow despite the dearth of light. The trees were stunted and bent, the bushes covered in thorns that seemed to reach eagerly for the travelers as they passed. Glori softly strummed her lyre, summoning a string of [i]dancing lights[/i] that added some brightness to the deep gloom. Their pale glow cast the surrounding growth into sharp relief, and only added to the impression that they were passing through some fey shadow-realm, with malevolent things waiting just beyond the edges of the light. Shreskra shot Glori an alarmed look when the lights appeared, but again she let it drop, perhaps recognizing that it was almost impossible that their adversary did not already know that they were coming. The lights revealed a thicket up ahead, a massive wall of tangled growth. The thicket rose to almost twenty feet high, woven around the twisted trunks of trees to form a cohesive barrier. There were thorns, of course, but these were truly nasty, hooked blades like daggers with tiny glistening drops of something foul dangling from their tips. They did not need to ask Brightbriar to know that they did not want to come anywhere near those vicious points. The trail led right up to the edge of the thicket. It was not until they were almost on top of it that they could see that there was a path that led through the barrier into the interior. The corridor was narrow, wide enough for only one of them to venture through at a time, but as the lights drifted forward at Glori’s command they could see that it led to another open space on the far side. The passage through the thicket was nerve-wracking. The opening was wide enough that there was never any real threat from the sharp thorns, but close enough that they had to be constantly vigilant. The Rangers led the way, followed by the bards and the Tender, and then finally the two monks who brought up the rear. None of them were particularly shocked with the passage closed behind them, sealing them in. They found themselves in a dim area dominated by a single huge tree. This one was only a fraction of the height of the giants that had surrounded the hilltop, but it more than made up for it in sheer breadth. Its branches held no leaves, but they still managed to form a dense, overlapping canopy that extended over the entire space encircled by the thicket wall. The tree itself was black, and exposed roots projected up around its base, forming a warren of nooks and niches. Some of those spaces had been covered with drapes of canvas, turning them into small chambers, but they could not see anything stirring within. “This way,” Brightbriar said, drawing them around the perimeter to the far side of the tree. The others followed him, and as they circled around the massive trunk a disturbing tableau came into view. This side of the tree appeared to be diseased, with a massive, pulpy mass of ochre putrescence clinging to the gnarled bark. The stuff rose from the base of the tree almost up to the spreading branches. There were four smaller trees in front of the sickened ancient, stunted versions of the mother tree, their branches bent and sagging as if they were wracked by heavy pains. “This is not going to be good,” Majerion said. “What… what is this?” Tenaille asked. None of them had any answers, but a voice sounded from the shadows that clung thick around the base of the tree. “Purity,” it said. Strumming her lyre, Glori sent her [i]dancing lights[/i] forward to illuminate the scene. The shimmering witch-lights revealed that they were not alone. Standing next to each of the smaller trees was one of the altered Tenders. These seemed even worse off than the pair they had encountered earlier at the outpost. Their robes hung about them in shredded rags, allowing them to clearly see the growths that sprouted from their flesh. Their fingernails, cracked and filthy and long like claws, gently caressed the bark of their trees. The last of them seemed somewhat different than the others, but it wasn’t until one of Glori’s lights swung around to shine directly on its face that they could see why. Loriellan let out a strangled cry. “Razelle!” But before any of them could react to that horror, the [i]lights[/i] revealed something else. As the darkness withdrew they could see that there was [i]something[/i] embedded within the noxious foulness that coated the side of the tree. No, not [i]something[/i], but [i]someone[/i], a bulge that was barely recognizable as human. They each had suspicions about the identity of that imprisoned form, but Brightbriar confirmed it as he slumped to his knees and moaned, “Celestron.” They had expected to confront their enemy here, but these revelations had overpowered even their worst fears and left them stunned. Thus they did not see the last figure until he stepped away from the tangle of roots near the base of the tree. Glori’s fingers jerked over the strings of her lyre and the four globes of light swarmed in that direction. They bracketed the figure, who was revealed to be the same cloaked form who had challenged them coming out of the swamp. Any doubt as to whether it was the same person ended when he lifted a hand and addressed them. “Your quest, it ends here,” Jakan said. [/QUOTE]
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