Chapter 10 Playing with Fire and Fangs #2
"You can't talk sense into someone who already has all they want," came the fae's cheeky reply. "Just point the way."
The hunter frowned but relented. "The spring's vent is that way, just follow the river and watch for the standing stones."
Another of those playful-yet-menacing calls echoed through the trees, even closer now. The hunter's face paled.
"Best of luck to you. That'll be them now," he said, already backing away.
"I've learned the hard way to keep my distance.
Take my advice. Get out while you still can.
They've developed a taste for people, likely even your kind.
" With that ominous warning, he melted back into the shadows of the twisted forest, away from the sound of the beasts.
I exchanged a glance with Aeolus, whose expression was now more serious.
"Well," he said, "I suppose we now know what's making those enchanting noises.
" His attempt at levity fell flat as another of those chilling calls split the air, this time accompanied by splashing sounds from the nearby stream.
I dismounted, fighting a wave of dizziness as my feet hit the ground.
My body still felt uncertain, powers flickering like a candle in wind.
My boots squelched in the corrupted soil as I steadied myself, one hand on the mare's flank, the other reaching for my core of power.
The flame-script beneath my skin flickered erratically, like it couldn't quite find purchase in this tainted place.
She pressed close, seeking warmth and protection.
"I wonder if the sacred stones or the spring is the source of the corruption?" My voice wavered slightly, whether from exhaustion or the wrongness of this place, I couldn't tell.
Aeolus ran a hand through his hair, and I wondered if he believed he had any control over that unruly mop. "As I understand it, the corruption is drawn to magic, so if I had to guess, it's the standing stones."
"Then we have to get to the spring so I can see what this blight is all about for myself," I said, lifting my chin. "Besides, I didn't come all this way to turn back at the first sign of mutant otters."
"Ah yes, let's head toward the source of the demented murder-otters.
" Aeolus swung down from his gelding with fluid grace.
"Splendid plan. Perhaps afterward we can find a nest of corrupted hornets to poke with sticks.
Or maybe a pit of cursed vipers to use as jump ropes.
" He offered me his hand with a theatrical bow.
"After you, my suicidal phoenix. I'd hate to deprive you of being the first one eaten. "
A rustling in the underbrush made both horses shy. Aeolus raised his hand and a gust of wind swept through the trees, carrying with it the scents of water, decay, and a metallic tang that wrinkled my nose.
"Come on," I said, grabbing my mare's reins and trudging through the mud in the direction the hunter had pointed out.
The blight-tainted earth sucked at our boots with each step, like it was trying to hold us in place.
Or maybe drag us under; hard to tell with magical corruption.
The horses' nervous dancing had given way to plodding determination, though they still flinched at every unnatural sound from the stream.
"Maybe running from five guardians wasn't my brightest idea," I said. "Extra hands would be useful right now."
Aeolus shot me a sideways glance. "Having second thoughts about your dashing escape?"
"Not about the escape part." I stumbled, catching myself on my mare's shoulder. "More about the 'wandering into obviously cursed hills with only one backup' part. Though as backups go, you're marginally less annoying than expected."
"Such high praise." He reached out to steady me, his hand warm against my arm. His fingers lingered, tracing where my power flickered beneath skin. Heat that had nothing to do with phoenix fire shot through me. "I'd bow, but I'm afraid the mud would swallow me whole."
The banter helped but couldn't entirely mask how the corruption grew stronger with every step. My power pulsed erratically, responding to whatever lay ahead. Beside me, Aeolus's fae glamour flickered, his silver hair dulled to gray.
Dark veins spread through the vegetation around us. The corrupt magic felt almost conscious now, aware of our presence and... hungry.
A splash echoed from the stream to our right, followed by a distinctive chittering laugh that raised the hair on my neck.
"They're herding us," Aeolus said quietly, his silver-white hair catching what little light filtered through the twisted canopy. His eyes had taken on an otherworldly gleam, the only visible sign of his fae nature asserting itself. "The splashing, the calls, they're pushing us toward something."
The attack came without warning. A sleek, twisted form launched from the water—twice the size of any otter, limbs too numerous and wrong, flesh rippling with purple corruption. Skin split to reveal organs pulsing with unnatural light.
More emerged behind it, eyes gleaming with unnatural intelligence. Jaws distended to reveal needle-like teeth dripping blackened saliva. They moved with terrible coordination, flanking us with predatory precision.
I called flame during the otter attack, but the power surged erratically through my veins.
Beside me, Aeolus’s wind magic swirled with unusual warmth, our powers mingling in unexpected ways.
The sensation was electric, intimate, like his essence was brushing against mine.
For a moment, I glimpsed what we might become together—if we survived long enough to find out.
The nearest creature recoiled from our combined heat and wind, the others skidding to a halt, hesitation rippling through their ranks.
Their chittering laughter twisted into snarls of frustration, then silence.
One by one, the otters vanished into the forest shadows, their bodies melting into the underbrush.
We could hear them rustling through the leaves, swift and retreating.
The momentary display had taken its toll. My body trembled with exertion, and Aeolus’s fae glamour dimmed, his usual glow dulled like the last light before twilight.
"Okay, the hunter wasn't exaggerating about the whole 'murder-otter' thing," I managed, trying to hide how much that small display of power had shaken me.
"They really are beasts of unusual size.
Let's not stick around for the encore. I'd hate to end up as a cautionary tale.
'Here lies Adara, who thought murder otters were cute. '"
"Agreed. And ferocity. Who knew otters even had a spark of aggression in them? Perhaps we should go another way?"
I shook my head. "The spring is in this direction. We don't have much choice. Besides, I didn't wake up from my magical egg just to run from the first challenge I face. If I'm supposed to be this legendary phoenix, I should start acting like one."
"There's always a choice," he countered, but fell into step beside me anyway. "Though I admit, none of our options are particularly appealing at the moment. I almost wish we'd waited for the others."
"What, and miss this incredible bonding opportunity?" I smirked at him, though the expression probably looked more strained than sassy. "Besides, I bet you can't wait to lord it over the others that you were the first to find me."
"I can't lie," he said, grunting as he nearly tripped while slogging over a muddy rock. "I am relishing the win, and the bonding, such as it is."
"Careful there, your pride is showing," I teased. "And here I thought fae were supposed to be tactful."
The vegetation grew more grotesque as we pressed forward, branches writhing like tentacles. The stream had taken on an oily sheen, its surface broken by dark shapes that moved with disturbing purpose.
The trees parted like they were running away from what lay ahead.
Can't blame them, really. The clearing hit me like a punch to the gut; a perfect circle of wrongness carved into the forest. Standing stones jutted from corrupted earth at painful angles, their ancient faces crawling with runes that shouldn't move but definitely did.
Each symbol pulsed with sickly light, like infected wounds in the rock itself, leaking purple-black energy that seeped into the ground below.
And at the center? A spring that looked almost offensively peaceful, if you ignored the way reality seemed to curl away from it.
My steps slowed as we approached, every instinct screaming that this was a monumentally bad idea.
The vegetation agreed, twisting away from our path like it was trying to point us in the opposite direction.
"I don't suppose," Aeolus muttered, tying the horses to a relatively normal-looking tree at the edge of the clearing, "that we could just leave a strongly worded note about proper sacred spring maintenance and call it a day?
'Dear Corruption: Please stop. You're being very rude to the local ecosystem. '"
I ignored his attempt at humor, drawn forward by something that tugged at the edges of my memory.
The standing stones seemed to pulse in time with the flame-script beneath my skin, a resonance that felt both familiar and wrong.
Something about this place awakened a deep sadness within me, a sense of loss I couldn't quite place, as if I'd seen this corruption before and failed to stop it.
"The protections..." I traced the writhing symbols, letting instinct guide my fingers.
Knowledge rose unbidden, like muscle memory from countless past lives.
The stone felt warm beneath my touch, vibrating with ancient magic that fought against the corruption's influence.
"They're still fighting. Still trying to keep the spring pure. "