Chapter 15
Tracking the Blight
ADARA
The morning light filtered through the trees as we made our way toward the druid tree site. I rode at the front of our strange procession, trying to focus on the path ahead rather than the five supernatural guardians traveling with me—each one radiating their own unique brand of tension.
Lucas and Ryu had taken point, scouting ahead with their enhanced senses. Their competitive energy crackled between them like lightning. Occasionally, Lucas would circle back, materializing from the underbrush to report what they'd found—or more accurately, to make sure I noticed his usefulness.
"Path's clear for the next mile," he announced, falling into step beside my horse. His blue-green eyes sparkled with mischief as he glanced up at me. "Though I caught scent of something interesting just west of here. Might be worth investigating."
"Define interesting," I replied, arching an eyebrow skeptically. "In my experience, that word usually precedes trouble, explosions, or both."
"Traces of corruption, but faint. Nothing immediate." He shrugged, muscles rippling beneath his simple linen shirt. "Could be nothing, could be a clue."
Before I could respond, Ryu emerged from the trees ahead, his expression thunderous. "The wolf's nose is failing him," he announced with barely contained disdain. "What he smells is just residual corruption from a passing animal. Nothing worth diverting for."
Ryu's jaw tightened as he spoke, golden eyes flashing with barely contained dragon-fire. His fingers curled into fists at his sides, scales briefly shimmering beneath his skin before he forced them back under control.
Lucas's easy smile never faltered, but I caught the subtle tensing of his jaw. “Funny how the dragon suddenly cares about our timeline when it's my discovery.”
I suppressed a sigh. “We'll stick to the main path for now. If the traces grow stronger, we'll investigate.” I leveled a pointed look at both of them. “And maybe save the territorial posturing for when we're not tracking deadly corruption, hmm?”
Lucas inclined his head in acknowledgment, but as he turned to resume scouting, he shot me a look that promised our conversation wasn't over.
Behind me, Aeolus guided his gelding with casual elegance, looking for all the world like he was out for a pleasant afternoon ride rather than a quest to cleanse ancient corruption. Whenever our eyes met, my flame-script pulsed beneath my skin.
"Your thoughts are loud enough to hear from here, Phoenix," he called forward, his voice carrying just enough to reach my ears alone. A subtle breeze caressed my cheek, his magic extending just far enough to ensure privacy in our conversation.
I shot him a warning glance over my shoulder. "Stay out of my head, Stormchaser. No one gets an all-access pass to my thoughts."
His laugh was like wind through aspen leaves. "No need for fae tricks when your face reveals everything. You're as readable as one of Taranis's dusty tomes, though considerably more fascinating."
I turned back to the path, determined to focus on our mission.
The revelation from my vision still haunted me—the sense that I'd encountered the corruption's architect in a previous incarnation.
Fragments of memory teased the edges of my consciousness, but whenever I tried to grasp them, they slipped away like smoke.
Eldrin walked beside Taranis, their conversation a low murmur of scholarly debate.
Despite their estrangement, their shared intellectual curiosity had quickly bridged the gap, and they'd spent most of the morning deep in discussion about ley lines and corruption patterns, guaranteeing I'd tune them out.
Occasionally, Taranis would adjust his wire-rimmed glasses and gesture toward something on the horizon, his precise movements contrasting with Eldrin's weathered pragmatism.
Taranis traced a pattern in the air with his intricately carved staff, the wood humming with barely restrained power as he demonstrated some theoretical concept to Eldrin.
The staff's crystal focus caught the sunlight, briefly scattering rainbow patterns across the forest floor before he lowered it again.
Desmond walked at a steady pace, his massive frame moving with surprising grace through the underbrush. He paused occasionally to commune with the local spirits, his expression growing more troubled with each interaction.
"The land rumbles in discontent," he said quietly when he caught up to my mare. "Creatures of the blight passed this way recently."
"What do you mean?" I asked, reining in to match his pace. The gold filigree of flame-script along my forearms pulsed in response to his proximity—our connection from the healing both comforting and unsettling.
Desmond's honey-colored eyes were somber. "The spirits speak of shadows that move against the sun, of water that runs black beneath the moon. They're frightened, Adara."
A chill ran down my spine despite the warmth of the day. "Can they tell us anything more specific?"
Desmond shook his head, his dreadlocks swaying with the movement.
"They speak in riddles and sensations, not clear warnings.
But they're agitated." He placed a large palm against the trunk of a nearby oak, his eyes briefly closing in communion.
"The corruption here is... different. More deliberate. "
"Is it the same back in your realm?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper as the forest seemed to hold its breath around us. "Or is this something new?"
Desmond's expression darkened, the sunlight dappling through the leaves casting shadows across his strong features.
"Yes and no," he replied, his deep voice resonating in his chest. "The corruption there manifests differently—more like a slow poison than an aggressive disease—but the intent behind it feels the same.
" He pressed his palm more firmly against the oak's rough bark, as if drawing strength from the ancient wood.
"Here it feels like something... or someone.
.. is orchestrating this. Experimenting. "
I felt a cold flicker of unease spreading through my chest at his words, which aligned too perfectly with my vision. More deliberate. Engineered. Not random. Someone with purpose behind their actions.
Desmond's honey-colored eyes studied my face. "Your expression tells me this isn't news to you, Phoenix."
I shrugged. "I'm not sure what I know right now. So many memories, but what has meaning for this life? It's impossible to know." I tapped my temple with a wry smile. "Having thousands of years of past lives rattling around in here isn't nearly as useful as you'd think."
Desmond nodded, his eyes troubled. "Time will tell."
"How much farther to this cave?" I asked Eldrin, who had broken away from his scholarly discussion with Taranis to join us.
"We should reach the ridgeline before nightfall," the former archivist replied, his weathered face revealing nothing of his thoughts. "The cave system there offers a defensible position to rest before continuing to the druid tree tomorrow."
As we continued our journey, the forest around us began to change in subtle ways.
The vibrant greens of healthy woodland gradually gave way to duller hues.
Leaves appeared withered at the edges, their veins traced with faint purplish lines.
The birdsong that had accompanied our morning travel grew sporadic, then ceased altogether.
"The corruption's influence extends farther than I anticipated," Eldrin noted, his scholar's eyes cataloging every detail. "When I last passed through, the blight hadn't reached this far."
Taranis adjusted his glasses with precise fingers, his free hand tightening around his staff.
"The pattern suggests acceleration. I've never encountered anything like this in my research before.
The blight's been a fixture all my life.
I do wonder why the sudden change." His gaze settled on me.
"Perhaps it senses the return of the Phoenix? "
My stomach flip-flopped. That was the last thing I needed.
To not only face this ancient corruption but to know I might have somehow catalyzed its spread.
The very thought made my chest tighten with a familiar weight: responsibility.
Always responsibility. How many times across how many lives had I been told my existence was both the problem and the solution?
Lucas materialized from the underbrush again, his earlier playfulness replaced by alertness. "Found tracks about half a mile ahead. The shape's not natural."
"Corrupted wildlife," Eldrin confirmed grimly. "We should proceed with caution."
Ryu appeared at the edge of the path, golden eyes scanning the undergrowth with predatory focus. "The wolf's right for once. Something's been through here recently. Smells wrong."
"It's not just the tracks that concern me," Lucas added, his nose wrinkling in distaste. "There's something about the scent that... it's like it's trying to mimic natural animal musk but getting it wrong. Almost as if..."
"As if it's learning," Taranis finished for him, expression grave as he aligned his staff defensively. "Adapting to match what would make us lower our guard."
Aeolus shivered visibly. "I feel it too. The wind carries whispers that sound almost like deer but twisted. It's trying to find what calls to each of us."
A sense of unease settled over the group as we realized the corruption wasn't just a mindless force but something calculating that studied its adversaries.
I noticed how both Desmond and Lucas had subtly moved closer to me since rejoining our group.
The bear shifter positioned himself at my mare's left flank, while Lucas walked at my right.
A subtle cough from behind caught my attention—Aeolus had maneuvered his gelding closer, completing a protective triangle around me.