The Sisters of the Woods Ch.9

“Is that it?”

The question was a touch pointless as Nic had difficulty imagining a giant pink tree could be anything other than what they were looking for. It stood out in every sense of the word, standing tall in the center of a clearing. Stout and aged, its trunk was so large that several people could have stood behind it and remained entirely unseen. Above, a dense canopy of long, stringy leaves hung heavy from its branches, dragging them down in a way that reminded Nic of a frozen waterfall.

Though it was the tree’s pigment that was the most outlandish detail. A stunningly bright magenta that was very clearly not the tree’s natural colour, patches in the bark and leaves showing that both had been painted. Long streamers of cloth had been tied up in the canopy like banners, all dyed the same pink as the tree itself.

“Yeah, that’s it,” Geniveve said. She stood a step behind Nic, fidgeting as she stared at the tree. “Looks like they’ve been busy with it.”

“Wasn’t pink last time?” Nic asked.

“Wasn’t that shade of pink.”

“Looks dumb,” said Zephyr. Nic shot him a withering look as he drifted lazily about their heads.

“What are you doing here!?” he demanded.

“Got bored, this looked more fun.” He wobbled back and forth for a moment before adding. “What are we doing?”

Nic rolled his eyes, turning his attention back to the tree. It was eerily still, not so much as a breath of wind stirring the branches. Certainly not what he’d expect from the home of an entire enclave of pixies. While he only had the group that had ambushed them to go by, he’d expect at least that many to be here.

“So, what now?” Nic asked. “Do we just call out or something?”

“Right um, I think we just approach?” Geniveve replied before her face lit up in recollection. “Yes, we do, but we shouldn’t get any closer than that circle.”

She pointed at the ground where a ring of mushrooms was growing all around the base of the tree. They too were brilliant pink, some of them even naturally so, though they were few. Judging by the large chunks that had been cut out of them, Nic guessed they were the source of all the paint, harvested to near extinction for their pigment.

“Why not?” Nic asked.

“I’m not sure,” Geniveve shrugged. “Has something to do with their magic I think.”

Nic filed that little tidbit away for later research, turning his immediate attention to the matter at hand. He did a quick check of his casting rig, making sure his wards were on the proper quick select channels. Satisfied they were set, Nic looked back to find Geniveve still staring at him, her expression at once nervous and expectant.

“Well, you ready?” he asked.

Geniveve nodded.

“Still don’t know what we’re doing,” Zephyr piped in.

“I weep for you,” Nic said to Zephyr before turning back to Geniveve. “Shall we?”

Geniveve gave a quiet squeak then nodded, falling into step beside him as they moved into the clearing. Little changed as they approached, no sounds but their own footsteps and Zephyr’s gleeful giggling as he slipped through the long grasses. They stopped a healthy distance from the fairy circle, not wishing to push their luck, and looked around. Still nothing moved.

“Uh, hello!” Nic called out. “Anyone here?”

Silence.

“Maybe they’re not home?” Geniveve suggested, though she sounded unconvinced.

“Hello? We’ve come to trade.” Nic called, raising his voice as high as he dared, wincing as his words echoed around the clearing. Still nothing answered.

“Yeah, we’re getting nowhere with this,” Nic said. “Can you call your mother maybe? Ask if there’s something we need to do?”

Geniveve flicked her eyes to the side, a swirl of debate going on behind them.

“I guess, but…”

She trailed off, keeping her eyes fixed firmly on the ground as she rubbed the back of her arms. Something was bothering her, though Nic couldn’t say what.

“Hey, you don’t have to if you don’t-”

“Gotcha!”

They both jumped as Zephyr’s gleeful voice cut through the air, eyes snapping back to the edge of the clearing. Zephyr hovered there just below the canopy, a twist of blue tinted wind swirling beneath him. A pixie hung within it, wings and limbs flailing as it tried to break free of the little burst of weather.

“Unhand me demon!” the pixie cried, as enraged as his tiny voice could manage.

“Rude!” Zephyr shot back.

“Zephyr what are you doing!?” Nic shouted.

“What? I caught them fair and square.”

“We’re not trying to catch them,” Nic hissed through gritted teeth. “We’re trying to talk to them.”

“Oh,” Zephyr said, the fact seemingly not having occurred to him. “Why they all hiding in the trees then?”

“I don’t-” Nic began before his brain caught up with the sentence. “Wait, what?”

Before Zephyr could answer, a sharp cry rang out and the clearing was thrown into chaos. The entire canopy shivered as dozens of pixies took flight, emerging from where they’d been hiding behind leaves and branches. There were far more of them than last time, the air practically vibrating with the collective hum of their wings. All wore some kind of pink, either on their clothes, their decorations, or even painted directly on their bodies. Around half of them were armed, Nic recognizing some of them as the ambushers from earlier.

As one, the swarm returned to their tree, flowing like a great wave to settle among its branches. Most favored the upper canopy, alighting upon leaf and bough, some hanging below where there was no room to fit. Many remained airborne, hovering like a haze and adding a mild buzz to the air that straddled the line between ominous and irritating.

From a hollow in the trunk, a second group of pixies emerged. Visibly larger than the rest, they wore elaborate armored suits made of wood and scavenged metal scrap, all lashed together with lengths of cord and duct tape. Each of them carried a long spear, tipped with a gleaming metal point and trailing pink ribbons from their haft. Large, intimidating weapons by pixie standards, though all that meant is they might just about serve as barbeque skewers in human hands.

Though even considering that, Nic could recognize an honor guard when he saw one. They took their position in two lines next to the hollow, holding their spears up and ready. One of their number stepped forward, waiting a moment to ensure it was seen before raising a small trumpet to their lips and sounding a long blast. It was surprisingly loud considering the instrument would fit easily in Nic’s palm.

“Rejoice!” Cried the pixie herald. “For her Divineness has seen fit to grace you with her splendiferous presence!”

“Uh…” Nic began.

“Know the honor of her presence, the Lady of the Tree! The Taker of the Woods! The Finder of Shinies and the Best of the Bestest!”

“Wha-” Geniveve attempted.

“Behold! The Great and Mighty, Pixie!”

From within the hollow emerged the largest pixie Nic had ever seen. A literal giant by their standards, standing a good foot tall, her height such that she had to stoop her head to exit the tree. Her dress was the fanciest of anyone present, a long garb made of many strips of sheer white cloth. Jewelry glittered from wherever it would fit, a multitude of rings, bracelets, necklaces, anklets, and piercings covering her form in gold, silver, and precious stones. Atop her head sat a crown made of bronze, a gem the size of Nic’s eye staring out from her forehead.

Like everything else here, she too was pink, though not in the same way. Where the other pixies relied on paint and decoration to colour themselves, her pigment was natural, her entire form ranging in hue from a dusky rose to a deep magenta.

As one, the entire swarm began to cheer, singing joyous songs and chanting with words Nic didn’t understand. He couldn’t have stopped it even if he wanted to, so just stood there as it continued. After a minute or so Pixie, the big one, raised her hand for quiet. Instantly it was granted, the entire clearing falling back into eerie silence. Even the rustling leaves fell silent, the world itself holding its breath in anticipation of what came next.

Then, like shattering a crystal, Pixie spoke.

“Whacu want slenger?”

Nic barely, barely, managed to hold back a laugh. He had no idea what her accent was, only that it was thick to the point of indecipherable. It was just such a bizarre contrast considering the layers of ceremony that had preceded her words.

“Oi, you hear me?” Pixie pressed. “I said whacu want?”

“Um,” Nic sputtered, still fighting off his amusement. “That is, um-”

“We want stuff,” Zephyr jumped in. “Your stuff.”

“You wot?” Pixie said, an acid edge entering her voice.

“Trade!” Nic quickly corrected. “We’d like to make a trade.”

“Oh, well whycha not say so dumplat?”

Pixie took to the air, her wings humming as loudly as the entire swarm combined. She came down until she was level with them, eyeing both Nic and Geniveve with an expectantly.

“So, whacu want?”

Nic held her gaze a moment before turning to look at Geniveve. He was glad to see she wasn’t taking a keen interest in her shoes at least but didn’t seem to be planning to speak up. He waited until she noticed him looking at her, then made a small but significant gesture at Pixie. For a moment she remained caught in the headlights but eventually began to speak, her voice coming out first as a squeak, then properly after she cleared her throat.

“Heart sap,” she said. “A handful of droplets, if that’s possible.”

Pixie snickered, the swarm quickly doing the same as they launched into collective laughter, casting jeers and mockery down at the two humans.

“Shut it!” Pixie said suddenly, her harsh tone slicing through the clearing like a razor. The swarm obeyed instantly, leaving the clearing once again in thick silence.

“And wut you offer eh? Bring your slenger muck about did ya?”

Nic glanced at Geniveve, finding her all but visibly trembling where she stood. Raising a hand, he gently grabbed hold of her elbow, the poor girl starting at his touch, eyes snapping around to look at him. Nic smiled, giving her a small nod of reassurance. It seemed to work, Geniveve returning the smile, small but bright, before turning to Pixie.

“I offer this,” she said, pulling out the bundle from her bag. Pixie was unimpressed until Geniveve unwrapped the paper and revealed the contents: a large family sized bag of potato chips.

Gasps of surprise broke out across the clearing, the pixies excitedly chattering to one another. Even their leader broke her composure, her wings beginning to buzz with excitement before she got herself under control.

“Quiet!” she snapped before turning back to the young techne. “Whacu say? Handful a drops?”

Geniveve nodded. “Y-yes. Even just a few will do if that’s all you can spare, I only need-”

“Just call it a dozen,” Nic interrupted, cutting Geniveve off before she really started to spiral. “Nice even number.”

Pixie said nothing, crossing her arms as calculations clicked away behind her eyes. A tension settled across the scene as everyone waited with bated breath, though for what Nic wasn’t entirely sure.

“Dunno,” Pixie said at last. “Bring ‘em here, lemme see dem things first.”

“I…” Geniveve said, looking at Nic in confusion. He just shrugged, the demand sounding reasonable. She seemed to take that as permission.

“Alright,” she said.

She shuffled forwards towards the tree, cautiously holding out the bag before her. Pixie approached in kind, hovering over to meet her on the other side of the fairy circle. The giant fa briefly scanned the label, though Nic sensed it was more for show than anything else, before crossing her arms and drifting back.

“A’ight,” Pixie said. “Dozen drops fer the bag, deal?”

“Yes, yes,” Geniveve said, her voice full of disbelief as she shuffled forward. “You have a-”

Her words morphed into a yelp as she somehow managed to trip over her own feet. Caught completely off guard, Nic could do nothing but watch as she plummeted forward to the ground.

Right over the line of the circle.

For a terrible instant, everything was still, all eyes glued to the young techne where she lay on the ground. Nic was still processing things when Pixie’s voice cried out in a shrill, piercing tone.

“INTERLOPER!”

The stillness shattered, the entire swarm erupting into motion, repeating the word interloper over and over. As one they took flight, raising spears and nocking arrows, wings buzzing ominously as they hissed through the air, ready and eager for violence. All of this Nic watched in panic, his mind racing as he spoke the only two words that seemed appropriate.

“Aw hells.”

*

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