Chapter 28

The Gaians stood there, staring at the utter abomination the Dark Nymph had become. Gone was the allure that had made her a Nymph to begin with. All that remained was darkness, hatred, and rage. The armor that covered her was blacker than night and just as unfathomable. She bristled with Dark Magic, practically radiating the unholy energies that had transformed her.

“What have you become?” Felicitae questioned, taking over Amy for the moment.

“What we should have been all this time! You will join us ... after we deal with your ... friends,” the Dark Nymph almost cackled.

“Arrogant, just like the Sons of Caesar. You’ll fall just like they have!” Jason growled as he brought up a quick spell and blasted her with a bolt of life giving energy.

The Dark Nymph looked almost amused at the outright attack, sneering at the Druid. She simply flicked her hand, and the bolt impacted an invisible shield, dissipating almost instantly. Jason was shocked at this, never having seen or heard of anyone or anything capable of such a feat!

“These ... Sons of Caesar, were pretenders. They do not know true power! You don’t face arrogant upstarts, but a true Vessel of the Dark!” the abomination laughed.

Just as everyone brought up their defensive shields is when she attacked, unleashing bolts of death and decay. They sprayed outwards from her like a fan of knives, hitting everyone who was there. Thankfully, the shields the Gaians brought up were able to absorb the dark energies, but only just. Many of them flickered fitfully, almost fading out, which told the group one simple thing; they were way in over their heads!

“You think your puny magics can hurt me? Me?? I can absorb everything you throw at me...” the Dark Nymph started, laughing all the while at the Gaians.

She moved to approach Jason, but a shout of anger cut her little tirade short. The group heard a bunch of pops in the air, almost like a gun firing, and the Dark Nymph turned her ire to the offending object. It was one of Luke’s drones that had floated in with them! Jason hadn’t seen, but one of them was equipped with a gun, which was busy unloading rounds into the creature.

“Lay off my friends, you cock juggling thundercunt!” Luke shouted over the loudspeaker of the drone. She screamed in annoyance and launched a bolt at the drone, but it deftly jinked out of the way.

“Not quick enough by half, witch! You need to be better than that if you’re going to pull any of my toys out of the air!” Luke jibed, angering the creature further.

Jason smiled, happy that his friend was buying the lot of them a few moments to regroup. Everyone seemed to catch on and quietly reinforced their spell shields while readying offensive spells. Luke kept firing off nasty insults, which occupied the creature’s attention, which she realized a bit too late. Turning back to the real threat, the Dark Nymph pulled up another spell, one that would eviscerate her adversaries.

“Clever little mortals! That won’t save you!” she purred as she neared the completion of her spell. Just as it was ready, the golem lumbered up and swung mightily at her, looking to pulverize the Dark Nymph. The spell would have done some serious damage, weakening the Gaians, had it gone off. Thankfully, it didn’t as the creature danced away, not wanting to be turned into blackened mush.

“Oh, you are going to pay for that!” the evil creature raged.

The golem was indifferent to her threats and swung again, this time catching the Nymph square in the chest. She flew backwards through the air, the force of the punch more than enough to ragdoll her. The Dark Nymph was still in one piece, a fact she was extremely grateful for. She clambered back to her feet as the golem advanced on her.

Being a Vessel of the Dark gave the Dark Nymph some serious advantages that Gaians did not. The biggest of which was the ability to endure extreme levels of punishment, which would cripple or destroy lesser beings. She was extremely grateful for such protection at that moment. The golem swung once again, and she met his fist halfway, punching as hard as she could.

The resulting force from the connecting blows was enough to jostle everyone there a little. The Vessel looked up at the golem she was fighting and was dismayed at what she saw! While she had considerable power within her now, the creature should have at least crumbled the golem’s fist! Instead, the construct had taken little to no damage from their brief exchange!

The Dark Nymph continued to trade punches with the golem, seeing almost no damage done to it! It was impossible that the construct was able to withstand this much punishment! She cast her eyes around briefly and quickly found the source of the golem’s power. Xaera was standing off to the side, chanting in Trollish as her spellwork empowered the golem.

Normally, the creature wouldn’t be concerned, but the yellow magic that Xaera wielded worried her. She had never seen such magic before and if it could match Dark Magic, then she had to shut it down now! The Dark Nymph got off a blast of magic at the golem, which made it back away to avoid the worst of it. This gave the creature enough breathing room to focus her ire on the troll mage, but she didn’t get that chance.

“Oh, no you don’t, you sadistic little bitch!” Sheena shouted at her, pelting her with mini fireballs.

“No one comes at our friends!” Phalmina yelled, firing incinerating bolts of magic at the Dark Nymph.

The rumbling sound that came from the golem almost sounded like a warcry, had it been coherent. Whether it could be understood didn’t matter, as its intent was clear. It stomped over to the creature, eager to do its mistress’ bidding and end the damned beast. It raised its hands to pummel the Dark Nymph into oblivion, but never landed its blow.

The Dark Nymph drew upon her new gifts, calling upon the power of the Dark Heart. She accelerated her reaction time, allowing her to dodge any incoming attack she saw. Several bolts of Gaian magic streaked towards her, but she dodged those while working a spell of her own. In seconds, the spell completed, and she threw it at the golem, which was the most immediate threat.

Its speed slowed down to where it looked like it was moving through molasses. The slow spell she conjured would hold the creature long enough as she turned to deal with its creator. Bringing forth her Dark Magic once again, she enacted another spell, much the same as the one the golem was trapped in. Once the chant was finished, she brought her power to bear against Xaera, trapping the troll woman in a stasis cocoon.

While she could have ended the troll mage with her power, she decided instead to capture her. The source of her magic was one that she hadn’t seen before and wanted to learn about it. What better way to understand and defend against it than to have your own personal guinea pig? If she learned enough about it, then there was the possibility of wielding and eventually corrupting it, adding its power to the Darkness.

With Xaera wrapped up, it cut the flow of magic to the golem, making it vulnerable. The Gaians and fairies kept firing what spells they had at her, but the spell she invoked was still active. The Dark Nymph was able to sidestep each blast, making each spell conjured a waste of energy. This made her smile, as it would soon wear these pesky Gaians down, which would make them easier to deal with.

She couldn’t waste her time though, as the use of the speed spell was limited, as was the slow spell which tangled up the golem. The Dark Nymph darted over and smashed her fists into the golem. Much to her delight, it began to crack and crumble, some pieces falling off from the power of her blows. She hurried her pace, wanting to reduce the golem into a pile of rubble before the spell wore off.

The Dark Nymph pushed hard and broke the golem down until it was back to the two-foot grommet it had been before. The spell on it finally faded, and the golem looked down at itself, then back at her. Undeterred at losing its extra parts, it dutifully charged her, thinking it could do something to the creature. Almost lazily, the Dark Nymph ran forward and toe punted the golem, sending the little guy flying.

“Fuck! Our heavy hitter is down! Ramp up your attacks!” Jason commanded, as he invoked several spells to give him a fighting edge.

Sheena and Amy increased their spell frequency, trying to hit the Dark Nymph. The fairies were doing what they could, but with the creature shooting dark bolts at them periodically, they had to dive for cover. While they normally could have weathered such attacks, none of them wanted to jeopardize the children they were carrying. Eva did what she could to aid their defense, as did Darren.

Darren had been practicing with his magic for some time, since learning he was a Guardian of Gaia. While he didn’t have any direct help from those like him, he had his mother, sister, Jason, and Sheena he could talk to. Though the exact casting and rune usage were different, the theory of bringing them into being was remarkably similar. He drew upon those magics now, bringing a solid defense up.

He enacted a barrier similar to one Jason used earlier with the Praetorians, only with more oomph. Darren drew upon his abilities deeply, putting everything he had behind the barrier, shielding his friends and family. He smirked when he saw the Dark Nymph’s consternation at such a potent shield blocking her attacks. She then stared at the young man, wondering how it was someone so young had such levels of power.

“Impressed?” Darren shot out cockily.

“Somewhat, but ... not impressive enough!” the Vessel cackled as she brought her magic to bear, focusing it on one spot in the barrier.

It was a quick spell the creature fired off, giving her time to dodge incoming fire, and the damage was done. While Darren’s shield was powerful, it had flaws, and the Dark Nymph found and attacked the most critical one in the magic he’d conjured. One of the backbone runes that held the shield together wasn’t as fully formed as it should have been. The Dark Nymph saw this and exploited it, tearing the rune to shreds with Dark Magic.

Darren tried to reinforce the shield by reforming the rune, but the magical attack corrupted the entire barrier. Seeing the magic crumble like rotted paper before him, Darren let it go, letting the barrier dissipate. He fought the Dark Magic that tried to latch onto him, preventing it from finding a hold. While it was a chore, he was successful in doing so. But with his focus on that, he didn’t see the attack from the Dark Nymph coming.

A blast of Dark Magic hit him square in the chest, throwing the young man through the air. He screamed in pain at the corrupting magic attacking him as he was airborne, fighting it off, but only just. Darren then landed in a heap at the edge of the grove, breathing, but severely weakened. He tried to stand or draw upon his magic to aid him, but couldn’t, as he was drained of all the energy that kept him in the fight.

“Bitch! What the fuck did you do?!?!?” Daelina screamed at her as she rushed in, Gaian magic blazing as bright as the noonday sun.

“I made him regret even thinking to resist me!” the Dark Nymph shot back, dancing about to dodge Daelina’s attacks. While the attacks these Gaians alone were bringing to bear couldn’t hurt her, combined, they could cause her trouble. Picking them off one by one was the best way to ensure victory.

“You will pay for hurting my boyfriend!!” the fairy woman fumed, staggering the creature with a lucky shot.

That shot of energy hurt much more than the Vessel thought it would, making her reevaluate her adversaries. They weren’t looking to save her; they were trying to end her, and the power behind these blasts was proof enough of that. Snarling at the lucky hit, she lashed out at the fairy, catching her in a dark miasma she had conjured to ground all three of them.

It worked, sending all three fairies to the ground, coughing and retching from the darkness they were in. The two male Nymphs, Patrok and Vahlen, raced to the trio and Darren, enacting their healing magic as they moved. While the Dark Nymph would have dearly loved to close in and finish them, feasting on their energies, she still had the Shaman and Druids to attend to. She would get back to them, and the energies of their unborn children.

Moving her hands rapidly, she conjured a Dark barrier around her, protecting the creature from additional attacks. Once it was up, she hurried, not wasting any time with this next spell. Using the power granted to her by the Dark Heart, she conjured a simulacrum of herself, which was more than a shadow. While it wasn’t a proper clone, it would do well enough, and she sicced it on the downed fairies.

She would have loved to deal with the dying race herself. But the Dark Nymph needed to keep them busy, while she dealt with the greatest threats. The creature then turned her full attention to the Druids and Shaman, who were continually throwing spells at her. The barrier she brought into being held, but their magic was powerful enough to take large chunks of power from it.

Sheena was beyond pissed and more than a little afraid of what this creature was doing! In all her years, she’d never heard of, or even dreamed of, facing something this strong! She turned to look at her boyfriend and Jason was doing everything he could to hurt the Dark Nymph, but it was doing little. Thinking of a desperate gamble, Sheena drew upon her Shamanistic power, calling upon Wolf to help her.

Wolf answered and granted her the power of all four of nature’s elements, ready to be unleashed. She reworked the power into a spell, invoking runes of empowerment, before directing it at Jason. The spell hit him, coursing through his being as he received the full strength of the elements. He roared at the raw power that filled his being, stopping his casting as he stared down at his hands. He turned to look at his longtime girlfriend as she smiled at him and gestured.

“Take this bitch down, babe!”

“Happily!” Jason growled as he turned back to the Dark Nymph and charged.

The creature looked at Jason skeptically, thinking she could bat him aside like a fly. She conjured bolts of force to hit the man, but they bounced off him like they were tennis balls. The Dark Nymph made to hit him with something else, but Jason closed the distance between them and swung at her. The elemental might he wielded was enough to cause her shield to wink out in one swing.

She blinked, thinking this was not possible, before she took a punch to the face. The hit was enough to jar her and make the creature woozy, which surprised her. The other punches and kicks she saw coming and blocked them accordingly. While she could dodge and block the incoming shots, the power behind them was staggering! The Dark Nymph had to make quick work of this Druid if she was to win!

A specific spell came to mind and as she blocked, she spoke the words of power as she launched her own counters. In a few seconds, the chant was done, and she flung a bolt of energy at Jason’s feet. He dodged the shot, but it would be enough, as chains made of shadow emerged from the spot. These chains latched themselves onto Jason, halting his attacks, and pulled him down.

He tried to fight them, but each time he fought and broke a chain, two more wrapped around his limbs. Jason hit his knees, straining against these dark chains that were slowly draining the power he was wielding. The Dark Nymph’s head snapped up at the sound of an angry scream and saw the dark-skinned Shaman pulling up a spell that would end her.

Working quickly, she dodged more of the shots coming from Eva and Amy, while enacting another stasis spell around Sheena. Sheena dropped her spell and tried to run, but it was too late, as the Dark Magic pulled her into the trap. Now all the Dark Nymph had to deal with was the mother/daughter duo that harassed her, which she saw as little more than an annoyance.

She hit Amy with a slow spell, like she had with the golem, but was a little slow at firing it. The Shaman had seen what Sheena had done for Jason and replicated the same spell for Eva, empowering the woman in the same way. While Amy was languishing in the spell’s effect, Eva charged in, arms whirling as she sought to take the Dark Nymph down.

Eva’s approach differed from Jason’s, as she brought quick cantrips to distract the creature. They worked, but only for so long, as the Dark Nymph quickly deduced Eva’s attack pattern. Once she had an opening, the creature countered viciously, smashing Eva’s face hard enough to bust open her lips. Eva was stunned for a moment, but that moment was the Dark Nymph needed.

She did not relent, hitting the Druidess so hard that she drew blood with every blow. The Vessel continued to pummel Eva, making her endure such levels of pain that made what Wayne did seem like a picnic. The creature finally bore Eva down to the ground, having beaten her to the point of unconsciousness. She stood up and smiled, thinking she’d won, but several loud noises jarred her from the feeling of victory.

Glancing over to where the fairies were, the trio had recovered and were busy putting the screws to her shadow clone. Seeing this angered the creature somewhat, but this was only a slight delay. She would have moved to deal with them, but was alerted to her slow spell fading as Amy charged her, yelling like an Amazon warrior.

The Dark Nymph almost laughed at the charging Shaman, as this move reeked of desperation. She knew the woman was trying to buy time for her friends, but it was a stalling action. The creature knew she could easily overcome the fairies and the Guardian and smiled, knowing that she had all but won.

Amy swung while firing off a blast of fire, trying to incinerate the Dark Nymph. Casually stepping to the side, she then darted forward and struck Amy in the face, knocking her to the ground. Amy sprawled, surprised by the sudden attack, and tried to get back up. Dark Magic swirled around Amy, enveloping her, and forming into shadow chains, just like it had with Jason.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to kill you. I’m going to corrupt you, and make you serve me throughout the ages to come. Madness nor death will save you, because I won’t allow it. You and your ... friends ... will serve me and the Darkness,” the Dark Nymph giggled gleefully as she moved her hands to finish the spell.

Just then, her head pitched forward, like someone had struck her from behind. The creature turned her head and caught sight of the golem, picking up a rock and hurling it at her. The Dark Nymph scoffed in annoyance, regretting not destroying the construct as she thought she had. She moved towards the little grommet, all thoughts of the spell she was invoking forgotten, and Amy breathed easier for a moment.

‘Now!!! Amy!! You need to use it now!!!’ Felicitae cried out, overriding every thought Amy had at that moment.

Amy hesitated for a split second, but pulled out the polished wood from her pocket. She kept it there, in case the plan to bring the creature down failed. Given how powerful she was, there was no other way, and Amy wouldn’t see her family, her friends or her love turned into creatures of the Dark. She steeled herself and spoke the three activation words, waking up the dormant magic within the wood.

The green energies of Gaia wreathed her arm, and she stood up, pulling her arm back for a moment. Amy pulled on the Dark Nymph’s shoulder, turning the creature back to face her as she punched it in the chest. The magic that Amy held was old, far older than what she wielded now, and much more potent than either woman expected. Shock lit up the Dark Nymph’s face, as she knew just what Amy had done.

“N ... noooo...” she breathed, still in utter disbelief that this was happening. “You ... can’t...”

“Yes. I. Can!” Amy replied through gritted teeth, letting the magic go to work.

It rippled and spread through the Dark Nymph, weakening the power that gave her life. Amy fed her own magic into that which came from the wood, giving it what it needed. This piece of wood was more than that; it was the very heart of everything that Felicitae was. The magic within it was what made her a Nymph and gave her a connection to Gaia, as it was with every Nymph that ever lived.

The Nymph’s Heart was full of potent magic that would see them through the worst of things. No matter how deep the wound, or crippling the blows, as long as the heart survived, so too would the Nymph. But everything that Felicitae had been, was corrupted and shattered, forcing the heart to shut down and defend itself. Now, with its magic invoked, the heart would cleanse her body, to make way for what needed to happen.

The Dark Nymph wouldn’t give up without a fight, though, and fought back with the power it had from the Dark Heart. It pulled from every piece of magic that it had to push back against the Gaian magic. The creature then felt another blow, this one on her back, from another rock hurled by the golem. She growled as her concentration was broken, the magic faltering for a moment.

“Keep fighting, Amy! We’ve got you!” Sheena cried out as she neared her friend.

Sheena was still shaking off the effects of the Dark Magic, coming out of the stasis trap. With the Dark Nymph fighting against Amy for dominance, it weakened the enchantments she put on everyone, allowing them to break free. Xaera, Darren, Jason, and even the fairies were coming out of the magical chains that bound them. Patrok and Vahlen rushed to Eva, literally flooding the woman with healing magic as they moved.

The rest of the Gaians hurried over, eager to help Amy end this. They lent the woman what magic they could, as they were all still pretty weak from the Dark Nymph’s attacks. As much as they were helping their friend out, they could all feel that it wouldn’t be enough. Not with the Dark Heart fueling the creature that stood against them. Until Sheena remembered something and called out as loud as she could.

“Father Wolf!! We need you!! Help us end this!!”

At first, nothing happened. There was no answer, no reply to her call, nothing. Sheena opened her mouth to call for them again, but stopped when she saw the mist. It was bluish white and seeped into the grove, covering everyone below the knees. The sadistic glee and confidence the Dark Nymph had wavered, her smile slipping. It vanished altogether once the mist coalesced and took shape in the form of the five Shaman who had given their lives to protect their people.

“It is over, Felicitae. The darkness that has consumed you will hold you no longer. Brothers! Let us end what we began!” Father Wolf commanded.

As one, the remaining Shaman took their places around the duo and started chanting in their native tongue. What they chanted was a spell amplifier made to help their sister Shaman with winning this battle. The tide of magic turned, and the Dark Nymph could feel the power of the Dark Heart diminishing. It slowly receded from the creature’s body, pulling its influence back into its core to protect itself.

Fear was etched onto the Dark Nymph’s face, as she could feel the Dark Heart lose its hold. The other Gaians joined in on the chant, taking it up to help with ending this conflict. They fed what magic they had to the Shaman leading the chant, knowing they had the best chance of finishing it. It was working as everyone felt themselves get stronger as the Dark Magic that had shrouded them cleared away.

The Dark Nymph, once towering over everyone there, shrank. Each child and animal that the Dark Heart had consumed was being ripped away from it, denying it any hold or power here. Bones, bits of flesh, and hides slid out of her form, making her smaller and smaller. The armor she wore diminished, becoming less fearsome and imposing until there was nothing left but the Nymph’s original body.

It was still blackened and corrupted, but that was all changing. The green and vibrant color she had before the Darkness had taken her was coming back, restoring what she was. Amy held on for dear life, keeping her mind focused and letting Felicitae keep control of her. The magic they fed into the Nymph’s heart was working, but they could sense the toll it was taking on them.

‘Keep that focus, Amy! We nearly have isolated the Dark Heart! Once we do that, we can force it out! We can be free!!’ Felicitae exulted.

‘They’ll need to contain it! We can’t have it infect anyone else!!’ Amy reminded her.

‘Tell them!’

“Everyone! Let Father Wolf and our brothers continue the chant! Start up some containment spells!! We’re pulling the Dark Heart out!!” Amy shouted.

“Why not burn it up? Why keep it?!?” Jason argued.

“It’s too powerful and needs to be destroyed properly! We need to figure out how to do that first! Not just recklessly throw magic at it!” Amy replied.

“She makes sense! We need to contain it, Jay!” Sheena shouted.

“All right! Pull that thing out of her and we’ll get it contained!” he answered, as he stepped back with the rest of them, readying his magic.

“Stay close!! I’ve almost got it!” Amy gritted, keeping her focus.

The Dark Heart was fighting back, trying not to be pulled from a vessel it had claimed as its own. It was losing, but it had not been making things easy, forcing Felicitae, Amy and the Shaman to fight for every inch they got. Once Amy had placed the Nymph’s Heart back to where it belonged, the Dark Heart knew it had lost utterly. Though it tried to fight, it was now being pushed from the body it had no right to inhabit.

“It’s coming out! Start them up!!” Amy cried out.

Like how a cyst was unveiled beneath the surface of the skin, so too was the Dark Heart revealed. It pushed aside the Nymph’s flesh, seeking its egress, but instead found a trap waiting for it outside. The spells of the Shaman, Druids, fairies and also Xaera formed together in a harmonious song of energy. The Dark Heart tried to burrow back into its host, but could not, as the magic pushing it out was equally powerful.

Vines and living wood came together from the grove, forming a cradle of sorts, but a cradle reinforced with potent magic. Runes inscribed themselves over every inch of the cradle, allowing no chance for the Dark Heart to slip out. It trembled as it knew that what lay ahead would be its prison, and it fought back with its Dark Magic. While potent, for all its power and cunning, the Dark Heart was useless without servants to carry out its will.

It finally fell away from the Nymph’s body, landing in the magical cradle with a sickening plop. The ooze that it secreted was barely there, as the sheer, overwhelming might of Gaia’s power halted its spread. It sat there in the cradle, barely beating, as the magic that surrounded it crushed its will. While it tried to reach out and affect those around it, the Dark Heart knew that it could not.

Of what remained of the Nymph, Felicitae, fell to the ground, a shattered husk of what she had been. Instead of letting her drop, Amy cradled the Nymph’s ravaged body and guided her down. It lay there, gasping for air, fighting to hold onto its life as Amy stayed close. The final remnants of the evil that had overtaken it had been banished and now the Nymph could die in peace.

Wasting no time, the Gaians continued working their magic, weaving more runed vines and living wood. Soon, the cradle became like an egg, the power and magic of Gaia surrounding the Dark Heart, locking it away. The first layer was enough, but they added a second layer, then a third, eventually reach seven layers of interweaved spells. No longer would the Dark Heart reach out and corrupt anyone, as it was now sealed away.

With the Dark Heart sealed, the hold it had over the undead animals and children was finally gone. The bones and bits that held them all together finally rotted away, becoming one with the earth. From the remains, a bluish mist rose, eventually taking the form of the souls of the dead. The animals howled and chittered in joy, while the children cried, elated that they were finally free.

“My children ... it is time to come home,” an ethereal voice sounded on the air.

“Is that...” Sheena gulped, looking like she was about to cry tears of joy.

“It is!” Phalmina nodded, her face wet with her own tears.

From the ground, as it had happened before, the same mist came up and formed a gateway. The way through was blurry from everyone could see, but this was the way home for the souls of the lost. All the animals went first, racing to the mother goddess that created them all. The children followed soon after, hearing the voices of their parents, siblings and loved ones, beckon them through.

“Father Wolf, it is time,” Gaia called out.

“We must stand vigilant! The Darkness is out there, and we must be ready to fight it!” he stated.

“You watch is done, Father Wolf. It is now another’s duty to take up your mantle,” Gaia told him. He turned and looked at Sheena as a warm, yet sad, smile lit his face.

“Gaia’s calling you home,” Sheena replied, sad to see her ancestors leave.

“I know. I can feel her pull. It was pleasing to know that my descendants survived to this day. I will miss you all, especially Bert. I have something that you will need to give to him. Come forth,” the deceased Shaman told the woman.