Serenus - Sarcastic Newcomer Edition

Chapter 14: Crisis Management 101

I continued to stay at the lodge, feeling like the world's most reluctant guest. Kratos and Idir were my frequent visitors, keeping me company as we all dealt with the joy of being under house arrest. The village center, once a lively hub of chatter and laughter, now resembled a ghost town, with its eerie silence only broken by the guardians delivering provisions to the holed-up Seren.

We were all on edge, waiting for our new wizardly neighbour to make a move—any move—so we could at least figure out what he was up to. He was spotted flying over the island like some ominous bird, but he seemed to have zero interest in our charming little village. The waiting game was taking its toll, with everyone turning into short-tempered grouches. Eventually, the consensus was that the newcomer wasn't planning to drop by for a visit or, you know, wreak havoc.

After a week of this delightful suspense, the elders finally lifted the curfew. We were still told to stay close to the village, with guardians patrolling the borders like overly cautious babysitters. But hey, at least we were allowed out of our houses, and the village began to slowly regain a semblance of normalcy. People rushed to visit the Tree Circle to try and shake off the stress.

Kratos, Idir, and I decided to check in at the healer's home, where the elders had set up camp for the foreseeable future. Amy wasn't there, so I headed to the Tree Circle to track her down. I found her brooding under the Yellowtree—because where else would you go for a good, existential crisis?

I joined her silently, and after a bit, Amy began her monologue of despair. "Ever since Alfred left through the Dark End, I've thought about going after him. Maybe he's out there, alone, waiting for me. I tried to be the perfect student for Feray, but she betrayed me. My work with the trees is constantly under attack. It's hard to believe there's any chance of a happy life on this island."

This was not the Amy I knew. Apparently, I had seriously underestimated just how far down the rabbit hole of depression she'd fallen. I tried to remind her that she was the one who had told me it was a fool's errand to go searching for more islands.

"Maybe there isn't another land, but maybe there is, and Alfred is out there, hoping and praying that I'll come after him. How will I ever know unless I try?"

Was Amy actually considering a jaunt into the Dark End? Her newfound adventurous spirit was more than a little terrifying.

I practically begged her, "Amy, promise me you won't do anything crazy. If you go, I'll try to stop you, and if I fail, I'll follow you. We leave together, or not at all."

Amy, clearly amused by my panic, smiled and said, "Let's go together, then."

Shocked doesn't even begin to cover it. "What's gotten into you? Why are you saying these things? We'll deal with this new wizard just like we dealt with Esmeray. We'll figure it out."

It had to be the Yellowtree messing with her mind. I convinced her to move to the Greentree, where the vibes were hopefully less doom-and-gloom. After a while, she seemed to come to her senses, smiling sheepishly. "Sorry if I freaked you out."

I laughed, relieved. "It's okay. It was the Yellowtree doing the talking, not you."

Amy stayed for a bit longer before heading back to work, leaving me to ponder the tree's power. It was amazing—and slightly terrifying—how it could temporarily alter someone's entire personality.

I lingered in the Green chamber, trying to unravel the mystery of the poem. I cleared my mind, focused, and... failed spectacularly. The more I tried to decipher the poem, the more it felt like a cruel joke. It was as if whoever gave us the poem was determined to keep us in the dark. The only thing that seemed clear was that time was running out, and we needed to figure something out—fast. But what? Was the "fruitless war" the never-ending battle between the wizard and the Seren? If it was so futile, why did the poem tell us to catch the wizard in the first place?