Chronicles of Etherea:Last Hope

Part 1:Mysterious Forest

The squad entered the mysterious forest searching for one of the best warriors in the kingdom and the bodyguard of the princess, Dai. She is also a childhood friend of the princess, Allain and the leader of the Shadow Society, Vexx.

3 hours later

"I have a feeling that you don't have any idea where are we going". Said Jack to Vexx
"Well, you wouldn't fare any better, plus ,this area has the highest chance of we finding her, I think. " Vexx while looking at the map, rather confused.

"That doesn't make it any better!" replied Jonix while jumping over the stream up ahead.

The team was having quite a hard time being in that area; its one the biggest forests in all of Etherea but still, it was the perfect moment to enjoy the beauty of everything surrounding them; its one of the wonders of the realm and it is unique to Etherea because the other realms don't have anything like it. Mysterious yet intriguing , it never fails to amaze , everything from ruins of ancient civilizations predating every kingdom to its wonderful and unique fauna and flora, although all that faces extinction as the balance is being disrupted by the invasion of the realm by the "Forbidden Army", the military sect of the Skulls ,a race of living squeletons in which its origins go back to the ancient times , but not much else is known. These warriors are part of the people fighting for the survival of the realm as a whole . We'll see how they fare in their quest to find the lost warrior:

"Hey guys, I found a good spot to spend night, and we should make a campfire fast or we are going to freeze our asses". Jack talking to the other teammates while looking for wood,something that's going to be quite hard.

A couple of minutes later and they finally got ready to start the fire;but,like always,something happpens...:
Jonix uses his fire abilities but it somehow doesn't work,so then Jack tries by throwing a incendiary dart towards the pile..
"Allright,let's try this" Says Jack at the same time he throws the dart. A small flash and a column of smoke is the only thing that surges.
"Wow,so long for your abi- ..". Jack is immediately interrupted by a big explosion coming from the fire,knocking everybody down....
Jonix: I told you guys it would work..*coughs*
Jack:You could've turned us into ashes,how is that good?*while trying to put the fire in his arm out*
Vexx: At least we are not going to be freezing our asses during the night;c'mon ,let's settle in for the night guys....

They all head to sleep knowing that they need to travel through a good part of the forest to find Dai, something definitely not in the easy side of things...

6 hours later...

Vexx is the first to wake up ; he is always the first one to get up, well most of the time. He looked around the campsite , even though the fire went out long ago the smell of smoke is still heavy in the air. Jack and Jonix were still sleeping ,one hugging his staff and the other talking in his sleep.

"Well that is expected of them...guess ill try to climb a tree and get a hint of where we could be , definitely no easy task". Said V as he got a running start and manage to climb to a branch , which was right over a cliff in which the other parts of the forest could be seen.

After some time staring into the horizon , and arguing with himself he determined they were near the location of some ruins in the middle of the forest , legend has it that a deity of great power resides there , but none is certain till they get there ,a thought that sends shivers down his spine.
He went back to the campsite and saw that the other two finally woke up. It was time to get back on the trail:

"Pack up guys, the ruins are not far from here, maybe it'll take like 10 minutes or so". Said Vexx as he looked towards the area in which the ruins are located. Although is quite the risk they are taking, due the fact that this area is pretty much unknown except for some fragmentary information available. But is one worth fighting for, the lives of everybody back at the kingdom and also of Dai, their dear friend, depend on them.

"Hey Jon, make sure your abilities are used when we need them to , please?". -Jack said as he stared at Jonix while packing his things-.

"Don't worry, its not going to kill you, plus what's wrong with a bit of fun with it." -Jon clarified by making a fireball.-

"Last time you had fun with your abilities we nearly got turned into ashes and discussion over, cause I don't wanna lose any more time". Vexx tied a small hook to the rope they had and locked it in place with some rocks. He went down first , then went Jack and finally Jonix although he had the worst of luck,cause the rope broke right when he was half-way down.

Fortunately, he mostly fell through leaves and eventually grabbed a branch; all the while Vexx and Jack went running towards to him:

Vexx: Holy shit...you alright up there?*grabbed the piece of rope*.

Jonix: Yeah, I'm alright, just uh...the rope decided to give me a quicker way to go*let's go and lands on some leaves*.

Jack: Guess it's time to keep going.

The trio carry on their voyage towards the ruins up ahead, where it is rumored that a deity resides there. But, these ruins have not been visited for years, so they know next to nothing of what could that 'deity'. Eventually, they arrived at the great ruins, and start looking around:

"This silence is killing me; i have a bad feeling about this..". Says Jack as he takes out his staff and short sword. The others do the same; Jonix taking out is twin short swords and Vexx a spellblade/enchanted sword. Slowly they get to the center , right when they hear a tree cracking:

Vexx: Guys what was that..?*blade starts charging*

Over at the tree right at front of them , a pair of glowing green eyes appeared, then slowly a full face comes out. Before they had time to voice their concerns, a couple of roots appeared under then and tied them up; raising them high up.

Jonix: Ah shit..we know enough that it does not end well when this hap*gets interrupted*

Vexx and Jack: Please, shut up.

???: Well, intruders, eh?

Vexx: Um,w-who is there?

Goddess: I am the Goddess of Nature, the guardian of this forest and all life in it; although that is now at risk.

Jack: Your probably talking about the 'Skulls'..

Goddess: I am indeed, and now that I look clearly, you might be part of that organization everybody is talking about; no more than a hour ago a girl passed through here. I presume all of you are searching for her?

Vexx: Yes, we are, where has she gone now? by the way, could you put us down?

Goddess:*puts them down*well, she is on a quest gathering some unique materials that have enough power to teleport the user and anybody around to any place within a certain limit.

Vexx: Can you take us to her? It is of the utmost importance that we find her.

Goddess: I can bring you to a area near her; and of that last part i am certain young one; get ready.

All three converge in the center, just as runes/glyphs start forming. They found themselves floating in the air while a portal open just above them. Before they entered, the goddess said a few words.

"May you find success in your voyage; save us all from damnation. The gods are with you". She gave them the blessing just as they were blinded by a burst of light, signaling their entrance. In less than a minute, they found themselves traversing through a wormhole-like tunnel.

"Well, we re finally on our way; now is when the action truly begins everyone. Be ready". Just as he said those words, they could see in the horizon the exit of the portal. With a massive flash of light, they land on a area near another type of forest;it looked smaller,but the temperature was lower and it was quite humid. The trio continue on their voyage to find the missing warrior before it is too late, for the sake of the kingdom and themselves...they must prevail...

To be continued....