Aetherian(Part 1): A War Begins

Trevor

 Trevor watched as Prince Nyatar stabbed one of his curved swords into the wall of the heart of the dragonwood tree, pulled himself up, then stabbed the other one in, and pulled himself up, climbing the wall as carefully as he could, for a mystic, ethereal aura filled the heart of the tree. Julien had said that it was from a creature of Fae making, which concerned everyone about damaging the tree too much.

"Almost there," Nyatar assured.

"Are you sure?" Trevor asked.

"No," answered Nyatar. When he reached the ceiling of the chamber, he seemed to be reaching to a hole in the center. He then jumped to the other wall, stabbing both of his blades into the wood, and the strange aura suddenly grew stronger.

"What's that?" Illyria asked.

"What's what?" asked Arthur.

"Nyatar!" Naevys called, to her brother, who then slid down the wall of the tree's heart, scratching the wood.

"Yes?" he asked, as he reached the floor, then he held up a branch with green leaves on it. "I got the leaves. Let's get out of here." Suddenly, the dragonwood tree began to shake, and the scratches that Nyatar made into the walls began to glow green. They quickly ran from the tree's heart and down the stairs along the trunk, trying desperately not to fall from the staircase. Something came from the trunk of the dragonwood tree, but it couldn't be seen in the clouds.

"Where is it?" Julien asked, igniting his golden lightsword. Nyatar and Naevys both drew back arrows in their bows and pointed them into the clouds. Trevor ignited his lightsword, Arthur drew Burn, and Illyria drew her odachi. When something suddenly flew past them, Nyatar shot his bow at it, and a loud screech was heard.

"Did he seriously hit something?" Arthur whispered. Suddenly, whatever was in the tree flew past them again, but Julien suddenly disappeared.

"Julien!" Trevor shouted. Naevys screamed a word of Fae out into the fog, and something came and crashed into the tree trunk above them. Red blood dripped from it, but then blue blood dripped as the creature with the shape of a person, with bat-like wings crashed onto the stairs, and its head fell to the grasslands. Julien was in its claws, with all five of them on one hand piercing his armor, and not breathing. There was grief from Arthur. He must have known Julien better than the others. Trevor could only imagine how Blake would react. Julien was a stranger that would stop at nothing to save her life.

"We need to keep moving," said Nyatar. "There are more of these things in the other trees." Trevor took Julien's lightsword, and they began down the rest of the wooden stairs. Before they reached the bottom, Trevor began to sense something. It was a cry for help in Mistral, from Commander Vestarr.

"Illyria," said Trevor. "I need you to send me to Commander Vestarr." He sensed reluctance from Illyria, but he understood why. Mistral was the last place she wanted to send him.

"But you can't..."

"He's in danger, Illyria," Trevor added. "Please."

"What kind of danger?" Illyria asked.

"I don't know," Trevor answered. "Serious danger."

"You can't put your life on the line alone," said Naevys.

"I sure as hell can," Trevor corrected. "I'm a Guardian." He turned back to Illyria and begged: "Illyria, please."

"As long as you come back," Illyria said, then she opened a portal on the tree trunk, and Trevor ran through it.