[TWS] Chapter 282 – An Artistic Soul

After bidding farewell to all the elves, Asterios and the girls left the meeting chamber and regrouped in the elegant wooden corridor. They considered their options and decided to visit Althea right away. Since they hadn’t consulted Civienne about their access to the secret vault hidden beneath the palace, they chose to utilize Umbra’s services to get into the Dragon lady’s lair.

In a bit longer than a few seconds, Asterios came out of the deep shadows right next to the familiar bower. The chamber’s protective arrays and the presence of the Tree of Life’s stump made it a little harder for Umbra’s Shadow Movement to reach the sealed-off secret den. Still, with the Lord of Shadows recovered this much, it wasn’t impossible.

As he had informed Asterios previously, he could now almost efficiently move between the realms the girls belonged to, alongside Ast’s own, of course. That movement took a while inside the scary void, but the transfer was decently quick in the outside world, reaching about a few minutes at worst.

A crimson gate arose from the ground while Asterios was admiring the now fully reformed bower and all his mates joined him. He couldn’t feel Althea’s presence anywhere near so they assumed that the queen’s friend remained in her cozy cottage. Bryn, already familiar with its location, offered to guide everyone to the lone, wooden house and they all obliged, chatting together during the brief trip.

Soon enough, in the middle of a beautiful forest with numerous healthy trees of various kinds and species, they noticed the pretty, little log cabin. It was no bigger than a single-story building with a square as its base. From the outside, they could assume that no more than one or two rooms could fit inside along with the main segment. It was a charming sight, one that made them pause for a short moment to admire the lovely scenery.

Their silent admiration was interrupted by a quiet squeak of the front door opening. Althea showed up at the entrance with a gentle smile. She had taken off her hood now that everyone here knew exactly who she was. Not wanting to appear rude by just staring back at her, Asterios led his party inside and they exchanged polite nods while passing their green-haired host.

As expected, Bryn barely reacted to the warm, homely atmosphere inside the cottage, created by beautiful, stylish furniture and sporadic decorations. Various landscape paintings hung on the bright, wooden walls, a bunch of fluffy, furry carpets lay on the floor, and a relatively small fireplace sat opposite the entrance, surrounded by lovely chairs, sofas, and a low table. Judging by the multiple shelves and cabinets filled with books on its sides, it was a place the owner enjoyed spending their time reading right next to the crackling flames.

“It’s so pretty here,” Miria said with a soft smile, her gaze roaming over literally everything. “It reminds me of home. My grandparents had a little cottage like this one built in secret near a lake a week of travel away from the village.”

“It’s nothing much, but it is my home.” Althea nodded politely at the compliment. “Don’t be shy and please make yourselves comfortable.”

They seated themselves near the fireplace and Althea joined them a moment later, bringing a bowl full of freshly washed grapes. Asterios spotted a folded easel in one of the corners and gestured at it with his eyes.

“Did you perhaps paint all these by yourself?” he asked curiously.

The girls glanced at him in slight confusion, but they also found the artistic equipment after following his gaze. Althea showed a faint smile as their attention quickly turned back to her with renewed excitement.

“You tend to pick up a hobby or two when there’s not much to do for a few years or centuries.” She allowed herself a quiet chuckle. “I find recreating the scenes from my memories to have a miraculously calming effect on my mind.”

“These are beautiful… And incredibly detailed…” Tina whispered, having left her spot to examine one of the frames as Althea had been answering. “Ah! It moves!”

Another chuckle, a little bit more apparent, escaped Althea’s lips as Tina jumped back in shock after touching the surface of the painting. Miria and Grea snickered at her and the panthergirl quickly stood up to see the effect for herself.

“Wow! I’ve never seen something like this!” Miria’s eyes sparkled with pure glee. “The birds are literally flying over the painted sky and the grass is moving!”

“At one point, I decided that I have reached the pinnacle of what the traditional tools and supplies offer and spent a little while coming up with a way to take it a step further,” Althea explained. “My newer creations are made with the use of spiritual dyes that react in various magical ways to the contact with mana. Just as in normal painting, I can layer things one over another, but the layers gain additional capabilities.”

“Your knowledge about spiritual energy and its control must be truly vast,” Asterios commented.

“I certainly know a thing or two thanks to my draconic upbringing, but it was mostly thanks to my affinity with nature that I was able to grow spiritually-enhanced plants to gather the necessary materials that allow me to create these magical pigments and dyes,” she added.

“It’s still damn fucking impressive.” Grea grinned at her. “And I’m sure it’s just as glamorous as it is effective.”

“I bet Master could do it too with enough practice, right, Master?” Miria beamed at Asterios as she and Tina returned to the others.

“Who knows? Don’t forget that Althea is a very wise and experienced Dragon. I’m barely starting. But, I could certainly use some way to practice and train in managing my energies,” he answered with a shrug. “In any way, I think we have a certain matter to approach first.”

“Our upcoming trip outside.” The Dragon lady nodded.

“Pretty much. I’m sad to hear that the poison wasn’t fully purged from your body. Are you certain it’s a good idea to come with us?” Asterios asked.

“Do not worry. I shall not overdo it. My condition is better than enough to handle this journey.” She smiled at them warmly. “I can promise to rely on all of you for anything not related to my guidance through the path I have taken between the hideout and the town.”

“So, any fighting or heavy duty will fall onto us,” Silvia clarified, without a hint of chagrin, just stating the fact. “That’s a good decision.”

“I would have thought Dragons were a bit more reluctant to rely on the help of others,” Miria mused.

“True Dragons, most likely, but as for Lesser ones, we aren’t as prideful. But, I guess it depends on the circumstances. Mine definitely don’t allow for that.” Althea shook her head.

“Anything you can tell us about that day? Did something unexpected happen that might have gotten you poisoned during the raid?” Asterios rested his chin on his joined hands.

“I don’t think so. I flew straight to my destination, hid in the close vicinity of the secret laboratory, infiltrated it the moment I received the signal, eliminated all the threats, secured as much evidence as possible, and returned. I didn’t meet too much resistance. I don’t believe I have been wounded at all,” she summarized.

“And you were the only one taking part in that operation, right?” Grea inquired, receiving a nod in response. “If those bastards found a way to spread the poison through the air without it losing its potency then we are in much deeper shit than we expected.”

“While there were several casualties amongst the teams attacking the other locations, I would assume that if they had succeeded in doing as you say, barely anyone would have returned alive or even healthy,” Althea pointed out.

“Maybe, but we can’t be sure,” Bryn chimed in. “Since the laboratories operate in a somewhat isolated manner, that part of their research might not have made it into their mutual knowledge yet.”

“Too much guessing,” Asterios said. “We’ll have to be careful when we approach that base. It will also confirm some of our worries. Hopefully, we can find some hints in there. Though, I don’t expect too much. The elves would have figured it out with all the information and samples gathered from that place if that was it. Because they tried, right?”

Althea nodded grimly. “It was our first thought. The antidotes found in the laboratory didn’t work, and neither had the ones concocted by our experts at a later date. That’s why Civienne dismissed the possibility of poisoning. Perhaps we would have noticed we were wrong if I hadn’t halted the deterioration of my body and stopped the symptoms from showing up.”

“You can’t blame yourself for doing what you had to do to keep yourself as healthy as possible.” Selene waved her finger at the Dragon lady. “Any of us would instinctively choose to do the same.”

“Right. Shall we get to it, then? Or do you need more time?” Asterios glanced at their new friend.

“I’m ready. We can depart whenever you wish to.” She nodded.

They all stood up together and moved out of the cabin. Before they started walking, Asterios turned to Althea once more.

“Do you have to leave through the entrance?” he asked.

“I… don’t think so,” she replied with a hint of hesitation in her gentle voice. “I didn’t have any other means to exit this place previously.”

“Since we weren’t seen entering, I think it will be a wise choice not to be seen leaving either.” He smirked lightly. “Umbra should have no issue bringing you outside, right?”

~I would assume so, Master,~ the summon in question answered. ~Your presence would certainly assure that our new companion doesn’t experience any discomfort during the transfer.~

“Althea is a Dragon. And a very mature one, at that. I’m sure her mind is much sturdier than mine.” Asterios chuckled. “Do you mind?”

“Not in the slightest.” She shook her head.

“Alright. The question is, where do we pop out?” He pondered.

“What about the barracks?” Tina suggested. “Why not make this more official and involve my squad? The queen must have certainly already informed the most important officials about our role in their nation so we should be able to use it as our cover and justification rather than sneak around.”

“Good thinking.” Silvia nodded.

“True,” Asterios agreed. “See you girls there, then.”

Offering a hand to Althea, Asterios waited for the Dragon lady to take it on her own and they shared a confirming glance before the shadows enveloped them. As it was her first time, the unending, oppressive darkness surprised Althea in the beginning, but she recollected herself rather fast, using the few long seconds to study the weird space.

They emerged in an alley next to the garrison where the Royal Guard was stationed and she hastily pulled her hood on. The girls were with them a moment later and Tina led everyone inside the military barracks. She seemed to have a way to locate her subordinates as they strolled right into the resting chamber where her squad was currently idling about. Noticing the arrival of their captain, they jumped to their feet with respectful salutes.

“We have an important task to take care of. Gather up at the sixth landing pad in five minutes, ready to take off. Everyone is here?” Tina roamed her gaze over her troops.

“Yes, Captain!” Kathy, her second-in-command, answered firmly.

“Good. Let’s move. I’ll explain in the air.” Tina gestured at them to go on and turned around, shooting a shy smile at Asterios.

“It suits you.” He smiled back.

A tinge of rosiness bloomed on her soft cheeks as she hastily led them outside. They idled around while slowly heading towards the appointed meeting place to give Tina’s squad enough time to carry out her orders. When they finally arrived, everyone was ready by their mounts, awaiting their captain.

They assumed a similar formation as during their journey to the Garden of Sinners and took off. The only difference was that Althea joined Asterios and Tina on Esil’s back so that she remained further away from the people outside of their personal group. As promised, Tina shared some details about their mission, which was a scouting expedition. Althea led them exactly the same route she had taken on her own in the past and they flew close to the ground.

Since it would take them way longer to travel the same distance in a big party when compared to a single, flying Lesser Dragon, Esil raised their pace by employing a magical ability to enhance the performance of his underlings and shield the tigers from the vicious winds created by their speed. It seemed that Tina’s progress impacted the mighty patriarch too and they could now achieve much more with the use of her mana, or the mixture of hers and Ast’s.

Their group shot through the sky faster than the Royal Guard ever had thanks to that. A few of the members required a moment to get accustomed to the almost blurry smudge of land moving underneath them even if there was no pressure of wind to assault them. Some of the original inertia still remained and they were aware of the speed they were flying at.

Five hours later, they slowed down as they neared their destination. Althea pointed at a good place to land and they descended toward the ground. The tiger riders formed a defensive formation around their captain, remaining on the lookout. Two people stayed in the air to keep an eye on their surroundings from above.

“The entrance to the underground facility is right behind that hill,” Althea said, gesturing to the east. “Considering that I’m already afflicted, I think I should be the one to scout ahead in case the air is polluted just as we thought. Your shadowy companion can accompany me and relay what we see to you, right?”

“That’s true but we promised to protect you, and going in alone is quite dangerous.” Asterios nodded and glanced around. “I’ll go with you and see if I can notice anything with my special abilities. We’ll send Umbra first to see if he is able to pick up any hints about the air and then decide if we go in. You might be afflicted, but there is no way of knowing if being exposed to more of it doesn’t worsen your state.”

“Very well,” she agreed.

“Sunray! Take into the air and scout the area! Look for anything unordinary! Leave two on the ground with us!” Tina barked out orders to her squad and they split in a flash, leaving Kathy and another person behind as the rest took off. “We’ll look around a little and wait for your word, Ast.”

He nodded at her and followed Althea with Umbra perched on his shoulder. The girls spread out in the close vicinity of their landing zone while Tina and her two subordinates remained to secure it. After a few short minutes, Althea located the camouflaged entrance, which was hidden inside a thick trunk of a common-looking tree.

Asterios tried every trick in his book, or rather eyes, to scan it for any malicious aura, but found nothing. The tree itself and its surrounding flora didn’t look sick or poisoned either. They sent Umbra down the elevator shaft going into the ground and he confirmed that nothing seemed amiss with the atmosphere inside the complex.

Just in case, Asterios released his aura and filled his organs with his mixed draconic energies in hopes of better protecting them, letting his hidden features materialize. The sudden spike in his domineering presence caused Althea to flinch involuntarily and he smiled at her wryly, apologizing for the unintended scare.

She followed his lead, and for the first time, reached for her own ancestry. Her emerald eyes gained a stronger shine and a long tail made itself apparent underneath Althea’s cape. Only sporadic, deep green scales decorated her cheekbones and neck. She clearly held back her transformation not to consume too much energy or wasn’t able to bring out more. That, or it was just the level of transformation Lesser Dragons could achieve without fully morphing.

They descended into the hideout with great care. Neither of them spotted any danger, be it in the air or the underground tunnels. Althea had dealt with most of them during her raid. Still, Asterios was able to find traces of magic from leftover spells, formations, arrays, and experiments. Looking at an old stain in one of the labs confirmed that he could identify the dangerous potion and its fumes with his Draconic Sight, thus they were safe from getting poisoned just by breathing.

Althea led him around and brought up every detail of her attack. Most of the rooms were completely emptied out by her so it wasn’t like they were able to find a lot in the abandoned facility. Their main goal of checking the possibility of air poisoning was already reached. Going through all the damaged chambers didn’t earn them any other useful information.

The girls noticed their return before they even saw them thanks to the two powerful presences heading their way. It spooked the two members of the Royal Guard for a moment, causing the ladies to chuckle quietly. Everyone exchanged their findings and thoughts, which didn’t bring too much progress to their investigation. Tina’s subordinates hadn’t found anything out of order during their scouting.

Having nothing else to check in close vicinity, they jumped on the winged tigers and began heading back, again taking the route Althea had traveled during her return to the capital. After five minutes of flight, she spoke up.

“This is where I spotted traveling merchants on the road below us, heading in the direction of the Garden of Sinners. I decided to slow down and observe them for a moment. Finding nothing special about the caravan, I landed just north from here to take a short rest.”

“That’s our next stop, then,” Asterios said and Tina directed everyone towards a clearing visible in the distance.

They landed at the shore of a small pond in a lush forest. The noise of cascading water splashed and hummed through the air as a tiny waterfall poured into the modest lake from a raised cliff at one of the pond’s edges. It was a charming spot and no one doubted why Althea had chosen it for her break.

“No! Stop! Stop!” Someone’s desperate shouting reached their ears and all faces snapped toward the source.

One of Tina’s men was currently wrestling with his beast by grappling the tiger’s neck and yanking it away from the water. A little annoyed at its rider, the huge cat protested and fought against the little human’s strength, trying to lower its muzzle low enough to take a sip. Esil’s light growl made it freeze and the tiger backed off at once.

“What’s going on?” Tina asked as she trotted to her subordinate, furrowing her brows at the man.

“The fish.” He pointed at the water. “Something is wrong with them.”

Following the man’s arm, everyone noticed a bunch of clearly dead fish floating around the edge of the pond. Now that they were paying more attention to its surface, they could spot even more of them all over the water, just in smaller numbers. The crystal-clear liquid didn’t show any immediate signs of issues that could cause such a disaster, though.

Asterios suddenly hissed through his teeth and everyone turned to him.

“It’s poisoned. From top to bottom,” he stated with his eyes glimmering in crimson and onyx. “I think it’s pretty obvious what this means.”