Dark Shadows by Tynessia Lett (ebook reader with built in dictionary .txt) 📕

because her newfound powers were the main topic of discussion. Balanos knew they had to come up with a plan to make sure Blair maintained her light amid all that darkness circulating through her.

Balanos sat in her quarters as she awaited the meeting. She walked over to her mirror of sight to check the forest for any movements the may be blind to.

She closed her eyes and placed her hands on the mirror. A view of the forest came up and there were big tall trees that had been rooted there for years. An old tree in an old forest can sometimes awaken, gaining a mind of its own and dragging up its roots to gain mobility and a somewhat humanoid form while still looking mostly like a tree.

Such a creature is often called an Ent or Treant, or sometimes an awakened tree or walking tree. Any tree could awaken by itself, but a tree with the potential for it can be nudged into awakening by another Ent.

Just as trees do not have single genders the way humans do, an Ent can be male, female, both or neither, though male Ents are the most common. Ents take it upon themselves to guard their whole forest, or even other forests when necessary, because of the kinship they feel with the trees they came from.

They are big, slow and strong, and can live very long lives. Their powers, besides their great strength, are usually some simple communication with the trees in their forests and sometimes “tree-herding”: making normal trees move around a bit, to go to other places or hinder foes. They were loyal to their kind and Balanos as they followed and served her.

Balanos presences were felt and the Ents began to lift their roots and stretch their branches. These trees had faces, they stood at the border of the forest and were the first shield of protection of anything that aimed to cause them harm.

The head of the Ents was the longest surviving tree of them all call Errow, he was an elder Ent.

“Queen Balanos, it is an honor to serve you” Errow spoke first.

" My dear Errow, you have been a good friend and ally for centuries, It is I who is honored to have such loyalty from you,” Balanos said as she slightly bowed her head.

“Errow, how are things on your end? Any suspicious movement or signs of danger happening in your area. ” Balanos asked.

“Nothing at all, I assure you if anything does come up we are well prepared to handle the situation,” Errow reassured Balanos.

“The girl has been in safekeeping here within our forest for days now and since she has harnessed her powers, I’m quite sure her powers are at a detectable level for the Dark Shadow to find her. I suspect we will have visitors soon so please Errow stay alert at all times.”

Errow nodded and they ended their call with plans of seeing each other later at the meeting.

It was almost sundown and Allure went to check on Blair before she headed out to the meeting. The Nymphs from the infirmary had given her tea earlier that had calming medicine in it, if given enough it could put you out for hours.

Allure reached Blair’s room and crept in, she was sleeping peacefully in her bed. Allure sat beside her and rubbed her fingers through her hair. A few strands rested in Blair’s face.

“Poor girl, you have no clue what is happening or what will happen but you are taking all of this on like a true warrior. ” Allure said caressing the top of Blair’s head.

“We are all here beside you to help you in any way, just don’t forget who you are and what it is you are fighting for. I know its a challenge but you fight...FIGHT...with everything you have.” Allure whispered in her ears.

“Now we must all gather to plan for the best and worst outcome of all of this. Your magic is a blessing and a curse depending on how you battle with it.” Allure stood up kissed Blair on the forehead and exited the room.

A Gathering of Allies

'They stand as one and act as a wall,

To prevent me from taking a fall,

The strongest Storm at my call,

Without a doubt, they will stand tall'

 

Sun sank lower in the sky, the light of day draining away, giving way to the velvety dark of night, crickets chirping, dusky, colors subdued in the fading light, The shadows were now twice as long as themselves, the air was damp and cool smelling faintly of damp earth combined with old fallen leaves.

Balanos stood center of the forest waiting for her guests to arrive. Standing behind her was Meliae, Kissiae, and Daphnaeae they were her top combatants in the forest.

The first to arrive was the Centaur King Theon and his two brothers Elix and Hector. The Centaurs were humanoids who had the head, arms, and torso of a human and joined at the waist the body and legs of a horse.

These creatures represented barbarism and unbridled chaos. Centaurs possess extraordinary strength and enhanced stamina, reflexes and they can use their front hooves as formidable weapons.

Next to arrive was Turgomri Woldbane the king of the dwarfs and four of his militant, Uzul Flintfoot, Jardrun Bronzehood, Hodour Smeltchin, and Kosac Bristlefinger. They were mountain dwarfs who were organized in tribes, with their chieftains, and armies.

They lived in subterranean halls, believed to be full of gold and precious stones. They were known for their skill in all kinds of metalwork and the forging of magical swords and rings, they were also credited with profound wisdom and secret knowledge, having the power to foresee the future, assume other forms, and make themselves invisible.

Balanos greeted them both as they awaited the arrival of the others.

“Balanos, thank you for having us, it is an honor and a privilege to be of ally with you in this battle,” Theon said.

“We the dwarfs are always on the side of good and we wouldn’t be anywhere else in this fight but on the side of righteousness,” Turgomri said grasping his hammer.

“I thank you both for aiding us here today. We have much to discuss” Balanos said.

“What of the girl, will she be present doing this discussion,” Theon asked.

“Why of course she should be here, we are all here for her why wouldn’t she,” Turgomri said.

“Blair, will not be part of this meeting, I’m afraid there are things we must first discuss without her. She recently harnessed the dark magic and that was not an easy task. As we all know dark magic can consume you and change you in unholy ways. ” Balanos explained.

“Is it true, the girl has the darkness in her, how is she holding up so far?” Theon said with intense curiosity.

“She has fought well, but her fight is just beginning” Balanos reassured.

A spiral of water began to form and wet the forest floor. The lady of the lake appeared with her spirit entities.

“Lady of the Lake, welcome” Theon greeted first.

“Your beauty is one for the tales my lady” Turgomri blushed at her presence.

“I see the years have been pleasant for you Turgomri” Anahita spirit entity spoke.

Far off they heard the ground rumble and the trees shake, it was Anthos leader of the Gigantes. The Gigantes were a race of great strength and aggression, though not necessarily of great size.

They were frightening in appearance, with long hair that swept down from their heads and chins, and scarred skin covering their body.

The Giants were depicted as either spear-wielding warriors in armor or primitives clothed in animal-skins and armed with rocks and flaming brands.

Anthos brought with him Orion and Otis who were known for being very violent and skilled in combat.

Arachne arrived shortly afterward and she crept through the trees heard but not yet seen. She was half woman half spider and stood at a monstrous height. Almost as tall as a Gigantes. Her bottom half was all spider, eight large hairy legs that had poisonous spikes covering them. She had eight red eyes and long black hair. Her skin was dark and her teeth were sharp. She came alone to the meeting because Allure would be by her side.

“Mother you made it,” Allure said.

“Did you think that I wouldn’t have come, despite everything you may think, I do not support the rise of demons,” Arachne spoke in a very soft and low voice. Her voice was the complete opposite of her appearance.

“You foul creature, you expect us to believe that you, Mother of spiders, the dark one herself is not in support of this destruction Alastor has brought upon us” Turgomuri yelled.

Arachne laughed out loud “The evil that Alastor represents surpasses anything you think that I may be cable of. His rise over Arcania negatively affects everyone so yes Turgomri, I am here today to pledge my allegiance to the girl who was prophesied to rid us of this plague.

“Your kind preys on humans, on the fears and the dreams of innocents, Spiders are the earthly manifestation of true evil and should not be misjudged,” Theon said to Arachne.

Allure, stepped up to defend her mother. Although she didn’t necessarily object to what Theon and Turgomri, were saying. She knew the nature of her mother, of her kind. She had spent years trying to be different from that. She wasn’t a saint but she had boundaries she didn’t want to cross morally. Allure knew that despite all of that they needed her mother more than ever in this fight.

" Regardless of how you may feel about us, my kind are crucial to this fight. Mother is needed on our side and with everything you say about her, it's best to have her fight with us rather than against us.” Allure protested.

“Allure the deadly, you are no stranger to your beastly nature and yet you stand before us pretending to be anything but what you truly are!” Turgomri retorted.

Allure hated having her past thrown in her face, a past she had worked years to atone for and put behind her. Her anger fueled at Turgomri, taunt.

Before she could react, Mr. Crane had moved so fast and was face to face with Turgomri, he didn’t have any time to react. “You talk a lot of shit for someone of insignificant size.”

“You had better watch your tone, dwarf! ” Mr. Crane cautioned.

" I do not need the likes of you serpent, to defend us.” Arachne snapped.

“MOTHER” Allure yelled. “You will not disrespect him!”

Mr. Crane hissed in anger and then slithered next to Allure. He held his tongue in response to Arachne out of respect for his friend.

Arachne hated the fact that Allure was traveling around with a serpent. Her kind had been at odds with serpents for years, so it was displeasing to see one of her own being so friendly with one.

The tension was so thick that Balanos could no longer take their pointless bickering. She gave her wooden staff three loud and rumbling taps against the ground and shouted “ENOUGH”

“This is not why we are here. We are here because we are all in danger of Alastor’s tormenting. ”

“Remember this meeting is about more than us, it’s about saving many species here in our world