Grove Keepers were unreasonably strong. How exactly they were born, the Legion wasn't sure. They weren't monsters, as such, none of the bruan'chii were. They were not spawned of the Dungeon and unlike the ants, they weren't created by a 'parent' monster through the traditional means. This was why the Legion didn't really have a problem with the wood people per se, but rather their murderous, meddling parent. Naturally the bruan'chii were unwilling to sit by and allow the Legion to destroy the source of their entire race, and so conflict had ensued. Throughout the decades of battle, the Legion had learned many lessons, one of the most important being: Grove Keepers were unreasonably strong.
The gigantic tree creature brought one ponderous wooden fist down in an overhead smash that would collapse a house but Titus was undaunted. Timing his footwork perfectly, he Dashed to one side before pivoting and Dashing once more, forward this time, his axe raised to strike. The Keeper moved with deceptive speed and grace, pulling his left leg back and rotating his body to sweep his left arm in a wide arc to catch the commander before he could unleash his blow.
Without pause, Titus brought the axe down, using the enormous power of his wrists to divert the blade to the side where it collided with the offending arm, releasing a shockwave that rumbled the stones around him.
"Haaaa," the tree rumbled with its impossibly deep voice. "You are a strong one."
Titus reset himself, his eyes absorbing everything in an instant. The blow had been shallow, without the full weight of his Skills or Might behind it. Even so, he had carved a deep wound through the bark of his opponent from which leaked a thick, golden sap. The commander breathed deep, soaking the mana surrounding him into his body and sending it circulating through his mana channels at a furious pace. As if awakening to a craving he had long put behind him, no matter how much energy he poured into his body, it still wanted more. The amount wasn't the problem, but the purity. Once he had become acclimated to the mana in the deeper strata, the thin stuff this high up would never be enough to truly top him off. Nevertheless, he would make do with what he had.
He approached the tree with caution, unwilling to be caught off guard. With a flick of his wrist, his axe ignited with red light, a powerful aura rising from the blade. In an instant, the vines and growth around his feet lashed out from the wall, a thousand barbs reached for his flesh and sought to twist within his armour.
"HAH!"
With a mighty roar, energy exploded from Titus' body and the vines were incinerated to ash before they could reach him. Seeing the green growth burn sparked anger within the eyes of the Grove Keeper for the first time and he stepped forward, his body suddenly illuminated with thousands of runes and shone with green energy.
"This place has been claimed by the mother-tree!" the giant roared, pushing forward with both hands.
A wave of energy erupted from the keeper and the growth around them went mad as it drank in the power he emitted and exploded with growth. Twisted shapes of flowers filled with fanged jaws and vines as thick as a man with barbs that dripped with virulent, orange poisons erupted all around Titus within seconds, yet he did not retreat. He took a deep breath and poured his energy into the axe in his grip before he swung it in a wide arc around him.
A wave of force erupted from the edge of the blade that annihilated the growth in a ten metre radius centred on the heavy armoured Legionary. The Keeper hummed out a low growl and stepped forward again, drawing his hand back for a mighty blow. Titus' face bore no expression, still carved in lines of iron as it always was and he watched the strike come before he shifted his feet again and prepared to intercept it. The demon sealed within his weapon howled with glee as he slashed out once more, putting the weight of his armour behind the blow and grunted with satisfaction as he felt the weapon bite deep.
Still, Grove Keepers were known for their potent regeneration and Titus knew it would take too long for him to bring down the bruan'chii to stop his Legionaries from falling at the hands of the others. Instead, he delayed and hoped that the battle within the nest went well for his people. Determined, he raised his axe again and waited for the other to make the next move.
Within the egg-laying chamber, the Queen was stuck in a battle for her life. The enraged bear, though smaller than the Queen in her war form was still significantly stronger, the power of her rage driving her might to incredible heights. Whilst the giant ant was permanently on the defence, unwilling to unleash any bite that would deal significant damage to her opponent, Sarah did not hold back, attacking in an endless, mindless rush that never ceased. The Queen knew that this couldn't go on forever, there was only so much ground she could give, only so long she could drag out the fight, before her larger form expired and she would be reduced to her normal size. Without the bonus stats she gained from drawing on the strength of her children, she would fall quickly to the bear.
"Whatever it is you want to do, you need to do it fast, my Queen," Brendant warned her from nearby. "We will not sit by and watch her destroy you, friend of the Colony or not."
"There must be something we can do to reach her," the Queen argued, "haven't you done so many times before?"
"We have, but never have we seen her so far gone that she would attack us. It is what she feared would happen, but we were unable to persuade her from battle for long."
The soldier shook her head with genuine grief. Sarah had been a loyal friend to the ants and had bled for them many times during the invasion. Without her, the golgari would have done far more damage, and advanced far more quickly than they did. It pained her to see the bear lost to the madness she had feared for so long. Even so, she hardened her heart. There was no life, except perhaps that of the Eldest, that she would put before the Queen's.
"Get a mage!" the Queen demanded. "Connect my mind to hers. Let me try to reach her."
Ever ready to obey the commands of their mother, Advant didn't need to say anything before a small team of mages leapt forward to weave the necessary mind magic. In only a few seconds the connection was established and the Queen could feel her thoughts match with those of the once-human, Sarah.
[Sarah,] she called, [you do not need to fight.]
The maddened bear did not react, nor slow in its assault. Wild swings of those deadly claws slashed through the air and threatened to rip the Queen apart if she didn't dodge.
[We will not hurt you,] the mother of the Colony spoke again, [there is no need to embrace your rage.]
She searched the bear in front of her for any flicker of recognition, any hint of the person within, but she saw nothing. There was nothing to indicate that she had even been heard. It was difficult, unlike the meddlesome one, the Queen did not have the mastery over mind magic necessary to project her mind into another being's consciousness. All she had were words. Words, and actions. Instead of retreating, instead of trying to fend away the vicious claws that tried to end her life, the Queen did the unthinkable, she lunged forward. She didn't bite, or dodge, or defend herself at all, instead, she brought her antennae down on the bear's head and allowed her healing mana to flow through them whilst those dreadful claws tore into her.
"MOTHER!" Brendant cried in horror. "Attack!" she ordered, "get in there and save the Queen!"
[It's fine now,] the Queen paid no mind to her mounting wounds as she sought to reach out to the rage-filled soul in front of her. [You are safe, you are protected, you have done well.]
The ants swarmed forward to defend the heart of their family but the distance they had kept in order to respect the Queen's wishes cost them precious seconds. Again and again the mighty bear slashed with her paws and snapped with her maw until the Queen's carapace was cracked and rent. All the while the Queen continued to pour her healing magic into the other and repeat the same soft words of praise. As Brendant rushed forward to attack the bear and sell her life in the defence of the Queen, she was shocked to find that Sarah was slowing down. Her swipes became less damaging, with longer pauses in between and the deathly aura was fading from her claws. As one, the Colony's charge slowed to a halt as the Queen continued to soothe the bear, whose endless roar had finally begun to fade, receding until it was scarce more than a whimper.
The Queen was exhausted and on the verge of collapse, but she watched the light return to the eyes of the one who had helped save her children with joy.
[You are safe,] she said, [you are protected. You are home.]
