Somewhere around the North-East of Central Grinwicke there is a rumor of a magician lurking in the woods.
Of course, me and my troupe couldn't ignore it.
Could it be a kindred spirit, or a vile being?
My curiosity shall lead me.
"Autumn truly is rather beautiful this time of the year, huh, Virgilia?" Young Andor asks, sightseeing the crimson leaves.
"I suppose so." I mutter, holding the small child close to me. He seems rather anxious from hearing the words of the local chieftain.
Bloodthirsty, wicked, undead.
I've given that man some reprimands for speaking like that in front of a child; such words made that kid scared unnecessarily - I thought.
That is until we saw that "magician of the woods"
It's a rather grotesque figure indeed. That figure is covered in blood and has ragged clothes. There is some humanity inside that person - I can tell... However.
"!!!"
It doesn't seem like they're up for any affable conversation.
"Stand back, lady Virgilia!" Andor shoves me and the child out of the way and unsheathes his sword; following suit, I brandish my staff.
"Khh!" The magician unsheathes their claws and began to charge at Andor and the spores start to get inside their cuts.
"Haa!" Andor counters and pushes the magician away. "Are you alright?!"
"I'm fine." I nod and I attempt to trap the magician; but surprisingly they're quite nimble and strong, so the mushrooms aren't able to tangle their feet. "Please tire them out! I'll call back up!"
"Aye!" Andor nods and he begins to clash against the magician. Looking for a clearing, I launch a flarespore to call upon the White Crows.
"V-Virgilia!" The child shakes me and I duck; what the hell was that?!
"Virgilia! It seems that thing can launch its own blood!" Shit, hopefully the White Crows managed to get there in time.
"Hide away! Now!" I lead the child towards the non-poisonous foliage and it gets inside, clearly terrified from that encounter.
"Alright, you wretched creature, come at me!"
We began to exchange blows with that magician whilst dodging their blood attacks. Andor was wearing them down, while I began to insert more spores inside the wounds, from which their projectiles came. Eventually I managed to accumulate enough for me to suspend their movement...
"Thrive."
"Gghh!!???"
However what I saw was more bizarre, something floral began to sprout outward from that magician in response to spores and now they're more of an automaton rather than a person in control. The stalks aim to piece us and several of them got me in the torso and thighs.
"Gwah!!!"
"Lady Virgilia!"
Andor cuts the stalks down and steadies his shield to protect me while I get those draining tips out of my body.
"Urgh! We must cut down that plant this instant!"
It would've been much more logical to cut their life short, after all - they've proven to be a massive threat to anyone wandering these woods, what's with their blood magic and sipping stalks.
However... I can tell that it's no longer a magician that is attacking us.
It's.
That.
Plant.
And that magician... Is its victim.
"Shink!!"
The amethyst dagger comes flashing by, making a cut across that magicians face, and Bijou makes her grand entrance, alongside Scubb and her cronies.
Scubb aims his harpoon onto the magician's head, while Bijou's cronies prepare the boobie traps. Explosive gems began to carpet the area as Bijou began to swiftly navigate along the gemdust, cutting down the stalks growing out of that magician's body.
"Now!" Scubb yells out and Bijou gets out of the way, landing a finishing strike.
"GWWGWHWHWHWHGH!!!!!!!!" The automaton hisses and it lays limp. I activate my mushrooms again, fully immobilising the blood magician.
"... Well, all's well that ends well - I suppose. Geez that thing looks so disturbing to look at."
"..."
The magician, in spite of receiving what should've been the fatal blow to the face, is still breathing... And is in clear agony. All the movement suspended and the vision has been compromised. It would've been just a corpse if it wasn't...
"I-Is it done?" The child comes out of the bush and Bijou picks him up, absent-mindedly carrying him towards the carnage.
To be frank, it wasn't his first exposure to death, and won't be the last.
"Well, what should we do now? To ensure someone's death is to cut someone's head off and destroy the body. I don't like the way that chest is rising up and down." Scubb remarks.
"... Are there any florists among us?"
"Me, lady Virgilia." Paige, one of Bijou's lackeys, chimes in.
"Please look at this. It is on that magician's body."
She closely inspects the body and her expression turns grim "I wouldn't recommend for any of us to be this close to that corpse. We need to back away."
We do as Paige said and she told us that this is a parasite called "Rubina Sanguisuga" - a magical flower born to suck the blood of humans. In the case of its host dying and being sucked dry, there is a high likelihood that it will attach itself onto another host.
"It seems your spores managed to neutralize the parasite, however I assume that requires a lot of maintenance on your part, isn't it?" Paige asks and I nod. I can feel it wriggling, struggling against my kin.
"So do we put them out of their misery or what?" Scubb asks.
...
"Wa... Ter..."
"Eek!" Paige jumps and everyone else prepares their weapons. Luckily my flash wasn't damaged during the fight.
"Virgilia?!"
I pour down the water down the magician's throat. Dislodging the harpoon stuck to their face as well, I get a closer look.
"... Are you... Alive?"
"..."
"Have you killed anyone?"
"..."
"... Let's nurse them back to health. Then we'll decide what to do." I declare "I will keep the parasite at bay during our time.
Aden, could you burn some of those stalks surrounding their body."
The child cautiously approaches the magician's body and sparks a flame.
"Ahh... ARGHH!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRGGHHHHHHHHH!!!"
Sometimes, the best medicine can be the most painful one. And looking at their state... Their humanity calls to me.
If that magician had been in the woods for the last 40 years... Perhaps those years have been agonising.
"It'll be all over soon. Hush now."
They can be saved. I believe so. I won't let them experience the torment I've been experiencing any longer.
I won't let them experience my pain.
I'll save them, just like when I needed saving the most.