TALES OF RUNETERRA: IONIAN
Ivern THANKS TO POISON
For most people, a hundred years is a very long time. Within a century, one could explore the entire world, meet thousands of people, and complete many works of art. Now, many people can easily assume that standing in the same place for a century is a waste. But during that time, Ivern Bramblefoot had achieved a dream that no one could achieve.
For example, he had been in the midst of a conflict between mosses and rocks, helping the always-forgotten squirrels to find grain during the winter, as well as persuading the wolves to come back again to join his group, even though he could not howl.
Ivern's toes were immersed away from the soil, curled between the tubers and earthworms that were mingling with the roots of the old tree, as well as the surrounding forest that was blooming. Of course there are many more, but such a thing is proof of the results of good work in a period of hundreds of years.
Everything felt smooth until the sassafras realized about the dark side of the forest.
The hunter! They wept to their roots, commemorating other forest dwellers.
Ivern knew that sassafras were a quick-witted tree. They raised their leaves a sign of panic, but only met wild saltnails. And one thing, hunting is also not a bad thing to be able to continue the food chain. But this sassafras was worried about something else, he was warning the butterflies, and if the butterflies knew anything, the news would definitely quickly spread throughout the forest.
Then Ivern stood up, and after several times calming the ants that moved house, he began to walk, shaking off the layers of his skin. With each flower blooming along with its steps, this alarm turned even more frantic.
All three, grumbling at the squirrel.
The two twin eyes were like a full moon, chirping fast like Scuttle-crab hiding in a river.
More bloodthirsty than an elmark, in his name as an elmark.
Tough eagles berate hunters who hunt their eggs. The chrysanthemum flower with its beautiful petals encircled by the protective ivory of fear; pity Daisy, she who loves the flowers so much.
Ivern calmed them all down, and asked her to hide until the matter was over. He pretends to be unconscious with Daisy walking after him, thinking that Daisy thinks she can move without being caught.
He saw a shagyak body figure with eight wounded tusks impaled by something on the grass. Three arrows were seen piercing through their neck muscles. Tears dripped from Ivern's face, suddenly a squirrel named Mikkus ran towards the Green Father, climbed up and wiped the tears from his cheeks.
“The hunters were hunting for food,” said Ivern loudly. “Hunters break bones for toys. The hunters skinned for clothes and shoes.”
The body was no longer shiny, only covered in wounds. Ivern touched the ground, and gave rise to a blossom that spread over the shagyak's body. He also saw the baby rock snake leaving. They are known for their wisdom.
The body was no longer shiny, only covered in wounds. Ivern touched the ground, and gave rise to a blossom that spread over the shagyak's body. He also saw the baby rock snake leaving. They are known for their wisdom.
“Is this what you call safe?” the snake asked.
Ivern realized that the snakes were ashamed of always saying hiss. He challenged them to say the word they were afraid of, but they had learned and now only said a few special words with the prefix letter “s.”
Snakes; those who can always do more.
“It's safe now, little snake.” This little beast had to witness everything. “Come and watch this shagyak for me,” ask Ivern to force the baby snake. “I will return after I finish everything.”
***
This shagyak tusk splattered around the steps Rishbell had left behind, so much that he had to stop to pay attention to the scars that might kill him. There, these tusks would make a lot of money for the hunters. The people of the city will be kind enough to pay the expensive money to pay for the half-baked medicine.
Niko, the hunter with the box chin has managed to find other shagyak footprints. He gave a sign to the man behind him, Eddo, a wealthy city man who carried an arrow from the whale bone, then smiled. The smile from Eddo and the sneaky eyes from Risbell, the youngest among the others, shone along.
Elsewhere, an eight-tailed shagyak carcass lay on the grass of his favorite food. The three hunters slowly approached, witnessed by the leaves around the mute.
From their behavior, it was seen that they were alert by directing their bows while continuing to approach. The head of the shagyak can still be raised even though it is low, with its body already difficult to move on a flower, remaining only strength in its neck muscles. When pierced, the hump from the shagyak will continue to drain blood as they pluck the tusks. It is important to make sure that the shagyak is alive when the tusks are removed to make things easier, Eddo said.
Sweat poured from his neck as he was still waiting for the shagyak to lift his neck. When his head was lifted, the flower bloomed with destruction, from the ankle rapidly piercing through the head. The stalk faces towards the sun, its flowers blooming rapidly like glowing petals. Instantly, the flower fell on the body of the shagyak.
Eddo lowered his bow. Niko starts to play quietly and is happy to realize that her pouch will be filled. Risbell's bow is still in his hand. He didn't let go of his bow. He retreated leaning against the nearby tree in fear.
“I told you, this forest is a cursed place,” Risbell whispered. “We have to go immediately.”
“I've been dealing with mystical things before,” said Niko. “I will be able to deal with it easily.”
He put his bow back on his back and took a knife from his belt.
Eddo is the same. They ordered Risbell to store all his tusks as they started to leave. Risbell waited and held her breath, but she could not hear their footsteps. He still felt a feeling from this natural warning. Stories from his grandmother once told him that there are magical creatures that roam in this world. But all she could do was remind her common sense that it was all just a fairy tale.
A voice from the field in the forest there was heard. Not signifying the presence of shagyak, but this sound was as loud as a rock hitting the ground, and it split into many shards. Whatever caused the sound, it was enough to make Eddo and Niko escape. Their skin was pale and their eyes were wide open. Until finally Risbell saw the figure that made his friends take a thousand steps.
A flower of chrysanthemum flowers with coiled ivory, she danced on the grass. A pretty curious sight.
Then Risbell realized that the figure was getting closer. The grove split open, and there stood a lump of stone smeared. An incarnation of granite rock that is alive, looks very strong, and moves with rhythm. It took a long time for Risbell to realize what she saw, she heard a gentle call from the creature.
“Daisy! Be careful. And... don't be too rough!”
Risbell picked up the ivory bag and followed along with Niko and Eddo, trying to remember the route they took when leaving earlier. In each tree, there is a wall covered with grass. Something seemed to be watching him from behind the grass, walking from the leaves to the other leaves, making Risbell spin around looking for a way out. He was alone in the middle of a strange forest, and flanked by huge trees wrapped around grass, quickly shutting everything down
Risbell realized that she was locked up just like her grandmother who herded goats so as not to run away. With her already in the trap, Risbell straightened her shoulders and followed the direction of the grass.
***
Ivern watched how the young hunter came out of the grass bush and approached the shagyak body. He looks so scared. He had never seen anything or someone like this figure before him. Ivern tries to stay calm, but usually humans tend to do things spontaneously. Not like other creatures.
“Please don't be afraid. Unless you're always like that, you're panicking fast. If so, breathe for a moment. I have no problem.”
“Do it,” says Risbell. His voice shook and his eyes moved away. “I've been breaking by going into this forest, I realize. You can punish me. Do it quickly.”
“Quick?” Ivern. “Actually I didn't think to do that at all, but considering you shouldn't be here. Alright.”
Risbell finally closed his eyes and raised his chin, revealing his throat. He slipped his hand behind his knife and was ready to wait for what would happen next if the creature approached.
“But I just want to know why,” Ivern said in a voice full of excitement. He hinted his root finger towards the shagyak's body. His hands extend towards the chest of the beast, where he likes the delicate skin of his hump.
Risbell took his knife and felt a pain in his ankle. A cold sensation spread on his feet. When he looked down, he witnessed a stone snake, the most poisonous snake that Aulderwood had.
Shocked and panicked, he instantly removed the beast from his feet.
“Do not!” shouted Ivern.
A bundle of roots crept towards his hand, preventing him from attacking. The roots then trace his wrists and feet. He dropped his knife while still trying to free himself.
“I'll die!” her crying. The cold poison from the snake had already spread past his knees.
The snake went towards Ivern, climbed up his body and disappeared into his armpit. He finally appeared again behind his head, coiled on one of the branches, and stuck his tongue out at Ivern's ears.
“Sorry,” whispered the snake to Ivern. “I'm surprised.”
“Please,” says Risbell. “Please me.”
Ivern thought for a moment.
“Ah true!” her beautiful eyes were flashing a sign of an idea coming up. “There is something that shagyak is very fond of. Especially those who are dead.
“And also, please forgive Syrus; she just hatched and does not know how to control her poison. I'm afraid he's giving you a full dose of poison. He asked me to say sorry to you. You surprised him, and it was really a natural instinct,” Ivern said. “Now, see.”
The half-tree man knelt towards the shagyak body, closed his eyes, and hummed so deeply, the rhythm was earthy. His hands were on the ground, his fingers stretched out. The green color of the leaves was sparkling by the light coming out of his head, descending towards his hand, and entering into the ground. A strange purple mushroom sprung from the carcass of that body. It was a beginning; then grew a series of flowers that enveloped the shagyak's body. Instantly everything was just fine fur, bones, and a row of mushrooms.
“Ah, Stingsalve mushroom,” Ivern breathe. He picked one of them carefully. “Always on time.”
The roots running through Risbell's body began to loosen. He also fell. His hand suddenly pressed against his chest. It seemed like the poison had gotten there, so cold.
“Eat this,” said Ivern, offering the mushrooms he picked up earlier to the dying woman in front of him. “Maybe it will not taste like dew salamander or sunshine, but it is not as bad as apple lippstick as well.”
Risbell doesn't know anything about this tree man, but he has no choice and no other time. Suddenly a voice from the past haunts him. The voice of his grandmother. Trust in nature; the Green Father never misleads.
He took the mushroom from Ivern's hand. It tastes like bitter tea and leaves; like a disappointing dessert. After that the coldness that gripped his body slowly disappeared. Within a few minutes, he could move his legs.
After his body recovered, Ivern made him a strange leaf solution, with tree sap, and water from his toes. Ivern gave it to Risbell with a bird's nest falling in his hand.
“You are Him, right? The Green Father.”
Ivern nodded as if he did not know. “You know what we can do here? He said, while turning his attention to the shagyak bones. “Lumut is always happy to grow there.”
A moment after he said that, a carpet of moss coated the bones. With the abundance of mushrooms, what had looked terrible now turned out to be extremely beautiful.
“Sheldon always likes to see the bone turn into moss. Insects will also use the bone as a place to shelter during the down storm season. Nothing will be wasted,” Ivern said trying to get Risbell's attention. “It feels like it doesn't make sense, but everything really makes sense. If he's not killed, maybe you'll die.”
“We want the fangs,” Risbell said. He looked at his shoes in shame. “Many rich people want it. They are willing to pay dearly.”
“I remember what money was like. Cannot be used as a good motivation.”
“I realized we shouldn't have killed him. My grandmother always said if we should kill her, we should use her whole limb to respect and honor her.”
“I will be very happy to meet your grandmother,” said Ivern.
“He's already buried in the ground.”
“Back to the ground means the land will reward him.”
“I'm sorry,” Risbell replied after being silent for quite a while.
“All this life is precious.” these very gentle and warming words from Ivern make Risbell shed tears. Ivern rubbed his head. “I may not be able to cope with all these things any better. I remember so many things about humans, and so much I forgot how to learn.”
Ivern helps Risbell to stand up.
“I have to go now. I've promised the tadpoles in the Southern Pond area to witness their leader's election in lily pads. There is often a debate.”
Moments later, Risbell came out of the line of trees heading towards the river. After grabbing a few sips of water with both palms, he dug a hole and buried all the ivory there. He was dirty and prayed as his grandmother had taught him. He repeated the ritual until everything was completely buried in the ground. Lastly, he stood up and bowed his head as if honoring a grave.
From the depths of the Aulderwood forest, Ivern was smiling. That flock of shagyaks must be proud.
***